AMERICAN LITERATURE PERIODS Romanticism - Transcendentalism We will walk with our own feet We will work with our own hands We will speak our own minds -Ralph Waldo Emerson

What was Romanticism?  Romanticism (or the Romantic Era) was a complex artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe.  Romanticism has very little to do with things popularly thought of as "romantic," although love may occasionally be the subject of Romantic art. Rather, it is an international artistic and philosophical movement that redefined the fundamental ways in which people in Western cultures thought about themselves and about their world.  It was embodied most strongly in the visual arts, music, and literature, but had a major impact on history and education.

How long was the Romantic Era?  Beginning in Germany and England in the 1770s, by the 1820s it swept through Europe and traveled quickly to the Western Hemisphere.  It spanned from (but really got started during the American Revolution)  A revolutionary energy was also at the core of Romanticism, which set out to transform not only the theory and practice of poetry (and all art), but the very way we perceive the world.

Characteristics of American Romanticism  Values feeling and intuition over reason  Places faith in inner experience and the power of the imagination  Shuns the artificiality of civilization and seeks unspoiled nature  Looks backward to the wisdom of the past and distrusts progress  Champions individual freedom and the worth of the individual  Contemplates nature’s beauty as a path to spiritual and moral development  Finds inspiration in myth, legend, and fold culture  Sees poetry as the highest expression of the imagination

Romanticism and Nature  "Nature" meant many things to the Romantics.  Nature as a healing power, nature as a source of subject and image, nature as a refuge from the artificial constructs of civilization  This was an extremely powerful and long-lasting shift in attitude; we see it today in the love of Germans, Britons and Americans for wilderness.

Romanticism and Symbolism and Myth  Symbolism and myth were given great prominence in the Romantic conception of art. They were valued because they could simultaneously suggest many things, and were thus thought superior to the one-to- one communications of allegory.  Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm were collecting “fairy” tales during this time (many were actually frightening).

Romantics and Individualism  During the Enlightenment, art was created for a handful of Church and aristocratic patrons who largely shared the same values (society/tradition).  The newly rich merchants operated under new ideals— individualism — creating opportunities for painters, composers, and writers to seek out sympathetic, paying audiences. They could now afford to pursue their individual tastes in a way not possible even in the Renaissance.  The modern fascination with self-definition and self-invention, the notion that adolescence is naturally a time of rebellion in which one "finds oneself," the idea that the best path to faith is through individual choice, and the idea that government exists to serve the individuals who have created it.

Emerson: Self-Reliance Thoreau: Civil Disobedience TRANSCENDENTALISM

What should I know? Why is it important?  You should understand what the period of Transcendentalism was about. You should understand the thoughts and ideas that people believed and followed during this period of American Literature.  It is important to understand the different periods of American Literature because they helped to shape the culture and ideas that Americans follow today.

What is Transcendentalism?  From , literature in America experienced a rebirth. Through their poetry, short stories, novels, and other works, writers during this period established a clear American voice. No longer did they see their work as less influential than that of European authors. Transcendentalism was a part of this “flowering” of American literature.  Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau were important voices in this philosophical movement that sought to have individuals “transcend” to a higher spiritual level.  To achieve this goal, the individual had to: Seek spiritual, not material, greatness and the essential truths of life through intuition.

Transcendentalism Beliefs  Human senses are limited; they convey knowledge of the physical worlds, but deeper truths can be grasped through intuition (instinct).  The observations of nature illuminates the nature of human beings. In other words, submerging yourself with nature will help you understand your own true personal meaning in life.  God, nature and humanity are united in a shared universal soul, or Over-Soul.

What is Self-Reliance?  Self-Reliance: The need for each individual to avoid conformity and false consistency, and follow his or her own instincts and ideas. Emerson's ideas are considered a reaction to a commercial identity; he calls for a return to individual identity.  Nonconformity (or) not conforming to what society tells you what you must do in life.

What do you think? 1) How are you affected by nature? Do you find comfort in it? Do you reflect the moods of nature? 2) What is the role of nature in your life? 3) What is meant by an individual’s spiritual side? How to you define it? 4) Is there a connection between the individual’s spirit and nature? If so, what is that connection? 5) What does it mean to know something intuitively (instinctively)? For example, has a parent or a sibling ever known something was wrong with you without having talked with or seen you? What do we mean when we say “I just know it”? 6) How do you demonstrate that you are an individual? Do you think independently of others or do you follow the crowd?

Read “Self-Reliance” by Emerson Let’s think about these quotes. What do they mean? Page 391: 1) Envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide. 2) We but half express ourselves, and are ashamed of that divine idea which each of us represents. 3) God will not have his work made manifest by cowards. 4) Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string. 5) And we are now men, and must accept in the highest mind the same transcendent destiny; and not minors and invalids in a protected corner, but guides, redeemers and benefactors. 6) Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members.

Let’s think about these quotes. What do they mean? Page 392: 7) Self-reliance is its aversion. It loves not realities and creators, but names and customs. (p.392) 8) Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. (p.392) 9) Speak what you think now in hard words and tomorrow speak what tomorrow thinks in hard words again. (p.392) 10) To be great is to be misunderstood…(p.392)

Into The Wild Quotations and ExamplesExplanation Nonconformity/ Self-reliance/ Free Thought (Not conforming/ Relying on your own ideas) Confidence Importance of Nature

Transcendentalism and Into the Wild  Write a half page explanation of how Into the Wild shows the concept of Transcendentalism. Make sure you include examples from the movie in your explanation.  One of the keys pieces in the philosophic idea of transcendentalism is the person’s believe that through a strong relationship with nature, one can transcend himself / herself. This is completely evident in Chris’ journey. He relied on nature (at times) almost 100% and it seems that when successful the relationship that he created with nature helped him feel more spiritual, and closer to both himself and the world around him. A second major part of transcendentalism is simplicity and this was also an important part in Chris’ world. No matter where he was throughout his journey, he always believed that life was best led in its simplest form. Examples of Chris’ simplicity include giving all of his money to charity, ripping up his credit cards, ditching his car and not getting another one, living a nomadic lifestyle, etc. Finally, a defiance toward society was evident in Chris’ lifestyle. He refused to conform to what society told him was normal. He refused to wear socks to work and did not care when he was told that he could not use a canoe.

The Dead Poets Society Quotations and ExamplesExplanation Nonconformity/ Self-reliance/ Free Thought (Not conforming and relying on your own ideas) Confidence Importance of Nature

Transcendentalism and The Dead Poets Society  Write a half page explanation of how The Dead Poets Society shows the concept of Transcendentalism. Make sure you include examples from the movie in your explanation.  Transcendentalism was an era in America and the movie, Dead Poet’s Society, reflects some of those values. The movie is about a group of boys who start a club, against the wishes of parents, teachers, administrators, secretly. They rebel against the school in multiple ways until things spiral out of control. Neil was trying to not conform to the society that his father had planned for him. However, the result is one that shows that he is unable to truly be a nonconformist towards society. It is as if ‘society’ was stronger than Neil’s own intuition.

“Civil Disobedience” by Thoreau Quotes: 1) The work of comparatively a few individuals using the standing government as their tool. 2) It has not the vitality and force of a single living man; for a single man can bed it to his will. 3) It does not keep the country free. It does not settle the West. It does not educate. 4) The character inherent in the American people has done all that has been accomplished; and it would have done somewhat more, if the government had not sometimes got in its way. 5) I ask for, not at once no government, but at once a better government. Let every man make known what kind of government would command his respect, and that will be one step towards obtaining it…

“Civil Disobedience” by Thoreau Questions: 1) What is your personal opinion on what kind of government commands your respect? Why? 2) What does Thoreau believe a government should be? 3) What is Thoreau asking his readers to do? (think about what Emerson wanted you to do) 4) What arguments might you use to counter Thoreau’s objections to the idea of a standing government? 5)What examples might you provide to support an argument that government benefits individuals?

Express Yourself!  Draw a picture of your interpretation of Thoreau’s idea of government. Add anything that you feel is important to add…what is your take on his writing?

Read “Civil Disobedience” by Thoreau  How does Thoreau practice the philosophy Emerson writes about in the excerpts read previously? Quotations and ExamplesExplanation Nonconformity Self-reliance Free Thought Confidence Importance of Nature

Let’s look at these again…did anything change? 1) How are you affected by nature? Do you find comfort in it? Do you reflect the moods of nature? 2) What is the role of nature in your life? 3) What is meant by an individual’s spiritual side? How to you define it? 4) Is there a connection between the individual’s spirit and nature? If so, what is that connection? 5) What does it mean to know something instinctively? For example, has a parent or a sibling ever known something was wrong with you without having talked with or seen you? What do we mean when we say “I just know it”? 6) How do you demonstrate that you are an individual? Do you think independently of others or do you follow the crowd?

Where else do we see Transcendentalism?  Sitcoms  Television dramas  Children's cartoons  Movies  Commercials

Let’s take a look at a comic strip!  Get together with another student and read the comic strip and pay close attention to both the text and the drawings with the goal of identifying the literary elements of transcendentalism. Quotations and ExamplesExplanation Nonconformity Self-reliance Free Thought Confidence Importance of Nature

Remember in Emerson’s “Self- Reliance”?  “Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton”

Let’s take a look at a song! Listen carefully and follow along with the lyrics while the song is playing. Consider your own favorite songs and to bring a song to class tomorrow (we can listen to it on your iPod)—along with the lyrics and a brief paragraph of explanation of the connection between your choice and the ideas we’ve been exploring. (ALL SONGS MUST BE APPROPRIATE!) Quotations and ExamplesExplanation Nonconformity Self-reliance Free Thought Confidence Importance of Nature

Teaching Standards 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). 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.