The Antebellum Crisis and America's First Bohemians / Mark A. Lause.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Lause, Mark A.

Series:

Civil War in the North.

Civil War in the North

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Social movements in literature.

Social movements in art.

Arts and society--United States--History--19th century.

Arts and society.

Bohemianism--New York (State)--New York--History--19th century.

Bohemianism.

New York (N.Y.)--Social conditions--19th century.

New York (N.Y.).

New York (N.Y.)--Intellectual life--19th century.

New York (N.Y.)--History--1775-1865.

Genre:

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (192 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Kent, Ohio : Kent State University Press, 2009.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Cultural politics and American bohemians in pre-Civil War New York Amid the social and political tensions plaguing the United States in the years leading up to the Civil War, the North experienced a boom of cultural activity. Young transient writers, artists, and musicians settled in northern cities in pursuit of fame and fortune. Calling themselves "bohemians" after the misidentified homeland of the Roma immigrants to France, they established a coffeehouse society to share their thoughts and creative visions. Popularized by the press, bohemians became known for romantic, unorthodox notions of literature and the arts that transformed nineteenth-century artistic culture. Bohemian influence reached well beyond the arts, however. Building on midcentury abolitionist, socialist, and free labor sentiments, bohemians also flirted with political radicalism and social revolution. Advocating free love, free men, and free labor, bohemian ideas had a profound effect on the debate that raged among the splintered political factions in the North, including the fledgling Republican Party from which President Lincoln was ultimately elected in 1860. Focusing on the overlapping nature of culture and politics, historian Mark A. Lause delves into the world of antebellum bohemians and the newspapermen who surrounded them, including Ada Clare, Henry Clapp, and Charles Pfaff, and explores the origins and influence of bohemianism in 1850s New York. Against the backdrop of the looming Civil War, The Antebellum Crisis and America's First Bohemians combines solid research with engaging storytelling to offer readers new insights into the forces that shaped events in the prewar years.

Contents:

The King of Bohemia: Henry Clapp, American cosmopolite

A scandal in Bohemia: free love and the antebellum American culture wars

Utopia on Broadway: Charles Pfaff's saloon and the power of the pen

Liberty and coercion: red republicans, black republicans, and the republic of letters

Representing alienation: the republican civilization and its discontents

Conclusion: iconoclasts in iconic times.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-61277-511-X

OCLC:

865834894