Title: Notes on the Romantic Age
Headings: 
Important themes
Content: Notes on the Romantic Age
The Romantic Age
Important themes
The Romantic Movement of the early 19th was a reaction  to many cultural, social and political developments. Many artists  and thinkers began to see developments in society threatening  individualism: the factory system made human beings replaceable  parts in a system, and mass political movements (like the French  Revolution) diminished individual accomplishment. Similarly,  increased urbanization made people feel cut off nature. Also,  Neoclassicism's strict rules and formalism began to seem limiting. In reaction, the Romantic Movement stressed the individuality of the artist's expression, a personal relationship with nature,  and a trust in emotion and subjective experience. Since classical times artists had attempted to achieve mimesis,  a faithful recreation of the world. Romantic artists, however,  felt no obligation to depict the world mimetically. Rather, they  sought to express their personal vision. As a result, Romantic form could be open-ended.