British, American, and Harlem Renaissance in Literature

Defining the Renaissance

The word renaissance denotes a complete transformation in the modes of art, literature, music, and architecture, as well as an altered sense of morality and ethics during a given period of time. This change stems from an expansion of thought and, with it, a new sense of what matters in the world. In literature, the term refers to the adoption and adaptation of new rules regarding form, function, and subject matter, arising from a former period of relative disenchantment. The British Renaissance, American Renaissance, and Harlem Renaissance were all direct results of a lack of representation or aesthetic satisfaction, wherein the rules of art changed to accommodate and celebrate the works of authors responding to their own historical moment.

The British Renaissance and the Sonnet Form

During the British Renaissance, there was a complete alteration in how artists — regardless of medium — chose to represent themselves and their world. One such new form was the sonnet, in which the writer was given certain parameters within which to compose a poem. The subject matter was almost always love, and the poet's endeavor was to convince the reader that they were suffering deeply from the pangs of that emotion. Either the sonnet was directed at some metaphysical Beloved without a true physical presence, or the topic addressed love in a more general, philosophical sense.

Shakespeare's sonnets are an ideal example of this distinction. In "Sonnet 116," the narrator defines the parameters of love and argues that a true lover must accept the Beloved as they are — faults included — and remain steadfastly devoted even as the loved one ages. "Love is not love / Which alters when it alteration finds" (lines 2–3). "Sonnet 73" makes a similar case: life is fleeting, and as one transitions from able-bodied youth into a more dependent old age, true love will not abandon the Beloved.

The American Renaissance and Emily Dickinson

The American Renaissance grew from a similar determination to alter the accepted parameters of what literature and art should be. Poet Emily Dickinson created her works purely for personal gratification and to share with family and friends; they were never intended for publication. This freed her from any compunction to soften or alter her ideas and emotions in order to sell a product, which in turn allowed for a greater sense of intimacy in her writing.

In her poem "303," Dickinson writes about the dangers of individuality and the necessity of fighting for one's sense of self. She writes, "The soul selects her own Society — / Then — shuts the Door — / To her divine Majority" (lines 1–3). Writing in the 1800s within an oppressive and highly patriarchal society, women like Dickinson — possessed of great intellectual ambition — often found it difficult to relate to the world around them. Those who did not socialize according to normative expectations of proper behavior were ostracized.

This theme continues in "403," which famously begins, "Much madness is divinest Sense" (line 1). Dickinson's argument is that it is societal norms that are wrong, not the individual who defies them. A few lines further, she writes, "The starkest Madness — / 'Tis the Majority" (lines 3–4). The moral majority possesses the power to discriminate against and marginalize anyone it considers Other, and Dickinson is commenting on how absurd such a system truly is.

Conclusion: Dissatisfaction as the Engine of Artistic Change

The purpose of a renaissance is to express a point of view in a way that is acceptable according to the current aesthetic rules, while simultaneously challenging the outmoded forms and patterns that preceded it. It is the product of dissatisfaction. The three renaissances examined here — British, American, and Harlem — were all the direct result of that same dissatisfaction and of each group of artists' need to find a milieu in which their thoughts could be expressed, accepted, and understood.