The Romantic period in American literature was a very experimental time for writers. Many of the works that I read this unit explored humanity and our natural curiosities and nature. I also found that simple writings of normal life, and love, were popular during the romantic period.
Hawthorne and Poe explored life, death, and human nature in their works. They both had similar stories of human curiosity. With “The Pit and the Pendulum” Poe showed how a man’s curiosity can find the dark part of life, and how close death was to him. His curiosity opened his eyes to the multiple ways of death around him. Hawthorne uses the curiosity to show how man can make mistakes with one’s own human nature. All those who drank the potion to grow young once again, found the strong call of it and discovered their dark reflections of their old selves in the mirror. Irving’s used greed instead of curiosity to show human nature. At the end of the story Irving writes, “In place of gold and silver his iron chest was filled with chips and shavings; two skeletons lay in his stable instead of his half starved horses, and the very next day his great house took fire and was burnt to the ground. Such was the end of Tom Walker and his ill gotten wealth. Let all griping mon …show more content…
In Longfellow’s, “Paul Revere’s Ride,” he romanticized the story by making Revere seem like a lone rider and everything relying on him. In contrast with that, Bryant wrote a creative poem “Thanopsis” about death. Bryant writes, “To that mysterious realm, where each shall take His chamber in the silent halls of death” by using words like ‘mysterious’ he creates a wonderment that is often found in the Romantic Period of literature. All five of these authors, although having very different works, had many similar characteristics of questioning life and creating intrigue by twisting a story to make is seem less real and more of a
Hawthorne and Poe explored life, death, and human nature in their works. They both had similar stories of human curiosity. With “The Pit and the Pendulum” Poe showed how a man’s curiosity can find the dark part of life, and how close death was to him. His curiosity opened his eyes to the multiple ways of death around him. Hawthorne uses the curiosity to show how man can make mistakes with one’s own human nature. All those who drank the potion to grow young once again, found the strong call of it and discovered their dark reflections of their old selves in the mirror. Irving’s used greed instead of curiosity to show human nature. At the end of the story Irving writes, “In place of gold and silver his iron chest was filled with chips and shavings; two skeletons lay in his stable instead of his half starved horses, and the very next day his great house took fire and was burnt to the ground. Such was the end of Tom Walker and his ill gotten wealth. Let all griping mon …show more content…
In Longfellow’s, “Paul Revere’s Ride,” he romanticized the story by making Revere seem like a lone rider and everything relying on him. In contrast with that, Bryant wrote a creative poem “Thanopsis” about death. Bryant writes, “To that mysterious realm, where each shall take His chamber in the silent halls of death” by using words like ‘mysterious’ he creates a wonderment that is often found in the Romantic Period of literature. All five of these authors, although having very different works, had many similar characteristics of questioning life and creating intrigue by twisting a story to make is seem less real and more of a