Section 2
Lecture Notes
Tasks:
 Section 2: Read and annotate all
introductory notes (1 day)
 Section 2: Complete the questions from
the introductory notes (1/2 day)
3
Romanticism was a literary period
defined by its emphasis on emotional
expression. One of the key goals for the
author was to move the reader; to
purposefully make the reader feel a
particular way when reading. This was
done by creating texts that expressed
how characters felt. The previous period,
Enlightenment, was founded on reason
and facts however romanticism was
focused on imagination over reason. Additionally people were encouraged to follow their
intuition and to do what they felt was right even if it defied reason. Elements of the
supernatural were now more prominent in texts and that was ok. Previously the
supernatural factor was mostly used in religious texts for derogatory necessity but in
Romanticism supernatural factors appeared in texts for the entertainment value. Nature
was another very prominent force in romantic texts: romantic meaning romanticism not
love. There was also a revolution for human rights and the texts now held ideas such as
individualism and freedom from oppression. A subgroup during Romanticism was
Gothicism. Gothic texts focused on the negative aspects of human nature. Many gothic
texts contained darker themes like depression, jealously, rage, murder, spite, etc…
Magazines were a new type of text that
was introduced during the Romantic
period; short stories saw an increase in
publication as well. The writing style
during this period was all about
embellishment. Texts used an increased
amount of figurative language and
diction that invoked emotional reactions
from the reader. Remember romanticism
is about feeling and connecting to the
text as well as to the reader; writing
about things that caused you as the
author to feel strongly while trying to
simultaneously create a connection and feeling in your reader to the text.
4
Romanticism around the year 1800
and ended around 1855. During this
time period the industrial revolution
occurred from 1790-1830/40. The
abolitionist movement was from 183070 and transcendentalism was
founded. Transcendentalism is another
subset of Romanticism.
Transcendentalist believed in
individualism, intuition, self-reliance,
and an appreciation for nature. Many
transcendentalist writing focuses on
elements of nature, feature nature,
and/or were inspired by nature.
Following ones intuition was an
element in all of Romanticism but
transcendentalist really took to this idea to heart by leaving material possessions behind and
moving to live in a more natural setting. Not all transcendentalists moved out of the cities however.
Self-Reliance and individualism were the last two elements of transcendentalism; being able to be
self-sufficient and the belief in honoring differences.
Important
Author’s During
Romanticism
Important
Author’s During
Romanticism
5
Look at the bolded words:
sun, sun, & brightness. The
expressionistic language
used here works to invoke
such passion and emotion
into the scene. Romeo does
not just say that Juliet is
beautiful; that she is pretty
and he thinks she is
awesome. Romeo tells Juliet
she is the sun, not like the
sun, she is the sun. The
message is so much more
powerful than saying she is
beautiful. He is saying that
she is bright and warm. That
she makes the moon jealous
of her and that is why it is pale. That her beauty outshines the stars in the sky and that
birds would sing to her because they would believe it is day. The embellishment of the
language may seem grandiose but it is that same overindulgence of language that makes
this scene so memorable and that connects it to the audience’s feelings. Although
Shakespeare does not fall into American Romanticism, his work is a great example of the
employment of figurative language.
Look at the excerpt to the
left. This piece was written by
Walt Whitman post-civil war,
in 1865, about the death of
Abraham Lincoln. What do
you think of the language
used, what kind of feelings
does it invoke in you the
reader? What does the word
captain imply? Why use the
metaphor of a ship? How
might you change the poem’s
language but not meaning, to
make it reflective of realism
instead? Record your
responses on a separate sheet
of paper.
6