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Truth And Moral Values In Thanatopsis, The Devil And Tom Walker

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American Romanticism lasted from the 1830s to 1865 and was a literary, artistic, and philosophical movement that was inspired by the European Romantic movement. This time period was very fragile in America because of the uncertainty of building a new nation, where people thought they fit in that nation, and the Civil War that broke out in 1861. To help out the disorganized nation, American romantics used poems, short stories, and novels to provide a new way of thinking that showed a faith in nature as a revelation of truth and moral values and a tendency to value individualism over all social forms or systems. Works like The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, “Much Madness Is Divine Sense” by Emily Dickinson, “Thanatopsis” by William Cullen Bryant, “The Devil and Tom Walker” by …show more content…

In the stories “Thanatopsis” by William Cullen Bryant, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and “The Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving, nature is used as a means to communicate truth and moral values. “Thanatopsis” by William Cullen Bryant deals with making death more bearable for people with the simple remedy of “Go[ing] forth, under the open sky and list[ening] to Nature’s teachings” (Bryant 153). Everyone has different ideas of what happens after you die, but no one knows for sure. This idea is very scary to think about, but instead of “shudder[ing] and grow[ing] sick at heart” (Bryant 153), you should embrace nature. Because everybody has to die eventually and go somewhere “thou [will] go to mix forever with the elements [...] with patriarchs [...] with kings [...] the wise, [and] the good” (Bryant 153). Everyone will be together, resting on the earth when they die, which helps comfort people in knowing they won’t be alone. Finally, because death causes so much anxiety and nature solves that problem “[Just] live, that when thy summons comes [...] [that person] lies down

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304 Words | 2 Pages

The Devil and Tom Walker Outside Atlanta, Georgia in 2015, Tom Walker and his wife lives near the projects. One day, Tom takes a shortcut through the projects to go get some cigarettes from the liquor store for himself. When passing by the drug dealing house, Tom meets a mysterious stranger, who carries a gun in the back of his pants, and goes by the name Devil. Tom trips over Devil’s foot and says to Tom, “You need to watch where you’re going!

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“Romanticism is seen as a response to the Enlightenment.” (4) It makes sense that the literature was the way that it was during this time period. Americans were essentially looking for someone to liberate them from British rule so they could finally experience freedom. It was all about the “heroism” and superiority of the American man. Lewis and

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Have you ever called something, one thing while your friend calls it another? Have you ever heard of the Devil being called Hell-Boy or Satan? In both of these stories the Devil is called Scratch. The supporting characters in “The Devil and Tom Walker”,written by Washington Irving, differ from the supporting characters in “The Devil and Daniel Webster”, written by Stephen Vincent Benet. First, let’s talk about the supporting characters.

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American Romanticism were mostly written during the 1800’s. The use of American Romanticism was to get readers to read. The authors would exaggerate stories to get them attached and start reading them. American Romanticism were stories that were mostly gothic or dark stories. The death of a protagonist is usually over exaggerated.

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In the gothic story titled “The Devil and Tom Walker”,the author Washington Irving has a robust religious theme about the nature of greed. Irving supports his claims by giving us a character named Tom walker who is greedy and religious. This displays Irving's aversion or those bigots who use religion as a means of concealing to be a good person, but then continue to do their sinful practices. Tom believes that by carrying around a Bible,and attending Church, and praying, he can cheat his fate. The authors purpose is to show that people are not true Christian that does sinful acts and he or she knows it's wrong.the

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Majority of humans cannot escape the inevitable feeling of guilt after being responsible for causing something terrible. It is often too late for a person to fix their mistakes, leaving an everlasting effect on society. An individual 's morals create regret often called a guilty conscience. In the The Devil and Tom Walker, Tom sees the damage he has caused to the people in his community and attempts to fix his sins, "he began to feel anxious about those of the next and became a violent churchgoer" (Irving 330). By doing this Irving shows that Tom realizing his mistakes and is attempting to clear his conscience.

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The Allegory of The Devil and Tom Walker In the story, “The Devil and Tom Walker”, the author, Washington Irving, uses symbolic devices, and farfetched stories in order to convey to the audience a hidden meaning. Irving claims the story was just a, “legend”, but from further examination in the text the audience can conclude that this story is an allegory. The main character, Tom Walker is portrayed as an epitome for greed, and is shown how this theme can corrupt someone's life. Throughout the story there are many symbolic clues Irving includes to hint to this story being an allegory.

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Nature was introduced in romantic novels and poems. In the poem ‘’Thanatopisis’’ by William Cullen Bryant he described death to something that was peaceful and to be embraced. He believed that you become one with nature, one with earth once you die. But in the poem ‘’Devil and Tom Walker’’ by Washington Irving he described death to be evil, sinful. He believed death to horrifying and something to not be embraced.

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223 Words | 1 Pages

“The Devil and Tom Walker” is a short story by, Washington Irving that exhibits two romantic characteristics. The story is in Boston, Massachusetts, about a man named Tom Walker who meets the Devil on his way home. The Devil proposes a deal with Tom, but he refuses. Tom later returns home and tells his miserly wife about it, and she tries to make a deal with the Devil herself but ends up dying. Tom ultimately agrees to make a deal with the Devil, becoming a usurer for the Devil's money, which makes him absurdly wealthy.

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Would you give yourself up to the devil to achieve wealth, fame, and power? In "The Devil and Tom Walker" a short story by Washington Irving, first published in 1824. The story tells of a man named Tom Walker. One day, Tom meets the devil, who appears to him in the form of an old dark man and offers him great wealth in exchange for his soul. Tom initially resists the devil's offer, but eventually agrees, and becomes a wealthy and powerful man.

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The American Renaissance began in the United States during the late 1820’s; this movement broadened Americans’ literary and artistic horizons. The Transportation Revolution was one of the main causes of the American Renaissance; it increased the consumer demand for books, and by 1850 nearly seventy-five percent of books in the United States were written by American authors. During this time the Romantic era was taking place in Europe; this also contributed to the rise of the American Renaissance. Americans began to try and convey their nationalism through writing and art, as well as capture the uniqueness of the United States (Stewart 11). There were many significant authors that published works during the antebellum period.

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Romantic Period in American Literature The romantic period in American literature is all about people - our feelings, our senses, our relationships, how we view the world. This era is characterized mainly by works detailing human emotions, both positive and negative. Americans moved away from having God as the main subject of their writing, and created a new genre centered around the complexity of humanity and individuals. A lot of the work during this time period focused on showing positive human emotions, such as valor and kindness.

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The American Romantic Movement started in the late 1800's. It was one of the most important time in the history of American Literature. American Romantic have strong subjective views rather than objective. Washington Owen's “The sketch book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent” signs the beginning of American Romantics. As the development of American Romantics went deep, it branched into two main factions, known as Transcendentalists and the Dark Romantics.

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American Romanticism American Romanticism is a concept that developed in the 17th century. Romanticism is all about emotions, the meaning of life, religion, society, the human form, death, and nature. Romanticism is very diverse and complex because each writer interprets the themes differently and each person who reads the poem can see something different and unique. Two famous and influential romantic poets were Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman. Although Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman were both romantic poets they interpreted society and death in two completely different ways.

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Throughout this time period American literature shifts from American foundation into American development. Following the Revolutionary War, America saw a huge population increase; migration westward; and many technological advances. These events thus initiate the Romantic Era. Within this era society held the values of individual importance; close association with nature; and humanism. In the romanticism poem The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls the reader can obtain a glimpse of these nature focused beliefs.

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