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The American Renaissance Essay

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In America, the American Renaissance was the period in 1835-1880 in which United States literature came of age as an expression of a national spirit. Literature became one of the most historically significant effects that occurred throughout the time period of the American Renaissance. The American Renaissance is also characterized by renewed national self-confidence new ideas and technologies. Politically and economically, this era coincides with the Gilded Age and the New Imperialism. By the end of the eighteenth century, Enlightenment secularism made profound progress into American thoughts. “…the United States in the nineteenth century was an infant republic swaddled in the rational ideas of the Enlightenment.” (Tindall 492) The …show more content…

However by the end of the eighteenth century, many well-educated New Englanders were embracing Unitarianism, a belief that emphasizes the oneness and benevolence of loving God, the inherent goodness of humankind, and the primacy of reason and conscience over established creeds and confessions. “Unitarians believe that Jesus was a saintly man but he was not divine. People are not inherently depraved, Unitarians stress; they are capable of doing tremendous good, and all are eligible for salvation.” (Tindall 494) Boston was the center of the Unitarian movement and William Ellery Channing was the most inspiring Unitarian leader. A similar anti-Calvanist movement was Universalism. Universalism attracted a different and much larger social group, including working-class people of a humbler status. Founded by John Murray in 1779 in Gloucester, Massachusetts, Universalism stressed the salvation of all men and women, not just a “predestined” few. The Universalists taught that God was too merciful to condemn anyone to eternal damnation. The Unitarians and Universalists are closely related today and “although both sects remained relatively small, they exercised a powerful influence over intellectual life, especially in New England.” (Tindall 494)
Romanticism in America
“Another great victory of heart over head was the Romantic movement in thought, literature, and the arts.” (Tindall 503) This movement was

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