American Romanticism 1800-1840

Background The US experienced a period of growth and rapid expansion due to: Louisiana Purchase (doubled US territory) Westward Expansion (due to improved transportation) Industrialization (telegraph, gasoline engine, steam engine, and factories, also caused extreme wealth and extreme poverty

Background American writers established a literary tradition equal to Europe (mass circulation of magazines, novels, short stories, poems, and plays) Time of great optimism, national pride, growth of Democracy, nationalism, Manifest Destiny = God is on our side; we have the right to take land in the name of God; spread Christianity, Andrew Jackson and the era of the common man 1837 – Texas became a republic 1845 – Texas became a state

Major Writers: Washington Irving – first American writer to win international reputation; wrote “legends” about New York James F. Cooper – first successful American novelist William Cullen Bryant – first poet to win worldwide acclaim Edgar Allan Poe – wrote short stories, poetry, and literary criticism; creator of the detective story Nathaniel Hawthorne – wrote about Puritan past through short stories and novels

Gothic Tradition: Roots in French, German, and English literature Distorted images Ambiguity Confusion of reality and imagination Isolation/depression/morbid/doubt of sanity Confusion of good and evil Adrift and lost in a world of darkness

Major Art:

In the grand scheme of things… If the “Enlightened” thinkers, as a reaction against Puritanism, deemphasized the impact of faith and God, the Romantics rebelled against the scientific reasoning and logic accentuated during the Age of Reason.

Because of the focus on truths and logic, the Romantics: Demanded a return to the mystery of the human condition and ambiguity of truth. Returned to the myths and fables and refashioned them for a new culture. Believed in a compassionate force or side to God. Led man to a heightened awareness of archetypal symbol; only through symbols could Romantics articulate their reinterpretation of the myths.

Continuing… Attempted to recollect the wholeness of man’s being through a focus on the remote past. Saw a darkness in the heart of man that was awful and magnificent at the same time.

Romantics: Try to get away from corruption of civilization and limits of rational thought and toward integrity of nature and freedom of imagination (flight from something and to something) Example: Irving’s character, Rip Van Winkle, escapes from civilization and responsibility to an aspect of freedom. Two ways Romantics rise above “dull realities”: Searched for exotic settings in more “natural” past or in world far removed from grimy and noisy industrial age Contemplate natural world until dull reality fell away to reveal underlying beauty and truth

Characteristics of Romanticism: Values feeling and intuition over reason Places faith in inner experiences and the power of the imagination Shuns the artificiality of civilization and seeks unspoiled nature Prefers youthful innocence to educated sophistication Champions individual freedom and the worth of the individual

Characteristics continuing… Contemplates nature’s beauty as a path to spiritual and moral development Looks backward to the wisdom of the past and distrusts progress Finds beauty and truth in exotic locales, the supernatural realm, and the inner world of imagination Sees poetry as the highest expression of the imagination Finds inspiration in myth, legend, and folk culture

At Its Best, Romanticism: Searches for wholeness Looks to dreams, intuition, imagination as modes of knowledge Leads to freedom Fosters the common man by turning to fables, folk stories, myths Emphasizes the sacredness of the earth Gives rise to passion and spirit Prefers heart to brain Links joy to suffering Encounters the feminine, the child within all Acknowledges the creative force in man’s dark side

At Its Worst, Romanticism: Exalts the individual ego Cares little for society Invokes demons Mixes pleasure with pain Fosters world disorder Encourages melancholy, self-pity, self-glorification Encourages defiance, rebellion, revolution Exalts man as God