American Romanticism

Westward Expansion  Americans wanted land and money.  Used brute force –in many cases- to rid themselves of Native Americans.

Manifest Destiny  Americans saw the expansion as “manifest destiny”.  Mexican-American War broke out because of the land grab.  Henry David Thoreau emerged as a writer who questioned whether Americans had lost their moral conscience.

Industrial Revolution  War of 1812 interrupted service with Great Britain, thus the trading of goods was affected.  Americans began producing their own goods at a much greater rate.  Began leaving an agrarian economy, which caused unforeseen problems.  Workers generally labored as many as 16 hours a day for very low wages.

Industrial Revolution  Harsh conditions hazardous to both physical and emotional health.  In most cases bosses/owners could impose any rules – essentially no benefits.  All laborers were suffering, but this suffering was felt most acutely by slaves in the South as cotton was in great demand.

The Tragedy of Slavery  Cotton production rose greatly between  Plantation owners (which weren’t plentiful) believed slavery was absolutely necessary.  Common farmers also wanted to use slaves.  The brutality connected with slavery began to increase the tension between North and South.

Social Reform  Romantic writers helped create awareness of slavery’s cruelty.  Many Americans begin to fight slavery & other social problems.  Abolitionist movement  Workers’ rights  Women’s movement

Nationalism vs Sectionalism  John Quincy Adams strengthens the federal government’s power.  National interests begin to take precedence over regional interests.  Writers are no longer imitating their European counterparts, but finding their own voices.  The South believed the North was getting rich at its expense & began to embrace sectionalism.

The Early Romantics  Romantic literature celebrated emotion & imagination.  It rebelled against Puritans.  Population explosion westward  The writers were, generally, morally uplifting.  They believed in the appreciation of nature as well as the strength of individualism.  They celebrated a simple life valuing nature and imagination.

Famous Romantic Writers  William Cullen Bryant  Washington Irving  Ralph Waldo Emerson  Henry David Thoreau  James Fennimore Cooper  Generally, the Romantic writers disliked the financial & commercial side of America.

American Gothic Writers  Edgar Allen Poe  Nathaniel Hawthorne  Herman Melville  These writers are part of the Romantic group, but their writing is much darker.  Focused on the human capacity for evil  They believed that emotion & the individual are not always positive.

Legacy of Romanticism  Civil Rights  Writers such as Stephen King  Romantic Heroes  Indiana Jones