Nineteenth century literature is quite popular for having in its body of literature elements of the supernatural. In fact, it is highly characterized with dark gothic, ghost stories and tales of horror.
The era was a period of time when people were under repression. And the people werent too happy about it. Their desires sexual or otherwise, were limited, controlled by the standards and the moral values set by the society. Thus, things unseen, feelings kept and repressed gave way to the product of the imagination, to give way to the looming notion that underneath the seemingly peaceful and ordinary life is a world where the forbidden and the strange are possible.
For example, we see this exemplified from the story written by Henry James, The Turn of the Screw. Miss Jessel and Quint had an illicit sexual affair and are both believed to have become ghosts that haunt Flora and Miles accordingly. The fact that during the nineteenth century era, the society imposes upon its members the importance of being proper (acting and speaking correctly at all times), these ghost stories became avenues for people during that age and time to let loose and become wild, even if only through reading.
This we see when we read Washinton Irvings The Legend of Sleepy Hollow . We see how the ghost story is not actually horrifying in the strictest sense of the word. Rather, it even appeals to the humor as we know that the headless horse was the disguised Brom Bones to chase away the unknowing and terrified Ichabod Crane.
b.Transcendentalism was a significant philosophic force during this century. Describe the nature of this movement (primarily through Emerson and Thoreau).Do you see anything uniquely American about this particular movement Why or why not
The nineteenth century is characterized as an era of deep thinking, of reflection, and of contant introspection. This gave light to the rise of a revolutionary movement called transcendentalism which was primary led by Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau.
The term transcendentalism is not so easily defined. This is so because it is a form of philosophy that does not depend on logical or rational evidences. Rather it is mainly fuelled by sheer instinct, intuition, or what we call the gut-feeling .
Several forms of this philosophy exists, but one that particularly concerns us is specifically the American Transcendentalism. To get a better picture of this philosophy, it is important to note how Emerson defines it. He said
The Transcendentalist adopts the whole connection of spiritual doctrine. He believes in miracle, in the perpetual openness of the human mind to new influx of light and power he believes in inspiration, and in ecstasy. He wishes that the spiritual principle should be suffered to demonstrate itself to the end, in all possible applications to the state of man, without the admission of anything unspiritual that is, anything positive, dogmatic, personal.
Simply put, it is a kind of philosophy where one goes beyond what is empirical. It employs the ue of the imagination. It is more spiritual than material.
Originally, Transcendentalism was created with the objective of making a uniquely American body of literature. Professor Nichols says, Emerson wanted to shrug off the shackles of European society and stake a prophetic claim for American culture.
Professor Nichols further says Emerson was reading Asian sacred and historical writings long before most Americans knew they existed, especially those from India. The texts included the Bhagavad-Gita, the Vedas, and the Laws of Manu. Owing to the fact that Emerson based the philosophy of American Transcendentalism from the traditional writings of Eastern religion, the notion that Transcendentalism is uniquely American becomes questionable.
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