What Is The Similarities Between Romanticism And Edgar Allan Poe

The Romantic Period is characterized as an artistic and intellectually stimulating literary movement. Writers of this genre and time are considered to be those who fused the elements of romance in their writings to enhance the human experience. Edgar Allan Poe, known as the father of the modern short story, epitomizes this notion in his writings. In “Annabel Lee,” and “The Oval Portrait,” Edgar Allan Poe uses romance to illustrate the essence of death and misery and to illustrate elements in which the reader can actually feel that was is happening in the story is happening to them.

“The boundaries which divide Life from Death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where one ends and the other begins”(Poe, par. 3). Edgar Allan Poe, as well as many other writers throughout history, have questioned the ideological standards of society. A noteworthy debate that has surfaced time and time again through varying time periods is the dispute of logical and rational intelligence versus the impassioned emotion of one’s inner-self. These two conflicting philosophies divided and defined the different characteristics of literature during the Enlightenment era and the Romantic era. In order to understand why various authors such as Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and John Locke wrote in their differing styles, it is important to understand the historical context that inspired these authors. Although these approaches in style were exceedingly different, remarkable works of literature emerged from both time periods. While the various writers of the Enlightenment era had a more historical motivation for writing, the writers during the Romantic era composed an overall more amusing anthology of literary works.

Gothic literature, which is sometimes referred to as Gothic horror, is a genre that links horror and romance into one tale of ‘transgressing the boundaries’. Gothicism was unheard of until the late 1700’s, this movement into a new genre of literature. This was pioneered by the English author Horace Walpole, in his famous fictional book ‘The Castle of Otranto’, or as Walpole alternatively titled it ‘a Gothic story’. Horace Walpole himself had transgressed the boundaries slightly; by introducing this new style of writing he had added a whole new genre into literature. Walpole’s style of writing was unique and captivated the readers mind and

Imagine a candle-lit dinner on a starry night in Paris, the Eiffel Tower just in view with dazzling lights shining into the night. This image is probably what you think of when you hear the word “romantic,” correct. However, this image is a stumbling block when people think of the “Romanticism Period” in literature. Where “romantic” means having a lovely time with the person you love the most, “Romanticism” is a piece of literature written with key themes in mind. Those themes tend to be a strong emotion, imagery or worship of nature, and individuality and subjectivity. The peak of inspiration for these pieces was in the years 1800-1850, and there are famous poems that are well loved today from this period. Many of the poets that you enjoy reading and know are, in actuality, Romanticism writers, and instill the themes above in our minds.

In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, a new literary genre sprung up, the Gothic story. In the United States, the most prominent exponent of Gothic fiction was Edgar Allen Poe, whose “horror” tales conjure up the dark side that many of us at least half-believe is hidden just beneath the surface of the most conventional lives. In this paper we will discuss the Gothic in light of two of Poe’s stories, “Ligeia”, and “The Fall of the House of Usher,” and contrast Poe’s story with a somewhat dark tale of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, “The Minister’s Black Veil.” We will also analyze why Poe’s stories are Gothic’s and Hawthorne’s is not.

Everyone knows Michael Jackson as the king of pop. Elvis Presley is famously the king of rock and roll. But what about gothic literature? Yes, even a genre of literature can have a throne. And who occupies that throne you may ask? Edgar Allen Poe, that’s who. Believed to have originated in Germany in the 1700s, gothic literature is the genre where the romantic movement found its home. It began with unrequited love stories ending in tragic suicide, then evolved into happily ever afters in France. Before hitting America, it went to England where elements of sorrow and dreariness mixed with the weather. In the mid 1800s, it made its final stop here, especially in the mind of the great Poe. He suffered greatly from depression, alcoholism, loss, poverty, and love. Every writer is a romantic to some extent, but it is the tragic nature of Poe’s romances that created the uniquely insane and terrifying characters in his work.

Irving, Poe, and Hawthorne were arguably some of the most popular writers of the 19th century (Dincer 223; Lauter 2505). All three of them are known for their short essays and their advocacy to make writing a full-fledged and legitimate profession. Their writings show that they were hugely influenced by the Romantic Movement (romanticism); ‘a movement in art, literature, music, philosophy, politics and culture towards focusing on the individual, the subjective, and the spontaneous’ (Dincer 218). Romanticist writing “encouraged contemplation and self-awareness, direct contact with nature, and a focus on and an exploration of inner feelings” (Dincer 223). Yet, they had distinct writing style, focus, and theme. While Irving was more of a light romantic writer, a writing style characterized by optimism, Poe and Hawthorne are widely considered dark romantic Authors whose writings were characterized by pessimism that sees the world as full of dark, evil, suffering, horror, and mystery. While Irving’s writing focused more on satire and humor, Poe & Hawthorne’s writing was more about evil, crime, sin, and mystery. Moreover, Irving seem to be nostalgic aristocrat with huge ‘interest in the landscape, folklore, and the past’ (2506), whereas Poe and Hawthorne had a contrary view of the past (Liptak).

Edgar Allan Poe was and still is known as one of the best poets/short story writer. He was also the first well known writer to make a living off of his profession. All in all he was one of the best of his time and still is considered the best. His poems and short stories were dark and gritty; he wasn't really known for his feel good poems but ones that explored darkness. Some of his best poems were “The Valley of Unrest”, “The Raven”, and “Annabel Lee”. These poems had themes of love, death, and the supernatural.

Edgar Allen Poe (Poe) and Ralph Waldo Emerson (Emerson) are both famed romantic writers and poets from early to mid-nineteenth century. Their works are still some of the most studied and referenced in the present day. Both authors are famed for their writing and ideas, but their fame gained success each in their unique way. The two men had starkly different writing styles, and their views on philosophy were just as different. Both differences are evident when reading the two authors works. Emerson has an approach that based its roots in nature. He observes people and nature coinciding as one and brings out the beauty not just of nature but of life that others may not observe as part of their everyday life. Emerson has a passion for using his writing to better peoples’ outlook and opinion on life through his philosophical ideas. Poes approach to romantic writing is self-centered, and the way he portrays romanticism is in some cases dark. Rather than help the reader and their feelings; Poe writes about his experiences and his feelings through different avenues of writing. Both authors have a common theme in their writing. They both show an importance of self-awareness.

Edgar Allan Poe was one one of the best writers to ever walk the Earth. He used more of a darker element than most of the writers of his time and before his time. He incorporated Dark Romanticism into a lot of what he did. He was even known as a Dark Romantic writer. Edgar Allan Poe’s rough childhood was a major influence in his writing, his work “The Tell-Tale Heart” incorporates many elements of dark romanticism, and his writing has influenced pop culture today and many authors after he died.

Edgar Allan Poe, renowned as the foremost master of the short-story form of writing, chiefly tales of the mysterious and macabre, has established his short stories as leading proponents of “Gothic” literature. Although the term “Gothic” originally referred only to literature set in the Gothic (or medieval) period, its meaning has since been extended to include a particular style of writing. In order for literature to be “Gothic,” it must fulfill some specific requirements. Firstly, it must set a tone that is dark, somber, and foreboding. Next, throughout the development of the story, the events that occur must be strange, melodramatic, or often sinister. Poe’s short stories are

When discussing gothic fiction many early authors come to mind, Mary Shelley, the Bronte Sisters, Bram Stoker, and Oscar Wilde, to name a few, were all exceptional European writers of this style. As for American authors, there are two names that hold top places of honor, Edgar Allan Poe, and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Poe, with his talent for lyrical, poetic prose and conveying the macabre, is considered by many to be the master of gothic fiction. However, Hawthorne with his propensity toward humor and his ability to breathe humanness into his characters is an excellent contender for the title. They both exhibited gothic traditions in their writing, while at the same time adjusting elements of this previously European genre to fit into American surroundings, all the while delivering their own unique contributions to the gothic scene. I will explore and compare some of their works with hopes of identifying what I find to be some of their genius contributions to this dark romantic style.

Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) born in the United States was a poet, writer, critic, and journalist recognized as one of the greatest exponents of the Dark Romanticism (Ultan and Olson, 51). Dark Romanticism is an American literary subgenre emerged in the nineteenth century from the philosophical movement called transcendentalism. Dark Romanticism, broadly speaking, rely very little on perfection as an innate quality of the human being, a key idea of the transcendentalists (Howard, 1). As consequence, its characters are prone to sin and self-destruction, since by nature, they are not wise or divine beings. One of the most representative authors of the current is Poe, who is

Transcendentalism and Romanticism were social, artistic, and literary movements that originated in the 18th century in New England. It arose as a reaction to protest against the general state of intellectualism and spirituality at the time. The two movements have many differences and comparisons that both intertwine to create a positive and negative aspect of human nature. Transcendentalism and romanticism have both a negative and positive aspect of human nature, and both compare and contrast within one another because they stand out during the time period, and was an important side of the industrial revolution. Transcendentalism was expressed through central figures such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, who wrote many novels

The term gothic fiction implies a British literary genre from the late eighteenth, and early nineteenth century. The modernized term seems to have been generalized into anything that is dark, gloomy, or depressing. Gothic novels often time posses an emphasis on portraying the terror, a prominent use of supernatural circumstances, the presence of highly stereotyped characters, and the attempt to display techniques of literary suspense. There are also other parallels among this vastly popular genre. Gothic novels often time describe the city of London in corresponding ways. Also a common theme amongst gothic literary works is the duality of human nature, or the quality or characteristic of being twofold. These mutual themes are apparent in