romantic period in english literature: 1785-1830 a brief overview
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ROMANTIC PERIOD IN ENGLISH LITERATURE: 1785-1830
A BRIEF OVERVIEW
SOCIAL & POLITICAL CONTEXT
PERIOD OF GREAT CHANGE IN ENGLAND:
AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY W/ POWERFUL
LANDHOLDING ARISTOCRACY WAS GIV-
ING WAY TO MODERN INDUSTRIAL NA-
TION OF LARGE-SCALE EMPLOYERS & A
GROWING, RESTLESS MIDDLE CLASS.
AMERICAN & FRENCH REVOLUTIONS
WERE HUGELY IMPORTANT ELEMENTS
OF THE POLITICAL LANDSCAPE.
THREATS TO EXISTING SOCIAL STRUC-
TURE WERE BEING POSED BY NEW,
REVOLUTIONARY IDEAS.
PERIOD OF CHANGE (cont.)
PERIOD OF CHANGE (cont.)
A TIME OF HARSH POLITICAL REPRES-
SION IN ENGLAND, IN SPITE OF NEED
FOR CHANGES BROUGHT ABOUT BY
THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION.
PERIOD OF CHANGE (cont.)
MILL TOWNS GREW, THE LANDSCAPE
WAS INCREASINGLY SUBDIVIDED,
FACTORIES SPEWED POLLUTION OVER
SLUMS, & THE POPULATION WAS IN-
CREASINGLY DIVIDED INTO RICH &
POOR.
PERIOD OF CHANGE (cont.)
REFORMS DID NOT OCCUR BECAUSE
THE PHILOSOPHY OF LAISSEZ-FAIRE
(“LET ALONE”) PREVAILED.
LACK OF REFORM (cont.)
CONSEQUENCES WERE LOW WAGES,
HORRIBLE WORKING CONDITIONS,
LARGE-SCALE EMPLOYMENT OF
WOMEN & CHILDREN IN BRUTALLY
HARD OCCUPATIONS (SUCH AS COAL
MINING).
LACK OF REFORM (cont.)
IN THE FACE OF TECHNOLOGICAL UN-
EMPLOYMENT & POVERTY, WORK-ERS
—WHO COULD NOT VOTE—HAD TO
RESORT TO PROTESTS & RIOTS,
INCURRING FURTHER REPRESSION.
BUT WHILE THE POOR SUFFERED, THE
LEISURE CLASS PROSPERED.
PLIGHT OF WOMEN
WOMEN OF ALL CLASSES WERE RE-
GARDED AS INFERIOR TO MEN, WERE
UNDEREDUCATED, HAD LIMITED VO-
CATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES, WERE SUB-
JECT TO A STRICT CODE OF SEXUAL BE-
HAVIOR, AND HAD ALMOST NO LEGAL
RIGHTS.
PLIGHT OF WOMEN (cont.)
IN SPITE OF THE ABOVE, THE CAUSE
OF WOMEN’S RIGHTS WAS LARGELY
IGNORED.
ROMANTICISM
TERM “ROMANTICISM” IS DIFFICULT TO
DEFINE B/C OF THE VARIETY OF
LITERARY ACHIEVEMENTS, AND
WRITERS OF THE PERIOD WERE ONLY
LATER LABELLED “ROMANTIC.”
ROMANTICISM (cont.)
BUT MANY HAD A SENSE OF “THE
SPIRIT OF THE AGE”—THAT A GREAT
RELEASE OF CREATIVE ENERGY WAS
OCCURING AS ACCOMPANIMENT TO
POLITICAL & SOCIAL REVOLUTION. IT
WAS SEEN AS AN AGE OF NEW BEGIN-
INGS & LIMITLESS POSSIBILITIES.
POETIC THEORY & PRACTICE
WORDSWORTH TRIED TO ARTICULATE
THE SPIRIT OF THE NEW POETRY IN
THE PREFACE TO LYRICAL BALLADS
(1800, 1802).
CONCEPT OF POETRY, THE POET
POETRY WAS SEEN AS THE “SPONTA-
NEOUS OVERFLOW OF POWERFUL
FEELINGS”; THE ESSENCE OF POETRY
WAS THE MIND, EMOTIONS, & IMAGI-
NATION OF THE POET (NOT THE OUTER
WORLD).
POETRY & THE POET (cont.)
FIRST-PERSON LYRIC POEM BECAME
THE MAJOR ROMANTIC LITERARY
FORM, WITH “I” OFTEN REFERRING
DIRECTLY TO THE POET.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SELF BE-
CAME A MAJOR TOPIC OF ROMANTIC
POETRY.
POETRY & THE POET (cont.)
POETS OFTEN SAW THEMSELVES AS
PROPHETS IN A TIME OF CRISIS, REVIS-
ING THE PROMISE OF DIVINE REDEMP-
TION IN TERMS OF A “HEAVEN” ON
EARTH.
POETIC SPONTANEITY, FREEDOM
INITIAL ACT OF POETIC COMPOSITION
MUST ARISE FROM IMPULSE; BE FREE
FROM THE RULES INHERITED FROM
THE PAST; AND RELY ON INSTINCT,
INTUITION, & FEELING.
NATURE
IMPORTANCE OF ACCURATE OBSERVA-
TION & DESCRIPTION OF WILD NATURE,
WHICH SERVES AS A STIMULUS TO
THINKING & TO THE RESOLUTION OF
PERSONAL PROBLEMS & CRISES.
NATURE (cont.)
LANDSCAPE WAS OFTEN GIVEN HU-
MAN QUALITIES OR SEEN AS A SYS-
TEM OF SYMBOLS REVEALING THE
NATURE OF GOD.
CLOSENESS W/ NATURE WAS SEEN AS
BRINGING OUT HUMANITY’S INNATE
GOODNESS.
GLORIFICATION OF THE COMMON-PLACE
HUMBLE, RUSTIC SUBJECT MATTER &
PLAIN STYLE BECAME THE PRINCIPAL
SUBJECT & MEDIUM OF POETRY.
THE COMMONPLACE (cont.)
POETS SOUGHT TO REFRESH READERS’
SENSE OF WONDER ABOUT THE ORDI-
NARY THINGS OF EXISTENCE, TO MAKE
THE “OLD” WORLD SEEM NEW.
THE SUPERNATURAL & STRANGE
MANY ROMANTIC POEMS EXPLORE
THE REALM OF MYSTERY & MAGIC;
INCORPORATE MATERIALS FROM
FOLKLORE, SUPERSTITION, ETC.; &
ARE OFTEN SET IN DISTANT OR
FARAWAY PLACES.
THE STRANGE (cont.)
RELATED TO THIS WAS A RENEWED
INTEREST IN THE MIDDLE AGES (AND
THE BALLAD FORM) AS A BEAUTIFUL,
EXOTIC, MYSTERIOUS BYGONE ERA.
THE STRANGE (cont.)
THERE WAS ALSO GREAT INTEREST IN
UNUSUAL MODES OF EXPERIENCE, SUCH
AS VISIONARY STATES OF CONSCIOUS-
NESS, HYPNOTISM, DREAMS, DRUG-
INDUCED STATES, AND SO FORTH.
INDIVIDUALISM & STRIVING
HUMAN BEINGS WERE SEEN AS ESSEN-
TIALLY NOBLE & GOOD (THOUGH COR-
RUPTED BY SOCIETY), AND AS POSSESS-
ING GREAT POWER & POTENTIAL THAT
HAD FORMERLY BEEN ASCRIBED ONLY TO
GOD.
INDIVIDUALISM (cont.)
THERE WAS A GREAT BELIEF IN DEMO-
CRATIC IDEALS, CONCERN FOR HUMAN
LIBERTY, & A GREAT OUTCRY AGAINST
VARIOUS FORMS OF TYRANNY.
INDIVIDUALISM (cont.)
THE HUMAN MIND WAS SEEN AS CRE-
ATING (AT LEAST IN PART) THE WORLD
AROUND IT, AND AS HAVING ACCESS TO
THE INFINITE VIA THE FACULTY OF
IMAGINATION.
INDIVIDUALISM (cont.)
REFUSING TO ACCEPT LIMITATIONS,
HUMAN BEINGS SET INFINITE, INAC-
CESSIBLE GOALS, THUS MAKING FAIL-
URE & IMPERFECTION GLORIOUS AC-
COMPLISHMENTS.
INDIVIDUALISM (cont.)
THIS REFUSAL TO ACCEPT LIMITA-
TIONS FOUND EXPRESSION IN BOLD
POETIC EXPERIMENTATION.
INDIVIDUALISM (cont.)
MANY WRITERS DELIBERATELY ISO-
LATED THEMSELVES FROM SOCIETY
TO FOCUS ON THEIR INDIVIDUAL
VISION.
THEME OF EXILE WAS COMMON, W/ THE
ROMANTIC NON-CONFORMIST OFTEN
SEEN AS A GREAT SINNER OR OUTLAW.
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