ROMANTIC POETS THE SECOND GENERATION Romantic poets the

ROMANTIC POETS: THE SECOND GENERATION

Romantic poets: the second generation 1) A complex and refined LANGUAGE -A common sense of failure of art to express life and feelings: their poems often reflect on the limits of language, incapable of expressing their inner world; 2)A generation of YOUNG POETS -Main poets: Keats, Byron and Shelley They all have a brief and intense life; They travel all over Europe (grand tour). During their journeys they expose themselves to different cultural and intellectual contexts that strengthen their opposition to conventions and rules of the contemporary society.

3) The idea of FREEDOM and REBELLION The Byronic hero embodies this concept very well. He fights against conventions and rules. Nothing is more important to Byron and to the heros in his poems than human freedom, the freedom to follow one’s desire. 4) The promotion of a SOCIAL CHANGE against all forms of tyranny

PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY (1792 -1822)

P. B. Shelley: a passionate rebel and a radical thinker In his pamphlets he expresses clearly his view of society: ØThe Necessity of Atheism (1811), a pamphlet about the absence of rational evidence of the existence of God; ØAn Adress to the Irish People (1812), a pamphlet encouraging the Irish to rebel against the English government ØThe Revolt of Islam (1818), a pamphlet about the failure of the French Revolution and an invitation to fight oppressors

The Poet as a hero for a moral awakening • According to Shelley, the world is dominated by inequalities and moved by selfishness. In all his works Shelley calls for a rebirth of society in order to realize a social and moral regeneration of man. The poets are those who, more than anyone, can contribute to this plan of civilization. How? Through POETRY Although an atheist, S. believes in the existence of a UNIVERSAL FORCE which pervades nature and realizes itself in art. By giving voice to this unifying power in the celebration of life and beauty, poetry could bring about a good moral in the world.

The limitations of language in expressing the absolute • In S. ’s poems the words appear to be inadequate to express the essence of his ideas. • The words and objects of S. ’s poems are like masks that cover some inexpressible absolute. S. and all the poets of second generation agree on the failure of words to express the idea. A symbol of this incapability of giving voice to the deep essence of reality is the AIR, a very recurrent element in S. ’s production

ODE TO THE WEST WIND (I) O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn's being, [I] O selvaggio vento dell’Ovest, tu alito dell’essenza thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves dead dell’Autunno, dalla cui presenza invisibile sono mosse le foglie morte, come fantasmi in fuga da un are driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing, incantatore, Yellow, and black, and pale, and hectic red, gialle, e nere, e pallide, e rosse di febbre, pestilence-stricken multitudes: O, thou, moltitudini afflitte da pestilenza: o, tu, who chariotest to their dark wintry bed che trasporti al loro cupo, invernale letto the winged seeds, where they lie cold and low, i semi con le ali, dove giacciano gelidi e in profondità, each like a corpse within its grave, until come un cadavere nella sua tomba, finché la tua azzurra sorella, la Primavera, suonerà thine azure sister of the spring shall blow sopra la Terra in sogno la sua tromba, e riempirà Her clarion o'er the dreaming earth, and fill (conducendo dolci semi nell’aria come greggi al pascolo) (driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air) con colori e profumi sgargianti, collina e pianura: with living hues and odours plain and hill: spirito selvaggio, che ti muovi per ogni dove; Wild Spirit, which art moving every where; distruttore e preservatore; ascolta, ascolta! destroyer and preserver; hear, O, hear!

(IV) (…) Oh! lift me as a wave, a leaf, a cloud! Oh! Sollevami come onda, come foglia, come nuvola! Crollo sulle spine della vita! Sanguino! I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed! Un incombente peso ha incatenato e curvato A heavy weight of hours has chained and bowed qualcuno a te troppo simile: senza paura, e rapido, e one too like thee: tameless, and swift, and proud. orgoglioso.

(V) (…)Be thou, spirit fierce, my spirit! Be thou me, impetuous one! Drive my dead thoughts over the universe like withered leaves to quicken a new birth! And, by the incantation of this verse, scatter, as from an unextinguished hearth ashes and sparks, my words among mankind! Be through my lips to unawakened earth the trumpet of a prophecy! O, wind, if Winter comes, can Spring be far behind? Sii tu, spirito fiero, il mio spirito! Sii me, spirito impetuoso! Guida i miei morti pensieri per l’universo come foglie ingiallite che stimolino una nuova nascita! E, per l’incanto di questa ode, diffondi, come ceneri e scintille da un cuore inesausto, la mia profezia tra tutta l’umanità! E sii attraverso la mia voce per la Terra dormiente la tromba della profezia! O vento, se giunge l’Inverno, può essere la Primavera così distante?