PART –-----–– The Dark Side of Romanticism The Fog Warning, 1885. Winslow Homer. Oil on canvas. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. “All that we see or seem Is but a dream within a dream.” —Edgar Allan Poe 225 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 0225 U2P2-845481.indd 225 4/6/06 3:15:41 PM LITERARY HISTORY The First American Short Stories S THE AMERICAN NOVELIST and critic Henry James observed, A “It takes a great deal of history to produce a little literature.” At the beginning of the 1800s, the United States was still a very young country. American writers of the time were painfully conscious of the lack of a native literary tradition. This was particularly true in the area of fiction. Dominated by Puritanism, early American culture had no place for made-up stories created largely for entertainment. This attitude toward fiction lingered for a long time. It was not until the period of American Romanticism that Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Edgar Allan Poe laid the foundations of the American short story. In the process, they created literary The Headless Horseman Pursuing Ichabod Crane, 1858. John Quidor. forms and ideas about how to write short Oil on canvas. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC. stories that remain important today. Detective Stories and “It has been a matter of marvel, to Science Fiction my European readers, that a man Tales of robbery and murder had always existed. Poe’s brilliant innovation was to combine such stories with from the wilds of America should the use of reason in the investigation of crime. This express himself in tolerable English.” new investigative approach had not existed until the appearance of the first professional police forces in —Washington Irving the early 1800s. In “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” Poe established many of the basic conventions that mystery writers have followed ever since: Literary Pioneers • the brilliant, eccentric detective Irving, the first American writer to become famous • his less-gifted partner, who is an admiring foil outside his own country, transplanted traditional • the blundering offi cial police force European narratives and gave them American settings. For example, he based his story “Rip Van • the “impossible crime” taking place in a Winkle” on old legends about people captured by locked room fairies. Hawthorne used both European material and Poe also has a claim to be the “father of science the histories and legends of Puritan New England as fiction.” In some of his stories, such as “A Descent the basis for his fiction. Poe helped develop the new into the Maelstrom,” he created Romantic tales American literary magazines (to which he contributed of terror with an emphasis on factual detail that as both writer and editor) into mass-circulation anticipated later science fiction. Poe so convincingy marketplaces for short stories. More importantly, he presented a hoax about a transatlantic balloon flight was a true innovator who pioneered new literary in one of his short stories that it was widely believed forms—detective stories and science fiction. to have actually taken place. 226 UNIT 2 AMERICAN ROMANTICISM Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC/Art Resource, NY 0226-0227 U2P2LH-845481.indd 226 4/6/06 3:19:01 PM Theory and Practice Short Story Elements Poe believed that the most effective short stories The short story generally includes these elements. are those that can be read in a single sitting. He theorized that every detail in a well-constructed Setting: the time and place in which the events story should contribute to the creation of a certain occur unique and single effect. By effect, Poe meant the Characters: the participants in the story. The overall impact that the story makes upon the reader. main character is the protagonist. There may Some favorite effects that Poe tried to achieve in his be an antagonist, a character in conflict with stories were feelings of dread, horror, and suspense. the protagonist. Poe’s theory of a unique single effect remains a fundamental principle of short-story writing today. Point of view: the perspective of the storyteller, Although Hawthorne’s stories were finely crafted, or narrator he showed little interest in constructing literary Theme: the central message of the story that theories. Hawthorne chose to focus on moral and readers can apply to life. A theme may be stated psychological themes, such as the struggle between clearly or implied. good and evil and the isolation of people from their fellow human beings. Unlike his friend Emerson, Plot: the sequence of related events in a story. Hawthorne saw life as essentially tragic. His Most plots deal with a problem and develop pessimistic view of human nature gave his stories a around a conflict, a struggle between opposing dark, shadowy quality that Poe criticized as “a forces. somewhat too general or prevalent tone—a tone of melancholy and mysticism.” Hawthorne’s mystical outlook led him to rely heavily on symbolism and allegory to convey his meaning, often at the expense of a realistic rendering of everyday life. His distinguishing feature is his probing exploration of the role of guilt in the inner lives of human beings—an obsession that he inherited from his Puritan ancestors. Poster for Universal film Murders in the Rue Literary History For more about Morgue, unknown artist, the first American short stories, go to www.glencoe.com. 1932. Everett Collection. RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY 1. What was the attitude of readers in early American 3. What were Poe’s important innovations in literary culture toward fiction? Why do you think early form? Explain how these innovations can be seen in American readers had this attitude? literature today. 2. What materials did Irving use as the basis of his 4. Compare and contrast Poe’s and Hawthorne’s attitudes fiction? How did he use these materials? toward literary theory and practice. Name one literary achievement that each author is famous for today. OBJECTIVES • Analyze historical context. • Compare and contrast literary techniques. LITERARY HISTORY 227 Everett Collection 0226-0227 U2P2LH-845481.indd 227 1/15/07 2:50:39 PM BEFORE YOU READ The Devil and Tom Walker MEET WASHINGTON IRVING amed after his country’s first president, Washington Irving won the battle for NAmerica’s literary independence. He was the first American storyteller to be internation- ally recognized as a man of letters. The English novelist William Makepeace Thackeray summed up this accomplishment when he called Irving “the first Ambassador from the New World of Letters to the Old.” During his time away from writing, Irving held a variety of jobs. He traveled often, eventually moving Lawyer and Writer The youngest of eleven chil- dren, Irving was born in New York City to a to Europe to manage his brother’s business interests. wealthy family with strict moral values. Though In 1818, after the family business went bankrupt, Irving had little formal education, he took an early Irving resumed writing. interest in the study of law, later working in the The Sketch Book of law office of Josiah Ogden Hoffman. He soon fell International Acclaim Geoffrey Crayon, Gent (1819–1820) established in love with Hoffman’s daughter Matilda, and the his literary reputation in Europe. The book included couple were engaged. two stories that were to become classics, “The But his interest in law began to dwindle, and in 1802 Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and “Rip Van Winkle.” he started to write, publishing a series of satirical Irving borrowed the plots of these stories from two essays in a New York newspaper. He soon began to traditional German folktales before placing them in publish a series of periodical essays called Salmagundi. the Hudson Valley setting. Irving’s ability to blend The essays were witty sketches that poked fun at European sophistication with American flavor is the everything from Thomas Jefferson’s politics to the most distinctive characteristic of his writing. latest fashions. The success of Salmagundi steered After several years in London, Paris, and Madrid, Irving away from law and toward writing. Irving returned to the United States. There, he continued writing—travel books, histories, biogra- Success and Heartbreak In 1809, under the phies of Columbus and Washington, and more pseudonym Diedrich Knickerbocker, he published tales and sketches. his most popular work, Knickerbocker’s A History of New York from the Beginning of the World to the Irving’s enormous popularity at home and abroad End of the Dutch Dynasty. A History was a humor- earned him recognition as the father of American let- ous, tongue-in-cheek combination of history, folk- ters. His stories featured distinctively American set- lore, and opinion that delighted readers with tings and character types. He influenced a broad hilarious sketches of the customs, manners, and range of authors—from Romantics, such as Nathaniel families of old New York. That same year, how- Hawthorne and Edgar Allan Poe, to regionalist writ- ever, Irving’s fiancée, Matilda Hoffman, died sud- ers, such as Mark Twain and William Faulkner. denly of tuberculosis. Overwhelmed by grief, Irving Washington Irving was born in 1783 and died in 1859. put his writing career on hold. He later reflected that he considered this period the darkest of his life. Haunted perpetually by the memory of his lost Author Search For more about fiancée, Irving was never to marry. Washington Irving, go to www.glencoe.com. 228 UNIT 2 AMERICAN ROMANTICISM Bettmann/CORBIS 0228-0241 U2P2 APP-845481.indd 228 4/6/06 4:23:26 PM LITERATURE PREVIEW READING PREVIEW Connecting to the Story Reading Strategy Making and Verifying In Irving’s short story, the main character makes a fate- Predictions ful decision he later regrets.