American Romanticism

1800-1860

English 10 Bell Ringer 10/21/2013

Directions: Answer the following questions on your own paper. Be prepared to submit your answers.

What do you think of when you hear the word “romantic”? What makes you think of these ideas?

Minimum: 5 Sentences. Include evidence.

(I think of _________ because of ________.)

Stories Covered

In this unit we will read short stories and poems in addition to The Scarlet Letter. Most of these texts will be in your literature textbook; therefore, it is important that you bring your textbook to class EVERY DAY. If a text is not in your book, I will provide the text for you. At any point, if you feel that you are having trouble understanding these stories, PLEASE come to tutoring. I am more than happy to read these stories with you and help you understand them. You can also find summaries for many of these works on www.sparknotes.com

read these works as they appear in the textbook.

. Use the website to help you, but do not let it do all of the work for you. You cannot pass the reading quizzes, exams, etc. if you do not

Transcendentalism:

-“Self-Reliance” Emerson

Darkness:

-“The Devil and Tom Walker” Irving -“The Minister’s Black Veil” Hawthorne -“The Raven” Poe -“The Mask of Red Death” Poe -“The Pit and the Pendulum” Poe -“The Tell-Tale Heart” Poe

The American Romantic Period Be prepared to take a quiz on these notes!

-Stems from a break from the lack of fantastical and creative artistry of the Puritans -Reflects the still innocent, pre-Civil War United States -Prominent Romantics: Nathaniel Hawthorne Edgar Allan Poe Herman Melville Washington Irving Ralph Waldo Emerson (also a Transcendentalist) Henry David Thoreau (also a Transcendentalist)

Our Authors

Edgar Allan Poe Washington Irving Nathaniel Hawthorne Images Source: Google Images Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Characteristics of Romantic Work:

Focus on a love of nature Focus on the individual Focus on truth as a universal concept Imaginative, fantastical settings Highly symbolic Features elements of the supernatural Favors emotion over intellect Development of national pride

Big Ideas

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Optimism and Individualism: Optimism is the belief that the world around us is always improving. Some American Romantics presented an optimistic view of human progress.

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Kinship with Nature: Many American Romantics believed in the beneficial effects of a close link between humanity and nature.

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The Power of Darkness: There was a dark underside to American Romanticism. It took a variety of forms, including fascination with disease, madness, death, evil, the supernatural, and the destructive aspects of nature.

Transcendentalism & Its Authors

Main author: Ralph Waldo Emerson This first movement of romanticism occurred toward the end of the 1700s when new ideas began to transform European civilization. Romantic authors shared two important attitudes: They valued imagination and feeling over intellect.

They believed in the basic goodness and equality of individuals, and that everyone had the right to govern themselves. This belief in the value of the individual was known as transcendentalism.

Emerson & Transcendentalism

Transcendentalism: Emerson’s belief in the value of the individual was shaped by the era in which he lived. In the 1830s, the influence of Romanticism began to be felt in the US. One result was transcendentalism, a loosely organized movement that embodied the ideas of thinkers who were active in new England in the 1830s and 1840s. Emerson was a leading figure in this group.

The essence of Transcendentalism was the philosophy known as Idealism. For idealists, reality is not in material objects (the stuff you have) but instead exists in our ideas about those objects. The Transcendentalists believed that intuition (your gut feeling) is a more valuable guide than sensory experience (what you can see, taste, touch, smell, and/or hear) in grasping what nature really is.

Transcendentalism

4 basic principles of Transcendentalism include: An individual is the spiritual center of the universe—and in an individual can be found the clue to nature, history and, ultimately, the cosmos itself. It is not a rejection of the existence of God, but a preference to explain an individual and the world in terms of an individual. (cosmos=world as a harmonious system) The structure of the universe literally duplicates the structure of the individual self—all knowledge, therefore, begins with self-knowledge.

Transcendentalists accepted the neo-platonic conception of nature as a living mystery, full of signs—nature is symbolic.

The belief that individual virtue and happiness depend upon self realization.

Who Has It Better? (Exit Slip) Directions: Answer the following questions on your own paper. Be prepared to submit your answers.

Do transcendentalists have a better understanding of who they are as individuals than people who follow the crowd have? Explain your answer.

Minimum: 1 paragraph (5 Sentences)

1. TS – Topic Sentence (Answers the question) 2. CD – Concrete Detail (Gives a fact) 3. CM – Commentary (Explains why you are right) 4. CM – Commentary (Explains further why you are right) 5. CS – Concluding Sentence (Wraps it up)

Bell-ringer #2

You must have your literature textbook. If you do not have it, go get it! Do not begin the bell ringer until you have all of the appropriate materials in class.

Directions: Answer the following question on your own paper. Use COMPLETE sentences! Be prepared to submit your work. Do not use your notes.

What do you remember about Transcendentalism?

Ralph Waldo Emerson

1803-1882 Emerson was the central figure of American Romanticism. His ideas about the individual, claims about the divine, and attacks on society were revolutionary.

Even though Emerson was a minister’s son, trouble and hardships caused Emerson to lose faith and leave the church. He rejected organized religion, and instead claimed that truth was found within the individual.

From Self-Reliance, pg. 183

-In this essay, Emerson suggests that everybody has the potential for genius. -In this essay, Emerson argues that people should recognize their own ideas and follow their convictions. People should live by their own opinions and stop imitating the ideas of others.

In other words, don’t follow the crowd; be yourself!

Be prepared for a reading quiz on this text!

Homework

Bring appropriate song lyrics that express Transcendentalist ideas to class tomorrow. You must bring these to class in order to be able to complete the class assignment! If your song lyrics are inappropriate in any way, you will receive a zero and be referred to the office.

Ideas to look for in your song’s lyrics:

- Appreciation of nature or a desire to return to nature -Self Reliance-- either taking care of yourself or thinking about yourself -Nonconformity--celebrating individuality and being yourself -Standing up for rights, especially if something seems unjust - Simplicity (shunning material goods, stress, etc) -Seizing the day and living life to the fullest.

Exit Slip

Answer the following question on your own paper. Use COMPLETE sentences! Be prepared to submit your work.

Do you consider yourself a transcendentalist or a person who goes with the crowd? Why or why not?

Minimum: 1 paragraph (5 Sentences)

1. TS – Topic Sentence (Answers the question) 2. CD – Concrete Detail (Gives a fact) 3. CM – Commentary (Explains why you are right) 4. CM – Commentary (Explains further why you are right) 5. CS – Concluding Sentence (Wraps it up)

So, What Does Transcend Mean?

1. To pass beyond the limits of: emotions that transcend understanding. 2. To be greater than, as in intensity or power; surpass: love that transcends infatuation. 3. To exist above and independent of (material experience or the universe)

"One never can see the thing in itself, because the mind does not transcend

phenomena." (Hilaire Belloc)

The Power of Darkness: Dark Romanticism

Authors to remember: Hawthorne, Melville, Poe, and Irving Our experience of the life and the world has a dark side. We fear the evils we know—poverty, violence, disease, madness, death—and are troubled by nameless terrors that might lurk in the shadows beyond our knowledge. Not all important American writers of Emerson’s time shared his optimism. In fact, Hawthorne admired Emerson, but thought him unrealistic. To Herman Melville, Emerson’s optimism was “nonsense” that ignored the “disagreeable facts” of life.

Washington Irving

Named after his country’s first president, Washington Irving won the battle for America’s literary independence. He was the first American storyteller to be internationally recognized as a man of letters. During his time, he was both a lawyer and a writer.

“The Devil and Tom Walker”: One day, the devil offers Tom Walker a pirate’s treasure. When Tom’s greedy wife urges him to accept the deal, he refuses out of spite; so she tries to make her own bargain with the devil—but she disappears. Tom then accepts the devil’s offer and becomes a rich money-lender who preys on those in need. When a borrower asks Tom for an extension on a loan he replies, “The devil take me if I have made a farthing.” The devil whisks Tom away, and his riches turn to cinders.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Almost all of Hawthorne’s fiction is based on stories of the past, particularly the history and legends of his Puritan ancestors in New England. Hawthorne was drawn to the puritan past as Gothic writers were drawn to the Middle Ages.

“The Minister’s Black Veil”: pg. 266—When parson Hooper arrives in church to preach his Sunday Sermon, he is wearing a black veil that hides much of his face. His congregation is deeply troubled by the veil, but no one is willing to ask him why he wears it. As the years pass, the minister’s veil remains an object of dread but also makes him a more effective clergyman.

Edgar Allan Poe

Gothic Horror: Gothic horror relies chiefly on atmosphere, or mood, to achieve its effects. Writers create an atmosphere of horror through plot, characters, and settings that most people find chilling.

Edgar Allan Poe was the first American master of this type of horror. In his poems and stories, Poe often bettered earlier Gothic writers in achieving spine-tingling effects.

“The Raven”

In “The Raven,” the speaker is a melancholy man who has lost his beloved Lenore. Late one night, while he is grieving, he is visited by an eerie and mysterious raven. The man questions the raven about Lenore, but the raven’s only response is “Nevermore.” The poem shows how loneliness and excessive grieving drive the man to madness.

Tone in “The Raven”

You are going to create a 4-square index card for THREE of the following tone words. You may select any three you wish. Be sure to choose tone words for which you can find textual evidence. As we read “The Raven,” you should look for evidences of these tones in the text. I will show you an example of a completed 4-square index card. Do not lose these cards! You will turn them in after we finish reading “The Raven.” 1. Grim– of a sinister or ghastly character; frightful, grisly 2. Melancholy– a gloomy state of mind; sorrowful, glum 3. Fearful– feeling fear, dread, or apprehension; afraid, timid, worried 4. Mournful– feeling or expressing sorrow or grief; heartbroken 5. Depressed– sad and gloomy; downcast, dejected 6. Lonely– without company; solitary, alone 7. Morbid– suggesting an unhealthy mental state or attitude; unhealthy 8. Haunted– preoccupied, as with emotion, memory, or idea; obsessed 9. Somber– extremely serious; depressing, mournful

“The Pit and the Pendulum”

A soldier is sentences to death by the Spanish Inquisition but escapes a sharp swinging pendulum. Just as he is about to be forced into a pit by heated metal walls, French soldiers enter the city, and he is saved. Be prepared for a reading quiz on this text!

Bell Ringer

Directions: Answer the following question on your own paper. Use COMPLETE sentences! Be prepared to submit your work.

The Gothic Tradition: Dark, mysterious, and often ghastly settings and subjects are part of the Gothic literary tradition. In the U.S. Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne were two of the most famous authors to write in the Gothic tradition.

How is “The Pit and the Pendulum” an example of the dark tales of horror that make up the Gothic tradition?