Fireside Poets

I read the Fireside poem "She Came and Went" by James Russel Lowell. This poem was about how he was in love with this girl but now she is no longer there. Everything he noticed in the world reminded him of this girl that he loved. I think the girl may have died and he believed she was still found in the beauty in nature. She was living in everything he saw. Whenever he looked at tree, pond. or orchard it reminded him of his love. I think this is the definition of the Romanticism period. Writers of this period really appreciated nature. His poem said, "As a twig trembles, which a bird lights on to sing, then leaves unbent, so is my memory thrilled and stirred; - I know she came and went." (Lowell) Out of the Puritan and rationalism writing styles this writing style by far is my favorite of the two. It is the most creative type of writing and shows the most emotion. The puritan writing style was very dry and did not show hardly any emotion. I mean, you could tell if somebody was upset or happy but they did not go into detail about it. I appreciate how the romanticism period writers showed emotion. It helps you bond more with the writer and you can relate better to the story being told. It makes you feel for them and understand how they are feeling. Everyone has lost somebody important to them in their life. Maybe it was not because of death but probably you lost a close friend through a fight and that is exactly what this poem was about. People probably have felt exactly like this and he put it into words. Since the author is describing how he feels so in depth it helps me understand and feel for him. The rationalism writers did use some detail but in a different way than Lowell did. The rationalism writers just used detail to convince others to feel the same way they do. Technically, Lowell did the same thing but not intentially. He was saying how he felt which causes you to feel the same way. Rationalism writers just try to make you think the same way that they do. Such as in Patrick Henry's Speech to the Second Virginia Convention. "Three millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we posses, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us." (Henry 118.) He used facts to convince people to feel for him while Lowell just used emotion. So far I like the Romanticism period more than the rationalism period to. Lowell seems like more of a real person than Henry did just because he opened up more with the readers of his poem. But then again the rationalism writers seem like more of a real person the the puritan writers. I think through each style the writers become more creative with their writing and start adding more figures of speech.

Lowell, James Russel. "She Came and Went." 1844.

Henry, Patrick. "Speech to the Second Virginia Convention" Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 116-118. Print.