American Romantic Period Also known as the American

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American Romantic Period Also known as the American Renaissance

American Romantic Period Also known as the American Renaissance

1820 -1865 EXPANSION (MANIFEST DESTINY…)

1820 -1865 EXPANSION (MANIFEST DESTINY…)

1800 - 1860 What’s going on in the world: n 1803 – Louisiana Purchase

1800 - 1860 What’s going on in the world: n 1803 – Louisiana Purchase n 1810 – Mexico begins it’s war of independence from Spain n 1812 – British attempt to take back America in the War of 1812 n 1815 – Napoleon defeated at Waterloo n 1820 -1821 – Missouri Compromise (free state/ slave state) n 1830 – Underground railroad begins n 1837 – Queen Victoria rules England n 1845 – United States annexes Texas (leads to war with Mexico, 1846) n 1849 – California gold rush n 1854 – Republican party formed (opposed extension of slavery) n 1859 – John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry

Louisiana Purchase n From France n 4 cents an acre (15 million dollars total)

Louisiana Purchase n From France n 4 cents an acre (15 million dollars total) n Doubled US Territory

The Gold Rush n Helped to develop the West n Led to the building

The Gold Rush n Helped to develop the West n Led to the building of railroads n California and Alaska were major rushes

Romanticism REACTION TO RATIONALISM AND THE AGE OF REASON

Romanticism REACTION TO RATIONALISM AND THE AGE OF REASON

Romanticism n NOT about love n Values feeling and intuition over reason n Romantics

Romanticism n NOT about love n Values feeling and intuition over reason n Romantics believed that imagination could discover truths that the rational mind could not n Nature is very important Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night. -Edgar Allan Poe

Characteristics of the American Romantic period n Values feeling and intuition over reason n

Characteristics of the American Romantic period n Values feeling and intuition over reason n Places faith in the power of the imagination n Rejects the societal aspects of civilization an seeks unspoiled nature n Prefers youthful innocence to educated sophistication.

Characteristics of the American Romantic period n Celebrated individual freedoms and the worth of

Characteristics of the American Romantic period n Celebrated individual freedoms and the worth of the individual, NOT society n Sees nature’s beauty as a path to God and moral development n Looks backward to the past and distrusts progress

Characteristics of the American Romantic period n Finds meaning in the imaginary realm and

Characteristics of the American Romantic period n Finds meaning in the imaginary realm and the inner world of the supernatural n Sees poetry as the highest expression of the imagination n Finds inspiration from myths, legends, and folklore

What genres of literature? n Gets its basis in imagination n Has no use

What genres of literature? n Gets its basis in imagination n Has no use for facts, logic, and things that are actually possible n Deals with emotion and feeling n Novels, short stories, poems

Early Romantics n William Cullen Bryant n Washington Irving n James Fenimore Cooper n

Early Romantics n William Cullen Bryant n Washington Irving n James Fenimore Cooper n Were inspired by the beauty of nature n Emphasized emotions and imagination over reason n Celebrated the individual spirit

Fireside Poets n People liked to read their works by the fireside at night

Fireside Poets n People liked to read their works by the fireside at night n Emphasized moral themes in their work n Were viewed as equals of British poets of the day n Stressed individualism and an appreciation of nature n Were committed to social reform n Often considered the most popular poets ever n Very un-Romantic in their style

Fiction The American Hero: n Innocent and pure n Sense of honor higher than

Fiction The American Hero: n Innocent and pure n Sense of honor higher than society’s honor n Has knowledge of people and life based on a deep understanding, not based on education n Loves nature n Quests for a higher truth

The Hero n First American Hero – created by James Fennimore Cooper: Natty Bumppo

The Hero n First American Hero – created by James Fennimore Cooper: Natty Bumppo (went by other names: Hawkeye, Deerslayer, Leatherstocking)

The Fireside Poets n Henry Wadsworth Longfellow n John Greenleaf Whittier n Oliver Wendell

The Fireside Poets n Henry Wadsworth Longfellow n John Greenleaf Whittier n Oliver Wendell Holmes n James Russell Lowell

Subgroups: Extremists Transcendentalists Romantics Dark Romantics

Subgroups: Extremists Transcendentalists Romantics Dark Romantics

The Dark Romantics n Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, Herman Melville n Believed what

The Dark Romantics n Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, Herman Melville n Believed what the Romantics did, but felt that at the core of everyone was a dark, sinister being n Has a lot of crazy or guilt-racked people in their stories

Transcendentalists n One must go beyond (transcend) the everyday human experience in order to

Transcendentalists n One must go beyond (transcend) the everyday human experience in order to determine the ultimate reality of God n What is perceived by the senses is not necessarily true n Believed in human perfectibility n Ralph Waldo Emerson is best known

The Over-Soul (by the Transcendentalists) God Nature Individual

The Over-Soul (by the Transcendentalists) God Nature Individual

A Comparison… Romantics Dark Romantics Transcendentalists Individual is inherently good. Individual is inherently evil.

A Comparison… Romantics Dark Romantics Transcendentalists Individual is inherently good. Individual is inherently evil. Individual can achieve perfection. Nature should be respected/revered. Nature should be feared. We are connected to nature. God created nature. God has forsaken us to nature. God is within us. Society is hazardous to nature - progress destroys nature. Evil, evil, groups of people!!!! Society restricts the individual. Let the tree grow! Fear the wrath of the tree! Become one with the tree!