The Romantic Period implies that the period reflects a time of whirlwind and old-fashioned romance. But, it does not. The misconception of the period is common and anyone can make such errors about the true meaning of the Romanticism. The Romantic Era in literature is the period that saw many writers placing fundamental significance on the emotions and on the individual. While the Romantic period lasted for approximately thirty years, it revolutionized the way individuals see literature today. Literary critics points to romanticism as the principal artistic movement in the latter part of the 1700s. The influence of the era travelled across the continents and artistic discipline and into the middle of the nineteenth century. Many of the principles and beliefs of Romanticism appear in contemporary poetry.
Literary critics find it difficult to ascertain the exact moment that the romanticism started. But, it is clear that the Romantic Movement appeared in many literary pieces in the middle to late eighteenth century. Romanticism appeared in the works of the brothers Grimm, the Augustan poets, political events, and uprisings that fashioned patriotic pride. Interestingly, the Romantic poets promoted individuality, admiration or reverence for the natural world, emotional and physical passion, a strong interest in the supernatural, and finally, idealism. A romantic writing opposes rationality and order in the neoclassical and classical artistic principle and embraced liberty and revolution in the politics and art. In fact, “romantic ideals never died out in poetry, but were largely absorbed into the precepts of many other movements,” (“A Brief Guide to Romanticism,” par. 5).
Classicism gave way to the Romantic era and started a new style of thinking that focused largely on the past, nature, and the personal world of human nature. The early Romantic writers were differently in the structure and form they use and characterized the Romantic attitudes. The German poets Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Fredrich Schille and a number of British poets, such as Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Wordsworth, helped to boost the movement throughout the years. Interestingly, romanticism spanned the Atlantic through poets such as Edgar Allen Poe and Walt Whitman. The romantic period generated a number of stereotypes, including the misconception of the poet being a melancholy and tortured thinker. Critics not that French surrealism and symbolism reflect all of the traces of Romanticism.
During the Romantic era, there were a number of changes in the way of life f the British people. The agricultural changes were minimal when compare to the industrial changes and as the social and economic conditions brought many challenges for the people. Poets capitalized on these changes and wrote about the negative impact of the changes in the society. Nonetheless, a review of “The Romantic Period,” points to the fact that “writers working in the time period from 1785 to 1830 did not think of themselves as “Romantics,” but belonged to a number of distinct movements or schools,” (par.2). The preconception of these writers suggests that the Romantic writer presented a unified “concept of Romanticism on the basis of their works,” (par.4). Surprisingly, some of the most outstanding writers of the Romantic era were women. Writers, such as Charlotte Smith, Anna Barbauld, and Mary Robinson became targets of masculine scorn.
The Romantic Age did not have a queen of a king at the center of the society, but the Industrial Revolution had a great impact on the writing styles and beliefs. The Romantic Period spanned from 1784 to 1832. One could say that the Romantic writers introduced an imaginative, but brave individualistic approach to life and literature. Throughout the era, the individual rather than the society was at the center of the writings. In essence, individualism was at the center of the Romantic vision. In addition, romanticism symbolizes an effort to rediscover the mysterious marvel of the world. One could say that the events of the French Revolution of the late seventeenth century and early eighteenth centuries, added to the depth and scope of many Romantic writers. These writers wanted freedom and equality for individuals. The Industrial Revolution was changing England from a rural society to a nation of factories (Fuller, 280).
Samuel Coleridge was one of the most prolific writers in the Romantic era. In the British literary history, Coleridge is one of the most-intellectual Romantic writers. His widespread foray into decisive writing showed that he was an unrelenting and passionate writer. However, Coleridge did not see himself as a serious writer even though his gift of telling stories was well-known. He published a number of his great works under the pseudonyms STC, Nehemiah Higginbottom, Silas Tomkyn Comerbache, and Estisi. Literary critics note that these light-hearted pseudonyms deliberately mocked Coleridge’s personal style of writing.
Born in Devonshire in 1772, Coleridge was the youngest of fourteen children. He was a brilliant scholar from early in his life and his academic achievements continued throughout his life. Nevertheless, Coleridge experimented with negative companions such as alcohol, opium, and women. After Coleridge finished college, he joined the Dragoons for a little while, and then quickly married Sara Southey. Most of Coleridge’s economic support came through his work as a Unitarian preacher. Coleridge life was not smooth, but he remained in an incompatible marriage for a short time. During his marriage, he focused on his love of writing. It was no surprise when Coleridge fell in love with Sara Hutchinson after he penned “Lyrical Ballads.” However, his marriage forced him to channel his love for Wordsworth future sister-in-law into his poetry. One could argue that the success of these poems rested in the love that Coleridge felt for Hutchinson.
William Wordsworth came into Coleridge’s life in the late 1790s, and ensuing friendship developed. The artistic and intellectual exchanges ended with the Lyrical Ballads 1798. During time, Coleridge penned “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” Critics note that the anthology formed an integral part of the Romantic Movement as Coleridge and Wordsworth exemplified the assessment of the routine, ordinary, and extremely subjective aspects of literature. Coleridge used simple language in these poems and steered clear of the superficial styles of writing and sophisticated rhyme schemes that was common to most writers in the era. However, Coleridge deviated from his simple style of writing in the "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” His use of a more complex rhyming scheme and language stemmed from the influences of Middle English.
Thomas and Josiah Wedgewood played an important role in Coleridge’s life as they granted him a hundred and fifty pounds which would help him in his literary career. Coleridge became disenchanted with the political events in France and he visited Germany during 1798 to 1799 with his friends William and Dorothy Wordsworth. It was during this visit that Coleridge became interested in the philosophy of Immanuel Kant. One could say that Coleridge’s inner intellectual motivations and his interest in Kant led him to study philosophy and mastered German at the Gottingen University. During 1809 to 1819, Coleridge wrote and edited his political and literary magazine “The Friend” with Sara Hutchinson. In addition, Coleridge became one of the most sought after Shakespearean critics. As a result, he gave numerous lecture on Shakespeare’s work.
Coleridge’s travels to foreign lands made serious changes in his actions. These changes worried his longtime friend, Wordsworth. He had developed an addiction to opium and this addiction increased with time. Eventually, the relationships that Coleridge had with Wordsworth and his wife suffered. In 1810, historical records show that the strain in Wordsworth’s and Coleridge’s relationship led to a breakdown that never returned to its close bond. Coleridge’s life was a mess, and during the last eighteen years of his life, Coleridge moved in with a doctor to help him to deal with his suicidal thoughts. Coleridge published the unfinished versions of “Christabel” and “Kubla Khan” while he was in the doctor’s care. These pieces became the representation of the Romantic poetry.
Coleridge died in 1834 at the age of sixty-one. After his death, Charles Lamb noted that he would not grieve for Coleridge as Coleridge possessed a special hunger for eternity and death served as a fulfillment to these deep desires. After Coleridge's died “his widow prepared a one-volume edition of the Poems, which was published by Pickering, (Coleridge, p.9). His wife removed eleven juvenilia of the publication in 1834, but, later “in 1850, Mrs. H. N. Coleridge included in the third volume of the Essays on His Own Times six poems and numerous epigrams and jeux d'esprit which had appeared in the Morning Post and Courier,” (Coleridge, p. 9). This version now represents the complete works of Samuel Coleridge.
Most of Coleridge’s poems have the common themes of childhood, innocence, man’s relationship with dreams or sleep, and nature. Critics note that there are no boundaries to the perspective of the themes as Coleridge presents such themes of childhood in his adult speaker in “Sonnet: To the River Otter” or his discussions on his hopes for his son in “The Nightingale” and “Frost at Midnight.” Conversely, Coleridge’s poems reflect a glorification of the lighthearted innocence of childhood and nature. One could say that Coleridge believes that childhood shapes the destiny of adults as his ultimate bond with opium was the result of his early life in the city. Through his poems, Coleridge hopes to build a positive connection between nature and his son as he ensures that his son grows up in the countryside. Critics note that the innocence of one’s childhood innocence and free-spirit creates the hope that Coleridge cannot obtain as an adult. Therefore, he uses his poetry to extend and intensify the experience for the future generation.
“The Nightingale,” “Sonnet: To the River,” “Frost at Midnight,” “Christabel,” “Kubla Khan,” and “Dejection: An Ode” are six of Coleridge’s most popular poems. His use of “conversation” approach to writing poetry reflects his use of a one-sided dialogue to speak to his silent listeners. Bruce Lawder opines “if a poem is to be a conversation, or the imitation of a conversation, then it will have to consist of a speaker and a person spoken to,” (Lawder, p.67). it is not surprising then that Coleridge converses with his friends and son in his poems. The poet speaks to the “Lady” in "Dejection: An Ode, line 47), and later, in the final stanza he directs his words at an absent person. In “Frost at Midnight,” Coleridge speaks to his son, Hartley, “Dear Babe, that sleepest cradled by my side,” (Mays, p. 863) as he reflects on his early years in the city. Kelly Mays notes that the poem “trace[s] a development in the speaker’s perceptions of [himself] or the world,” (Mays, p.862) in which he lives. In addition, Coleridge’s childhood nostalgia forces him to want to return to his birthplace. As a result, he commits himself to helping his son to develop an intimate relationship with nature. On the other hand, “The Nightingale,” Coleridge shows his deep-seated love and appreciation for nature as he addresses William and Dorothy Wordsworth when he says “My Friend, and thou, our Sister! We have learnt/A different lore: we may not thus profane/ Nature’s sweet voices, always full of love/ And joyance! ‘Tis the merry Nightingale,” (“The Nightingale,” lines 40 – 43).
Several of Coleridge’s poems include the theme of innocence. “Frost at Midnight” and “The Nightingale” expresses happiness as the poet nurtures an idyllic lifestyle for his son. In addition, “Christabel” investigates the vulnerability and innocence of a pure childhood. Arguably, Coleridge does not see innocence as ignorance or simple. In fact, Coleridge shows innocence as the act of being pure in one’s acknowledgement and relationship with nature and other individuals. Man's and his relationship nature is a revelation of the wonders of nature. Coleridge uses this theme throughout his poetry. Specifically, “Dejection: An Ode” and “The Nightingale” shows Coleridge’s understanding that man is different from nature and as such people should strive to limit the way they develop their personal qualities on the understanding of nature’s qualities. His connection of childhood innocence to nature shows a nostalgic desire for the past in all its purity.
Coleridge’s poems reflect the idea of dreams and sleep and these ideas provide the readers with an experience of ecstasy. “Christabel” presents the main character as one that dreams at night and sees “a vision sweet”about the knight whom she will marry.” Similarly, “Kubla Khan,” presents the dream- like world that Xanadu offers. These surreal features of nature are like a “sunny pleasure-dome.” In addition, "Frost at Midnight," places a dream intertwined within a daydream as Coleridge reflects on his summer childhood experiences in the second stanza. In the poem, the child narrator looks out the window in his classroom at the natural world. He longs for the chance to run outside even though he has to study. The reader has a glimpse of the dream that the young Coleridge has of trying to escape the bonds of the classroom. This escape manifests itself in the adult Coleridge and he turns the moment of somber introspection into the frosty winter midnight.
“Kubla Khan” is one of Coleridge’s lyric poems. Critics note that Coleridge wrote the poem after he woke from his opium-induced dream concerning an Asian emperor. While the poem deals with Coleridge’s common theme of nature, there is a strong sense of the complexities of mysticism. He speaks of the “tumult” that Kubla hears from his ancestors as he sinks in “a lifeless ocean,” (“Kubla Khan, line 28). Similarly, Coleridge looks at nature in "Sonnet: To the River Otter." He explores the adult's nostalgic need for the innocence and contentment of childhood days as he reflects on the river in his childhood hometown.
In concluding, Coleridge’s poems reflect the foundations of the Romantic period. He looks at the daily experiences of his life and writes of times that impacted on his childhood. One can say that the impact has a tremendous effect on his adult life. The common themes in Coleridge’s work are easy to understand as he uses simple language throughout his writings. Although the Romantic era passed centuries ago, Coleridge’s works represent a start reminder of the importance of the era as it still shapes modern poetry.
Works Cited
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Coleridge, Ernest Hartley,(Ed.) (2009) “The Complete Poetical Works of Samuel Taylor
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W.W. Norton & Company. Print. USA. ISBN 978-0-393-91339-2
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