This developed the genre partly by introducing satire as an effective element. At the same time, it also showed that literature could be expanded to suit any style.
Edgar Allan Poe is the third writer who contributed significantly to the development of American Romanticism. Poe added an element of horror and wrote short stories that were both disturbing and haunting. One of the interesting things about Poe is that the effectiveness of his stories did not rely only on the storyline. For example, the short story "The Fall of the House of Usher" is the narrator's account of his visit to a haunted house and his encounters with the strange brother and sister that live there. In this case, it is not the actual storyline that makes the story effective. Instead, it is the haunting atmosphere that draws the reader into the story. Poe does not have to state that the house is haunted for the reader to be engaged by the foreboding atmosphere he...
This is also seen in other short stories including "The
Black Cat" and "The Tell-Tale Heart." In all of these stories, Poe presents a
scenario that is beyond what is realistic. However, he presents it in such an effective way that it seems real to the reader. This added a new imaginative element to literature and expanded the genre. Poe's
expansion of the genre into horror was so impressive that he continues to be referred to as the father of horror.
This consideration of the three authors shows how each expanded American Romanticism by adding something new to it. Hawthorne introduced creative storylines, with serious theme underpinning them. Irving added his own unique style of satire. Finally, Poe took
imagination and
creativity to a new level by introducing horror.
