The Dark Romantics

Gothic stories

A Challenge to the Transcendentalists• The Dark Romantics were the

anti-transcendentalists• Used symbolism to a great effect • Their worldly view was more pessimistic than

the romantics & transcendentalists. • Examples

– Nathaniel Hawthorne• Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment

– Edgar Allan Poe• The Raven• The Masque of the Red Death

Similarities

• Both groups valued intuition over logic and reason

• Both groups saw signs and symbols in human events

• Both groups agreed that spiritual facts lie behind appearances of nature (everything happened for a reason)

Differences• Dark Romantics disagreed that everything

in nature was essentially good and harmless—they saw evil

• Dark Romantics explored BOTH the good and the bad (the effect of Original Sin, guilt, madness, evil…)

• Believed humans were vulnerable to sin and self-destruction.

• Shows individuals failing in their attempts to make changes for the better

Gothic

• A dark “romantic,” scary/spooky novel

• Explored the dark and supernatural

• Filled with images of the mysterious– Dark castles– Dank dungeons– Secret passageways– Spirits and obsession

Brainstorm with a neighbor…• Think of some scary/thriller movies

that you have seen…what characteristics of dark romanticism do they contain?

• Think of 3 examples to share with the class (5 pts for activity).

The Raven

• You have 15 minutes to read and analyze Poe’s The Raven

• Pages 282-286 in American Literature book

The Raven

• Lyrical poem with a plot that leads the reader from curiosity to horror

• Explores human nature to “project” your feelings of loneliness and despair onto whatever you can imagine (in this case, a raven)

Summary

• Studying at midnight, a weary student mourns his dead love Lenore. He hears a tapping at his door and flings it open, but sees nothing. Opening the window, he is greeted by a talking raven. The bird amuses the student at first, but his repetition of “nevermore” in answer to questions about meeting Lenore after death drive the speaker to madness. As the poem closes, the bird still sits above the door, a symbol of the man’s mental and emotional distress.

Analyzing the Meaning

• How does the speaker feel about Lenore, his lost love?– He loves her, but is trying to forget her

• What does he mean that Lenore is “nameless here for evermore?”’– She is nameless here, on earth, because she has died.

The word “evermore” refers to the eternal nature of death.

• Why would he think that it is Lenore tapping at the door?– Shows his longing to be reunited with Lenore. When he

can’t see a visitor, he imagines it to be the person he was last thinking about (Lenore.)

Analyze the meaning

• Why would he see a Raven? What could it symbolize?– In Greek myth, the Raven symbolizes wisdom and

prophecy. It suggests the raven has come from beyond to offer meaning.

• What explanation does the speaker offer for why the Raven replies “nevermore” to every question?– At first he thinks it’s the bird’s name. Then he thinks

someone taught him only one word.

• In lines 70-72, what devices does the speaker use to reveal his state of mind?– Repetition (Fancy unto fancy,) alliteration (grim, ungainly,

ghastly, gaunt…)

Analyze the Meaning

• How does the speaker’s attitude about the bird change after line 85?– The speaker becomes irritated with the bird when he won’t

answer his questions about life beyond the grave.

• What is the meaning behind the repetition of “nevermore?” – We can surmise that the bird is telling the speaker that he

will see his lost love “never again.”

• What can we infer from the end of the poem about the speaker? – That the speaker has gone made with despair