3. Characteristics of American
Romanticism
Values feeling and intuition over reason
Places faith in inner experience and the
power of the imagination
Shuns the artificiality of civilization and
seeks unspoiled nature
Prefers youthful innocence to educated
sophistication
4. Characteristics of American
Romanticism
Champions individual freedom and the
worth of the individual
Reflects on nature’s beauty as a path to
spiritual and moral development
Looks backward to the wisdom of the past
and distrusts progress
5. Characteristics of American
Romanticism
Finds beauty and truth in exotic locales, the
supernatural realm, and the inner world of
the imagination
Sees poetry as the highest expression of
the imagination
Finds inspiration in myth, legend, and
folklore
6. Romantics with a
Darker Vision
Not all writers shared the strong optimism.
Examined the darker facets of humanity,
such as greed, vanity, guilt.
Narrators who were criminals or insane.
Psychological effects of evil, terror, and
grief on the human soul.
8. Washington Irving
1783-1859
Short story writer, essayist,
poet, travel book writer,
biographer, and columnist
Has been called the father of
the American short story
The first American to make a
living solely from writing
Best known stories include
“The Legend of Sleepy
Hollow,” & “The Headless
Horseman.”
9. Nathaniel Hawthorne
1804 - 1864
Descendant of the
“hanging judge” at
Salem witch trials.
Unhappy childhood.
Worked in isolation for
twelve years.
Major work: The
Scarlet Letter 1850
10. Edgar Allan Poe
1809 - 1849
Tormented throughout his life with loss,
bitterness, and
depression.
Lived in poverty most
of his life.
Married his 13-yearold cousin.
Dead in a gutter at 40,
drunk or rabies?
11. Edgar Allan Poe
Brilliant talent for
investigating the dark
side of humanity.
Revenge, terror, lost
love, insanity were
common themes.
12. Edgar Allan Poe
Credited with defining
the short story.
Father of modern
detective fiction story
and of the horror tale,
as well.
