Romanticism and the Arts Visual Art Music Literature

Romanticism and the Arts Visual Art, Music, Literature

Dates n n n Literature and visual art: end of 18 th century to middle of 19 th century Lyrical Ballads (Wordsworth and Coleridge) 1798 Music: all of 19 th century

Romantic assumptions n n n Reaction against Classical/Neo-classical movement Romantic not necessarily tied to “love” Revolutionary impulse—so many initially supported French Revolution

Eugene Delacroix The Death of Sardanapalus

Neo-classical Romantic

Characteristics of Romantic art n n n Intended to move and inspire, not teach Vast, unlimited space in the background Dramatic, restless, moody Spontaneous, does not look planned Expressive Friedrich’s Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog

Tristesse by Frederic Chopin

Characteristics of Romantic Music n n n Reaching, soaring quality—unattainable goal Lyricism (not worried about balanced phrases) Expressing individual feelings Break from patronage system Musician as artist—and specialist Reach a larger audience (concert halls), but they probably won’t understand what the musician means

Two different conceptions of music Classical: “Music is an innocent luxury, unnecessary, indeed, to our existence, but a great improvement and gratification of the sense of hearing. Music is the art of pleasing by the succession and combination of agreeable sounds. ” -Charles Burney

Romantic: “Music embodies feeling without forcing it to contend and combine with thought. . If music has one advantage over the other media, it owes this to its supreme capacity to make each inner impulse audible without the assistance of reason. ” -Franz Liszt

Characteristics of Romantic Literature n The Self as central n n Romantic hero Emotion n n “Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings”—Wordsworth Lyric

Romantic literature (cont. ) n Nature n Burke: The Sublime and the Beautiful John Constable The Hay Wain Joseph Wright An Eruption of Vesuvius, Seen from Portici

Romantic literature (cont. ) n Non-traditional Christianity (“Nothing, not God, is greater to one than oneself is”— Whitman) n n Opening up of poetic forms; not poetic diction Supernatural/gothic