American Poetry: The Nineteenth Century, Vol. 1: Freneau to Whitman

by John Hollander (Editor), Philip Freneau (Contributor), Joel Barlow (Contributor)

In nineteenth-century America, poetry was part of everyday life, as familiar as a hymn, a love song, a patriotic exhortation. The two volumes of The Library of America’s American Poetry: The Nineteenth Century reveal the vigor and diversity of a tradition embracing solitary visionaries and congenial storytellers, humorists and dissidents, songwriters and philosophers. These extraordinary anthologies reassess America’s poetic legacy with a comprehensive sweep that no previous anthology has attempted.

Extending chronologically from the classic couplets of Philip Freneau to the pioneering free verse of Walt Whitman, this first volume charts the formation of a distinctly American poetry. Here, in generous selections, are the major figures: Poe, Emerson, Bryant, Longfellow, Whittier—as well as such unexpected contributors as the landscape painter Thomas Cole, the actress Fanny Kemble, and the presidents John Quincy Adams and Abraham Lincoln.

This collection offers the unique opportunity to appreciate anew such classics as Whittier’s “Snow-Bound,” Bryant’s “Forest Hymn,” and Emerson’s “Hamatreya,” while discovering a world of less familiar pleasures: the mystical sonnets of Jones Very, the Romantic fantasias of Maria Gowen Brooks, the whimsical meditations of Transcendentalist Christopher Pearse Cranch, the stirring political poems of Joel Barlow and John Pierpont, and the somber and undervalued late lyrics of Longfellow.

The range of the poems’ subject matter is equally extraordinary and suggests the wide-ranging interests and passions of a national culture in the making: the War of 1812 and Napolean’s retreat from Moscow, the horrors of slavery and the struggle for Greek independence, historical figures from Dante to Rubens to Daniel Webster and Red Jacket, Byzantine history and New England folklore, the landscapes of Italy and India, Florida, and Niagara Falls.

Woven among the poetry of the early nineteenth century is a wealth of popular ballads, recitations, and songs both secular and religious: “Home, Sweet Home,” “The Old Oaken Bucket,” “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” “It Came Upon the Midnight Clear,” “Battle Hymn of the Republic.” From Lydia Maria Child’s Thanksgiving poem (“Over the river and through the wood”) to George Pope Morris’s “The Oak” (“Woodman, spare that tree!”), these pages ring with the phrases that have become part of the national memory.

Unprecedented in its textual authority, the anthology includes newly researched biographical sketches of each poet, a year-by-year chronology of poets and poetry from 1800 to 1900, and extensive notes.

Genres: Poetry, Anthologies, Classics, 19th Century, Literature, American

1099 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1993

Reviews

[Wyatt Reu · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are certainly a number of inspired poems in this broad sweep of 19th century American poetry besides the obvious star, Whitman (and of course Dickinson but she is in the second volume). Emerson’s poems stand out despite the routine denigration they receive by critics; although his form verged on archaic while he was writing, the force of his originality and vital thought bursts from every mannered seam.

William Cullen Bryant likewise proves himself a master poet, if not unfortunately of the European style, with poems like Thanatopsis and The Night Journey of the River which are technically flawless poems. One could even lend him credit as an early naturalist — for his scenes of the New England forests are far more alive than the stale tropes of nature with which late European Romanticism was preoccupied. But still, his poems lack the transcendental impulse and cogency that American poetry gains with Emerson.

A few poets reveal themselves to be utterly boring and dated, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow chief among them. I was disappointed to read Edgar Allen Poe’s poems which were far less captivating than their storied counterparts. I was similarly disappointed with Thoreau who becomes, the more I read him, ever increasingly, to be the lesser part (both as Person and Writer) of the transcendental Concord duo he forms with Emerson.

I was intrigued to see poems written by two U.S. Presidents: John Adams and Abraham Lincoln. They were okay — good enough poems — but imagine any president of the last 40 years writing a poem! Even Obama wouldn’t! Adam’s was clever where Lincoln’s was sincere — both fitting.

I was looking forward to reading the ‘mystical’ sonnets of Jones Very but found them to be dull and very anxiously Christian. Much talk about the ‘New Man’ but unfortunately little of what He perceives .

Was pleasantly surprised with beautiful, inspired poems by authors I did not know before such as Sarah Helen Whitman, Richard Henry Dana, Washington Allston, and Charles Timothy Brooks. A single poignant poem by John Greenleaf Whittier called Burning Driftwood — a moving meditation on mortality by a dwindling fire on an abandoned beach. Brooks writes spectacularly about the sea; Allston with great credibility and sensitivity about the seasons; Dana with great compassion and feeling towards the fragile world; Sarah Helen Whitman (unrelated to Walt) with an ingenious attention to the Native American world that survives in the names of places in this country.

All of these poems are SOMETHING, and certainly constitute a rich and varied heritage in themselves, but it is needless to exaggerate how completely Whitman blows them all away. The top is blown off, a poetic eruption occurs, the world is poetry in a way it has never been before. I’ll echo what another reviewer says here which is: to know just how special and revolutionary both Whitman and Dickinson are (if it sadly this is not evident simply by reading them), just read their many, many contemporaries.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

For someone interested in the triple-titled poets of the American 19th century (god bless you!), this is all you need. Longfellow may warrant a deeper dive (the Library of America set is very good and includes a sampling of all his major works other than his translation of the Divine Comedy) but you’ll find about everything in this beautiful and comprehensive set.

Bryant, Whitter, Emerson, Poe, Holmes, Thoreau, and Longfellow had their moments, but (in my opinion) not enough to warrant reading their complete works or even a long selection of their poem. (I speak of this from personal experience.) They do have treasures and this Library of America anthology gathers them all.

Although they lacked the inventiveness and vision to create something truly original (and truly American), these poets were people of the world, and they deserve credit for that. They were not shrinking violets throwing verse over the wall from the safety of their tenure protected job. They were not speaking in a private code to a small coterie of fellow poetry aficionados. They were standing on a public podium speaking to all Americans, and they were actively involved in the political, social and artistic life of the nation.

So, you get a great selection of the trice-tagged metrists, plus a good selection of the bi-nominal Walt Whitman (including all of the original 1855 Leaves of Grass) and other lesser known poets.

My only gripe is that I wish the set included fewer poems and more notes. This is particularly needed because many of these poets were actively involved in politics and the issues of their days. Just adding years to the poems would have been helpful. For a set that could otherwise be called definitive, this is disappointing.

Added note: Most of the triplicate titled poets thought that making poetry American meant replacing the names of European birds and trees and rivers and mountains with American versions. Oddly, they didn't understand the true uniqueness of the country was it's democracy, diversity and scope.

Here are my thoughts on some of the poets as I read them:


William Cullen Bryant – Bryant, for all intents and purposes, created American poetry. Of all the 19th century, tri-monikered American poets, Bryant is the most talented technically – perhaps the equal of Longfellow. His prosody is deft, and his ear is very good. His rhythms are generally interesting (at least in these selections), expertly showing variation and color. His contemporaries, by contrast, are invariably stuck in the sing-song rhythms of rhymed tetrameter couplets.

Alas, though, how many poems can a person write about seeking solace in nature? Bryant doesn’t have much interesting to say beyond clichéd descriptions of nature. Though technically good, he’s not good enough that the form and beauty of his work alone can carry the reader. The man lived in New York City most of his life, it’s too bad he didn’t focus his poetry on the world immediately around him.

Thanatopsis is by far his best poem – and among the great poems in my esteem. (It has an interesting secular feel in a very Christian time.)

Ralph Waldo Emerson – Emerson’s poetic form is surprisingly fresh. He most often uses a variable foot line with rhymed couplets. It creates an interesting tension, but insistent rhymes cause a sing-song feel since the lines are rather short.

In terms of topic, there are many poems about the beauty and truth of nature. Emerson also features classical and Biblical themes. However, though Emerson’s unique rhythms come closer to feeling American, his poems are rather traditionally pastoral/Romantic. His idea of Americanizing poetry is referencing U.S. bird/plant species and rivers.

Problems usually start for Emerson, and the other triple-labelled lyricist, when a river, mountain, creek, heart, tree, or woods starts talking to provide some moral about the unknowable wonders of nature. Emerson’s Threnody starts very well, but when the heart speaks it becomes much weaker. (There are actually very few examples of people speaking in 19th century American poetry.)

Honestly, few of Emerson’s poems stand out for me. Brahma and the first half of Threnody are probably my favorites. Some of the others are moderately interesting, but not enough for me to recommend them.


John Greenleaf Whittier – Whittier, like his close contemporary Longfellow, has not been treated kindly by the passing of time. And in some respect deservedly so. His unending succession of rhymed tetrameters can become cloying. At best, his writing has a ballad feel, but at worse it tries too hard for literary achievement.

The best poems, by far, are Telling the Bees and Snowbound. Telling the Bees tells a rather typical ballad story of a lover’s death, but it is told in an amazing meter and with a deft use of rhyme. Unlike his other poems which can become monotonous, this has a liveliness and unusual rhythm that energizes the poem. It also includes some beautiful images. Snowbound is a well-known poem that was wildly popular during his life, and deservedly so.

Whittier, like Bryant, was actively involved in the issues of his day. He was a famous abolitionist and newspaper publisher (barely surviving a few angry mobs) and he ran for office many times and played an important role in the creation of the Republican party. A man or woman of his time with something important to say could turn to poetry to get his/her message out to a broad audience. The world is different today.

(You can see my other thoughts about Whittier in my review of his Selected Poems here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...)

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow -- You can see my thoughts on Longfellow here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Walt Whitman -- You can see my thoughts on Whitman here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Jim Leckband · Rating 4 out of 5]

You want to know just how good Whitman and Dickinson are? Read their contemporaries. When you come across them after reading pages of somewhat mannered and not really inspired verse it is like looking into the sun.

But of course it is unfair to compare Whitman and Dickinson's fellow poets to them when those two rank with the best that mankind has produced. These poets and poems are very enjoyable - I thought I might get 200 pages of New England puritan blather - but I was pleasantly surprised. The editing in these volumes is superb - I rarely got the sensation when reading a poet that they included far too many of their poems. Not only are attributed poems included, but anonymously written poems and folk songs as well. But my favorite was reading the American Indian selections - they can't really be termed poems because they are much more than that.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A childhood favorite ❤

“Alone”

By Edgar Allan Poe

From childhood’s hour I have not been 
As others were—I have not seen 
As others saw—I could not bring 
My passions from a common spring— 
From the same source I have not taken 
My sorrow—I could not awaken 
My heart to joy at the same tone— 
And all I lov’d—I lov’d alone— 
Then—in my childhood—in the dawn 
Of a most stormy life—was drawn 
From ev’ry depth of good and ill 
The mystery which binds me still— 
From the torrent, or the fountain— 
From the red cliff of the mountain— 
From the sun that ’round me roll’d 
In its autumn tint of gold— 
From the lightning in the sky 
As it pass’d me flying by— 
From the thunder, and the storm— 
And the cloud that took the form 
(When the rest of Heaven was blue) 
Of a demon in my view—"

[Richard Subber · Rating 3 out of 5]

What can I say?
In general, the poetry of bygone centuries is uninteresting to me.
The poets were convinced that structure was overwhelmingly important, or, perhaps, their readers were convinced that structure was overwhelmingly important, or, perhaps, both.
The word “relentless” comes to my mind. It’s difficult for me to read much of this work—silently or aloud—without bobbing my head, saying the emphasized syllables with increasing vigor and noise, and moving my body to match the all-too-obvious, often drum beat rhythms.
It seems to me that the conjunction of selected words is of secondary or tertiary concern, whereas I believe it should be the overriding expression of the poetic arts.
The millions in the past disagreed. So be it.
Read more of my book reviews and poems here:
www.richardsubber.com

[zb · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great and varied collection of some of the best 19th Century American poetry. Highlights of this vol. were (unsurprisingly) Emerson, Thoreau and Whitman: some of Poe’s shorter ones too. The poems of John Quincy Adams were a pleasant surprise too!

[Reda · Rating 3 out of 5]

So many poems is all I have to say. Very interesting

[Prisoner 071053]

Good Lord do I hate Walt Whitman. The other reviewer of this volume has been brainwashed. He believes Whitman is any good (let alone the best thing in the volume) because he's been told to believe it. Whitman is trash. Whitman didn't write poetry. Whitman is the worst thing to ever happen to American poetry. Imagine worshipping Whitman and denigrating Longfellow -- Longfellow!