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Margaret Fuller and the Rhetoric of Transcendental Nationalism

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Margaret Fuller and the Rhetoric of Transcendental Nationalism MARGARET FULLER AND THE RHETORIC OF TRANSCENDENTAL NATIONALISM A Dissertation by DAVID N MUNSON Submitted to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Chair of Committee, Nathan Crick Committee Members, Kristan Poirot Randall Sumpter James Burk Head of Department, Kevin J. Barge August 2018 Major Subject: Communication Copyright 2018 David Nicholas Munson ABSTRACT In this project, I track the development of Margaret Fuller’s rhetoric of transcendental nationalism within the context of the Roman revolution in 1848. My central purpose is to situate the legacy of Margaret Fuller in the field of rhetorical theory and criticism, as well as to position her dispatches from Italy as the culmination of her work—not an eclipse of her previous writings, but a vital part of any understanding of the woman, the writer, the Transcendentalist, the feminist, the nationalist, the revolutionary that was Margaret Fuller. Furthermore, I argue that Fuller’s dispatches offer a model for a distinctly transcendental form of nationalism through her combined skills, such as critiquing large networks of power, her classical knowledge and familiarity with the language of myth, her growing narrative form and structure, her love of German-Romantic philosophy and literature, her literary nationalist voice, and her deeply-rooted belief in the collective power of the Italian people. Although arriving as a travel-writer abroad, Fuller was also a foreign correspondent for the New-York Tribune with the task of reporting back on any and all happenings. Europe, at the time, was in a tumultuous state, which would soon erupt in open insurrection and full-blown revolution. And Fuller was right in the middle of it. After travelling through England and France, she arrived in Italy and quickly became a convert to the Italian nationalist cause. Although her dispatches begin with descriptions of her encounters with art, nature and culture, once in Italy Fuller adopts a more aggressive rhetorical voice that quickly evolves into a sophisticated rhetoric of transcendental nationalism. This dissertation will explore how Fuller transformed her Transcendental belief in the power of individualism and the art of self-culture into a radical, ii revolutionary, nationalist rhetorical style that called a nation together based on common origin, character, spirit, and destiny in an effort to pursue a new Democratic Order. This dissertation thus traces the works of Margaret Fuller beginning with her major publications in America, continuing through her dispatches from Europe (1846-1850), and ending with a distinct rhetorical form and style, which I call the rhetoric of transcendental nationalism. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are a few people I would especially like to thank that helped me through this long and arduous process. Firstly, I would like to thank my parents, Tim Munson, Marty Munson, and Nancy Kestler. Without each of you, I am nothing. Next, I would like to thank my advisor, Dr. Nathan Crick, whose conversation, guidance, and character has proven an invaluable resource over the past several years, as well as a genuine pleasure to be around—a true model of spirit and strength. I would also like to specifically thank those people I have been fortunate enough to meet in life who have made me a better person. Jordan Kincaid, brotherhood shows thyself! A man who knows the value of being lost together—I hasten the return. Rachel Whitten, it is because of your friendship, care, generosity, perseverance, wit, and all around personality that I know what it means to “grow,” may the plant of our friendship be watered ever more. Amanda McAlpin, throughout many dark times and across many years your light has been like a beacon, shining forth. Christopher Trevino, on the tennis court we met as opponents, but as doubles partners we became brothers! Each of you I am both lucky and fortunate to have met. Lastly, I would like to thank my undergraduate and masters advisors, Dr. Andrew Hansen and Dr. Kendall Phillips. Each of you helped steer me in a direction when I felt lost or uncertain. I do not know where I would be today if not for your guidance, and I look forward to many more conversations with you. I would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Kristan Poirot, Dr. Randall Sumpter, and Dr. James Burk, for their thought, guidance and banter both inside the room and out. Thanks also go to my friends and colleagues and the department faculty and staff for making my time at Texas A&M University a great experience. iv CONTRIBUTORS & FUNDING SOURCES Contributors This work was supervised by a dissertation committee consisting of Professor Nathan Crick [advisor] and Professors Kristan Poirot and Randall Sumpter of the Department of Communication and Professor James Burk of the Department of Sociology. All work for this dissertation was completed independently by the student. Funding Sources There are no outside funding contributions to acknowledge related to the research and compilation of this document. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................................ v CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................. 1 CHAPTER II A NEW AMERICAN CULTURAL IDENTITY ................................................... 27 CHAPTER III THE RISE OF LITERARY NATIONALISM ...................................................... 48 CHAPTER IV ENGLAND: THE OUTBREAK OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION .......... 64 CHAPTER V FRANCE: THE EXPLOSION OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION ...................... 87 CHAPTER VI ITALY: THE RISE OF REVOLUTIONARY NATIONALISM ........................ 115 CHAPTER VII TALES FROM THE GREAT DRAMA ............................................................. 143 CHAPTER VIII THE PIETY OF ROME’S OLD ORDER ......................................................... 151 CHAPTER IX THE VISION OF A NEW ERA ........................................................................... 176 CHAPTER X CONCLUSION ..................................................................................................... 202 NOTES ........................................................................................................................................ 215 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................ 228 vi CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW In the summer of 1850, Margaret Fuller, a transcendentalist and foreign correspondent for the New York Tribune fled the city of Rome to survive a siege from French foreign invaders. As a correspondent, Fuller had been in Europe for the past couple of years reporting on its culture, politics, art, literature, and social conditions across three of its major nations—England, France, and Italy. In the year 1848, however, she found herself unexpectedly in the middle of a burgeoning revolutionary situation. One by one, city-states across the Italian peninsula were erupting in insurrection, revolt, and, in the case of Sicily, even full-blown revolution. While in Rome, Fuller sketched out descriptions of the rapid flow of events happening all around. But her writing would soon be interrupted by French troops storming the gates of Rome. Although many of Fuller’s American friends urged her return, she was determined to finish her book about the history of the Roman revolution. “If I cannot make any thing out of my present materials,” she wrote to her friends, “my future is dark indeed.”1 And by the time she finally departed, Fuller indeed did make something of her writing. Her manuscript, “History of the Late Revolutionary Movements in Italy,” would be her greatest production yet. More importantly, it would serve as proof that she finally overcame her greatest perceived limitation—being only a mother to genius and not genius herself. But then tragedy struck. In Fuller’s haste to flee she hadn’t the time or resources to scrape together enough money to afford a newer, more reliable steamship back to America. So she settled on a sailing ship, the Elizabeth, whose captain had inauspiciously died of smallpox just before the trip. So, with a captain-less ship run by an inexperienced first-mate, Fuller’s ill-fated 1 voyage began. In crossing the Atlantic, a hurricane appeared, which caused the first-mate to miscalculate the ship’s position, driving it onto a bar just off the coast of Fire Island, New York. After hours of being battered by the high seas, the Elizabeth finally broke in two. Fuller watched as several passengers were swept out to sea, among them her recently married husband, Giovanni Angelo Ossoli, and their not quite two-year-old boy, Angelo Eugene Philip Ossoli. Somehow, Fuller had managed to grab hold of a nearby mast, but as her family was gone, and all her belongings along with the manuscript of the Italian revolution with them, she had little will to survive.2 According to one of the cook’s, Fuller, dressed in her white nightdress, looked out upon the sea and said, “I see nothing but death before me—I shall never reach the shore.”3 At that moment,
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