ralph waldo emerson and romanticism. what is romanticism? literary movement during the 19 th...
TRANSCRIPT
Ralph Waldo Emerson and Romanticism
What is Romanticism?
Literary movement during the 19th century (1800 – 1860)
Values feeling and intuition over reason
Imagination able to discover truths that rational mind could not
Core Beliefs of Romanticism Affirmation of
feeling/intuition over reason
Faith in imagination, inner experience, and youthful innocence rather than educated sophistication
Belief in unspoiled natural world, as opposed to artificial civilization
Individual freedom and the worth of the individual
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)
Teacher and Priest School teacher in
Boston. 1823 graduated
from seminary school & became a priest to follow in footsteps of father.
Introduction to Romantic Thought
1831- first trip to England - meets poets Coleridge and Wordsworth– introduce him to Romantic notions of nature and philosophy.
1835- writes Nature, where he describes how humans find God within nature:
“In the woods is perpetual youth… In the woods we return to reason and faith.”
“Nature” pp 240-242
As we read, find five quotes that stand out to you. Lightly mark these quotes with pencil, and after we finish reading, you will write the quotations in your notes.
We will discuss the quotations as a group, and work through what points Emerson is making regarding nature and the individual.
Personification: A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings, thoughts, or attitudes.
Examples:
“But every night come out these envoys of beauty, and light the universe with their admonishing smile” (241).
“The greatest delight which the fields and woods minister, is the suggestion of an occult relation between man and the vegetable. I am not alone and unacknowledged. They nod to me and I to them” (242).
“Self-Reliance” pp 245-247
We will read the excerpt of the essay as a group, and then you will answer a series of questions on the essay, which we will later discuss.
Romantic Writers We Will Study
Henry David Thoreau “Resistance to Civil
Government” aka “Civil Disobedience” pp 269-274
Edgar Allan Poe “The Pit and the
Pendulum” pp 345-355
Ralph Waldo Emerson “Nature” pp 240-
242 “Self-Reliance” pp
245-247