Romanticism in English Literature

Romanticism in English Literature

The Romantic Period of English Literature was one of the major periods of English literature in England and whole world. The French Revolution was important influence on the social and political thinking of many Romantic writers, poets, Novelist and many others at this time. The Agricultural Revolution and the Industrial Revolution also have important in the history of Romanticism. The Industrial Revolution created social and economical changes in England. Within a short period the whole landscape of England changed.

English Romantic Literature is best known for the six major poets writing in the late 18th century and the first quarter of 19th century. William Blake, William Wordsworth, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge were the early Romantic Poets, Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley and John Keats came after 1817.  Jane Austen was a great novelist at that time, her six best novels appeared anonymously between 1811 and 1818. 

One most important point is some Romantic writers are very much interested in the past and mythology. William Blake himself create mythology, Urizen is the example of his mythology. William Blake makes extensive use of symbolism in his poetry, image of childhood also have a central place in his poetry. Walter Scott wrote about the middle ages because he was interested in the middle ages. P.B. Shelley and John Keats turned into the Greek Myth and Egyptian Myth, they gives a new significance to ancient figures of legends. 

The Short Overview Of This Age

Monarchies of The Romantic Age:

King George III (1760-1820)

King George IV (1820-1830)

King William IV (1830-1837)

Major Poets:

William Blake (1757-1827)

William Wordsworth (1770-1850)

S.T. Coleridge (1772-1834)

Robert Southey (1774-1843)

Lord Byron (1788-1824)

P.B. Shelley (1772-1822)

John Keats (1795-1821)

Major Novelist:

Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832)

Jane Austen (1775-1817)

Mary Shelley (1797-1851)

Miscellaneous Prose Writer:

Charles Lamb (1775-1834)

Thomas De Quincey (1785-1859)

William Hazlitt (1778-1830)

William Cobbett (1762-1835)