German Romanticism (German:Deutsche Romantik) was the dominant intellectual movement of German-speaking countries in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, influencing philosophy, aesthetics, literature, and criticism. Compared toEnglish Romanticism, the German variety developed relatively early, and, in the opening years, coincided withWeimar Classicism (1772–1805).
The early German Romantics strove to create a new synthesis of art, philosophy, and science, by viewing theMiddle Ages as a simpler period of integrated culture; however, the German Romantics became aware of the tenuousness of the cultural unity they sought.[3] Late-stage German Romanticism emphasized the tension between the daily world and the irrational and supernatural projections of creative genius. In particular, the criticHeinrich Heine criticized the tendency of the early German Romantics to look to the medievalHoly Roman Empire for a model of unity in the arts, religion, and society.[3]
At the same time, German Romanticism was also influential on thepolitical left;Karl Marx andFriedrich Engels alluded to Romantic critiques ofcapitalism inThe Communist Manifesto, describing "feudal socialism" as "half lamentation, half lampoon; half an echo of the past, half menace of the future; at times, by its bitter, witty and incisive criticism, striking the bourgeoisie to the very heart’s core; but always ludicrous in its effect, through total incapacity to comprehend the march of modern history."[5] InThe German Ideology, Marx argued thatCommunist society would allow for greater self-development, in line with Romantic ideals ofBildung:
For as soon as the distribution of labour comes into being, each man has a particular, exclusive sphere of activity, which is forced upon him and from which he cannot escape. He is a hunter, a fisherman, a herdsman, or a critical critic, and must remain so if he does not want to lose his means of livelihood; while in communist society, where nobody has one exclusive sphere of activity but each can become accomplished in any branch he wishes, society regulates the general production and thus makes it possible for me to do one thing today and another tomorrow, to hunt in the morning, fish in the afternoon, rear cattle in the evening, criticise after dinner, just as I have a mind, without ever becoming hunter, fisherman, herdsman or critic. This fixation of social activity, this consolidation of what we ourselves produce into an objective power above us, growing out of our control, thwarting our expectations, bringing to naught our calculations, is one of the chief factors in historical development up till now.[6]
Ludwig van Beethoven. In his earlier works, Beethoven was a Classicist in the traditions ofMozart andHaydn (his tutor), but his Middle Period, beginning with his third symphony (the 'Eroica'), bridges the worlds of Classical and Romantic music. Because Beethoven wrote some of his greatest music after he became totally deaf, he embodies the Romantic ideal of the tragic artist who defies all odds to conquer his own fate.[citation needed] His later works portray the triumph of the human spirit, most notably his 'Choral' Symphony No. 9; the stirring 'Ode to Joy' from this symphony has been adopted as the anthem of theEuropean Union.[7]
Johannes Brahms. His works are cast in the formal moulds of Classicism; he had a profound reverence for Beethoven. Brahms was also attracted to the exoticism of Hungarian folk music, and used it in such pieces as his famousHungarian Dances, the final movement of hisViolin Concerto, and the 'Rondo alla zingarese' from hisPiano Quartet No. 1, op. 25, in G minor.
Franz Liszt. Liszt was by nationality a Hungarian, but nevertheless he spent many years in Germany, and his first language was German. Credited as the inventor of thetone poem.[citation needed] In his old age, Liszt adopted a more dissonant, ominous flavour, characteristic works being 'la Lugubre Gondola' and 'Die Zelle in Nonnenwerth'—predatingImpressionism and 20th-centuryatonality.
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy. A composer of the Early Romantic period, together with such figures as Schumann, Chopin and Liszt. One of the persons responsible for reviving interest in the somewhat neglected music ofJohann Sebastian Bach.[citation needed]
Franz Schubert. Like Beethoven, his early works like his symphonies, string quartets, and piano sonatas were in the Viennese classical traditions of Mozart and Haydn. His later body of work consists mainly of song cycles and GermanLieder set to poems by his contemporaries, many of which are among the most common repertoire in those categories performed today.
Robert Schumann. His works recall the nostalgia of lost childhood innocence, first love, and the magnificence of the German countryside.[citation needed] As an influential critic, he played a major role in discovering new talents, among themChopin and Brahms.[citation needed]
Carl Maria von Weber. Perhaps the very first of Romantic musicians, if we exclude Beethoven and Schubert, in the sense that Weber was the first major composer to emerge wholly as a product of the Romantic school, as contrasted with Beethoven, who had started off as a Classicist.[citation needed] The emotional intensity and supernatural, folklore-based themes in his operas presented a radical break from the Neoclassical traditions of that time.[citation needed]
^Siegfried Heit and Otto W. Johnston, "German Romanticism: An Ideological Response to Napoleon."Consortium on Revolutionary Europe 1750–1850: Proceedings (1980), Vol. 9, p187-197.
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Bowie, Andrew.From romanticism to critical theory: The philosophy of German literary theory (Psychology Press, 1997).
Breckman, Warren. "Introduction: A Revolution in Culture," inEuropean Romanticism: A Brief History with Documents. Ed. W. Breckman. New York: Bedford/St Martin's, 2007.
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Grewe, Cordula.Painting the Sacred in the Age of German Romanticism. Aldershot: Ashgate Books, 2009.[1]
Johnston, Catherine, et al.Baltic Light: Early Open-Air Painting in Denmark and North Germany. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1999.ISBN0-300-08166-9.
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Steigerwald, Joan, and J. Fairbairn. "The cultural enframing of nature: environmental histories during the early German romantic period."Environment and History 6.4 (2000): 451–496.online
Stone, Alison. "Alienation from nature and early German romanticism."Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 17.1 (2014): 41–54.online
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