Augustan Romantics

Author(s):  
Matthew Scott

This chapter examines the influence and persistence of the Augustan tradition upon Romanticism. The role of Horace as an occasionally rather vexed model for both movements is used as a lens to view their complex interrelations. It begins with an account of the role of Horatian satire in framing the Romantic critique of imperialism, before moving on to discuss the Romantic pastoral tradition and its debt to Augustanism. The essay ends with an account of the satirical tradition in the Romantic period, focusing in particular on the writers in the Shelley circle and finding, in the later work of Lord Byron, the quintessential Romantic Augustan.

Author(s):  
William H. Galperin

This study is about the emergence of the everyday as both a concept and a material event and about the practices of retrospection in which it came to awareness in the romantic period in “histories” of the missed, the unappreciated, the overlooked. Prior to this moment everyday life was both unchanging and paradoxically unpredictable. By the late eighteenth century, however, as life became more predictable and change on a technological and political scale more rapid, the present came into unprecedented focus, yielding a world answerable to neither precedent nor futurity. This alternative world soon appears in literature of the period: in the double takes by which the poet William Wordsworth disencumbers history of memory in demonstrating what subjective or “poetic” experience typically overlooks; in Jane Austen, whose practice of revision returns her to a milieu that time and progress have erased and that reemerges, by previous documentation, as something different. It is observable in Lord Byron, thanks to the “history” to which marriage and domesticity are consigned not only in the wake of his separation from Lady Byron but during their earlier epistolary courtship, where the conjugal present came to consciousness (and prestige) as foredoomed but an opportunity nonetheless. The everyday world that history focalizes in the romantic period and the conceptual void it exposes in so doing remains a recovery on multiple levels: the present is both “a retrospect of what might have been” (Austen) and a “sense,” as Wordsworth put it, “of something ever more about to be.”


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 157-177
Author(s):  
Wiesława Sajdek

The objective of the article is to recall the European philosophical basis of the philosophical culture, inextricably connected with ancient Greece and its language. Plato’s philosophy is in the very core of the culture and its salient component is the doctrine of anamnesis. The elements of the doctrine are dispersed in numerous dialogues, particularly in Meno, Phaedo, Phaedrus, therefore they are given more attention. Platonic reflection on anamnesis is related to his view on the soul whose development is associated with the process of cognizing, being essentially tantamount to recalling of what the soul saw before its imprisonment in the body. The role of myth in Plato’s philosophy, as well as in European culture as a whole, has been discussed, along with the main subject. On the background of the Platonic thought, examples of its reception in Polish Renaissance philosophy and in the poetry of the Romantic period has been presented.


2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (123) ◽  
pp. 269-290
Author(s):  
Aslaug Nyrnes

Nature is a complex phenomenon; it is both a physical object and a variety of cultural imaginations and representations. The current climate crises challenge the relationship between nature and language in radically new ways. This article examines an example of what we can call the green topology, figures that are part of, and shape the climate course. Virgil's wheel is a topos from the Middle Age, traced back to the pastoral tradition of Virgil, presenting specific connections between literary style and topography. The question in this article is what perspective on nature is implicit in this thought figure. Do Virgil's wheel as a topos challenge the dominant view on nature from the Romantic period? Can we understand Vergil's wheel in opposition to an anthropocentric world-view? If so, does Vergil's wheel have ecocritic potential? The article draws on perspectives from ecocritical theory, rhetorical topological theory and Schiller's philosophy on nature and the sentimental.


Author(s):  
Rafał Rozmus

<p>Repertuar muzyki bożonarodzeniowej z lat 1945-2005 ugruntowanej na rodzimej tradycji kolędowej przedstawia się jako dość obszerna część twórczości polskich kompozytorów. Jest to zjawisko zróżnicowane, obejmujące różne sposoby traktowania materiału kolędowego, rozmaite rozwiązania z zakresu formy, techniki kompozytorskiej, wielorakie rodzaje składów wykonawczych i różnorodne odcienie ekspresji dźwiękowej. Znajdujemy tu m.in.: częste nawiązania do polskiej muzyki ludowej, stylizacje historyzujące, język romantyczny i neoromantyczny, archaizacje, emanacje nowego języka dźwiękowego (sonorystyka, punktualizm, aleatoryzm, nowoczesna harmonika, technika repetytywna, klastery). W grupie opracowań kolęd (część I: <em>Opracowania kolęd</em>) kompozytorzy najczęściej wykorzystują powszechnie znane kolędy i pastorałki. W wypadku opracowań na chór <em>a cappella</em> i opracowań wokalno-instrumentalnych inspiracja płynie zarówno z tekstu słownego, jak i z melodii opracowanej kolędy (np. przez eksponowanie jej motywów w strukturze głosów kontrapunktujących). Wśród stosowanych technik kompozytorskich dominują środki konwencjonalne, nawiązujące stylistycznie do muzyki epoki romantyzmu lub wcześniejszych epok. Sporadycznie tylko tradycyjnej melodii kolędowej towarzyszą współczesny język harmoniczny i nowe środki wyrazu. W opracowaniach pastorałek często dochodzi do głosu stylizacja polskiego folkloru muzycznego – w melodyce (np. użycie skal charakterystycznych dla muzyki niektórych regionów Polski), rytmice (wykorzystywanie rytmów tanecznych), harmonice i fakturze (puste kwinty, dźwięki burdonowe). Szczególnie często twórcy nawiązują do muzyki Podhala. Instrumentalne opracowania mają natomiast z reguły charakter użytkowy – służą do gry w kościele, celom dydaktycznym, muzykowaniu domowemu. Grupa kompozycji (część II: <em>Kompozycje</em>), które odwołują się do rodzimej tradycji kolędowo-pastorałkowej, dystansując się jednocześnie od praktyki opracowań, aranżacji itp., jest dużo bardziej zróżnicowana, zarówno pod względem tekstowym, jak i muzycznym. W utworach wokalnych i wokalno-instrumentalnych uderza rozległość warstwy literackiej, obejmującej teksty z dawnych epok, XIX w., poezję współczesną, twórczość ludową, teksty łacińskie. W ślad za tym idzie daleko posunięta różnorodność środków i technik kompozytorskich, konwencji stylistycznych i typów ekspresji. Z jednej strony pojawiają się archaizacje – nawiązania do organum, chorału gregoriańskiego, rytmiki i harmoniki modalnej, dawnych form, z drugiej – ludowe stylizacje, neobarok, kompozycje romantyzujące, dzieła oparte na współczesnym języku dźwiękowym. Równie wielką rozmaitość zauważamy w sposobach traktowania tradycyjnego materiału kolędowego, począwszy od nasycenia nim struktury motywicznej kompozycji (materiał tematyczny, imitacje, snucie motywiczne), po okazjonalne cytaty, a nawet takie sytuacje, gdzie nowo skomponowana muzyka unika cytatu, a mimo to – w różny sposób – przywołuje kolędowo-pastorałkowy nastrój. Podobnie rzecz ma się z kompozycjami instrumentalnymi. Są pośród nich takie, w których melodia kolędy staje się czynnikiem konstrukcyjnym, na drugim zaś biegunie sytuują się utwory, w którym cytat z kolędy pojawia się okazjonalnie, pełniąc rolę symbolu.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Christmas Carol as a Source of Inspiration in the Works of Polish Composers in 1945-2005</strong></p>SUMMARY<p>The repertoire of Christmas music from 1945-2005, consolidated on the native Christmas carol tradition, can be perceived as a vast part of the works of Polish composers. It is a diverse phenomenon, comprising various ways of treatment of the Christmas carol material, various solutions in the form, composer’s technique, various kinds of the artist forces, and various shadows of sound expression. We may fi nd here inter alia: frequent references to Polish folk music, historicizing stylizations, Romantic and neo-Romantic language, archaizations, emanations of a new sound language (sonorism, punctualism, aleatorism, modern harmonica, repetitive technique, clusters). In the group of adaptations of carols (Part I – Adaptation of Carols) the composers frequently make use of commonly known carols and pastorals. In the case of adaptations for a choir a cappella and vocal-instrumental adaptations, the inspiration stems from both the verbal text and melody of the adapted carol e.g. by emphasizing its motifs in the structure of counterpoint voices). Among applied composer’s techniques, conventional means dominate which stylistically refer to the music of Romantic or previous epochs. Only sporadically the traditional carol melody is accompanied by modern harmonic language and new means of expression. In the adaptation of pastorals the stylization of Polish musical folklore is very often heard – in the melody pattern (e.g. the use of scales characteristic of the music of some regions in Poland), in rhythmicity (the use of dancing rhythms), in harmony and texture (empty fi fths, bourdon sounds). The composers particularly frequently refer to the music of the Podhale region. Instrumental adaptations are usually of practical character – they serve to be played in church, for didactic purposes, to play music at home. The group of compositions (Part II – Compositions) which refers to the native carol-pastoral tradition, while at same time distancing itself from the practice of arrangements etc., is far more diverse both as far as the text and melody is concerned. In vocal and vocal-instrumental works the vastness of the literary layer is striking; it comprises the texts from old epochs, 19th century, modern poetry, folk works, and Latin texts. This is followed by a variety of means and composer’s techniques, stylistic conventions, and types of expression. On the one hand, there are archaizations – references to the organum, Gregorian chorale, rhythmicity and modal harmony of old forms, on the other hand – folk stylizations, neo-Baroque, romanticizing compositions, work based on modern sound language. We may also perceive a great variety in the way of treating traditional carol, material from fi lling with it the motif structure of the composition (thematic material, imitation, motif repetitions) to occasional citations, and even to such situations where newly composed music avoids a citation, nevertheless it refers to the carol-pastoral mood). The same applies to the instrumental compositions. There are compositions in which the melody of a carol is a constructive factor; at the opposite end there are musical pieces in which the citation from a carol appears occasionally, playing the role of a symbol.</p>


Adeptus ◽  
2015 ◽  
pp. 11-25
Author(s):  
Thibault Deleixhe

The historic novel under the vigilance of the censor – analysis of textsThis article focuses on the relation that Jacek Bochenski’s historical novel entitled The poet Naso published in 1969 presents towards the concept of censorship. In the article the author aims at proving that the understanding of censorship by Bochenski is similar to the observations of the Hungarian essayist Mikos Haraszti. Tracking the allegoric references scattered through the novel, the author of the article reconstructs Bochenski’s reflection about this internalized censorship and checks its convergence with Haraszti’s remarks. From this exercise emerges a definition of the role of the artist that seems to be inherited from the romantic period: an artist as a person that subordinates himself unconditionally to art, and not to the temporal power. The author of the article then interrogates the respect which Bochenski has been showing to his definition in his literary work. It appears that the writer has been prone to make bigger concessions in order to soften the reception of his book by the censors than he advises his writing colleagues. However, the literary strategies deployed by Bochenski operate on two levels: creating an overall ambiguity about the guilt of its main protagonist, they tend to soften its reception by the censorship; while at the same time, rendering this overall atmosphere of ambiguity, they give a literary form to the spectral character of the guilt of the artist, who – as in Ovidius’ case – is permanently accountable for what he has not yet done in the building of communism. Powieść historyczna pod czujnym okiem cenzora – analiza tekstówArtykuł poświęcony jest  powieści historycznej Jacka Bocheńskiego pt. Nazo poeta z roku 1969 i jego rozumieniu pojęcia cenzury uwewnętrznionej. Autor artkułu udowadnia, że ujęcie problemu cenzury przez Bocheńskiego jest zbliżone do konstatacji węgierskiego eseisty Miklósa Harasztiego. Tropiąc alegoryczne odniesienia do cenzury rozproszone w tej powieści, autor artykułu odtwarza refleksję Bocheńskiego i sprawdza jej zbieżność z uwagami Harasztiego. Z rekonstrukcji wyłania się, zapożyczona z okresu romantyzmu, definicja artysty jako osoby bezwarunkowo podporządkowanej sztuce, a nie władzy. Autor artykułu testuje czy Bocheński pozostaje wierny tej definicji we własnej twórczości i uwypukla skłonność pisarza do ustępstw mających na celu złagodzenie odbioru jego dzieła przez cenzurę. Są to ustępstwa większe od tych, które zdaje się zalecać swoim kolegom po fachu. Strategie literackie, które stosuje Bocheński, działają jednak na dwóch płaszczyznach. Tworząc niejednoznaczność winy głównego bohatera powieści, łagodzą jej odbiór przez cenzurę, a jednocześnie – kreując tę niejednoznaczność – pozwalają na literackie przedstawienie widmowego charakteru winy artysty, który jest zawsze odpowiedzialny – tak jak Owidiusz – za to, czego jeszcze nie zrobił. W tym wypadku czego nie zrobił dla budowy komunizmu.


2002 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 193
Author(s):  
Diego Saglia

Legends and tales of Islamic Granada were among the most frequently re-elaborated exotic subjects in British Romantic literature. A popular theme in the early decades of the nineteenth century, Spanish Orientalism attracted both famous writers such as Lord Byron, Joanna Baillie, Washington Irving, Felicia Hemans or Letitia Landon, and less familiar ones such as Lord Porchester, George Moir and Lady Dacre. This essay concentrates on one component of the myth of Granada which enjoyed great diffusion in Romantic-period literature, the tale of the Moor's Last Sigh and the tears shed by the last Muslim monarch on leaving his capital forever after the Christian conquest in 1492. The aim is to illustrate how, in migrating from its original context, this tale comes to signify and emblematize issues of gender and notions of history as progress specific to British culture. The poetic texts examined here employ the Spanish-Orientalist myth to elaborate ideas of masculinity and femininity, as well as reflections on power and its extinction, the fall of empires and the emergence of new states. Thus King Boabdil's tears were exotically popular also because they were removed from their original meaning and import, and refashioned into vehicles for ideological concerns proper to British Romantic-period culture


The Oxford Handbook of British Romanticism offers a comprehensive guide to the literature and thought of the Romantic period, and an overview of recent research. Written by a team of international experts, the Handbook analyses all aspects of the Romantic movement, pinpointing its different historical phases and analysing the intellectual and political currents which shaped them. It gives particular attention to devolutionary trends, exploring the English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish strands in ‘British’ Romanticism and assessing the impact of the constitutional changes that brought into being the ‘United Kingdom’ at a time of political turbulence and international conflict. It also gives extensive coverage to the publishing and reception history of Romantic writing, highlighting the role of readers, reviewers, publishers, and institutions in shaping Romantic literary culture and transmitting its ideas and values. Divided into ten sections, the Handbook covers key themes and concepts in Romantic studies as well as less chartered topics such as freedom of speech, literature and drugs, Romantic oratory, and literary uses of dialect. All the major male and female Romantic authors are included, along with numerous less well-known names, the emphasis throughout being on the diversity of Romantic writing and the complexities and internal divisions of the culture that sustained it. The structure of the volume, and the titling of sections and chapters, strike a balance between familiarity and novelty so as to provide both an accessible guide to current thinking and a conceptual reorganization of this fast-moving field.


2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-158
Author(s):  
CHARLOTTE MAY

This article faithfully reproduces a letter from Lord Holland to Samuel Rogers, including deletions, hyphenated words, underlines, and paragraphs, to evidence how Samuel Rogers interceded in the suppression of a fifth edition of Byron’s English Bards and Scotch Reviewers. Rogers’s knowledge of the publishing market, its publishing houses and successful authors, made him one of the most formidable and important of Byron’s acquaintances and contemporaries in the 1810s. This article demonstrates the important role of Rogers as an individual whose political negotiations and literary advice impacted the literary landscape of the Romantic period. The decision to suppress the fifth edition of English Bards also shows how Byron navigated literary and political opinion, as well as the role of sociability in the production and genetics of literary text. Professional authorship in the Romantic period was performed within this context of social networks.


Author(s):  
Simon Bainbridge

This chapter examines the influence of mountaineering’s demanding physical activities and challenging situations on Romantic-period literature, contesting later constructions of ‘Romanticism’ that see the period’s response as essentially imaginative and transcendent. It investigates the development of rock climbing from the 1790s to the 1820s, examining the activities and writings of a number of pioneer climbers. It then focuses on William Wordsworth’s and Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s climbing writing, showing how the specific physical activities, environment, and emotions involved in climbing were productive of visionary states. It investigates Wordsworth’s presentation of the role of ‘fear’ in his mountain-based development in The Prelude. The chapter concludes with an examination of Coleridge’s mountaineering writings, exploring the relationship between mountaineering and writing, the poet’s attitude to risk, and his ambivalent construction of his mountaineering identity.


2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (127) ◽  
pp. 131-152
Author(s):  
Lasse Raaby Gammelgaard

The article contributes to research into the topos of furor poeticus or poetic madness and its prominence during the romantic period. In particular, it compares how the life story of the mad Italian poet from the Renaissance, Torquato Tasso, was represented in fictionalized versions across media and art forms. Romantic versions of Tasso’s life in drama (Wolfgang Goethe and B. S. Ingemann), poetry (Lord Byron), painting (Eugène Delacroix) and instrumental music (Franz Liszt) are analyzed with the aim of highlighting which aspects of Tasso’s life are portrayed, how the affordances of the medium affect the depiction and how intermedial references and transpositions are in play. In addition to intermediality theory, the transmedial narratology of Werner Wolf is introduced and employed to compare to what degree the different media and art forms can convey prototypical aspects of narrativity. Moving from the most prototypical to the least prototypical narrative genre, the article finds that the more representations of Tasso focus on his time spent in a madhouse, the more the narrative stresses experientiality at the expense of investment in plot development. The affordances of strong narrative media and strong and weak narrative-inducing media may highlight different aspects of the experientiality of furor poeticus, but in all cases the representation of Tasso is performed in an innovative romantic style.


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