Romanticism in Literature and Art

The epochs of classicism and the Enlightenment, which prevailed for two centuries in philosophy, literature and art, ended in the French bourgeois revolution, whose progressive ideas quickly degenerated into bloody terror, executions and ideological impatience. The response to such tangible contradictions between high ideas and the very unsightly reality that they gave rise to was the emergence of a very extensive and comprehensive cultural phenomenon - romanticism - the latest in its scope and depth of ideas of direction in the history of art, which found vivid expression in literature, music and painting .

Romanticism in literature and art became the highest point of the ideas of humanism, which appeared in the Renaissance. It was then that close attention was paid to the earthly man, with his shortcomings and weaknesses, he became the center of the universe, the yardstick of everything. The results of the bourgeois revolutions, which gave rise to sharp contradictions in the minds of the youth and showed the whole inconsistency of the Enlightenment ideas, made it necessary again to pay attention to the inner world of the individual, to its originality and depth, rejecting the rational social and political ideas of universal harmony and prosperity.

Romanticism in literature and art surrounding the human world represented as a mystery and riddle, which can only be grasped by feelings, emotions and heart. Rational reality is replaced by fantastic worlds that can not be understood by reason. Only strong feelings are able to resist the world, and in strength and depth they are just as powerful as the universe.

The romantic hero always boldly challenges the world around him, he is perfectly aware of his exclusivity, he is proud of her, knowing at the same time that his death is inevitable, because he is in conflict not with individual people or social circumstances, but with the whole universe. Romanticism in literature and art deeply and with great love depicts the inner world of the hero, his strong emotional experiences. And these experiences are endless, because romantic heroes are a tangle of contradictions. Rioting against the imperfect world, one of them rushes upward, trying to achieve perfection, equal to God, others, on the contrary, plunge into the frightening depths of evil and vice.

Romanticism in literature as differently builds artistic space. Some romantic writers are trying to find an ideal in the Middle Ages, where they see a cleaner and uncomplicated time, others project utopias, creating ideal models of the future. But they are all trying to get away from the present, where, apart from the miserable bourgeois reality, there is nothing.

Romanticism in literature has become the founder of new forms and formulated new tasks that remain relevant today. Romantic writers created new content, offered new artistic images, where the main thing is rebellion against gray and ordinary, and the hero turns into an integral and harmonious person, comprehending and embracing with his unusual and powerful personality not only the laws of earthly existence, but also heavenly ideals.

Romanticism in art and literature has shaped the principles of nationality and historicism, which have become fundamental in the further development of art. Another interesting undertaking of this trend was the theory of romantic irony, formulated by the theoretician, the German philosopher F. Schlegel. He proclaimed the great role of art as the perfect instrument of cognition and transformation of the world, respectively, the artists of Romanticism are great creators who are equal to God. But it was also clear that anyone, even the most talented artist, is only a man, and his view of the world is subjective and limited. The theory of romantic irony and became the answer to this contradiction between the ideal in romantic art and reality. Schlegel argued that the irony must necessarily be present in the artist's view not only of the surrounding world, but also of himself, the creative process and its result. Thus, the creator confesses his imperfection and inability to create an ideal, as he is unable to unravel the riddle of the world and the universe.