LITR 5535: American
Romanticism
Sample Student Research Project 2005
Matt Mayo
April 25, 2005
American Romantic Poetry and the Lyric: A Journal
Preparation
What is a lyric?
That sounds like a fairly simple question. However, the term is a broad one, and in terms of this project, I may have well stated my intentions were to examine poetry. The purpose of this journal is to expand my knowledge of lyric poetry and American Romanticism. The first step on my journey was a visit to the UHCL stacks. While there, I browsed the poetics section, grabbing a handful of books, some worn with age. I began taking notes from these books, and starting scanning various Internet sources. The thought occurred early on in my research that I had chosen a giant topic, and that I really had my work cut out for me.
From my initial sources, I gathered basic information about the lyric, learning its history and form. The lyric is inherently human, and its development runs parallel with that of languages common amongst mankind. The lyric could be researched and discussed in every conceivable epoch of civilization: its lineage is literally that expansive.
A major misconception I harbored prior to working on this project was embarrassingly assuming that Ralph Waldo Emerson would be a vital part of this work. I was very surprised to learn of the lack of poetic output from Emerson, and adding to that, what poetry he did publish was generally panned by critics. In addition, I thought perhaps Henry David Thoreau would be included, but found a similar story to Emerson’s, in regard to his published poetry. Although the heralded essays of these two prominent figures of Romanticism are poetic in quality, the fact remains that their most important work is not lyric poetry.
My patterns of research revealed the subtle progression of the American lyric, which meanders through the processional march of Romanticism: its infancy, grandeur and afterglow. Many 17th and 18th century colonial settlers (and Puritans) wrote engaging lyric: including Anne Bradstreet, Edward Taylor, Philip Freneau and Joel Barlow. The Romantic period, roughly 1820-1850, also features a many of lyric poets: including the aristocratic William Cullen Bryant, and the now critically lambasted Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The Post-Romantic period gave the world Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman. These two poets, not only exemplify the Post-Romantic, but also, laid the foundation for the American 20th century modern/contemporary poets: including Ezra Pound, Walter Carlos Williams and Allen Ginsberg. Obviously, I am unable to address all of these poets in the span of this journal, so I based the selection of poets on the conclusion of my research. The poets I have selected, Bradstreet, Edgar Allen Poe and Dickinson, accurately represent each concurrent phase of American Romanticism as defined by course objective 1b.
Rationale
The process of compiling this journal has led me to adopt a format not listed on the course syllabus. I liken this journal to a synthesis of information. Materials used are primary academic texts, academic and general websites, UHCL reserve materials, poetry collections and peer contributions to the course website. The journal is not delineated into sections specific to these sources. Instead, it is a reflection of my cumulative experience of mining these references.
Since this journal deals with lyric poetry, it is only appropriate to include some examples of lyric poems by the writers discussed within this journal. However, in keeping with the distinction between a journal and essay, the poems selected will be accompanied by analysis of Romantic characteristics provided by my sources and from my classmates’ previous compositions. Please refer to the appendix section for the text of the poems.
The first two objectives I aim to achieve are the illustration of the lyric’s background, followed by a short discussion of Romantic poetry. Next, Bradstreet, Poe and Dickinson shall be examined as representatives of their respective positions on the chronological timeline of Romanticism. This journal, through analyzing scholarly texts and the authors listed above, shall serve as an effective means of increasing my understanding of American Romanticism and the genre of lyric poetry.
American Romantic Poetry and the Lyric
The focus of this journal is the simple question, “what is lyric poetry?” To answer the question, I first decided to consider my existing knowledge of the meaning of the word lyric, and its association to poetry. Like most modern day English speakers, my layman’s knowledge of the word’s meaning equates it to song, or more specifically, the words to a song. In fact, it is safe to say that most people today understand lyric to mean, quite simply, the lyrics to a song. The best song lyrics use meter and rhyme effectively to make them memorable. This translates into poetry also, and as we shall see, although Romantic lyric became independent from music, it continued to exhibit musicality.
Lyric is defined as “a lyric composition: a lyric poem,” taking form as a short, emotive and musical composition. The lyric’s place in Western Literature can be traced to its origin as verbal accompaniment to lute music, circa 15th century England. The lyrics to these antiquated tunes told tales of heroic deeds or basic human emotion. One can envision a rustic tavern, with haystack roofs sheltering a surly bard, who is eloquently reciting the words to a familiar tune while plucking his lute, singing over the cacophonous voices and the sound of iron cups banging on wooden tables.
These stories, like the song of the aforementioned bard, come in several guises. Disparate lyrical sub-groupings are related to the time frame of the event being described. Therefore, the lyric has several forms: elegies, respectful praise for the dead; ballads, recollection of heroic characters and their deeds; odes, poems of personal admiration; sonnets, strictly composed fourteen line verse; the epic lyric, long compositions composed of multiple lyrics; as well as several others. Thus, with its many hats, the lyric eludes exact definition. The introduction to American Lyric Poems: from Colonial Times to Present, edited by Elden Olson, reflects the difficulty of defining the lyric other than through its basic association to song: “the lyric is brief; it tends to involve emotion; it is a personal form of literary expression, voices the poet’s innermost feelings” (Olson 1). The three poems selected in this journal, by Bradstreet, Poe and Dickinson, all fit Olson’s lyrical criteria.
Although
the lyric is most closely associated with the work of the great generation of 19th
century English poets, and then perhaps with the German lyric, most notably
Goethe, the lyric also was alive and well on American shores. From its early
crafters, such as Bradstreet, to the representative Romantic lyrics of Poe, the
form evolved into the personal exaltations, or dirges, of Dickinson.
Post-Romantic poets such as Dickinson and Whitman expanded the boundaries of the
lyric, consequently bestowing a definitive literary identity to the United
States of America. Thus, lyric is essential to the American Romantic literary
story. Yet, at heart, the lyric remains a rustic and humble means of
personal expression, and in most cases, gives voice to the most elusive of
emotions: love. C. Hugh Holman and William Harmon state, “Typical [Romantic]
literary forms include the lyric, especially the love lyric [Bradstreet], the
reflective lyric [Whitman], the nature lyric [Dickinson], and the lyric of
morbid melancholy [Poe]”(qtd. in Woodlief Par. 2).
The Romantic archetype of the
solitary genius is descriptive of the character of Poe and Dickinson, whose
lyrics accentuate this distance between artist and public. Lonesome
and yearning, the Romantic poets examined daily occurrences through their lyric
poetry. A key aspect of Romanticism is the artist’s distance from the masses,
and the lyric of the Romantic poet is almost always introspective. The Romantic
poets, through examining the external world, sought to illuminate the world
within through lyric. Even elegies and odes, lyrics written for another person,
reflect the author’s personal response to the subject of the poem. Sarah M.
Zimmerman examines the introspective nature of the Romantic lyric in Romanticism,
Lyricism and History: “the Romantic poet’s introspectiveness …involves
going out of oneself, towards other persons or a beloved, usually natural
place” (Zimmerman 28).
So, if lyric is poetry, what
separates it from other poetic forms? Olson states that the lyric capably
describes human action or thought over a brief period of time, and makes a
comparison between the scale of the poem and the situation depicted: “They
[Lyrics] can be differentiated, in part, by the span of human behavior which
they depict. Thus, the larger forms [of poetics] depict larger spans of human
behavior…and the smaller forms, such as the lyric, do the opposite” (Olson
2). Thus, the Lyric could encapsulate either vast or brief spans of time, and in
the Romantic, usually portray a heightened awareness of the self or one’s
immediate surroundings, usually leading to a revelation, or question of some
sort. The lyric conveys the writer’s, and/or characters, immediate reactions
to various internal or external stimuli, or retells memories and associations
from the past. What unites all lyrics is their distinctly personal quality, a
trait that remains evident in the lyrics discussed within this journal.
With themes large or small, the
Romantic lyric remains an instrument of self-expression. William Elford Rogers
states in The Three Genres and the Interpretation of the Lyric that the
primary concern of the lyric is “self-expression” (Rogers 35). Romantic
lyric poetry, in particular, strives to reconcile abstract literary concepts
like the heart and mind, or emotion and nature. Rogers asserts, “The lyric
does not state the connections between the natural world and the emotion; but if
the poem is to work at all, those connections must be made” (71).
Lyric poems in the height of American Romanticism explore and make these
connections between man and nature, and the resultant sensations that follow.
However, as evidenced in Poe, the speaker of the lyric poem is not always the
poet himself, but can also be a construct used as a vehicle for expression of
emotion.
Thus, the lyric is a vital element of American literature, and the form can be studied through the progression of American Romanticism. From the immediate familial observations of Bradstreet, to the metaphysical occurrences of Poe, to the individually and collectively unifying lyrics of Dickinson: lyric is a term that encompasses the genre of Romantic poetry itself. Lyric poetry, through personal expression, reflects individual emotions, in context with the larger societal, natural and temporal milieu the poet rests within.
Poetry is lyric. Lyric is poetry.
The Pre-Romantic: Anne Bradstreet (C. 1612-1672)
Anne Bradstreet arrived on American shores in 1630, following her husband Simon, who had reason to immigrate to the New World. At first, Bradstreet was not overjoyed with the harsh New England living conditions, but eventually submitted to her new life, and to the Puritanical church of Boston. Bradstreet led a hard existence in the New World, battling health problems throughout her life. These factors seemed to have accentuated her passion for her beloved family, who are the primary subjects of Bradstreet’s lyric poems. Bradstreet’s work has survived the test of time, and her enduring themes of familial love have won her a permanent place in American Literature.
Bradstreet’s most enduring poems are her shorter, more intimate pieces: “the poems that have attracted present-day readers are the more intimate, which reflect her concern for family and home and the pleasures she took in everyday life rather than life to come” (N 115). Bradstreet’s lyric poems give the modern reader a glimpse into the real feelings and emotions of a Puritan woman in the New World, giving life to a group of people who are often thought of as overly rigid and pious. According to Wendy Martin, “Much of her work indicates that she had a difficult time resolving the conflict she experienced between the pleasures of sensory and familial experience and the promises of heaven. As a Puritan she struggled to subdue her attachment to the world, but as a woman she sometimes felt more strongly connected to her husband, children, and community than to God” (Martin Par. 5). As stated above, Bradstreet deals with immediate reality and her emotions regarding those she cared the most for, her family.
“My Dear and Loving Husband” appears to be a love lyric, but is really more like an ode. Bradstreet’s language in the poem conveys deep respect and admiration for her husband Simon. Strict meter, and an artfully constructed buildup of tension over the poem’s brief space, are qualities that categorize “My Dear and Loving Husband” as lyric. These poetic devices also accentuate the poem’s emotive power. Bradstreet considers her husband a prize, and echoes her personal sentiment of valuing her family more than heaven itself, contrary to Biblical teachings.
Simon Bradstreet had business affairs that frequently led him away from home for extended periods of time. This separation fueled Bradstreet’s creative spark, and many critics concur that her sentimental lyrics for her husband rank as her best work. Martin states that, “Simon Bradstreet's responsibilities as a magistrate of the colony frequently took him away from home, and he was very much missed by his wife. Modeled on Elizabethan sonnets [a form of lyric], Bradstreet's love poems make it clear that she was deeply attached to her husband” (Martin Par. 6). In Romantic fashion, Bradstreet hopes for a continuance of her marriage across the boundaries of death.
Bob Hoffman wrote in his class presentation that,
Bradstreet
wrote the poem "To My Dear and Loving Husband" in 1678 which is over
one hundred years before the Romantic Era began. The era Bradstreet lived in is
called The Age of Religion. However, traces and kernels of Romantic ideas and
thoughts exist in this poem. Hints of an ideal conjugal relationship, a perfect
husband, and the uniting of souls suggest Romantic spirit throughout this poem
(Hoffman).
Hoffman’s discussion question, “Why do you think Bradstreet exultingly boasts and vaunts their love? Being
a Puritan lady, is it proper to do this?” brings up Bradstreet’s somewhat
unconventional views (for a Puritan) regarding salvation. Martin remarks,
much of [Bradstreet’s] work indicates that she had a difficult time resolving the conflict she experienced between the pleasures of sensory and familial experience and the promises of heaven. As a Puritan she struggled to subdue her attachment to the world, but as a woman she sometimes felt more strongly connected to her husband, children, and community than to God (Martin Par. 5).
Some critics go even further, stating that Bradstreet’s emotions were wholly un-Puritanical. O’Donnell quips, “a number of love poems written for her devoted husband, Simon Bradstreet--a busy colonial official often away from home--reveal a healthy sensuality and suggest that, although she was a Puritan, she was not puritanical” (O’Donnell Par. 3). There is little information about what, if any, tension this created for Bradstreet and her family within the local community.
The thematic qualities of Bradstreet’s work do not remain situated in the Puritanical Pre-Romantic. Instead, poems such as “My Dear and Loving Husband” transcend the age and genre to reap a new feminist vision for the American Woman. Elizabeth Young remarks in “Anne Bradstreet: An Overview” that,
Anne Bradstreet's effort to unify her socially circumscribed roles with her role as published poet in the New World clears ground upon which later women writers would build: she establishes that a woman can be wife, mother, Puritan, and poet without sacrificing any aspect of her life. She shows that reconciling those disparate roles requires a feminine identity made up of many connected and changing parts, rather than one hierarchically and rigidly structured (Young Par. 8).
This quote underscores the importance of Bradstreet’s position as a visionary representative for the Pre-Romantic leading into the Romantic period. Bradstreet, as a woman writer, is engaged in the Romantic quest of crossing boundaries, and redefining the expected parameters of an individual woman’s existence. Montgomery P. Sellers, writing in "New England in American Colonial Literature," states that, “the lack of surrounding literary conditions, and the strictness of her religion, as well as her remoteness from a great center of culture, shut her out from the inspiring influences of the great Elizabethan literature” (Sellers Par. 1). Therefore, it can be ascertained that Bradstreet’s lyric is a uniquely American creation, and accurately voices the emotions of herself and her matronly counterparts in colonial New England.
The Romantic: Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)
With all due respect to the American poets of the 18th century, I will now move ahead to Edgar Allan Poe, as being representative of the Romantic period. In comparison to Bradstreet, Poe’s themes, although still personal, have shifted scenery to a Gothic landscape. Romanticism, in its heart, addressed anything but the here and now, and this is certainly the case for Poe. Poe’s lyrics are not rooted in place, but in emotion.
Poe remains one of the most intriguing figures in American Literature. Poe’s most productive period came during his time of residence in Baltimore, from 1831 to 1835 (N 694). Woodlief mentions, “Poe formulated his theories of poetry and in some fifty lyrics practiced a symbolist verse that was to be, despite the change of triviality by such contemporaries as Emerson, the strongest single poetic influence emerging from pre-Civil War America, particularly in its impact on European poetry” (Woodlief Par.12). The majority of Poe’s poetic output occurred early on in his career. Parini states, “Poe published three volumes [of poetry]—in 1827, 1829, and 1831—by the time he was twenty-two. He then remained comparatively silent for the next fourteen years, and wrote only one or two major poems annually during the last three years of his life” (Parini 172).
Poe died under mysterious circumstances in 1849; he was found inebriated on a street corner, and never regained consciousness. The exact cause of Poe’s death has been debated for years. E.F. Blieler offers an interesting account, “He died in mysterious circumstances in Baltimore on 7 October 1849. It is usually assumed that he was kidnapped by a band of political toughs, force-fed alcohol and drugs, and dragged around the election booths until he collapsed” (Blieler Par. 4). The tone of Blieler’s article is not joking; this may have truly been Poe’s demise. However, there are many other accounts or theories as to the circumstances surrounding Poe’s death. Poe’s death, and life, essentially remains an enigma. The manner in which he died is classically Romantic, and created an enduring image that would be replicated by forlorn and outcast geniuses for years to come, up to the present. The lyric, “its better to burn out than fade away,” by Canadian cum Californian rock artist Neil Young, seems to encapsulate this romantic ideal that has become woven into the fabric of the American identity, and could have been written for Poe himself.
If Poe did burn out, he really could not be faulted for it. His productivity during his young adulthood was simply astonishing. Poe’s initial passion was lyric poetry, and he then moved on to fiction and literary criticism, producing a voluminous bibliography. Although artistically productive during his formative years, writing would prove to be a meager income, and combined with his mental issues, he became financially bereft. Consequently, Poe became disillusioned by his perceived lack of success as a poet. Parini quotes Poe’s dissatisfaction with America’s support of poetry:
In a confessional preface to The Raven and Other Poems (1845), his most substantial volume, he expressed his belief that serious poetry would always be unsalable in the materialistic society of America. He explained that financial pressures had turned him toward fiction and criticism and prevented him from pursuing a career as a professional poet. ‘Events not to be controlled have prevented me from making, at any time, any serious effort in what, under happier circumstances, would have been the field of my choice’ (Parini 172).
Roger Asselineu, in American Writers, comments on the reality of Poe’s commercial trials, “The appearance of this new book at such a time proves his extraordinary perseverance, but he was again ignored by critics” (Asselineu Par. 7). These factors, combined with Poe’s issues with alcohol and drugs, theoretically may have caused Poe to compose his lyric and prose in a minor key.
Poe is largely noted as being a medium, or a
contact, to the supernatural and macabre. His contributions have exceeded
Romanticism by laying the groundwork for modern entertainment. Horror films,
novels and video games all profligate Poe iconography. According to Parini,
“Poe's major poetic themes include victimization, power and powerlessness,
confrontations with mysterious presences, extreme states of being,
dehumanization and its cure, the relation of body and soul, memory of and
mourning for the dead, the need for spiritual transcendence and affirmation” (Parini
174). Like a modern day horror movie producer, Poe reasoned that the morbid
material sold better, rationalizing his artistic decision to conjure ghostly
scenes. As seen in the popular song mentioned before, Poe’s
iconography has literally become analogous with American popular culture.
The selection “To Helen” (1831) presents
the lone romantic wanderer, gazing through a beautiful young woman’s window.
“To Helen” is an example of the short and personal love lyric, expressing
unrequited desire. Poe is describing the beauty of a woman, and compares her
radiance with the magnificent femme Helen of Troy. Gale’s Contemporary
Author’s Online describes “To Helen,” and identifies it as being a
lyric: ““ To Helen" is a three stanza
lyric that has been called one of the most beautiful love poems in the English
language. The subject of the work is a woman who becomes, in the eyes of the
narrator, a personification of the classical beauty of ancient Greece and
Rome” (Gale Par. 6). The poem utilizes
rhyme, and when read aloud, is inherently musical. In fact, the poems reference
to the “Nicean Barks of Yore” is a musical reference: “the Nicean boats
are more important for their musicality and vaguely classical suggestiveness
then for their...Mediterranean reference” (N 697). The web page
‘poetcoder’ states that “To Helen,"
“shows of the musical effect that has come to characterize Edgar's poems”
(<www.poetcoder.com>).
In accord with Olson’s criteria for lyrics, this lyric describes a brief span of human emotion. However, Poe expands his immediate feelings of desire by equating the woman with a larger concept: the brilliant historical luminance of Greece and Rome. “On desperate seas long wont to roam” indicates the Romantic desire for the quest, or the journey. Poe equates Helen’s beauty with a natural object, the hyacinth flower, thereby fulfilling the lyric’s promise of equating human emotion and perception with nature. The poet’s feelings arise from his voyeuristic activity of gazing at Helen through “yon brilliant window niche.” The spectator is separated from the loveliness, and it is his unfortunate lot to be the swooning spectator to her beauty.
“To Helen” is a lyric that illustrates Poe’s belief that poetry, and literature, should represent aesthetics and not reflect actual day-to-day toil: “[Poe] though poetry should appeal only to the sense of beauty, not truth; informational poetry, poetry of ideas, or any sort of didactic poetry was illegitimate” (N 696). This artistic attitude is representative of Romanticism at its height. Poe personifies the isolated creative genius, and his work trumpets desire, loss, and detachment from immediate reality: hallmarks of Romantic ideology.
The Post-Romantic: Emily
Dickinson (1830-1886)
Emily
Dickinson is now widely regarded as one of the greatest poets of all time,
although she was unheralded during her own life. This mysterious woman lived her
life as an eccentric, always wearing white, and confining herself to her
quarters for much of her later years. Her poems were not published in her
lifetime, but were found, and subsequently published. It will never be known how
much of Dickinson’s original artistic intent has been altered by the many
postmortem revisions of her work.
Thus,
the original intentions of Dickinson’s lyrics are obscured, due to the fact
that her work was published and printed posthumously. Sarah Ann Wilder states
that, “Since Dickinson herself never prepared her poems for print, her
"final intention" is unclear. For many of the poems, the manuscript is
a draft version, not a fair copy. These versions frequently include a list of
alternate words, with no indication of choice” (Wilder Par. 65). Richard
Sewell wrote in The Reader’s Companion to American History that, “Dickinson's posthumous fame began when Mabel Loomis
Todd and Higginson edited and published two volumes of poems (1890, 1891) and
some of her correspondence (2 vol., 1894). Other editions of verse followed,
many of which were marred by unskillful and unnecessary editing” (Sewall Par.
2). This dispute came to be known as the Higginson-Todd feud, and a battle for
publishing rights to Dickinson’s work raged on throughout much of the 20th
century. Elizabeth Horan describes the origins of this feud, “The feud was
fueled by the interests of the book trade: publishers, critics, and lawyers who
cared less about the provenance of manuscripts than about how to organize and
profit from their publication. At stake was the right to control, limit, and
profit from publication of Emily Dickinson texts” (Horan Par. 1).
Additionally, Dickinson’s poems bear no actual titles; the given titles are
simply the first lines of the poem, making identification a difficult task.
Dickinson’s
style broke free from then existing conventions of poetry, and resulted in
unique expressions of simple occurrences. Simone Rieck states that, “religion
is what first prompted her to write poetry, inspired by her struggle with
religion and inspired by the Bible. A fear was instilled in her of damnation
from the sermons she experienced in her Unitarian church.” (Rieck). Dickinson’s
feelings were mixed about religion, and apparently, she preferred solitary
communication with God, rather than organized church worship. Still, according
to SUNY Brooklyn’s Lilia Melani, religious
undertones are present in Dickinson’s lyric, and she has been referred to as
“the last gasp of New England Puritanism” (Melani Par. 2).
However, times
had changed since Bradstreet, and Dickinson’s oeuvre routinely eschews the
institution of marriage for a more independent feminist vision. Wilder comments
that,
Dickinson's own ambivalence toward marriage-- an ambivalence so common as to be ubiquitous in the journals of young women--was clearly grounded in her perception of what the role of "wife" required. From her own housework as dutiful daughter, she had seen how secondary her own work became. In her observation of married women, her mother not excluded, she saw the failing health, the unmet demands, the absenting of self that was part of the husband-wife relationship. The "wife" poems of the 1860s reflect this ambivalence (Wilder Par. 29).
Forging
a vision of the independent female, Dickinson’s
lyric poetry, while retaining traces of Romanticism, greatly influenced the 20th
century poetry of Americans writers Ezra Pound and Walter Carlos Williams.
“I Never Saw a
Moor” can be called a personal lyric. It is brief, eight lines, and tells of
an immediate feeling of unity with the natural. The poem’s alternating rhyme
scheme is concordant with the lyric’s vital musical quality. A major Romantic
element in Dickinson’s lyric “I Never Saw A Moor” is this unification of
the soul and nature. Rieck noted that,
This poem covers areas that people may not see, but take for granted; it is an argument for faith. One does not have to see a river to know that it exists or to enjoy it. This poem could also be describing things that Dickinson studied or read about in the Bible. In educating oneself, a person can travel across the world in his or her imagination. This idea can easily be transferred to nature and a person’s feelings and reactions when he or she sees a beautiful sight (Rieck).
I
concur with Rieck’s assertion that the poem relates a message of simple faith,
and it brings to mind the old saying, “if a tree falls in the wood, does it
make a sound?”
“I Never Saw a Moor” illustrates the lyric’s general ability to strongly achieve affect on the personal level. Today, readers construct new meaning of Dickinson’s lyrics through diachronic association of their own personal experience. Melani states, “But what matters is that Emily Dickinson's poetry speaks powerfully to us. It captures her insights and recreates meaningful events in living; it helps us to understand and even to re-live our own experiences through her intensity and with her emotional and intellectual clarity” (Melani Par. 4). Seeking a connection, as evidenced in “I Never Saw a Moor,” is a major element of Romanticism that remains evident in Dickinson’s work. Woodmansee states that Romantic poetry "may be said to be of a vegetable nature, it rises spontaneously from the vital root of genius; it grows, it is not made" (Woodmansee 446).
Dickinson, the
secluded genius, was both anachronism and visionary. Living most of her life in
seclusion, her found manuscripts have had a profound impact on American
literature. As illustrated, Dickinson dually represents two intersecting epochs:
her work is strongly Romantic in character, and is prescient of 20th
century American poetry.
Conclusion
This project has
been more a process of thinking than writing, or researching. It has educated me
greatly on the period of literature known as Romanticism. This broad topic did
present its share of frustration, choosing a focus and format for the journal
was difficult, and required tough decisions as to which poets to leave out. In
addition, after I had begun researching, the feeling continued to grow that my
mind really was a blank slate! So, to negotiate these difficulties, I consulted
a variety of sources, and built a foundation of knowledge about the subject, to
begin pondering the topic. Broad areas of research, followed by perceptive
comments, dominate the notes I took prior to composing this piece. A process of
digestion then occurred, and I decided that the best way to compile the
information that I had consumed is in this synthesized form of this journal.
The initial learning process required me to obtain a general knowledge of
the history of the lyric, which equates to the history of poetry itself. As
stated earlier, the process of omission proved to be an extensive learning
experience.
In terms of impact on my future studies, the
effect of this project will be immense. My knowledge of the Western poetical
canon has increased greatly. As well, I have gained an adequate understanding of
American, and American Romantic poetry. My understanding of the progression of
the Romantic era, and its poetry, has turned out to be the ultimate personal
benefit reaped from this project. There is still much research to be done, as
the pleasure of doing this journal has increased my interest in American
Literature, and has further solidified my growing interest in the history of
America and its Poetry.
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Appendix: Poems
Anne Bradstreet “My Dear And Loving Husband” (1678)
“If ever two were one, then surely we,
If ever man were loved by wife, then thee;
If ever wife was happy in a man,
Compare with me, ye women, if you can.
I prize thy love more than whole mines of gold
Or all the riches that the East doth hold.
Nor ought but love from thee, give recompense.
My love is such that rivers cannot quench,
Thy love is such I can no way repay,
The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray.
Then while we live no more, we may live ever.”
Edgar
Allen Poe, “To Helen” (1831)
“Helen,
thy beauty is to me
Like
those Nicean barks of yore,
That
gently, o’er a perfumed sea,
The
weary, way-worn wanderer bore
To
his own native shore.
On
desperate seas long wont to roam,
Thy
hyacinth hair, thy classic face,
Thy
Naiad airs have brought me home
To
the glory that was Greece
And
the grandeur that was Rome.
Lo!
In yon brilliant window-niche.
How
statue-like I see thee stand,
The
agate lamp with thy hand!
Ah,
Psyche, from regions which
Are
Holy-Land!”
Emily
Dickinson “I Never Saw a Moor”
I
never saw a moor,
I never saw the sea;
Yet know I how the heather looks,
And what a wave must be.
I
never spoke with God,
Nor visited in heaven;
Yet certain am I of the spot
As if the chart were given