Romantic+Era

Durring the romantic time period writers began to expand their minds on subjects and topics that have never been touched before.The American and French Revolutions, along with changes in their governments, helped to shape the writers of the Romantic Period.Writers of this era questioned topics in their writings such as: love of nature, emotions vs. rationality, the artist, the creator, religion, society and government/nationalism.Writers of the era were more carefree and personal in their writings rather than structured and "here's what I think, this is why-believe it."
 * The Romantic Era **

-**Some examples of Romantic Writing** Ode to a Nightingale
 * In this poem we are confronted with two oppisites. The Nightingale, which represents the being of unlimited happiness, and Keats himself which is a depressed man searching for happiness in the world. He finally finds it one day while listening to the song of the Nightingale. He describes it as being, " to happy in thine happiness" (Keats, "Ode to a Nightingale"). Seeing the bird, or the altimate symbole of happiness, vexes Keats. It makes him jealous, wishing that he himself was a nightingale so that he would no longer have to suffer throught the tribulations of life. He also uses many refrences to nature saying how it showes the beauty in life and it is never changing. He wants to live in the Nightingals lovely song, never having to worry about the struggles of life again.
 * How does this poem relate to the time period?
 * 1) it has many references to nature
 * 2) it has deep thought, transforming a simple Nightingale which most people view as a common bird, to a symbolic figure that vexes the writer
 * 3) it is very emotional in talking about his life, and how it is dark and depressing.
 * 4) It uses a great amount of imagery to describe the personal thoughts of the writer.

The problem with the Age of Reason was it left little room for creativity. Creativity is how we individualize ourselves, express ourselves and escape from our lives for a while. The romantic era was a necessary correction to the Age of Reason with authors writing with more feeling than thought.

The age of reason had questioned traditional beliefs and values. The Romantic ideas gained popularity as criticisms of the 18th century Age of Reason. People were unhappy with the main ideals of Enlightenment and with the society they were producing.

Writing in the romantic era transported the reader to a different, usually better, place. Love and mystery were featured heavily. It is easy to understand why the common man would be more entertained by this romantic writing than the scientific writing popular during the previous period. The common man was also caught up in the idea that one did not have to be educated or part of the nobility in order to create something of value. Previously, works that were complicated and filled with allusions and grandiosity were valued. During the Romantic Era, simplicity and naturalness were favored. These were considered to come most easily from the “spontaneous outpourings of the untutored common people.”

William Blake

Willaim Blake was one of the figureheads of the Romantic Period. He wrote many poems but two of his most well known ones are "the Tyger" and "the Lamb". These poems are interrelated and deal alot about the devil and Jesus, respectively. Blake's works are predomitaly focused on religion, but he occasionaly strays from that path to write about whatever he feels like. -Alex Ilg

"The Tyger and The Lamb"

These were two poems written by William Blake and show a conflict of good vs evil. The Lamb has is the pure creature and The Tyger is the devilish creature. These two poems appeal to a question that many people have asked themselves. Did the same God that created all the good in the world also create all the bad? Why? The Lamb is conveyed as Jesus which in turn is God and The Tyger is represented by evilness and brutality, such as the devil. Blake puts emphasis on The "Tyger" and In the "Lamb" to stress his point of the Lamb and the Tyger symbolzing something else, to build structure for the poem. Both poems share an AABB rhyme scheme and are both in regular meter. The Tyger is an examination of the horrors in the world, while The Lamb is more towards a precious, innocent creature. The Tyger was created six years after the Lamb and shows a more realistic look at life than the Lamb. The Tyger is from the add-on anthology //The Songs of Experience// while the Lamb is from the add-on anthology //The Songs of Innocence.// //-Vince Maund//