The Dial
“…it took a new course, and one that was not only original, but initiative of better things in the future. It was its novelty, its freshness of tone, its romantic temper, its boundless hope and courage that caused it to be criticized and jeered at generally by the more conservative literary journals. It was not conformatory enough to the old methods to secure it a general recognition on the part of the public; and it was condemned because it was not understood or appreciated."
George Willis Cooke, I, 56
- First Announced on May 4, 1840
- There were many other journals published in the United States before “The Dial”; however, it was the first original journal published in the United States.
- The Dial began as a way for writers and ministers to publish new ideas, hoping to spread their ideas and find people who believed the same things.
- The idea for the name came from Bronson Alcott. Ralph Waldo Emerson explained the title in this way:
“And so with diligent hands and good intent we set down our Dial on the earth. We wish it may resemble that instrument in its celebrated happiness, that of measuring no hours but those of sunshine. Let it be one cheerful rational voice amidst the din of mourners and polemics. Or to abide by our chosen image, let it be such a Dial, not as the dead face of a clock, hardly even such as the Gnomon in a garden, but rather such a Dial as is the Garden itself, in whose leaves and flowers the suddenly awakened sleeper is instantly apprised not what part of dead time, but what state of life and growth is now arrived and arriving.”
- The periodical was first edited by Margaret Fuller, and later by Emerson
- The Best known writers for “The Dial” were: Emerson, Bronson Alcott, George Ripley, Theodore Parker, James Freeman Clarke, Caroline Sturgis, and Henry David Thoreau
- The journal included questions about Theology, Philosophy, Art, Music, and Literature.
- “The Dial” was not as successful as everyone had hoped. Authors were not paid very much, if any, to contribute to the periodical. Finally in 1844, the periodical was discontinued due to financial shortages.
- The periodical had a one year revival in 1860
- In 1880 the periodical was once again revived as a political magazine
- In 1916, Martyn Johnson took over the periodical and made the it even more liberal and radical.
- Two years later, it was purchased by Scofield Thayer, who turned it into a “journal of art and culture.” (Sparks)
- Under Thayer’s influence the periodical published work by many influential authors, including William Butler Yeats and T.S. Eliot.
Works Cited
"The Dial." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 7 Feb 2008, 00:39 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 9 Mar 2008 http://virtual.clemson.edu/groups/dial/dialhist.htm. Virginia Commonwealth University. The Web of American Transcendentalism. 9 March 2008. http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/.