Who are some important authors of American literature?

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Notable authors of American literature include: Phillis Wheatley, who was the first Black woman to become a poet of note in the United States; Edgar Allan Poe, a standout of the Romantic era; Emily Dickinson, a poet who commanded a singular brilliance of style and vision; Mark Twain, a master of humor and realism; Ernest Hemingway, a novelist who articulated the disillusionment of the Lost Generation; and Toni Morrison, a writer who centered her works on the experiences of Black Americans and received a Nobel Prize in 1993.

When did American literature begin?

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Literature has existed in what is now the United States for as long as the people who lived there have been telling stories. Native American cultures have a rich history of oral literature. As a specific discipline viewed through the lens of European literature, American literature began in the early 17th century with the arrival of English-speaking Europeans in what would become the American colonies.