Unit 6 The Age of Romanticism.docx

Unit 6 The Age of Romanticism.docx

《Unit 6 The Age of Romanticism.docx》由会员分享，可在线阅读，更多相关《Unit 6 The Age of Romanticism.docx（39页珍藏版）》请在冰豆网上搜索。

Unit6TheAgeofRomanticism

Unit6TheAgeofRomanticism

（1798—1832）

•KeyWords:

IndustrialRevolution;FrenchRevolution;Romanticism;WilliamWordsworth;LyricBallad;SamuelTaylorColeridge;RobertSouthey;GeorgeGoldenByron;PercyByssheShelley;JohnKeats;WalterScott

•Target:

ThestudentsaresupposedtogetthebasicliteraryhistoryofPre-RomanticismandRomanticisminEnglishliterature,theimportantfiguresofthisperiodandtheirworks.

•StudyPoints:

•1.Romanticism;

•2.WilliamWordsworth;

•3.SamuelTaylorColeridge;

•4.RobertSouthey

•5.GeorgeGoldenByron;

•6.PercyByssheShelley;

•7.JohnKeats

•TimeSpan:

3weeks

•Part1Romanticism

•1.IndustrialRevolution

•OneoftheimpetusesthatpushedtheRomanticMovementforwardwastheIndustrialRevolution,whichbeganinmid-18thcentury.Asaresult,therulingpowerwasshiftedfromtheoldaristocracytothebourgeoisie,whofoundthemselvesfacinganimmenselyenlargingandincreasinglyrestiveworkingclass.

•Inruralareas,thepeasantsnowmadelandlessandhomelessbytheenclosures,hadtoeitherpourintothecitytoearntheirlivingsinfactories,orremainashiredworkerinthecountryside.ThisprocessvaslamentedbyGoldsmithinhisTheDesertedVillageasearlyas1770.Keat’sIsabellatoofaithfullydescribesthehardlifeoftheworkers.

•ThemovementoftheLuddites,orframebreakers,whodestroyedtheirmaster’smachinestoshowtheirhatred.Forthismovement,Byronwrotehis“SongfortheLeddites.”

•Thenotorious“PeterlooMassacre”,whichincitedShelleytowritehisgreatpoemsfortheworkingclass:

“Englandin1819”,“SongtotheMneofEngland,”and“TheMasqueofAnarchy.”

•2.TheFrenchRevolution（July14,1789）

•ThemostimportantimpetusoftheRomanticMovementwastheFrenchRevolution.AlthoughmanyofthepoliticalchangesbroughtaboutinFrancebytheRevolutionhadalreadytakenplaceinthe17thcentury,ithadamostfar-reachingeffectuponmen’sthoughtandwasreflectedinliterature.

•TheFrenchRevolutionevokedenthusiasticsupportfromEnglishliberalsandintellectualsandstimulatedtwoinfluentialbooks:

oneisThomasPaine’sRightsofMan（1791-92）,whichjustifiestherevolution;theotherisWilliamGodwin’sInquiryConcerningPoliticalJustice,whichwasmoreimportantforitsinfluenceonWordsworth,Shelley,andotherpoets.

•DuringtheRomanticperiod,almostalltheleadingwriterswereinsympathywithandwereinspiredbytheFrenchRevolution,thoughsomeofthemweredisappointedbyitswhiteterrorlater.WilliamHazlittdescribetheFrenchRevolutionas“thedawnofanewera,”maintainingthatthenewpoetryoftheRomanticpoetshaditsoriginintheFrenchRevolution.

•Itsidealsofliberty,equality,andfraternityhadaverystronginfluenceuponthewritersduringtheperiod.

Notedown

•3.Romanticism

•Romanticismisamovementoftheeighteenthandnineteenthcentury,whichmarkedthereactioninliterature,philosophy,art,religion,andpoliticsfromtheneoclassicismandformalorthodoxyoftheprecedingperiod.

•AsahistoricalperiodinEnglishliterature,theageofRomanticismextendsfrom1798,whenWordsworthandColeridgepublishedpredominantliterarymodeofthefirstthirdofthe19thcentury,wasexpressedalmostentirelyinpoetry.

•VictorHugocallsRomanticism“liberalisminliterature.”

•AccordingtoHeine,itistherevivalofmedievalisminart.

•Theexpressionoflifeasseenbytheimaginationratherthanbyprosaic“commonsense”,whichwasthecentraldoctrineofEnglishphilosophyinthe18thcentury—thepredominanceofimaginationoverreasonandformalrulesofclassicism.

•Therefore,thebeautyofatempleliesinitsactualformforclassicistsandinassociatedideasconjuredupbyimaginationforRomantics.

•Asawayofthinkingandasanapproachtoliterature,Romanticismisassociatedwithvitalitypowerfulemotionlimitlessanddreamlikeideas;Classicism,bycontrast,isassociatedwithorder,commonsense,andcontrolledreason.

•AlthoughitwasverydifficulttogiveanadequatedefinitionofRomanticism,manyofthemajorwritersdidfeelthattherewassomethingdistinctiveabouttheirtime,whichsomeofcalled“thespiritoftheage.”

•Shelleyexplainedthisliteraryspiritastheaccompanimentofpoliticalandsocialrevolutionandotherwritersagreed.

•HazlittalsomaintainedthatthenewpoetryoftheschoolofWordsworth“haditsoriginintheFrenchRevolution.”

•SomecriticsevendefineRomanticMovementitselfwasapoeticrevolution.Forexample,intheirLyricalBalladsWordsworthandColeridgerevolutionizedthetheoryandpracticeofpoetry.TheimaginationoftheRomanticwriterswas,indeed,preoccupiedwiththefactandidealsofrevolution.

•Asaliteraryrenaissance,theRomanticperiodexceedsallagesofEnglishliteratureintherangeanddiversityofitsachievements.Infact,Romanticismwasaninternationalmovement,whichhadgreatrepresentativesalloverEurope,suchasGoethe（1749-1832）inGermany,VictoryHugo（1802-1885）inFrance,Pushkin（1799-1837）inRussia,andLongfellow（1807-1882）,Lowell（1819-1891）,andWhittier（1807-1892）inAmerica.

•Threeschoolsofromantics:

•1.“theLakeSchool”ofWordsworth,ColeridgeandSouthey;

•2.“theCockney（伦敦老）School”ofLeighHunt,Hazlitt,andassociatedwriters,includingKeats;

•3.“theSatanicSchool”ofByron,Shelleyandtheirfollowers

•Othersgroupthemdifferently:

•“thepassiveRomanticSchool”ofWordsworth,Coleridge,andSouthey;（1790s-1810s）

•“theActiveRomanticSchool”ofByron,ShelleyandKeats.（1810s-1830s:

）

•However,mostcriticspreferredtocallthem

•“theFirstGeneration”

•“theSecond（orYounger）Generation”ofRomanticpoets

•4.TheSpecialQualitiesofRomanticism

•Romanticismfavoredinnovationovertraditionalisminthematerials,forms,andstyleofliterature.Ithasthefollowingprominentcharacteristicswhichdistinguishitfromtheneoclassicalliteratureintroducedintheprevioussection.

•1）TheSpontaneousOverflowofPowerfulFeelings

•InhisprefacetoLyricalBallads,Wordsworthdescribedgoodpoetryas“thespontaneousoverflowofpowerfulfeelings”

•Romanticpoemstakeastheirsubjectmattertheexperience,thoughtsandfeelingsoftheindividualwriter,ornaturalandhumanobjectsastheymodifiedbythewriter’sfeelings.

•WhileWordsworthandhisfollowerslaidemphasisontheemotionanduntrammelled（自由自在的，无阻碍的）imagination.AccordingtoWordsworth,althoughthewritingofapoemmaybeprecededbyreflectionandfollowedbysecondthoughtsandrevisions,theimmediateactofcomposition,ifapoemistobegenuine,mustbespontaneousthatis,arisingfromimpulse.

•Keatswrote,“Ifpoetrycomesnotasnaturallyastheleavestoatree,ithadbetternotcomeatall.”

•Blakeinsistedthathewrotefrom“InspirationandVision”.

•Shelleyalsomaintaineditis“anerrortoassertthatthefinestpassagesofpoetryareproducedbylabourandstudy,”ansuggestedthattheyaretheproductsofanunconsciouscreativity.

•2）.TheCreationofaworldofImagination

•TheRomanticpoetsfoundundiscoveredcountriesintheirownimaginations.

•ShelleyandBlakedescribedapoemasthepoet’simaginativevision.

•ColeridgealsointroducedintoEnglishcriticismanorganictheoryoftheimaginativeprocess,describingagreatworkofliteratureasaself-originatingandself-organizingprocesswhichbeginswithseedlikeideainthepoet’simagination.

•Byvividimagination,theRomanticwriterswerecapableoffantasticdreamworlds,thusmuchofromanticliteraturehasmagicalormiraculouseffects.

•3）TheReturntoNatureforMaterial

•Romanticwriterstooktheworldofnatureasapersistentsubjectoftheirpoetry,anddescribeditwithanaccuracyofobservationunprecedentedinearlierwriters.

•Tothepopularmind,Romanticpoetryhasbecomealmostsynonymouswith“naturepoetry”

•ThenaturesceneinRomanticpoetryisnotpresentedforitsownsake,butservesasastimulustothought,thereforeRomanticnaturepoemsare,infact,meditativepoems.

•ThefollowinglinesarewrittenbyWilliamBlake:

•ToseeaWorldinaGrainofSand

•AndHeaveninaWildFlower

•HoldInfinityinthepalmofyourhand

•AndEternityinahour.

•4）SympathywiththeHumbleandGlorificationoftheCommonplace

•Romanticismwasmarkedbyintensehumansympathy,andbyaconsequentunderstandingofthehumanheart.

•TheRomanticwriterssympathizedwiththepoorandcriedagainstoppression.ThisgrewstrongerintheworksoftheRomanticsoftheyoungergeneration.

•Romanticismalsoglorifiedthecommonplace.

•theaimofLyricalBalladswas“tochooseincidentsandsituationsfromcommonlife”,andtouse“aselectionoflanguagereallyspokenbymen.”Thisserioustreatmentoflovelysubjectsincommonlanguageviolatedbasicneoclassicalrule

•Romanticwritersturnedtodescribehumblepeople,everydaylife,trivialthings,andfamiliarmatters.Sometimes,notonlythehumblebutalsotheignominiouscouldbefoundinRomanticpoetry.

•-Wordsworth’spoemswerecrowdedwithconvicts,femalevagrants,gypsies,idiotboysandmadmothers,aswellaspeasants,peddlers,andvillagebarbers.

•5）EmphasisUpontheExpressionofIndividualGenius

•-TheRomanticperiodisalsoanageofradicalindividualism.Emphasiswasontheindividual.Manwasnoregardedashavinginfinitepotentialitiesandcreativepower.

•-TheRomanticMovementwastheexpressionofindividualgenius,whichwasmarkedbystrongreactionandprotestagainstthebondageofrules.

•-Inconsequence,theliteratureofRoma