A Movement Across the Arts



Romanticism refers to a movement in art,
literature and music during the 19th century
(1800 – 1860)
American Romanticism was a reaction to the
Classicism of the late 18th century
Classicism was characterized as:




Upholding REASON over nature and human nature
Emphasizing Social over the personal
The Common over the Individual
In literature, Classicists valued Clarity, Order and
Balance

Classicism rested firmly on the belief that the
city and urban center was the place to find
success and self-fulfillment





By the early 1800’s, early American cities were
festering with social problems:
Poverty
Over-crowding
Unemployment
Malnourishment

At this time in American History, exciting things
were occurring outside of these urban centers:
The Louisiana Purchase of 1803 and the
subsequent Gold Rush prompted Westward
Expansion and the idea of ‘Manifest Destiny’

America needed a new identity and a new spirit

We will walk with our own feet
we will work with our own hands
 we will speak our own minds
-Ralph Waldo Emerson






. . . Was born out of three main events:
1. Westward expansion
2. The need for a new ‘American’
identity that set it apart from the British
past
3. The demise of the urban center
Imagination
 Intuition
 Idealism
 Inspiration
 Individuality




Imagination was emphasized
over “reason.”
This was a backlash against the
rationalism characterized by the
classical period or “Age of
Reason.”
Imagination was considered
necessary for creating all art.


Romantics placed value on
“intuition,” or feeling and
instincts, over reason.
Emotions were important in
Romantic art.



Idealism is the concept that we can make
the world a better place.
Idealism refers to any theory that
emphasizes the spirit, the mind, or
language over matter – thought has a
crucial role in making the world the way it
is.
Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher,
held that the mind forces the world we
perceive to take the shape of space-andtime.
The Romantic artist, musician, or
writer, is an “inspired creator”
rather than a “technical master.”
 What this means is “going with
the moment” or being
spontaneous, rather than “getting
it precise.”




Romantics celebrated the individual.
During this time period, Women’s
Rights and Abolitionism were taking
root as major movements.
Walt Whitman, a later Romantic
writer, would write a poem entitled
“Song of Myself”: it begins, “I
celebrate myself…”


Classical art was rigid, severe, and
unemotional; it hearkened back to
ancient Greece and Rome
Romantic art was emotional, deeplyfelt, individualistic, and exotic. It has
been described as a reaction to
classicism, or “anti-Classicism.”
Classical Art
Romantic Art



“Classical” musicians included
composers like Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart and Franz Josef Haydn.
1730-1820.
Classical music emphasized internal
order and balance.



Romantic musicians included
composers like Frederic Chopin,
Franz Lizst, Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky
1800-1910.
Romantic music emphasized
expression of feelings.




In America, Romanticism most strongly
impacted literature.
Writers explored supernatural and gothic
themes.
Romantic authors distrusted progress, and
often looked to the past for inspiration
Writers also wrote about Nature – Nature
was a source of inspiration and a reflection
of the inner world
Washington Irving was an early Romantic
author
 Irving explored mythology
and nature in his writings as a way to
examine the human condition and moral
development
 As you read “The Devil and Tom Walker”
ask yourself what makes this short story
a representation of Romantic Literature
