A Growing Nation 1800-1870

History of the Times In 1800 the united states consisted of sixteen states clustered near the east coast 1803 Jefferson doubles the nation’s size with the Louisiana Purchase Railroads, steamboats, and sailing packets helped speed people and goods across the nation

Democracy and Government American’s took more direct control of government Andrew Jackson eliminated property requirements for voting rights Africans remained enslaved The Trail of Tears occurred in 1838

The West and Economic Growth 1825 Erie Canal is completed 1850’s the railroad began to dominate American long distance travel Advances in technology spurred social change: factories, steal plow, telegraph communication, etc

Change for a brighter future During the 1840’s-50’s women’s rights were promoted for voting, law suits, etc Started creating child labor laws for factories, etc True abolition of slavery American’s saw the need for social changes to ensure a brighter future

Literature Comes of Age Before 1800, writers were not widely read in America The writers of this period, however, would define the American Voice Primary theme: the quest of the individual to define him or herself

Romanticism Major players: Washington Irving, William Cullen Bryant, James Fenimore Cooper, and Edgar Allen Poe Romanticism does not mean “love story” or writings about love Romanticism was an artistic movement that elevated imagination over reason and intuition over fact

Romanticism The Romantic writers reveled in nature The Romantic writers often highlighted the fantastic aspects of human experience (made them more interesting!) Romantic writers trade fact for flavor to enhance their stories or to make a point

Why all the Romance? Romanticism is concerned with the individual more than with society. The individual consciousness and especially the individual imagination are especially fascinating for the Romantics. “Melancholy” was quite the buzzword for the Romantic poet There was a downgrading of the power and importance of reason Romanticism was a reaction to the enlightenment

Why all the Romance? Romanticism loosened the rules of artistic expression Language became more relaxed and unnatural giving way to blank, unrhymed verse for poetry One of the most popular themes was country life (pastoral poetry)

Anti transcentalism Romanticism led to a darker side to individualism called the Gothic era The belief that imagination leads to a focus on the demonic, the fantastic, and the insane A pessimistic view of mankind; potential for evil in all people Essential truths about life: Greed, Betrayal, Fear, etc. Famous writers: Edgar Allen Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne