Letters from an American Farmer

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Letters From An American Farmer And Sketches Of Eighteenth-Century America was written by Jean de Crèvecoeur in 1782. Crevecoeur was an exceptional addition to the world of American literature and this was even more obvious with the publishing of his epistolary book.

Through a series of letters, Crevecoeur illustrates the idealized version of a free society, America. While the first letters portray a perfect conception of America, through his secluded farm called Pine Hill, the following letters depict a land damaged and destroyed by society and civilization. One such entity is slavery, which is described throughout the novel.

A favorite is Letter III of Letters from an American Farmer, "What Is an American":

I wish I could be acquainted with the feelings and thoughts which must agitate the heart and present themselves to the mind of an enlightened Englishman, when he first lands on this continent. He must greatly rejoice that he lived at a time to see this fair country discovered and settled; he must necessarily feel a share of national pride, when he views the chain of settlements which embellishes these extended shores. When he says to himself, this is the work of my countrymen, who, when convulsed by factions, afflicted by a variety of miseries and wants, restless and impatient, took refuge here. They brought along with them their national genius, to which they principally owe what liberty they enjoy, and what substance they possess. Here he sees the industry of his native country displayed in a new manner, and traces in their works the embryos of all the arts, sciences, and ingenuity which flourish in Europe. Here he beholds fair cities, substantial villages, extensive fields, an immense country filled with decent houses, good roads, orchards, meadows, and bridges, where an hundred years ago all was wild, woody and uncultivated! What a train of pleasing ideas this fair spectacle must suggest; it is a prospect which must inspire a good citizen with the most heartfelt pleasure.