Romanticism
Romanticism is in many ways a reaction to neo-Classcism and the Enlightenment. While Enlightenment thinkers stressed the importance of reason, the Romantics were concerned with passion. With that passion comes an unfettered poetic style, a concern with nature, and a sentimentality that is lacking in the previous era.
Romantic poets, painters, and composers had in common a sense that art is a form of expression and that the expression takes precedence over following a given form. Emotions were more important to these artists than reason. Rather than following a rational form, we find Romantics more concerned with expressing an emotive attistude toward the subject they are portraying.
With that attitude, we also find a differing concern with nature. Whereas earlier artists had been concerned with nature as a reflection of a divine order, the Romantics viewed nature as mbeing more expressive and mystical. Rather than providing a backdrop to a picture, nature was portrayed as having its own integrity and aesthetic value. In the essays of Emerson and Thoreau, we find similar concerns. Certainly, in Colorado, we can see the scenery of the type that inspired many of these artists.
We also find more sentimentality toward the past. While the Enlightenment thinkers looked to the classical past because of the concerns of the Greeks and Romans toward reason, Romantics tended to look at the emotional experience brought forth by relics from the past, be they the Grecian urn that Keats considers or the ruins of Tintern Abbey as portrayed by Wordsworth and Turner. As we will see later, this concern leads to an appreciation for Gothic architectural styles that had been previously denigrated.
This sentimentality also extends to traditional culture, particularly that of the Native Americans. In Native American culture, the Romantics found a simplicity and connection with nature that had been lost on much of Europena culture.
The influence of Asian culture is evident during this period. Chines and Japanese artists had for centuries been portraying nature as an important force. The idea of nature being infused with divinity and mysticism an important part of Daoism and Hinduism. We can see the effects of Hindiusm and Buddhism in the writings of Emerson ("Brahma" for example) and the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer.
In future chapters, we will see how Romanticism is reflected in politics and artistic expression. In the meantime, if you have a chance, find a copy of music by Wagner or Berlioz and note the contrast with Mozart or Haydn.
Romantic poets, painters, and composers had in common a sense that art is a form of expression and that the expression takes precedence over following a given form. Emotions were more important to these artists than reason. Rather than following a rational form, we find Romantics more concerned with expressing an emotive attistude toward the subject they are portraying.
With that attitude, we also find a differing concern with nature. Whereas earlier artists had been concerned with nature as a reflection of a divine order, the Romantics viewed nature as mbeing more expressive and mystical. Rather than providing a backdrop to a picture, nature was portrayed as having its own integrity and aesthetic value. In the essays of Emerson and Thoreau, we find similar concerns. Certainly, in Colorado, we can see the scenery of the type that inspired many of these artists.
We also find more sentimentality toward the past. While the Enlightenment thinkers looked to the classical past because of the concerns of the Greeks and Romans toward reason, Romantics tended to look at the emotional experience brought forth by relics from the past, be they the Grecian urn that Keats considers or the ruins of Tintern Abbey as portrayed by Wordsworth and Turner. As we will see later, this concern leads to an appreciation for Gothic architectural styles that had been previously denigrated.
This sentimentality also extends to traditional culture, particularly that of the Native Americans. In Native American culture, the Romantics found a simplicity and connection with nature that had been lost on much of Europena culture.
The influence of Asian culture is evident during this period. Chines and Japanese artists had for centuries been portraying nature as an important force. The idea of nature being infused with divinity and mysticism an important part of Daoism and Hinduism. We can see the effects of Hindiusm and Buddhism in the writings of Emerson ("Brahma" for example) and the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer.
In future chapters, we will see how Romanticism is reflected in politics and artistic expression. In the meantime, if you have a chance, find a copy of music by Wagner or Berlioz and note the contrast with Mozart or Haydn.
posted by Unknown | 8:15 AM
1 Comments:
Nietzsche talks about two cultural tendencies-- the Appolonian, which stresses order and reason, ansd the Dionysian, which is more chaotic and emotive. Maybe there's a pendulum-like reaction whereby culture hits one extreme (Enlightenment Apollonian), and there is a reaction toward the other extreme, explaining the more Dionysian tendency of Romanticism.
For more on these ides, see Nietzsche's The Birth of Tragedy.
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