This collection brings together several pieces from the late 1800s and early 1900s about life in Florida. In this passage, the author gives a detailed description of the vegetation and wildlife that surrounds the St. Johns River.

Speech given by Abraham Lincoln on November 19, 1863 at the dedication of the Gettysburg National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Part of the Lincoln anthology on Lit2Go.

An experience of hunting with Seminole Indians in Florida

Walden (also known as Walden; or, Life in the Woods) by Henry David Thoreau is one of the best-known non-fiction books written by an American. Published in 1854, it details Thoreau’s life for two years, two months, and two days in second-growth forest around the shores of Walden Pond, on land owned by Ralph Waldo Emerson, not far from his friends and family in Concord, Massachusetts. Walden was written so that the stay appears to be a year, with expressed seasonal divisions. Thoreau called it...

My Bondage and My Freedom is an autobiographical slave narrative written by Frederick Douglass and published in 1855. It is the second of three autobiographies written by Douglass, and is mainly an expansion of his first (Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass), discussing in greater detail his transition from bondage to liberty. Douglass, a former slave, following his liberation went on to become a prominent abolitionist, speaker, author, and publisher. In chapter one, Mr. Douglass...

Gulliver’s Travels (1726, amended 1735), officially Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, is a novel by Jonathan Swift that is both a satire on human nature and a parody of the “travellers’ tales” literary sub-genre. It is widely considered Swift’s magnum opus (masterpiece) and is his most celebrated work, as well as one of the indisputable classics of English literature. In chapter one, the author gives some account of himself and family. His first inducements to travel. He is...

The Colored Cadet at West Point is an autobiographical novel detailing the events leading up to Henry O. Flipper's groundbreaking appointment to the West Point Military Academy, and his active service in the U.S. Army that followed graduation. In chapter one, the author reflects on his family's experiences as slaves and the circumstances into which he was born.

Wuthering Heights is Emily Brontë’s only novel. The story is told in layers, a format that has earned the novel much praise despite initial mixed reviews. It is the story of Catherine and Heathcliff and how their unresolved passion eventually destroys them both. In chapter one, Mr. Lockwood writes in his diary about his visit with Mr. Heathcliff at Wuthering Heights, where he is to become Mr. Heathcliff's new tenant. Mr. Lockwood finds many things strange about his visit with Mr. Heathcliff.

The House of the Seven Gables, published in 1851, explores issues of class and the pursuit of wealth against the backdrop of decaying residences. In chapter one, Colonel Pyncheon helps convict the owner of a seven-gabled house (Matthew Maule) of witchcraft. At the gallows, Matthew curses and the Colonel. On the day the Colonel opens the seven-gabled mansion, he is found dead. Future generations experience unhappiness and Hepzibah (the current resident) opens a ten-cent shop.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a first person narrative told by the title character, Huckleberry Finn, as he accompanies a runaway slave on his journey to freedom. In chapter one, the outcome of Huck and Tom's previous adventures are revealed. Widow Douglas' attempts to civilize Huck.