essay on american romanticism

ENGL405: The American Renaissance

Romanticism in america.

To begin, read this article about the influence of European Romanticism on American authors.

The mid-nineteenth century often has been considered an "American Renaissance" due to the number and quality of literary works produced.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Identify the major works of literature produced during the mid-nineteenth century "American Renaissance"

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The decades before the Civil War saw a number of American literary masterpieces.
• This period, now referred to as the "American Renaissance" of literature, often has been identified with American romanticism and transcendentalism.
• Literary nationalists at this time were calling for a movement that would develop a unique American literary style to distinguish American literature from British literature.
• Authors such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Henry David Thoreau, and Walt Whitman wrote their best and most famous works during this period.
• In recent years, female authors such as Emily Dickinson and Harriet Beecher Stowe have been added to the list of great authors from the period.
• nationalism : The idea of supporting one's country and culture.
• transcendentalism : A movement of writers and philosophers in New England in the nineteenth century whose members were loosely bound together by adherence to an idealistic system of thought based on the belief in the essential supremacy of insight over logic and experience for the revelation of the deepest truths.
• American Romanticism : An artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe toward the end of the eighteenth century; in most areas it was at its peak in the approximate period from 1800 to 1840.

The American Renaissance

During the mid-nineteenth century, many American literary masterpieces were produced. Sometimes called the "American Renaissance" (a term coined by the scholar F.O. Matthiessen), this period encompasses (approximately) the 1820s to the dawn of the Civil War, and it has been closely identified with American romanticism and transcendentalism.

Often considered a movement centered in New England, the American Renaissance was inspired in part by a new focus on humanism as a way to move from Calvinism. Literary nationalists at this time were calling for a movement that would develop a unique American literary style to distinguish American literature from British literature. The American Renaissance is characterized by renewed national self-confidence and a feeling that the United States was the heir to Greek democracy, Roman law, and Renaissance humanism. The American preoccupation with national identity (or nationalism) in this period was expressed by modernism, technology, and academic classicism, a major facet of which was literature.

Protestantism shaped the views of the vast majority of Americans in the antebellum years. Alongside the religious fervor during this time, transcendentalists advocated a more direct knowledge of the self and an emphasis on individualism. The writers and thinkers devoted to transcendentalism, as well as the reactions against it, created a trove of writings, an outpouring that became what has now been termed the "American Renaissance".

Major Literary Works

Transcendentalist writers.

Many writers were drawn to transcendentalism, and they started to express its ideas through new stories, poems, essays, and articles. The ideas of transcendentalism were able to permeate American thought and culture through a prolific print culture, which allowed the wide dissemination of magazines and journals. Ralph Waldo Emerson emerged as the leading figure of this movement. In 1836, he published "Nature", an essay arguing that humans can find their true spirituality in nature, not in the everyday bustling working world of Jacksonian democracy and industrial transformation. In 1841, Emerson published his essay "Self-Reliance", which urges readers to think for themselves and reject the mass conformity and mediocrity taking root in American life.

Emerson's ideas struck a chord with a class of literate adults who also were dissatisfied with mainstream American life and searching for greater spiritual meaning. Among those attracted to Emerson's ideas was his friend Henry David Thoreau, whom Emerson encouraged to write about his own ideas. In 1849, Emerson published his lecture "Civil Disobedience" and urged readers to refuse to support a government that was immoral. In 1854, he published  Walden; or, Life in the Woods,  a book about the two years he spent in a small cabin on Walden Pond near Concord, Massachusetts.

Walt Whitman also added to the transcendentalist movement, most notably with his 1855 publication of twelve poems, entitled  Leaves of Grass,  which celebrated the subjective experience of the individual. One of the poems, "Song of Myself", emphasized individualism, which for Whitman, was a goal achieved by uniting the individual with all other people through a transcendent bond.

Walt Whitman, American poet and essayist : Walt Whitman was a highly influential American writer. His American epic,  Leaves of Grass,  celebrates the common person.

Other Writers

Some critics took issue with transcendentalism's emphasis on rampant individualism by pointing out the destructive consequences of compulsive human behavior. Herman Melville's novel  Moby-Dick; or, The Whale  emphasized the perils of individual obsession by telling the tale of Captain Ahab's single-minded quest to kill a white whale, Moby Dick, which had destroyed Ahab's original ship and caused him to lose one of his legs. Edgar Allan Poe, a popular author, critic, and poet, decried, "the so-called poetry of the so-called transcendentalists". These American writers who questioned transcendentalism illustrate the underlying tension between individualism and conformity in American life. Other notable works from this time period include Nathaniel Hawthorne's  The Scarlet Letter  (1850) and  The House of the Seven Gables  (1851).

Nathaniel Hawthorne, American novelist : Hawthorne was among the foremost American writers of the era, achieving critical and popular success with novels such as  The Scarlet Letter  and  The House of the Seven Gables.

As often happens, historians emphasize the works produced by white men during the American Renaissance, but many African Americans and women produced great literary works, too. Emily Dickinson began writing poetry in the 1830s, and Harriet Beecher Stowe's  Uncle Tom's Cabin  (1852) rose to a prominent reputation in the late 1970s. African-American literature during this time, including slave narratives by such writers as Frederick Douglass and early novels by William Wells Brown, has gained increasing recognition as well.

American Romanticism emphasized emotion, individualism, and personality over rationalism and the constraints of religion.

Summarize the central commitments of American Romanticism

• Romanticism, which reached American from Europe in the early 19th century, appealed to Americans as it emphasized an emotional, individual relationship with God as opposed to the strict Calvinism of previous generations.
• Romanticism emphasized emotion over reason and individual decision-making over the constraints of tradition.
• The Romantic movement was closely related to New England transcendentalism, which portrayed a less restrictive relationship between God and the universe.
• Romanticism gave rise to a new genre of literature in which intense, private sentiment was portrayed by characters who showed sensitivity and excitement, as well as a greater exercise of free choice in their lives.
• The Romantic movement also saw a rise in women authors and readers. Prominent Romantic writers include Washington Irving, James Fenimore Cooper, Edgar Allan Poe, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, and Herman Melville.
• transcendentalism : A movement of writers and philosophers in New England in the 19th century who were loosely bound together by adherence to an idealistic system of thought based on the belief in the essential supremacy of insight over logic and experience for the revelation of the deepest truths.
• rationalism : The theory that the basis of knowledge is reason rather than experience or divine revelation.
• Calvinism : The Christian denomination which places emphasis on the sovereignty of God and distinctively includes the doctrine of predestination (that a special few are predetermined for salvation, while others cannot attain it).

American Romanticism

The European Romantic movement reached America during the early 19 th  century. Like the Europeans, the American Romantics demonstrated a high level of moral enthusiasm, commitment to individualism and the unfolding of the self, an emphasis on intuitive perception, and the assumption that the natural world was inherently good while human society was filled with corruption.

Romanticism became popular in American politics, philosophy, and art. The movement appealed to the revolutionary spirit of America as well as to those longing to break free of the strict religious traditions of the early settlement period. The Romantics rejected rationalism and religious intellect. It appealed especially to opponents of Calvinism, a Protestant sect that believes the destiny of each individual is preordained by God.

Relation to Trascendentalism

The Romantic movement gave rise to New England transcendentalism, which portrayed a less restrictive relationship between God and the universe. The new philosophy presented the individual with a more personal relationship with God. Transcendentalism and Romanticism appealed to Americans in a similar fashion; both privileged feeling over reason and individual freedom of expression over the restraints of tradition and custom. Romanticism often involved a rapturous response to nature and promised a new blossoming of American culture.

Romantic Themes

The Romantic movement in America was widely popular and influenced American writers such as James Fenimore Cooper and Washington Irving. Novels, short stories, and poems replaced the sermons and manifestos of earlier days. Romantic literature was personal and intense; it portrayed more emotion than ever seen in neoclassical literature.

America's preoccupation with freedom became a great source of motivation for Romantic writers, as many were delighted in free expression and emotion without fear of ridicule and controversy. They also put more effort into the psychological development of their characters, and the main characters typically displayed extremes of sensitivity and excitement. The works of the Romantic Era also differed from preceding works in that they spoke to a wider audience, partly reflecting the greater distribution of books as costs came down and literacy rose during the period. The Romantic period also saw an increase in female authors and readers.

Prominent Romantic Writers

Romantic poetry in the United States can be seen as early as 1818 with William Cullen Bryant's "To a Waterfowl". American Romantic Gothic literature made an early appearance with Washington Irving's  The Legend of Sleepy Hollow  (1820) and  Rip Van Winkle  (1819), followed from 1823 onwards by the  Leatherstocking Tales  of James Fenimore Cooper. In his popular novel  Last of the Mohicans,  Cooper expressed romantic ideals about the relationship between men and nature. These works had an emphasis on heroic simplicity and fervent landscape descriptions of an already-exotic mythicized frontier peopled by "noble savages". Edgar Allan Poe's tales of the macabre and his balladic poetry were more influential in France than at home, but the romantic American novel developed fully with the atmosphere and melodrama of Nathaniel Hawthorne's  The Scarlet Letter  (1850).

Later transcendentalist writers such as Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson still show elements of its influence and imagination, as does the romantic realism of Walt Whitman. Emerson, a leading transcendentalist writer, was highly influenced by romanticism, especially after meeting leading figures in the European romantic movement in the 1830s. He is best known for his romantic-influenced essays such as "Nature" (1836) and "Self-Reliance" (1841). The poetry of Emily Dickinson – nearly unread in her own time – and Herman Melville's novel  Moby-Dick  can be taken as epitomes of American Romantic literature. By the 1880s, however, psychological and social realism were competing with Romanticism in the novel.

Washington Irving, American Writer and Historian : Washington Irving's writings, such as the  Legends of Rip Van Winkle  and  Sleepy Hollow,  contained romantic elements such as the celebration of nature and romantic virtues such as simplicity.

James Fenimore Cooper, American novelist and political writer : In his popular novels, such as  Last of the Mohicans,  James Fenimore Cooper expressed romantic ideals about the relationship between men and nature.

During the middle of the nineteenth century, newspapers went from serving as mouthpieces of political parties to addressing broader public interests.

Identify the distinctive trends in newspaper journalism that emerged over the course of the eighteenth century

• In the early nineteenth century, most newspapers were controlled by political parties and served to support those parties' ideas and candidates. Journalism soon changed to address broader public interests, covering new topics that were important and relevant to everyone instead of a select few.
• Many of the changes that came with this shift brought about new features of journalism that remain important today, such as the editorial page, personal interviews, business news, and foreign-news correspondents.
• Advances in technology, such as the telegraph and railroad, made it possible to receive and report on news faster than ever before.
• Penny press newspapers began to publish sensational human-interest stories and relied on advertising, instead of subscriptions, to sell issues.
• Some reform movements published their own newspapers, and abolitionist papers in particular were met with a great deal of controversy as they reported on the evils of slavery.
• penny press : Cheap, tabloid-style newspapers produced in the United States in the mid-nineteenth century.
• editorial page : A newspaper section on which the leading article (United Kingdom), or leader (United States), is an opinion piece written by the senior editorial staff or publisher of a newspaper or magazine.
• William Lloyd Garrison : Prominent American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer (December 10, 1805–May 24, 1879).

Introduction

During the middle of the nineteenth century, newspapers changed from being mouthpieces of political parties to serving a broader public appeal. Many of the changes that came with this shift brought about new features of journalism that remain important today, such as the editorial page, personal interviews, business news, and foreign-news correspondents.

Many newspapers in the early part of the nineteenth century were published by political parties and served as political mouthpieces for the beliefs and candidates of those parties. Over the next few decades, however, the influence of these "administrative organs" began to fade away. Newspapers and their editors began to show greater personal and editorial influence as they realized the broader appeal of human-interest stories.

November 16, 1864 edition of the  New York Tribune : Some penny papers were closely associated with political parties; the  New York Tribune  backed the Whigs and later the Republicans.

Birth of Editorial Comment

The editorial voice of each newspaper grew more distinct and important, and the editorial page began to assume something of its modern form. The editorial signed with a pseudonym gradually died, but unsigned editorial comment and leading articles did not become established features until after 1814, when Nathan Hale made them characteristic of the newly established  Boston Daily Advertiser.  From then on, these features grew in importance until they became the most vital part of the greater papers.

News Becomes Widespread

Nearly every county and large town sponsored at least one weekly newspaper. Politics were of major interest, with the editor-owner typically deeply involved in local party organizations. However, the papers also contained local news, and presented literary columns and book excerpts that catered to an emerging middle class and literate audience. A typical rural newspaper provided its readers with a substantial source of national and international news and political commentary, typically reprinted from metropolitan newspapers. In addition, the major metropolitan dailies often prepared weekly editions for circulation to the countryside.

Systems of more rapid news-gathering and distribution quickly appeared. The telegraph, put to successful use during the Mexican-American War, led to numerous far-reaching results in journalism. Its greatest effect was to decentralize the press by rendering the inland papers (in such cities as Chicago, Louisville, Cincinnati, and New Orleans) independent of those in Washington and New York. The news field was immeasurably broadened; news style was improved, and the introduction of interviews, with their dialogue and direct quotations, imparted papers with an ease and freshness. There was a notable improvement in the reporting of business, markets, and finance. A foreign-news service was developed that reached the highest standard yet attained in American journalism in terms of intelligence and general excellence.

This idea of the newspaper for its own sake, the unprecedented aggressiveness in news-gathering, and the blatant methods by which the cheap papers were popularized, aroused the antagonism of the older papers, but created a competition that could not be ignored. The growth of these newer papers meant the development of great staffs of workers that exceeded in numbers anything dreamed of in the preceding period. Indeed, the years between 1840 and 1860 saw the beginnings of the scope, complexity, and excellence of our modern journalism.

The Penny Press

In the early 1800s, newspapers had catered largely to the elite and took two forms: mercantile sheets that were intended for the business community and contained ship schedules, wholesale product prices, advertisements and some stale foreign news; and political newspapers that were controlled by political parties or their editors as a means of sharing their views with elite stakeholders. Journalists reported the party line and editorialized in favor of party positions.

Appealing to the Commoner

Some editors believed in a public who would not buy a serious paper at any price; they believed the common person had a vast and indiscriminate curiosity better satisfied with gossip than discussion and with sensation rather than fact, and who could be reached through their appetites and passions. To this end, the "penny press" papers, which sold for one cent per copy, were introduced in the 1830s. Penny press newspapers became an important form of popular entertainment in the mid-nineteenth century, taking the form of cheap, tabloid-style papers. As the East Coast's middle and working classes grew, so did the new public's desire for news, and penny papers emerged as a cheap source that covered crime, tragedy, adventure, and gossip. They depended much more on advertising than on high priced subscriptions, and they often aimed their articles at broad public interests instead of at perceived upper-class tastes.

Mass production of inexpensive newspapers became possible when technology shifted from handcrafted to steam-powered printing. The penny paper was famous for costing one cent, unlike its competitors, which could cost as much as six cents. This cheap newspaper was revolutionary because it made the news available to lower-class citizens for a reasonable price. To be profitable at such a low price, these papers needed large circulations and feature advertisements; they needed to target a public who had not been accustomed to buying papers and who would be attracted by news of the street, shop, and factory.

The   Sun  and the  Herald 

Benjamin Day, an important and innovative publisher of penny newspapers, introduced a new type of sensationalism: a reliance on human-interest stories. He emphasized common people as they were reflected in the political, educational, and social life of the day. Day also introduced a new way of selling papers, known as the London Plan, in which newsboys hawked their newspapers on the streets. Penny papers hired reporters and correspondents to seek out and write the news, and the news began to sound more journalistic than editorial. Reporters were assigned to beats and were involved in the conduct of local interaction.

The newspaper,  The New York Sun : Benjamin Day's newspaper,  The New York Sun.

James Gordon Bennett's newspaper  The   New York Herald  added another dimension to penny press papers that is now common in journalistic practice. Whereas newspapers had generally relied on documents as sources, Bennett introduced the practices of observation and interviewing to provide stories with more vivid details. Bennett is known for redefining the concept of news, reorganizing the news business, and introducing newspaper competition.  The   New York Herald  was financially independent of politicians because it had large numbers of advertisers.

Abolition: A Thorny Issue

In a period of widespread unrest and social change, many specialized forms of journalism sprang up, focusing on religious, educational, agricultural, and commercial themes. During this time, workingmen were questioning the justice of existing economic systems and raising a new labor issues; Unitarianism and transcendentalism were creating and expressing new spiritual values; temperance, prohibition, and the political status of women were being discussed; and abolitionists were growing more vocal, becoming the subject of controversy most critically related to journalism. Some reform movements published their own newspapers, and abolitionist papers in particular were met with a great deal of controversy as they rallied against slavery.

The abolitionist press, which began with  The Emancipator  of 1820 and had its chief representative in William Lloyd Garrison 's  Liberator , forced the slavery question upon the newspapers, and a struggle for the freedom of the press ensued. Many abolitionist papers were excluded from the mails, and their circulation was forcibly prevented in the South. In Boston, New York, Baltimore, Cincinnati, and elsewhere, editors were assaulted, and offices were attacked and destroyed.

American Literature: The Romantic Period: Whitman

• How to Get Help

Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman (1819 - 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist. His most well known work was his collection of poems entitled  Leaves of Grass . 

• Walt Whitman: Poetry Foundation Walt Whitman is America’s world poet—a latter-day successor to Homer, Virgil, Dante, and Shakespeare. In Leaves of Grass (1855, 1891-2), he celebrated democracy, nature, love, and friendship.
• Walt Whitman Birthplace In 1819, Walt Whitman, widely recognized as America's greatest poet, was born in a small farmhouse in the rural Long Island community of West Hills in the town of Huntington. Whitman’s writings are treasured for capturing the nation’s spirit during the nineteenth century and examining some of the era’s most significant events including westward expansion, immigration, slavery, and the Civil War.

Research & Reference

• Walt Whitman: Credo Reference A Credo Reference landing page on Walt Whitman. This page includes links to reference works, journal articles, and a mind map.
• The Walt Whitman Archive Official website of The Walt Whitman Archive.
• Whitman, Walt: American National Biography An American National Biography entry on Walt Whitman.

In Search of Walt Whitman

This engaging 3-part series tells the story of Walt Whitman’s remarkable life (1819-1892), the turbulent era in which he lived, and the timeless poetry he created. Interweaving narration and dramatic readings with captivating period music, insights from scholars, and photography filmed in key locations, this documentary brings to life Whitman’s unique character and poems. This is the most comprehensive series on Walt Whitman and his poetry made to date.

Watch on Films on Demand>>

Whitman's early years were spent in the New York area. Whitman worked as an editor, teacher, and government clerk, and tended the wounded during the Civil War. In 1849 he made a tour of the Mississippi, Great Lakes, and Niagara Falls; this inspired the first edition of LEAVES OF GRASS. He greatly admired President Lincoln, whose assassination inspired O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN.

Source: AVON

Author's Works & Perspectives

Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass

As featured in AMC's Breaking Bad, given by Gale Boetticher to Walter White and discovered by Hank Schrader. "I celebrate myself, And what I assume you shall assume, For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you. I loafe and invite my soul, I lean and loafe at my ease....observing a spear of summer grass." So begins Leaves of Grass, the first great American poem and indeed, to this day, the greatest and most essentially American poem in all our national literature. The publication of Leaves of Grass in July 1855 was a landmark event in literary history. Ralph Waldo Emerson judged the book "the most extraordinary piece of wit and wisdom America has yet contributed." Nothing like the volume had ever appeared before. Everything about it--the unusual jacket and title page, the exuberant preface, the twelve free-flowing, untitled poems embracing every realm of experience--was new. The 1855 edition broke new ground in its relaxed style, which prefigured free verse; in its sexual candor; in its images of racial bonding and democratic togetherness; and in the intensity of its affirmation of the sanctity of the physical world. This Anniversary Edition captures the typeface, design and layout of the original edition supervised by Whitman himself. Today's readers get a sense of the "ur-text" of Leaves of Grass, the first version of this historic volume, before Whitman made many revisions of both format and style. The volume also boasts an afterword by Whitman authority David Reynolds, in which he discusses the 1855 edition in its social and cultural contexts: its background, its reception, and its contributions to literary history. There is also an appendix containing the early responses to the volume, including Emerson's letter, Whitman's three self-reviews, and the twenty other known reviews published in various newspapers and magazines. This special volume will be a must-have keepsake for fans of Whitman and lovers of American poetry.

Walt Whitman: Poetry and Prose (LOA #3)

This Library of America edition is the biggest and best edition of Walt Whitman's writings ever published. It includes all of his poetry and what he considered his complete prose. It is also the only collection that includes, in exactly the form in which it appeared in 1855, the first edition of Leaves of Grass. This was the book, a commercial failure, which prompted Emerson's famous message to Whitman: "I greet you at the beginning of a great career." These twelve poems, including what were later to be entitled "Song of Myself" and "I Sing the Body Electric," and a preface announcing the author's poetic theories were the first stage of a massive, lifelong work. Six editions and some thirty-seven years later, Leaves of Grass became one of the central volumes in the history of world poetry.   Each edition involved revisions of earlier poems and the incorporation of new ones. As it progressed, it was hailed by Emerson, Thoreau, Rosetti and others, but was also, as with the sixth edition in 1881-82, beset by charges of obscenity for such poems as "A Woman Waits for Me." Printed here is the final, great culminating edition of 1891-92, the last supervised by Whitman himself just before his death.   Whitman's prose is no less extraordinary. Specimen Days and Collect (1882) includes reminiscences of nineteenth-century New York City that will fascinate readers in the twenty-first, notes on the Civil War, especially his service in Washington hospitals, and trenchant comments on books and authors. Democratic Vistas (1871), in its attacks on the misuses of national wealth after the Civil War, is relevant to conditions in our own time, and November Boughs (1888) brings together retrospective prefaces, opinions, and random autobiographical bits that are in effect an extended epilogue on Whitman's life, works, and times. LIBRARY OF AMERICA is an independent nonprofit cultural organization founded in 1979 to preserve our nation's literary heritage by publishing, and keeping permanently in print, America's best and most significant writing. The Library of America series includes more than 300 volumes to date, authoritative editions that average 1,000 pages in length, feature cloth covers, sewn bindings, and ribbon markers, and are printed on premium acid-free paper that will last for centuries.

Specimen Days and Collect

Specimen Days & Collect first appeared in 1882 but remains greatly underappreciated, despite giving us significant insight into Whitman?s life and old age. Composed in 1881 largely out of notes, sketches and essays written at various stages of the poet's life from the Civil War on, it is the closest thing to a conventional autobiography Whitman ever published. The largest and arguably the most important work of Whitman's old age, the book deserves attention as more than a source of information or for its moving descriptions of the poet's experiences in the Civil War.

Song of the Open Road - Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman is America’s world poet - a latter-day successor to Homer, Virgil, Dante, and Shakespeare, whose verse collection 'Leaves of Grass' marked a new era in the history of American literature.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCgbc_RcKF8

• << Previous: Thoreau
• Next: Wilson >>
• Last Updated: Oct 24, 2023 2:03 PM
• URL: https://southern.libguides.com/romanticamericanlit

Module 4: Romantic Literature (1820–1860)

The romantic period, 1820–1860: essayists and poets, fresh new vision electrified artistic and intellectual circles.

The Romantic movement, which originated in Germany but quickly spread to England, France, and beyond, reached America around the year 1820, some twenty years after William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge had revolutionized English poetry by publishing  Lyrical Ballads . In America as in Europe, fresh new vision electrified artistic and intellectual circles. Yet there was an important difference: Romanticism in America coincided with the period of national expansion and the discovery of a distinctive American voice. The solidification of a national identity and the surging idealism and passion of Romanticism nurtured the masterpieces of “the American Renaissance.”

Romantic ideas centered around art as inspiration, the spiritual and aesthetic dimension of nature, and metaphors of organic growth. Art, rather than science, Romantics argued, could best express universal truth. The Romantics underscored the importance of expressive art for the individual and society. In his essay “The Poet” (1844), Ralph Waldo Emerson, perhaps the most influential writer of the Romantic era, asserts:

For all men live by truth, and stand in need of expression. In love, in art, in avarice, in politics, in labor, in games, we study to utter our painful secret. The man is only half himself, the other half is his expression.

The development of the self became a major theme; self-awareness a primary method. If, according to Romantic theory, self and nature were one, self-awareness was not a selfish dead end but a mode of knowledge opening up the universe. If one’s self were one with all humanity, then the individual had a moral duty to reform social inequalities and relieve human suffering. The idea of “self”—which suggested selfishness to earlier generations—was redefined. New compound words with positive meanings emerged: “self-realization,” “self-expression,” “self-reliance.”

As the unique, subjective self became important, so did the realm of psychology. Exceptional artistic effects and techniques were developed to evoke heightened psychological states. The “sublime”—an effect of beauty in grandeur (for example, a view from a mountaintop)—produced feelings of awe, reverence, vastness, and a power beyond human comprehension.

Romanticism was affirmative and appropriate for most American poets and creative essayists. America’s vast mountains, deserts, and tropics embodied the sublime. The Romantic spirit seemed particularly suited to American democracy: It stressed individualism, affirmed the value of the common person, and looked to the inspired imagination for its aesthetic and ethical values. Certainly the New England Transcendentalists—Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and their associates—were inspired to a new optimistic affirmation by the Romantic movement. In New England, Romanticism fell upon fertile soil.

Transcendentalism

The Transcendentalist movement was a reaction against 18th century rationalism and a manifestation of the general humanitarian trend of nineteenth century thought. The movement was based on a fundamental belief in the unity of the world and God. The soul of each individual was thought to be identical with the world—a microcosm of the world itself. The doctrine of self-reliance and individualism developed through the belief in the identification of the individual soul with God.

Transcendentalism was intimately connected with Concord, a small New England village thirty-two kilometers west of Boston. Concord was the first inland settlement of the original Massachusetts Bay Colony. Surrounded by forest, it was and remains a peaceful town close enough to Boston’s lectures, bookstores, and colleges to be intensely cultivated, but far enough away to be serene. Concord was the site of the first battle of the American Revolution, and Ralph Waldo Emerson’s poem commemorating the battle, “Concord Hymn,” has one of the most famous opening stanzas in American literature:

By the rude bridge that arched the flood Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood And fired the shot heard round the world.

Concord was the first rural artist’s colony, and the first place to offer a spiritual and cultural alternative to American materialism. It was a place of high-minded conversation and simple living (Emerson and Henry David Thoreau both had vegetable gardens). Emerson, who moved to Concord in 1834, and Thoreau are most closely associated with the town, but the locale also attracted the novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne, the feminist writer Margaret Fuller, the educator (and father of novelist Louisa May Alcott) Bronson Alcott, and the poet William Ellery Channing. The Transcendental Club was loosely organized in 1836 and included, at various times, Emerson, Thoreau, Fuller, Channing, Bronson Alcott, Orestes Brownson (a leading minister), Theodore Parker (abolitionist and minister), and others.

The Transcendentalists published a quarterly magazine,  The Dial , which lasted four years and was first edited by Margaret Fuller and later by Emerson. Reform efforts engaged them as well as literature. A number of Transcendentalists were abolitionists, and some were involved in experimental utopian communities such as nearby Brook Farm (described in Hawthorne’s The Blithedale Romance ) and Fruitlands.

Unlike many European groups, the Transcendentalists never issued a manifesto. They insisted on individual differences – on the unique viewpoint of the individual. American Transcendental Romantics pushed radical individualism to the extreme. American writers often saw themselves as lonely explorers outside society and convention. The American hero—like Herman Melville’s Captain Ahab, or Mark Twain’s Huck Finn, or Edgar Allan Poe’s Arthur Gordon Pym—typically faced risk, or even certain destruction, in the pursuit of metaphysical self-discovery. For the Romantic American writer, nothing was a given. Literary and social conventions, far from being helpful, were dangerous. There was tremendous pressure to discover an authentic literary form, content, and voice – all at the same time. It is clear from the many masterpieces produced in the three decades before the U.S. Civil War (1861–65) that American writers rose to the challenge.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)

Ralph Waldo Emerson, the towering figure of his era, had a religious sense of mission. Although many accused him of subverting Christianity, he explained that, for him “to be a good minister, it was necessary to leave the church.” The address he delivered in 1838 at his alma mater, the Harvard Divinity School, made him unwelcome at Harvard for thirty years. In it, Emerson accused the church of acting “as if God were dead” and of emphasizing dogma while stifling the spirit.

Emerson’s philosophy has been called contradictory, and it is true that he consciously avoided building a logical intellectual system because such a rational system would have negated his Romantic belief in intuition and flexibility. In his essay “Self-Reliance,” Emerson remarks: “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” Yet he is remarkably consistent in his call for the birth of American individualism inspired by nature. Most of his major ideas—the need for a new national vision, the use of personal experience, the notion of the cosmic Over-Soul, and the doctrine of compensation—are suggested in his first publication, Nature (1836). This essay opens:

Our age is retrospective. It builds the sepulchres of the fathers. It writes biographies, histories, criticism. The foregoing generations beheld God and nature face to face; we, through their eyes. Why should not we also enjoy an original relation to the universe? Why should not we have a poetry of insight and not of tradition, and a religion by revelation to us, and not the history of theirs. Embosomed for a season in nature, whose floods of life stream around and through us, and invite us by the powers they supply, to action proportioned to nature, why should we grope among the dry bones of the past…? The sun shines today also. There is more wool and flax in the fields. There are new lands, new men, new thoughts. Let us demand our own works and laws and worship.

Emerson loved the aphoristic genius of the sixteenth-century French essayist Montaigne, and he once told Bronson Alcott that he wanted to write a book like Montaigne’s, “full of fun, poetry, business, divinity, philosophy, anecdotes, smut.” He complained that Alcott’s abstract style omitted “the light that shines on a man’s hat, in a child’s spoon.”

Spiritual vision and practical, aphoristic expression make Emerson exhilarating; one of the Concord Transcendentalists aptly compared listening to him with “going to heaven in a swing.” Much of his spiritual insight comes from his readings in Eastern religion, especially Hinduism, Confucianism, and Islamic Sufism. For example, his poem “Brahma” relies on Hindu sources to assert a cosmic order beyond the limited perception of mortals:

If the red slayer think he slay Or the slain think he is slain, They know not well the subtle ways I keep, and pass, and turn again. Far or forgot to me is near Shadow and sunlight are the same; The vanished gods to me appear; And one to me are shame and fame. They reckon ill who leave me out; When me they fly, I am the wings; I am the doubter and the doubt, And I the hymn the Brahmin sings The strong gods pine for my abode, And pine in vain the sacred Seven, But thou, meek lover of the good! Find me, and turn thy back on heaven.

This poem, published in the first number of the  Atlantic Monthly magazine (1857), confused readers unfamiliar with Brahma, the highest Hindu god, the eternal and infinite soul of the universe. Emerson had this advice for his readers: “Tell them to say Jehovah instead of Brahma.”

The British critic Matthew Arnold said the most important writings in English in the nineteenth century had been Wordsworth’s poems and Emerson’s essays. A great prose-poet, Emerson influenced a long line of American poets, including Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, Edwin Arlington Robinson, Wallace Stevens, Hart Crane, and Robert Frost. He is also credited with influencing the philosophies of John Dewey, George Santayana, Friedrich Nietzsche, and William James.

Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)

Henry David Thoreau, of French and Scottish descent, was born in Concord and made it his permanent home. From a poor family, like Emerson, he worked his way through Harvard. Throughout his life, he reduced his needs to the simplest level and managed to live on very little money, thus maintaining his independence. In essence, he made living his career. A nonconformist, he attempted to live his life at all times according to his rigorous principles. This attempt was the subject of many of his writings.

Thoreau’s masterpiece,  Walden , or Life in the Woods (1854), is the result of two years, two months, and two days (from 1845 to 1847) he spent living in a cabin he built at Walden Pond on property owned by Emerson. In Walden , Thoreau consciously shapes this time into one year, and the book is carefully constructed so the seasons are subtly evoked in order. The book also is organized so that the simplest earthly concerns come first (in the section called “Economy,” he describes the expenses of building a cabin); by the ending, the book has progressed to meditations on the stars.

In  Walden , Thoreau, a lover of travel books and the author of several, gives us an anti-travel book that paradoxically opens the inner frontier of self-discovery as no American book had up to this time. As deceptively modest as Thoreau’s ascetic life, it is no less than a guide to living the classical ideal of the good life. Both poetry and philosophy, this long poetic essay challenges the reader to examine his or her life and live it authentically. The building of the cabin, described in great detail, is a concrete metaphor for the careful building of a soul. In his journal for January 30, 1852, Thoreau explains his preference for living rooted in one place: “I am afraid to travel much or to famous places, lest it might completely dissipate the mind.”

Thoreau’s method of retreat and concentration resembles Asian meditation techniques. The resemblance is not accidental: like Emerson and Whitman, he was influenced by Hindu and Buddhist philosophy. His most treasured possession was his library of Asian classics, which he shared with Emerson. His eclectic style draws on Greek and Latin classics and is crystalline, punning, and as richly metaphorical as the English metaphysical writers of the late Renaissance.

In Walden , Thoreau not only tests the theories of Transcendentalism, he reenacts the collective American experience of the nineteenth century: living on the frontier. Thoreau felt that his contribution would be to renew a sense of the wilderness in language. His journal has an undated entry from 1851:

English literature from the days of the minstrels to the Lake Poets, Chaucer and Spenser and Shakespeare and Milton included, breathes no quite fresh and in this sense, wild strain. It is an essentially tame and civilized literature, reflecting Greece and Rome. Her wilderness is a greenwood, her wildman a Robin Hood. There is plenty of genial love of nature in her poets, but not so much of nature herself. Her chronicles inform us when her wild animals, but not the wildman in her, became extinct. There was need of America.

Walden inspired William Butler Yeats, a passionate Irish nationalist, to write “The Lake Isle of Innisfree,” while Thoreau’s essay “Civil Disobedience,” with its theory of passive resistance based on the moral necessity for the just individual to disobey unjust laws, was an inspiration for Mahatma Gandhi’s Indian independence movement and Martin Luther King’s struggle for black Americans’ civil rights in the twentieth century.

Thoreau is the most attractive of the Transcendentalists today because of his ecological consciousness, do-it-yourself independence, ethical commitment to abolitionism, and political theory of civil disobedience and peaceful resistance. His ideas are still fresh, and his incisive poetic style and habit of close observation are still modern.

Walt Whitman (1819–1892)

Born on Long Island, New York, Walt Whitman was a part-time carpenter and man of the people, whose brilliant, innovative work expressed the country’s democratic spirit. Whitman was largely self-taught; he left school at the age of 11 to go to work, missing the sort of traditional education that made most American authors respectful imitators of the English. His  Leaves of Grass (1855), which he rewrote and revised throughout his life, contains “Song of Myself,” the most stunningly original poem ever written by an American. The enthusiastic praise that Emerson and a few others heaped on this daring volume confirmed Whitman in his poetic vocation, although the book was not a popular success.

A visionary book celebrating all creation,  Leaves of Grass was inspired largely by Emerson’s writings, especially his essay “The Poet,” which predicted a robust, open-hearted, universal kind of poet uncannily like Whitman himself. The poem’s innovative, unrhymed, free-verse form, open celebration of sexuality, vibrant democratic sensibility, and extreme Romantic assertion that the poet’s self was one with the poem, the universe, and the reader permanently altered the course of American poetry.

Leaves of Grass is as vast, energetic, and natural as the American continent; it was the epic generations of American critics had been calling for, although they did not recognize it. Movement ripples through “Song of Myself” like restless music:

My ties and ballasts leave me . . . I skirt sierras, my palms cover continents I am afoot with my vision.

The poem bulges with myriad concrete sights and sounds. Whitman’s birds are not the conventional “winged spirits” of poetry. His “yellow-crown’d heron comes to the edge of the marsh at night and feeds upon small crabs.” Whitman seems to project himself into everything that he sees or imagines. He is mass man, “Voyaging to every port to dicker and adventure, / Hurrying with the modern crowd as eager and fickle as any.” But he is equally the suffering individual, “The mother of old, condemn’d for a witch, burnt with dry wood, her children gazing on….I am the hounded slave, I wince at the bite of the dogs….I am the mash’d fireman with breast-bone broken….”

More than any other writer, Whitman invented the myth of democratic America. “The Americans of all nations at any time upon the earth have probably the fullest poetical nature. The United States is essentially the greatest poem.” When Whitman wrote this, he daringly turned upside down the general opinion that America was too brash and new to be poetic. He invented a timeless America of the free imagination, peopled with pioneering spirits of all nations. D.H. Lawrence, the British novelist and poet, accurately called him the poet of the “open road.”

Whitman’s greatness is visible in many of his poems, among them “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry,” “Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking,” and “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d,” a moving elegy on the death of Abraham Lincoln. Another important work is his long essay “Democratic Vistas” (1871), written during the unrestrained materialism of industrialism’s “Gilded Age.” In this essay, Whitman justly criticizes America for its “mighty, many-threaded wealth and industry” that mask an underlying “dry and flat Sahara” of soul. He calls for a new kind of literature to revive the American population (“Not the book needs so much to be the complete thing, but the reader of the book does”). Yet ultimately, Whitman’s main claim to immortality lies in “Song of Myself.” Here he places the Romantic self at the center of the consciousness of the poem:

I celebrate myself, and sing myself, And what I assume you shall assume, For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.

Whitman’s voice electrifies even modern readers with his proclamation of the unity and vital force of all creation. He was enormously innovative. From him spring the poem as autobiography, the American Everyman as bard, the reader as creator, and the still-contemporary discovery of “experimental,” or organic, form.

The Brahmin Poets

In their time, the Boston Brahmins (as the patrician, Harvard-educated class came to be called) supplied the most respected and genuinely cultivated literary arbiters of the United States. Their lives fitted a pleasant pattern of wealth and leisure directed by the strong New England work ethic and respect for learning.

In an earlier Puritan age, the Boston Brahmins would have been ministers; in the nineteenth century, they became professors, often at Harvard. Late in life they sometimes became ambassadors or received honorary degrees from European institutions. Most of them travelled or were educated in Europe: They were familiar with the ideas and books of Britain, Germany, and France, and often Italy and Spain. Upper class in background but democratic in sympathy, the Brahmin poets carried their genteel, European-oriented views to every section of the United States, through public lectures at the three thousand lyceums (centers for public lectures) and in the pages of two influential Boston magazines, the  North American Review and the Atlantic Monthly .

The writings of the Brahmin poets fused American and European traditions and sought to create a continuity of shared Atlantic experience. These scholar-poets attempted to educate and elevate the general populace by introducing a European dimension to American literature. Ironically, their overall effect was conservative. By insisting on European things and forms, they retarded the growth of a distinctive American consciousness. Well-meaning men, their conservative backgrounds blinded them to the daring innovativeness of Thoreau, Whitman (whom they refused to meet socially), and Edgar Allan Poe (whom even Emerson regarded as the “jingle man”). They were pillars of what was called the “genteel tradition” that three generations of American realists had to battle. Partly because of their benign but bland influence, it was almost one hundred years before the distinctive American genius of Whitman, Melville, Thoreau, and Poe was generally recognized in the United States.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882)

The most important Boston Brahmin poets were Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and James Russell Lowell. Longfellow, professor of modern languages at Harvard, was the best-known American poet of his day. He was responsible for the misty, ahistorical, legendary sense of the past that merged American and European traditions. He wrote three long narrative poems popularizing native legends in European meters “Evangeline” (1847), “The Song of Hiawatha” (1855), and “The Courtship of Miles Standish” (1858).

Longfellow also wrote textbooks on modern languages and a travel book entitled  Outre-Mer , retelling foreign legends and patterned after Washington Irving’s Sketch Book . Although conventionality, sentimentality, and facile handling mar the long poems, haunting short lyrics like “The Jewish Cemetery at Newport” (1854), “My Lost Youth” (1855), and “The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls” (1880) continue to give pleasure.

James Russell Lowell (1819–1891)

James Russell Lowell, who became professor of modern languages at Harvard after Longfellow retired, is the Matthew Arnold of American literature. He began as a poet but gradually lost his poetic ability, ending as a respected critic and educator. As editor of the  Atlantic and co-editor of the North American Review , Lowell exercised enormous influence. Lowell’s A Fable for Critics (1848) is a funny and apt appraisal of American writers, as in his comment: “There comes Poe, with his raven, like Barnaby Rudge / Three-fifths of him genius and two-fifths sheer fudge.”

Under his wife’s influence, Lowell became a liberal reformer, abolitionist, and supporter of women’s suffrage and laws ending child labor. His  Biglow  Papers, First Series (1847–48) creates Hosea Biglow, a shrewd but uneducated village poet who argues for reform in dialect poetry. Benjamin Franklin and Phillip Freneau had used intelligent villagers as mouthpieces for social commentary. Lowell writes in the same vein, linking the colonial “character” tradition with the new realism and regionalism based on dialect that flowered in the 1850s and came to fruition in Mark Twain.

Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809–1894)

Oliver Wendell Holmes, a celebrated physician and professor of anatomy and physiology at Harvard, is the hardest of the three well-known Brahmins to categorize because his work is marked by a refreshing versatility. It encompasses collections of humorous essays (for example, The Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table , 1858), novels ( Elsie Venner , 1861), biographies ( Ralph Waldo Emerson , 1885), and verse that could be sprightly (“The Deacon’s Masterpiece, or, The Wonderful One-Hoss Shay”), philosophical (“The Chambered Nautilus”), or fervently patriotic (“Old Ironsides”).

Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the suburb of Boston that is home to Harvard, Holmes was the son of a prominent local minister. His mother was a descendant of the poet Anne Bradstreet. In his time, and more so thereafter, he symbolized wit, intelligence, and charm not as a discoverer or a trailblazer, but rather as an exemplary interpreter of everything from society and language to medicine and human nature.

Two Reformers

New England sparkled with intellectual energy in the years before the Civil War. Some of the stars that shine more brightly today than the famous constellation of Brahmins were dimmed by poverty or accidents of gender or race in their own time. Modern readers increasingly value the work of abolitionist John Greenleaf Whittier and feminist and social reformer Margaret Fuller.

John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892)

John Greenleaf Whittier, the most active poet of the era, had a background very similar to Walt Whitman’s. He was born and raised on a modest Quaker farm in Massachusetts, had little formal education, and worked as a journalist. For decades before it became popular, he was an ardent abolitionist. Whittier is respected for anti-slavery poems such as “Ichabod,” and his poetry is sometimes viewed as an early example of regional realism.

Whittier’s sharp images, simple constructions, and ballad-like tetrameter couplets have the simple earthy texture of Robert Burns. His best work, the long poem “Snow Bound,” vividly recreates the poet’s deceased family members and friends as he remembers them from childhood, huddled cozily around the blazing hearth during one of New England’s blustering snowstorms. This simple, religious, intensely personal poem, coming after the long nightmare of the Civil War, is an elegy for the dead and a healing hymn. It affirms the eternity of the spirit, the timeless power of love in the memory, and the undiminished beauty of nature, despite violent outer political storms.

Margaret Fuller (1810–1850)

Margaret Fuller, an outstanding essayist, was born and raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts. From a modest financial background, she was educated at home by her father (women were not allowed to attend Harvard) and became a child prodigy in the classics and modern literatures. Her special passion was German Romantic literature, especially Goethe, whom she translated.

The first professional woman journalist of note in America, Fuller wrote influential book reviews and reports on social issues such as the treatment of women prisoners and the insane. Some of these essays were published in her book  Papers on Literature and Art (1846). A year earlier, she had her most significant book, Woman in the Nineteenth Century . It originally had appeared in the Transcendentalist magazine, The Dial , which she edited from 1840 to 1842.

Fuller’s  Woman in the Nineteenth Century is the earliest and most American exploration of women’s role in society. Often applying democratic and Transcendental principles, Fuller thoughtfully analyzes the numerous subtle causes and evil consequences of sexual discrimination and suggests positive steps to be taken. Many of her ideas are strikingly modern. She stresses the importance of “self-dependence,” which women lack because “they are taught to learn their rule from without, not to unfold it from within.”

Fuller is finally not a feminist so much as an activist and reformer dedicated to the cause of creative human freedom and dignity for all:

. . . Let us be wise and not impede the soul. . . . Let us have one creative energy. . . .Let it take what form it will, and let us not bind it by the past to man or woman, black or white.

Emily Dickinson (1830–1886)

Emily Dickinson is, in a sense, a link between her era and the literary sensitivities of the turn of the century. A radical individualist, she was born and spent her life in Amherst, Massachusetts, a small Calvinist village. She never married, and she led an unconventional life that was outwardly uneventful but was full of inner intensity. She loved nature and found deep inspiration in the birds, animals, plants, and changing seasons of the New England countryside.

Dickinson spent the latter part of her life as a recluse, due to an extremely sensitive psyche and possibly to make time for writing (for stretches of time she wrote about one poem a day). Her day also included homemaking for her attorney father, a prominent figure in Amherst who became a member of Congress.

Dickinson was not widely read, but knew the Bible, the works of William Shakespeare, and works of classical mythology in great depth. These were her true teachers, for Dickinson was certainly the most solitary literary figure of her time. That this shy, withdrawn, village woman, almost unpublished and unknown, created some of the greatest American poetry of the nineteenth century has fascinated the public since the 1950s, when her poetry was rediscovered.

Dickinson’s terse, frequently imagistic style is even more modern and innovative than Whitman’s. She never uses two words when one will do, and combines concrete things with abstract ideas in an almost proverbial, compressed style. Her best poems have no fat; many mock current sentimentality, and some are even heretical. She sometimes shows a terrifying existential awareness. Like Poe, she explores the dark and hidden part of the mind, dramatizing death and the grave. Yet she also celebrated simple objects – a flower, a bee. Her poetry exhibits great intelligence and often evokes the agonizing paradox of the limits of the human consciousness trapped in time. She had an excellent sense of humor, and her range of subjects and treatment is amazingly wide. Her poems are generally known by the numbers assigned them in Thomas H. Johnson’s standard edition of 1955. They bristle with odd capitalizations and dashes.

A nonconformist, like Thoreau she often reversed meanings of words and phrases and used paradox to great effect. From 435:

Much Madness is divinest sense – To a discerning Eye – Much Sense – the starkest Madness – ‘Tis the Majority In this, as All, prevail – Assent – and you are sane – Demur – you’re straightway dangerous And handled with a chain –

Her wit shines in the following poem (288), which ridicules ambition and public life:

I’m Nobody! Who are you? Are you – Nobody – Too? Then there’s a pair of us? Don’t tell! they’d advertise – you know! How dreary – to be – Somebody! How public – like a Frog – To tell one’s name – the livelong June – To an admiring Bog!

Dickinson’s 1,775 poems continue to intrigue critics, who often disagree about them. Some stress her mystical side, some her sensitivity to nature; many note her odd, exotic appeal. One modern critic, R. P. Blackmur, comments that Dickinson’s poetry sometimes feels as if “a cat came at us speaking English.” Her clean, clear, chiseled poems are some of the most fascinating and challenging in American literature.

• The Romantic Period, 1820-1860: Essayists and Poets. From Outline of American Literature. Authored by : Katherine VanSpanckeren. Located at : http://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/ENGL405-1.1.1-The-Romantic-Period-1820-to-1860-Essayists-and-Poets.pdf . License : Public Domain: No Known Copyright

Exploring Romanticism in 19th Century America: A Glimpse into the Artistic and Literary Movement

Welcome to 19th Century , where we dive into the captivating world of the past. In this article, we explore the enchanting era of Romanticism in 19th century America. Discover how this artistic and literary movement shaped the nation’s cultural landscape and ignited a wave of creativity and passion. Join us on this journey as we unravel the mysteries of America’s romantic past.

Table of Contents

Exploring Romanticism in 19th Century America: A Cultural Movement Shaping the Nation’s Identity

Romanticism in 19th century America was a cultural movement that played a significant role in shaping the nation’s identity. During this period, there was a strong emphasis on individualism, imagination, and emotions, which greatly influenced various aspects of American society including literature, art, and philosophy .

One of the key characteristics of Romanticism was its focus on nature and the sublime. American writers and artists drew inspiration from the vast landscapes and untamed wilderness of the country, often depicting them as awe-inspiring and spiritually uplifting. This celebration of nature as a source of spiritual and artistic inspiration was a departure from the rationalism of the previous Enlightenment era.

Transcendentalism , a philosophical and literary movement, emerged during this time as well. Prominent thinkers like Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau emphasized the importance of personal intuition and individual experience in understanding the world. They believed in the inherent goodness of human beings and advocated for spiritual self-reliance and the pursuit of truth through direct contact with nature.

In addition to its impact on literature and philosophy, Romanticism also had a profound influence on the visual arts. The Hudson River School, a group of landscape painters, captured the sublime beauty of American landscapes in their works. Their paintings often portrayed dramatic natural scenes, exploring the harmonious relationship between humanity and nature.

Overall, Romanticism in 19th century America played a vital role in shaping the nation’s cultural identity by emphasizing individualism, imagination, and a deep connection with nature. Its legacy can still be seen in American literature, art, and philosophy today.

Transcendentalism: A Modern Perspective

Children’s early 19th century morning routine, what did romanticism represent in the 19th century.

Romanticism represented a cultural and artistic movement in the 19th century that celebrated emotions, imagination, individuality, and the sublime. It emerged as a reaction against the rationality and scientific progress of the Enlightenment period. Romanticism emphasized the subjective experience, valuing intuition and spontaneity over reason and logic.

During this period, artists, writers, and musicians turned towards nature and the supernatural, often idealizing the past and longing for a simpler, more genuine existence. Nature became a powerful source of inspiration, symbolizing beauty, spirituality, and freedom from societal constraints. Romanticists sought to explore the relationship between humanity and nature, often depicting grand landscapes and wild, untamed elements.

Another central theme in Romanticism was the exploration of human emotions and the inner self. Artists and writers delved into the complexities of human experiences, such as love, passion, melancholy, and longing. They aimed to evoke strong emotional responses from the audience, emphasizing the importance of personal feelings and individuality.

Gothic elements also played a significant role in Romanticism, with a fascination for the mysterious, supernatural, and macabre. This interest in the unknown, along with a sense of nostalgia for the medieval period, led to the creation of dark, atmospheric works of art and literature.

Overall, Romanticism represented a shift towards a more subjective and emotional approach to art and culture. It celebrated the individual’s capacity for creative expression and sought to uncover the deeper, more mysterious aspects of human existence. The movement had a lasting impact on literature, art, music, and even politics, influencing future generations and shaping the cultural landscape of the 19th century.

What defined Romanticism in American literature during the 19th century?

Romanticism in American literature during the 19th century was characterized by a focus on individual expression, emotion, and imagination. It emphasized the power of nature, the supernatural, and the sublime, often portraying these elements as a source of spiritual and moral inspiration.

Key themes in Romanticism included a celebration of individuality and self-expression, a rejection of societal norms and conventions, and a fascination with the natural world. Romantic writers often explored the human psyche and emotions, delving into themes of love, passion, and introspection.

Nature played a significant role in Romantic literature, with writers often depicting it as a refuge from the constraints of society. They presented nature as a source of purity and spirituality, stimulating the imagination and allowing individuals to connect with their inner selves.

Spirituality and the supernatural were also important aspects of Romanticism. Writers were intrigued by the mysterious and unexplainable, often incorporating supernatural elements into their works. They sought to transcend the boundaries of reality, exploring the realms of dreams, visions, and the occult.

Emotion and individual experience were central to Romantic literature, with writers valuing intense feeling and personal expression. They rejected rationality and reason in favor of intuition and instinct, placing emphasis on the subjective experience of the individual.

Overall, Romanticism in American literature during the 19th century sought to break free from the constraints of traditional society and explore the depths of human emotions and the mysteries of the natural world. It celebrated the power of imagination and the individual’s ability to find meaning and truth through personal experience.

What are the key elements of Romanticism in 19th century American novels?

The key elements of Romanticism in 19th century American novels are:

1. Emotion and Imagination: Romanticism placed a strong emphasis on individual emotions and imagination. American novelists of this era sought to evoke intense feelings in their readers through vivid descriptions, heightened language, and the exploration of complex emotional experiences.

2. Nature: Romanticism celebrated the beauty and power of nature, viewing it as a source of spiritual and emotional inspiration. In 19th century American novels, writers often depicted the awe-inspiring landscapes of the country, emphasizing the sublime and the majestic qualities of nature.

3. Individualism: Romanticism rejected the notion of conformity and emphasized the uniqueness and importance of the individual. American novelists of this era often portrayed characters who rebelled against societal norms, explored their own identities, and pursued their personal dreams and desires.

4. Spiritual Quest: Many 19th century American novels explored themes of spirituality and the search for meaning in life. Writers delved into questions of faith, morality, and the existence of a higher power, reflecting the influence of transcendentalist ideas that were prevalent during this time.

5. Supernatural Elements: Romanticism often incorporated supernatural or mystical elements into narratives, blurring the boundaries between reality and the imagination. 19th century American novels frequently featured elements such as ghosts, magic, and the supernatural as a means to explore the unknown and delve into the mysteries of human existence.

6. Exoticism: Many American novelists of this era drew inspiration from exotic locations and cultures, incorporating elements of foreign lands to add an element of intrigue and escapism to their narratives. This fascination with the unfamiliar was tied to the romantic desire for adventure and the exploration of new horizons.

Overall, 19th century American novels embraced the themes and ideals of Romanticism, creating works that celebrated the power of the individual, the beauty of nature, and the complexities of human emotions.

What were the origins of Romanticism in America?

Romanticism in America originated in the late 18th and early 19th centuries as a response to the Enlightenment movement and the Industrial Revolution. It was influenced by European Romanticism, particularly the writings of German philosophers such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich Schiller.

One of the key figures in the development of American Romanticism was Washington Irving , who is often considered the first American writer to achieve international fame. His short stories, such as “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” blended European folklore with American settings, creating a distinctive literary style that celebrated the American wilderness and its potential for spiritual and moral renewal.

Another important figure in the American Romantic movement was Ralph Waldo Emerson . He emphasized the importance of individuality, self-reliance, and a connection with nature. His essay “Nature” (1836) became a foundational text of American Romanticism, promoting the notion that experiencing the natural world could lead to a direct encounter with the divine.

The development of American Romanticism was also fueled by the growing interest in American history and folk traditions. Scholars such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow sought to create a distinctively American cultural identity by drawing inspiration from Native American legends and European literary traditions. Longfellow’s epic poem “Hiawatha” (1855) and his collection of poems “Tales of a Wayside Inn” (1863) exemplify this blending of indigenous and European influences.

In addition to literature, American Romanticism also found expression in other artistic forms, such as painting and music. The landscape paintings of artists like Thomas Cole and the Hudson River School captured the majestic beauty of the American wilderness, while composers like Aaron Copland drew on folk and regional themes to create a uniquely American sound.

The origins of Romanticism in America can be traced back to the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Influenced by European Romanticism, American writers, painters, and composers sought to create a distinctively American cultural identity that celebrated individualism, a connection with nature, and a fusion of indigenous and European traditions.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did the romantic movement influence literature and art in 19th century america.

The Romantic movement had a significant influence on literature and art in 19th century America. The Romantic movement emphasized individualism, emotion, imagination, and the power of nature.

In literature, American Romantic writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Edgar Allan Poe embraced these ideals and incorporated them into their works. They focused on expressing their individual thoughts and emotions, often rejecting traditional forms and structures. Emerson’s essay “Self-Reliance” celebrated the importance of following one’s own path and finding inner truth, while Thoreau’s “Walden” reflected on the spiritual connection between humans and nature. Poe, on the other hand, explored dark and mysterious themes, delving into the depths of human emotions.

American Romantic art also flourished during this time period. Painters like Thomas Cole, Frederick Church, and Albert Bierstadt portrayed the beauty and power of the American landscape in their works. They often depicted majestic mountains, sweeping landscapes, and sublime natural scenes, instilling a sense of awe and wonder in viewers. These artists sought to capture not just the physical beauty of nature but also the spiritual and emotional experiences associated with it.

Overall, the Romantic movement in 19th century America had a profound impact on literature and art. It encouraged individuals to embrace their inner creativity and emotions, celebrate nature, and explore new forms of expression. This shift towards individualism and the exploration of subjective experiences would continue to have a lasting influence on American literature and art well into the 20th century.

What were the key themes and characteristics of Romanticism in 19th century America?

Romanticism in 19th century America was a literary and artistic movement that emerged as a response to the Age of Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution. It was characterized by a focus on emotion, nature, and individualism, and sought to explore the human experience in a more subjective and imaginative way.

Some key themes of Romanticism in 19th century America include:

1. Nature: Romantic writers and artists celebrated the beauty and power of nature, emphasizing the spiritual and emotional connection between humans and the natural world. They believed that nature could provide solace, inspiration, and a source of spiritual truth.

2. Emotion: Romanticism rejected the rationalism of the Enlightenment and emphasized the importance of emotions and feelings. Romantic artists and writers sought to evoke strong emotional responses in their audience, often exploring themes of love, passion, and melancholy.

3. Individualism: Romantic thinkers valued the individual’s unique experiences, beliefs, and emotions. They emphasized the importance of personal expression and self-discovery, often challenging social and cultural norms.

4. Spirituality: Romanticism in 19th century America was marked by a renewed interest in spirituality and mysticism. Many writers explored themes of transcendence, seeking to find a higher truth or form of existence through art, nature, or religious experience.

5. Nationalism: The Romantic movement in 19th century America was also closely tied to a growing sense of national identity. Writers and artists sought to define and celebrate what it meant to be American, exploring themes of freedom, democracy, and the frontier spirit.

Overall, Romanticism in 19th century America represented a break from the intellectual and social constraints of the previous era. It placed importance on the individual, emotions, and the natural world, seeking to capture the essence of human experience in a more subjective and imaginative way.

How did prominent writers and artists contribute to the development of Romanticism in 19th century America?

Prominent writers and artists played a significant role in the development of Romanticism in 19th century America. They championed individualism, emotion, and the appreciation of nature in their works, which became key themes of the movement.

One influential writer was Ralph Waldo Emerson, whose essay “Nature” (1836) emphasized the importance of connecting with the natural world. He believed that the beauty and power of nature could inspire individuals and lead them to spiritual enlightenment. Emerson’s ideas ultimately contributed to the development of Transcendentalism, a sub-movement within Romanticism.

Nathaniel Hawthorne, another prominent writer of the time, explored the darker aspects of human nature in his works. His novel “The Scarlet Letter” (1850) delved into themes of guilt, sin, and redemption, reflecting the intense emotional exploration characteristic of Romanticism.

In the realm of poetry, Walt Whitman became known as one of America’s greatest romantic poets. His collection “Leaves of Grass” (1855) celebrated democracy, individualism, and the beauty of the American landscape. Whitman’s use of free verse and his celebration of the common man made him a distinctive voice in American Romantic poetry.

In addition to writers, artists also played a crucial role in furthering the ideals of Romanticism. The Hudson River School, a group of landscape painters, captured the rugged beauty of the American wilderness. Their paintings, such as Thomas Cole’s “The Oxbow” (1836), emphasized the sublime power of nature and its ability to evoke deep emotions.

Overall, through their writings and artworks, these prominent figures contributed to the development of Romanticism in 19th century America by promoting the ideals of individualism, exploring intense emotions, and highlighting the beauty and power of the natural world . Their works continue to be celebrated and studied as important contributions to American literary and artistic history.

The era of Romanticism in 19th century America marked a significant shift in artistic and cultural expression. It captivated the hearts and minds of individuals who sought to break free from the constraints of rationality and explore the depths of emotion, imagination, and individualism. Through literature, art, and music, Romantics celebrated the beauty of nature, the power of the individual, and the importance of emotions. They challenged the prevailing societal norms, advocating for personal freedom and spiritual exploration.

Romanticism in 19th century America was not merely a movement; it was a cultural revolution that influenced various aspects of society. It inspired writers such as Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Emily Dickinson , whose works continue to captivate readers with their intricate portrayal of human emotions and experiences. Painters like Thomas Cole and Frederic Edwin Church transported viewers into breathtaking landscapes , evoking a sense of awe and wonder.

The impact of Romanticism can still be felt today , as it shaped the cultural identity of 19th century America and left a lasting legacy in the realms of literature, art, and music. Its enduring themes of nature, emotional intensity, and individualism continue to resonate with contemporary audiences.

In essence, Romanticism in 19th century America was a revolutionary period that celebrated the power of the human spirit and emphasized the importance of imagination, emotion, and individualistic expression. It challenged the status quo and paved the way for artistic and intellectual movements to come. As we reflect upon this era, let us not only appreciate the remarkable works it produced but also recognize its profound influence on shaping the cultural landscape of America.

To learn more about this topic, we recommend some related articles:

The Rise of Traditional Bakeries in the 19th Century: Reviving the Art of Baking

The Evolution of 19th Century Woodworking Tools: A Journey Through Time

The Expansion of British Empire: A Look into 19th Century Colonial Countries

Printed Treasures: Exploring the Art of 19th Century Posters

Dressing the Quakers: Exploring 19th Century Quaker Fashion

Exploring the Enigmatic: Unearthing the Abandoned 19th Century Greenhouse in France

ELA Common Core Lesson Plans

• Create Characters Lesson Plan
• Creative Writing Lesson Plan: Using Details
• How to Write a Cause and Effect Essay
• How to Write a Conclusion for an Essay Lesson Plan
• How to Write a Persuasive Essay
• How to Write a Reflective Essay
• How to Write an Article Critique and Review
• How to Write an Introduction to an Essay
• How to Write a Problem Solution Essay
• Lesson Plan: Effective Sentence Structure
• Lesson Plan: Improve Writing Style with Improved Sentence Structure
• Logical Fallacies Lesson Plan with Summary & Examples
• Teaching Active and Passive Voice
• Teaching How to Revise a Rough Draft
• Teaching Instructional Articles: How to Write Instructions
• Teaching Word Choice: Using Strong Verbs
• Using Imagery Lesson Plan
• Writing for Audience and Purpose
• Writing Transitions Lesson
• Analyzing Humor in Literature Lesson Plan
• Analyzing Shakespeare Strategies
• Fun Reading Lesson Plan
• How to Write a Literary Analysis.
• How to Annotate and Analyze a Poem
• Lesson Plan for Teaching Annotation
• Literary Terms Lesson Plan
• Literature Exemplars – Grades-9-10
• Teaching Short Story Elements
• Using Short Stories to Teach Elements of Literature
• Bill of Rights Lesson Plan
• Fun Ideas for Teaching Language
• Comma Rules: How to Use Commas
• Difference between Denotation and Connotation
• Effective Word Choice Lesson Plan
• Fun Grammar Review Game or Vocabulary & Language Arts
• Lesson Plans for Substitute Teachers and Busy English Teachers
• Lesson Plan: Creating the Perfect Title
• 4.08 – Lesson Plan: Using Semicolons Correctly
• Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement Lesson Plan
• Sentence Combining Made Easy Lesson Plan
• Strategies for Teaching Vocabulary
• Using Tone Effectively Lesson Plan
• 4.12 – Word Choice Lesson Plan: Eliminate and Replace “To Be” Verbs
• Using Voice in Writing Effectively Lesson Plan
• Speaking & Listening
• Teacher Guide Central

An Overview of American Romanticism in Literature

Romanticism in American Literature brought us some of the world’s greatest writers. Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Washington Irving and Henry David Thoreau are still studied in classrooms throughout America and in Europe. Help students understand the context in which they wrote with this convenient Romanticism in American Literature one page handout with lesson plan.

Looking for convenient notes on literary periods with handouts and graphic organizers? This downloadable/printable “Literary Periods” pdf includes a one page handout for each of the following literary periods: British Romanticism, American Romanticism, Naturalism, Realism, and Modernism along with other cool stuff like lesson plans and Cornell notes templates.

ELA Common Core Standards Covered

Teaching American Romanticism and instructing students to find aspects of American Romanticism in the literature they read covers the following ELA Common Core Standards.

• RL.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• RL.9-10.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.

Romanticism

Romance describes strange lands and wonderful adventures. It allows the writer greater latitude to include the marvelous with the real. The romance may include the traditional hero with white hat on the white horse; the evil villain with the long black mustache; the lovely young woman in need of rescue, and the hairbreadth rescue itself.

Romanticism as a movement began in the late 18th century, moved to England where it developed an emphasis on the glorification of nature, the supernatural, and the rebel—the individual against society. It spread to America in the early to mid 19th century and is represented in such writers as Hawthorne, Poe, and Cooper.

• American Romanticism

In the 1830’s, America began to experience the impact of the Romantic Movement that was transforming European civilization. Like the European movement of which it was an offshoot, American Romanticism was, in a broad sense, a new attitude toward nature, humanity, and society that espoused individualism and freedom. Many trends characterized American Romanticism. Among the most important are the following:

• An impulse toward reform (temperance, women’s rights, abolition of slavery)
• A celebration of individualism (Emerson, Thoreau)
• A reverence for nature (Cooper, Emerson, Thoreau)
• A concern with the impact of new technology—the locomotive, for example
• An idealization of women—Poe’s Anabel Lee, for example
• A fascination with death and the supernatural (Hawthorne, Poe)

Important Writers

The following authors are closely associated with Romanticism in American Literature.

• Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882): Self-Reliance
• Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862): Walden, Civil Disobedience
• Washington Irving (1783-1859): The Devil and Tom Walker, Rip Van Winkle Tales
• Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849): The Pit and the Pendulum, The Masque of the Red Death , The Raven and many many more
• Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) The Scarlet Letter , The House of the Seven Gables, Doctor Heidegger’s Experiment, Young Goodman Brown, Rappaccini’s Daughter

Genres of Literature

Teaching literary genres helps provide context and understanding.

• British Romanticism

Last Updated on May 16, 2019 by Trenton Lorcher

Get 5 Short Story Lesson Plans Now!

We specialize in teacher-ready lesson plans.

I will never give away, trade or sell your email address. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Return to top of page

Copyright © 2024 | By: WebsiteRedesign.nz

• Poe's Short Stories

Edgar Allan Poe

• Literature Notes
• Edgar Allan Poe and Romanticism
• Edgar Allan Poe Biography
• About Poe's Short Stories
• Summary and Analysis
• "The Fall of the House of Usher"
• "The Murders in the Rue Morgue"
• "The Purloined Letter"
• "The Tell-Tale Heart"
• "The Black Cat"
• "The Cask of Amontillado"
• "William Wilson"
• "The Pit and the Pendulum"
• "The Masque of the Red Death"
• Critical Essays
• Poe's Critical Theories
• Cite this Literature Note

Critical Essays Edgar Allan Poe and Romanticism

Introduction

Few writers exist outside of the currents of the times in which they live, and Poe is no exception. He is clearly a product of his time, which in terms of literature, is called the Romantic era. The Romantic movement was one which began in Germany, moved through all of Europe and Russia, and, almost simultaneously, changed the entire course of American literature. Among England's great Romantic writers are William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, John Keats, Lord Byron, Percy Shelley, and Sir Walter Scott. Romantic writers in America who were contemporaries of Poe include Hawthorne (whose works Poe reviewed and admired), Herman Melville, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, whom Poe did not like and to whom he was rather insulting in a review.

Poe's brand of Romanticism was akin to his contemporaries but most of his works often bordered on what was later called the gothic genre. The following discussion is not a comprehensive view of Romantic concepts, but instead, it is intended as a basic guide and explanation for some of the conventions or some of the devices often found in Poe's stories.

Intuition and Emotion

Perhaps the most dominant characteristic of the Romantic movement was the rejection of the rational and the intellectual in favor of the intuitive and the emotional. In his critical theories and through his art, Poe emphasized that didactic and intellectual elements had no place in art. The subject matter of art should deal with the emotions, and the greatest art was that which had a direct effect on the emotions. The intellectual and the didactic was for sermons and treatises, whereas the emotions were the sole province of art; after all, Poe reasoned, man felt and sensed things before he thought about them. Even Poe's most intellectual characters, such as M. Dupin ("The Purloined Letter," "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," etc.), rely more on intuition than on rationality. As one examines M. Dupin, Poe's famous detective, one notes that he solves his crimes by intuitively placing himself in the mind of the criminal. Throughout Poe's works, his characters are usually dominated by their emotions. This concept explains much of the seemingly erratic behavior of the characters in all of the stories. Roderick Usher's emotions are overwrought; Ligeia and the narrator of that story both exist in the world of emotions; the behaviors of the narrators of "The Tell-Tale Heart" and "The Black Cat" are not rational; in "The Cask of Amontillado," the hatred of Montresor exceeds all rational explanations. Throughout Poe's fiction, much of the behavior of his characters must be viewed and can be explained best in terms of the Romantic period in which he wrote.

Setting and Time

Usually in a Romantic story, the setting is in some obscure or unknown place, or else it is set at some distant time in the past. The purpose for this is so that none of Poe's readers would be diverted by references to contemporary ideas; Poe created new worlds so that his readers would concentrate wholly on the themes or atmospheres with which he infused his stories. Poe believed that the highest art existed in a realm that was different from this world, and in order to create this realm, vagueness and indefiniteness were necessary to alienate the reader from the everyday world and to thrust him toward the ideal and the beautiful. Thus, Poe's stories are set either in some unknown place, such as in "The Fall of the House of Usher," or else they are set in some romantic castle on the Rhine, or in an abbey in some remote part of England, as in "Ligeia," or else they are set during the period of the Spanish Inquisition (the fourteenth century), as in "The Pit and the Pendulum." In other words, Poe's reader will not find a story which is set in some recognizable place in the present time. Even Poe's detective fiction is set in France rather than in America, thus giving it a Romantic distance from the reader.

Characterization

Often the characters are not named or else they are given only a semblance of a name. The narrator in "Ligeia" does not even know the Lady Ligeia's last name nor that of her family. With the exception of a story like "The Cask of Amontillado," where the narrator is addressed by another character, or a story like "William Wilson," where the title identifies the pseudonym of the narrator, we usually do not know the names of the narrators of the other stories discussed in this volume, or even the names of the narrators of most of Poes other works. For a Romantic like Poe, the emphasis of literature ought to be on the final effect and the emotion produced thereby. The greatness of "The Pit and the Pendulum" is not in knowing the name of the narrator but in sensing his fears and his terrors.

Subject Matter

The Romantic writer is often both praised and condemned for emphasizing the strange, the bizarre, the unusual, and the unexpected in his or her writing, and it is out of the Romantic tradition that we get such figures as the monster in Frankenstein and Count Dracula. The Romantic felt that the common or the ordinary had no place in the realm of art. Poe eschewed or despised literature that dealt with mundane subjects. Such things could be seen every day. The purpose of art, for Poe, was to choose subjects which could affect the reader in a manner which he would not encounter in everyday life. Thus, the subject matter of many of his tales dealt with living corpses, with frightening experiences, with horrors which startled the reader, and with situations which even we have never imagined before.

In conclusion, what might sometimes seem puzzling in a story by Poe, such as an unexpected ending or an unexpected event, is not puzzling if we remember that what he created was a result of his writing during the Romantic tradition. While his tales can be read as "stories," they take on further significance as superb examples of the Romantic tradition.

Previous "The Masque of the Red Death"

Next Poe's Critical Theories

121 Romanticism Essay Topics & Examples

In a romanticism essay, you can explore a variety of topics, from American literature to British paintings. For that task, these ideas of romanticism collected by our team will be helpful!

🏆 Best Romanticism Ideas & Essay Examples

• ⭐ Simple & Easy Romanticism Essay Titles

📌 Most Interesting Romanticism Essay Topics

👍 good research ideas on romanticism, ❓ essay questions on romanticism.

• Romanticism in Frankenstein: The Use of Poetry in the Novel’s Narrative Although the dark and horrific motifs of Frankenstein may appear to contrast with the bright tones and subjects of such poetry, there is a clear connection, as established in the text, between the poetry of […]
• Wordsworth’s Romanticism in Tintern Abbey Poem The tone of the poem is calm and meditative and Wordsworth describes the “landscape” and compares it to the “quiet” of the sky: “The landscape with the quiet of the sky”..
• Between Romanticism and Modernism The first of the modernists in music sought to begin new dimensions and depths in music through the use of non-conventional instruments and novel sounds.
• Nature in 18th Century and Romanticism Literatures The anxiety inherent in a sketch – the feeling of being unsettled – leads Goldsmith to other stylistic choices, most notably the creation of illusions and the reliance upon sentiment, both of which smooth away […]
• Romanticism, Realism, and Modernism in Literature Romantic literature is characterized by several key traits, such as a love of nature, an emphasis on the individual and spirituality, a celebration of solitude and sadness, an interest in the common man, an idealization […]
• Romanticism in Wolfgang Goethe’s Sorrows of Young Werther It is the fruitless reconciliation of the impulsive and sensitive to the society that makes Young Werther’s journey so powerful. What is even more interesting is that this general tone is what led to the […]
• Romanticism and Victorian Literature Comparison In this respect, literature can be proud of the Romanticism and Victorian literature, because of their gradual framework and applicable emergence due to the significant events, such as the French Revolution, American Revolution, the defeat […]
• Ethnocentrism, Romanticism, Exoticism, and Primitivism as Depicted in James Cameron’s “Avatar” Ethnocentrism is depicted in most scenes of Avatar; the film outlines Na’vi’s ways of life and the way the protagonist is forced to profess the culture before being admitted into the community.
• Restoration Literature and Romanticism: Common Facts All in all, the period of Restoration in the English literature can be described as the vindication of mind, intellectual values and political interests. The diction of this period is soft, inspiring, light and moving.
• The French Revolution: Romanticism Period Romanticism was anchored in the work of the poets which was evident in the daily lives of the society. Besides, the role of women in romantic literature was significant, thus; they were greatest poets and […]
• Romanticism Period in Art 3 It is against this scope that this paper aims to explore the aspect of romanticism in the history of painting by considering the works of artists such as Kauffmann, David, Delacroix and Gros.
• Gothic Romanticism of Edgar Allen Poe When the thought of today, the nineteenth-century writer Edgar Allan Poe is remembered as the master of the short story and the psychological thriller.
• Features of French Romanticism in Camille Saint-Saens’s Music It is important to analyze Camille Saint-Saens’s works in the context of French Romanticism because the composer often combined the elements of French Romanticism with features typical of other movements and music styles like habanera.
• Romanticism in Seascape Painting by Jules Dupre In particular, it is important to examine the stylistic peculiarities of this artwork and the way in which it reflects the cultural trends that emerged in the nineteenth century.
• The History of the Romanticism Period Romanticism refers to the period of intellectual, artistic and literary movement in Europe in the first half of nineteenth century. The supporters of the Romantic Movement point to the spontaneous and irrational display of powerful […]
• Gothic Romanticism in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”, Nathaniel Hawthorn’s “The Birthmark” In the film “The Black Swan” directed by Darren Aronofsky, Nina struggles to fit into the ultimate role of the play “The Swan Lake”, as the Black Swan, even though she is comfortable playing the […]
• Romanticism of Blake’s and Ghalib’s Poems In this journal, I will look at how Blake and Ghalib exemplify the Romantic movement, how their works differ from those of the Enlightenment, and the significance of their democratic and accessible writing style.
• Romanticism: Beethoven’s Pathétique and Douglass’ The Narrative Two such examples of Romanticism works are Beethoven’s piano sonata, Pathetique, and Frederick Douglass’s The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave.
• Researching of Musical Romanticism The critical characteristics of musical Romanticism could be seen in the stress on uniqueness and individuality, the expression of one’s emotions, and freedom of form and experimentation.
• Renaissance and Romanticism: Concepts of Beauty Titian, as a representative of the Renaissance, depicted a portrait of a girl in compliance with all the canons of his time.
• Romanticism as an Ideological and Artistic Trend Romanticism in painting rejected the rationalism of classicism and reflected the attention to the depths of the human personality characteristic of the philosophy of the Romantics.
• Romanticism in Modern Ecological Literature The current efforts by humans to safeguard the environment, coupled with the onset of ecological literature, not only indicates that romanticism never disappeared but also proves that the romantics were right. The artists were critical […]
• Neo-Classicism, Romanticism, and Rococo Thus, in the second half of the eighteenth century, the neoclassical style was widely popular in Europe. This style contradicted the coldness and simplicity of neoclassicism.
• Romanticism. Artists Associated With the Movement Art dealt mostly with issues of motive and realism while other forms of art dealt with the darkness of the community on one hand and its magnificence on the other.

⭐ Simple &amp; Easy Romanticism Essay Titles

• Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Poetry: British Romanticism There can be no doubt as to the fact that Romantic writers and poets strongly opposed the ideals of the French Revolution; however, this was not due to these ideals’ rational essence, but because, during […]
• Revolution and Romanticism in Europe and America The analysis of romanticism presentation on the basis of Rousseau’s theory is to be reflected through the atmosphere of French revolution period. Romanticism of Rousseau appeared to be close to the approach of ‘primitivism’, characterizing […]
• Romanticism: Paintings by Francisco Goya The first painting depicted a nude woman in the Western art and the second painting was painted after controversial thoughts from the Spanish society over the meaning of The Nude Maja.
• Tristan and Isolde Opera Romanticism The Tristan and Isolde drama is influenced by a wide range of things. Wagner uses the voices to show what is in the thoughts of Isolde and her attendant.
• British Romanticism and Its Origins It was partially a rebellion against aristocratic social and political standards of the Age of Enlightenment and a response against the scientific explanation of nature and was exemplified most powerfully in the visual arts, music, […]
• Romanticizing Literature, Visual Arts and Music During Romanticism 1800-1850 As “it emphasized the individual, the subjective, the irrational, the imaginative, the personal, the spontaneous, the emotional, the visionary, and the transcendental”, the Romanticism period inspired many artists in the field of literature, painting, music, […]
• Enlightenment and Romanticism: Comparison In the wake up of the feminist and historicist takes to pieces of the older Romanticism, particularly Bloom’s “creative thinker corporation” and the Wordsworth-centered verse of consciousness and the natural world, one has to inquire […]
• American Romanticism of “The Minister’s Black Veil” In the story Hawthorne pondered upon the three ways of making God’s word clearer to people. The author himself and his main hero saw the mission of a clergyman in explaining the Bible to the […]
• Chopin: Musician Who Had Effect Romanticism Music At the beginning of the musical period known as Romanticism Frederic Chopin was born in Poland. The piano was his chosen instrument and one that he mastered at a very young age.
• The Age of Romanticism and Its Factors Characteristics of the genre identified by Welleck include a “revolt against the principles of neo-classicism criticism, the rediscovery of older English literature, the turn toward subjectivity and the worship of external nature slowly prepared during […]
• Neoclassicism and Romanticism: Comparison They were the two poles of architectural thinking on the side of Neoclassicism was a rational, objective, almost scientific method of thought, which put reason in the first place among human abilities.
• Romanticism. Hawthorne’s “My Kinsman, Major Molineux” One of the most typical traits of romantic literature is the prevalence of emotions, setting the natural world above the created world, and the most important, freedom of an individual.
• Gustave Courbet: Revolutionary Artist of Romanticism While the clergy is visible from the background of the work, the decision by the painter to focus on the dog in the foreground was even more appalling.
• Baroque and Romanticism Art Periods and Influences The above two works of art depict great disparities in art as a result of communal, political, and economic factors of mankind during the periods.
• American Industrialization, Romanticism and Civil War In the article, the Romantic Movement Romantic impulse meant the liberation of the Americans to a point of freedom regarding respect and love.
• The Age of Romanticism: Dances Articles Analysis On the one hand, it seems that these two writings have nothing in common except the intentions of the authors to make contributions to the field of dance and choose the theme of ballet for […]
• Edgar Allan Poe, an American Romanticism Writer Poe’s three works “The fall of the house of Usher”, “the Raven” and “The Masque of the Red Death” describe his dedication to literature and his negative attitudes towards aristocracy.
• Nineteenth Century Romanticism The works of early composers, writers, painters, and poets evolved from the onset, and in the increased quest for perfection, a spirit of romanticism was born.
• Romanticism, Baroque and Renaissance Paintings’ Analysis It is possible to focus on such artworks as the Wanderer above the Sea of Fog by Caspar Friedrich, The Taking of Christ by Caravaggio, and Raphael’s The School of Athens.
• Romanticism and the Modern Theatre The statement by the Romantic writer confirms the need to involve ordinary people in the theatre. The relationship between Faust and the devil in Goethe’s play is different from that in the traditional myth.
• Art influences Culture: Romanticism & Realism In addition, the paper also highlights issues of the time and influences of the later works on the art world. Realism presented events of the society as they happened in reality.
• Feminism Builds up in Romanticism, Realism, Modernism Exploring the significance of the theme as well as the motifs of this piece, it becomes essential to understand that the era of modernism injected individualism in the literary works.
• Light vs. Dark Romanticism As the narration continues and Katrina is wooed by Crane, Irving interrupts and expresses his imagination about the challenging and admirable nature of women.
• Nature as the Mean of Expression in Romanticism The period of Romanticism is characterized by its address to nature, in other words, the world was perceived through the nature.”It is characterized by a shift from the structured, intellectual, reasoned approach of the 1700’s […]
• The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Romanticism
• The Three Different Features of Romanticism in The World is Too Much With Us, a Poem by William Wordsworth
• Romanticism And Realism: Examples Of Mark Twain And Herman Melville Novels
• William Cullen Bryant and American Romanticism
• The American Renaissance: Transcendentalism, Romanticism and Dark Romanticism
• The Influence Of The French Revolution Upon British Romanticism
• The Relationship Between Romanticism And Transcendentalism
• Transcendentalism: Principal Expression of Romanticism in America
• Socialism And Ideas Associated With The Movement In Relation To Those Of Romanticism
• Women’s Self-Discovery During Late American Romanticism
• The French Romanticism Of Moliere And Shakespeare ‘s Midsummer Night ‘s
• The Role of Romanticism and Realism in the Development of Art
• The Historical Development of Literature from the Enlightenment through Romanticism to Modernism
• The Characteristics of the Romanticism in Wordsworth
• The Influence of Romanticism on People as Demonstrated in the Story of Madam Bovary
• Realism and Romanticism: Similarities and Differences
• The Romanticism Movement in the Novel The Danish Girl by David Ebershoff
• Varieties Of Romanticism In The Poetry Of Blake Shelly And Keats
• Walt Whitman And The Romanticism Movement
• Sexism, Romanticism, and the Portrayal of Women in Eighteenth Century Art
• The Shift from Romanticism to Realism in Mark Twain’s Satire Fenimore Cooper’s Literary Offences
• The Washington Irving’s Romanticism
• The Categorization of Romanticism and Realism at the End of the Baroque Period in the 18th Century
• The Theme of Nature in Frankenstein as a Representation of the Effect Romanticism Had on Mary Shelley
• The Key Tensions in Romanticism in Coleridge’s Kubla Khan and Keat’s Ode to a Nightingale
• Tom Sawyer as a Representation of Walter Scott’s Romanticism and Tradition in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a Novel by Mark Twain
• The Use of Romanticism in The Raven, a Poem by Edgar Allan Poe
• William Wordsworth’s Daffodils and Negative Romanticism
• The Use of Romanticism by Different Literary Authors
• The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – An Obvious Depiction of Romanticism and Realism
• What Is The Romanticism Of Johnathan Keats And Wordsworth
• The Romanticism Of The 19th Century
• The Tables Turned’ by William Wordsworth and Romanticism
• Use Of Romanticism In Development Of Characters In The Scarlet Letter
• The Similarities Between Romanticism And Modernism
• The Effect of Romanticism, Nationalism, and Communism in Shaping the European Nations
• The Progression of Knowledge Between the 18th-Century Neoclassicism and 19th-Century Romanticism
• The Origins, Spirit, Style, Themes, and Decline of the Romanticism Movement in Literature
• The Elements of Romanticism in the Short Story, The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe
• The Symbols of Romanticism in the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• The Characteristics Of Romanticism Found In The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner
• The Romanticism and Realism in Art and Literature
• The Themes of Guilt, Suffering, and Experience in Literature During the Romanticism and Victorian Era
• What Is the Difference Between Romanticism and Postmodernism?
• How Does William Wordsworth’s Poetry Fit Into the Literary Tradition of Romanticism?
• What Are the Differences Between Romanticism and Classicism?
• How Did Romanticism and Photography Shape Western Modernity?
• What Is the Opposite of Romanticism?
• Is Nature a Dominant Theme in Romantic Poetry?
• What Were the Material Causes of the Rise of Romanticism?
• How Did Romanticism Change Society’s Way of Thinking?
• What Are the Similarities Between Romantic Literature and Early Victorian Literature?
• How Has Romanticism Diminished Throughout Popularity?
• What Are the Main Features of Romantic Poetry?
• How Did Romanticism Influence American Architecture?
• What Are the Four Basic Tenets of Romanticism?
• How Did Romanticism Kill Love?
• What Did the Romantics Revolt Against, and What Did They Revive?
• How Do Romantics Emphasize Individuality?
• What Were the Characteristic Features of Poetry During the Romantic Movement?
• Why Did Romantic Writers Reject Rationalism?
• What Are Some Characteristics of Romantic Poetry?
• Why Is Imagination Closely Linked With Romanticism?
• What Is the Contribution of Wordsworth, Coleridge, Keats, and Shelley to the Romanticism?
• Why Is the Prometheus Myth Important for Romanticism?
• What Is Romantic Language and Style?
• Who Were the Most Famous Writers During the American Romantic Era?
• What Are Some Short Notes on Romanticism?
• Why Should a Student Study Romantic Poetry?
• What Is the Importance of 3 Major Concepts of Romanticism?
• How Does Romantic Writing Differ From the Early American Writings Done by the Puritans?
• What Are the Salient Features of Romanticism?
• What Inspired Poets of Romantic Era to Write Poems?
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2024, February 29). 121 Romanticism Essay Topics & Examples. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/romanticism-essay-examples/

"121 Romanticism Essay Topics & Examples." IvyPanda , 29 Feb. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/topic/romanticism-essay-examples/.

IvyPanda . (2024) '121 Romanticism Essay Topics & Examples'. 29 February.

IvyPanda . 2024. "121 Romanticism Essay Topics & Examples." February 29, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/romanticism-essay-examples/.

1. IvyPanda . "121 Romanticism Essay Topics & Examples." February 29, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/romanticism-essay-examples/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "121 Romanticism Essay Topics & Examples." February 29, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/romanticism-essay-examples/.

• Neoclassicism Topics
• Realism Essay Topics
• Impressionism Research Ideas
• Contemporary Art Questions
• Baroque Essay Topics
• Pop Art Titles
• Music Topics
• Postmodernism Essay Topics
• Artists Research Ideas
• Modernism Ideas
• Expressionism Research Topics
• Photography Essay Topics
• Classical Music Paper Topics
• Transcendentalism Research Topics
• Popular Culture Paper Topics

An Exploration of Romanticism Through Art and Poetry

• Resources & Preparation
• Instructional Plan
• Related Resources

In this lesson, students use art and poetry to explore and understand major characteristics of the Romantic period. First, students are introduced to the historical, societal, and literary characteristics of the Romantic period. Next, students deepen their understanding of Romanticism through an evaluation of William Wordsworth's definition of poetry. Students then complete an explication of a painting from the Romantic period, noting its defining characteristics. They use the TP-CASTT method to complete a literary analysis of Wordsworth's poem "The World is Too Much With Us," using their knowledge of Romantic characteristics to classify the poem as Romantic. In the final session, students begin to write an essay showing their understanding of Romanticism.

Featured Resources

• Poetry Analysis—TP-CASTT : This resource explains the TP-CASTT method of poetry analysis and provides a blank chart for use in analysis.
• Characteristics of Romanticism : This printable chart lists characteristics of Romanticism, along with explanations of each.
• Is It Romantic? : Students can use this chart to identify elements from any work and explain how they reflect characteristics of Romanticism.

From Theory to Practice

In the introduction of his book Reading in the Dark , John Golden observes that students "tend to be visually oriented, able to point out every significant image in a three-minute MTV music video, but when it comes to doing the same with a written text, they stare at it as if they are reading German." Golden goes on to state "the skills they use to decode the visual image are the same skills they use for a written text" (xiii). Golden's book outlines how to use film to help students practice their skills so they can then be transferred to written texts. This lesson is based on the same principle but uses a painting instead of a film to reinforce the skills that students use to analyze a work of literature. Further Reading

Common Core Standards

This resource has been aligned to the Common Core State Standards for states in which they have been adopted. If a state does not appear in the drop-down, CCSS alignments are forthcoming.

State Standards

This lesson has been aligned to standards in the following states. If a state does not appear in the drop-down, standard alignments are not currently available for that state.

NCTE/IRA National Standards for the English Language Arts

• 1. Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works.
• 2. Students read a wide range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an understanding of the many dimensions (e.g., philosophical, ethical, aesthetic) of human experience.
• 3. Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
• 4. Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.
• 6. Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and nonprint texts.
• 7. Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and nonprint texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience.
• 8. Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.
• 12. Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).

Materials and Technology

• Copies of "The World Is Too Much With Us" by William Wordsworth
• Characteristics of Romanticism  
• Statements that Embody or Suggest Romanticism  
• Wordsworth Quote Word Web  
• Wordsworth Quote Word Web—Teacher Copy  
• Artwork Explication: The Raft of the Medusa  
• Is It Romantic?  
• The Raft of the Medusa Romantic Characteristics  
• Essay Assignment  
• Romanticism Essay Rubric

Preparation

• Familiarize yourself with the historical background behind Théodore Géricault's painting The Raft of the Medusa .  
• Test the ReadWriteThink The Raft of the Medusa interactive on your computers to familiarize yourself with the tool.  
• Make copies or transparencies of all necessary handouts, including two copies per student of the Is It Romantic? handout.  
• Print out a copy of the Wordsworth Quote Word Web Teacher Copy for your reference.  
• Familiarize yourself with Romanticism with the History Guide's Toward a Definition of Romanticism .

Student Objectives

Students will

• identify and explain how the characteristics of a literary genre are reflected in a work of art and piece of literature.  
• examine the details in a work of art by sketching and labeling its major elements.  
• synthesize knowledge of the ways that a painting uses subject, symbolism, color and light, composition, movement, and perspective to draw conclusions about the overall tone and theme of a work of art.  
• analyze the overall significance, meaning, and theme of a work of art and literature through an explication of its individual elements.  
• explain how specific elements (diction, symbolism, characterization, tone, and elements of plot) establish the tone and theme of a work of art and a piece of literature.  
• explain how the elements establish both a work of art and a piece of literature as examples of Romanticism.

Session One

• Begin the lesson by asking students to write a paragraph response to the following question: What does it mean to call something Romantic ? Have students share their responses with the class and discuss how students' answers are similar and different. Write several responses on the board and save them for later.
• Display a transparency of the Romanticism Statements , and as you read through them, have students indicate on a sheet of paper whether they personally agree or disagree with each statement by recording "A" for agree or "D" for disagree.
• 3 or fewer As = "not Romantic"  
• 4 or 5 As = "sort of Romantic"  
• 6 or 7 As = "highly Romantic"  
• 8-10 As = "extremely Romantic"
• How has your understanding of Romanticism changed?  
• Briefly describe your definition of Romantic.  
• How is your definition of Romantic similar to and different from Romanticism?

Session Two

• What are the five characteristics of Romanticism?  
• What were some of the basic Romantic beliefs?  
• Do you think these beliefs are relevant today? Why or why not?
• After a whole-class discussion of these characteristics, break the class into five small groups and have each group discuss one of them. Do group members agree or disagree with the Romantic philosophy on this point? Why? Each group should be prepared to present their position to the class during the next session.

Session Three

• Have each of the five groups from Session Two present the results of their discussion to the whole class. Review the characteristics of Romanticism with students before moving on to the next activity.
• Write the phrase "the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" on the board. Introduce the concept by explaining that it is from an introduction William Wordsworth wrote for a book of poems titled Lyrical Ballads . Explain that the book, published in 1802, contains poems written by Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge, and is considered by many to be the beginning of the Romantic Movement in literature.
• Pass out the Wordsworth Quote Word Web handout to students. Use the handout to lead a discussion of how Wordsworth's statement corresponds with the characteristics of Romanticism. Students can refer back to the Characteristics of Romanticism handout, if necessary. You might also wish to review connotation and denotation before students complete this activity.
• First have students identify the denotative meanings for the words "spontaneous," "overflow," "powerful," and "feelings." Have students refer to classroom or online references such as Merriam-Webster Online as needed.
• Have students record their responses on the Wordsworth Quote Word Web handout. Use the notes on the Wordsworth Quote Word Web Teacher Copy to guide students' responses.
• Then ask students to suggest some possible connotative meanings for the words on the Wordsworth Quote Word Web . Encourage students to consider both positive and negative connotations of the words. For example, a "spontaneous" person can be seen as both exciting and interesting, as well as disorganized. Make a list of students' responses.
• Then ask students to consider both the denotative and connotative meanings and describe how all of these words connect to one or more of the characteristics of Romanticism.

Session Four

• What images do you see in Géricault's painting?  
• What do you think Géricault's purpose was in depicting this event?  
• What do you like about the painting? Why?  
• What don't you like about the painting? Why?
• Then have students visit the ReadWriteThink The Raft of the Medusa interactive. Review how this tool is used, and then allow enough time for students to explore the painting. They should click on each highlighted area to learn more and respond to prompts about the painting. Have students print out their work when they are finished.  
• A "pyramid of hope" is created in the center of the painting by dead figures at the bottom, dying figures in the middle, and a topmost figure waving a rag at the top.  
• A large wave in the mid-left side of the painting threatens to break on the raft.  
• Rays of sunlight breaking on the horizon at the top of the painting.  
• On the right side a tiny image of a rescue ship can be seen on the distant horizon.  
• In the far right hand corner of the raft is a bloodstained axe.
• After students have completed the interactive activity, distribute the Artwork Explication: The Raft of the Medusa handout. Have students work on completing the sheet with a partner or in small groups during the rest of this session. Students should then complete this activity for homework.

Session Five

• Review students' completed Artwork Explication: The Raft of the Medusa sheets. Take time to answer any questions students have about the assignment before moving on to the next step.
• Review with students the five primary characteristics of Romanticism. Then distribute the Is It Romantic? handout. Have students complete the chart by recording examples from the painting that illustrate characteristics of the Romantic period in the first column. In the second column they should explain how each example fits the Romantic characteristic.
• After students complete the handout, discuss the following question as a class or in small groups: What characteristics of the painting The Raft of the Medusa qualify the work as Romantic? If students work in small groups, have them record their responses and report back to the class. Circulate among the groups as well, in order to monitor students' understanding of the task. Examples of possible student responses can be found on the The Raft of the Medusa Romantic Characteristics sheet.

Session Six

• Title: Ponder the title before reading the poem.  
• Paraphrase: Translate the poem into your own words.  
• Connotation: Contemplate the poem for meaning beyond the literal.  
• Attitude: Observe both the speaker's and the poet's attitude (tone).  
• Shifts: Note shifts in speakers and in attitudes.  
• Title: Examine the title again, this time on an interpretive level.  
• Theme: Determine what the poet is saying.
• Distribute copies of the poem " The World Is Too Much With Us " by William Wordsworth as well as the Poetry Analysis—TP-CASTT handout. On the first page of the handout are analysis questions to help guide students in using the steps in the TP-CASTT method to complete an analysis of the poem. Students will use the answers to the analysis questions to complete the blank TP-CASTT chart on the second page of the Poetry Analysis—TP-CASTT handout.
• Circle the projected image of the following words in the poem's title: "World," "Too Much," "Us."  
• Ask students to identify the denotative and connotative meanings for each of the circled words.  
• Demonstrate how students should mark up the copy of their poem with notes about the connotative and denotative meanings of the words in the title.
• Use the image of the text projected onto a white board as a tool to help guide students through each step of the TP-CASTT process. As you work through each step, have students record their responses on the blank TP-CASTT chart. Alternately, you may wish to complete the first one or two steps as a group and then have students work in small groups to compete the chart.

Session Seven

• Review with students the five primary characteristics of Romanticism. You may wish to have students refer back to the Characteristics of Romanticism handout.
• Distribute the Is It Romantic? handout. Have students complete the chart by recording examples from Wordsworth's poem " The World Is Too Much With Us " that illustrate characteristics of the Romantic period in the first column. In the second column they should explain how each example fits the Romantic characteristic. Encourage students to use the notes that they created in the previous session to help them complete the chart. Wikipedia provides additional background information on Proteus and Triton , references Wordsworth uses in the poem. You might want to share this information or have students read these pages as an additional tool in classifying this poem as Romantic.
• After students complete the handout, discuss as a class or in small groups the characteristics of the poem " The World Is Too Much With Us " that qualify the work as Romantic. If students work in small groups, have them record their responses and report back to the class. Circulate among the groups as well, in order to monitor students' understanding of the task.

Session Eight

• Have students begin to apply their new learning by beginning to write an essay using one of the options on the Essay Assignment sheet. Allow students time in class to begin their essays.
• Students may complete the essays for homework, if necessary. Share the Romanticism Essay Rubric with students to use as a guide before they begin to write and allow time for student questions about the assignment and rubric.

Student Assessment / Reflections

• Evaluate the thesis statement, organization, supporting evidence, analysis, fluency, and mechanics of students’ essays using the Romanticism Essay Rubric . Provide feedback to students based on the rubric evaluation.  
• Informally assess students’ participation in whole- and small-group activities. Did students participate fully in discussions and other activities? Did students freely share ideas and opinions? How well did students work cooperatively within their groups? How well did students demonstrate an understanding of Romanticism and Romantic characteristics?  
• Use students’ Is It Romantic? sheets to check for their understanding of the Romantic characteristics of The Raft of the Medusa and “ The World Is Too Much With Us .”  
• Review students’ answers to the Artwork Explication: The Raft of the Medusa handout to check how well they have analyzed the piece of art for diction, characterization, imagery, symbolism, tone, plot, and theme.
• Professional Library
• Lesson Plans

Through discussion, drawing, and writing, students compare how William Carlos Williams's poetry and Cubist and Precisionist painting employ similar artistic strategies, enhancing their understanding of both kinds of text.

Add new comment

• Print this resource

Explore Resources by Grade

• Kindergarten K