Romantic Characteristics Essay

Romanticism represents an era of a magnificent literary movement that took place in Europe from 17th century until mid-18th century. Romantics rejected the idea of faith towards logic and reasons and shifted toward the idea of faith in the senses, feelings, and imagination, which lead to start of the Romantic period. William Wordsworth and his friend, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, together published a collection of poems called ‘Lyrical Ballads’ which became hugely influential that led to the beginning of the Romantic period. William Wordsworth’s poem “Composed Upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802” is one of his best works of Romanticism. The poem comprised many of the Romantic characteristics that distinct Romanticism from Realism. The poem reflects three different characteristics of Romanticism; interest in the common man and childhood, strong senses, emotions, and feelings, and awe of nature.

The interest in the common man and childhood is a Romantic characteristic in which the natural goodness of humans is hindered by the urban life of civilization. In the poem, “Composed Upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802,” Wordsworth uses this Romantic characteristic to connect the nature with common man. An example is “Dull would he be of soul who could pass by/ a sight so troubling in its majesty.” (2-3) In the example, the speaker is questioning people’s sense of beauty and feelings towards nature by saying how they could miss such a breathtaking view of the Westminster Bridge in the morning. Wordsworth considers a common man, who ignores such a majestic view as “dull” soul or weak in the heart.

Wordsworth stated that “all good poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings.” He believed that Romantics should have st...

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...g senses, emotions, and feelings, and awe of nature. William Wordsworth is the best known Romantic poet of the Romanticism era. He wrote this poem in an urban society, because the view he discovered interested him even more than natural and rural society. The setting of the poem, as stated in the title, is an irony, because it does not describe as part of the Romanticism. Romantic poems are based around nature as it is an important aspect of the Romantic literature. William Wordsworth did a marvelous work in comparing the city to the nature.

Works Cited

Wright, Junius. Characteristics of Romanticism. Charleston, SC: National Council of Teachers of English, 2010. PDF.

Smith, Donna. Characteristics of Romantic Literature. Odessa, TX: Odessa College, n.d. PDF.

Kartha, Deepa. "Characteristics of Romanticism." Buzzle.com. Buzzle.com, 18 June 2012. Web. 12 Mar. 2014.