[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
., 15).Weems augments Cornaro s advice with his own instructions on howa virtuous citizen should maintain his or her health, despite the perils ofthe lowlands.Overall, Weems admonished his readers to exercise pru-dence in diet, temperance, and exposure to the elements.Ultimately,Weems s stint as editor of the slender Cornaro volume led to profit andfame.The appended tract, renamed The Immortal Mentor, was a strongseller for over 20 years.More important, the great republican icon,George Washington, favorably acknowledged the second edition.(Weems had sent a copy to Washington as a gift.) Ever the self-promoter,Weems immediately had Washington s letter copied and pasted in hisremaining stock.The letter would serve as the introduction to subse-quent editions.By 1794, Weems had formed an association with Mathew Carey, oneof the most successful printers and publishers of books during the earlynationalist period.His alliance with Carey now allowed him to expandhis publishing and book-peddling activities.(The latter primarily in-volved selling subscriptions.The prudent Carey would only print booksthat he knew would be profitable.) As he traveled the countryside (pri-marily, southern Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina)hawking subscriptions, Weems also promoted the stock he always hadon hand.These were usually romances, plays, or adventures.He urgedCarey to publish books about the lives of Revolutionary War heroes.Justas the adventure stories and romances that he sold often had a moralmessage, the biographies, Weems felt, would serve as positive reminders 176 Popular Culture of the New Nationof Revolutionary valor and patriotism, two qualities he believed all goodcitizens should possess.By 1799, Weems began writing his own series of tracts, the subject ofwhich he had deemed not only salable but also enlightening.The firstof these, The Philanthropist; or a Good Twelve Cents Worth of Political LovePowder for the Fair Daughters and Patriotic Sons of Virginia, was dedicatedto George Washington and signed Your very sincere friend, and Ma-sonic brother, M.L.Weems (see ibid., 27).Philanthropist is a 30-pageresponse to the political debate between the Federalists and the Repub-licans.Not only was it timely, but, more significant, it was extremelyprofitable for Weems and Carey.Thus began Weems s career as an author.In subsequent years, hepenned, published, and promoted such instructive missives as The DevilDone Over, The Beauties and Beatitudes of a Republic, The Drunkard s LookingGlass, The Bad Wife s Looking Glass, and those that might be flippantlyreferred to as the God s Revenge series: God s Revenge Against Adultery,God s Revenge Against Cruelty to Husbands, God s Revenge Against Murder,and God s Revenge Against Gambling.But the zealously didactic themesof these volumes did not deter Weems s readership.Indeed, Weems scautionary tracts were some of the best sellers in his inventory.None of these exceeded in popularity (or in notoriety) Weems s mostfamous authorial effort: A History of the Life and Death, Virtues and Exploitsof General George Washington (1800).Once again Weems demonstrated hisastute assessment of the literary marketplace.He knew his audience, itsneeds, and its predilections.When Washington died on December 14, 1799, the country came to-gether in its bereavement.Never had an American been mourned sopublicly and vocally.Songs, sermons, and essays deified the first presi-dent.By 1800 his birthday had been declared a national day of mourning.Although Weems was not personally acquainted with Washington dur-ing his lifetime (aside from Washington s short notes of appreciation toWeems on receipt of the latter s gift of Sure Certain Methods and Philan-thropist), he swiftly deemed himself Washington s biographer.In a letterto Carey, Weems proclaimed that theWashington you know is gone! Millions are gasping to read something abouthim.I am nearly primed and cocked for em.Six months ago I set myself tocollecting anecdotes of him.You know I live conveniently for that work.Myplan! I give his history.I then show that his unparrelled [sic] rise and eleva-tion were owing to his Great Virtues.All this I have lined and enlivened with Anecdotes apropos, interesting andentertaining.I amthinking that you could vend it admirably; as it will be thefirst.(see ibid., 82 83; Weems s emphasis) Literature 177Weems s biography of Washington is less a record of the historicalthan it is of the anecdotal.Weems s Washington became the paragon ofAmerican citizenry: religious, patriotic, brave, moral, industrious, andbenevolent.The History of George Washington was and is an exhortationof agrarianism and republican virtue.Indeed, Weems s account is as en-tertaining as he had promised Carey it would be.It was an instant suc-cess.The general public loved it.Those with a more literary bent foundit entertaining but, as a reviewer for Charles Brockden Brown s MonthlyMagazine and American Review asserted, it was filled with material that can be found in the annals of fanaticism and absurdity (see ibid., 90).By the fifth edition, Weems had added such apocrypha as the storythat Washington had been found at prayer at Valley Forge (reinforcingthe model of the pious patriot), that his many successes had been foretoldto his mother in a dream, and, most important, the story of GeorgeWashington and the cherry tree.In Weems s defense, the cherry tree story was not of his invention.Supposedly, one of Washington s distant relatives (at the time of herinterview with Weems, she was quite up in years) was the originator ofthe tale [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl trzylatki.xlx.pl
., 15).Weems augments Cornaro s advice with his own instructions on howa virtuous citizen should maintain his or her health, despite the perils ofthe lowlands.Overall, Weems admonished his readers to exercise pru-dence in diet, temperance, and exposure to the elements.Ultimately,Weems s stint as editor of the slender Cornaro volume led to profit andfame.The appended tract, renamed The Immortal Mentor, was a strongseller for over 20 years.More important, the great republican icon,George Washington, favorably acknowledged the second edition.(Weems had sent a copy to Washington as a gift.) Ever the self-promoter,Weems immediately had Washington s letter copied and pasted in hisremaining stock.The letter would serve as the introduction to subse-quent editions.By 1794, Weems had formed an association with Mathew Carey, oneof the most successful printers and publishers of books during the earlynationalist period.His alliance with Carey now allowed him to expandhis publishing and book-peddling activities.(The latter primarily in-volved selling subscriptions.The prudent Carey would only print booksthat he knew would be profitable.) As he traveled the countryside (pri-marily, southern Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina)hawking subscriptions, Weems also promoted the stock he always hadon hand.These were usually romances, plays, or adventures.He urgedCarey to publish books about the lives of Revolutionary War heroes.Justas the adventure stories and romances that he sold often had a moralmessage, the biographies, Weems felt, would serve as positive reminders 176 Popular Culture of the New Nationof Revolutionary valor and patriotism, two qualities he believed all goodcitizens should possess.By 1799, Weems began writing his own series of tracts, the subject ofwhich he had deemed not only salable but also enlightening.The firstof these, The Philanthropist; or a Good Twelve Cents Worth of Political LovePowder for the Fair Daughters and Patriotic Sons of Virginia, was dedicatedto George Washington and signed Your very sincere friend, and Ma-sonic brother, M.L.Weems (see ibid., 27).Philanthropist is a 30-pageresponse to the political debate between the Federalists and the Repub-licans.Not only was it timely, but, more significant, it was extremelyprofitable for Weems and Carey.Thus began Weems s career as an author.In subsequent years, hepenned, published, and promoted such instructive missives as The DevilDone Over, The Beauties and Beatitudes of a Republic, The Drunkard s LookingGlass, The Bad Wife s Looking Glass, and those that might be flippantlyreferred to as the God s Revenge series: God s Revenge Against Adultery,God s Revenge Against Cruelty to Husbands, God s Revenge Against Murder,and God s Revenge Against Gambling.But the zealously didactic themesof these volumes did not deter Weems s readership.Indeed, Weems scautionary tracts were some of the best sellers in his inventory.None of these exceeded in popularity (or in notoriety) Weems s mostfamous authorial effort: A History of the Life and Death, Virtues and Exploitsof General George Washington (1800).Once again Weems demonstrated hisastute assessment of the literary marketplace.He knew his audience, itsneeds, and its predilections.When Washington died on December 14, 1799, the country came to-gether in its bereavement.Never had an American been mourned sopublicly and vocally.Songs, sermons, and essays deified the first presi-dent.By 1800 his birthday had been declared a national day of mourning.Although Weems was not personally acquainted with Washington dur-ing his lifetime (aside from Washington s short notes of appreciation toWeems on receipt of the latter s gift of Sure Certain Methods and Philan-thropist), he swiftly deemed himself Washington s biographer.In a letterto Carey, Weems proclaimed that theWashington you know is gone! Millions are gasping to read something abouthim.I am nearly primed and cocked for em.Six months ago I set myself tocollecting anecdotes of him.You know I live conveniently for that work.Myplan! I give his history.I then show that his unparrelled [sic] rise and eleva-tion were owing to his Great Virtues.All this I have lined and enlivened with Anecdotes apropos, interesting andentertaining.I amthinking that you could vend it admirably; as it will be thefirst.(see ibid., 82 83; Weems s emphasis) Literature 177Weems s biography of Washington is less a record of the historicalthan it is of the anecdotal.Weems s Washington became the paragon ofAmerican citizenry: religious, patriotic, brave, moral, industrious, andbenevolent.The History of George Washington was and is an exhortationof agrarianism and republican virtue.Indeed, Weems s account is as en-tertaining as he had promised Carey it would be.It was an instant suc-cess.The general public loved it.Those with a more literary bent foundit entertaining but, as a reviewer for Charles Brockden Brown s MonthlyMagazine and American Review asserted, it was filled with material that can be found in the annals of fanaticism and absurdity (see ibid., 90).By the fifth edition, Weems had added such apocrypha as the storythat Washington had been found at prayer at Valley Forge (reinforcingthe model of the pious patriot), that his many successes had been foretoldto his mother in a dream, and, most important, the story of GeorgeWashington and the cherry tree.In Weems s defense, the cherry tree story was not of his invention.Supposedly, one of Washington s distant relatives (at the time of herinterview with Weems, she was quite up in years) was the originator ofthe tale [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]