American Romantic Poetry

• Poetry in the American Romantic Period

Poetry Definition

• During the Romantic period, poetry was viewed as a medium for inner expression.
• Wordsworth described poetry as "the spontaneous overflow of powerful feeling.”
• John Stuart Mill (1833) stated that “poetry is like feeling itself, employing thought only as the medium of its utterance.”

Major Topics in Poetry

• Key subjects explored in poetry during the Romantic era

The relationship between humans and nature

• Poetry often portrayed and celebrated the power of nature, inspiring awe and sometimes terror.
• A booming clap of thunder is one example.

The Gothic and Surreal

• Exploration of eerie events through imagination.
• A suggested exercise includes envisioning a bizarre dream such as floating, or riding in a car with a friend from the past.

Purpose and Identity in Poetry

• Exploring the purpose of poetry and the poet's identity.
• Different styles of poetry are odes, lyrical and sonnets.

Odes

• Odes are poems that are long, dignified, and lyrical, composed in varied metrical patterns.
• Odes often pay tribute to a divine or supernatural creative power that the poet admires.

Lyrical Poems

• Lyrical poems are shorter than odes.
• Lyrical poetry prioritizes sound and imagery over lengthy narratives or dramatic tales.

Sonnets

• Sonnets are 14-line poems with defined rhyme schemes.
• Sonnets are a way of capturing feelings and emotional states, typically within romantic relationships

Major Poets in the Romantic Period

• Significant poets from the Romantic era and their contributions

Walt Whitman (1819-1892)

• From Long Island, New York, Whitman worked as a carpenter and celebrated America's democratic spirit in his innovative poetry.
• He celebrated democracy, nature, love, and friendship in his writing.
• Whitman is considered one of America's most important 19th-century poets.
• Works include:
  • “Drum-Taps”
  • “When Lilacs last in the Dooryard Bloom´d.”
  • “Song of Myself”
  • “I Hear America singing”
  • “A noiseless patient spider".

John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892)

• Born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, Whittier grew up in a farmhouse
• He was raised in a Quaker household characterized by hard work
• He was influenced by folklore, with tales of witches and ghosts told in winter.
• Notable works include:
  • “A Word for the Hour”
  • “In school- Days”
  • “Ichabod”
  • “Help”
  • “Snow bound"

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

• Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, Dickinson lived a life of moderate privilege with strong local and religious connections.
• Only a fraction of her nearly 1,800 poems were published during her lifetime.
• Dickinson's poems often resembled hymns and ballads.
• Notables works include:
  • “I´m Nobody, who are you?”
  • “Because I couldn´t stop from Death”
  • “Dear March-Come in”
  • “One sister have I in your mind”
  • “Hope is the thing with feathers.”