Authors

Thomas Morton (c. 1579-1647)

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Questions for Discussion and Writing

Though we know little about Morton – compared to what we know about his Puritan neighbors down the way at Plymouth, those busy authors of histories, journals, and homilies – and though his prose would never win kudos for clarity, Morton is still a standout in this stretch of Colonial history. He presents himself as a party-animal, a real rarity on that coastline at that time; and when he is “busted” for his debaucheries, he defends himself by using the English language in ways that William Bradford, Myles Standish, and Company would never dare. Morton is the first English prose writer who writes deliberately to evade and obscure the truth. That puts him at the head of a long and dubious tradition.

1. Choose a moment in the Morton selection when he engages in double-talk or effusions of words that obliterate the facts, rather than present them. Then do a web search for modern examples of double-talk: by simply putting “double-talk” into your browser, you will find many passages offered by bloggers and other people as examples of this kind of prose. When you compare Morton’s murkiest writing to what you find, what differences do you see?

2. In the sequence of writers in the NAAL, Morton makes the first intentional effort at comedy. Wit, humor, and satire can sometimes last through many generations – but comic material can also spoil quickly. Where does Morton seem durably amusing? And where, in your view, has his humor gone flat? Looking at other authors or artists, can you find some concise examples of verbal or visual humor that has not stood the test of time? For each example, can you say why the humor went stale? Do you see any general patterns, in content or style, which cause some attempts at comedy to last, and some to decay in a hurry?