Alyssa King
11/5/12
American Literature
Lit. Wiki Rough Draft
Literary Terms
(2 of 4 for the 19th Century group)
Romanticism
Of the many literary movements that identify the progression of history and society in America,
Romanticism is one of the most well-known. It is one of two fundamental eras of writing that defines the
19th century in American literature, art, and reasoning.
I. Introduction
Romanticism began in Europe in the 1770s, in England and Germany. It was bookended by the
Enlightenment movement, which lasted throughout the entire 18th century, and by Realism, which began
weakly in the early 1800s and gained strength as the popularity of Romanticism faded in the last half of
the 19th century [2].
The Enlightenment occurred in the midst of both American and European unrest, namely, the
American Revolution and the French Revolution, and was a popular tool to analyze and rationalize the
events in that tumultuous century. It was characterized by the importance of humanism, reason, and
science. Thomas Jefferson is an author that exemplifies this style of writing by placing specific emphasis
on nature’s role in governing man’s choices. This crucial idea of natural law, a mentality that was
common in both the Eastern and Western Hemisphere, was one of the driving forces challenging the
divine right of kings and combating superstitious notions in the general community [5]. The goal of the
Enlightenment was to educate all people and introduce rational ways of thinking in order to advance
society.
II. Features of Romanticism
This mindset was challenged by Romanticism. The Romantic Movement was a response to the
Enlightenment period and its revolutionary characteristics, a response that entirely shifted literature and
thinking from its previous naturalistic, realistic and communal focus to one of individualism and
imagination.
This age of writing is a powerful turning point in American literature because of its unique focus
on self-improvement and spontaneous reactions to nature and personal experiences. Every aspect of
Enlightened thought was defied by Romanticism: objectivity vs. subjectivity, social vs. individual,
science vs. beauty, exceptional vs. common, reason vs. emotion [4].
A. The Commonplace
Romanticism attracted the masses because of its revolutionary style and its glorification of the
lives of common people. Never before had any literature been written to portray rural lifestyles or
working class citizens, and with rising numbers of literate people in the 1800s the new novels were
beacons of hope. It enabled them to escape from their own world into a new one filled with exotic places
and mysterious characters.
A key example of commonplace writing is Herman Melville’s short story “Bartleby the
Scrivener”. This tale was written in 1853 and is constructed around the ordinary and familiar setting of a
law office, and around a seemingly ordinary character. Melville’s descriptions display the importance of
the familiar and common background in crafting a Romantic tale, as can be seen in this excerpt: “In that
direction my windows commanded an unobstructed view of a lofty brick wall, black by age and
everlasting shade; which wall required no spy-glass to bring out its lurking beauties, but for the benefit of
all near-sighted spectators, was pushed up to within ten feet of my window panes. Owing to the great
height of the surrounding buildings, and my chambers being on the second floor, the interval between this
wall and mine not a little resembled a huge square cistern” [6]. Such imagery would have been very
normal and relatable for people of that age, and gave them a more intimate sense of the characters due to
commonalities between the fictional and the real.
B. Individualism
One of the most revolutionary ideas of this era was the importance of personal reflection and
introspection. With the inception of Industrialization, people now had more leisure time to read and to
think. This stage of self-examination was often paired with an appreciation of nature, and several authors
used the outdoors as a catalyst and foundation for contemplation and analysis [1].
The prominence of individualistic thought and natural surroundings can be found in Walden by
Henry David Thoreau, written in 1854 about his time spent in isolation in the rural area of Massachusetts.
The basis of his narrative is grounded in the beauty of the environment and the effects it has upon him.
He writes that, “This small lake was of most value as a neighbor in the intervals of a gentle rain-storm in
August, when, both air and water being perfectly still, but the sky overcast, mid-afternoon had all the
serenity of evening, and the wood thrush sang around, and was heard from shore to shore. A lake like this
is never smoother than at such a time; and the clear portion of the air above it being, shallow and
darkened by clouds, the water, full of light and reflections, becomes a lower heaven itself so much the
more important…By standing on tiptoe I could catch a glimpse of some of the peaks of the still bluer and
more distant mountain ranges in the northwest, those true-blue coins from heaven's own mint, and also of
some portion of the village…Though the view from my door was still more contracted, I did not feel
crowded or confined in the least. There was pasture enough for my imagination” [7]. The significance of
solitude and stillness for thoughtful consideration can be easily seen. Thoreau also introduces an
awareness of natural splendor and beauty that can be found in the wilderness, which augments the validity
of personal experiences with nature.
C. The Romantic Hero
Another crucial portion of Romanticism is its detailed attention to characters. This facet of
writing is directly linked to familiar settings; the importance of crafting a fictional personality that shares
typical human qualities. Yet the character is also imbued with noble, heroic aspirations and inspirations
that hold him above the rest of the world.
No better example of the Romantic hero exists than that of the title character in James Fenimore
Cooper’s novel The Deerslayer. The Cambridge History of English and American Literature
encyclopedia defines Cooper’s Romantic writing as a definitive historical piece, saying that “No one
fixed the current heroic traditions of his day more firmly to actual places. No one else supplied
so many facts to the great legend of the frontier” (Ward, 1). Crafted as an early American tale in the
1760s but written in 1841, Cooper uses many other features of Romanticism, such as mystery and
exoticism, to portray the character Deerslayer. He is compiled as an intricate working of both Indian and
American sentiments, as well as a chivalric and honorable man in the midst of the wilderness. Cooper
describes him as, “… [Having] a window in his breast through which the light of his honesty was ever
shining” [8]. Throughout the novel, Deerslayer also battles his own failings in the various forms of
vanity, pomposity and prejudice, showcasing the frailty of the character much like one would view a
knight of mythical Camelot.
A second aspect of this character comes from his dual personas as a “white” man and a “red” man
[8]. The question of Deerslayer’s heritage is used throughout the story to draw upon that Romantic
notion of mystery and suspense, placing complexity upon the motivation for his behaviour. Deerslayer’s
first human killing is an example of this paradoxical relationship when he states, “My gifts are white, as
I’ve told you; and I hope my conduct will be white also” [8], only to pay his respects to the dying native
with Indian customs. Such a contradicting display of emotions and actions further impresses Cooper’s
point of the enigmatic hero.
Transcendentalism
Transcendentalism could be considered a movement within a movement. This philosophical and
literary conception was started in the middle of the 19th century in America as an extension of sorts to the
Romantic Movement. Transcendentalism began as a reform in the churches, “…extending the views of
… an indwelling God and the significance of intuitive thought” [10]. It positioned specific importance
upon self-interpretation and reflection to better oneself, gleaning those fragments of ideology from the
basis of Romanticism.
A. Social Significance
Many well-bred and successful communities from the American East Coast were involved in the
Transcendentalist undertaking, using its principles of innate truth and religious impact to fight against
established institutions such as slavery and racial prejudice. The result was a style of writing that
mimicked the Romanticists that came before it, but placed greater emphasis upon the role of God in
providing personal epiphanies and the necessity of individual action in society.
B. Shift to Realism
While still employing many literary devices from Romanticism, Transcendentalist work, such as
the poem “Threnody” by Ralph Waldo Emerson, moved away from the exotic and unknown; it chose to
focus on modern problems and considerations that affected both the nation and the individual. In a sense,
Transcendentalism bridged the gap between Realism and Romanticism by maintaining the motifs of
nature and the singular man that were so common in the earlier part of the century, but also shifting to
encompass realistic descriptions of life and hardship and death. Emerson’s poem, written in 1842,
combines these techniques in this stanza: “My hopes pursue, they cannot bind him. Returned this day, the
South-wind searches, And finds young pines and budding birches; But finds not the budding man; Nature,
who lost, cannot remake him; Fate let him fall, Fate can't retake him; Nature, Fate, men, him seek in vain”
[3]. A less optimistic tone is used in this example of Transcendentalism than in previous excerpts from
Romanticist authors, signifying the alteration in the literature of the era towards a less fanciful
representation, and thus, a less fanciful interpretation.
C. Women’s Influence
Women also appeared more frequently in the transcendental literary scene than in Romanticism,
the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley being a rare example of female authorship. With slow emphasis
being garnered for the suffrage cause before and during the Civil War, female authors were encouraged to
write. One such author was Louisa May Alcott, whose father was a focal Transcendentalist supporter.
Not only was she a successful author, but women themselves were the subject of her novels. She painted
the ordinary circumstances of their lives with a Romanticist brush, yet allowed the characters to examine
and explore the world with a transcendental outlook. The mother of the story gives such advice to her
daughters, saying, “I want my daughters to be beautiful, accomplished, and good; to be admired, loved,
and respected; to have a happy youth, to be well and wisely married, and to lead useful, pleasant lives,
with as little care and sorrow to try them as God sees fit to send” [9]. Aspects of romantic dreaming and
adventure still exist in this piece, but the sensibility of realistic thinking shows through, a dichotomy
which characterizes most transcendental works.