Romanticism

To fellow Dramatists


Romanticism is the artistic expression of Liberalism, which originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength through the Industrial Revolution. Romanticism was a revolt against the social and political norms of the Age of Enlightenment. The romantics did not believe in the scientific rationalization of nature. 


Romantic Poets
Some of the Romantic poets included William Wordsworth, John Keats, Byron and William blake. The Romantic poets worshipped nature, and believed in emotion, passion and irrationality. They housed a growing distrust of reason and believed that you could not suppress nature. The Romanticists also believed that if you had to suppress all your passions, that you would go mad. They argued that the essence of human experience is subjective and emotional and that there is no such thing as objectivity. 

The Romantic Movement

1. The Romantic Hero - The Romantics were very fascinated with medieval times and there characteristics. The one characteristic was the Romantic hero and an example of a Romantic hero would be Lord Byron, who was handsome, popular, haughty and rebellious. The idea of the struggling poor artist was also very popular among the Romantics.
2. The Engaged and Enraged Artist - The Romantics had the idea that the artist was apart from society. They also portrayed the human in relation to nature where nature was always shown to be more powerful.
3. The Rugged Individual - The Romantics claimed that everyone is an individual and a dreamer and that they have unique and endless potential. The Romantics also believed that self-realization came through art.
4. The Power and Fury of Nature - The Romantic age was all about the glorification of nature and that nature was an escape from industrialization and dehumanization. The Romantics believed that nature could heal you but it could also be horrifying and awesome.
5. Romanticized Country Life -  The Romantics idealized the picture of country life and painted many pictures of green pastures and corn fields. They also painted pictures of horrifying weather and nature, which showed that nature was both terrible and beautiful.
6. The Occult and The Macabre -  The Romantics were interested and fascinated by foreign lands, as well as the ideas of fairies, ghosts, witches and demons. The Romantics yearned for the unknown and the unknowable, which was in contrast to the rationalists who were all about knowing.