Romanticism in Historical Perspective Author(s): Lilian R. Furst Reviewed work(s): Source: Comparative Literature Studies, Vol. 5, No. 2 (Jun., 1968), pp. 115-143 Published by: Penn State University Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40467744 . Accessed: 16/02/2012 09:05 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Penn State University Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Comparative Literature Studies. http://www.jstor.org Romanticism in HistoricalPerspective LILIAN R. FÜRST ABSTRACT This articlegives a chronologicalsurvey of theemergence of theRoman- ticmovements in England,France, and Germany.The spreadof new ideas is tracedfrom country to countryin thesuccessive waves of Romanticwrit- ingbetween 1750 and 1830.The principalaim is to ascertainthe correct sequenceand historicalperspective; for by recognizingthat Romanticism wasnot a simultaneousoutburst, but rather a seriesof distinctupsurges, a sounderbasis is establishedfor the exploration of themaze of similarities and differenceslinking the Romantic movements in Europe.[L. R. F.] No subject in the whole fieldof comparativeliterary studies has provokedas much criticalwriting as Romanticism.And rightlyso, for none indeed so insistentlydemands, and so richlyrewards, a broad approach embracingseveral literatures. But all the attempts to discern the salient featuresof European Romanticism,all the argumentsas to its fundamentalunity or otherwise,and all the tentativedefinitions seem to be based on the assumption that simultaneousoutbursts of Romanticismoccurred in various coun- triesabout the beginningof thenineteenth century. This was simply not the case: the spread of Romanticismis characterizedby curious time lags and unexpected spurts.In fact the movement'sexternal historysheds so much lighton its inner nature that a chronological survey,though apparently an elementaryexercise in literaryhistory, is a necessaryand potentiallyilluminating preliminary to any fur- 115 116 COMPARATIVE LITERATURE STUDIES ther discussion.To establish the correctsequence and perspective not only obviatessome, at least,of the more commonmisapprehen- sionsbut also createsa sounderbase fromwhich to explore themaze of Romanticmovements in Europe. "Une arisede la conscienceeuropéenne": x thisis the succinctand telling phrase chosen by van Tieghem to describe the Romantic movementin Europe. The claim that it was far more than just another literarymovement is not based primarilyon the sheer extent,the expanse of Romanticism,though it is in fact true that no other literarymovement has ever evoked such a wide response throughoutEurope. The real significanceof Romanticism as a "crise de la conscienceeuropéenne" lies not in its mere quantity, but in the quality of the changes it implied. For Romanticism broughtnot just a greaterfreedom and a new technique; thesewere only the outer manifestationsof a complete and deep-seatedre- orientation,not to say revolution,in the mannersof thought,per- ception, and consequentlyof expressiontoo. The nature of this revolutionhas recentlybeen outlinedin vivid termsby Isaiah Berlin who definedit as a "shiftof consciousness"that "crackedthe back- 2 bone of European thought." That backbone had been the belief in the possibilityof a rational comprehensionof the universe.When the rationalisticapproach was applied to the arts as well as to the emergentphysical sciences, it resultedin thoserigid pronouncements on the immutable 'rules' of literaturethat were the bane of Neo- classicism.This dogmatismwas firstcautiously questioned and then vehementlyrejected in the course of the eighteenthcentury, and finallythe old standardswere ousted by the Romantics'new criteria and values. In place of the Neoclassicalideals of rationalism,tradi- tionalism,and formal harmony,the Romantics emphasized indi- vidualism, imagination,and emotion as their guiding principles. Hence the old 'rules' of 'good taste,'regularity, and conformitygave way to the unbridled creativeurge of the original genius, and the ideal of a smoothbeauty was scornedin favourof a dynamicout- pouring of feeling. A new mode of imaginative perceptiongave birthto a whole new vocabularyand new formsof artisticexpres- sion: this is the essenceof that "crise de la conscienceeuropéenne? which lies at the heart of the Romanticrevolution, and thisis also perhaps as near an approximationto a definitionof Romanticism as is possible.It may not have the neatnessof a snappycatchphrase (such as 'the returnto nature' or 'the cult of the extinct'),but it is ROMANTICISM IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE 117 sufficientlycomprehensive and sufficientlyplain to serveas a viable workingbasis. This reorientationoccurred in varyingdegrees throughout Europe in the latterpart of the eighteenthand the early yearsof the nine- teenthcenturies. In thissense Romanticismcan rightlybe regarded as a European phenomenonthat can be appreciatedin all its impli- cationsonly by means of a comparativestudy. Many of the Roman- ticsthemselves were well aware of the supranationalcharacter of the movement:the brothersSchlegel consciouslycherished the notion of a specificallyEuropean Romantic literatureas part of theirstriv- ing foran all-embracing'universal poetry/ and both Coleridgeand Novalis hoped for an eventual European reintegration.Perhaps these cosmopolitantendencies of the Romantics have encouraged criticsto seekout the commondenominators of the Romanticmove- mentsand to overemphasizethe similaritiesbetween the literatures of variouscountries. The 'familylikeness' which certainly meets the eye can be traced back to the communal ancestryof Romanticism throughoutEurope, which springsfrom one and the same momen- tous spiritualand intellectualreorientation. To delve into the originsof thisrevolution is beyondthe scope of this study. The firstunmistakable signs of impending change manifestedthemselves before the middle of the eighteenthcentury, and in thisearliest phase - say 1740 to 1770- it is England thatwas to the fore.As early as 1742, Young, inspiredby personal griefat the death of his daughter and of a friend,published his Night Thoughts,which were followedin 1745 by Akenside'sPleasures of Imagination.Historically these two workshave much in commonin that theystand midwaybetween the conventionalmoralism of the age and a freshoutlook which admitsimagination to respectability in poetic practice.Imagination, according to Akenside,"diffuses its enchantment"and makes the soul "to that harmoniousmovement 8 fromwithout / Responsive": no verystartling claim as yet,but at least a firstglimmer of a recognitionof the powersof the imagina- tion. The personal melancholyand the funerealcult of the Night Thoughts were reiterated in Hervey's Meditations Among the Tombs (1746) and Gray'sElegy Writtenin a CountryChurchyard (1751) withtheir awareness of the fleetingnessand pathosof human Ufe,their preference for darkness, solitude, the evocationof solemn, somberscenes. The slightlymoralizing sensibility of the period is as apparentin these poems as in the novels of Richardsonand his 118 COMPARATIVE LITERATURE STUDIES imitators.This sensibilitywas deeply affectedby Macpherson's Fingal (1762) which,together with Percy'sReliques (1765), laid the foundationsfor the subsequentpopularity of supposedlynaive folk- poetry,the natural utterancesof primitive,spontaneous genius. Macpherson'sconcoctions, purporting to be a transcriptionfrom the ancientbard Ossian, made a particularlystrong impression through- out Europe with their highly-colouredintrigues, their gloomy Northernsetting, their whole oùtlandishness,and, above all, their rhythmicprose, which seemed so muchmore poetic than the poetry of the earlyeighteenth century: Starof descendingnight! fair is thylight in thewest! thou liftest thy un- shornhead fromthy cloud: thysteps are statelyon thyhill. Whatdost thoubehold in theplain? The stormywinds are laid. The murmurof the torrentcomes from afar. Roaring waves climb the distant rock. The fliesof eveningare on theirfeeble wings; the hum of theircourse is on thefield. Whatdost thou behold, fair light? But thoudost smile and depart.The wavescome with joy aroundthee: theybathe thy lovely hair. Farewell, thousilent beam! Let thelight of Ossian'ssoul arise! * Alongside Ossian, the other decisive document of English pre- Romanticism,Young's Conjectureson Original Composition(1759), was of far-reachingimport as the herald of the new aesthetics.Some of Young's ideas were,it is true,already current in England among his contemporaries,notably in the discoursesof Burke,Thomas and Joseph Warton, and William Sharpe. But never beforehad these ideas been stated as cogentlyas in the Conjectures;by his clear- sighteddistinctions between imitation and originality,the ancients and the moderns,learning and genius,the observationof rules and the energyof the inspiredenthusiast, Young was crucial in precipi- tatingthe reorientationaway fromthe old accepted notions. Here for the firsttime, the superiorityof the new ideals was proclaimed beyond a shadow of doubt: "An Original may be said to be of a vegetablenature;