American Lit Periods

A subcategory of the romantic movement that was considered more positive, and had strong religious and moral codes.

Began a shift from the democratic focus on the “we” to a focus on individualism, nature, escapism, common heroism...

Primarily relied on oral traditions passed down through chants, songs, and stories - often revealing creative myths

emphasized the influence of heredity and environment on human behavior, portraying characters as victims of environment

sought to capture the unique qualities and local color of specific regions, often featuring dialects and customs

start of American literature - began with colonization, had strict moral codes, and said pleasure was wrong

This literary period came after WWI  due to fractured reality, introspection, experimentation, rejection of tradition

extreme form of dark romantics that entered into psychosis, mental instability, terror, extreme horror, gore, mystery...

subcategory of the romantic movement - explored people’s dark and troubled side; focused on inherent evil - pessimistic

believed that science/logic should govern you more than emotion and that God granted natural rights to people

emphasized the presentation of ordinary, everyday life in literature, exposing the raw, unfiltered truth