Articles by John Neal

Articles by American writer John Neal (1793–1876) influenced the development of American literature towards cultural independence and a unique style. They were published in newspapers, magazines, and literary journals and are part of his bibliography. They include his first known published work and pieces published in the last decade of his life. The topics of these works reflect the Neal's broad interests, including women's rights, feminism, gender, race, slavery, children, education, law, politics, art, architecture, literature, drama, religion, gymnastics, civics, American history, science, phrenology, travel, language, political economy, and temperance.

Black and white engraving of the bust of a middle-aged White man with plain countenance, curly hair, and a buttoned black coat
John Neal in 1856

Neal was one of the leading critics of his time,[1] demonstrating distrust of institutions and an affinity for self-examination and self-reliance.[2] Compared to Neal's lesser success in creative works,[3] literary historian Fred Lewis Pattee found that "his critical judgments have held. Where he condemned, time has almost without exception condemned also."[4] Editors of newspapers, magazines, and annual publications sought contributions from Neal on a wide variety of topics, particularly in the second half of the 1830s.[5] His early articles make him one of the first male advocates of women's rights and feminist causes in the United States.[6]

Neal was the first American to be published in any British literary magazine[7] and in that capacity wrote the first history of American literature[8] and American painters.[9] His early encouragement of writers John Greenleaf Whittier, Edgar Allan Poe, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Elizabeth Oakes Smith, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and many others, helped launch their careers.[10] Neal was the first American art critic,[11] and his essays from the 1820s were recognized as "prophetic" by art historian Harold E. Dickson.[12] As an early and outspoken theater critic, he drafted a future for American drama that was only partially realized sixty years later.[13]

Articles

Articles by John Neal
TitleDatePublication typePublication nameTopicNotesRef.
"Apostasy"April 27, 1814NewspaperHallowell GazetteLaw and politicsJohn Neal's first published work: a political essay published when Neal was living in Hallowell, Maine, as a penmanship instructor[14][15]
"Thoughts on Female Impropriety"Between December 1815 and June 1816NewspaperThe WandererUnknownOriginally prepared for recitation at the all-female Wanderer Club of Baltimore;[16] published in volume I, pp. 165–168[17]
"Criticism. Lord Byron"October 1816, November 1816, December 1816, and January 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA 150-page criticism of Lord Byron's works written in four days and published in four installments;[18] Neal's first published literary criticism[19][20]
"Airs of Palestine, a Poem; By John Pierpont, Esq"December 1816MagazineThe Port FolioLiterary criticismA review of The Airs of Palestine by John Pierpont[20]
"The Life and Studies of Benjamin West, Esq. By John Galt. Philadelphia. 1816"January 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA recommendation of John Galt's biography of painter Benjamin West[21][22]
"Crystalina, a Fairy Tale, by an American. New York. 1816"January 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA criticism of the poem Crystallina; a Fairy Tale, in Six Cantos by John Milton Harney, identifying what he saw as faults, possible inspirations, and evidence it is "one of the most splendid productions of the age."[23][22]
"Essay on Duelling"February 1817MagazineThe PorticoSocial criticism"Describes dueling as a gendered performance, in which women play an enabling role and which they have an obligation to stop," similar to his subsequent novel, Keep Cool[24][22]
"The Village, a Poem ... Portland ... 1816"March 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismQualified praise for the poem "The Village" by Neal's friend and later Maine governor Enoch Lincoln; includes an attempted definition of poetry[25] and dismisses the expectation of including prose notes with poetry as an unnecessary British precedent[26][22]
"Childe Harold's Pilgrimmage, Canto third. With other Poems. By Lord Byron ... 1817"March 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA criticism of Childe Harold's Pilgrimage[27][22]
"Remarks Addressed to the Author of the Essay on Genius and Passion in the last Number of the Portico"March 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiteratureA reaction to an article by Stephen Simpson in the preceding issue; debates the distinction between passion and genius[28][22]
"Reply to the Essay entitled 'Genius the Soul of Passion.' Addressed to 'S.'"May 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiteratureA reaction to an article by Stephen Simpson in the preceding issue, itself being a reaction to Simpson's original article in the February issue; debates the distinction between passion and genius[29][22]
"Reply to 'a Lounger,' on the subject of DuellingMay 1817MagazineThe PorticoSocial criticismA reaction to an article in the preceding issue that reacted to Neal's "Essay on Duelling" in February; asserts the immorality of duels[30][22]
"'Bertram; a Tragedy' and 'Manuel; a Tragedy'—by the Rev. R. C. Maturin"June 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA criticism of Charles Robert Maturin's plays Bertram and Manuel that "grossly over-estimates" their value; makes clear Maturin's influence on Neal's first dramatic work, Otho[31][20]
"Criticism"August 16, 1817NewspaperColumbian CentinelLiterary criticismA criticism of William Shakespeare[32][33]
"Criticism: Manfred, A Dramatick Poem, by Lord Byron"September–October 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA criticism of Lord Byron's Manfred that points out absurdities in the poem but overall offers high praise[34][20]
"Remarks on Anster Fair"December 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA kind assessment of the poem Anster Fair by William Tennant, dubbing it "one of the most finished poems in our language"[35][36]
"Tales of my Landlord"December 1817MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismPraise for the characterization in the novel series Tales of My Landlord by Walter Scott in an overall poor review dubbing the works as "overburdened with a wearisome load of laboured trash"[37][36]
"Boswell and Johnson"January–March 1818MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA critique of The Life of Samuel Johnson by James Boswell originally read by Neal before the Delphian Club April 26, 1817; republished in the Portland Tribune circa 1841; republished as "Boswell and Johnson—a Critique" in Emerson's United States Magazine November 1856[38]
"Criticism. Demetrius, a Russian Romance. Baltimore"April–June 1818MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA dismissal of the anonymous novel Demetrius, a Russian Romance for "studied unnaturalness"[39][36]
"Demetrius, the Hero of the Don. An epick poem, by Alexis Eustaphieve. Boston"April–June 1818MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA dismissal of Demetrius, the Hero of the Don, An Epick Poem by Alexis Eustaphieve for poor diction and verse structure[40][36]
"What is the Chief Excellence of Shakespeare?"April–June 1818MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismRefutes the significance of Shakespeare's character delineation and asserts the significance of the playwright's "simplicity and artlessness"; read at the Delphian Club June 20, 1818[41][42]
"Childe Harold's Pilgrimage. Canto IV by Lord Byron. Philadelphia, published by M. Thomas"April–June 1818MagazineThe PorticoLiterary criticismA criticism of the fourth canto of Childe Harold's Pilgrimage[43][42]
"Man not a Free Agent"April–June 1818MagazineThe PorticoReligionA refutation of the philosophy of Thomas Reid; contends that God's foreknowledge of the future renders humans not accountable for sin; recanted in Wandering Recollections of a Somewhat Busy Life[44][36]
"Byron, Moore and Hunt"September 19, 1818MagazineThe Journal of the TimesLiterary criticism"Distinctly over-estimates Hunt, is pretty severe on Moore, and makes the mistake of pronouncing Byron a dramatist"[45][46]
"American Character"September 26, October 3, October 17, and October 24, 1818MagazineThe Journal of the TimesRegionalism and nationalismCalls for recognition of US national character distinct from the UK, arguing that as a young nation, the US is more connected to its origins than older nations; calls for support of American literature; in four installments[47][46]
"Junius Not Identified"January 16, January 30, February 6, February 13, February 20, and February 27, 1819MagazineThe Journal of the TimesLiterary criticismAlleges that John Taylor's identification of Junius as Sir Philip Francis is false, but offers no theory as to the identity of Junius; originally delivered as a 100-minute address before the Delphian Club witnessed only by Paul Allen and Tobias Watkins; published in seven installments[48][46]
Review of The BackwoodsmanFebruary 23 and 24, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiterary criticismUnfavorable review of the poem The Backwoodsman by James Kirke Paulding; published over two issues[49]
"Unanimity"February 25, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLaw and politicsExpresses favor for the Federalist Party[50]
Sturges v. Crowninshield articlesFebruary 26, February 27, March 2, March 4, April 1, April 2, and April 3, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLaw and politicsA series of articles criticizing Chief Justice John Marshall's opinion in Sturges v. Crowninshield and advocating national bankruptcy laws[51]
Letter signed "Eleanor"March 3, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphEnglish languageRemarks on pronunciation and good use of English[52]
Review of Hoffman's Course of Legal StudyMarch 6, 8, and 10, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLaw and politicsA recommendation of David Hoffman's Course of Legal Study, detailing how Neal used it as a guide for reading law; published in three installments[53]
"The Moralist"March 6, March 13, March 20, April 3, and April 9, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphChildren and educationA series of five articles offering advice for parents of children and Neal's early feminist views; part of a discourse with articles by "The Friend of Reflection" in the same paper in the same period[54]
"The Fine Arts"March 10, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismPoor review of an engraving of the signing of the US Declaration of Independence; prompted a multi-issue printed debate between Neal and a writer under the pseudonym "Print-Seller"[55]
Review of reviewMarch 10, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiterary criticismA review of a review in the Analectic Magazine of Sacred Songs by Thomas Moore and The Airs of Palestine by John Pierpont[56]
"Spanish-Italian-French"March 11, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphEnglish languageRemarks on pronunciation and good use of English[52]
"The Federalist"March 12 – April 13, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLaw and politicsAdvocates the Federalist Party, questions Andrew Jackson's justification of the Seminole Wars; published in eight installments[57]
Review of WoodMarch 16, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismPraise for local Baltimore portrait painter named Wood[58]
Review of The Passage of the DelawareMarch 16, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismA critique of Thomas Sully's painting The Passage of the Delaware[58]
"Walker's Pronunciation"March 17, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphEnglish languageRemarks on pronunciation and good use of English[52]
"Battle of Waterloo"March 20, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismOne of Neal's earliest published art critiques[58]
"To the Friend of Reflection"March 20, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphFeminism and women's rightsAn exploration of the intellectual capacities of, and differences between, men and women[59]
"American Perseverance"March 24, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphRegionalism and nationalismDisplays "militant Americanism"[52]
"Airs of Palestine"March 25, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiterary criticismA review of The Airs of Palestine by John Pierpont[20]
Review of BrutusApril 10, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphTheatrical criticismCritique of the play Brutus by John Howard Payne, exploring Payne's influences[60]
Review of Florence MacarthyApril 14, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiterary criticismPraises Florence Macarthy by Lady Morgan as "remarkably well written," but not one of the author's best novels[61]
"Plagiarism — Poets"April 16, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiteratureAn exploration of what is and isn't original in poetry given similarities between contemporary poets' work and their predecessors[62]
"Pickering's Vocabulary"April 21, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphEnglish languageRemarks on pronunciation and good use of English[52]
"American Character"April 22, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphRegionalism and nationalismDisplays "militant Americanism"[52]
"Baltimore — Publick Buildings"April 23, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismArchitectural criticism of Baltimore's public buildings, with comparison to those of Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston; condemns the use of false fronts and the Massachusetts State House for "a most savage style of disproportion and deformity"[63]
"Battle Monument"June 12, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismPraise for the design of Baltimore's Washington Monument for "grand simplicity, without ornament or frippery" and for Baltimore's Battle Monument for its "elegance of design"; continued in the June 19 issue as a letter from "an American"[64]
"Citizen No. II"June 23 and 29, 1819NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLaw and politicsArgues against the constitutionality of state banks issuing banknotes a decade before the argument was made by Albert Gallatin; published in two installments[65]
"Mazeppa"August 27, 1819NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismA criticism of Mazeppa by Lord Byron, pronouncing it a forgery[66][67]
"Don Juan"October 16, 1819NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismA criticism of Don Juan by Lord Byron, pronouncing it a forgery[68][67]
"American Painters and Painting"February 19, 1820NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismDisplays "militant Americanism" in review of American artists[52]
Review of IvanhoeMarch 4, 1820NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiterary criticismCriticism of Ivanhoe by Walter Scott as formulaic; republished in the New England Galaxy (March 17, 1820)[69]
"Fanny, a Poem. By Croaker"June 9, 1820NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismA criticism of the poem Fanny by Fitz-Greene Halleck, denouncing it as an inferior imitation of Lord Byron's Don Juan, but pronouncing of the author "as an original and a genius, he might be of the first class"[70][67]
"Something New"February 18, 1820NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiterary criticismPraise for James Kirke Paulding's Salmagundi[71]
Review of SullyMarch 17, 1820NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismPraise for painter Thomas Sully[58]
Review of The Lay of a Maniac Harper, Sung over the Grave of his MistressAugust 4, 1820NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiterary criticismCritique of the poem The Lay of a Maniac Harper, Sung over the Grave of his Mistress by Grenville Mellen; praises the work as a whole but condemns something in every line[72]
Review of Rembrandt PealeSeptember 8, 1820NewspaperMorning ChronicleArt criticismPraise for painter Rembrandt Peale[73]
"Dr. Hoyden's Geological Essays"November 18, 1820NewspaperFederal Gazette and Baltimore Daily AdvertiserSciencePraise for Geological Essays by Horace H. Hayden[74]
Review of Judith, Esther, and Other PoemsDecember 15 and 22, 1820NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismPraise for the collection Judith, Esther, and Other Poems by Maria Gowen Brooks[75]
Review of Song, Composed for the Anniversary of the Landing of our FathersMarch 17, 1821NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphLiterary criticismCritique of the poem Song, Composed for the Anniversary of the Landing of our Fathers by Grenville Mellen rejecting a review of the work in the New England Galaxy[72]
"Reubens' Picture"April 2, 1821NewspaperFederal Republican and Baltimore TelegraphArt criticismA review of the painting Rubens Peale with a Geranium by Rembrandt Peale[58]
Review of Rembrandt PealeApril 7, 1821NewspaperMorning ChronicleArt criticismPraise for painter Rembrandt Peale[73]
"Sukey"April 27, 1821NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismA criticism of the poem Sukey by William Bicker Walter, denouncing it as an imitation of Fanny by Fitz-Greene Halleck, but pronouncing that "the poet is an honour to his country"[70][67]
Review of KeanMay 11, 1821NewspaperNew England GalaxyTheatrical criticismCriticism of actor Edmund Kean; Neal was "heartily tired of him" and his "violent transition, stage trick, and exaggeration"[76]
"Progress of the Fine Arts"October 10, 1821NewspaperMorning ChronicleArt criticismOne of Neal's earliest published articles on art[58]
"Noah"October 19, 1821NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismA criticism of the poem Noah by Paul Allen, describing it as tame, but best in parts where it is least tame[77][67]
Review of Rembrandt PealeDecember 25, 1821NewspaperMorning ChronicleArt criticismPraise for painter Rembrandt Peale[73]
"Mr. Pelby's Hamlet"July 6, 1822NewspaperBaltimore Patriot and Mercantile AdvertiserTheatrical criticismPraise for English actor William Pelby based on his performance in Baltimore, summer 1822[78]
"Fine Arts"October 9, 1822NewspaperMorning ChronicleArt criticismOne of Neal's earliest published articles on art[58]
"Review of the First Annual Exhibition at Baltimore"October 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, and 31, 1822NewspaperMorning Chronicle, Federal Republican and Baltimore Telegraph, and American and Commercial Daily AdvertiserArt criticismCritiques every piece (approximately 200) at a Peale Museum exhibition, including works by Sarah Miriam Peale, Thomas Sully, Gilbert Stuart, and Chester Harding;[79] "the most pretentious" of Neal's Baltimore newspaper art criticism; first three installments in the Morning Chronicle, fourth in the Federal Republican and Baltimore Telegraph, and the fifth through fifteenth in the American and Commercial Daily Advertiser[73]
Review of BoothOctober 23, 1822NewspaperAmerican and Commercial Daily AdvertiserTheatrical criticismPraise for actor Junius Brutus Booth, with comparisons to Edmund Kean[80]
Review of Quentin DurwardJune 25, 1823NewspaperColumbian ObserverLiterary criticismA lukewarm review of Quentin Durward by Sir Walter Scott, declaring it inferior to Guy Mannering and Ivanhoe[81]
Letter to John Elihu HallAugust 15, 1823NewspaperColumbian ObserverLiterary criticismAn attack on John Elihu Hall's review of Logan and Seventy-Six in The Port Folio (August 1823)[82]
"Second Exhibition of Paintings at the Museum"October 30 – November 24, 1823NewspaperFederal Gazette and Baltimore Daily AdvertiserArt criticismPublished anonymously in seven installments and signed "Remarks of an Old Brush"; "an extraordinary-for-its-day" description of the role of art critics in society and individual critiques of 253 works by 47 artists at the Peale Museum, including Sarah Miriam Peale[83]
"Sketches of the Five American Presidents, and of the Five Presidential Candidates, from the Memoranda of a Traveller"May 1824MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineBiographyBiographical sketches of George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, John C. Calhoun, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, William H. Crawford, and Henry Clay;[84] the first article by an American to appear in a British literary journal;[7] republished by Alexander Walker in The European Review: or, Mind and its Productions, in Britain, France, Italy, Germany, &c. the same year[85][86]
"Speculations of a Traveller, concerning the People of North America and Great Britain"June 1824MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineRegionalism and nationalismContrasts the governments of the US and UK with the intent to foster curiosity about the US among Britons[87][86]
"American Character"June 1824MagazineThe European Review: or, Mind and its Productions, in Britain, France, Italy, Germany, &c.Social criticismResponds to the argument that diversity in race, language, and culture erodes American national character by showing how the opposite has eroded national character in European nations[88][85]
"Speculations of a Traveller concerning the People of the United States; with Parallels"July 1824MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineRegionalism and nationalismContrasts the social characteristics of people from England, Ireland, Scotland, New England, Virginia, and Kentucky[89][86]
"North America. Peculiarities. State of the Fine Arts. Painting."August 1824MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineArt criticismThe first published history of American painting;[9] excerpted in Observations on American Art: Selections from the Writings of John Neal (1793–1876) (1943);[90] a critique of cultivation of fine arts in the US and a discussion of eleven American artists, including Benjamin West and John Trumbull; republished in the Columbian Observer (multiple issues beginning November 17, 1824)[91][86]
"American Writers"September 1824, October 1824, November 1824, January 1825, February 1825MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineLiterary criticismCriticism of 135 American authors in five installments;[92] the earliest written history of American literature;[93] reprinted as a collection in American Writers: A Series of Papers Contributed to Blackwood's Magazine (1824–1825) (1937);[94] excerpted in The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings (1978)[95][96]
"Men and Women; Brief Hypothesis concerning the Difference in their Genius"October 1824MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineFeminism and women's rightsAn exploration of how women are unlike, but not inferior to, men[97][86]
"A Summary View of America"December 1824MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineMultiplePurportedly a review of A Summary View of America by Isaac Candler "literally buried beneath the grasping tendrils and riotous fruitage of Neal's birthright knowledge of his native country" in a "vast panorama" conveying Neal's views on slavery and other topics in thirty-six pages that "should be read by anyone interested in the America of 1825";[98] the longest article Blackwood's had yet published;[99] includes Neal's first call for women's suffrage[100][86]
"M. Godefroy"April 1825MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineBiographyA defense of the works and character of Maximilian Godefroy, possibly prompted by Neal's own guilt for a derogatory reference in "A Summary View of America"[101][86]
"Celebration of the Landing of the Pilgrim Fathers in America"July–September 1825MagazineThe Oriental Herald, and Journal of General LiteratureRegionalism and nationalismA history of early British American colonization leading up to the Plymouth Colony and an account of the recent celebration of the anniversary of that colony's founding; written under an assumed English identity[102][103]
"Late American Books. 1. Peep at the Pilgrims; 2. Lionel Lincoln; 3. Memoirs of Charles Brockden Brown; 4. John Bull in America; 5. The Refugee; 6. North American Review, No. XLVI"September 1825MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineLiterary criticismA review of North American Review and new American literature including Lionel Lincoln; predicts a new American revolution against "literary, not political bondage";[104] republished in American Writers: A Series of Papers Contributed to Blackwood's Magazine (1824–1825) (1937);[94] excerpted in The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings (1978)[95][96]
"North American Politics. By a Genuine Yankee. Probable Separation of the States; Causes — considered in detail. Georgia Resolutions, &c. &c. &c."September 1825MagazineBlackwood's Edinburgh MagazineLaw and politicsNeal's final contribution to Blackwood's; reveals that he is American and not British without revealing his name but for signing it "N."; reveals his intent in previous articles of this publication to attract British attention to the US; declares the slavery issue as capable of separating the states[105][86]
"Observations on the Present State of Literature in the North American Republick"September and October 1825MagazineThe European Magazine and London ReviewRegionalism and nationalismPublished in two installments; discussion of the impediments to the US developing a distinct literature and in what ways they have already been overcome or not[106]
"Sketches of American Character. British Authorities Examined. Mr. Mathews' Trip to America. By an American"December 1825MagazineThe European Magazine and London ReviewTheatrical criticismAn attack on theatrical representations of Yankee character by Charles Mathews[107]
"United States"January 1826MagazineWestminster ReviewSocial criticismA summary of Neal's views on the American militia system, slavery, legal system, and literary style[108][42]
"Letters from the United States of North America No. I. Habits of the People — Inconsistency — Scraps of their Speech — Master and Servant — Helps — Emigrants — Tricks in Trade"January 1826MagazineThe Monthly Magazine, or British Register of Literature, Sciences, and Belles LettresSocial criticismOne of a seven-part series of essays written from the perspective of an observer in America to a British reader; highlights inconsistencies in American behavior regarding slavery, democracy, social hierarchy, and trade[109][110]
"Reply to Mr. Mathews. By a Native Yankee"February 1826MagazineThe European Magazine and London ReviewRegionalism and nationalismA reply to Charles Mathews's response to "Sketches of American Character. British Authorities Examined. Mr. Mathews' Trip to America. By an American" (December 1825)[111]
"Letters from the United States of North America No. II"March 1826MagazineThe Monthly Magazine, or British Register of Literature, Sciences, and Belles LettresSocial criticismOne of a seven-part series of essays written from the perspective of an observer in America to a British reader; focused on Boston's value as a city[109][110]
"Lecture on Verbicide — By a Man of the Law"April 1826MagazineThe Monthly Magazine, or British Register of Literature, Sciences, and Belles LettresEnglish languagePossibly originally prepared for presentation at the Delphian Club circa 1816–1820; a humorous examination of pun use[112][110]
"Yankee Notions"April, May, and June 1826MagazineThe London MagazineTravelAn account of Neal's departure from Baltimore, transatlantic journey, early impressions of England from late 1823 through early 1824, and contrasts between the UK and US; the most detailed account of Neal's reasons for leaving Baltimore and for relocating to London; published in three installments[113][110]
"Letters from the United States of North America No. III"May 1826MagazineThe Monthly Magazine, or British Register of Literature, Sciences, and Belles LettresMultipleOne of a seven-part series of essays written from the perspective of an observer in America to a British reader; "More rambling than the first two" essays in this series; praises the American Journal of Education and new American interest in education, particularly physical education; calls for measures to protect American authors from British competition; describes holiday traditions in the US with focus on Independence Day[114][110]
"The Last American Novel"May 1826MagazineThe London MagazineLiterary criticismSharp criticism of The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper[115]
"Gymnastic Exercises in London"June 1826MagazineAmerican Journal of EducationGymnasticsA report of Carl Voelker's work with gymnastics in London[116][117]
"Professor Voelker's Gymnasium, London"July 1826MagazineAmerican Journal of EducationGymnasticsA report of Carl Voelker's work with gymnastics in London[116][117]
"Letters from the United States of North America No. IV. Painters — Painting"July 1826MagazineThe Monthly Magazine, or British Register of Literature, Sciences, and Belles LettresArt criticismPart of a seven-part series of essays written from the perspective of an observer in America to a British reader; continued in "Letters from the United States of North America No. V. Painters — Painting" (August 1826); asserts a good writer makes a better art critic than a painter; "a thorough, if unsystematic review" in parts IV and V of American painters John Singleton Copley, Benjamin West, Gilbert Stuart, John Trumbull, Washington Allston, Thomas Sully, John Wesley Jarvis, the Peale family (Charles Willson Peale, Titian Ramsay Peale I, Titian Ramsay Peale II, Raphaelle Peale, Rembrandt Peale, Harriet Cany Peale, Rosalba Carriera Peale, Rubens Peale, James Peale, Maria Peale, Anna Claypoole Peale, Margaretta Angelica Peale, Sarah Miriam Peale), Charles Robert Leslie, Gilbert Stuart Newton, John Vanderlyn, Samuel Morse, Robert Matthew Sully, William Edward West, Chester Harding, James Bowman, and others, that continued through the next essay in the series[118][67]
"Mr. John Dunn Hunter; The Hero of Hunter's Activity Among The Indians, &c."July 1826MagazineThe London MagazineBiographyAttacks the authenticity of John Dunn Hunter's published narratives of living among American Indians[119][110]
"The Character of the Real Yankees; What They are Supposed to Be, and What They Are"September 1826MagazineThe New Monthly Magazine and Literary JournalRegionalism and nationalismWhat Neal considers the defining characteristics of New England Yankees, compared to how Yankees are viewed by other Americans, by Europeans, and themselves; originally written as the introductory chapter of Brother Jonathan (1825);[120] republished in the Portland Tribune circa 1841[121][20]
"Letters from the United States of North America No. VI. General View of Education There"October 1826MagazineThe Monthly Magazine, or British Register of Literature, Sciences, and Belles LettresMultipleOne of a seven-part series of essays written from the perspective of an observer in America to a British reader; discusses treatment of Black Americans by Whites in northern and southern states; focuses on American schools; includes notice of the anticipated first edition of Webster's Dictionary[118][67]
"Bull in America; or, the New Munchausen"October–December 1826MagazineThe Oriental Herald, and Journal of General LiteratureLiterary criticismCriticizes James Kirke Paulding's John Bull in America as a misrepresentation of the US[122][103]
"Teachers of Gymnastics"November 1826MagazineAmerican Journal of EducationGymnasticsA report of Carl Voelker's work with gymnastics in London[116][117]
"Letters from the United States of North America No. VII. British Travellers in America"December 1826MagazineThe Monthly Magazine, or British Register of Literature, Sciences, and Belles LettresRegionalism and nationalismOne of a seven-part series of essays written from the perspective of an observer in America to a British reader; responds to misrepresentations of America by British authors[123][67]
"Gymnastics Schools in England"January 1827MagazineAmerican Journal of EducationGymnasticsA report of Carl Voelker's work with gymnastics in London[116][117]
Language learning articles1828–1829MagazineThe YankeeChildren and educationA series of six articles exploring methods for learning new languages, including the Hamiltonian system, among others; focused on romance languages[124]
Northeast border articles1828–1829MagazineThe YankeeLaw and politicsA series of eight articles exploring the Maine border dispute that precipitated the Aroostook War[125]
Temperance articles1828–1829MagazineThe YankeeTemperanceA series of eleven articles condemning the negative impacts of the New England rum industry and promoting caution in the consumption of alcohol[126]
Gymnastics articles1828–1829MagazineThe YankeeGymnasticsA series of twenty-three articles documenting the growth of gymnastics in Portland, Maine and elsewhere[127]
"England, a General View of Society There"January 1, 9, January 23, February 6, February 20, and March 5, 1828MagazineThe YankeeTravelReviews literature, art, and character of the people in England, based on Neal's travels 1824–1827; published in six installments[128]
"Mrs. Sarah J. Hale"January 16, 1828MagazineThe YankeeFeminism and women's rightsPraises Ladies' Magazine editor Sarah Josepha Hale; calls for more female editors and greater opportunities for female economic independence[129]
"More Portland Poetry"January 23, 1828MagazineThe YankeeLiterary criticismCriticism of poets from Portland, Maine[130]
Lottery articlesJanuary 23, January 30, February 6, February 13, March 3, March 26, April 16, April 30, June 11, June 18, June 25, July 2, August 13, September 10, November 26, and December 10, 1828MagazineThe YankeeSocial criticismA "vigorous campaign" of seventeen articles (two in the June 25 issue) denouncing lotteries as encouraging idle and reckless behavior[131]
"Ourself"February 6, 1828MagazineThe YankeeRegionalism and nationalismA vindication of Neal's work in London for British literary journals as a patriotic undertaking[132]
Utilitarianism articlesFebruary 16, February 23, March 12, March 19, May 28, June 25, and October 15, 1828MagazineThe YankeeSocial criticismA series of articles on Jeremy Bentham-inspired utilitarianism in seven installments; February 23 includes an excerpt from The Principles of Moral and Political Philosophy by William Paley[133]
"New England As It Was"March–November 1828MagazineThe YankeeRegionalism and nationalismA multipart essay exploring New England customs, traditions, and speech; published in tandem with "New England As It Is"; attributed to "A Yankee"[134]
"New England As It Is"March–November 1828MagazineThe YankeeRegionalism and nationalismA multipart essay exploring New England customs, traditions, and speech; published in tandem with "New England As It Was"; attributed to "A Yankee"[134]
"Live Yankees"March 5, April 23, May 14, May 28, and June 11, 1828MagazineThe YankeeRegionalism and nationalismA five-part essay exploring the defining characteristics of Yankee New Englanders; republished in the Portland Tribune circa 1841[121][135]
"The Men of England"March 19, April 2, April 16, April 30, and May 14, 1828MagazineThe YankeeTravelReviews the character of the male citizens of England, based on Neal's travels 1824–1827; published in five installments[128]
Portland sidewalk articlesMarch 12, April 16, September 3, and September 17, 1828MagazineThe YankeeLaw and politicsA series of four articles advocating the construction of Portland, Maine's first sidewalks.[136]
"Portland Mechanics"March 19, 1828MagazineThe YankeeSocial criticismA notice of the Maine Charitable Mechanic Association; republished in the Portland Tribune circa 1841[137]
"Woman"March 26, 1828MagazineThe YankeeFeminism and women's rightsCalls for greater opportunities for female economic independence[138]
"England — By a Yankee"June 4, June 18, July 2, July 16, July 30, August 13, and August 27, 1828MagazineThe YankeeFeminism and women's rightsMusings on differences between men and women, educational and economic opportunities for women in England compared to the US, ideals of beauty, female morality, marriage, and relationship between men and women in England; published in seven installments[139]
"English Eloquence, Oratory, and Newspapers"August 1828 – June 1829MagazineThe YankeeTravelReviews the manners of communication in England, based on Neal's travels 1824–1827; published in twelve installments[128]
"Jokology"November 12, 1828MagazineThe YankeeMultipleOriginally prepared as a speech for the Delphian Club circa 1816–1820; similar to "Lecture on Verbicide — By a Man of the Law" in The Monthly Magazine, or British Register of Literature, Sciences, and Belles Lettres (April 1826)[140]
"Natural Writing"November 26, 1828MagazineThe YankeeEnglish languageA treatise on natural diction in writing[141]
"Editorial Comforts"January 1829MagazineThe YankeeSocial criticismComplains of mistreatment by others in the literary world but promises subscribers that future issues of The Yankee will show a reduction in personal grievances by Neal; includes positive comments by Mathew Carey[142]
"To Correspondents"January 1, 1829MagazineThe YankeeFeminism and women's rightsAttacks social prejudice against unmarried women[143][138]
"DOMESTIC DUTIES (from the 32nd London Edition of Mrs. William Parkes.) J. & J. HARPER. New York"January 8, 1829MagazineThe YankeeLiterary criticismA favorable review of Domestic Duties by Mrs. William Parkes[143][138]
"Sectarian Discourses"February–April 1829MagazineThe YankeeReligionA discussion of sermons by Christian leaders of various sects, including Universalists, Unitarians, Baptists, and Trinitarians[144]
"Rights of Women. Review of the Mayor's Report — so far as it relates to the High School for Girls. By E. BAILEY, late Master of that School. Boston. BOWLES & DEARBORN"March 5, 1829MagazineThe YankeeFeminism and women's rightsDenounces "with considerable heat" Josiah Quincy III's decision to close the Boston High School for Girls[129] and attacks the legal institution of coverture;[145] includes "Neal's angriest and most assertive feminist claims"[146][147]
Review of The WifeMarch 5, 1829MagazineThe YankeeFeminism and women's rightsA scathing review of The Wife book in the Tales of Woman series for its dismissal of women's potential; calls for political rights for women[148][138]
"Tactique des Assemblées Législatives"March 26, 1829MagazineThe YankeeLaw and politicsA summary of Tactique des Assemblées Législatives by Jeremy Bentham on the advantages of government by a single legislative body[149]
"Penitentiary System"April 9, April 23, May 14, June 11, June 18, and June 25, 1829MagazineThe YankeeLaw and politicsAn exploration of prison systems; inspired by a Mathew Carey essay[149] and by Jeremy Bentham's concept of a panopticon; published in six installments[150][149]
"Capacities of Women"April 30, 1829MagazineThe YankeeFeminism and women's rightsIn the form of a letter and attached editorial comment demonstrating and declaring that "women are not inferior to men; but they are unlike men. They cannot do all that men may do — any more than men may do all that women may do"[151][152]
"New Works"May 21, 1829MagazineThe YankeeLiterary criticismPraise for the new literary periodical, The Original, edited by Frances Harriet Whipple Green McDougall; calls for greater encouragement of "she-magazines"[153][154]
"American Painters and Painting"July 1829MagazineThe YankeeArt criticismCriticism of the current state of American art written "with a pungency rare in nineteenth century criticism";[155] republished in American Art 1700–1960 (1965)[156][155]
"The Drama"July, September, October, November, and December 1829MagazineThe YankeeTheatrical criticismPublished in five installments; Neal's most noteworthy work of theatrical criticism;[157] calls for "a revolution that was still in progress sixty years later";[158] elaborates on points made in the prefaces to Otho (1819) and the second edition of The Battle of Niagara (1819);[159] republished in "Critical Essays and Stories by John Neal" (1962)[160][42]
"English Scenery—Villages: Leamington, Warwick's Castle, Kenilworth"September 1829MagazineThe YankeeTravelA treatise on English scenery and villages based on his travels 1824–1827[161][42]
"Trip to Paris by a New-Englander"September 1829MagazineThe YankeeTravelA treatise on Paris based on Neal's travels in 1827[162]
"If E.A.P. of Baltimore"September 1829MagazineThe YankeeLiterary criticismNeal's first criticism of Edgar Allan Poe[162][42]
"Landscape and Portrait-Painting"September 1829MagazineThe YankeeArt criticismAn "early, unprecedented effort to define a canon of American art";[163] anticipates John Ruskin's Modern Painters by distinguishing between "things seen by the artist" and "things as they are";[164] a call for "straightforward realism ... made at the height of the Romantic era";[165] republished in American Art 1700–1960 (1965)[156][166]
"Month at Paris"October 1829MagazineThe YankeeTravelA treatise on Paris based on Neal's travels in 1827[162]
Review of Sketches of American CharacterOctober 1829MagazineThe YankeeLiterary criticismA review of the book Sketches of American Character by Sarah Josepha Hale praising Hale's writing but lamenting what he sees as the author being confined by societal expectations of her sex[167][168]
"Miss Wright's Lectures"October 1829MagazineThe YankeeFeminism and women's rightsPraise for the principles of Boston lectures by Frances Wright, tempered by the assertion that they would have come across better "if spoken with more discretion"[169][170]
"Paris — The Women — Street-sketches — Theatre"November 1829MagazineThe YankeeTravelA treatise on Paris based on Neal's travels in 1827[162]
"American Engraving.—Token—Souvenir"November 1829MagazineThe YankeeArt criticismCareful analysis of the engravings in The Token and Atlantic Souvenir gift books[171][172]
"Ambiguities"December 1829MagazineThe YankeeLiterary criticismAn analysis of ambiguous and inane qualities in common speech patterns; [173] republished in "Critical Essays and Stories by John Neal" (1962)[160][174]
"Unpublished Poetry"December 1829MagazineThe YankeeLiterary criticismExcerpts from Edgar Allan Poe's forthcoming collection Poems and a letter in which Poe claims that Neal's September criticism was "the very first words of encouragement I ever remember to have heard"[175][42]
"Influence of Females in Society"January 1830MagazineLadies' Magazine and Literary GazetteFeminism and women's rightsA refutation of Basil Hall's claim in Travels in North America in the Years 1827 and 1828 that women's status in the US is lower than in the UK; first of a three-part series on women in the US[176][46]
"Architecture. State House of Maine"January 1830MagazineLadies' Magazine and Literary GazetteArt criticismA critique of the architecture of the Maine Maine State House under construction; refers to the Massachusetts State House as "the ugliest building in Christendom"[177][46]
"Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane, &c, by Edgar A. Poe. Baltimore. Hatch & Dumming"January 1830MagazineLadies' Magazine and Literary GazetteLiterary criticismA short critical notice of Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane and Minor Poems by Edgar Allan Poe[178][46]
"The Women of America"March and April 1830MagazineLadies' Magazine and Literary GazetteFeminism and women's rightsArgues for greater educational opportunities for women; the second and third installments of a three-part series on women in the US[179][46]
"Poems by Edgar A. Poe"July 8, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerLiterary criticismA notice of Edgar Allan Poe's poetry[180][20]
"Women"July 29, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerFeminism and women's rightsOpines on the potential for greater independence and self-reliance among American women[181][168]
"American Monthlies"July 30, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerLiterary criticismPraise for Nathaniel Parker Willis's American Monthly Magazine and Sarah Josepha Hale's Ladies' Magazine and sharp criticism of Louis Antoine Godey's Godey's Lady's Book[182]
"Edinburgh Ideas of Poetry"August 12, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerLiterary criticismCriticism of Francis Jeffrey's work for the Edinburgh Review and Robert Walsh's work for the National Gazette and Literary Register[182]
"Paris and Paris Manners"August 26, November 12, and December 3, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerTravelBased on Neal's trip to Paris in spring 1827; published over three issues[180]
"Fine Arts"September 13, September 28, October 8, October 15, October 21, November 15, and November 19, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerArt criticismA review of the works at a fine arts exhibition at the Boston Athenæum similar to his "Review of the First Annual Exhibition at Baltimore" (October 1822)[180]
"North-East Boundary"October 20, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerLaw and politicsUpdates on the circumstances leading to the Aroostook War[180]
Review of Godey's Lady's BookOctober 20, November 9, and December 24, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerLiterary criticismSharp criticism of Louis Antoine Godey's Godey's Lady's Book over three separate articles[183]
"London Editors"December 2, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerTravelBased on Neal's time in London 1824–1827[180]
"English Tricks"December 3, 1831NewspaperMorning Courier and New-York EnquirerTravelBased on Neal's time in London 1824–1827[180]
"Woman"June 16, 1832MagazineThe Bouquet: Flowers of Polite LiteratureFeminism and women's rightsArgues for greater intellectual freedom for women in society[184][185]
Colonization speechJuly 29, July 31, August 1, August 2, August 6, and August 8, 1833NewspaperPortland Daily AdvertiserSlavery and raceFull text of Neal's speech during the six-day debate (July 8–13, 1833) with Samuel Fessenden and others over whether or not to establish a Portland auxiliary of the American Colonization Society, followed by written arguments for the colonization movement over abolitionism as a means to end slavery; published in six installments[186]
"Portraits of Distinguished Contemporaries, No. 1. Dr. Bowring"November 1833MagazineThe KnickerbockerBiographyA biographical sketch of John Bowring[46]
"Phrenology"October 1, 1834MagazinePortland Magazine, Devoted to LiteratureSciencePraise for phrenologist Silas Jones[187][36]
"La Revue Francaise"December 1, 1834MagazinePortland Magazine, Devoted to LiteratureSocial criticismOstensibly a review of La Revue française; actually a treatise on the importance of eschewing precedent and convention when forming judgments[188][36]
"American Painters"January 1, February 2, and May 1, 1835MagazinePortland Magazine, Devoted to LiteratureArt criticismNotices of three Portland, Maine artists over three installments: Charles Codman, Frederick Mellen (brother of Grenville Mellen), and Joseph T. Harris[189][36]
"Children—What Are They?"1835Gift bookThe TokenChildren and educationAn essay of "considerable popularity and a good deal of republication" and "a sensible, original inquiry into the nature of children";[190] "the best John Neal has ever written" according to the New-York Mirror;[191] revised and republished in Portland Magazine (April 1, 1835), New England Galaxy (April 18, 1835),[192] Godey's Lady's Book (March 1848 and November 1849),[193] and The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings (1978);[95] excerpted in the New-York Mirror October 18, 1834;[194] excerpted as "Rustic Civility, or Children—What Are They?" in The Ladies' Companion (July 1838);[195] republished as "Children—What Are They Good For?" in Great Mysteries and Little Plagues (1870)[196][197]
"Story-Telling"January 1835MagazineThe New-England MagazineMultipleA discussion of storytelling in paintings by John Wesley Jarvis; acting by James Henry Hackett, Charles Mathews, and George Handel Hill; and oral exchange among strangers aboard American stagecoaches and steamboats;[198] excerpted in the New-York Mirror (April 6, 1839);[199] republished in "Critical Essays and Stories by John Neal" (1962)[160][20]
Audubon articlesJanuary 3, February 7, and April 18, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxySocial criticismAn attack on John James Audubon in three articles, questioning his trustworthiness, honesty, and claims to writing and artwork published under Audubon's name; based in part on Neal's conversations with Joseph Mason[200]
Phrenology articlesJanuary 3, February 14, April 4, August 8, and August 15, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyScienceA series of five articles defending the veracity of phrenology; a lighthearted debate between himself and junior editor, Horatio Hastings Weld, and notices of lectures in Portland, Maine[201]
Sylvester Graham articlesJanuary 10, February 14, February 21, February 28, April 18, November 7, November 14, and November 21, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxySocial criticismA series of eight articles denouncing health lectures by Sylvester Graham with the object "to crucify Dr. Graham ... and all who resemble him"; based on Neal's attendance of Graham's lectures and conversation with Graham in Portland, Maine[202]
"The Case of Major Mitchell"January 17, January 24, January 31, February 7, and February 14, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyScienceAn account of Neal's role as the first lawyer to use psychiatric testimony[203] and seek leniency in a US court on account of a defendant's alleged mental defect;[204] published in five installments; reviewed in the Annals of Phrenology (November 1835)[205]
"The Two Fannies"January 24, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxySocial criticismCriticizes Fanny Kemble's dismissal of American character and praises Frances Wright for her activism in the face of criticism from others[206]
"English Notions"January 24, March 7, March 14, March 28, April 4, and May 16, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyTravelA series of six articles based on Neal's travels in England (1824–1827) comparing English customs and opinions with those of Americans.[207]
Review of "Stanzas"February 21, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismHigh praise for the poem "Stanzas" by Elizabeth Oakes Smith: "no man ever wrote anything half so beautiful or sweet"; submitted anonymously, "Stanzas" was Smith's first published writing outside uncredited work as assistant editor of the Portland Advertiser[208]
"Mr. Furbish—and his Mode of Teaching French"March 1, 1835MagazinePortland Magazine, Devoted to LiteratureChildren and educationPraise for method of French instruction employed by a local teacher [209][36]
Review of Outre-MerMarch 14, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismCritique of the prose collection Outre-Mer by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow as "exceedingly beautiful", but derivative of Washington Irving[210]
Temperance articleApril 18, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyTemperanceWarns of extremism in the temperance movement; disapproves consumption of "distilled liquors" but approves "fermented liquors"[211]
Review of Anne Lynch BottaMay 30, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismCritique of poems "The Mediterranean," "To the Sub," and "Byron Sleeping amid the Ruins of Greece" by Anne Lynch Botta as derivative of Lord Byron but showing immense promise for Botta's future work[212]
"New England Scenery and Character"June 6, 1835MagazineThe Boston Pearl and Literary GazetteRegionalism and nationalismPurports New England's rugged landscape as the source of the character of its residents[213][214]
"Women"June 13, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyFeminism and women's rightsDecries lack of adult education and social opportunities for women[215][168]
"Education"July 4, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyFeminism and women's rightsEditorial on the value of adult education for married women[5][168]
"The Pound of Flesh — No Fiction"July 25, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyLaw and politicsAn attack on a money lender in Portland, Maine for predatory practices; followed by articles on the subject on August 15, August 29, September 12, October 3, and October 24, 1835; resulted in the lender making a substantial donation to a local charity[216]
"Recollections"August 8, September 5, November 28, December 5, December 12, and December 26, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyTravelA series of six articles based on Neal's travels in England (1824–1827) comparing English customs and opinions with those of Americans.[207]
"Profile Sketches. Robert Owen, of Lanark"September 19, 1835MagazineThe Boston Pearl and Literary GazetteBiographyBiographical sketch of Robert Owen, as contrasted with John Dunn Hunter, based on Neal's experience with both in London;[213] republished as "Profile Sketches No I" in the New England Galaxy (October 10, 1835)[214]
Review of Southern Literary MessengerSeptember 26, October 31, and December 12, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismHigh praise for Edgar Allan Poe's work for the Southern Literary Messenger, his short story "Bon-Bon," and his poem "The Coliseum"; refers to Poe as "emphatically a man of genius"[217]
"The Pearl.—Boston.—Isaac C. Pray"October 1, 1835MagazinePortland Magazine, Devoted to LiteratureLiterary criticismFavorable notice of the Boston Pearl, edited by Isaac Pray[209][36]
Review of The Token and Atlantic Souvenir for 1836October 3, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismIncludes an attack on Samuel Griswold Goodrich for altering Neal's "The Young Phrenologist" in The Token and Atlantic Souvenir[218][20]
"Profile Sketches No II"October 17, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyBiographyA biographical sketch of Scottish geologist John MacCulloch based on their common association with Jeremy Bentham in London 1825–1827[219]
"Profile Sketches No III"October 24, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyBiographyA biographical sketch of London editor Henry Southern based on their association during Neal's stay in London 1824–1827[219]
"Paulding's Works"October 31, 1835NewspaperNew England GalaxyLiterary criticismFavorable review of James Kirke Paulding's writings from the perspective of American literary nationalism[220][221]
"The Value of Good Looks"December 1835MagazineThe Ladies' CompanionSocial criticism"A trifling essay" that recognizes the privileges afforded by society to those considered beautiful[222][46]
"Prose and Verse, By Isaac C. Pray"March 1, 1836MagazinePortland Magazine, Devoted to LiteratureLiterary criticismBrief notice of Prose and Verse by Isaac Pray[209][36]
"Grenville Mellen's Ode to Spurzheim"March 1, 1836MagazinePortland Magazine, Devoted to LiteratureLiterary criticismBrief notice of the poem Ode to Spurzheim by Grenville Mellen, noting that Johann Spurzheim is hardly mentioned despite the dedication[209][36]
"Corrected Proofs, By H.H. Weld, of the Galaxy"March 1, 1836MagazinePortland Magazine, Devoted to LiteratureLiterary criticismBrief critique of Corrected Proofs by Horatio Hastings Weld[209][36]
"Pic-Nics — From t'other Side"December 1836MagazineThe Ladies' CompanionTravelBased on his own journal, a "rambling, desultory comment" on events, places, and people Neal encountered in England, including the Italian Opera House, the British Museum, Benjamin West, Charles Robert Leslie, Felicia Hemans, and St James's Park[223][46]
"Women"1837BookBoston Book. Being Specimens of Metropolitan LiteratureFeminism and women's rightsMusings on contrasts between the character of men and women similar to articles he wrote for The Yankee[224][214]
"Mrs. Fry—and a Quaker Marriage"August 1838MagazineThe Ladies' CompanionTravelAn account of the wedding of a son of Elizabeth Fry that Neal attended in England[225][46]
"Down-East Notions — No. I"January 19, 1839MagazineThe New-YorkerMultipleA "potpourri of comment," ending with a comment on the developing Aroostook War; first in series of six articles under the same title[226][227]
"Down-East Notions — No. II"February 2, 1839MagazineThe New-YorkerLiterary criticismA refutation of comments about Aaron Burr in the recently-published Private Journal of Aaron Burr, during his Residence of Four Years in Europe; With Selections from his Correspondence based on Neal's interactions with Jeremy Bentham concerning Burr as recorded in his translation of Principles of Legislation: from the MS of Jeremy Bentham (1830); continued over number III in the series; second in series of six articles under the same title[226][227]
"Down-East Notions — No. III"February 16 and 23, 1839MagazineThe New-YorkerLiterary criticismA refutation of comments about Aaron Burr in the recently-published Private Journal of Aaron Burr, during his Residence of Four Years in Europe; With Selections from his Correspondence based on Neal's interactions with Jeremy Bentham concerning Burr as recorded in his translation of Principles of Legislation: from the MS of Jeremy Bentham (1830); continued from number II in the series; third in series of six articles under the same title[226][227]
"Down-East Notions — No. IV"March 2, 1839MagazineThe New-YorkerLaw and politicsCommentary on the impending Aroostook War and its causes; fourth in series of six articles under the same title[226][227]
"Down-East Notions — No. V"March 16, 1839MagazineThe New-YorkerLaw and politicsCommentary on the developing resolutions of the Aroostook War; fifth in series of six articles under the same title[226][227]
"Down-East Notions — No. VI"March 23, 1839MagazineThe New-YorkerMultipleAn affirmation of Neal's faith in phrenology, an endorsement of Isaac Ray's A Treatise on the Medical Jurisprudence of Insanity, a defense of John Pierpont's Moral Rule of Political Action sermon (January 27, 1839), and an account of meeting Leigh Hunt in London in 1826; sixth in series of six articles under the same title[226][227]
"Lying in State"May 1839MagazineThe Ladies' CompanionSocial criticismA criticism of the lying in state tradition in the UK[228][46]
"The New-Englanders"June 1839MagazineThe Ladies' CompanionRegionalism and nationalismAn essay on New England Yankee character;[229] second of three works in the "Sketches by Lamp-Light" series for The Ladies' Companion[230]
"The Sea"September 1839MagazineThe Ladies' CompanionScienceAn essay about ocean currents, winds, evaporation, atmospheric pressure, land elevations, sea depressions, tides, and other measurable phenomena, as well as the role of oceans in human society;[231] excerpted in The New-Yorker (October 5, 1839)[232][46]
"Progress of the Harrisonburg Whig Nomination"December 14, 1839NewspaperNational IntelligencerLaw and politicsA report of the "Washington Dinner" for Henry Clay after his unsuccessful presidential bid at the 1839 Whig National Convention[233]
"Torpedoes, Powder-Mills and Steam-boats. 'Up? — or Down?'"February 3, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalLaw and politicsA call for better construction and operation practices for steamships following the destruction of the Lexington the previous month[234]
"The North Eastern Boundary"February 11 and March 24, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalLaw and politicsA report on the border issues leading to the Aroostook War; published in two installments; republished in The New World (February 15 and March 28, 1840)[235]
"Law and Lawyers"February 15, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalLaw and politicsA critique of the law profession, its propensity for esoteric language, and issues of trust; republished in The New World (February 22, 1840)[236]
"Traits of the New-Englanders; Otherwise, The Yankees"February 15, 1840MagazineThe American Miscellany of Popular Tales, Essays, Sketches of Character, Poetry, and Jeux D'EspritRegionalism and nationalismDescription of New England character; claims the "unconquerable and inconceivable enthusiasm, and waywardness and extravagance" of New Englanders as a cause of the American Revolutionary War[237][185]
Review of LongfellowFebruary 20, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalLiterary criticismFavorable reviews of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poetry collection Voices of the Night and novel Hyperion; republished in The New World (February 22, 1840)[238]
"Self-Education"February 25, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalChildren and educationPraise for autodidacticism, naming Joseph Ripley Chandler and Erastus Brooks as examples; republished in The New World (February 29, 1840)[239]
Review of Mary Gove NicholsFebruary 27, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalSocial criticismFavorable review of lectures by Mary Gove Nichols; republished in The New World (February 29, 1840)[240]
"Portland Writers"February 29, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalLiterary criticismAn annotated list of authors from Portland, Maine; republished in the Portland Tribune circa 1842[241]
"Rights of Women"March 5, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalFeminism and women's rightsArgues for women's suffrage as an issue of taxation without representation; voices arguments used later in the "Rights of Woman" speech (1843); republished in The New World (March 7, 1840)[242]
"The President of the U. States and Wm Lyon Mckenzie"March 28, 1840NewspaperThe New WorldLaw and politicsCriticism of a proposal that President Martin Van Buren should convince the UK to sue for the release of William Lyon Mackenzie from prison in the US[243]
"Wheeling, Virginia — First Impressions"April 4, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalTravelImpressions of Wheeling, West Virginia based on Neal's visit in the fall of 1833[236]
Review of George CombeApril 4, 1840NewspaperThe New WorldSciencePraise for phrenological lecturer George Combe[244]
"Cincinnati, Ohio — First Impressions"April 6, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalTravelImpressions of Cincinnati based on Neal's visit over the winter of 1833–1834[245]
"Lawyers and Pettifoggers"April 11, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalLaw and politicsQuestions the character of America's more influential lawyers and lawmakers; republished in The New World (April 18, 1840)[246]
"Words, Words, Words"April 18, 1840NewspaperThe Evening SignalEnglish languageA playful reaction to editor Park Benjamin's criticism of Neal's use of language[247]
"A letter to Park Benjamin and Epes Sargent: 'The Eliovich Case'"May 30, 1840MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismSeeks to justify the recent publication of a pamphlet by alleged con man John Bratish Eliovich and attacks the editors of The New World for refusing to publish it[248][214]
"Our Institutions — and their Progress"Circa 1841NewspaperPortland TribuneSocial criticismSharp criticism of the Eastern State Penitentiary[249]
"Biographical Sketch of Grenville Mellen"November 15, 1841MagazineThe Family Companion and Ladies' Mirror: A Monthly Magazine of Polite LiteratureBiographyA short biography of Grenville Mellen[250][85]
"The Unforgotten Dead. Recollections of the Late Grenville Mellen"January 1, January 29, and February 19, 1842MagazineBrother JonathanBiographyA short postmortem biography of Grenville Mellen, focusing on his earlier life and based on letters Neal exchanged with him;[251] published in three installments[214]
"Right of Search"January 15, 1842MagazineBrother JonathanLaw and politics"Flamboyant warnings of British abuse of the right of search on the seas"[252][214]
"Russia — and Her Encroachments"January 15, 1842MagazineBrother JonathanLaw and politics"Flamboyant warnings of ... Russia's encroachment on the Northwest Boundary"[252][214]
"Sketches from Life. Mrs. Sarah Austin"January 15, 1842MagazineThe Family Companion and Ladies' Mirror: A Monthly Magazine of Polite LiteratureBiographyA short biography of Sarah Austin[253][254]
"Animal Magnetism, or Mesmerism"January 15, 1842MagazineThe Family Companion and Ladies' Mirror: A Monthly Magazine of Polite LiteratureScienceA short essay championing the veracity of animal magnetism[255][254]
"Second Annual Report of the Directors of the Maine Insane Hospital"February 12, 1842MagazineBrother JonathanSciencePraise for the Maine Insane Hospital under the guidance of Isaac Ray[252]
"Sketches from Life. Mrs. Ann S. Stephens"February 15, 1842MagazineThe Family Companion and Ladies' Mirror: A Monthly Magazine of Polite LiteratureBiographyA short biography of Ann S. Stephens; second biography in the "Sketches from Life" series[253][254]
"Sketches from Life. No. III—Mrs. Seba Smith"May 15, 1842MagazineThe Family Companion and Ladies' Mirror: A Monthly Magazine of Polite LiteratureBiographyA short biography of Elizabeth Oakes Smith; third biography in the "Sketches from Life" series; republished in the Portland Tribune (circa 1842) and the preface to The Sinless Child and Other Poems (1843)[253][254]
"Intercourse of the Sexes"May 25, 1842NewspaperPortland TribuneFeminism and women's rightsArgues that both men and women improve by "the habit of free, graceful and continual conversation with the other sex"[256][168]
"Self-Education"August 1842MagazineThe Indicator: A Miscellany of Self-ImprovementChildren and educationArgues for the supremacy of vocational education knowledge over liberal education; republished in Godey's Lady's Book (May 1848)[257]
"Law Clubs"August 1842MagazineThe Indicator: A Miscellany of Self-ImprovementLaw and politicsAn essay in the form of a letter with advice on forming a Law society and study of political economy[258][46]
"Aaron Burr"January 1843MagazineThe PioneerBiographyA biographical sketch of Aaron Burr, focusing on his moral character and alleging that he offered his daughter as a mistress to Jeremy Bentham;[259] republished in Wheler's Southern Monthly Magazine (1850)[260][20]
"The Two Portraits"January 1843MagazineThe Boston Miscellany of Literature and FashionSocial criticismA purportedly true story of Thomas Sully being commissioned by a husband and wife unbeknownst of each other for anniversary gift portraits to the other; concludes that everyone's lives produce story-worthy material[261][214]
"Other Days; or Disinterred Opinions"January 1843MagazineThe Magnolia; or, Southern AppalachianBiographyMemories of Grenville Mellen, based on Neal's letters to him[262][110]
"Little Monsters"January 15, 1843MagazineThe Family Companion and Ladies' Mirror: A Monthly Magazine of Polite LiteratureChildren and educationA short essay on the proper treatment of children that advocates baby talk; republished in Brother Jonathan magazine (November 18, 1843)[263][254]
"Newspapers"February 1843MagazineThe PioneerSocial criticismConsiders the role and future of the free press in American society[264][20]
"Lanman's Essays — Third Edition"February 25, 1843MagazineThe New WorldLiterary criticismPraise for Essays for Summer Hours by Charles Lanman;[265] republished in the Portland Tribune circa 1843[266][227]
"Health Journal—Its Correspondents and Doctor Graham"May 6, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanSocial criticismRescinds many criticisms of Sylvester Graham made by Neal in the New England Galaxy in 1834; influenced by Mary Gove Nichols[267]
"Glimpses of the Past"May 6, May 27, June 10, and July 29, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanTravelDiscussions of English and French celebrities, landmarks, customs, and speech; based on Neal's travels in England and France 1824–1827; published in five installments (the fifth in the same issue as the fourth and under the title "Comforts of Travelling")[268]
"Wilson of Blackwood: Otherwise Called Christopher North"May 13, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismPraise for John Wilson and Blackwood's Magazine as "by far the boldest, and best Magazine, ever published"[269]
"Self-Respect"May 20, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanRegionalism and nationalismComplains of obsequiousness among Americans in regards to Charles Dickens and his visit to the US[270]
"The Graham Writers"May 27, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismBrief critiques of the principal contributors to Graham's Magazine[271]
Review of George Pope MorrisMay 30, 1843NewspaperPortland TribuneLiterary criticismFavorable review of The Deserted Bride, and Other Poems by George Pope Morris[272]
"British Penditti—Free Trade, &c. &c. &c."June 3, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanRegionalism and nationalismA litany of complaints against British literary figures for plagiarizing, pirating, and committing other disservices of American authors[273]
"Our National Sins"June 10, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanChildren and educationRefutes the notion in The Social Principle by William Gilmore Simms that love of money is a national sin; advocates monetary education at all levels of school[274]
"Rights of Women: The Substance of a Lecture Delivered by John Neal, at the Tabernacle"June 17, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsNeal's most influential statement on women's rights;[275] lecture originally delivered January 24, 1843 before 3,000 attendees at the Broadway Tabernacle;[276] "a scathing satire," according to the History of Woman Suffrage;[277] republished in The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings (1978)[95][278]
"Writings of Cornelius Mathews"June 24, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismPraise for the writings of Cornelius Mathews; continues as "Puffer Hopkins—by Cornelius Mathews" (September 9, 1843)[279]
"A Word to the Wise"June 24, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiteratureAn attempted expansive definition of poetry[280]
"Freedom of Speech"July 15, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLaw and politicsAdvocates greater freedom of speech in the press[274]
"Woman! Letter to Mrs. T. J. Farnham, on the Rights of Women. Being a Reply to her Argument in the Brother Jonathan of June 24th, 1843"July 15, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsResponds to arguments against women's suffrage by Eliza Farnham, prompted by Neal's "Rights of Women" speech on January 24 of that year;[281] "Mrs. Farnham lived long enough to retrace her ground and accept the highest truth," according to the History of Woman Suffrage;[277] republished in The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings (1978)[95][281]
"Comforts of Traveling"July 22, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanTravelBased on Neal's experience in Paris in 1827[282]
"Our Public Men: Edward Everett"July 29, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanBiographyBiographical sketch of Massachusetts Whig politician Edward Everett[271]
"Jeremy Bentham"August 5, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanBiographyPraise for Jeremy Bentham[270]
"To Mrs. Eliza W. Farnham"August 5, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsConcluding remarks to Eliza Farnham's second essay prompted by Neal's "Rights of Women" speech on January 24 of that year;[283] republished in The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings (1978)[95][283]
"The Dickens!"August 19, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanRegionalism and nationalismComplains of obsequiousness among Americans in regards to Charles Dickens and his visit to the US[270]
"Yankee Tongue—And Its Corruptions"August 26, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanRegionalism and nationalismComplaints against representations of New England dialect in British literature, particularly Sam Slick in England by Thomas Chandler Haliburton[284]
"Another Star in the East"September 2, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLaw and politicsUnfavorable notice of the formation of the Maine Liberty Party[274]
"Our Public Men Number Two: Daniel Webster"September 2, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanBiographyBiographical sketch of politician Daniel Webster[271]
"Home Literature"September 9, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLaw and politicsAdvocates an American copyright law that would protect American authors from competition with pirated British works[284]
"Letters from New York—By L. Maria Child"September 9, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismPraise for the book Letters from New-York by Lydia Maria Child as "worth its weight in gold"[285]
"James Russell Lowell"September 9, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismPraise for poet James Russell Lowell as "one of the ripest, purest, and withal most promising poets"[285]
"A Bachelor's Notions"September 9 and 16, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanTravelMemories of the Her Majesty's Theatre and other experiences in London from Neal's residence there 1824–1827[286]
"Our Contributors"September 16, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismBrief critiques of the principal contributors to Brother Jonathan[271]
"Death, or Medorus' Dream. By the Author of Ahasuerus"September 16, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismA scathing review of the poetry collection Death; or, Medorus' Dream by Robert Tyler[287]
"Our Women"September 23, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsAsserts that women's poor wages and economic dependence on men are symptoms of political disfranchisement; celebrates recent advances toward Married Women's Property Acts in various states[288]
"Audubon—the American Naturalist!"September 30, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanBiography"Contemptuous accusations against Audubon";[289] "chock full on Nealisms and tart Yankee wit"[12][289]
"The Brother Jonathan"September 30, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanRegionalism and nationalismAsks why Brother Jonathan is not recognized as the American national personification as John Bull is for the UK[274]
"Self-Reliance and Self-Distrust"October 1843MagazineThe Indicator: A Miscellany of Self-ImprovementSocial criticismA recommendation of self-reliance "even to the point of vanity and conceit" tempered by a warning against boasting;[258] republished in the Portland Tribune circa 1843[266][46]
"More Chuzzle-Wit"October 14, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismAccuses Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens as misrepresenting American dialects and lifestyles; insists that quotation marks are unnecessary for dialogue if properly written[290]
"God Save the King! and God Help the People"October 14, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanRegionalism and nationalismAsserts that the UK's greatest literary achievements were plagiarized from authors of other nationalities[291]
"National Pride"October 14, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanRegionalism and nationalismComplaints against British travel writers abusing American hospitality[291]
"Irish Insolence"October 14, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanRegionalism and nationalismObjects to the dismissal of American poets by Dublin University Magazine given the scarcity of Irish poetry[291]
"French Without a Master"October 14, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanChildren and educationFavorable review of the language instruction book French Without a Master by Alexander H. Monteith; insists that learning a new language from a book is impossible[292]
"The Learned Blacksmith"October 14, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismPraise for Elihu Burritt's translations and sharp criticism of the newspapers who published his work without paying him[289]
"Criticism Extraordinary: The New Mirror and Mrs. Butler's Poetry"October 21, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiterary criticismSharp criticism of the poem "Absence" by Fanny Kemble and George Pope Morris's praise for it[279]
"Our Wives and Sweethearts"October 21, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsCalls for higher wages for women[293]
"Lowell, (Massachusetts)"October 28, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsDecries disparity in economic opportunities for men and women in the textile mills of Lowell, Massachusetts[293]
"Writing Poetry"October 28, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLiteratureA warning against unmitigated poetry production: "The better Poet you are, the worse Man you will be"[294][295]
"The Fair Sex"October 28, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsDeplores the exclusion of women from American courts[296][168]
"American Authors"November 18, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanLaw and politicsAdvocates an American copyright law that would protect American authors from competition with pirated British works[271]
"Moral and Spiritual Culture in Early Education. By R. C. Waterston. Boston"December 1843MagazineThe Indicator: A Miscellany of Self-ImprovementChildren and educationPraise for Reverend Robert Cassie Waterston's "On Moral and Spiritual Culture in Early Education" lecture before the American Institute of Instruction (1836), particularly its recognition of the significance of children[297][46]
"Rights of Women"December 2, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsPraise for women's rights successes around the US[293]
"Rights of Women—Acknowledged!"December 16, 1843MagazineBrother JonathanFeminism and women's rightsNotice of women's rights successes in Georgia and North Carolina; offers a vision of a future of enhanced rights for women[298]
"Over Sea, in Other Days"Circa 1844NewspaperPortland TribuneTravelRemarks on England based on Neal's travels 1824–1827; published in three installments[272]
Review of Isaac RayCirca 1844NewspaperPortland TribuneScienceFavorable review of Medical Jurisprudence of Insanity by Isaac Ray[272]
"Slavery"January 27, 1844NewspaperPortland TribuneSlavery and race"Neal's most significant pronouncement" on slavery; repeats arguments made in "A Summary View of America" (1824) and "United States" (1826); argues for gradual emancipation and colonization[299]
"Rights of Women"February 3, 1844NewspaperPortland TribuneFeminism and women's rightsMocks an argument in the National Intelligencer against women in law and politics and ridicule felt by two women attempting to establish a newspaper in New York City[300]
Disavowal of BratishFebruary 10, 1844NewspaperPortland TribuneSocial criticismDisavowal of Neal's own pamphlet Appeal from the American Press to the American People, in Behalf of John Bratish Eliovich and rejection of alleged con man John Bratish Eliovich as "an arrant scamp"[301]
St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad articlesFebruary 4, February 5, February 8, February 12, February 17, February 19, February 24, March 3, March 10, March 12 March 22, April 2, April 4, April 5, April 7, July 16, and July 26, 1845NewspaperPortland Daily AdvertiserRailroadsA series of seventeen articles advocating the proposed St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad[302]
"Progress of Opinion"July 1847MagazineThe Union Magazine of Literature and ArtSocial criticismContends humanity is moving toward abolition of war through global unification through ideas; inspired by the work of William Ladd[303][304]
"Phantasmagoria"May 1848MagazineGraham's MagazineLiteratureA demonstration of the observation and imagination required to transform real commonplace experiences into literature; "one of Neal's best performances"; submitted to George Rex Graham September 20, 1843;[305] republished in The Dew-Drop: A Tribute of Affection (1852)[306][305]
Report of St. Lawrence and Atlantic RailroadJuly 8, 1848NewspaperPortland TranscriptRailroadsReport of the opening of the portion of the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad between Portland and Yarmouth, Maine[307]
"What is Poetry? And What Is It Good For?"January 1849MagazineSartain's Union Magazine of Literature and ArtLiteratureAsserts that all are poets though few recognize it in themselves; claims poetry as a necessary refinement and embellishment of the world; marks a departure from Neal's earlier opinion of poetry as "superficial adornment" and "deliberate falsification of fact";[308] republished in "Critical Essays and Stories by John Neal" (1962)[160][309]
"The French Claims"January 17, January 19, January 22, January 25, January 28, February 21, February 27, March 4, March 11, and March 27, 1850NewspaperPortland Daily AdvertiserLaw and politicsArgues that the US government should compensate owners of ships seized by Napoleonic France who suffered economically in agreements made with the French Directory[310]
"New Elements of Geometry"January 29, 1850NewspaperPortland Daily AdvertiserSciencePraise for the "eccentric mathematical views" in Seba Smith's book New Elements of Geometry[311]
"Alehouse Politicians, or Annexation Settled For Ever"March 1850MagazineSartain's Union Magazine of Literature and ArtRegionalism and nationalism"A good-natured organized debate" about the governments and character of the US and UK as they concern American annexation of Canada; written to accompany an engraving; republished serially over five issues of the State of Maine (September 10, 13, 14, 15, and 16, 1853)[312][304]
"Edgar A. Poe"March 19 and April 26, 1850NewspaperPortland Daily AdvertiserBiographyA refutation of Rufus Wilmot Griswold's biography of Edgar Allan Poe in two installments;[313] republished in The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings (1978)[95][42]
European and North American Railway articlesJuly 18, August 1, and August 3, 1850; March 7, 1851; and September 19, 1853NewspaperPortland Daily Advertiser and State of MaineRailroadsA series of five articles advocating the proposed European and North American Railway; all published in the Advertiser except September 19, 1853[314]
"A Few Words about Tobacco with Some Account of the Incurables"February 1851MagazineSartain's Union Magazine of Literature and ArtTemperanceA condemnation of "tobacco in every shape, opium in every shape, alcohol in every shape, all three but different names for one and the same thing" dismissing the work of Sylvester Graham and Walter Raleigh; accompanied by a drawing[315][304]
"Law and Lawyers"March 1852MagazineGraham's MagazineLaw and politicsThe substance of a lecture Neal had been delivering for years; an attack on American lawyers as a privileged "legal oligarchy" with undue influence in politics[316][254]
"Thinking Aloud; or, Suggestions and Glimpses"August 1852MagazineSartain's Union Magazine of Literature and ArtEnglish languageUplifts the value of natural diction in writing and expression of thought as it spontaneously occurs to the writer; includes an analysis of New England speech and character he saw as underrepresented in literature;[317] republished in The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings (1978)[95][304]
"Legislation"August 10, 1853NewspaperState of MaineTemperanceOpines that legislation not reflected by popular opinion cannot be successfully enforced, emphasizing the Maine Law as an example[318]
"The Liquor Law of Maine"August 24, September 1, September 7, September 8, September 12, and October 14, 1853NewspaperState of MaineTemperanceExpresses Neal's long support for the temperance movement but opposition to the Maine Law and wariness of its champion Neal Dow as "untrustworthy," "wilful," [sic] and "conceited"; in six installments[319]
"Pleasantries"September 22, 1853NewspaperState of MaineTemperanceCriticizes of the Maine Law and leverages personal attacks against its champion Neal Dow[320]
"Professor Stowe, D.D."October 7 and 10, 1853NewspaperState of MaineTemperanceLeverages personal attacks against prohibitionist Neal Dow; published in two installments[320]
"Pelting with Roses"October 11, 1853NewspaperState of MaineTemperanceLeverages personal attacks against prohibitionist Neal Dow[320]
Review of The Song of HiawathaNovember 27, 1853NewspaperState of MaineLiterary criticismPraise for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's epic poem The Song of Hiawatha and defense of it against criticism by others[321]
"Fine Arts. Akers' Statue of Benjamin in Egypt"March 1854MagazineThe Una: A Paper Devoted to the Elevation of WomanArt criticismRepublished review of a Benjamin Paul Akers statue prefaced by note from Neal[322][323]
Letter to Paulina Kellogg Wright DavisJuly 1854MagazineThe Una: A Paper Devoted to the Elevation of WomanLiterary criticismPraises Paulina Kellogg Wright Davis's editorship of The Una: "You are doing your work womanfully"[324][323]
Letter on Tilton's Titian and ClaudeJune 21, 1855MagazineThe Crayon: A Journal Dedicated to the Graphic Arts and the Literature Related to ThemArt criticismAn announcement of an exhibition at the Boston Athenæum of two paintings allegedly by Claude Lorrain and Titian, discovered by John Rollin Tilton in Rome; corrections published in the July 18, 1855 issue[325][214]
"The Titian and Claude"August 1, 1855MagazineThe Crayon: A Journal Dedicated to the Graphic Arts and the Literature Related to ThemArt criticismSupports the claims in his June 9, 1855 submission about the Claude Lorrain and Titian paintings discovered by John Rollin Tilton in Rome; includes notes from the editor refuting Neal's claims[326][85]
"The Danaë"August 22, 1855MagazineThe Crayon: A Journal Dedicated to the Graphic Arts and the Literature Related to ThemArt criticismSupports the claims in his June 9, 1855 and August 1, 1855 submissions about the Claude Lorrain and Titian paintings discovered by John Rollin Tilton in Rome[327][85]
"Art Hints. Architecture, Sculpture, and Painting. By James Jackson Jarves"October 1855MagazineNorth American ReviewArt criticismA review of Art-Hints, Architecture, Sculpture and Painting by James Jackson Jarves; argues that painting, sculpture, poetry, music, and architecture all stem from a common artistic motive[328][227]
"Portland Writers"April 7, 1860NewspaperPortland TranscriptLiterary criticismA notice of various writers based in Portland, Maine[329]
Notice of Franklin SimmonsJuly 21, 1860NewspaperPortland TranscriptArt criticismA notice of sculptor Franklin Simmons[314]
"Masquerading"March 1864MagazineThe Northern MonthlyFeminism and women's rights"One of the most interesting essays of his career"; "an incisive piece of feminist social criticism" disguised "as a conservative critique of current fashion";[330] "the beginning of the last phase of Neal's feminist journalism"[331][227]
"Watercolors — Mrs. Elizabeth Murray"April 1864MagazineThe Northern MonthlyArt criticismPraise for painter Elizabeth Murray, then living in Portland, Maine[332][227]
"Painters and Painting"June 1864MagazineThe Northern MonthlyArt criticismA short outline of accomplishments by painters based in Portland, Maine over the preceding thirty-five years, including Charles E. Beckett, Charles Codman, John Rollin Tilton, and Harrison Bird Brown[332][227]
"Life Assurance"June 1864MagazineThe Northern MonthlySocial criticismA treatise on the importance of life insurance "which was nothing more nor less than a clever piece of advertising" for the Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company, of which Neal was the state agent[333][227]
"Our Painters — Charles Codman"August 1864MagazineThe Northern MonthlyArt criticismAn account of the career of landscape painter Charles Codman[332][227]
"Our Painters — John Rollin Tilton"October 1864MagazineThe Northern MonthlyArt criticismAn account of the work of painter John Rollin Tilton[332][227]
"Jeremy Bentham"October 1865MagazineAtlantic MonthlyBiographyA biographical sketch of Jeremy Bentham[309]
"William Blackwood"December 1865MagazineAtlantic MonthlyBiographyA biographical sketch of William Blackwood[96]
"London Forty Years Ago"August 1866MagazineAtlantic MonthlyTravelRecollections from Neal's time in London 1824–1827; includes Neal's professed faith in phrenology as a legitimate science based on more than thirty years of research[334][96]
"Phrenology and Physiognomy"September and October 1866MagazineAmerican Phrenological JournalScienceTwo-part testimonial of the scientific soundness of phrenology and Physiognomy and of Neal's interest in the fields over more than forty years;[335] includes an account of his role as the first lawyer to use phrenological evidence in a US court[336][117]
"John Pierpont"November 1866MagazineAtlantic MonthlyBiographyA biographical sketch of John Pierpont[309]
"The Old Boy: or, Traveling Incog."November 1866MagazineBeadle's Monthly, a Magazine of To-dayTravelA questionably true account of Neal's travels in Philadelphia and Le Havre encountering the same men in both locations that "can hardly be dignified as a story ... with only a moderate degree of attention to detail"[337][86]
"What Is Education?"December 1866 and January 1867MagazineAmerican Phrenological JournalChildren and educationIn two installments; second installment titled "Once More — What Is Education?"; criticism of narrow and dogmatic approaches in schools and universities and praise for the Hazelwood School and Round Hill School[338][117]
"Woman's Rights — and Woman's Wrongs"March and April 1867MagazineAmerican Phrenological JournalFeminism and women's rightsAn essay in support of women's suffrage; published in two installments[339][117]
"Eloquence.— Its Diversity"July 1867MagazineAmerican Phrenological JournalSocial criticismArgues that true eloquence is based in an attachment to truth; offers William Pinkney as a negative example[340][117]
"On the Study of Languages"August 1867MagazineAmerican Phrenological JournalChildren and educationA treatise on the value of learning languages and an outline of Neal's recommended procedure for language study[341][117]
"Social Relations"December 1867MagazineAmerican Phrenological JournalSocial criticism"Argues the value of friendliness and playfulness in the business of life" [342][117]
"A Mysterious Personage"December 1867MagazineAtlantic MonthlyBiographyA summary of Neal's relationship with alleged con man John Bratish Eliovich[343][117]
"Clap on the Brakes!"February 1868MagazineAmerican Phrenological JournalSocial criticismAn argument for leisure and deliberate observation in life[342][117]
"Phantasmagoria"April and June 1868MagazineAmerican Phrenological JournalBiographyA series of brief biographical sketches in two installments on people Neal knew from his time in the UK: John Russell, George Cruikshank, Sarah Austin, Francis Burdett, Anna D. Wheeler, Frank Place, Leigh Hunt, John Bowring, John Arthur Roebuck, Humphry Davy, Henry Francis Cary, Jeremy Bentham, John Cartwright, John Dunn Hunter, and Stratford Canning[344][117]
"Salome"June 1868MagazinePutnam's MagazineLiterary criticismAn enthusiastic review of Joseph Converse Heywood's poetry;[345] contends "poetry as proof of man's higher nature"[346][347]
"Our Painters"December 1868 and March 1869MagazineAtlantic MonthlyArt criticismRepublished in Observations on American Art: Selections from the Writings of John Neal (1793–1876) (1943);[348] based on notes from his stay in London over forty years earlier;[349] published in two installments[350]
"Woman Suffrage"January 7, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsArgues for women's suffrage and against double moral standard for men and women; originally published in the Portland Press[351][304]
"The Subjection of Women"October 14, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsPraise for The Subjection of Women by John Stuart Mill[352][304]
"A Contented Woman"November 4, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsA point-by-point refutation of an anti-suffrage article in the Rhode Island Bulletin[353][304]
"The Woman Who Dared"November 4, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsPraise for the epic poem The Woman Who Dared by Epes Sargent and its treatment of marriage and poor economic opportunities for women[354][304]
"The Woman's Parliament"November 25, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsCommentary of proceedings of a recent women's suffrage meeting; proclaims women's influence on public opinion as no substitute for suffrage; argues for equality of partnership in marriage[355][304]
"Horace Greeley and his 'Notion of Woman's Rights'"December 2, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsRefutes Horace Greeley's views on the domestic sphere of women and the historical development of sexism; advocates mixed-sex education for children[356][304]
"More Masculine Reasoning — from the Pulpit"December 2, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsCriticism of religious opposition to women's suffrage by Mark Trafton;[357] advocates suffrage as a tool to fight the gender pay gap[358][304]
"What is the Meaning of This?"December 9, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsRefutes remarks by William Lloyd Garrison at the November 1869 convention of the American Woman Suffrage Association in Cleveland, Ohio and expresses his sympathies for the alternative National Woman Suffrage Association[359][323]
"The New York 'Times'"December 23, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsRefutes an editorial in The New York Times on the November 1869 convention of the American Woman Suffrage Association in Cleveland, Ohio and expresses his sympathies for the alternative National Woman Suffrage Association[359][304]
"Our Disinterred Ante-Diluvians"December 30, 1869NewspaperThe RevolutionScienceA report of Neal's visit to Albany, New York to see the Cardiff Giant; concludes the Giant to be a hoax[360][304]
"Lady Byron"January 20, 1870NewspaperThe RevolutionLiterary criticismDefends Harriet Beecher Stowe's characterization of Lady Byron in her article "The True Story of Lady Byron's Wife"[360][304]
"Portland Up, and Moving"May 5, 1870NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsA report of Portland, Maine's first women's suffrage meeting, organized by Neal; republished in History of Woman Suffrage volume 3 (1886)[361][323]
"Progress in Maine"May 12, 1870NewspaperThe RevolutionFeminism and women's rightsA report of a women's suffrage meeting Neal organized in Portland, Maine; characterizes suffrage as a natural right already protected in the US Constitution[362][304]
Note on prayerAugust 14, 1873NewspaperPortland Daily PressReligionA short article arguing that prayer must be accompanied by faith in its efficacy[363]

References

Citations

Sources

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  • Daggett, Windsor (1920). A Down-East Yankee From the District of Maine. Portland, Maine: A.J. Huston. OCLC 1048477735.
  • Davis, Theo (2007). Formalism, Experience, and the Making of American Literature in the Nineteenth Century. New York City, New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-139-46656-1.
  • Dickson, Harold Edward (1943). Observations on American Art: Selections from the Writings of John Neal (1793-1876). State College, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State College. OCLC 775870.
  • Fleischmann, Fritz (1983). A Right View of the Subject: Feminism in the Works of Charles Brockden Brown and John Neal. Erlangen, Germany: Verlag Palm & Enke Erlangen. ISBN 978-3-7896-0147-7.
  • Fleischmann, Fritz (2007). "John Neal (1793–1876)". In Gardiner, Judith Kegan; Pease, Bob; Pringle, Keith; Flood, Michael (eds.). International Encyclopedia of Men and Masculinities. Vol. 2. London, England: Routledge. pp. 565–567. ISBN 978-0-415-33343-6.
  • Fleischmann, Fritz (2012). "Chapter 12: "A Right Manly Man" in 1843: John Neal on Women's Rights and the Problem of Male Feminism". John Neal and Nineteenth Century American Literature and Culture. pp. 247–270. In Watts & Carlson (2012).
  • Holt, Kerin (2012). "Chapter 9: Here, There, and Everywhere: The Elusive Regionalism of John Neal". John Neal and Nineteenth Century American Literature and Culture. pp. 185–208. In Watts & Carlson (2012).
  • Holtzman, Geoffrey S. (December 16, 2015). "When Phrenology Was Used in Court: Lessons in Neuroscience from the 1834 Trial of a 9-year-old". Slate. New York, New York. Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  • King, Peter J. (March 1966). "John Neal as a Benthamite". The New England Quarterly. 39 (1): 47–65. doi:10.2307/363641. JSTOR 363641.
  • Lease, Benjamin (1972). That Wild Fellow John Neal and the American Literary Revolution. Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-46969-0.
  • Lease, Benjamin; Lang, Hans-Joachim, eds. (1978). The Genius of John Neal: Selections from His Writings. Las Vegas, Nevada: Peter Lang. ISBN 978-3-261-02382-7.
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  • Pattee, Fred Lewis (1937). "Introduction". In Pattee, Fred Lewis (ed.). American Writers: A Series of Papers Contributed to Blackwood's Magazine (1824–1825). Durham, North Carolina: Duke University Press. pp. 3–26. OCLC 464953146.
  • Richards, Irving T. (1933). The Life and Works of John Neal (PhD thesis). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University. OCLC 7588473.
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  • Weyler, Karen A. (2012). "Chapter 11: John Neal and the Early Discourse of American Women's Rights". John Neal and Nineteenth Century American Literature and Culture. pp. 227–246. In Watts & Carlson (2012).
  • Yorke, Dane (March 1930). "Yankee Neal". The American Mercury. Vol. 19, no. 75. New York City, New York: Alfred A. Knopf. pp. 361–368.

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