1. Dark Romanticism

2. Romanticism…with a kick
This era in American Literary history is…weird
The writers write similar to Romanticism
Excess in Nature
Lots of emotion
Symbols aplenty
Just slightly different….

3. Gothic There are modern adaptations of the term “gothic”
Gothic – literature that combine elements of both Romanticism and Horror; exploration of the surrealism of human nature
Usually these elements combine to form mysteries, ghost stories, spiritual awakenings, delving into the “sublime”
Gothic does not mean evil, however this genre is where we start seeing actual “villains”

4. On the Dark Side Dark Romantics explore the dark side of human nature
Murder, sin, corruption, darkness of nature, animals, weather…
Main characters are deeply troubled…or will deeply trouble another
Not about religion…rather, more science led

5. Nathaniel Hawthorne 7/4/1804 – 5/19/1864
Hawthorne belongs to the Dark Romantics.
Novels and short stories all go into the dark side of human nature
The Minister’s Black Veil
The Scarlet Letter
Considered the greatest American writer

6. Edgar Allen Poe
1/19/1809 – 10/7/1849
Poe’s writings are synonymous with horror and the horror genre
Bleak imagery and bleak outlook on life
You can bet that if you are reading one of his stories, it deals with death and/or the macabre
Macabre – Grim/ghastly atmosphere

7. His life may explain it
Early in his life, his mother died and his father left the family
He was adopted by the “Allan” family who refused to financially back Poe
After publishing “The Raven” in 1845, his wife of 10 years died
His writing style was based on writing alone, secluding himself from his family
Because of this, his life was not very financially successful and very random with living arrangements

8. His Death He was found, face down and dead in a ditch on 10/7/1849
Journal: Write a paragraph chronicling how you think that he met his end, given his grim and disturbing demeanor coupled with his very dark and foreboding life. A paragraph means 5 sentences!