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the romantic period (1830 to 1870) Romanticism was a literary, artistic, and philosophical movement that first began in Europe in the late 18th century. American Romanticism developed toward the end of the Romantic movement in Europe while the nation was struggling between different ideologies and working toward a national identity. The Industrial Revolution was one major influence as the rapid scientific and technological development meant that people were slowly being replaced by machines. In America, expansion Westward meant opening up the new frontier, a place of great possibility but also great fear and uncertainty. Some writers and intellectuals began to join the Abolitionist movement to free slaves which eventually culminated in the Civil War. Romanticism challenged rational and logical thinking in favour of emotion, creativity and imagination. It placed value on the individual over the group and celebrated the natural world over man-made order. Key characteristics of romanticism included an appreciation of the beauty of nature, an exploration of the struggle between man and nature, a belief in the natural goodness of man, as well as democracy and freedom, self reliance, individuality, delight in solitude, and an emphasis on aesthetics. There were several different groups of writers and thinkers that emerged during this period, each exploring the experiences of individuals in different segments of American society. Some branches of American romanticism included transcendentalism, dark or gothic romanticism, sentimentalism, abolitionism, slave narratives and civil war literature. While poetry became popular during this period, the American Romantics produced more prose. Authors celebrated rebellion and attempted to break conventions, rejecting the traditional and constrictive rules of writing to experiment with new forms in a more relaxed conversational style. influences themes & characteristics definition Sources: “American Romanticism.” StudySmarter UK, www.studysmarter.co.uk/explanations/english-literature/american-literary-movements/american-romanticism/. Luebering, J. E. “Periods of American Literature.” Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com/list/periods-of-american-literature.
Realism was a literary movement that focused on depicting ordinary people and everyday mundane experiences in an accurate, truthful way. The stories were written simply about realistic situations where writers analysed human nature through a more scientific, objective and detached perspective. Naturalism was a branch of realism which also reflected the belief that forces larger than the individual could shape their destiny such as nature, fate and heredity. Naturalism often included themes of survival, determinism, violence, fate and the harsher side of life. Settings took on new meaning, often embodying a character of their own as writers explored the struggles between man and nature, as well as societal pressures such as poverty, wealth gaps and difficult living conditions. Naturalist writers depicted the realistic experiences of the common American man. The protagonist was often a poor or working class character who was not a hero, but a regular flawed human being. The style and tone of writing was often objective, detached and pessimistic. themes & characteristics Realism and Naturalism (1870 to 1910) Americans were coming to terms with the harshness of frontier life as well as the human cost of the devastating civil war which shocked the nation and presented them with a new grim reality. What emerged was a literature that focused on detailed, raw and unembellished reality rather than imagined or fantastical ideas, helping Americans cope with the realization that their lives would not always be so optimistic. Realism and naturalism were two separate but closely linked literary movements that were born as reactions to the Romantic movement. They also drew inspiration from French authors of the 19th century who sought to document the real life they saw around them, particularly among the urban middle and working classes. influences definition Sources: Luebering, J. E. “Periods of American Literature.” Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com/list/periods-of-american-literature. “Naturalism.” StudySmarter UK, www.studysmarter.co.uk/explanations/english-literature/american-literary-movements/naturalism. "Realism and Naturalism in Literature." Twinkl, www.twinkl.co.id/teaching-wiki/difference-between-realism-and-naturalism-in-literature
The modernist literary movement stemmed from these events, along with a rejection of Enlightenment thinking. Although the works during this period were very different, their common purpose was to radically break from the past in order to better represent the modern American experience. Most were written in a pessimistic or chaotic way to reflect the confusion and disillusionment felt by most Americans who had lost faith in the American way of life and struggled to understand their new fragmented sense of identity. The Modernist Period (1910 to 1945) The transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth century came with cataclysmic social and economic changes. Science and technology were progressing rapidly and America entered the twentieth century as a strong and affluent world power. The Harlem Renaissance and the Roaring Twenties saw a period of boldness, flourishing art and extravagant, fast-paced living as populations migrated from rural to urban areas. Although this time period started off with prosperity, it soon became one defined by the devastation of World War I and II and the Great Depression which caused widespread suffering across the country. influences definition Common themes in modernist texts include confusion, isolation, disillusionment, individualism, loss of hope in the American Dream and reality as subjective and ever-changing. The sense of loss that pervades much of American modernist literature might be centred on specific individuals or directed toward American society as a whole. Modernist works also focused on contemporary topics such as race relations, gender and the human condition. Some generated a destructive and pessimistic impulse while others expressed hope at the prospect of change. Other characteristics of modernist literature included the breakaway from traditional writing styles and the experimentation with new literary forms and expressions including abstract symbolism, non-linear storylines, stream-of-consciousness style narratives, free verse poetry, metafiction, intertextuality, absurdity and relativism. Drama also came into prominence for the first time in the United States. themes & characteristics Sources: Luebering, J. E. “Periods of American Literature.” Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com/list/periods-of-american-literature.
America emerged from the end of WWII as a confident and economically strong world power. However, an awareness of significant human rights violations such as the discovery of the Holocaust and the atomic bombings of Japan made people reject the previous enlightenment-style quest for meaning and begin to view reality as subjective. America also entered into the Cold War with the Soviet Union in the late 1940's and this conflict influenced global politics for the next four decades. The 1950's and 60's also brought significant cultural shifts shaped by the Civil Rights Movement, the Women's Rights movements and the Vietnam War. Marginalised groups of Americans continued to develop their own voice and identity within American literature, wrestling with the desire to change an unjust society. By the second half of the 20th century, American literature had become much more complex and inclusive encompassing a wide range of works in different styles created by people from different backgrounds. the postmodern period (1945 -present) influences Postmodern literature is a literary movement that deliberately abstains from the search for absolute meaning and instead intensifies and celebrates fragmentation, playfulness and disorder, initiating a major shift in literary tradition. Texts from this period take on a wide variety of forms including realist, metafictive, absurdist, autobiographical, fragmentary, feminist and African American perspectives. There is not a lot that holds them together beyond their engagement with contemporary society, their desire to break away from established literary conventions to explore their own subjective reality, and the privileging of internal feelings over external factors. Some texts portray a strong desire to correct past injustices, while others project the less serious desire to just enjoy oneself. definition Postmodern literature is characterised by an embrace of randomness and playfulness in terms of style often through techniques such as fragmentation, expressionism, paradox, questionable narrators, self-reflexivity, metafiction, intertextuality, irony and parody. While many postmodern literary texts reflect a continued questioning of grand narratives, they shift their focus more to a quest for identity focusing on the inner experiences and sometimes irrational psychology of human beings. Other common themes include racism, diversity, materialism, capitalism, identity, culture and heritage and a search for goodness in humanity. themes & characteristics Sources: “Periods of American Literature.” Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com/list/periods-ofamerican-literature. “Postmodern Literature Guide: 10 Notable Postmodern Authors - 2023 - MasterClass.” MasterClass, 7 Apr. 2021, www.masterclass.com/articles/postmodern-literature-guide. "Contemporary American Literature: Authors and Major Works." Study.com, study.com/academy/lesson/contemporary-american-literature-authors-and-major-works.html