The Romantic Period Of British Literature

Love, an extremely and unsurprisingly popular topic among writers in every time period and corner of the world, is the central subject of two similar, yet contradicting literary works – “The Passionate Shepard to His Love” by Christopher Marlowe and “The Bait” by John Donne, respectively. Each author masterfully utilizes imagery, but in different ways to achieve two different purposes. Marlowe’s idealistic vision of what love should be is countered by Donne’s rather cynical realism.

“Like the minority writer, the female writer exists within an inescapable condition of identity which distances her from the mainstream of the culture and forces her either to stress her separation from the masculine literary tradition or to pursue her resemblance to it.” (Lynn Sukenick, Miller: 1985, 356.) Women’s roles in society today has changed radically since the Romantic period. Women during the Romantic Period were looked down upon economically, socially, and politically. Women were labelled as the “Cult of the True Womanhood,” which was an ideology that degraded women to only serve as a family’s moral guidance at home, and labeled women as less “superior” to men. Women were not entitled to attend school, obtain a degree, own any property, or substance essential elements that all men were allow performing. “Having deprived her of this first right of a citizen, the elective Franchise, thereby leaving her without representation in the halls of legislation, he has oppressed her on all sides.” (Declaration of Sediments.) Because of these limitations and standards that women had to follow, women fought industriously for their education, rights, and freedom. “Men - their rights and nothing more; Women - their rights and nothing less.” (Susan B Anthony.) Woman’s main concerns were their education. Women only contained knowledge in how to dance, sing, paint, sew, and basic understandings of modern languages; nevertheless,

This essay will be exploring the use of language and imagery in the poem ‘Valentine’ by Carol Ann Duffy to emphasise certain emotions within the text. This poem refers to the dark side of love and relationships several times, for example; “Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips.” This creates a different atmosphere to the stereotypical love poems, which are known for their mention of red roses and satin hearts. Although the title gives us an impression of a cliché-filled poem, as we continue reading, the poem seems like more of a warning than an encouragement to involve oneself in relationships and commitment,

The two poems “Magic of Love” by Helen Farries and “Love Poem” by John Frederick Nims are both poems with the central theme of love. The ways that these two authors express this theme differ significantly from each other and show two spectrums of love in literature. Through their use of syntax, diction, rhyme, and meter, these poets portray love in a unique and personal manner that illicit specific emotions from the reader for a variety of possible reasons, which will be analyzed in this essay.

Love has a voice that speaks to everyone differently. For some people it is a gentle whisper, but for others it is a scream, yearning to be noticed. Love is a common theme in literature, discussed in many works. Love is a very broad term, that can be defined in many different ways. Love has many characteristics, with many individual interpretations. In this essay, I will be talking about three poems: Robert Graves’ Symptoms of Love, Bob McKenty’s Adam’s Song, and Muriel Stuart’s In the Orchard. Each of these poems demonstrates their own meaning of love, and each author interprets love in their own different ways.

In this essay I shall explore the way poets Phillip Larkin and Elizabeth Jennings both show love. For Larkin I shall look at An Arundel tomb and Wild Oats and for Jennings I shall look at Absence and Disguises.

The Romantic Period was an explosion of artistic energy from 1790-1820, which began in Germany and quickly spread to the United States, almost all of Europe, and Latin America. It was a period full of emotion, intuition, intense feelings, and the revolt against any authority or order. Those in this time idealized nature and embraced the uncivilized, and imagination was a key component to their writing and way of thinking. Steven Kreis, author for The History Guide writes, “…one power possessed by the Romantic…was imagination…” (Kreis 1).

True love is an idea many people desire as when one is in love, they are at their greatest as a human. William Shakespeare, regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language, influenced many people with his dramatic and emotional stories. Elizabeth Browning was a female poet during the Victorian era who wrote poetry which showed her independence and courageousness based off her standpoints. Through Elizabeth Browning and William Shakespeare, the concept of true love is translated through imagery, author’s interpretation, and mood to express this.

The Romantic Period of literature took place roughly 200 years ago, but examples of Romanticism can still be seen today. The Romantic authors most certainly had an impact on many artists to come. Edgar Allan Poe is often a name that comes to mind when discussing Romanticism and especially Dark Romanticism and for good reason. Poe exemplifies Romanticism and many examples can be seen in his work, such as the House of Usher. Some traits of Romanticism include high drama, pathetic fallacy, and shocking climax, which are a few pillars of the Romanticism style. These pillars still hold up in modern day art, with many filmmakers, such as M. Night Shyamalan who also exemplifies traits such as high drama, pathetic fallacy, and black and white characters.

Lasting from 1750 to 1870, the Romantic period was a “literary, artistic, and philosophical movement originating in the 18th century, characterized chiefly by a reaction against neoclassicism and an emphasis on the imagination and emotions” (Merriam-Webster).

To see love written in poetry is a common thing. There are copious forms of love as poets throughout the centuries exemplify it to be happy, physical, or even downright delusional. Love can whip its iron cast hand around one’s heart and squeeze the very breath out, or it can invigorate all senses and make one nonsensical. Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 18” and Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess” uses various formal differences such as metaphors, imagery, and irony in order to portray two ends of the love spectrum: Shakespeare’s being that romantic love is grand and beautiful while Browning offers a more darker glimpse on how obsessive and controlling love can be.

The profession and art of love is a timeless study yet differs according to time and textual features employed. Composers select particular form to best express their ideas on issues such as love and emotion, inherently influenced by their own context. ‘Sonnets of the Portuguese’ by Elizabeth Barret Browning (EBB) were initially private, personal reflections, a poetic documentation of her courtship with Robert Browning during the Victorian period. ‘The Great Gatsby’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a longer text where characters are strongly developed, falsely striving to live and accomplish the American Dream. Love is deliberately portrayed by each composer to reflect their varying contexts, opinions and forms.

The theme of love is a universal, timeless issue that has always been discussed and forever will be. People are searching for the true meaning of love and how it is different from person to person and from race to race. Everyone is amazed by how love can make people experience so many emotions and how love can bring sadness and happiness and confusion. ‘La Belle Dame Sans Merci’ By John Keats and ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ by Robert Browning for example both share the common theme of love, both lovers had to depart their loved ones whether due to societal pressures or due to the fact that the lover is from a different world. However the idea of women having power

Nayla Windham Mrs. Leah Armstrong English 102, Section 3 1 April 2015 Dangerously in Love In Anthony Hamilton’s song “Love is so Complicated,” he sings, “ Love is complicated, the way I feel about you make me wanna change my attitude.” Obsessive love can lead to many dangerous consequences in a relationship. Browning and Marvell both examine dark love in their poems. Both poets want their mistress to commit to them so they can have control over them.

Romanticism came to be in the 18th and 19th centuries which emphasized the imagination and emotions of romanticism. Many people viewed this type of literature as the quality or state of being impractical or unrealistic meaning romantic feelings or ideas. During this time many poets were encouraged to express their true colors and individual uniqueness. The Romantic Era expanded all throughout the world, and reached poets such as Keats, Byron, Shelley, and Wordsworth.