ENGLISH:THE ROMANTICS
1789 – 1832
The Romantics Era
- Bracketed by two political events
o the French Revolution (1789)
§ Romantics deeply influenced by this
• Shook Europe to the core
o Normal people rose up against the Priest and the autocrats
• Most Romantics were at sympathy with the movement
• Initially it seemed the French revolution could be the start of a bright new world for
people to live in
o The passing of the great Reform Bill in England (1832)
§ Gave many more men the right to vote
- Exciting, rebellious and made the world change
- Democratic focus
- Inspired by the exotic and the far away in time and space
- Characteristics
1. Innovation is favoured over traditionalism
2. Focus on poet as individual and the expression of his/her feelings
§ Rich inner world and imagination
3. External nature is often the subject
4. Speaker: solitary figure, engaged in long and elusive quest
5. Human beings are inherently good and are capable of good achievements
6. Power of the imagination
Romantic/ romance
- Romanticisms
o Movement in the arts and literature that emphasised
§ The power of nature
• England was urbanising at fast rate
• Living in the county
o Always a drought/ flood
o Hard
• Live in urban environment
o Easy to see nature and countryside as
§ Delightful
§ Something lost
§ Necessary to the human spirit
§ Imagination
• Celebrated the human capacity to
o Imagine new possibilities
o Create a new kind of perspective on life
o See beyond what was real
§ Emotion
• Remained important
o Age of sentiment:
§ Feeling had been rather social as experiencing the world
§ Imagine the lives of others like or unlike yourself
• Whereas the Romantic ideas focused on the individual
o Thought
o Felt
o Experienced
§ The individual
o Defined as a school of thought that privileged
§ Imagination
§ Intuition
, § Idealism
§ Inspiration
§ Individuality
o Shows understanding what she/he actually imagines
o Tend to use form:
§ Ababcdedcce
• Unpredictable, irregular ways
o Although celebrate freedom must also have the freedom to restrict yourself
1789 – 1832
The Romantics Era
- Bracketed by two political events
o the French Revolution (1789)
§ Romantics deeply influenced by this
• Shook Europe to the core
o Normal people rose up against the Priest and the autocrats
• Most Romantics were at sympathy with the movement
• Initially it seemed the French revolution could be the start of a bright new world for
people to live in
o The passing of the great Reform Bill in England (1832)
§ Gave many more men the right to vote
- Exciting, rebellious and made the world change
- Democratic focus
- Inspired by the exotic and the far away in time and space
- Characteristics
1. Innovation is favoured over traditionalism
2. Focus on poet as individual and the expression of his/her feelings
§ Rich inner world and imagination
3. External nature is often the subject
4. Speaker: solitary figure, engaged in long and elusive quest
5. Human beings are inherently good and are capable of good achievements
6. Power of the imagination
Romantic/ romance
- Romanticisms
o Movement in the arts and literature that emphasised
§ The power of nature
• England was urbanising at fast rate
• Living in the county
o Always a drought/ flood
o Hard
• Live in urban environment
o Easy to see nature and countryside as
§ Delightful
§ Something lost
§ Necessary to the human spirit
§ Imagination
• Celebrated the human capacity to
o Imagine new possibilities
o Create a new kind of perspective on life
o See beyond what was real
§ Emotion
• Remained important
o Age of sentiment:
§ Feeling had been rather social as experiencing the world
§ Imagine the lives of others like or unlike yourself
• Whereas the Romantic ideas focused on the individual
o Thought
o Felt
o Experienced
§ The individual
o Defined as a school of thought that privileged
§ Imagination
§ Intuition
, § Idealism
§ Inspiration
§ Individuality
o Shows understanding what she/he actually imagines
o Tend to use form:
§ Ababcdedcce
• Unpredictable, irregular ways
o Although celebrate freedom must also have the freedom to restrict yourself
