Masa Kolonial
Masa Kolonial
Masa Kolonial
Masa kolonial
influences
Romanticism was a literary, artistic, and philosophical movement that
first began in Europe in the late 18th century. American Romanticism
developed toward the end of the Romantic movement in Europe while
the nation was struggling between different ideologies and working
toward a national identity.
definition
Romanticism challenged rational and logical thinking in
favour of emotion, creativity and imagination. It placed
value on the individual over the group and celebrated
the natural world over man-made order.
There were several different groups of writers and thinkers that emerged during this
period, each exploring the experiences of individuals in different segments of
American society. Some branches of American romanticism included
transcendentalism, dark or gothic romanticism, sentimentalism, abolitionism, slave
narratives and civil war literature.
While poetry became popular during this period, the American Romantics produced
more prose. Authors celebrated rebellion and attempted to break conventions,
rejecting the traditional and constrictive rules of writing to experiment with new
forms in a more relaxed conversational style.
Sources:
“American Romanticism.” StudySmarter UK, www.studysmarter.co.uk/explanations/english-literature/american-literary-movements/american-romanticism/.
Luebering, J. E. “Periods of American Literature.” Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com/list/periods-of-american-literature.
Realism and Naturalism
(1870 to 1910)
influences
Americans were coming to terms with the harshness of frontier life as
well as the human cost of the devastating civil war which shocked the
nation and presented them with a new grim reality. What emerged
was a literature that focused on detailed, raw and unembellished
reality rather than imagined or fantastical ideas, helping Americans
cope with the realization that their lives would not always be so
optimistic.
Realism and naturalism were two separate but closely linked literary
movements that were born as reactions to the Romantic movement.
They also drew inspiration from French authors of the 19th century
who sought to document the real life they saw around them,
particularly among the urban middle and working classes.
definition
Realism was a literary movement that focused on depicting ordinary people and
everyday mundane experiences in an accurate, truthful way. The stories were written
simply about realistic situations where writers analysed human nature through a more
scientific, objective and detached perspective. Naturalism was a branch of realism which
also reflected the belief that forces larger than the individual could shape their destiny
such as nature, fate and heredity.
Sources:
Luebering, J. E. “Periods of American Literature.” Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com/list/periods-of-american-literature.
“Naturalism.” StudySmarter UK, www.studysmarter.co.uk/explanations/english-literature/american-literary-movements/naturalism.
"Realism and Naturalism in Literature." Twinkl, www.twinkl.co.id/teaching-wiki/difference-between-realism-and-naturalism-in-literature
The Modernist Period
(1910 to 1945)
influences
The transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth century came with
cataclysmic social and economic changes. Science and technology were
progressing rapidly and America entered the twentieth century as a strong
and affluent world power. The Harlem Renaissance and the Roaring Twenties
saw a period of boldness, flourishing art and extravagant, fast-paced living as
populations migrated from rural to urban areas.
Although this time period started off with prosperity, it soon became one
defined by the devastation of World War I and II and the Great Depression
which caused widespread suffering across the country.
definition
The modernist literary movement stemmed from these events, along with a rejection of
Enlightenment thinking. Although the works during this period were very different,
their common purpose was to radically break from the past in order to better represent
the modern American experience. Most were written in a pessimistic or chaotic way to
reflect the confusion and disillusionment felt by most Americans who had lost faith in
the American way of life and struggled to understand their new fragmented sense of
identity.
Sources:
Luebering, J. E. “Periods of American Literature.” Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com/list/periods-of-american-literature.
the postmodern period
(1945 -present)
influences
America emerged from the end of WWII as a confident and economically strong
world power. However, an awareness of significant human rights violations
such as the discovery of the Holocaust and the atomic bombings of Japan made
people reject the previous enlightenment-style quest for meaning and begin to
view reality as subjective. America also entered into the Cold War with the
Soviet Union in the late 1940's and this conflict influenced global politics for the
next four decades.
The 1950's and 60's also brought significant cultural shifts shaped by the Civil
Rights Movement, the Women's Rights movements and the Vietnam War.
Marginalised groups of Americans continued to develop their own voice and
identity within American literature, wrestling with the desire to change an
unjust society. By the second half of the 20th century, American literature had
become much more complex and inclusive encompassing a wide range of works
in different styles created by people from different backgrounds.
definition
Postmodern literature is a literary movement that deliberately abstains from the search for absolute
meaning and instead intensifies and celebrates fragmentation, playfulness and disorder, initiating a major
shift in literary tradition. Texts from this period take on a wide variety of forms including realist,
metafictive, absurdist, autobiographical, fragmentary, feminist and African American perspectives. There
is not a lot that holds them together beyond their engagement with contemporary society, their desire to
break away from established literary conventions to explore their own subjective reality, and the
privileging of internal feelings over external factors. Some texts portray a strong desire to correct past
injustices, while others project the less serious desire to just enjoy oneself.