LITR 4232 American Renaissance 2012 final exam—Answers to Question A2 "1 or 2 terms or subjects" final exam assignment

Valerie Mead

Heavy on Sentiment? Low on Respect

          The American Renaissance is a period of literary history that deals with a variety of differing concepts, terms, and subjects.  One of the most interesting, and misunderstood, of these subcategories is domestic/sentimental literature.  This is a type of popular, and even somewhat representative, literature that focuses on the abundance of significant domestic issues that were taking place in the American Renaissance.  This type of literature focused on and was primarily written for women, and because of this, it tended to be much more sentimental in nature.  However, though this was a genre that was directed more towards women, men were responsible for authoring a great number of works of domestic literature, as well as partaking in them in lieu of more “manly” types of literature.  The domestic literary movement has not been viewed as kindly as others in America, as it is seen as being comprised of works that are of lesser importance than other genres throughout the Renaissance, and thus, not as worthy of study and analysis.  However, the study of domestic and sentimental literature has been increasing in popularity among critics in the past few years, partly because it is finally being realized that the affection being expressed for the home, family, and domestic way of life in these works was and is a crucial aspect of understanding the life of women and children at this point of time in history on a more personal, as well as a global, level.  Domestic literature is exemplified in the American Renaissance by works such as Susan B. Warner’s Wide, Wide World and Maria Susanna Cummins’ The Lamplighter, though there are many other works from this period that display this level of sentiment as well.

          Domestic narratives are given more than their fair share of criticism because they are not considered to be as substantial or important as other genres from the American Renaissance.  This idea that popular literature cannot have anything worthy of being studied within its pages is a stereotype that has been around since popular literature first began, and it is an idea that persists to this very day.  This idea persists simply because has a kernel of truth; however, it does not take into account that there is almost always something to be gained from and information to be learned about a work of literature, and the domestic narrative is no exception.  This can be seen with a modern example of a domestic narrative, such as the wildly popular novel The Help by Kathryn Sockett.  It’s a popular work of literature and it focuses on the domestic sphere, yet it gives the audience an account of a way of life that they did not otherwise know about or have exposure to, and may not have ever if they had not read this novel. 

When determining the worthiness of domestic literature, many people fail to notice or realize that these narratives are focused on one small sector of the population—the women and children who take care of the home front or deal with issues that are not exactly glamorous, but still need to be done.  While a great deal of America was focused on manifest destiny and the western frontier, these works were focusing on the home frontier, and because they were less exciting or intense, they tended to get swept under the rug, so to speak, and not analyzed critically, even to this day.  They were often considered to be lesser works of literature simply because of the subject matter that they focused on and the abundance of sentimentality latently lacing the novel’s pages.  However, by studying famous domestic works such as Wide, Wide World and The Lamplighter, one can hope to dispel these prejudices while also learning a great deal about a somewhat forgotten subculture.

          One must keep in mind that in “women’s writing during the American Renaissance, sentimentality was used to bring out sympathy throughout passages” (Fletcher, par. 2).  Sentimentality was and is strongly tied with domestic literature in the American Renaissance, and it was used as a literary tool to assist the reader in feeling more empathy and a stronger connection with the characters and the work itself.  This is important because it helped the reader to establish a deeper emotional bond with the character, thus further drawing them into the story’s plot and giving them a reason to care about how and why the story turned out that the way that it did.  Though it is highly underestimated, sentimentality can and was used to strengthen a reader’s ties to the actual story, as can be seen in the vast majority of domestic literature.  This definitely includes Warner’s Wide, Wide World and Cummins’ The Lamplighter.  These writers use sentimentality that is entwined with the heart-tugging underdog stories behind the domestic narratives in order to help the reader “feel the emotion of the writing” (Fletcher, par. 2).  This engages the audience on a more personal level and facilitates in emotional involvement with these characters, as is seen with both works’ young heroines, Ellen and Gerty.

          Warner’s Wide, Wide World is a domestic novel because it focuses on the domestic sphere as it relates to every stage of a young girl’s transition from child to adulthood by following its young heroine, Ellen’s, growth and development.  For this fact alone, the work can be considered domestic literature.  However, Warner makes sure to add to this by increasing the amount of sentimentality that is embedded within the work.  This is mostly done in most domestic literature by exalting the ideal family and home situations, as well as the values and standards of the day, which is seen in both works.  Sentimentality is seen in an overabundance of instances throughout the text, oftentimes when Ellen herself, the endangered innocent, “yields helplessly to grief” (Warner, 2.1) and bursts into tears, which happens on a regular basis, but also when she idealizes the perfect family life and her Christian values.  For modern readers, this may be difficult to take seriously because we are so used to labeling emotions and behavior like this as hysterical and not worthy of paying attention to, which could be a reflection on the differing natures of both our and their societies.  However, in the American Renaissance, both men and women were much more socially accepting of this gender specific role of the “emotional woman,” which is why placing it in the literature of the day was not unheard of.  Respect for it, however, was another thing completely. 

          Cummins’ The Lamplighter is in a similar situation to Wide, Wide World.  It is also a prime example of domestic literature from this period simply because of its content—it focuses on domestic issues taking place in a domestic setting.  Gerty’s story is about the romantic, transcendental quest to find that perfect domestic sphere, the one place on earth where she feels loved, accepted, and at home.  While this is domestic literature, there is a fair smattering of sentimentality thrown in the text.  Gerty is an innocent child, and any harm that befalls her or dangerous situations that come her way are going to play on the reader’s emotions; in this manner, Cummins is using sentimentality toward her advantage.  While these situations may knock her down for a while, they do not knock her out, which plays on the audience’s heartstrings and causes them to root for the underdog.  This is seen in a steady stream of comments like “Poor little child!” (Cummins, 1.11) throughout the book.  Though I mainly discuss the more negative aspects, not all of the sentimentality from this and other domestic literature is negative; in actuality, these works are generally more sensitive and positive in nature than the other way around.  This positive aspect of sentimentality is seen with Gerty’s “associating the star with God” (Fletcher, par. 4).   This innocence and hopefulness shows the sweeter, more saccharine aspect to sentimentality in domestic literature that is more often conveyed and discussed.      

          Though modern readers do not really respect nor have much admiration for domestic literature and the sentimentality that typically coincides with it, these types of works were commonplace in the American Renaissance.  This disillusionment with domesticity may be a reflection on their society as well as ours.  However, one can learn a great deal from domestic literature, especially when it relates to gender roles and ideals for women and the family of that time period, which is why it is becoming more and more common to study these types of works on an academic level.  Outside of academia, though, domestic and sentimental literature is still not as respected as it was in the American Renaissance, and may never be so again.  Some of the most well regarded works in this category are Cummins’ The Lamplighter and Warner’s Wide, Wide World.  Both works focus on domestic issues that take place in domestic settings and are heavy on sentiment.  Even though this is true, there is still something to be said for these novels, and we, as modern day readers can definitely learn a great deal by studying these works.