Concetti Chiave
- Pre-Romantic poets favored subjective, emotional themes over intellectual ones, contrasting with the Augustan poets' style.
- They emphasized rural origins and melancholy, using nature's wildness as a backdrop for emotional expression.
- Gothic novels emerged as a response to industrialization, highlighting social issues and the loss of individual significance.
- Key Gothic elements included terrifying settings, supernatural beings, and complex plots that emphasized mystery and fear.
- Gothic literature often featured themes of forbidden knowledge and individualism, critiquing societal norms.
New trends in poetry (pre-Romanticism)
In the second half of the 18th century poets established new trends in poetry which managed to pave the way for the Romantic age.Later poets showed a tendency to use subjective, autobiographical material. They were less intellectual and more emotional than the Augustan poets. The poetry was traditionally reflective for the sake of generalized reflections, flowing from a balanced presentation of a variety of emotional states. There is also a re-evaluation of rural origins and a sense of melancholy and sadness.
Pastoral poetry expressed the idyllic pleasure shown by Cowper in its simplicity, free from the corruption of urban life which is seen as an aberration of true nature.
Many pre-Romantic poets dealt with a detailed description of nature (Goldsmith, Thomson). Thomson saw nature as not static but in motion, he sought wild sceneries in contrast with civilized man. These poets were appealed by the melancholy and suffering produced by war or by unrequited love and especially by the description of a wild, gloomy nature.The Gothic novel
The adjective gothic was not invented in this period but it can have various meanings:- Medieval, because it was related to a model of architectonic art.
- Irregular and barbarous, as opposed to Classicism
- Wild and supernatural
The concept of Sublime influenced the gothic novels linked to the celebration of terror shown by Burke.
The main Gothic features were:
- Terrifying descriptions.
- Ancient settings, like old and isolated castles.
- A sense of mystery pervading everything.
- Supernatural beings like bats, monsters and ghosts.
- Heroines persecuted or stricken by unreal terrors.
- Terrifying male characters.
- Exaggerated reactions of main characters.
- Very complicated plots.
In gothic novels the motive of the frequent insertions of gloomy creatures like vampires was that of seeking forbidden knowledge, going beyond God, Nature and human limits. These creatures stood for the individualist man who was not satisfied with society.
Domande da interrogazione
- What were the key characteristics of pre-Romantic poetry in the 18th century?
- How did the Gothic novel reflect social issues of its time?
- What role did the concept of the Sublime play in Gothic novels?
Pre-Romantic poetry in the 18th century was characterized by a shift towards subjective and autobiographical material, with poets being more emotional and less intellectual than their Augustan predecessors. There was a focus on rural origins, melancholy, and a detailed description of nature, often portraying it as wild and in motion, contrasting with civilized life.
The Gothic novel reflected social issues by using the concept of Gothic to highlight the problems of industrialization, which diminished the importance of the individual. Gothic novels used terrifying descriptions, ancient settings, and supernatural elements to critique the loss of individual control and the societal changes of the time.
The concept of the Sublime in Gothic novels was linked to the celebration of terror, as described by Burke. It influenced the genre by emphasizing terrifying descriptions, mysterious settings, and supernatural beings, all of which contributed to the novels' exploration of fear and the unknown, reflecting the era's fascination with the limits of human experience.
Accedi a tutti gli appunti
Tutor AI: studia meglio e in meno tempo
Appunto