Richard Henry Dana Sr. (November 15, 1787 – February 2, 1879) was an American poet, critic and lawyer. His son, Richard Henry Dana Jr., also became a lawyer and author.

Biography

Richard Henry Dana was born in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most ...

on November 15, 1787, and was the son of Federalist judge

Francis Dana Francis Dana (June 13, 1743 – April 25, 1811) was an American Founding Father, lawyer, jurist, and statesman from Massachusetts. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1777–1778 and 1784. A signer of the Articles of Confederati ...

.Haralson, Eric L. ''Encyclopedia of American Poetry: The Nineteenth Century''. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1998: 115. He graduated from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher ...

and became a lawyer. He married Ruth Charlotte Smith and they had four children including Richard Henry Dana Jr. Despite having graduated from there, Dana accused Harvard of smothering genius, and believed that the minds of poets were more insightful than the general community. He seldom practiced law. 43_ChestnutSt_Boston_2010_e

Between 1817 and 1827, he was the first American to write major critiques of

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

, though his views were unconventional for his time. In a review of the poetry of

Washington Allston Washington Allston (November 5, 1779 – July 9, 1843) was an American painter and poet, born in Waccamaw Parish, South Carolina. Allston pioneered America's Romantic movement of landscape painting. He was well known during his lifetime for ...

, he noted his belief that poetry was the highest form of art, though it should be simple and must avoid

didacticism Didacticism is a philosophy that emphasizes instructional and informative qualities in literature, art, and design. In art, design, architecture, and landscape, didacticism is an emerging conceptual approach that is driven by the urgent need t ...

. Dana also criticized the

Transcendentalism Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that developed in the late 1820s and 1830s in New England. "Transcendentalism is an American literary, political, and philosophical movement of the early nineteenth century, centered around Ralph Wald ...

movement. He wrote, " Emerson & the other Spiritualists, or Supernaturalists, or whatever they are called, or may be pleased to call themselves...

ave ''Alta Velocidad Española'' (''AVE'') is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . As of December 2021, the Spanish high-speed rail network, on part of which the AVE s ...

madness in their ''hearts''". Dana was a member of the

Anthology Club The Anthology Club, or Anthology Society, was a literary society based in Boston, Massachusetts by the Rev. William Emerson, father of Ralph Waldo Emerson. It operated from 1804 until 1811. History The society organized in response to the fir ...

. In 1817, he and others in the club founded the ''

North American Review The ''North American Review'' (NAR) was the first literary magazine in the United States. It was founded in Boston in 1815 by journalist Nathan Hale and others. It was published continuously until 1940, after which it was inactive until revived a ...

'' as an outlet for his criticism, though he lost editorial control of it on account of his opposition to standard conventions. Though some of his criticisms were controversial when first published, by 1850 his opinions were conventional. As he wrote at the time, "Much that was once held to be presumptuous novelty... ecamelittle better than commonplace". As a writer of fiction, Dana was an early practitioner of

Gothic literature Gothic fiction, sometimes called Gothic horror in the 20th century, is a loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name is a reference to Gothic architecture of the European Middle Ages, which was characteristic of the settings of ea ...

, particularly with his novel ''Paul Felton'' (1822), a tale of madness and murder. The novel has also been called a pioneering work of

psychological realism In literature, psychological fiction (also psychological realism) is a narrative genre that emphasizes interior characterization and motivation to explore the spiritual, emotional, and mental lives of the characters. The mode of narration examine ...

alongside works by

William Gilmore Simms William Gilmore Simms (April 17, 1806 – June 11, 1870) was an American writer and politician from the American South who was a "staunch defender" of slavery. A poet, novelist, and historian, his ''History of South Carolina'' served as the defin ...

. Dana had difficulty supporting his family through his writing, which earned him only $400 over 30 years.Sullivan, Wilson. ''New England Men of Letters''. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1972: 99. In 1849, he was elected into the

National Academy of Design The National Academy of Design is an honorary association of American artists, founded in New York City in 1825 by Samuel Morse, Asher Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E. Thompson, Charles Cushing Wright, Ithiel Town, and others "to promote the f ...

as an Honorary Academician. Dana-Allston grave

Dana died on February 2, 1879, and was buried in the family plot at the Old Burying Ground next to the

First Parish in Cambridge First Parish in Cambridge is a Unitarian Universalist church, located in Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is a Welcoming Congregation and a member of the Unitarian Universalist Association Unitarian Universalist Association (UU ...

Works

* An oration, delivered before the Washington benevolent society at Cambridge, July 4, 1814. Printed by Hilliard and Metcalf, 1814. * ''The Idle Man''
v.1
(1821-1822) * ''Paul Felton'' (1822)

References

External links

WorldCat
*

at ''Lawyers and Poetry'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Dana, Richard Henry Sr. 1787 births 1879 deaths 19th-century American poets American male poets 19th century in Boston People from Beacon Hill, Boston Lawyers from Boston Writers from Cambridge, Massachusetts Harvard College alumni Writers from Boston Lawyers from Cambridge, Massachusetts 19th-century American male writers 19th-century American lawyers Dana family