Transcendentalism
“Good men must not obey the
laws too well.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
What do you think Emerson’s
quote means?
Romanticism
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Arose in Europe as a reaction to the Age
of Reason, and in America, Puritanism
Saw limits of reason
Celebrated the glories of the individual
Splendor of (super)natural inspired
Atmosphere, sentiment, optimism
Longfellow, Irving, Bryant, Whitman
Romanticism
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Common motifs: nature, good vs. evil, light vs.
dark, happy (or at least just) endings, the
supernatural
Common themes: Bad things happen to bad
people, good things happen to good people; we
control our own choices; those who came before
us have something to teach us (respect for past)
Common hero: gifted, idealistic and perhaps
misunderstood loner
Romanticism vs. Reason
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As Age of Reason comes to an end, Romanticism
rises from its ashes (or perhaps causes the fire!)
Enlightenment thinkers = deduction, order,
classification
Romantic thinkers = feeling, intuition,
imagination
Contrast how these schools of thought may have
treated or viewed nature.
Psalm of Life
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What about the poem makes it Romantic?
Washington Irving
(1783-1859)
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Creator of the American short story
Best known for:
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“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”
“Rip Van Winkle”
Elements of a Short Story?
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Exposition
Rising action
Climax
Falling action
Denouement or resolution
Washington Irving
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1802 - literary debut: a series of
observational letters to the Morning
Chronicle, written under the pseudonym
Jonathan Oldstyle
1815 – moved to England
1819 - achieved international fame with
the publication of The Sketch Book of
Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.
Washington Irving
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America's first genuine internationally
best-selling author, Irving advocated for
writing as a legitimate profession, and
argued for stronger laws to protect
American writers from copyright
infringement.
Washington Irving
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Irving encouraged American authors such as
Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Henry
Wadsworth Longfellow, and Edgar Allan Poe.
Published regularly and almost always
successfully throughout his life (both fiction and
historical works, biographies, and several
histories of 15th-century Spain)
served as U.S. minister to Spain from 1842 to
1846
Transcendentalism
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From German Romanticism
“Transcendent forms of truth exist beyond
reason and experience”
Emerson goes one step further, American twist…
Individuals can achieve their own truths through
intuition
Henry David Thoreau embodied spirit – solitary
communion with nature to reveal truths
Transcendentalism
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Highly educated, New England – working
to create a distinctly American literature
Defining spirituality – rationalism not
enough; sentiment, emotion, intuition
must be accounted for
Speaking out against slavery and for
women’s rights
Self - Reliance
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Read Self – Reliance
Use a DICTIONARY for unfamiliar words
Answer the questions on the handout #1,
#2, #3, #4, #5, #7
Get with a group of 3 or 4 classmates and
discuss your answers
Return to the group for a discussion