Relation Between Romanticism and Transcendentalism - Essay Example

Relation Between Romanticism and Transcendentalism Romanticism and Transcendentalism are closely related ideas that began at the same time in the 18th Century. The differences between the two concepts exist on their viewpoints on what constitutes a person’s nature, individuality, spiritual being and philosophies. Based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe, romanticism stressed an aesthetic occurrence identifying feeling such as nervousness, fear, awe and dismay. Transcendentalists have a strong belief in the power of spiritualism, nature and individual being. Their views have partial relationships with those propagated by romantics; however, they uphold the fact that God is the supreme spiritual being who should be accorded all the deserved respect. Ralph Waldo Emerson is a transcendalists whose works emphasized that wisdom and knowledge of oneself are the keys to personal development. Romanticism elicits strong feelings while giving examples of important events in our daily lives. The idea is about a heavy motivational force focusing on devotion, loyalty and having full allegiance to established authority. Transcendentalism is the power of knowledge to surpass scholarly growth and divinity. It also emphasizes the force of natural being and individualism as the key to personal growth. Romanticism demonstrates the significance of emotions and individual freedom over growth personal knowledge. The propagators believe everyone should be given the freedom to determine their feelings and choose to, or not to, follow them. Transcendalists are inspired by factors which are beyond human outlook and normal human reasoning. Transcendentalism believes in the power wielded by a spiritual being who determines our fate; they also opine the fact that miracles do happen. Romanticism does not heavily rely on the power of God as the centre of the universe. Romantics create a positive attitude towards their work as modern institutions of authority are championing human freedom to pursue desired causes. Transcendentalism works is very sensible; it also creates a hyperbole on what constitutes good and evil. 2. Edgar Allan Poe’s stories are different from other writer’s stories in that they are characterised by lurid scenes meant to instil fear among readers. The writer thus uses a number of literary techniques to ensure this, all stemming from a gothic fiction slant. He uses typical lurid settings only characteristic to horror movie scenes. Three of his stories, “Hop-Frog,” “Ligeia” and “The Tell-Tale Heart”, are set at night and a fearful reader might find these stories difficult to follow. Daylight scenes are silent with only birds singing their melodies. He foreshadows wickedness when reading from an account of the narrator’s new castle in his piece called “Ligeia.” He writes, “I purchased an abbey...The gloomy and dreary grandeur of the building” (Poe, p.38). In "The Cask of Amontillado," main parts of the scenes take place inside wet caves; such scenes are horrific means to strike the reader. Edgar Allan Poe’s writing titled “The Masque of Death” has a similar form to Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Scarlet Letter.” Both are a reflection of a dark mental picture of human nature. They both portray human purity as a potential for cruelty (Canada, p.8). In “Masque of Death,” ancient Prince Prospero became a leader and the people he led had a lot of faith in his ruler-ship. They were disappointed later when he locked them out when disease struck his territory. Scarlet letter is a story showing that there is a thin line between love and evil; and that is human nature. 3. The plot of Ambitious Guest, a story by Nathaniel Hawthorne begins with a young tourist stopping to stay for the night at a hut built next to a mountain. He is well received by the family and all engage in a jovial conservation. Some other travellers pass by, stopping momentarily but continuing with their journey. Thereafter, stones begin falling from the mountain with the head of the house reassuring the visitor and rest of his family that the house is safe. The guest continues to inform the family that he has to achieve his ambitions before he dies. His ambitions was to be famous and for people to view his death as a serious loss. The father says that he wishes for a modest time in his sunset days. Suddenly, their talk is cut short by a much noisier force from the falling rocks. They all run out of the house but are hit by the boulders; the house remains intact after the accident. Their bodies are never recovered after the avalanche had struck. The story is a manifestation of a deadly irony; this is used by the writer to mean a direct opposite of what the writer is saying. A single and strong house stands in a gorge. There is a guest who visits them in the house and hates mediocre life; the young man advises the host to go for ambitious projects. As they were out fetching water, the mountains come crumbling down. This irony is that none of the characters has profited from their life ambitions; they have a strong house but when tragedy comes, they all flee for safety elsewhere. The following is said of the house’s condition the next day: “The next morning, the rescue party found an empty house, with the beds unmade and the family’s clothing lying on chairs and on the floor” (Mathews, p.19). Another irony is seen when happy personalities, just having a light conversation, would die so violently. The writer wipes them off, ensuring they do not have a bright future. The central point in the story is: never run from your secure comfort zone to secure empty ambitions. In this story, had the visitor not shown up and fill their minds with unrealistic ambitions, they would not have perished. His other story, “The Black Cat,” is also filled with irony as he demonstrates that the people we love can influence our emotional responses to certain occurrences. In the story, the main character switches from a humble individual to a psychopathic killer; it has a tragic ending which is characteristic of Poe’s stories. 4. Harriet Beecher Stowe employs a couple of literary devices in Uncle Tom’s Cabin to bring attention to the slavery issues rampant in America at the time. Each of these devices is powerful and keeps the reader focused; this helps the book deliver its message vividly. Imagery is used in most parts of the book; this is a type of writing that gives readers the ability visualize the ideas expressed and thus have a realistic experience of the author’s writing. In the book, imagery is visualised from the scenes in Shelby mansion up to the death of each slave. As Eliza escapes with her son to give him protection, imagery gets the reader experiencing the horror Eliza is and to listen to every sound that is captured by her own ears. “The frosty grounds creaked beneath her feet, and she trembled at the sound; every quaking leaf and fluttering shadow sent the blood backward to her heart, and quickened her footsteps” (Burkette, p.9) The writer uses imagery to put the reader where the characters are; this makes them feel like they have heard or felt the same things experienced by the characters. As Tom stands up to confront his master at the end of the story, Mrs. Stowe notes, “Nerve and bone of that poor man’s body vibrated to those words, as if touched by the finger of God; and he felt the strength of a thousand souls in one” (Burkette, p.16). The readers establish a connection to the story and they also feel like their own bodies’ are trembling. Point of view in a literary piece determines the angle of the story; this makes it influence the attitudes listeners have towards the subject. The writer uses this technique as she switches her point of view in a rotational basis; at one instance it focuses on the slave master and switches to the slaves in the succeeding paragraph. The reader is then able to empathise with the slaves as they are able to get into their minds. Mrs. Stowe uses similes to mark out comparisons and contrasts between things, personalities, events and concepts that are completely different from each other. In the line, “like a strange snatch of heavenly music, heard in the lull of a tempest,” she describes Tom’s emotional reactions as he confronts his cruel master which is “a strange snatch of heavenly music” (Burkette, p.14). These are two unrelated concepts but the writer uses this expression to reinforce her message so the readers can better understand it. Works cited Mathews, Brander. "Notes to The Ambitious Guest By Nathaniel Hawthorne. Matthews, Brander. 1907. The Short-Story." Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and hundreds more. N.p., 1 Jan. 2012. Web. 11 June 2012. . Burkette, Allison. "The use of literary dialect in Uncle Tom's Cabin ." Language and Literature . N.p., 1 Jan. 2012. Web. 26 June 2012. . Poe, Edgar A. Ligeia: Silence : a Fable. Paris: Pocket, 2005. Print. Canada, Mark. "Antebellum and Civil War America, 1784-1865: Nathaniel Hawthorne." The University of North Carolina at Pembroke. N.p., 20 Sept. 1999. Web. 26 June 2012. . Read More