...Nature in Romanticism The Romantic Period came as a reaction against the Industrial Revolution and the rising emphasis on science and technology that the movement brought along. People traditionally living in the country now gathered into urbanized areas in hopes of employment as farmland gradually developed into factories (“Introduction”, Pages 5-7). As a result, cities became crowded and unsanitary as this sudden influx of population was not accounted for in city works. The lack of a citywide waste disposal system created an environment where litter dusted the streets and smog suffocated the populace (Wood). In the heavily industrialized cities of the time, flora and other greenery became a rare sight. The people of the late eighteenth century became rapidly disillusioned by their surroundings and yearned for the better days of the past where there was more space to breathe and distance themselves to find spiritual meaning in their life (Wood). The people sought for a refuge from the turmoil of society and found that coveted solitude in nature, which became idealized as a meditative sanctuary where people could go to reflect upon life or draw inspiration. Each writer of the Romantic period came upon different interpretations from their experiences with nature and these varying perspectives are reflected in their works. Pantheism was a very pervasive theme found in the works of the Romantic Period. This shared sentiment did not come as a surprise as nature became personal...
Words: 2207 - Pages: 9
...I felt the battle within my own heart between human nature and the holy nature of God. These two paradigms- the paganistic focus on one's self within the world and the dogmatic observance of faith that is "in but not of" this world is the very root conflict of romanticism. Romanticism says to follow your heart and say yes to your desires. Religion, particularly Christianity, says to follow the law and deny your desires. So, therein lies the conundrum. The famous poets, artists, musicians, and politicians who followed their hearts towards greatness found that, in greatness, there is not always righteousness, for one can be both terrible and great. The gray area found within Christianity, the mystery of the spirit and the beauty of nature- this is where I believe we find Romanticism. It resides between greatness and humility and in the places where we are left to fill in the blanks with our personal experience and understanding. Those from history who have lived in this mysterious and spiritual place, who shared their experience through the arts and great revolutions so that the world may bear witness- these are the men and women who defined...
Words: 1747 - Pages: 7
...Romanticism Paper Jason Sandoval HUM/266 Prof. Vega September 23, 2013 This paper will cover three forms of art from the Romanticism era. Chosen art forms are poetry, a selected painting from this era was chosen, in addition to a selected form of dance from this era. While also explaining Romanticism principles and ideas of the time are rooted in each chosen art form. The beginnings of the Romanticism era date back to England 1798 with the works of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who wrote a book of poems called “Lyrical Ballads.” The era reached its peak around 1800 to 1840. The Romanticism era focused on human emotions, nature, natural settings, and local environments. The Romanticism era also focused on matters of the heart opposed to matters of reason and rationalism. This was a time of expression that documented personal experiences and ones way of life. This was a time when artist were recognized for their exceptional talents and individualism, a time that bought about change and artistic freedom. The Romanticism era presented unique works of art like dances, paintings and poetry. The pieces of art work contained intellectual and literary skills that portrayed the rich artistic culture of the time. Since its beginning, artists have been able to produce artistic pieces that have stood the test of time. For example, “I wondered lonely as a cloud” is a poem by William Wordsworth. The poem exposes the ideals and values of the Romanticism era in a...
Words: 857 - Pages: 4
...Romanticism and realism Romanticism Romanticism gained fame and momentum as a movement of art in the early 19th century and flourished till the 1850s. It was popular in France and Britain. Romanticism, which emerged as a reaction to the disillusionment with enlightenment involving order and reason after the 1789 French revolution, stressed on emotion and imagination. In romantic art, nature provided an appropriate alternative to the thoughts of enlightenment. In this case, nature was considered as unpredictable, had a great potential for extreme disasters and had uncontrollable power. The terrifying and violent images of nature invented by artists during the romantic period recalled the 18th century aesthetics. In British and French paintings of the early eighteenth century, the presentation of the struggle of man against the power of nature highlights this sensibility. Romanticism, which cannot be expressed using a single technique, attitude or style, is characterized by a highly subjective approach, such as visionary quality and emotional intensity (Tekiner, 2000). The context of romanticism can be equated to a reaction against the enlightenment age. It is believed that there is a big relationship between Romanticism and the French revolution that started in 1789. It can be said that most romantics were basically progressive in their opinions although others had conservative views because nationalism in many countries was associated with Romanticism (Noon, 2003). Realism ...
Words: 1134 - Pages: 5
...Romanticism and Realism According to the Merriam Webster dictionary (2014), art is defined as anything that is thought to be beautiful or expresses important ideas and opinions. Today I will be comparing two periods of art from the 18th and 19th centuries, Romanticism and Realism, and looking at their contributions to society and how each has had their own influence on the future art world. Romanticism is the earlier of the two art periods, and was first identified as a movement around 1800. Romanticism flourished in Britain and France up until the mid-nineteenth century. Romanticism can be defined as "A movement in literature and the fine arts, beginning in the early nineteenth century that stressed personal emotion, free play of the imagination, and freedom from rules of form." (Webster, 2014) This art style puts an emphasis on imagination and emotion. This new art form came about as a result of the after effects of the French Revolution and in defiance with the Enlightenment movement. Romantic art tends to express the true force of nature, with all of its uncontrollable power and unpredictability, unlike the controlling nature of the Enlightenment movement. A few of the Romantic artists include Gustave Courbet and Jean Francois-Millet. (Galitz, 2004) Some of the very notable characteristics of the Romantics are the use of emotion, excess instead of moderation, spontaneity, nature, subjective, use of symbolism, and mystery. (Clark, 2011) Romanticism came about during...
Words: 1861 - Pages: 8
...Romanticism, state of mind or scholarly introduction that portrayed numerous works of writing, painting, music, feedback, and historiography in Western human progress over a period from the late eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth century. With its accentuation on the creative ability and feeling, Romanticism developed as a reaction to the disappointment with the Enlightenment significance of reason and structure in the outcome of the French Revolution of 1789. Romanticism can be viewed as a dismissal of the statutes of structure, peaceful, agreement, stability, and admiration that embodied Classicism as a rule and late eighteenth century Neoclassicism specifically. Romanticism was likewise to some degree a response against the Enlightenment and...
Words: 752 - Pages: 4
...and his wife is delineated by the space used by John Paul Strain. He places the loving couple at the front and center of the painting pulling the eye of the viewer straight to them. With the use of oil on canvas, Strain was able to capture this moment of love at the romantic time of day, sunset as he heads off to the Battle of Fredericksburg and his wife is getting a final goodbye. With General and Mrs. Hill embraced in a sign of love, this leads one to believe it was based in Romanticism. The Parting was painted circa 1862-1862, could easily be seen as John Paul Strain following in the wake of the Romanticism style that occurred between 1820 and 1850 in Europe. Along with the timing of this painting, Romanticism celebrates nature, rural life and the common people. The Parting shows a house in the woods of a General of the South during the Civil war. The men fighting in this war were ordinary men fighting for a cause they believed in, common men. John Paul Strain used color to add to the style of Romanticism. Using the setting sun, allowing for the intuition of the viewer to associate the orange, yellow and pink of the sunset to be related to a romantic moment. The use of the pure white snow with General and...
Words: 1226 - Pages: 5
...19th Century Romanticism The movement began in England, Germany and France and later spread at a phenomenal speed. There were three main components to Romanticism: Religion, Nationalism, and Literature. According to Romantic Art, 2003, the two movements that fought their way to the top in the 19th century were Classicism and Thriving all over the globe, Romanticism made its mark on the history of art. Romanticism. The major difference between the two movements is the focus on nature and the reason behind it. Classicism focuses on nature and how to understand it with reason and thought. Romanticism however, focuses on nature and how to understand it spiritually. The Romantic Art movement lasted from about 1815-1848 and more specifically focused on individualism, imagination, irrationalism, emotions and the triumph of emotions over reason and senses over intellect. Some artists’ work even focused on the mysterious, the occult, the diseased and even satanic, which ties into the religious component of romanticism. In most paintings, the artists would portray their religious interest in the form of symbols, such as cathedrals or crosses and created the mood or attitude towards religion by conducting the color scheme to elicit an emotional response from the viewer. In artistic terms, to try and elicit an emotional response by the viewer is called Expressionism, which is a movement within a movement; romanticism. During the romantic era, art was not the only idea stirring in...
Words: 944 - Pages: 4
...American Romanticism Defining American Romanticism: * Literature written between 1830s and 1865 (Civil War). * Considered the first illustration of American literary genius. * Birth of the American novel * Gothic Lit Frankenstein, Supernatural, Grotesque * Romanticism: Nature over the city , Individual over society ,Emotion over Reality * Jacksonian democracy * Andrew Jackson * ‘democracy’ as defined today comes from Jackson. * Triumph of the ‘common man’ was seen as a challenge to the aristocracy and beginning of an egalitarian society. * Romantic Writers See the World as an organic and interrelated. * Whitman invents free verse (practiced by other Romantic poets * He believed that everything is alive and interrelated. * Disregarded meter, rhyme schemes, and traditional forms. Romantic Hero: * Youthful * Innocent and pure of purpose * Idealistic with a sense of honor based on some higher principle – onot on society’s rules. * Possesses unique/remarkable skills * Quests for some higher truth in the natural world * Has knowledge of people and life based on deep, intuitive understanding – not on formal learning. * Rejects conformity * Loves nature and avoids the masses Elements of Romanticism: * Nature inspiring wisdom * Exotic setting * Emotion and feeling over reason * Distrust of civilization and progress * Supernatural * Intuition...
Words: 278 - Pages: 2
...Claudia Casale May 08, 2013 Romanticism Romanticism was a period of time where Authors were making a lot of references towards nature, emphasis of emotions and also of imagination and intuition. Mary Shelly and William Blake are two Authors that wrote during the romanticism period. Both authors address the romantic period in their writing. Both others uses nature as one of their themes throughout their writing. Mary Shelly uses the idea of romanticism in Frankenstein by putting escape of nature and high regards towards the weather. As an example weather which represent the feeling of the monster Tim, “When the sun had recovered its warmth, and the earth again began to look green … I felt emotions of gentleness and pleasure… and I even raised my humid eyes with thankfulness towards the blessed sun which bestowed such joy upon me”(98). Mary Shelly used nature to describe feelings and emotions throughout the novel. As an example, after a dreadful winter of cold and rejections, Tim the monster feels his heart ease as spring arrives. Also, another writer during the romanticism was William Blake. Blake makes powerful emphasis on imagery throughout his poems, and might used few stanzas about nature. In the The Tyger he does not specify where the setting is but in line 2 he writes “In the forest of the night”. In his poem he writes about the Tyger which is the main focus of the poem. Since the Tyger is a wild creature, he might refer to nature and makes the setting a little...
Words: 466 - Pages: 2
...The Romanticism Era Unit 5 Individual Project Art Appreciation: HUMA205-1202B-12 Kandyce Livingston American Intercontinental University Abstract The following essay will discuss three different works of art from the Romanticism era. The essay will provide a description of each work art including the style. A summary of each artists’ personal philosophies of art will be discussed along with prevailing trends and school of thought in the art world during this time period. In addition, an explanation will be provided of how the works of art fit into the context of the Romanticism time period. In conclusion, also provided is a discussion of the three works of art in the terms of content, form, and subject matter as well as a discussion of aesthetic qualities and symbolic significance. The Romanticism Era Introduction During the Romanticism era, emotional expression motivated European artists from about 1820 to 1850. In this era, various artists, such as painters, photographers, musicians, and writers, held the belief that imagination and emotion had more value than reason, civilization was more corrupt than nature, and that ultimately human beings were good (Frank, 2011). As a way to move away from the Neoclassicism fixation classical forms, Romantic artists sought to celebrate nature, rural life, common people and other exotic ideas in their work. Romanticism is demonstrated in such works of art as The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons by Joseph...
Words: 2060 - Pages: 9
...American Romanticism * Early Romanticism * Washington Irving * James Cooper * Transcendentalism * Ralph Emerson * Henry Thoreau * Others: eg. Edgar Allen Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne… * Romanticism---a retrospect * Background of Romanticism in Europe? * The Industrial Revolution * The French Revolution * Ideological change * Definition & Features of Romanticism? * Romanticism(The Romantic Movement) * 5 key features * Romanticism was an artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe toward the end of the 18th century, recognized for expressions of exoticism, individualism, emotionalism, and the beauty of nature, rejecting the ordered rationality of the Enlightenment as mechanical, impersonal, and artificial. * Imagination; * Nature; * Individualism; * Glorification of the Commonplace; * The Lure of the Exotic * American Romanticism * Time: Romantic period---early 19th century to the outbreak of the Civil War * Forms: novels, short stories, and poems replaced sermons and manifestos as America’s principal literary forms * Background: * exterior: Romantic movement in Europe (inheritance) * interior: Westward movement and economic boom; * Literary themes: * Highly imaginative and subjective * Emotional intensity * Escapism * Common man as hero ...
Words: 1422 - Pages: 6
...Jacob McKinnis Professor Bess Fox Major Women Writers 3 November 2015 Romanticism in Frankenstein Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, is well known throughout the world as a classic piece of gothic literature with elements of disturbing and macabre imagery. It is easy then to overlook the many ways in which Frankenstein is a primary example of Romanticism due to the characteristics of the way it was written and the time period in which Mary Shelley lived. Shelley’s Frankenstein is not meant to be looked at as a purely gothic piece of literature but rather a literary work of Romanticism that masquerades as a horror story. To start with, the monster created by Frankenstein is paramount to the representation of Romanticism in the novel. The monster is a Romantic hero because of the rejection it must bear from normal society. Wherever he goes, the monster is chased away because of its hideous appearance and its huge size. Shelley makes an effort explaining how often that people in conventional society reject that which is out of the ordinary or that which is unnerving and disfigured treading on the borders of our society. It’s hard to blame the monster for what happens to him, and Shelley provokes from the reader a sympathetic response for a creature that has been established as a misunderstood and lost soul in a world it was never meant to live in. The monster tries to fit into a regular community, but because it is grotesque to look at and does not know the social norms...
Words: 1469 - Pages: 6
...Romanticism and Realism Cheryl Hert Western Governors University Romanticism vs. Realism The French Revolution brought about enormous change in the world. With the collapse of the absolute monarchy, the rules of society began to shift in favor of the common people. Under the new laws writers and artists were given a considerable amount of freedom to express themselves which did well to pave the way to set a high standard for literature (Gregory, 1915). During the time following the French Revolution, two very different styles of Art were formed; Romanticism emerged in 1820 and lasted until 1865. Realism then took over in 1865 and lasted until 1914. Although the two have very different characteristics, they both share the same beliefs in liberalism and the dignity of the common man. Romanticism evolved at the end of the 18th century as a reaction to the classical, formal compositions of Neoclassicism. Neoclassicism was based on reason, tradition, rules and order. Romantics believed the individual was more important than society, and with the Age of Industrialism upon them, they began to revolt against the conventional beliefs. Romantics viewed industrialization as an attack on humankind as well as Mother Nature. They believed that the industrial revolution was changing the natural order of man, who belonged in the country (Brown, n.d.). Romanticism had no “laws or rules” to follow. Romantic artist preferred emotion over reason,...
Words: 1017 - Pages: 5
...ROMANTICISM AND REALISM Deborah Christman Western Governor’s University ROMANTICISM AND REALISM Both Romanticism and Realism were art movements that began in the 19th century, during a time of war and revolution. Romanticism focused on emotions, injustice, and extraordinary, while Realism characterized the world without glorification. Both began as a response to historic ideas, but they vary in terms of artistic style and political views. In the first part of the 19th century, a new art movement began—Romanticism. Romanticism arose in retaliation of Neoclassicism, which placed restraints on artists and “rules-driven orderliness”. Romantic artists focused more on perception and impression, rather than on the specific object. They included “passion, emotion, and exotic settings with dramatic action”. Their attention was on the Romantic hero (archetype) who rejected normal life and focused on himself. The subjects in their paintings showed the preposterous and untamed side of humans. (Mindedge, 3.18) To display emotion and style, the artists used somber paint colors and displayed Gothic elements. The color red was used quite often as a sunset or in the person’s clothing, while black and gray were used for the skies to display impending doom. The main goals of Romanticism were to portray the battle between man vs. nature and man vs. himself, and also show certain political issues. The types of media used were oil paints and watercolor. The painting...
Words: 1543 - Pages: 7
