Romantik

Romantik, or Romanticism, was an intellectual and artistic movement that emerged in the late 18th century in Europe, with significant development in German-speaking regions. It arose as a reaction to Enlightenment rationalism and classical forms, emphasizing emotion, imagination, individual experience, and a sense of the sacred or sublime in nature, history, and art.

Origins and development: The movement grew out of the earlier Sturm und Drang era and reached its height in the early to mid-19th century. It developed in literary circles in cities such as Jena, Heidelberg, and Berlin, then spread to other parts of Europe. Key figures include poets and philosophers like Novalis (Friedrich von Hardenberg), Schleiermacher, Ludwig Tieck, and E. T. A. Hoffmann, as well as poets such as Hölderlin. In painting, Caspar David Friedrich and Philipp Otto Runge shaped the visual language, while in music composers such as Ludwig van Beethoven and later Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, and Franz Liszt helped articulate Romantic sensibilities.

Themes and characteristics: Romanticism prized subjectivity, emotion, and imagination. It explored the inner life, longing and melancholy (Sehnsucht), the beauty and terror of nature, folklore and national myths, medievalism, and the supernatural. It often favored individual genius over collective norms and used symbolism, lyrical expression, and a fascination with the mysterious and the transcendent.

Influence and legacy: The movement influenced literature, music, visual arts, philosophy, and national cultures, contributing to modern ideas about art as a personal and transformative experience. It gradually declined as Realism and later movements emerged, but its impact remained foundational for later 19th-century and modern art.