 1. Background  2. Transcendentalism  3. Writers  4. Vocabulary  5. Reference

 In the 1830 and 1840s. The frontier of American society was quickly moving toward the west. Following in the path of Brackenridge and Cooper, writers were beginning to look at the western frontier for ideas for a literature about American life. Among the younger people there was much talk about the “new spiritual era”. The young intellectuals of Boston were dissatisfied with the old patriotism. America’s power and wealth did not interested them. They studied the Greek, German and Indian philosophers. Many kept diaries about their lives and feeling

 Transcendentalism was a group of new ideas in literat ure, religion, culture, and philosophy that emerged in New England in the early to middle 19th century. It is s ometimes called American transcendentalism to disti nguish it from other uses of the word transcendental. Transcendentalism began as a protest against the ge neral state of culture and society, and in particular, th e state of intellectualism at Harvard and the doctrine of the Unitarian church taught at Harvard Divinity Sch ool. Among transcendentalists' core beliefs was an id eal spiritual state that "transcends" the physical and e mpirical and is realized only through the individual's in tuition, rather than through the doctrines of establishe d religions

 Ralph Waldo Emerson  Henry David Thoreau  Nathaniel Hawthorne  Herman Melville  Edgar Allan Poe

~ was an American lecturer, essayist, and poet, best remembered for leading the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society, and he disseminated his thought through dozens of published essays and more than 1,500 public lectures across the United States. Emerson gradually moved away from the religious and social beliefs of his contemporaries, formulating and expressing the philosophy of Transcendentalism in his 1836 essay, Nature. Following this ground-breaking work, he gave a speech entitled The American Scholar in 1837, which Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. considered to be America's "Intellectual Declaration of Independence". Considered one of the great lecturers of the time, Emerson had an enthusiasm and respect for his audience that enraptured crowds. Works ▪ Self-Reliance (1841) ▪ Over- soul (1841) ▪ The Poet (1844)

~ was an American author, poet, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, historian, philosopher and leading transcendentalist. He is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay, Civil Disobedience, an argument for individual resistance to civil government in moral opposition to an unjust state. Thoreau's books, articles, essays, journals, and poetry total over 20 volumes. Among his lasting contributions were his writings on natural history and philosophy, where he anticipated the methods and findings of ecology and environmental history, two sources of modern day environmentalism. His literary style interweaves close natural observation, personal experience, pointed rhetoric, symbolic meanings, and historical lore; while displaying a poetic sensibility, philosophical austerity, and "Yankee" love of practical detail. Works ▪ Disobedience (1849) ▪ A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers(1847) ▪ Walden(1854)

~ was an American novelist and short story writer. Much of Hawthorne's writing centers around New England, many works featuring moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. His fiction works are considered part of the Romantic movement and, more specifically, dark romanticism. His themes often center on the inherent evil and sin of humanity, and his works often have moral messages and deep psychological complexity. His published works include novels, short stories, and a biography of his friend Franklin Pierce. Works ▪ The Scarlet Letter(1850) ▪ Twice-Told Tales(1837) ▪ The Minister's Black Veil(1836) ▪ Wakefield(1835)

~ was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet, whose work is often classified as part of the genre of dark romanticism. He is best known for his novel Moby-Dick and the posthumous novella Billy Budd. His first three books gained much attention, the first becoming a bestseller, but after a fast-blooming literary success in the late 1840s, his popularity declined precipitously in the mid-1850s and never recovered during his lifetime. When he died in 1891, he was almost completely forgotten. It was not until the "Melville Revival" in the early 20th century that his work won recognition, especially Moby-Dick which was hailed as one of the literary masterpieces of both American and world literature. He was the first writer to have his works collected and published by the Library of America. Works ▪ Moby-Dick (1851) ▪ Typee (1846) ▪ Omoo (1847) ▪pierre (1852)

~ was an American writer, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective-fiction genre. He is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. He was the first well-known American writer to try to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in a financially difficult life and career. Works ▪ The Black Cat (1843) ▪ The Bells(1840) ▪ The Raven(1845)

 Intellectual : involving a person's ability to think and to understand ideas and information.  Spiritual : relating to people's thoughts and beliefs, rather than to their bodies and physical surroundings.  Patriotism : love for your country and loyalty towards it  Unitarianism : any unitary system, esp of government  Deposit : a sum of money which is part of the full price of something, and which you pay when you agree to buy it.  Christianity : a religion that is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ and the belief that he was the son of God.  Pioneer : one of the first people to be involved in it and develop it.  Railroad : a route between two places along which trains travel on steel rails

 Sin : an action or type of behavior which is believed to break the laws of God.  Allegory : a story, poem, or painting in which the characters and events are symbols of something else. Allegories are often moral, religious, or political.  Pictorial : using or relating to pictures.  Praise : If you praise someone or something, you express approval for their achievements or qualities  Factual : Something that is factual is concerned with facts or contains facts, rather than giving theories or personal interpretations.

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