Hawthorne's Rejection of Emerson | Dr. Henry Russell #TANcourses
Channel: TAN Books
Date: 2023-01-08

Dr. Henry Russell explains how Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic The Scarlet Letter was a rejection of the transcendentalist movement led by Ralph Waldo Emerson. This is part of lecture two of the TAN Course, American Literature: 13 Men & Women Who Defined The Voice of a Nation.

Available Now: https://tanbooks.com/products/lifelong-learning/tan-academy/american-literature-thirteen-men-women-who-defined-the-voice-of-a-nation/

The Voice of a Nation

Dr. Henry Russell, headmaster of St. Augustine Homeschool Enrichment Program and author of The Catholic Shakespeare Audio Series, joins TAN Courses in presenting American Literature: Thirteen Men & Women Who Defined the Voice of a Nation. 

As Dr. Russell unfolds: although seldom acknowledged, Catholicism profoundly influenced the development of our country in ways that often go unseen and, sadly, untaught in classrooms. You may have read many of the works discussed in these lectures. However, most schools in our country undoubtedly rob our youth through the lack of acknowledgment that the Catholic Church played a pivotal role in many of the greatest American writers and their works, either directly or indirectly. While not all of these great American writers have been Catholic, Dr. Russell shows how Catholicism influenced many of their works through American culture and the influence of their preceding American writers. 

This course will examine how Catholicism influenced America through the lens of American literature. This course helps us all understand the nation we live in today and where we might be going. As always, we look to the past to help us understand where we may go in the future. How did American literature form what we now recognize as American culture? What ideals were instilled in Americans, particularly in the subtle philosophy integrated into these authors' works? What does this tell us about the direction in which our country is still heading? 

Understanding Literature Like a Scholar 

Dr. Russell trains students in the art of rigorous conversation with these literary texts. This course covers many different works recognized as classics in American literature while analyzing key themes such as:
-The effects of religious persecution in America
-The roots of America's spirit of freedom
-Man versus nature: human dignity and the presence of God in His creation
-The long-lasting consequences following the horrors of slavery 
-The beauty and the dangers of romantic moralism

These 32 lectures are both profoundly Catholic and highly intellectual but eminently accessible to high school students. This course coincides with the TAN Academy high school Literature curriculum and book list. You do not want to miss this deeply Catholic journey into American literature!   

LECTURES
Ralph Waldo Emerson
The Scarlet Letter (4 parts)
Moby Dick (7 parts)
Death Comes for the Archbishop (4 parts)
Uncle Tom's Cabin (4 parts)
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (4 parts)
American Modern Poets (3 parts)
Modernism's Orthodoxies and Ernest Hemingway (2 parts)
The Southern Renaissance (3 parts)

Available Now: https://tanbooks.com/products/lifelong-learning/tan-academy/american-literature-thirteen-men-women-who-defined-the-voice-of-a-nation/

TAN Courses: https://www.tan-courses.com/