Romanticism

The Romantic period changed the way people looked at humanity and focused on individuality. The French Revolution had just ended and people were ready to get back to the goodness of people and explore this through nature. Romanticism brought to the forefront a strong belief in the senses and emotions, rather than reason and intellect that was seen in the Enlightment period. Weary of the years of violence and strife, men had ideas of seeing the good back in people and felt nature was a way to bring emotions back into art, literature and music. Almost as if men wanted to forget about the years of revolutions and wars and wanted to get back to when men connected to the world around them instead (Veith, 1991).

According to Veith, “Romantics were fascinated by the unusual and the exotic…saw nature not as a complex machines but as a living organism, charged with beauty, sublimity, and mysterious significance” (Veith, 1991). Europe was turning from agricultural to an industrial period and urban cities were popping up around the world due to the industrial jobs. “Although the art of Romanticism was still representational, it became charged with the artist’s personal vision, a means of personal expression” (Veith, 1991). The Romantic period occurred toward the end of the 18th century into the 19th century (Veith, 1991).

Concerns & Worldview