Concetti Chiave
- The II generation of Romantic poets, including Byron, Shelley, and Keats, emerged in the early 19th century and ended in 1837 with the rise of the Victorian Age.
- Byron, Shelley, and Keats shared common traits: they died young, were socially committed, and opposed tyranny.
- Byron, known for his scandalous life, created the "Byronic hero," characterized by nobility, mysterious origins, and a brooding, solitary nature.
- John Keats, a precursor to the aesthetic movement, focused on the transience of life and sought to capture beauty without moral or social messages.
- Keats' life, marked by personal and financial struggles, greatly influenced his poetry, emphasizing themes of impermanence and the search for enduring beauty.
II generation of Romantic poets
Time setting
The II generation of Romantic poets took place at the beginning of 19 th century, in the 20s and 30s. In 1837 there is the end of Romanticism and the start of The Victorian Age.
Main poets
- Byron
- Shelley
- J. Keats
Byron and Shelley has 3 common features:
- They died young;
- They were socially committed;
- They were rebel of the tyranny.
Byron’s life
Byron was noble but not rich. He was very handsome but a little lame.
Byronic hero
It is a quite autobiographical creation, a rebel who puts himself against tyranny. His main features are:
- he is noble;
- He has mysterious origins;
- He is hard outside but tender inside;
- He is very good looking, attracting both woman and man;
- He is a lonely man, moody – who can swing from moments of enthusiasm to moments of melancholy.
John Keats
Keats is second only to Shakespeare. He was the foreigner of the aesthetic movement, followed by Oscar Wild.
He was affected by the sense of impending death (caused by financial, health and love problems).
John Keats’ Life
His life is very important to understand his poetry. He has a very short life, he was born in London in 1795 into an humble family but well of. His father was a stable-keeper, but he died very soon. John Keats studied in order to became an apothecary surgeon but he left his studies because he felt his mission was writing. He wasn’t appreciated and so he couldn’t receive any salary. Moreover he was sick – in his family run the mortal disease of tuberculosis. Meanwhile he was fallen in love with a young lady, Fanny Brown but he could not marry her because he was really poor. He had a turn in Island (by foot and horses and in bad conditions) and he became seriously ill, so he decided to move to Italy.
He moved to Italy in 1820, he lived in Pink House in ‘Piazza Spagna’. He died there and he is buried in the protestant cemetery in Rome. His house was changed into a museum. On his grave there is written ‘here lies one whose name was written in water’: he believed nobody would never know him.
John Keats’ Themes
- Transience of life
- He looks for something permanent
- Not moral/social message: he only wants to write of beauty. There are two types of beauty
1) Physical beauty (a woman, a landscape), fated to die
2) Spiritual beauty (art), last forever
Domande da interrogazione
- Quali sono le caratteristiche comuni tra Byron e Shelley?
- Qual è la figura del "Byronic hero" e quali sono le sue caratteristiche principali?
- Quali sono i temi principali nella poesia di John Keats?
- Come la vita di John Keats ha influenzato la sua poesia?
Byron e Shelley condividono tre caratteristiche comuni: morirono giovani, erano impegnati socialmente e si ribellavano alla tirannia.
Il "Byronic hero" è una creazione autobiografica di Byron, un ribelle contro la tirannia. Le sue caratteristiche principali includono nobiltà, origini misteriose, un aspetto esteriore duro ma un animo tenero, bellezza attraente e una natura solitaria e lunatica.
I temi principali nella poesia di John Keats includono la transitorietà della vita, la ricerca di qualcosa di permanente e la celebrazione della bellezza, sia fisica che spirituale, senza un messaggio morale o sociale.
La vita di John Keats, segnata da problemi finanziari, di salute e d'amore, ha influenzato profondamente la sua poesia, portandolo a esplorare temi come la transitorietà della vita e la ricerca della bellezza eterna.
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