Romanticism

An international movement which flourished in Britain from circa 1770-1832, a period that historically encompasses the American and French revolutions, the end of the European slave trade, the birth of modern feminism and human rights, the rise of empire, and Europe's first ecological crises. The term can be misleading: by 'Romantic', we don't mean 'love literature' (although there is some of that). Instead, the term comes from the idea of the medieval 'romance', a narrative or mythic tale about an individual. Romantic literature emphasizes the power of the imagination and the value of emotional and subjective ways of experiencing the world. Although traditionally associated with the poetry of Lord Byron, Percy Shelley, John Keats, William Wordsworth, and S.T. Coleridge, Romanticism also includes Gothic and romance novels, science fiction, travel and adventure narratives, and a good deal of poetry written by women. Other traditional authors include Jane Austen, Mary Shelley, William Blake, Anne Radcliffe, Robert Southey, and William Godwin. Current hot topics include Romanticism and eco-criticism; the sonnet revival and early women who began the Romantic movement; Romantic travel writing and the rise of empire; Romanticism and America.