The New England The New England RenaissanceRenaissance1840-18601840-1860

Junior EnglishJunior English

New England Renaissance

• In the world abroad, especially England, America was still a fledgling society with no real literary talent.

• Sydney Smith, an English critic stated, “Literature, the Americans have none … In the four quarters of the globe, who reads an American book?”

Time to Par-tay!• In a social gathering of New

England authors, Melville, Hawthorne, Holmes, and others discussed whether there would ever be an American author to rival the English author/poet William Shakespeare.He’s not

such a big

deal!

The Beginning of Change

• Herman Melville begins to campaign for Americans to “prize and cherish” their own writers.

• He believed that Nathaniel Hawthorne was very close to rivaling England’s Shakespeare.

–The Scarlet Letter»Puritan adulteress

One Movement: Two Paths

• The literary explosion that occurred as a result of Melville’s, and other’s, campaign created two similar, yet opposite, philosophies.– Transcendentalism– Anti-Transcendentalism

Transcendentalism• From the Latin roots meaning a

“passing over” a “climbing beyond” or “beyonding”.

• Began around 1836 at the publication of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Nature and American Scholar.

• Ended with the Civil War

Transcendentalism• The term transcendental, refers to

the idea that in determining the ultimate reality of God, the universe, the self, and other important matters, one must transcend, or go beyond everyday human experience in the physical world. – Go beyond

• No logic/reason • Rely on intuition

In English please…

• In other words, transcendentalists believed that human beings could intuitively transcend the physical world and directly receive higher truths and greater knowledge (similar to Mysticism). – Essential connection with world– Union with God– Innate (natural) knowledge

Transcendentalist’s Beliefs

• They agreed on these points as cornerstones of their philosophy:Tolerance:– Religious beliefs– Social causes such as

• Enfranchisement of women– Development of women –

role in society

• Abolitionist movement– End slavery; free slaves

Beliefs ContinuedOpen Mindedness:– Emerson stated

that, “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”• Think outside the

box

The Intellect:– The intellect

should constantly be explored and emphasized. This is a philosophy of thought and insight, not involving physical properties and actions.

Beliefs continuedIntuition:– Believed that within

the nature of human beings there is something that transcends human experience—an intuitive and personal revelation.

God and the Universe:– They are one and

the same. Every aspect of existence relates to the Universe and God.

Beliefs ContinuedNature:– In the tradition of

Romantic writers, they highly revered nature.

Individuality & Self Reliance:– Believed in democracy

and insisted on intense individualism. Emerson said, “To be great is to be misunderstood.”• Have gone beyond the

normal individual • Who are some of the

greats that could be considered “misunderstood”?

– Ignored; Suppressed

And finally…The Oversoul

This is the belief in the divinity of human beings and oneness with God, nature and all humanity.

“A universal and benign omnipresence … a God known to men only in moments of mystic enthusiasm, whose visitations leave them altered, self-reliant and purified of petty aims.”

It is the resource of fundamental, moral truths.

Anti-Transcendentalism

• This school of thought explored the darker side of human existence and nature.

• They felt the world was much more complex and incapable of perfection than the transcendentalists did.

The Darker Side of Life• Herman Melville (Moby Dick)

and Nathaniel Hawthorne (Scarlet Letter) thought that they (the Transcendentalists) were not in tune to the hard facts of life, that they did not understand the tragic experience, and that their transcendental dream was, at best, an antidote to

society.

Common Themes

• Guilt, Shame, & Original Sin:– The trauma surrounding man’s

sin and the guilt man felt because of it, (as imposed by society) was often examined.

Common Themes

• Complicated God/Universe:– Believed in God, salvation, and

that every action in the universe happened for a reason, but believed God and the Universe were complex, beyond thescope of human understanding.

Common Themes

• Dualism:– Believed that good and evil

existed equally and together. One cannot exist without the other, and by eliminating a portion of evil, you were eliminating a portion of good.

Common Themes• Tragic Vision:

– Man is ultimately destined to fail, but it is his duty to trudge on and find truth in his own actions and in the universe.

– By doing this, man succeeds in the inevitability of ultimate defeat.

Common Themes

• Society’s Ills:– They were very suspicious of

the so-called benefits of western civilization, and often implied that society was most often the cause of much evil, injustice, prejudice, and persecution.