1. Fireside Poets Longfellow, Whittier, Holmes, Lowell, Bryant

2. Fireside Poets eCalled “Fireside Poets” because families used to read and discuss their poetry around the fire eSimilar to the way families sometimes watch TV together

3. Fireside Poets eThese poets preferred conventional forms of poetry dNo experimentation with spelling or punctuation

4. Fireside Poets eTheir regular rhyme scheme and meter (rhythm) made them fun to read and easy to remember - catchy

5. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) e“Psalm of Life” e“Paul Revere’s Ride”

6. Longfellow eBorn in Maine eHis poetry has been translated into 24 languages

7. Longfellow eAttended Bowdoin College dClassmate was Nathaniel Hawthorne (The Scarlet Letter) d1825: Graduated 3rd in class

8. Longfellow eAt 18, hired to teach “Modern Languages” at Bowdoin College eHired under the condition that he travel Europe to study foreign languages eAlso, he had to write his own textbooks

9. Longfellow eWhile in Spain, met and spent time with Washington Irving

10. Longfellow e1836: Hired as professor of “Modern Languages” at Harvard eAlso asked to spend time in Europe for language training

11. Longfellow eMarried twice: both wives died dMary: Died of complications during a miscarriage eWrote “Footsteps of Angels” about her dFrances: Died in a house fire eHenry also injured dFace was burned, could no longer shave

12. Longfellow eDespite tragedies of his wives’ deaths, poems became sentimental and optimistic e1839: Voices of the Night published d1st collection of poems

13. John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892) e“Barbara Frietchie” e“The Slave Ships”

14. Whittier eBorn in Massachusetts eSon of devout Quakers eGrew up on a farm dVery little formal schooling

15. Whittier e1826 (19 years old): 1st published poem - “The Exile’s Departure”

16. Whittier e1827-1828: Attended Haverhill Academy dEarned his living as a shoemaker and schoolteacher

17. Whittier eFollowed Quaker faith eVery devoted to social causes and reform dWorked for and edited abolitionist newspapers and magazines dHis = New England Weekly Review

18. Whittier e1831: Delegate in Republican Convention in support of Senator Henry Clay

19. Whittier e1831- 1860s: Wrote essays, poems, and prose mostly about abolition of slavery

20. Whittier e1832: Ran for Congress dWas not elected

21. Whittier e1834: Elected into MA State Legislature for Whig Party dWhig Party was formed to oppose Andrew Jackson and his Democrats dThey believed Congress should have more power than Executive Branch d“Whig” had been the nickname for the colonial patriots of the Am. Rev.

22. Whittier e1835: Mobbed and stoned (not like that) in New Hampshire because of a speech about abolition

23. Whittier e1838: Office of his newspaper, The Pennsylvania Freeman, was burned to the ground by a pro-slavery mob

24. Whittier eFounding member of the Liberty Party dDevoted to freeing slaves

25. Whittier e1850s: Worked for the formation of the Republican Party e1859: Engaged to Elizabeth Lloyd Howell dHe called off the wedding

26. Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894) e“Old Ironsides” e“The Chambered Nautilus”

27. Holmes eBorn in Massachusetts eFather was a Calvinist clergyman d(Focuses on Grace of God, Predestination)

28. Holmes e1829: Graduated from Harvard e1836: Earned Medical degree from Harvard

29. Holmes eBegan professional life in medical field eSwitched to Academic field

30. Holmes e1838-1840: Professor of Anatomy and Physiology at Dartmouth College e1847-1853: Dean of Harvard Medical School e1847-1882: Professor of Anatomy and Physiology at Harvard

31. Holmes ePublished 2 important Harvard lectures d“On the Nature of Fevers” d“Homeopathy and its Kindred Delusions” (against Homeopathy) eTreatment of disease by injecting a small amount of the disease

32. Holmes e“Old Ironsides” - 1st important poem dWritten in protest of the destruction of the USS Constitution (War of 1812) eWrote important biography of Ralph Waldo Emerson

33. James Russell Lowell (1819-1891) e“War” e“My Love”

34. Lowell eBorn in Massachusetts dFather was a Unitarian minister

35. Lowell e1834: Began at Harvard (15 years old) e1838: Graduated from Harvard e1840: Earned Harvard Law degree

36. Lowell e1843: Started a literary magazine eThe Pioneer failed after 2 issues

37. Lowell e1844: Married Maria White dShe was a strong abolitionist

38. Lowell e1848: The Bigelow Papers dOne of his best known works dCollections of essays, stories, poetry e1st series: Opposed Mexican-American War e2nd series: Supported the North in the Civil War

39. Lowell e1855-1876: Professor of Modern Languages at Harvard (after Longfellow)

40. Lowell e1877: Appointed as Foreign Minister to London dWhile in England, he worked to promote the respect of American literature

41. William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878) e“Thanatopsis”

42. Bryant eBorn in Massachusetts eSon of a highly respected physician who loved nature dEncouraged his son to explore nature

43. Bryant e1804: (10 years old), he translated other poems from Latin to English eGot these published in newspapers

44. Bryant e1812: Left Williams College to pursue Law degree e1815: Admitted to the Bar ePracticed law for 10 years to earn money

45. Bryant e1813: His grandfather & his friend’s fiancée died eSame year, at 19, wrote “Thanatopsis” dSaid he composed it while wandering through the woods e“Thanatos” = death e“Opsis” = vision

46. Bryant e1829: Moved to New York City eBecame Editor-in-Chief of Evening Post

47. Bryant eOutspoken supporter of women’s rights eOutspoken opponent of slavery

48. Bryant eHelped bring about the American version of the Romantic Movement dDeath and nature were 2 of the favorite topics of Romantics