ROMANTICISM by Michelle Cheng

WHAT IS ROMANTICISM? “Every man who writes, writes a book; this book is himself, whether he knows it or not, whether he wishes it or not, it is true from every body of work, whatever it may be, wretched or illustrious, there emerges a persona, that of the writer. It is his punishment, if he is petty, it is his reward, if he is great” - Victor Hugo

ORIGINS Began in the 1770s in Europe Beginning in the late 18th century, it transformed poetry, the novel, drama, painting, sculpture, concert music, and ballet Brought over to America by the second of the 19th century Reaction against classicism and the ordered world of Enlightenment thought rejection of order and rationality

ENGLISH ROMANTICISM Industrial Revolution in England ( ) Romanticists viewed industrialization as an attack on humankind as well as mother nature Against the coldness of capitalism and longed for the past Notable English romanticists: Samuel Taylor Coleridge, William Wordsworth, Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Keats, and William Blake

GERMAN ROMANTICISM Late 18th century, Germany made up of small German states Romanticism influenced unity in Germany German romanticists looked to the Middles Ages for inspiration Notable German romanticists: Johann Wolfgang van Goethe, Johann Gottfried Herder, and Ludwig van Beethoven

FRENCH ROMANTICISM Prior the the French Revolution, romantic writers wrote for the clergy and aristocrats Government imposed strict, unfair laws on the common people Strict confined society with no freedom of expression French Revolution ( ) gave unity of expression to the various emotions of individualism and revolt which had manifested themselves during the 2nd half the 18th century and were expressed in the Romantic literature of different countries The rise of the bourgeoisie After the revolution, romanticists wrote for and about the “common man”

AMERICAN ROMANTICISM 19th century until the Civil War Emphasis on heroic simplicity, exotic landscape, and mythicized frontier of “noble savages” - similar to Rousseau theory Example: The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper (1826) Focus on individuality and freedom of expression Examples: Jacksonian Era “Common Man,” The First Amendment

AMERICAN ROMANTICISM (CONT.) The Romantic movement in Britain, England, and America provided broad literary background for transcendentalism in the 19th century Influenced transcendentalists such as Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and later contemporaries like Walt Whitman and Edgar Allen Poe America shifted to realism after the Civil War

KEY ASPECTS freedom of expression and emotions individualism imagination nationalism religion offered as a more emotional, intuitive relationship with God gothicism primitivism

KEY ASPECTS (CONT.) nature exoticism symbolism longing for the past mysticism folk culture the abandonment of the heroic couplet in favor of blank verse and the sonnet dropped the conventional poetic diction in favor of fresher language and bolder figures

Victor Hugo ( ) Novelist, poet and dramatist, one of the most prominent figures of French Romantic writers Les Misérables (1862) Romanticism particularly expressed in the verse drama Cromwell (1827) which is about a national leader who rises from the people and seeks to be crowned king Wrote for the bourgeoisie Writings were vivid and dramatic Lyric poetry Often wrote in dark tones

Samuel Taylor Coleridge ( ) A poet and literary critic during the Romantic period in England Used opium and had anxiety problems Poetry was deeply influential on poets during and after the Romantic era The Rime of Ancient Mariner and Christabel were two of his most famous works and dealt with fantasy, mysticism, and magic Known for his conversational tone in his poetry

Walt Whitman ( ) Regarded as one of America’s most significant 19th century poets Influenced by Homer, Shakespeare, and the Bible Ralph Waldo Emerson was “astonished” by him At the outbreak of Civil War, he vowed to live a “purged” and “cleaned” life Leaves of Grass (1855) highly criticized because of its innovation in verse form

Walt Whitman (Cont.) Wrote on the subject of America which included slavery, democracy, American landscape, the sea, the natural world, war, age, death, immortality, poverty, romantic love, spirituality, and social change “I hear America Singing” is notable for its discussion of delight and sensual pleasures during a time when such candid displays were considered immortal