English Romanticism Lecture Flashcards

Comprehensive vocabulary and concept flashcards covering the key people, themes, and definitions of the English Romanticism movement as described in the lecture notes.

Romanticism

A 18th-century movement that arose as a reaction to the cult of reason, valuing subjectivity, emotion, imagination, introspection, and the relationship with nature.

English Romanticism Period

The period between the publication of “Lyrical Ballads” (1798) and the coronation of Queen Victoria (1837).

Poetic Diction

The imitation of classics, which Romantic poets rejected in favor of simple and spontaneous language.

First Generation of Romantic Poets

Wordsworth and Coleridge, who theorized about poetry and authored “Lyrical Ballads”.

Second Generation of Romantic Poets

Byron, Shelley, and Keats, who experienced political disillusionment and themes of individualism, escapism, and alienation.

Wordsworth's Theme

The beauty of nature and ordinary things.

Coleridge's Theme

The supernatural and mystery.

Nature (Romantic View)

A manifestation of divine power on Earth, seen as a living, spiritual force that humans are part of.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Influence

The idea that society is corrupting and restrictive, leading to an emphasis on personal experience and admiration for rebels and outsiders.

The Exotic

An interest in distant, mysterious, and dangerous places, and an attraction to adventure and the unknown.

Romantic View of Childhood

Idealized as pure and uncorrupted; children are considered closer to nature and the divine.

Poetry (Wordsworth's Definition)

It “takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquillity”.

Wordsworth's Poet

A man speaking to other men who possesses more sensibility, acts as a teacher, and draws attention to ordinary things and the humblest people.

Inward Eye

A term from Wordsworth’s 'Daffodils' (1807) referring to memory and imagination that allows experience to become important later.

Primary Imagination

An unconscious and automatic faculty that allows all human beings to perceive reality through their senses.

Secondary Imagination

A conscious faculty belonging especially to the poet that transforms perceptions to recreate reality and create a “new world” in poetry.

Fancy

A technical skill that combines and organizes existing elements rather than creating something new; viewed as less important than imagination.

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798)

A ballad in seven parts involving an old mariner, a wedding guest, and the killing of an innocent albatross.

The Albatross

In Coleridge's work, it symbolizes a spiritual connection to nature; killing it disrupts harmony and leads to punishment.

Suspension of Disbelief

A concept where readers temporarily stop doubting and accept unrealistic or supernatural elements as real to enjoy a story.

Sublime Nature

Nature that is mysterious, mixing realism with supernatural elements where the environment can become hostile to punish human transgression.

Mariner Symbolism

The mariner symbolizes the poet, driven by guilt, which represents the regret for the loss of innocence caused by the Industrial Revolution.