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ROMANTICS 1798 – 1837
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Romantic Age Age of Poetry
Romantic Revolution Romantic Age Age of Poetry
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Romantic Revolution Romantic Age Age of Poetry
begins with the French Revolution (Storming of the Bastille – 1789)
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Romantic Revolution Romantic Age Age of Poetry In its first phase
nearly all Romantic poets were in favour of it
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Romantic Revolution Romantic Age Age of Poetry
William Blake – William Wordsworth – Samuel Taylor Coleridge were enthusiastic supporters.
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Romantic Age Age of Poetry
Romantic Revolution Romantic Age Age of Poetry The bloody excesses of the “Reign of Terror” + imperialist tendencies of Napoleon cooled down their enthusiasm, but the belief in the values expressed by the French Revolution remained.
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REVOLUTIONARY SPIRIT
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REVOLUTIONARY SPIRIT Sense that a new era had begun:
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Connection between Poetry & Revolution
REVOLUTIONARY SPIRIT Sense that a new era had begun: Connection between Poetry & Revolution
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REVOLUTIONARY SPIRIT Sense that a new era had begun:
Connection between Poetry & Revolution Democratic poems on simple people using simple language (no poetic diction)
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Revolutionary Spirit It took various forms:
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Revolutionary Spirit It took various forms:
Political social revolution in America & France
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Revolutionary Spirit It took various forms: Ideological revolution against all forms of authority neglecting human dignity & free choice Criticism of the social results of the Industrial Revolution
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Revolt against traditional Churches
Revolutionary Spirit It took various forms: Revolt against traditional Churches
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Revolt against classical restraints (liberation of the subconscious)
Revolutionary Spirit It took various forms: Revolt against classical restraints (liberation of the subconscious)
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Revolutionary Spirit It took various forms: Artistic revolution against neo-classical rules free expression of personal feelings
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Neo-classical vs. Romantic
Static vision Dynamic vision
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Neo-classical vs. Romantic
Static vision Conservatism Dynamic vision Revolution
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Neo-classical vs. Romantic
Static vision Conservatism Uniformity Dynamic vision Revolution Diversity
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Neo-classical vs. Romantic
Static vision Conservatism Uniformity Rationality Dynamic vision Revolution Diversity Feeling
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Neo-classical vs. Romantic
Static vision Conservatism Uniformity Rationality Dynamic vision Revolution Diversity Sentiment God is in Nature – not above Nature Pantheistic view
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Augustan vs Romantic writers:
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Augustan vs Romantic writers:
Stressed man’s rational side (reason) Emphasized imagination & emotion (heart)
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Augustan vs Romantic writers:
Were concerned with the general / universal in experience (objectivity) Were concerned with the subjective and particular (subjectivity)
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Augustan vs Romantic writers:
Asserted the values of society (Conservatism - static vision) Championed the value of the individual Strove for freedom (Revolutionarism - dynamic vision)
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Augustan vs Romantic writers:
Took inspiration from classical Greek/Romans Took interest in medieval subjects + contemporary issues
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Augustan vs Romantic writers:
Used artificial language (poetic diction) Used ordinary language
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Reason vs. Heart
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Reason vs. Heart Emotions Sensibility Supremacy of reason
Rationalism /Enlightenment Emotions Sensibility
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Reason vs. Heart Emotions Sensibility
Supremacy of reason Rationalism /Enlightenment Balance with nature Suppression of feelings – self-control Emotions Sensibility Introspection – “Spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings”
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Reason vs. Heart Supremacy of reason Rationalism /Enlightenment
Balance with nature Suppression of feelings – self-control Belief in Knowledge & Progress Objectivity - Realism Emotions Sensibility Introspection Growing interest in humble & everyday life Escape - Countryside vs. City Subjectivity - Imagination
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Emphasis on Feelings versus Intellect
Romanticism Emphasis on Feelings versus Intellect
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Feelings versus Intellect
Romanticism Feelings versus Intellect Feelings such as loneliness & melancholy capable of stirring man’s best emotions
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Sturm und Drang (Goethe – Schiller)
German Origins Sturm und Drang (Goethe – Schiller)
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Sturm und Drang (Goethe – Schiller) Open revolt against Classicism
German Origins Sturm und Drang (Goethe – Schiller) Open revolt against Classicism
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Two Generations of Romantics
1st Generation 2nd Generation
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Two Generations of Romantics
1st Generation William Blake 2nd Generation
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Two Generations of Romantics
1st Generation William Blake William Wordsworth 2nd Generation
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Two Generations of Romantics
1st Generation William Blake William Wordsworth Samuel Taylor Coleridge 2nd Generation
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Two Generations of Romantics
1st Generation William Blake William Wordsworth Samuel Taylor Coleridge 2nd Generation George Gordon Byron
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Two Generations of Romantics
1st Generation William Blake William Wordsworth Samuel Taylor Coleridge 2nd Generation George Gordon Byron Percy Bysshe Shelley
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Two Generations of Romantics
1st Generation William Blake William Wordsworth Samuel Taylor Coleridge 2nd Generation George Gordon Byron Percy Bysshe Shelley John Keats
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Poetic Form Poetry to express personal feelings Introspection
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Poetic Form Poetry to express personal feelings Introspection
Romantics discovered reality/truth to be subjective
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Poetic Form Poetry to express personal feelings Introspection
Romantics discovered reality/truth to be subjective 1st-person lyric (formerly reguarded as a minor genre)
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Poetic Form Poetry to express personal feelings Introspection
Romantics discovered reality/truth to be subjective 1st-person lyric (formerly reguarded as a minor genre) Individualism in the I-form
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Romantics failed in social / political / economic life
They felt isolated from the rest of society and chose:
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Romantics failed in social / political / economic life
They felt isolated from the rest of society and chose: RETIREMENT in nature (Wordsworth – Coleridge “The Lake Poets”)
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Romantics failed in social / political / economic life
They felt isolated from the rest of society and chose: EXILE Byron was banished because of sexual scandals; Shelley for atheism & socialism RETIREMENT in nature (Wordsworth – Coleridge “The Lake Poets”)
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Romantics failed in social / political / economic life
They felt isolated from the rest of society and chose: REVOLT against the establishment (Blake suffered imprisonment) EXILE Byron was banished because of sexual scandals; Shelley for atheism & socialism RETIREMENT in nature (Wordsworth – Coleridge “The Lake Poets”)
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Romantics looked for escape
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Romantics looked for escape
in Nature
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Romantics looked for escape
in Nature in exotic lands
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Romantics looked for escape
in Nature in exotic lands In history & folklore (Middle Ages – Scotland)
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Romantics looked for escape
in Nature in exotic lands In history & folklore (Middle Ages – Scotland) Beyond reality (supernatural – magic – hallucinated states of mind induced by drugs)
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Desire to reach for the infinitive
Romantic myths Desire to reach for the infinitive
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Desire to reach for the infinitive To exceed human limits
Romantic myths Desire to reach for the infinitive To exceed human limits
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Satan, Cain, Prometheus, Faustus,
Romantic myths Desire to reach for the infinitive To exceed human limits The Myth of the Outlaw: Satan, Cain, Prometheus, Faustus, Napoleon as a tyrant
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Poet as a Prophet
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Poet as a Prophet Romantic poets felt they were striving for something unattainable
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Poet as a Prophet They knew they were destined to fail
Romantic poets felt they were striving for something unattainable They knew they were destined to fail
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Poet as a Prophet Romantic poets felt they were striving for something unattainable They were destined to fail Their task was to talk to other men about what they could see
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Poet as a Prophet Romantic poets felt they were striving for something unattainable They were destined to fail Their task was to talk to other men about what they could see To awaken the common man from his death-like existence
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Poet as a Prophet Romantic poets felt they were striving for something unattainable They were destined to fail Their task was to talk to other men about what they could see To awaken the common man from his death-like existence To help realize the potential of human mind through the healing qualities of Nature
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Role of Imagination as opposed to fantasy/fancy
Connected to the universe
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Role of Imagination as opposed to fantasy/fancy
Connected to the universe Central point of the creating process
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Role of Imagination as opposed to fantasy/fancy
Connected to the universe Central point of the creating process Interaction between physical world & human mind
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Role of Imagination as opposed to fantasy/fancy
Connected to the universe Central point of the creating process Interaction between physical world & human mind Human/divine – mortality/eternity
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Role of Imagination as opposed to fantasy/fancy
Connected to the universe Central point of the creating process Interaction between physical world & human mind Human/divine – mortality/eternity Emotions felt Poetry written
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“Whole Nature is Imagination”
William Blake
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Man should learn to see: “A World in a Grain of Sand, a Heaven in a Wild Flower Hold Infinity in the palm of his hand Eternity in an Hour” William Blake
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Romantic Themes:
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Romantic Themes: Love for Nature
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Feeling higher than reason
Romantic Themes: Love for Nature Feeling higher than reason
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Romantic Themes: Love for Nature Feeling higher than reason
Glorification of commonplace
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Romantic Themes: Love for Nature Feeling higher than reason
Glorification of commonplace Interest in the supernatural / magic
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Romantic Themes: Love for Nature Feeling higher than reason
Glorification of commonplace Interest in the supernatural / magic “Dark” satanic hero
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Concept of NATURE
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NATURE Not simply a description of physical nature
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NATURE Not simply a description of physical nature
Nature is endowed with life, passion
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NATURE Not simply a description of physical nature
Nature is endowed with life, passion Nature is talked of as if God were a dearest friend
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NATURE Not simply a description of physical nature
Nature is endowed with life, passion Nature is talked of as if God were a dearest friend Romantic description of places thoughts about man & universe
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Love for the countryside
The desolate, ruins, graveyards, ancient castles, abbeys NATURE as opposed to industrial towns
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Love for the countryside
The desolate, ruins, graveyards, ancient castles, abbeys NATURE as opposed to industrial towns Ideal place for meditation MELANCHOLY associated with MEDITATION on the suffering of the POOR and DEATH
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COMMONPLACE
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COMMONPLACE Simple scenes to reveal the “ordinary” in its splendour
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COMMONPLACE Simple scenes to reveal the “ordinary” in its splendour
To make us see familiar things as they are
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COMMONPLACE Simple scenes to reveal the “ordinary” in its splendour
To make us see familiar things as they are To see with the eyes of a child
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COMMONPLACE Simple scenes to reveal the “ordinary” in its splendour
To make us see familiar things as they are To see with the eyes of a child Use of simple language
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New aesthetic theory
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New aesthetic theory Nature is perceived as a real living being
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New aesthetic theory Nature is perceived as a real living being
Value of sensibility
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New aesthetic theory Nature is perceived as a real living being
Value of sensibility Variety of individual RESPONSES to SENSATIONS
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New aesthetic theory Nature is perceived as a real living being
Value of sensibility Variety of individual RESPONSES to SENSATIONS Individual consciousness SUBJECTIVITY (David Hume: Subjective Beauty – Edmund Burke: Supremacy of the SUBLIME over the BEAUTIFUL
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME Edmund Burke
What is beauty?
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
What is sublime?
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
Flowerbeds are beautiful…
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
Daylight is beautiful …
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
Daylight is beautiful because it can be contemplated
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
The eruption of a volcano is sublime
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
The eruption of a volcano is sublime A storm is sublime
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
The eruption of a volcano is sublime A storm at sea is sublime An abyss is sublime
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
The eruption of a volcano is sublime A storm at sea is sublime An abyss is sublime The obscurity of the night is sublime because…
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CONCEPT of the SUBLIME E. Burke
the sublime arouses emotions such as: Uncertainty Anxiety Anguish Astonishment Admiration, reverence, respect
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BURKE’s conclusion is that…
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BURKE’s conclusion is that…
the great and the sublime are more effective than beauty in art because they arouse:
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BURKE’s conclusion is that…
the great and the sublime are more effective than beauty in art because they arouse: HORROR & FEAR ….by suspending man’s faculty of reason
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SUPERNATURAL - MAGIC
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SUPERNATURAL - MAGIC Universe could reveal itself to man in apparent (nature) or invisible (supernatural)
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SUPERNATURAL - MAGIC Universe could reveal itself to man in apparent (nature) or invisible (supernatural) Dreams – nightmares – visions – the occult were cultivated by the Romantics
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SUPERNATURAL - MAGIC Universe could reveal itself to man in apparent (nature) or invisible (supernatural) Dreams – nightmares – visions – the occult were cultivated by the Romantics Coleridge explored distorted states of consciousness brought on by drugs such as opium (Kubla Khan)
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SATANIC HERO Fascination for the negative / the forbidden
Glorious failure haunted by remorse (Faustus) Solitary heroes / exiles as if they had committed crimes (Byron)
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Thank you for your attention.
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