An American Poet The introduction to Stephen Vincent Benét from the Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism states: “He conveyed his faith in the enduring existence of America’s fundamental ideals: the virtues of the democratic system of government, the possibility of a common spirit unifying a diverse populus , and, most importantly, the value of the individual” (TCLC 68). Stephen Vincent Benét was an American poet whose works were a combination of romanticism (idealized, optimistic view of life) and realism (factual, objective details of ordinary life). Benét was an author who had a profound love and vast knowledge of his homeland: Benét, S