Inventing Americas: 1800–1865 135at various stages in his life, they are all marked by a debt to English and American
Romantic poetry. Some of these are nature poems, others are autobiographical, still
others take as their subject some notable public event. All of them, however, are
notable for their scrupulously exact use of traditional verse forms, and their celebra-
tion of the prevailing beliefs of white American society at the time – notably, Progress
and Manifest Destiny. So a poem written to commemorate the completion of “The
Atlantic Cable” (1868) begins by declaring: “Let Earth be glad! for that great work is
done, / Which makes, at last the Old and New World one!” “Let all mankind rejoice!”
Ridge goes on, “for time nor space / Shall check the progress of the human race!”
This vision of “The fair, the bright millennial days to be” leaves no room for doubt.
The transatlantic cable is, for Ridge, both a symbol and an instance of the “knitted
unity” to come between all races and nations – of a glorious future time when all
“shall vibrate to the voice of Peace” in a brave new world of improved communica-
tion and perfect community.
Not all the work produced by Native Americans at this time conformed to white
standards, of course. On the contrary, some tried to register what was different about
their people by trying to record their tales and folklore. Notable among these was
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft (1800–1841). Born Jane Johnston, to an Ojibwa mother
and an Irish trader father, she was educated in Ojibwa lore by the one and in English
literature by the other. In 1823 she married the scholar and explorer Henry Rowe
Schoolcraft (1793–1864), whose main interest was the American Indian. And from
then until her death she remained his informant, guide, and assistant, interpreting
native sources for him and helping him to study the Ojibwa language. Together, the
Schoolcrafts began The Literary Voyager or Muzzenyegun in 1826, a magazine con-
taining examples of Ojibwa folklore as well as original poems and essays, many of
them by Jane Schoolcraft under assumed names. What is remarkable about the best
of this work is how, in the versions of Ojibwa folklore, Jane Schoolcraft deploys her
skills in English, her knowledge of English literary techniques and forms, to recreate
tales in a way that encourages the (presumably, white) reader’s interest and sympa-
thy without denying cultural difference, the intrinsic characteristics of the source.
A tale like “The Forsaken Brother” (1827), for instance, is very simple. It tells of how
two children, one male and one female, broke their promise to their dying parents
by neglecting to look after their younger brother and finally deserting him. What
distinguishes it, however, is its unusual blend of morality and magic. The older
brother, “fishing in his canoe in the lake” one day hears “the cry of a child.” It is, he
realizes, the voice of his little brother, singing out, “My brother, my brother, / I am
now turning into a Wolf.” At the termination of the song, the singer howls like a wolf.
The older brother hurries to the shore, sees that his forsaken sibling has indeed
turned into a wolf, and tries to catch and soothe him. But it is too late for anything
except regrets. The forsaken brother, now a wolf, evades his grasp and disappears
from sight. And both his brother and his older sister are left to feed on “the bitterness
of remorse” for the rest of their days.
While writers worked toward making the folklore of Native Americans available
and accessible to an English speaking audience, others tried to make that audienceGGray_c02.indd 135ray_c 02 .indd 135 8 8/1/2011 7:54:39 AM/ 1 / 2011 7 : 54 : 39 AM