ROMANTIC Period

Part Two

Early American Lit

Across the Continent Westward the Course of Empire Takes its Way

Palmer, 1868

Think Pair-Share

Along with progress, what other ideas/events (etc.) are

being conveyed? How? Think in terms of colors/symbols

OPPORTUNITY

American “Progress”

• Industrial Revolution (1750s-1850s)

– Time of Great Progress

• Westward Expansion (1800s)

– Rapid growth for America

American ProgressGast, 1872

Think Pair-Share

In what ways are Gast’s and Palmer’s paintings similar

and/or different? How does each convey “Progress”?

MANIFEST DESTINY

The belief that the country’s territorial expansion was not only a reality, but inevitable and divinely ordained

SCHOOL BOOKSTAR OF EMPIRE

TECHNOLOGY

DARKNESS(Savagery)

CLARITY(Civilization)

Overview• Historical Backdrop

• Romanticism& American Romanticism

• 5 Characteristics:American Romantic Literature

“Romantic”

• Everyday language– implies “love”

• In literary terms (since Medieval times)

– adventuresome

– improbable

“Romanticism” (artistic movement)

• CHALLENGED the rational thinking of The “Age of Reason” (1700s)

– seen in Europe during the Enlightenment

– seen in America during the Revolutionary Period

American Literary Movements

Realismlate 1800s

Romanticismearly 1800s

Revolutionary Period

1700s

“Progress”• AGE of REASONled to Industrial Revolution led to

conflicting reactions:time of Great Progress but also of Potential Drawbacks

• Optimism about opportunity and growth(advancements in communication, technology, territory etc.)

• Skepticism about future drawbacks– Loss of Pure/Untouched Nature; replaced with big cities (overpopulated,

dirty, disease ridden– Loss of the wisdom/ innocence of the “noble savage” (natives)

Early 1800sAmerica still young; anxious to create its own identity

1830s 1865 (Civil War)

“American Romanticism”(Rise of a truly “American” Literature)

• The “first flowering” of American literary greatness (of a distinctly American expression)

• 5 characteristics . . .

American Romantic LITERATURE

5 Characteristics

• Imagination & Escapism

• Individuality

• Nature (as a source of spirituality)

• Nostalgia/ Past (looking to it for wisdom)

• Common man (as hero)

• Romanticism& American Romanticism

Growth