3.5 Romantic literature

Romantic literature emerged in late 18th century Europe as a reaction to societal changes and Enlightenment rationalism. It emphasized emotion, individualism, and nature in art and literature, influenced by political revolutions and industrial advancements of the time.

Key characteristics included an emphasis on emotion, nature as inspiration, individualism, and Gothic elements. Major Romantic poets like Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, Shelley, and Keats revolutionized artistic expression and explored themes of love, nature, and the human condition.

Origins of Romanticism

• Emerged in late 18th century Europe as a reaction to societal changes and Enlightenment rationalism
• Emphasized emotion, individualism, and nature in art and literature
• Influenced by political revolutions and industrial advancements of the time

Historical context

Top images from around the web for Historical context

• 

  Industrial Revolution - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  French Revolutionary Wars - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  French Revolution - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Industrial Revolution - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  French Revolutionary Wars - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

1 of 3

Top images from around the web for Historical context

• 

  Industrial Revolution - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  French Revolutionary Wars - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  French Revolution - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  Industrial Revolution - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

• 

  French Revolutionary Wars - Wikipedia View original

  Is this image relevant?

1 of 3

• French Revolution (1789) sparked ideals of liberty, equality, and fraternity
• Industrial Revolution transformed society and economy, leading to urbanization
• American Revolution (1775-1783) inspired notions of democracy and individual rights
• Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815) reshaped European political landscape

Philosophical foundations

• Immanuel Kant's ideas on aesthetics and the sublime influenced Romantic thought
• Jean-Jacques Rousseau's concept of the "noble savage" emphasized natural human goodness
• Johann Gottfried Herder's writings on cultural nationalism shaped Romantic views on identity
• Edmund Burke's work on the sublime and beautiful informed Romantic aesthetics

Reaction to Enlightenment

• Rejected Enlightenment emphasis on reason and scientific rationalism
• Embraced intuition, emotion, and imagination as sources of truth and creativity
• Challenged mechanistic worldview in favor of organic, holistic understanding of nature
• Sought to reconnect with spiritual and mystical aspects of human experience

Key characteristics

• Romanticism revolutionized artistic expression and literary themes
• Emphasized subjective experience and emotional depth in creative works
• Influenced various art forms including poetry, prose, painting, and music

Emphasis on emotion

• Valued intense feelings and personal experiences as sources of artistic inspiration
• Explored range of emotions from melancholy to ecstasy in literary works
• Used vivid imagery and sensory details to evoke emotional responses in readers
• Celebrated passionate love and deep connections between individuals

Nature as inspiration

• Viewed nature as a living, spiritual force rather than a mechanical system
• Used natural imagery to reflect human emotions and spiritual states
• Explored themes of wilderness, untamed landscapes, and the sublime in nature
• Emphasized the healing and transformative power of natural environments

Individualism and imagination

• Celebrated the unique perspective and creative genius of the individual artist
• Valued originality and innovation over adherence to classical rules and conventions
• Explored the power of imagination to transcend everyday reality
• Emphasized the role of the poet as a visionary and prophet figure

Gothic elements

• Incorporated supernatural and mysterious elements into literature
• Explored themes of horror, darkness, and the uncanny
• Used Gothic settings (ruined castles, remote landscapes) to create atmosphere
• Delved into psychological complexities and inner turmoil of characters

Major Romantic poets

• Romantic poetry marked a significant shift in poetic style and subject matter
• Poets explored personal emotions, nature, and the human condition in their works
• Experimented with new forms and techniques to express their artistic vision

William Wordsworth

• Co-authored "Lyrical Ballads" (1798) with Samuel Taylor Coleridge
• Emphasized the importance of nature and childhood in shaping the human spirit
• Developed theory of poetry as "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings"
• Notable works include "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" and "Tintern Abbey"

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

• Collaborated with Wordsworth on "Lyrical Ballads"
• Known for imaginative and supernatural elements in his poetry
• Explored themes of guilt, redemption, and the power of imagination
• Famous works include "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" and "Kubla Khan"

Lord Byron

• Embodied the Romantic ideal of the passionate, rebellious hero
• Wrote narrative poems exploring exotic settings and unconventional characters
• Influenced by his own travels and experiences across Europe
• Notable works include "Don Juan" and "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage"

Percy Bysshe Shelley

• Known for his lyrical poetry and radical political views
• Explored themes of love, nature, and social justice in his works
• Developed complex philosophical ideas through his poetry
• Famous poems include "Ode to the West Wind" and "Ozymandias"

John Keats

• Focused on sensual imagery and the connection between beauty and truth
• Explored themes of mortality, love, and the power of art
• Developed concept of "negative capability" in poetic creation
• Notable works include "Ode on a Grecian Urn" and "La Belle Dame sans Merci"

Romantic prose

• Romantic movement influenced prose writing alongside poetry
• Novelists explored new narrative techniques and themes
• Emphasized emotional depth, imagination, and individualism in prose works

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

• Published in 1818, considered one of the earliest science fiction novels
• Explored themes of ambition, creation, and the consequences of scientific progress
• Incorporated Gothic elements and Romantic ideals of nature and individuality
• Raised philosophical questions about the nature of humanity and morality

Jane Austen's novels

• Combined Romantic sensibilities with social satire and realism
• Explored themes of love, marriage, and social class in early 19th century England
• Developed complex, psychologically nuanced characters
• Notable works include "Pride and Prejudice" and "Sense and Sensibility"

Sir Walter Scott's works

• Pioneered the historical novel genre
• Blended Romantic imagination with historical research and Scottish folklore
• Explored themes of national identity, chivalry, and the clash of cultures
• Famous works include "Ivanhoe" and "Waverley"

Themes in Romantic literature

• Romantic writers explored a range of philosophical and emotional themes
• Emphasized the relationship between humanity, nature, and the divine
• Challenged conventional notions of beauty, morality, and social norms

Sublime vs beautiful

• Distinguished between the sublime (awe-inspiring, terrifying) and the beautiful (harmonious, pleasing)
• Explored natural phenomena like mountains, storms, and vast landscapes as sources of the sublime
• Used contrast between sublime and beautiful to evoke emotional responses in readers
• Influenced by Edmund Burke's philosophical treatise "A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful"

Innocence and experience

• Explored the tension between childhood innocence and adult knowledge
• Viewed childhood as a state of purity and connection to nature
• Examined the loss of innocence through societal corruption and personal growth
• William Blake's "Songs of Innocence and of Experience" exemplifies this theme

Idealization of rural life

• Romanticized pastoral settings and simple country living
• Contrasted rural simplicity with the complexities and corruptions of urban life
• Explored the idea of nature as a source of moral and spiritual guidance
• Often depicted rural characters as embodiments of natural wisdom and virtue

Supernatural and mystical

• Incorporated elements of folklore, mythology, and the occult in literature
• Explored the boundaries between the natural and supernatural worlds
• Used supernatural themes to examine psychological states and moral dilemmas
• Coleridge's "Christabel" and Keats's "La Belle Dame sans Merci" exemplify this theme

Romantic movement across Europe

• Romanticism spread beyond England to influence literature across Europe
• Each country developed its own unique expressions of Romantic ideals
• National identity and cultural heritage played significant roles in shaping Romantic literature

German Romanticism

• Emerged earlier than English Romanticism, influenced by Sturm und Drang movement
• Emphasized folklore, national identity, and the supernatural
• Key figures include Novalis, E.T.A. Hoffmann, and Heinrich Heine
• Explored themes of nature mysticism and the fragmented self

French Romanticism

• Developed later than German and English Romanticism
• Influenced by political upheavals and social changes in France
• Key figures include Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas, and Alphonse de Lamartine
• Emphasized emotional intensity, social critique, and historical themes

Russian Romanticism

• Blended Western Romantic influences with Russian cultural traditions
• Explored themes of national identity, individual freedom, and social critique
• Key figures include Alexander Pushkin, Mikhail Lermontov, and Nikolai Gogol
• Influenced development of Russian realism in later 19th century literature

Influence on later movements

• Romantic ideals and techniques continued to shape literature beyond the movement's peak
• Influenced various artistic and philosophical movements in 19th and 20th centuries
• Romantic emphasis on individuality and emotion persists in contemporary literature

Transcendentalism

• American philosophical and literary movement influenced by European Romanticism
• Emphasized individual intuition, self-reliance, and connection with nature
• Key figures include Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau
• Explored themes of spiritual transcendence and social reform

Victorian literature

• Incorporated Romantic elements while addressing social issues of industrial age
• Continued exploration of nature, emotion, and individual experience
• Authors like Emily Brontë and Thomas Hardy blended Romantic and Victorian sensibilities
• Developed more complex narrative structures and psychological characterization

Symbolism and modernism

• Symbolist poets drew on Romantic emphasis on imagination and subjective experience
• Modernist writers reacted against and transformed Romantic ideals
• Explored fragmentation of self and society in contrast to Romantic unity
• Continued Romantic interest in myth and symbolism in new literary forms

Critical approaches

• Romantic literature has been subject to diverse interpretations and analyses
• Contemporary critical approaches offer new perspectives on Romantic texts
• Interdisciplinary studies reveal connections between Romanticism and other fields

Feminist interpretations

• Examine representations of gender and sexuality in Romantic literature
• Explore works by female Romantic writers often overlooked in traditional canons
• Analyze how Romantic ideals of individualism and emotion intersect with gender roles
• Reinterpret male-authored texts from feminist perspectives

Ecocriticism

• Analyzes Romantic literature's engagement with nature and environmental issues
• Explores how Romantic writers anticipated modern ecological concerns
• Examines representations of landscape, wilderness, and human-nature relationships
• Considers Romantic literature's influence on environmental thought and activism

Psychoanalytic readings

• Apply Freudian and post-Freudian theories to Romantic texts
• Explore themes of the unconscious, desire, and psychological conflict in literature
• Analyze symbolism and imagery in Romantic works through psychoanalytic lens
• Examine the role of dreams and altered states of consciousness in Romantic creativity

Legacy of Romantic literature

• Romantic movement continues to influence contemporary art and culture
• Shaped modern conceptions of creativity, individuality, and relationship to nature
• Romantic ideals persist in popular culture and contemporary thought

Impact on modern poetry

• Influenced free verse and experimental forms in 20th century poetry
• Continued emphasis on personal expression and emotional intensity
• Shaped development of confessional poetry and Beat movement
• Romantic nature poetry influenced environmental and ecopoetry movements

Influence on popular culture

• Romantic ideals of passionate love persist in romance novels and films
• Gothic elements from Romantic literature inform horror and fantasy genres
• Romanticized views of nature influence environmental movements and ecotourism
• Concept of the tortured artistic genius derived from Romantic ideals

Romantic ideals in contemporary thought

• Emphasis on individual expression and authenticity in modern self-help culture
• Influence on concepts of creativity and artistic inspiration in various fields
• Romantic critique of industrialization echoes in current environmental discourse
• Tension between Romantic idealism and pragmatism continues in political thought