Study Notes on Romanticism

Time Period: Late 18th century to early 19th century, approximately 1770-1840
Definition: A movement in reaction against the Enlightenment, emphasizing emotion, nature, and individuality over reason and classicism.

Rebellion Against Enlightenment Ideals:
- Emphasis on emotion and nature instead of intellect and reason.
- Response to rationality and order of classicism.
Expression in Art and Literature:
- Use of various media (art, writing, music) to convey imagination, passion, and subjective experiences.
- Glorification of nature and individual genius.

Painters:
- Caspar David Friedrich:
- Notable works:
  - Rocky Gorge in Elbeis Sandstein Gebirge (1812)
  - Chalk Cliffs on Rügen (1818)
  - The Wanderer Above the Mist (1817-1818): Depicts an introspective figure contemplating nature.
  - Techniques: Use of light and center-focus composition to draw viewers in.
- Themes: Eerie lighting and melancholy, emphasizing solitude and the sublime.
- John Constable:
- Notable works:
  - View on the Stour near Dedham (1822)
  - Salisbury Cathedral from the Bishop's Grounds (1823)
- Themes: Captured bucolic life and tranquil scenes; contrasted with urban industrialism.
- Francisco de Goya:
- Themes: Explored darker aspects of humanity and the impact of war (e.g. The Colossus and Executions of May 3, 1808).
- Eugène Delacroix:
- Notable work: Liberty Leading the People (1831)
- Themes: Political and historical relevance, using bold color and dramatic compositions.

Key Authors:
- William Blake:
- Notable works: Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience; explored contrasting themes of joy and despair.
- Critique of industrial society in Jerusalem.
- William Wordsworth:
- Emphasized human emotion and connection via nature in Lyrical Ballads, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
- Focused on intuition, emotion, and feelings as pathways to understanding.
- Lord Byron (George Gordon):
- Themes of rebellion against societal norms; involved in political movements, especially the Greek War of Independence.
- Percy Bysshe Shelley:
- Notable work: Prometheus Unbound; examined the theme of individual audacity.
- Mary Shelley:
- Notable work: Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus (1818): Explored creation, responsibility, and the darker side of individual genius.
- Critique of unchecked ambition and the Enlightenment's focus on rationality.

Authors such as the Brothers Grimm collected folklore to reinforce national identity against the backdrop of Napoleon's conquests.
Friedrich Schiller:
- Notable work: William Tell (1804); depicted themes of freedom and oppression.
Sir Walter Scott:
- Notable works: Waverley and Ivanhoe; incorporated historical tensions in his narratives reflecting real societal issues.
Francis de Chateaubriand:
- Work: The Genius of Christianity (1802), defended religious beliefs against Enlightenment critiques.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe:
- Notable works: The Sorrows of Young Werther (1774): Focused on unrequited love leading to despair; inspired copycat suicides.
- Faust (published posthumously in 1832): Explores themes of ambition, morality, and the quest for knowledge.
- Participated in and critiqued the excesses of romanticism, influencing both literary and philosophical thought.
Ludwig van Beethoven:
- Blended classical and romantic musical styles; emphasized individuality and emotional depth.
- Notable compositions: Ode to Joy from the Ninth Symphony, representing hope and unity, famously used in various historical contexts.

Response to Enlightenment: Favoring emotion and personal experience over reason and rationality.
Cultural Diversity: Emphasis on local identities and experiences through art, music, and literature.
Political Engagement: Intertwining of artistic expression with contemporary social and political movements, paving the way for future nationalist sentiments.