Final answer:
The primary theme of American literature during the Romantic era is emotion and imagination, with strong elements of individualism and self-expression, supernatural and unknown, as well as a deep focus on nature and the sublime.
Step-by-step explanation:
Themes of American Literature During the Romantic Era
The primary theme of American literature during the Romantic era centers around emotion and imagination. This movement was a reaction to the rationalism characterizing the Enlightenment and the industrialization of society. The Romantic period espoused a return to individualism and nature, emphasizing on the awe-inspiring power of the natural world and the unique feelings of the individual. Authors such as Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne explored themes of the supernatural and the unknown, while poets like William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge delved into the intrinsic relationship between humanity and nature, often invoking sentiments of the sublime.
Romanticism highly valued individualism and self-expression, as artists sought to break free from classical constraints. They favored subjects that invoked intense emotional responses such as nature, the ordinary person, and the exotic. Additionally, romance and the struggles of the human heart were common narratives in literature, highlighting intense emotions and the human connection to nature. These elements resonated with the Romantic's belief in personal freedom and the significance of personal experience and imagination over societal norms.