Writing in the Romantic Period

The time period of 1800-1840 was an eventful one in American history. The country was forging ahead after gaining its independence in the Revolutionary War. Americans were gaining new grounds in politics, economics, and literature as they sought to form their own unique culture. The transition from Classicism to Romanticism was evidence of this, as writers shied away from the rigid, unfeeling themes of Classicism. Though the use of the Romantic ideals of a faith in nature, the past, and the inner world of human psychology, a new national literature was developed.
Cooper and Bryant are two authors who used a faith in nature to portray Romanticism in their writings. For example, James Fenimore Cooper thought of nature as a cathedral, which is evident from the following passage. “The arches of the woods, even at high noon, cast their shadows on the spot… this temple of nature producing some effect…” (Cooper 141). This is proof of how Romanticism viewed nature as an im...