Authors
Washington Irving (1783-1859)
This author was an educated son of a pious hardware importer and had a talent for inventing comic fictional narrators like Jonathan Old style, Gent., Geoffrey Crayon, and Diedrich Knickerbocker. He would write stories based on German folk tales which were collected under the title The Sketch Book (was the reason for his popularity & success). His next new book, however, Tales of a Traveller, made him stop writing altogether. Manhattan, New York
The Minister's Black Veil A Parable
Written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Focuses on the dark side of human nature and how every person carries a secret sin in their hearts. It is a parable (a short simple story, based on events from ordinary life where a moral lesson is drawn).
Was set in the time of his Puritan ancestors (he believed it was a time characterized by "gloom and piety).
Hawthorne was inspired by reading about a real-life case of Revd. Joseph Moody who accidentally killed a friend and so he hid his face.
What did the narrator decide to do with the body of his wife in The Black Cat and how was his crime revealed?
The narrator decided to hide the wife’s body within the walls of the cellar, but he ended up revealing his own crime to the police officers by tapping at the brick walls to show how sturdy and flawless they are.
Ichabod Crane is an anti-hero
The narrator does not cast Ichabod in a heroic
light, because he is unattractive, cowardly, and selfish. He wears baggy clothes all he cares about is
wealth and fortune. I believe that even his name seems different from everyone else’s in town (looks like a crane. This establishes his individuality and awkwardness from the rest of the people in the town.
Are factors that influenced Poe to write
Edgar Allan Poe's dark writing was influenced by his own tragic childhood. His life was very depressing. Was separated from his parents (his dad abandoned him and his mother died from tuberculosis) and siblings at birth. After 11 years of marriage his wife, that dearly cherished, died from tuberculosis. These dark events in his life inspired his unique and creepy style of writing. He also needed money to live (he basically had no one).
Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)
- Great-great grandfather, William Hathorne, ordered the whipping of Anne Coleman and four others in the streets of Salem and was the magistrate presiding over the trials of the accused witches of Salem--this was the reason this author changed his last name (ashamed o his family history)
-Born in Salem, Massachusetts.
- Father died when he was only 4 years old.
- Sent to private school due to his storytelling abilities and later sent to Bowdoin College (Classmates at college were Franklin Piecre (who later became president) and Henry Longfellow (writer, poet, etc)).
- first anonymously published short stories and a novel called Fanshawe ( he burned them because he thought they were the “work on inexperienced youth”).
- Was an editor for The American Magazine of Useful and Entertaining Knowledge in 1836 and Appointed to Boston Custom House.
Marries Sophia Peabody and moves to Concord where he joins the writing circles of Thoreau, Emerson, and Louisa May Alcott.
- Served as the surveyor of the Salem Custom House but was fired by the Whig Party.
- Wrote biography for Pierce who was a presidential campaign.
- Famous works: Fanshawe, Mosses from an Old Manse, the Scarlet Letter. The House of Seven Gables, the Snow Image, etc.
- Final days: returns to concord, becomes ill, and undergoes a loss of literary creativity. Dies in Plymouth, NH on May 19, 1864.
Pieces of literature written by Washington Irving. have a dark tone and also explore the dark side of human nature, specifically greed, and how that can lead to the main characters' downfall.
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: A Washington Irving's 1820 tale of a Headless Horseman who terrorizes Ichabod Crane. Do not let superstition guide your actions and overwhelm your reason. Ichabod was greedy and had an anti-hero disposition that eventually leads to his downfall by the end of the story.
The Devil and Tom Walker: a reworking of the Faust (a 16th-century German philosopher who sells his soul to the devil for power and knowledge) legend. Greed is the root of all evil.
How did the congregation react at the beginning of the story after seeing Mr. Hooper with a black veil?
The congregation is shocked and uncomfortable when they see Mr. Hooper’s black veil. They were all muttering in disapproval and didn’t even recognize him. They felt frightened and confused by his new, strange appearance. Also, at the end of the
sermon, no one walked alongside him as they usually do, and Squire Saunders who would invite him to dinner didn’t give him an invitation.
Describe the narrator of the Black Cat at the beginning and end of the story.
The narrator completely
changed as the story progressed. He changed from being a calm and nice guy to
an aggressive, cold-blooded sociopath who likes to show off his gory crimes and hates
everything/everyone around him even his animals and wife whom he once used to
cherish. he lost any sense of remorse and fear for all his wrongdoings by the end of the story.
Are factors that influenced Emerson to write
- Was influenced by his aunt who read a lot about romanticism, Shakespeare, nature, and piety.
- On his tour in Europe, he said that he was moved by animals and nature; wanted to be a naturalist; He believed that nature was part of us.
- in Concord, Emerson was surrounded by creative thinkers, writers, social activists and leaders who influenced his thinking.
- Was unsatisfied with the formal nature of New England religious orthodoxy
Beliefs
- nature was in us or part of us
- on his tour he found two essential ideas: man and nature are one & everyone who is ordinary is great (uniquely significant).
- in Nature, he argues that America needed to stop looking back to its European heritage and start looking at itself (American originality and self-reliance).
- Everyone was living their life based on society and traditions; they weren't being themselves (society is a conspiracy against us).
- We should obey nature because it is God; the divine spark is in each of us. we can release a divine will by following ourselves.
- the value of the ordinary; god is everywhere
- transparent eyeball
Edgar Allan Poe ( January 19, 1809- October 7, 1849)
- This author was born in Boston to David and Elizabeth
- Father abandoned the family in 1810 and mother died the following year of a dreadful disease called tuberculosis
- enlisted in the United States Army in 1827.
- married his cousin, Virginia Clemm when she was 13 in 1835. After 11 years she also died of tuberculosis
- Was first to earn money through writing alone
- Foster father was really mean to him and criticized him.
- American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic, Known for his poetry & short stories (mysterious and macabre) regarded as the central figure of American Romanticism. inventor of the detective fiction genre a significant contributor to the rising science fiction genre.
- His death remains a mystery
Nature
Self-Reliance
nature is part of us. The burden of expectation
Written by Ralph Waldo Emerson.
According to the theories, what happened to Ichabod at the end of the story?
Dutch women believe he was a victim of the horseman.
a farmer tells us that Ichabod ran away (out of embarrassment) from the town, studied law, and is a successful judge now.
How does Irving characterize the old married couple in The Devil and Tom Walker?
Irving describes the old married couple as being miserable, greedy, and extremely cheap. Their
marriage is most likely not built up on love or trust since they literally hate and steal food from
each. Their house is very untidy and is “forlorn-looking...and had an air of starvation.” Tom Walker is the the abused since his. He is also very stubborn and not easily intimidated by things like the
devil or the dark woods. Tom Waker’s wife liked to hoard food. She is a tempergen,, abusive, strong, selfish, and fierce woman.
Are factors that influenced Irving to write
- Was attracted to the works of Sir Walter Scott who told him that he should start making his reputation and read the German Romantics and find inspiration in folklore and legends.
- Many people believed in Europe and England that America would never develop a literary voice of its own.
- Had a talent for inventing comic fictional narrators
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)
- Was born in Concord, Massachusetts.
- Father was a successful manufacturer of pencils. John and Cynthia Dunbar were his parents and he was the third of four children.
- His family was friends with the Emerson family
- As a boy, he loved nature. He would often tramp the woods and fields with a fishing rod.
- Entered Harvard.
- Broke the rules by attending chapel with a green coat instead of black
- After teaching school, he went to New York but pined for his hometown. A friend offered for both of them to travel across the continent of Europe, but he declined because he was planning to go to Walden Pond where Emerson offered him some land.
- In 1841 he was invited to live in the Emerson household, where he remained intermittently until 1843
- He wanted to rediscover the grandeur of a simple life led close to nature and so moved to Walden Pond where he stayed there for two years, two months, and two days, He wanted "to meet the fact of life...the actuality the gods meant to show us..."
- Wrote Walden (he looked to nature and not the stylists of the past).
- Portested the Mexican-American War by not paying his poll tax--spent a night in jail (wrote Civil Disobedience).
- moved back to his parent's house in 1860 and lived there the rest of his life
- Throughout his life, he was greatly concerned over slavery.
- Died of Tuberculosis
The dark pieces of literature written by Poe. They explored the themes of death, love, and regret and tough the reader something about human nature:
1. The Raven: focused on death and the pain that follows the separation of loved ones; teaches us that grief can overcome a person's ability to live in the present, think rationally, and engage with society. Nothing is permanent.
2. The Masque of the Red Death: you can’t avoid death because it is a stage of life that everyone must face. It will eventually find you where ever you may be.
3. The Black Cat: explores the obscurity in every human being and says that every human being has the potential for inscrutable immorality. Moral is that crime will never go unpunished.
What are Thoreau's arguments against solitude?
Thoreau says that we are all part of the Milky and that there is no point in feeling lonely because “this whole earth which we inhabit is but a point in space” Solitude allows a person to feel nature's beauty spiritually.
How would you describe Prince Prospero and explain why?
Prince Prospero is controlling, fearless, and wicked. For example, he showed fearlessness when he chased the masked figure, although everyone was scared to seize him. He was controlling when ordered everyone to capture the masked figure instantly. He is also wicked because he refused to help his poor people and instead locked himself and other well-known people inside his castle and tried to forget everything that was going on outside.
Are factors that influenced Thoreau's writings
- During his Harvard years he was exposed to the writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson, who later became his chief mentor and friend.-
- felt a need to confirm his unity with nature.
His beliefs
- people often miss life by not looking for other approaches to fulfillment
- we need very few. stop living in a materialistic world. money is superfluous cause it does not help develop our souls. you don't need to work for 40-50 hours each (unnecessary)
- distrusted society. highly valued self-reliance (felt that economic independence from other people and from the government was very important).
- learn to live alone
- technology is an unnecessary distraction because it creates a challenges for personal happiness
- We can best understand ourselves as a part of nature; we should see ourselves as “nature looking into nature,” rather than an external force or the master of nature.
- we can find God in nature
- we should challenge a government that is unjust
- nature offers psychological possibilities
- nature fosters introspection and self-discovery (teaches us to be humble and more aware). helps us transcend our previous limitations and ideas and therefore make progress.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)
Father of American Literature
Born in 1803 to a family that was cultured and poor;
At the age of 8, his father, a Unitarian minister, died of tuberculosis
His mother with six children opened a boardinghouse; she took in boarders
Married the love of his life, ellen, who later died of tuberculosis
Due to grief, he resigned from being a Unitarian minister and set off on an extended tour of Europe. In Paris he went to the famous Jardin des Plantes (a zoological garden)--he felt nature in him.
Remarried and had several children
Wrote “Nature” (importance of American originality)
Gave lectures to Harvard students and demanded that American scholars free themselves from the shackles of the past
later years, Emerson suffered from serious loss of memory
Beliefs:
He believed that America needed to stop looking back to its England heritage; Everything that matters is here now
Significance of a person’s self-reliance; no one could be themselves because they were all worried about what they are supposed to be
Emerson wanted to take that burden off of people
Society is a conspiracy against our individuals (Emerson said in his Self-Reliance).
Rid yourself of history, religion, custom influences
Emerson was Panthiest (God existed in every art of creation and even us)
This book was written by Henry David Thoreau and has smaller sections in it like Economy, Where I lived and What I lived For, Solitude, The Bean Field, Brute Neighbors, and Conclusion
Walden or Life in the Woods: Henry wanted to find out what life is. simplified life. try something new and don't follow the crowd. try to understand ourselves and slow down on modernizing the world around us. people should look for truths in nature.
importance of nature, self-reliance, and nonconformity
What does the Raven symbolize and how did the speaker feel toward the Raven by the end of the poem?
death; darkness; evil. Primarily the Raven represents the speaker's loss of hope and despair. ebony.
By the end of the poem, the speaker felt enraged toward the Raven. The Raven kept repeating "Nevermore," whenever asked about the speaker's dead love, Lenore.
Characterize Elizabeth, Hooper's Fiance at the beginning and end of the story.
She was the only person who was not shocked by the veil (a supporting character). She seemed understanding and caring because she wanted what was best for Hooper.
However, the veil began to intimidate her and she feared it will ruin Hooper’s reputation as a good and respectable preacher. Thus, when Hooper refuses to take it off, she breaks up with him.
Are factors that influenced Hawthorne to write
- Fueled by an awareness of guilt that accompanies a Puritan conscience. Several of his ancestors were involved in the Salem Witch trials. Because he was ashamed of it, he loved writing on puritan society, sin, and religious issues of the time
- inspired by his family's history and association with Puritan New England Hawthorne. Grew up in an extremely religious environment.
- Inspired by nature and the idea of the supernatural
- Loss of his father at a very young age could be a reason for his dark style
- grew up in Salem, Massachusetts which is considered one of the most haunted and supernatural places on earth.
- Believed in the existence of the devil, believed in determinism (theory of predestination, Purtian family background).