2026-09-18T17:13:14Zhttps://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/server/oai/request

oai:scholarsbank.uoregon.edu:1794/249522025-09-10T20:07:50Zcom_1794_7556com_1794_7555com_1794_7552com_1794_13074com_1794_6309com_1794_151com_1794_30264col_1794_6006col_1794_13076

Amstutz, Nina Hernandez, Carolyn 2019-09-18T19:32:30Z 2019-09-18T19:32:30Z 2019-09-18 https://hdl.handle.net/1794/24952 In this thesis I apply literary analysis to railroad guidebook illustration (1880-1890) to argue that the framing and decorative embellishments aided the nineteenth century reader in imagining an idealized version of the Western landscape. Although rail travel was quick and removed from the physical experience of the landscape, guidebook illustrations highlight the picturesque aspects of the Western environment and supplement the rail travel experience by guiding the viewer through a contemplative and romantic reading of the landscape. Guidebooks immersed the reader in the progressive narrative of the guidebooks. The authors utilize language that assumes the readers are riding along the transcontinental path as they read, and the imagery serves to engage the readers’ imaginations and guide the viewers in viewing the picturesque and idealized version of the Western landscape. en_US University of Oregon All Rights Reserved. History of Photography Literary Analysis Print Culture Romanticism The American West Victorian Illustration Sublime Views and Picturesque Embellishments: Westward Expansion and “Progress” in Gilded Age Guidebooks Illustration Electronic Thesis or Dissertation M.A. masters Department of the History of Art and Architecture University of Oregonopen.access