Romanticism and Romantic Poetry
Timeframe of Romantic Poetry First work of Romantic poetry - Lyrical Ballads by Samuel Taylor Coleridge and William Wordsworth in 1798 Traditionally ends with death of Sir Walter Scott in 1832 Some consider poetry produced in Victorian and even Modern eras to be “Romantic”
Major features of Romantic Poetry Freely imaginative idealizing fiction imagination and emotion particular as opposed to general or universal experience value of the individual - link to French revolution freedom rather than authority
Major features continued Optimistic sense of renewal Interest in the language and lives of common people love for unspoiled natural world revitalized interest in medieval subjects and settings
Historical context Prosperity and confidence in 1700’s American and French revolutions disappointment in bitter and violent ends - Napoleon Industrial Revolution dirty, unorganized cities emerge huge class shift