Washington Irving’s works Irving’
• A Tour on the Prairies • The Alhambra • The Sketch Book • The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
The legend of sleepy hollow
A pleasing land of drowsy head it was, Of dreams that wave before the half-shut eye; And of gay castles in the clouds that pass, For ever flushing round a summer sky.
Other figures
Herman Melville (1819-1891)
Nathaniel Hawthorne(1804-1864)
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)
Herman Melville
"All that most maddens and torments; all that stirs up the less of things; all truth with malice in it; all that cracks the sinews and cakes the brain; all the subtle demonisms of life and thought; all evil, to crazy Ahab, were visibly personified, and made practically assailable in Moby Dick. He piled upon the whale's white hump the sum of all the general rage and hate felt by his whole race from Adam down; and then, as if chest had been a mortar, he burst his hot heart's shell upon it." (from Moby-Dick)
Walt Whitman (1819-1892) (1819American poet, journalist and essayist, best known for LEAVES OF GRASS (1855), which was occasionally banned, and the poems 'I Sing the Body Electric' and 'Song of Myself.' Whitman incorporated natural speech rhythms into poerne
Novelist and short story writer, a central figure in the American Renaissance. Nathaniel Hawthorne's bestknown works include THE SCARLET LETTER (1850) and THE HOUSE OF THE SEVEN GABLES (1851). Like Edgar Allan Poe, Hawthorne took a dark view of human nature.
Introduction
The romantic period, stretching from the end of the 18th century to the outbreak of the civil war, started with the publication of Washington Irving ‘s THE SKETCH BOOK and ended with Whitman 's LEAVES OF GRASS. it is also called "the American renaissance"
In the bosom of one of those spacious coves which indent the eastern shore of the Hudson, at that broad expansion of the river denominated by the ancient Dutch navigators the Tappan Zee, and where they always prudently shortened sail, and implored the protection of St. Nicholas when they crossed, there lies a small market-town or rural port, which by some is called Greensburgh, but which is more generally and properly known by the name of Tarry Town. This name was given, we are told, in former days, by the good housewives of the adjacent country, from the inveterate propensity of their husbands to linger about the village tavern on market days. Be that as it may, I do not vouch for the fact, but merely advert to it, for the sake of being precise and authentic. Not far from this village, perhaps about two miles, there is a little valley, or rather lap of land, among high hills, which is one of the quietest places in the whole world. A small brook glides through it, with just murmur enough to lull one to repose; and the occasional whistle of a quail, or tapping of a woodpecker, is almost the only sound that ever breaks in upon the uniform tranquility.
Edgar Allan Poe
One the greatest and unhappiest of American poets, a master of the horror tale, and the patron saint of the detective story. Edgar Allan Poe first gained critical acclaim in France and England. His reputation in America was relatively slight until the French-influenced writers like Bierce, Robert W. Chambers, and representatives of the Love craft school created interest in his work.
Romanticism
A term that is associated with imagination and boundlessness, and in critical usage is contrasted with classicism which is commonly associated with reason and restriction. The most profound and comprehensive idea of romanticism is the vision of a greater personal freedom for the individual.
Characteristics of Romanticism
An innate and intuitive perception of man, nature and society—reliance on the subconscious, the inner life, the abnormal psychology An emphasis on freedom, individualism and imagination— rebellion against neoclassicism which stressed formality, order and authority A profound love for nature—nature as a source of knowledge, nature as a refuge from the present, nature as a revelation of the holy spirit The quest for beauty—pure beauty the use of antique and fanciful subject matters—sense of terror, Gothic, grotesque, odd and queer
Washington Irving (1783-1865) (1783American author, short story writer, essayist, poet, travel book writer, biographer, and columnist. Irving has been called the father of the American short story.