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A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870

A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

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Page 1: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

A Growing NationAmerica: 1800-1870

Page 2: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no longer the little kid 1820 Missouri Compromise bans slavery in parts of new

territories 1838 US Army marches Cherokee on “Trail of Tears” 1846-48 Mexican War; issues over lines crossed when Texas

became a state, fight over CA: Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo 1848 Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, NY-

women still couldn’t vote 1850 CA admitted to the Union, The Scarlet Letter is

published

Page 3: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

History In-Depth Alexis de Tocqueville thought America was

a bustling new nation full of individuals optimistically pursuing their destinies.

Rapid growth inspired a surge in national pride and self-awareness.

CA gold rush drew hundreds of thousands to “the new land of promise.”

Page 4: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

History cont. By 1869, “iron horses” railroads linked east

and west Industrial Revolution brought a lot of

progress and helpful tools. Factories sprang up everywhere.

All this technology helped develop the growing nation but it wasn’t without flaws

Writers reacted with a vengeance.

Page 5: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

Literature of the Period Writers of this era defined “the American voice”,

personal and bold. Primary theme: the quest of the individual to

define him- or herself. Romanticism- an artistic movement that

dominated Europe and America during the 19th century

Not about love- writers elevated the imagination and intuition over reason and fact.

Celebrated nature, the hero’s quest, and the fantastic.

Page 6: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

Famous Writers and Their Work Washington Irving- “The Legend of Sleepy

Hollow” James Fenimore Cooper- The Last of the

Mohicans Edgar Allen Poe, “The Raven”, “The Tell-Tale

Heart” Nathaniel Hawthorne- The Scarlet Letter, “Young

Goodman Brown” Herman Melville- Moby Dick

Page 7: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

Transcendentalism The American Renaissance 1840-1855 Going beyond the tangible and physical,

transcending the regular day-to-day American experience and looking beyond the mundane.

Social, political, philosophical critique of what America was becoming because of all of this “progress”.

Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau key players in this movement. (more to come)

Page 8: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

The Possibility of Evil Not everyone was as optimistic as the

Transcendentalists. Hawthorne and Melville explored the dark side of

human nature i.e. sin, guilt, hypocrisy, insanity, depression, tortured souls

Emily Dickinson- recluse, poetry focused on death, immortality, the soul, conflicting views on religion

Page 9: A Growing Nation America: 1800-1870. Major Historical Events 1803 Louisiana Purchase (LA to Rocky Mountains) 1812 US declares war on Great Britain- no

Walt Whitman Leaves of Grass 1855- “Oh captain! My captain!”

in reference to Abe Lincoln First edition sold fewer than 20 copies but his

legacy is considered the quintessential American voice.

“Barbaric yawp!”- frank “in your face” social commentary on life, celebration of self

Worked as a nurse during the Civil War and incorporated those images in his later poetry, not so happy.