Literature - a Mirror of Society
The literature of a country
is affected and influenced by how the people of that
country live. This paper will prove that The French
Revolution greatly influenced 19th Century French
Romanticism. First, the cultural values of the revolution will
be identified. Then, the different aspects of Romanticism
will be presented. The cultural values of The French
Revolution and Romanticism will then be linked. Finally,
literary examples will be shown to support this connection
between the two movements. Before the Revolution, the
citizens of France lived in a strict, confined society with no
freedom to express their feelings. Government had imposed
strong, unfair laws on the common people (Compton's
Interactive Encyclopedia "French Revolution"). They
wanted a voice in a stable government with a strong
economy (Johnson 105) and a strong sense of individuality
and independence within the people. (Moss and Wilson
180) Eighteenth- century literature was much like the
society in which it was produced, restrained. Society was
divided into privileged and unprivileged classes, (Leinward
452) with Eighteenth- century writers focusing on the lives
of the upper class. (Thompson 857) These writers followed
"formal rules"(Thorlby 282), and based their works on
scientific observations and logic (Thompson 895). The
Revolution gave the common people and writers more
freedom to express feelings and stimulated them to use
reason. According to Thompson, The Revolution "had a
major impact on Nineteenth- Century European Life."
(895) It sent a strong wave of emotion and revival
throughout France (Peyre 59). This lead to new laws and
standards for the citizens, including newer, less imposing
literary standards. Romanticism marked a profound change
in both literature and thought. Romanticism, according to
Webster's Dictionary, is defined as "a literary movement
(as in early 19th century Europe) marked especially by an
emphasis on the imagination and emotions and
is affected and influenced by how the people of that
country live. This paper will prove that The French
Revolution greatly influenced 19th Century French
Romanticism. First, the cultural values of the revolution will
be identified. Then, the different aspects of Romanticism
will be presented. The cultural values of The French
Revolution and Romanticism will then be linked. Finally,
literary examples will be shown to support this connection
between the two movements. Before the Revolution, the
citizens of France lived in a strict, confined society with no
freedom to express their feelings. Government had imposed
strong, unfair laws on the common people (Compton's
Interactive Encyclopedia "French Revolution"). They
wanted a voice in a stable government with a strong
economy (Johnson 105) and a strong sense of individuality
and independence within the people. (Moss and Wilson
180) Eighteenth- century literature was much like the
society in which it was produced, restrained. Society was
divided into privileged and unprivileged classes, (Leinward
452) with Eighteenth- century writers focusing on the lives
of the upper class. (Thompson 857) These writers followed
"formal rules"(Thorlby 282), and based their works on
scientific observations and logic (Thompson 895). The
Revolution gave the common people and writers more
freedom to express feelings and stimulated them to use
reason. According to Thompson, The Revolution "had a
major impact on Nineteenth- Century European Life."
(895) It sent a strong wave of emotion and revival
throughout France (Peyre 59). This lead to new laws and
standards for the citizens, including newer, less imposing
literary standards. Romanticism marked a profound change
in both literature and thought. Romanticism, according to
Webster's Dictionary, is defined as "a literary movement
(as in early 19th century Europe) marked especially by an
emphasis on the imagination and emotions and