1. American Romanticism Life is real! Life is earnest! And the grave is not its goal; Dust thou art, to dust returnest, Was not spoken of the soul. -Longfellow

2. Definition A journey away from the corruption of civilization and the limits of rational thought and toward the integrity of nature and the freedom of the imagination.

3. Characteristics of Romanticism Values feeling and intuition over reason. Places faith in the “inner experience” and the power of human imagination. Shuns artificiality of civilization and seeks unspoiled nature View nature as “sublime.” Contemplates nature’s beauty as a path to spiritual and moral development

4. Characteristics Continued Champions individual freedom Prefers youthful innocence over educated sophistication. Distrusts progress- wisdom of the past is revered. Finds beauty in the supernatural realm, exotic settings, and the inner world of the imagination.

5. Characteristics Continued Finds inspiration in myth legend and folklore. Sees poetry as the highest form of expression Presents reader with a “Romantic Hero” Young, innocent and pure of purpose Sense of honor is based on principles higher than society’s rules Knowledge of people and life based on intuition, not on formal learning Loves nature and avoids town life Quests for higher truth

6. James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) America’s first novelist Introduces the American Romantic Hero The Leatherstocking Tales Last of the Mohicans

7. Washington Irving (1783- 1859) Created comic, fictional narrators. Helped America develop its own literary voice. Inspired by legend and folklore. “The Devil and Tom Walker” and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

8. Fireside or Schoolhouse Poets Read by the Fireplace in American households Memorized and recited by School children Poems were popular because of comforting subject matter Love, patriotism, nature, religion, family, death were typical subjects. Poets were “household names”

9. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807- 1882) Value-based poems that helped to define the American character. Wrote in “conventional form”. “A Psalm of Life”