LITR 4232: American Renaissance
Sample Answers from Student Midterms, Spring 2001

Essay— Formal / literary option

(Assignment first; answers below)

Proposition: The American Renaissance inherits literary paradigms of Romanticism and the romance narrative primarily from European literature and culture but adapts these forms to American conditions.

Assignment: Explore the ideas inherent in this proposition, suggesting how "American" Romanticism and romance may differ from the "European" versions, and how the American versions may differ from each other.

Sample student essays

in response to

Literary / Formal Option.

[complete essay from email exam]

Essay Option #1

Start time: 10:45 am

            With the book Lyrical Ballads, Wordsworth and Coleridge transcended the classic literature of their time and introduced the romantic genre. This genre consisted of many themes some of the most important being divinity in nature and transcendence. This is illustrated in Wordsworth’s "Tintern Abbey," in which he returns to this sacred place in nature to contemplate the changes of the modern world. In the same way, Emerson discusses the same themes in his work Nature. In it Emerson expounds upon the beauty found in nature and discusses the idea of finding divinity in nature, much in the way Wordsworth does. However, Emerson uses this traditional idea of divine nature to argue that many men do not see the sublime in nature; that it is a special mind and man that is able to open his eyes and view what nature has laid out for him and to enjoy it and give it reverence. Emerson also argues that the power is not in nature itself, but rather in man as well and it is a mutually constitutive relationship and that "it is necessary to use these pleasures with great temperance" (1584).           

            Like Wordsworth and Emerson, another classic author who uses the conventional ideas of nature and apply them to the American Landscape was Cooper. In Last of the Mohicans, Cooper repeatedly discusses the closeness of the Indians to nature. In this way, Cooper exemplified the way the Indians were able to find a divinity in nature. Cooper uses this, however, to discuss the very American problems of race relations. By showing the Indians as "close to nature" and thereby close to God," Cooper brings into to question the savageness of the Indians. Cooper also uses this idea that the Indians see something that the white man does not to suggest that maybe the white man is missing something important and vital lesson of the universe. Cooper makes many references to "paths only Indians can see." With this idea, Cooper questions the strength of the white man’s sight and suggests that there is much to be learned from the Indians.

            In another theme of romance, the quest, representative authors take a traditional romantic idea and make it their own. The idea of the quest in romantic literature is the concept that the protagonist (or a major character in the work) is forced to take a journey, either to find something, or recover something that was lost. Cooper plays with this idea in Mohicans, and even refers to the kind of romantic heroes found in medieval literature as Duncan falls asleep among the trees and dreams "he was a knight of ancient chivalry, holding his midnight vigils before the tend of a re-captured princess" (129). The representative authors use this idea to express their journey to freedom. In Uncle Tom’s Cabin, many quests and journeys are occurring, most notably, Eliza’s perilous journey across the ice to gain freedom. Instead of rescuing damsels in distress or being on a quest of lost treasure, Eliza is rescuing herself from the horrors of slavery and is on a quest for her very freedom. In this way, Stowe uses the traditional ideas of romantic literature to speak of the cultural situation of slavery.

            In her essay "Woman of the Nineteen Century," Fuller also applies the traditional notion of quest to the American ideal of women’s rights and suffrage. Fuller even compares the story of Moses leading his people to the chosen land to the journey of women to find, as she says, "a fair chance" (1715). Fuller uses the idea of a traditional and conventional quest to illustrate her point. By giving her readers and audience a journey they could not only relate to, but also one they could believe in, Fuller is able to make connections to the American woman’s plight that her audience could understand.

            Literature is a mutually constitutive proposition. Authors look at the culture they are surrounded by and react to what they find. In the same way, culture looks at the literature being produced and reacts to it as well. As society changes, as seen in the difference between European and American culture, the literature changes as well. Literature still maintains some of its traits, but as society changes and different subjects occur within the culture, literature reacts and incorporates these new subjects into itself.

End of Exam- 11:34am.

J [JeH 2001]

 

[complete essay from email exam]

            American Romanticism differs from European Romanticism in setting, as seen in James Fenimore Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans. Instead of the usual ancient haunted castle, Cooper’s gothic romance occurs in a haunted forest in America. Besides the dark forest itself, Cooper also presents a frightening secret cavern and a decayed blockhouse to show the dark/light convention of the gothic. In Cooper’s story, the American equivalent of the European Romantic knights are Uncas, Chingachgook, and Hawkeye, while the princesses are Cora and Alice. Alice represents the damsel in distress, but Cora represents a new type of princess in that she is not helpless, and she speaks—and with her own opinions. This tale is also a captivity narrative, which was a distinct American contribution to the genre of Romantic literature. Another American adaptation is the issue of race, as seen in the relationship of Uncas and Cora. Another change is the reason Cora and Uncas cannot live happily ever after. Instead of Cora being unavailable to her prince because she is a European married lady, she is unavailable to her prince because Uncas is a Native American and she is, at least perceived as, white.

            Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin is another example of American romantic literature. Instead of a quest for love, the quest in her novel is for freedom. Although her story includes brave heroes, the reader is surprised by their actions as well as their identities. Tom’s forgiveness of Legree is powerful, astonishing, and courageous. It shows his greatness of soul which elevates him to hero status. Tom also heroically saves Eva when she falls into the water. Stowe indicates that Mr. Symmes saves Eliza by "helping her to the bank" because he was "betrayed into acting in a sort of Christianized manner." In the typical pattern of romance, Tom transcends, finding peace in death when Legree "opened the gate of the kingdom for [him]."

The American version of romance is also found in Representative Literature. Frederick Douglass’ Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave is romantic because of his quest for freedom and his status as an individual standing alone in nature. This quest for the freedom of slaves is a distinct American adaptation to the traditional European romance. Romance is associated with distant, far off lands. Douglass shows this as he stands near the Chesapeake Bay, gazing at the ships that offer adventures to freemen, but only represent torment to the slave. Knowing he lacks the opportunity of boarding a ship, he has the dream of transcending by flying away to freedom. In his quest, this dreams helps him maintain the hope that "there is a better day coming." He ultimately gains his individual freedom, but continues the struggle against the dehumanizing conditions of slavery.

Another example of Representative Literature is found in Sojourner Truth, who also has quest for freedom of slaves as well as rights for women. In Stowe’s Sojourner Truth, the Libyan Sibyl, Truth places her hopes for a hero in God (2390). She is a dedicated Christian and trusts that God will provide freedom for the American slaves. The European tradition also features Christianity in the tales of King Arthur and his Christian knights. But instead of struggling against sinful, errant knights, which are clearly represented as "bad guys," Truth, and others, struggle against the status quo.

This grand scale struggle never quite gets a happy ending, in part because it has such huge obstacles. Like Douglass, Truth’s hopes lies "far away" place. [JT 2001]

 

[nearly complete excerpt from email exam]

            The American Renaissance began as an outgrowth of Romanticism in European literature and culture. Because of this, the two movements have many things in common; however, the authors of the American Renaissance bend the concepts of Romanticism to fit the changing landscape of nineteenth century America. Evidence of both the shared and the altered elements is apparent in the classical and representative literature of the day.

            As a classical author, Washington Irving draws from both the literary conventions of European Romanticism and the new ideas of the American Renaissance. Though he carefully observes compositional integrity, Irving consciously chooses a very American setting for his stories. For instance, literary elements such as his pumpkin motif would be unexpected in a European text, but, as pumpkins are ubiquitous in Irving’s America, they are a perfect choice. Irving goes on to draw historical comparisons to contemporary society in the European tradition, but Irving is not focused on European events. Rather, he employs Dame Van Winkle to deftly represent the tyranny of England over the American colonies. In this way, Irving remains faithful to the conventions of the European traditions, but he reinterprets them in a decidedly American voice.

            Like Irving, James Fenimore Cooper works within a European framework in his novel The Last of the Mohicans, while retooling it to fit his own vision of America. Cooper’s novel takes the concept of the European border romance, but like Irving, Cooper transplants his story on the other side of the Atlantic. Rather than showing the conflict between England and Scotland, Cooper writes about the troubled relationship that arise between the Indians and white settlers on the American frontier. Cooper also employs the romantic style of the gothic to make his story more compelling. To accomplish this, Cooper places his characters outdoors, in an atmospheric woodland instead of in the traditional crumbling English manor house. Likewise, Cooper bends the gothic notion of the struggle between light and dark to fit his American purpose by having the dark-skinned Cora and Uncas serve as his heroes rather than the pale heroine familiar in European romances.

            The representative literature of the time also borrowed from European traditions, while maintaining an American voice. Harriet Ann Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl employs several conventions from the Romantic style, while it adapts them to convey her uniquely American message. Jacobs is writing to call attention to the evils of chattel slavery. In her novel, she sets up a very proper romantic narrative, set in the American south. Her heroine, Linda Brent, must face many hardships in order to achieve her ultimate goal, freedom. Jacobs has Linda begin her story as a carefree child, unaware of the dangers ahead of her. Quickly, conflicts arise as she faces the sexual advances of an unscrupulous master. True the romantic form, Linda embarks on a quest for freedom, fraught with peril. Finally, she transcends the tortuous world of her past, but unlike European romances, there is no wedding or happily ever after scene. American romances restyle this ending to fit their own purposes. As slavery still had not ended, Jacobs could not allow Linda Brent to disappear into a perfect new world. . . . [KK 2001]

 

[excerpt from in-class exam (introduction)]

In 1783, Noah Webster put forth a new dictionary of the American language. In this dictionary he changed words that were from the old English dialect to the new Americanized version. This is the first step in the creation of the American Literature genre. Webster, in creating a new dialect, was changing the American mind to follow a new individualism separated from the old traditional words of the past before the Revolutionary War.

            Washington Irving, a popular author in this new tradition, used German myths and folklore to create Romantic stories about the Hudson Valley of New York. Using these romantic motifs, he set his stories in a pre-revolutionary time frame. This separation of time creates a mystification and nostalgic slant to the story line. In Rip Van Winkle, Irving splits the time period of the pre-revolutionary period to contrast with the post war period where the new American citizens are pushing for their rights and freedoms. Like the story line, the new American society was constructing a new identity for itself with a new depth and courage that it never had before. This new philosophy of individualism carried on into the nineteenth century, sparking the equality and rights debate for the black race and women. Under the Constitution, all citizens were defined as being equal and free and the new republic was pushing this romantic ideal to become a reality. [RB 2001]

 

[nearly complete excerpt from in-class exam]

            European Romanticism and American Romanticism are similar in that a journey takes place and often someone is in need of being rescued. For example, in Cooper’s novel, he upholds the European tradition by having Duncan dream that he is a knight rescuing his princess. However, Cooper changes the traditional "happily ever after" idea of transcendence to have a much deeper meaning. Cooper uses romance to uphold the belief that races are pure and separate. He even uses the gothic convention of light and dark to make his point. For example, because Cora is dark skinned she can not live happily on earth. She must transcend to heaven so that she and Uncas can be equal. However, Cooper allows Alice and Duncan to marry because they are both pure and white. Cooper also changes the romantic hero concept when he makes Cora brave and tells the men to leave her and her sister behind.

            Cooper also adapts the gothic style of romance for American literature. Instead of using a haunted castle, Cooper uses the woods and nature to contrast light and dark. For example, when they find the abandoned building, it is a "decayed blockhouse" and has gloomy surrounding scenery.

            Irving also used the woods to give a gothic romantic style to his works. In "Sleepy Hollow," the woods are described as "gnarled and fantastic." However, Irving tends to stay with the traditional European romantic hero with Brom Bones. He is brave and handsome, as opposed to Cooper’s female hero, Cora, and his dark skinned hero, Uncas. Irving also uses nature in a romantic style in "Rip Van Winkle." Nature is described as beautiful, but it can be dangerous too as Rip discovers when he meets with the strange men. This is similar to Cooper’s descriptions of a beautiful nature that also encloses dangers, like enemy Indians (Magua).

            Jacobs is a representative author who also uses Romanticism, but she uses real life experiences. This is different from Irving and Cooper who use a long ago and far away concept. While her experiences were long ago, they are not fanciful like the other two authors. She uses the gothic style when she describes the woman hidden away in the garret of a house. She also describes the red bugs that are biting the woman. While being kept in a hiding place is similar to Cooper’s episode at Glenn Falls, the mention of the insects make the experience step away from the gothic conventions and become real. Jacobs also uses the concept of a journey in her romantic tale, but it is different from Cooper’s use of a journey. For example, Cooper’s journey is an adventure to rescue women. Jacobs’ journey is that of a woman trying to be free. Their use of a journey differs in that Jacobs’ journey is real and failure to achieve her journey will result in being a slave forever. Even death is seen as a means of escape. Jacobs also romanticizes nature when she describes how beautiful it was when the character was a child, which was similar to Cooper’s and Irving’s view of nature. . . . [AA 2001]

 

[excerpt from email exam]

. . . This importing of the past or the "whatever is not here and now" becomes romantic. Jacobs and Douglass, on the other hand do not use nature so much to give feeling to their works. While "free" air is a common emotion given to free or runaway slaves, it is not used in the same way the Cooper or Emerson would have used it. The romanticism in these representative works lies more in the spirit or hardships of the oppressed represented. . . .

The main differences that I see between the classic and representative are the classic contains more gothic (Irving: the haunted woods) and sublime (Cooper: flowers growing through the blood of the dead). Classic usually also has much more of a chance for complete transcendence at the end. Representative only has partial transcendence and the there is much more reality like the sever beatings that Douglass received. Both styles of writing are effective but I am partial to the representative writing. [DG 2001]