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Transcript of American Romanticism Transcendentalism · American Romanticism & Transcendentalism ... religion,...
The American Renaissance
American Romanticism & Transcendentalism
The American Renaissance
(1828-1865)
Romanticism� Began in Germany during the second half of the
18th century
� Had a strong influence on literature, music, and art in Europe and England well into the 19th
centurycentury
Tenets of Romanticism� Romantics believed that imagination,
spontaneity, individual feelings, and nature were of greater value than reason, logic, planning, and cultivation.
� Romantics believed that the imagination was able � Romantics believed that the imagination was able to discover truths that reason could not reach. These truths were usually accompanied by powerful emotion and associated with beauty.
Romantic Literature� Sought to rise above “dull realities” to a realm
of higher truth by:
�Exploring exotic settings in the more “natural” past—a world far away from the industrial citiesindustrial cities
�Contemplating the natural world until dull reality falls away to reveal underlying beauty and truth
� Common theme-- in NATURE and CHILDHOOD we see universal, spiritual truths
Themes in Romantic Literature
� City= moral corruption and death
� Countryside= independence, straightforward moral certainty, and health
� Development of self/self-awareness
� The individual had a moral duty to reform social inequalities and relieve human suffering
TranscendentalismTranscendentalismTranscendentalismTranscendentalism
“ It was a high counsel that I once heard given to a young person, always do what you are afraid to do.”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
What is Transcendentalism?What is Transcendentalism?What is Transcendentalism?What is Transcendentalism?• A literary movement in the 1830’s that established a
clear “American voice”.
• Idealistic philosophy, spiritual position, and literary movement that advocates reliance on romantic intuition and moral human conscienceand moral human conscience
• A movement that focused primarily on the individual arriving at his own beliefs about the world.
� Transcendentalism had different meanings for each person involved in the movement.
Where did it come from?Where did it come from?Where did it come from?Where did it come from?� Ralph Waldo Emerson gave German philosopher
Immanuel Kant credit for popularizing the term “transcendentalism.”
� It began as a reform movement in the Unitarian church.
� It is not a religion—more accurately, it is a philosophy or form of spirituality.
� It centered around Boston and Concord, MA. in the mid-1800’s.
� Emerson first expressed his philosophy of transcendentalism in his essay Nature
What did Transcendentalists What did Transcendentalists What did Transcendentalists What did Transcendentalists believe?believe?believe?believe?• A belief in a higher reality than that achieved by human
reasoning.
• Suggests that every individual is capable of discovering this higher truth through intuition.
• There is an ideal spiritual state which “transcends” the • There is an ideal spiritual state which “transcends” the physical and empirical.• Opposed the strict ritualism and dogma of established
religion and the objectivity of science.
� A loose collection of eclectic ideas about literature, philosophy, religion, social reform, and the general state of American culture.
Transcendentalist Beliefs, cont’dTranscendentalist Beliefs, cont’dTranscendentalist Beliefs, cont’dTranscendentalist Beliefs, cont’d
• Unlike Puritans, they saw humans and nature as possessing an innate goodness.
“In the faces of men and women, I see God”
-Walt Whitman
• Believed in living close to nature/importance of • Believed in living close to nature/importance of nature. Nature is the source of truth and inspiration.
• Taught the dignity of manual labor
• Advocated self-trust/ confidence
• Valued individuality/non-conformity/free thought
• Advocated self-reliance/ simplicity
Who were the Transcendentalists?Who were the Transcendentalists?Who were the Transcendentalists?Who were the Transcendentalists?
� Ralph Waldo Emerson
� Henry David Thoreau
� Amos Bronson Alcott
� Margaret Fuller
Ellery Channing� Ellery Channing
Ralph Waldo Emerson� 1803-1882� Unitarian minister� Poet and essayist� Founded the
Transcendental Club� Popular lecturer� Popular lecturer� Banned from Harvard
for 40 years following his Divinity School address
� Supporter of abolitionism