AMERICAN ROMANTICISM(1820-1865)

Early 1800’s…

• We have declared our independence!

• We have had a successful revolt of English rule!

• We are feeling euphoric!• Look at this vast expanse of

wilderness that is now ours! • We have freedom!• There are no limits to our

greatness!

What else is going on…

• Rapid expansion of US population• Agricultural advancement• Industrial advancement• Frontier • Technological advancements

Romanticism (traits of)1. The JOURNEY2. The COMMON MAN3. Preserving FOLKLORE4. Grandeur of NATURE and LANDSCAPE5. Distrust of civilization6. Interest in the SUPERNATURAL7. Interest in Spiritual Awakenings8. Significance of one’s IMAGINATION;

Power of emotion to create INSPIRATION

9. The FREEDOM of the INDIVIDUAL

1. The Journey

• Man’s journey for spiritual awakening• Country’s journey towards

independence• Journey into the countryside to

appreciate the beauty of nature• Journey = westward expansion

2. The Common Man

• Concern for the common man came from both the democratic changes of the age of Revolution, as well as an interest in folk culture

• Ordinary man can be an American literary hero; doesn’t have to be a knight or king!

3. Folk Tradition

• Desire to preserve the stories, songs, legends, and verse of the common people

• Searching for a distinct American voice

4. Nature• Shuns the artificiality of civilization and seeks unspoiled

nature (city = bad; country = good)• Contemplates nature’s beauty as a path to spiritual and

moral development

• The belief that the expansion of the United States throughout the American continents was both justified and inevitable

Manifest Destiny

5. Supernatural• This where GOTHIC ideals begin!• The idea that there are things we cannot explain

through Science• The willingness to “suspend beliefs”

6. Imagination, Passion, Emotion!

• Imagination was emphasized over “reason.” Reason was associated with the era of founding fathers and neoclassicism.

• Imagination was considered necessary for creating all art, literature and music.

• Emotions were prized over science or rational thought.

6. Individuality

• Romantics celebrated the individual.

• During this time period, Women’s Rights and Abolitionism were taking root as major movements; we will see more of them later.

• Defining a distinct vision for American art • Began with the grand views of the Hudson Valley

and surrounding Catskill Mountains in NY• Celebrated the vast resources and magnificent

landscapes of the new nation • Sought to depict a wilderness in which man is

small in comparison • As Thomas Cole maintained, if nature were

untouched by the hand of man--as was much of the primeval American landscape in the early 19th century--then man could become more easily acquainted with the hand of God

Art

Thomas Cole, The Oxbow (View from Mount Holyoke,

Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm, 1836)

Asher Durand, “Kindred Spirits” (1848)

Frederic Edwin

Church, “The Natural

Bridge” (1852)

Alfred Bierstadt, “Emigrants Crossing the Plains” (1867)

Alfred Bierstadt, “Looking Up the Yosemite Valley”

Washington Irving

• Father of American Literature!

• First author noted to be of the caliber of English authors

• Did go to Europe for 17 years and returned to America to find it changed

Rip Van Winkle• Considered 1st American short story!

How is “Rip Van Winkle” a story of the Romantic period?

How is it an allegory?

A symbol is…

• Symbol: a symbol is a word or object that stands for another word or object. The object or word can be seen with the eye or not visible. For example a dove stands for Peace. The dove can be seen and peace cannot.

• Symbol: in general terms, anything that stands for something else. Obvious examples are flags, which symbolize a nation; the cross is a symbol for Christianity; Uncle Sam a symbol for the United States. In literature, a symbol is expected to have significance.

Visual Annotations & The Journey of YGB – please read through “”My Faith is gone!...Come, devil; for to thee this world is given” (+/- page 6 and +/- the

9th “scene”)• Using ShowMe (or similar application) OR a

pen and paper, illustrate the +/- 15 scenes from “Young Goodman Brown.”

• Each scene will contain and label the following:1. the people in the scene 2. at least one potential symbol from the scene 3. the scene’s surroundings (imagery)4. a quote (recorded or written) from that scene

“Young Goodman Brown”Pre-reading Journal Write (pick

one)Respond to one – or both -- of these quotes.

“All things truly wicked start from innocence.”  ~ Ernest Hemingway

“Every act of rebellion expresses a nostalgia for innocence and an appeal to the essence of being.” ~ Albert Camus, from The Rebel: An Essay on Man in Revolt

Respond to the prompt.

How would you define “innocence”? In your lifetime, have you experienced or witnessed a loss of innocence? How would you describe it? You might consider the practical, emotional, social, or spiritual impacts.

A theme is…

a common thread or repeated idea that is incorporated throughout a literary work.

A theme is a thought or idea the author presents to the reader that may be deep, difficult to understand, or even moralistic. Generally, a theme has to be extracted as the reader explores the passages of a work. The author utilizes the characters, plot, and other literary devices to assist the reader in this endeavor. (University North Carolina)

Themes in YGB

Themes in YGB

– Man’s loss of faith– Inevitable movement/growth of man– Growing up/maturing– Loss of innocence – Inevitability of maturation– Duality of man – Hypocrisy in religion– Corruption of man/devil in all of us

Symbols in YGB

An allegory is…

• An allegory is a narrative that serves as an extended metaphor. The main purpose of an allegory is to tell a story that has characters, a setting, as well as other types of symbols, that have both literal and figurative meanings (A Handbook to Literature, 2011)

Why is YGB an allegory?

Imagery is…

• Vivid, descriptive language that appeals to one or more of the senses.

• The use of pictures, descriptions or figures of speech (such as similes, metaphors) to visualize a mood or character.

• Think of “mental pictures” but it can go to all senses.

Imagery in Young Goodman Brown

Thesis Statements are…

• The single, specific claim that your essay supports

• a short statement, usually one sentence, that summarizes the main point or claim of an essay, research paper, etc., and is developed, supported, and explained in the text by means of examples and evidence.

• The statement serving as the organizing principle of the text and usually appears in the introductory paragraph, often at the end.

• A controlling idea for an entire paper or a book

Indications/Elements of a Strong Thesis Statement

1) take on a subject upon which reasonable people could disagree

2) deal with a subject that can be adequately treated given the nature of the assignment

3) express one main idea

4) assert your conclusions about a subject

Your Goals for Today

1. Decide on the theme you will explore2. In your group, develop a thesis statement

(this may be a work in progress)3. In your group, decide who will be in

charge of what piece(s) of imagery and symbol(s).

4. Individually, construct your paragraph. You may want to consult with your group members about your evidence, interpretation and/or details.

Introductions• Introduce the topic with some

indication of its inherent interest or importance, and a clear definition of the boundaries of the subject area

• Indicate the structure and/or methodology of the essay, often with the major sections of the essay or its structural principle clearly stated

• State the thesis of the essay, preferably in a single, arguable statement with a clear main clause

Goals for Wednesday1. Complete your individual paragraphs and share them with each other. Ask each other these questions:

– Does my evidence actually support the thesis?– Do I explain how my evidence supports the

thesis?

2. Brainstorm about your conclusion (I know, I know…you haven’t written your introduction yet). But do you know where you’re going?3. Write an introduction

Goals for Thursday

• Create one MLA document (remember: works cited not needed).

• Read the paper in its entirety• Write your conclusion.• Modify your introduction, thesis, and

conclusion as needed. • Finish final draft by tomorrow.

Conclusions

• Answer “So What?”• Come full-circle. Return to the theme

from the introduction with parallel concepts and/or images.

• Synthesize, don’t simply summarize. • Propose a course of action, a solution

to an issue, or questions for further study. *

• Point to broader implications.

Conceptualizing introductions & conclusions

Introduction…

• Invitation• A bridge into the

paper• A layout of your

paper’s world

• Answers, “So tell me about…”

Conclusion…

• Parting Gift• A bridge into the

world• A real-world reason

to read your essay• Answers, “So

what?/So why did you tell me about…”

Common Pitfalls to Conclusions

• “That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.” (indicators: words like “in conclusion,” “in summary,” or “in closing.”)

• The Sherlock-Holmes syndrome (indicator: thesis is stated for first time in the conclusion.)

• The thesis, twice (indicator: a rephrased thesis statement but with no substantive changes.)

Common Pitfalls continued

• Desperate emotional appeal (indicator: a sudden sentimental attempt that is out of character with an analytical paper)

• I’m still going! (indicator: evidence (quotations, statistics, etc.) that should be in the body of the paper.

Final Draft will look like this:

• ONE paper that identifies the author of each body paragraph by using [brackets] beforehand:

Example: [Whitley] Topic Sentence Extraordinaire. “Quote that can’t be

beat” (parentheses). Words that make sense of that quote. Words that relate that sense to the imagery in the story. Words that connect that imagery and its sense to the thesis.

• Three rubrics attached (rubric not necessary if electronically submitted)

• 1. The place holder introduction. When you don’t have much to say on a given topic, it is easy to create this kind of introduction. Essentially, this kind of weaker introduction contains several sentences that are vague and don’t really say much. They exist just to take up the “introduction space” in your paper. If you had something more effective to say, you would probably say it, but in the meantime this paragraph is just a place holder.

• Example: Slavery was one of the greatest tragedies in American history. There were many different aspects of slavery. Each created different kinds of problems for enslaved people.

• 2. The restated question introduction. Restating the question can sometimes be an effective strategy, but it can be easy to stop at JUST restating the question instead of offering a more specific, interesting introduction to your paper. The professor or teaching assistant wrote your questions and will be reading ten to seventy essays in response to them—he or she does not need to read a whole paragraph that simply restates the question. Try to do something more interesting.

• Example: Indeed, education has long been considered a major force for American social change, righting the wrongs of our society. The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass discusses the relationship between education and slavery in 19th century America, showing how white control of education reinforced slavery and how Douglass and other enslaved African Americans viewed education while they endured. Moreover, the book discusses the role that education played in the acquisition of freedom. Education was a major force for social change with regard to slavery.

• 3. The Webster’s Dictionary introduction. This introduction begins by giving the dictionary definition of one or more of the words in the assigned question. This introduction strategy is on the right track—if you write one of these, you may be trying to establish the important terms of the discussion, and this move builds a bridge to the reader by offering a common, agreed-upon definition for a key idea. You may also be looking for an authority that will lend credibility to your paper. However, anyone can look a word up in the dictionary and copy down what Webster says—it may be far more interesting for you (and your reader) if you develop your own definition of the term in the specific context of your class and assignment, or if you use a defintion from one of the sources you’ve been reading for class. Also recognize that the dictionary is also not a particularly authoritative work—it doesn’t take into account the context of your course and doesn’t offer particularly detailed information. If you feel that you must seek out an authority, try to find one that is very relevant and specific. Perhaps a quotation from a source reading might prove better? Dictionary introductions are also ineffective simply because they are so overused. Many graders will see twenty or more papers that begin in this way, greatly decreasing the dramatic impact that any one of those papers will have.

• Example: Webster’s dictionary defines slavery as “the state of being a slave,” as “the practice of owning slaves,” and as “a condition of hard work and subjection.”

• 4. The “dawn of man” introduction. This kind of introduction generally makes broad, sweeping statements about the relevance of this topic since the beginning of time. It is usually very general (similar to the place holder introduction) and fails to connect to the thesis. You may write this kind of introduction when you don’t have much to say—which is precisely why it is ineffective.

• Example: Since the dawn of man, slavery has been a problem in human history.• 5. The book report introduction. This introduction is what you had to do for your elementary school book reports. It gives the name and author of

the book you are writing about, tells what the book is about, and offers other basic facts about the book. You might resort to this sort of introduction when you are trying to fill space because it’s a familiar, comfortable format. It is ineffective because it offers details that your reader already knows and that are irrelevant to the thesis.

• Example: Frederick Douglass wrote his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, in the 1840s. It was published in 1986 by Penguin Books. In it, he tells the story of his life.