The 19th century was a period of romanticism. The population of Europe doubled and more cultures populated the land. This caused people to revolt against convention and search for freedom. This movement strongly influenced the arts, literature, and philosophy. Nature became the source of inspiration and freedom rather than religious beliefs.
With increasing industrialism and urbanization nature become the metaphor for refuge. Expanding countries into the western world caused an industrial revolution. Nationalism formed people into political sovereignties. People used the elements of nature to ward off the effects of the changing world. .
In literature, poets like William Wordsworth and John Keats drew inspiration from the human mind through natural appearances. Love, nature, and the imagination shaped were the focus of these poets. Romantics like them believed in free expression of the imagination. They believed in liberating their emotions and outpour feelings.
Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote poetry that engaged in the natural world. His poetry was more intense than others before. Shelley viewed nature as the authority figure over humans. He found human states within nature's moods. He uses symbols in nature to represent human characteristics. For example, in his "Ode to the West Wind" wind is considered a symbol of creativity that drives his visions, much like how mwind blows leaves. .
In art, landscape paintings became popular. Natural harmony was depicted in Chinese art. Moods and emotions for nature appeared in Roman art. In Britain, John Constable and Joseph Mallord William Turner made landscape painting popular. They celebrated the physical beauty of nature through their artwork. .
Casper David Friedrich used somber colors to add a mysterious mood to his art. His paintings resembled the traditional Chinese artwork that symbolized and eternal dialogue between nature and man. .
In philosophy, nature was viewed in deeply subjective terms.
The 19th century was a period of romanticism. The population of Europe doubled and more cultures populated the land. This caused people to revolt against convention and search for freedom. This movement strongly influenced the arts, literature, and philosophy. Nature became the source of inspiration...
