In what sense were Poe and Emerson both Romantics? How did the Romantics differ?

In one sense, Edgar
Allan Poe andare both Romantics because both privilege the individual and the individual's
unique emotions and experiences. Emerson directly advocates for the individual's reliance on him
or herself, and on one's own intuition, rather than on the views and opinions of others and,
especially, society at large. He encourages each of us to take the time to go out into nature,
to really see the sun (literally and figuratively), and to allow the individual to return to his
or her reason and faith, the guiding forces that will push each of us to live our best lives.
Poe, as a writer of , focuses on individuals with unique perspectives and feelings; his texts
often inspire horror in his readers, and many Romantics believed that inspiring audiences to
experience intense emotions would also work to restore them to some more fundamental version of
themselves.

Poe and Emerson, however, do differ greatly. Emerson mostly wrote
nonfiction essays and poetry, while Poe wrote short fiction and poetry (and one novel). Emerson
preferred to focus on the goodness he believed was inherent in the individual while Poe
preferred to focus on the darkness within each of us. Emerson believed that we could perfect
ourselves; Poe seems more interested in what tempts us, what might compel us to be our flawed,
human, far-from-perfect selves.