Romanticism Vs Transcendentalism

Humans have found several methods of expressing their feelings. Whether it be through brushstrokes, melodies or mere phrases, emotions can easily be represented in a physical form. Back then, however, people were still limited in how they expressed their beliefs due to society’s opposing views. In only recent decades, people have been able to truly show the world how they feel in an uncensored capacity without fearing the inevitable backlash. An example of this is seen in literature; today, all sorts of novels with controversial plots are written. This level of freedom of expression did not occur overnight, of course. In the span of American history, several movements occurred. While they varied in category, from rights to art, they all had

It is hard to accurately describe Transcendentalism, as “many authors and philosophers affiliated with the movement did not agree on how to define transcendentalism, this very division reflected the individual nature of the movement and proponents' shared belief that people were responsible for their own choices” (Transcendentalism). Though both Romanticism and Transcendentalism share important traits like individualism, religion played a larger role in Transcendentalism. Nonetheless, the movement still made an impact on the literature of the American Renaissance. It “showed that Americans could be the literary and intellectual equals of their peers in Great Britain and Europe, capable of developing an original philosophy”

He is renowned for lengthy and resplendent poem, Leaves of Grass. This new addition to the expanding collection of poetry could not be overlooked, as it was written in a new format named free verse. Unlike other poems, it was written without the usage of rhymes. Additionally, the topic of the poem was about the working class, both of his and other people’s experiences. It magnifies the beauty of nature and people, but also acknowledges pain and melancholy in life. It was an autobiography of sorts, a written account of “Whitman openly [expressing] his feelings, raising the eyebrows of people who thought only women should discuss such emotions” (Walt Whitman). This shows that Romanticism embraced emotions, disregarding the gender of who embraced