Romantic writers celebrated strong passion and vision. Enlightenment writers focused mainly on adult concerns, primarily those of the ruling class. Romantic writers reflected on the experiences of childhood, primitive societies, and the common man. Humankind, nature, the soul, individuality, women, children, animals, flowers, rural, common people. The human mind, violence, war, death, hyperreality, jazz, mass media, social feminism, the self as confused, political change, loneliness, human anxiety, the outcast.
Quantum physics, myth, Bible, foreign languages, street life, personal, psychology, sociology, agonized recollection of the past.
Instead of reason and Kantian ethics, the Romantics found morality to be mutable and individualistic; the scientific values of the enlightenment and the industrial revolution were disavowed in favour of the naturalism of Wordsworth's 'Prelude' and Keats' 'To Autumn. In short, Romanticism seeks to find the role of the individual in a chaotic and mutable world, while the Enlightenment looks for the empirical and justifiable strictures of such a world. What are the main differences between Romanticism and Enlightenment Literature?
It is also referred to as the Romantic Era. This period or movement was focused on inspiration, subjectivity, and human emotions. And all of these focuses were expressed in the form of art, music, and literature. It was initially started at the end of in response to the Age of Reason or Enlightenment in Europe. Thinkers during this thought that importance on emotions, feelings, and thoughts should be given more than the importance given to reasoning and logical thinking.
They thought feelings were more important than being practical. During this period the music and art flourished to the most some of the greatest artists in history belong to this period. Unlike enlightenment, no scientific progress was made during this movement, but progress in humanities and arts have indeed happened.
People respected each other feelings, despite their differences; this movement is also somehow linked to the French revolution as well. Therefore, there should not be any difference between both enlightenment and romanticism. Doing In the Wizard : Every event has a cause that can be explained by the interaction of fundamental laws of the universe, even if it seems "magical" because we don't know what all those laws or interactions are.
Enlightened Self-Interest : Doing good things for others can be good for your own agenda. Evil Luddite : In Enlightenment works a technophobic character is more likely to be insane, a terrorist and using technology to further their cause.
Evil Reactionary : Reactionaries in enlightenment works tend to be trying to bring back a past Utopia that never existed in the first place through any means possible. The Federation : The Enlightenment has been known to advocate democracy as a preferred form of government.
The Future Will Be Better : A general faith in the idea of progress, specifically that the next generation will be better and wiser than the last often figures into or permeates many Enlightenment philosophies. Some even posit an end of history, where the ultimate social, political, scientific system, etc.
For Happiness : Jeremy Bentham, regarded as the founder of modern utilitarianism, lived during the Age of Enlightenment. Even today, utilitarianism is often seen as one of the most "logical" ethical systems out there. For Science! Good Republic, Evil Empire : The Enlightenment can be justly criticized for overly romanticizing this trope, in all opposition to actual history.
Great Detective : This archetype is deeply rooted in the Enlightenment by relying on logic, reason, and rationality to shine a light onto evil deeds and dark passions. A classical Holmsean detective is a Science Hero who works tirelessly for the betterment of the society by bringing its stray elements to public justice.
Grey-and-Gray Morality : If the story is Enlightenment-themed and has a War at its center, expect horrible people and saintly ones on both sides.
Bad things done in the name of good intentions, and good things achieved for mercenary motives. Hard on Soft Science : How it appears in science-fiction. Ironically, as Stephen Hawking pointed out in A Brief History of Time , during the actual Enlightenment, philosophers and scientists exchanged notes all the time, and indeed it was during this period that "natural philosophy" was phased out in favor of Science with a Capital S, while parts of Philosophy evolved into social sciences like economics, sociology and psychology.
Hanlon's Razor : Among some strains of thought, most of the ills that plague humanity and cause conflicts come about through simple ignorance, not premeditated malice. Thus, promoting a breadth and depth of knowledge through a better education actually makes us better people. Hero of Another Story : As important as The Hero is, if he has come far it is because he is merely standing "on the shoulders of giants".
Heroic Bystander : The difference between a "hero" and a "bystander" is more one of circumstance than ability. Anyone has the potential to become great, not just a privileged few. After all, it was a bunch of anonymous people who stormed the Bastille. Ignored Expert : If Cassandra Truth appears in an Enlightenment-leaning work, the character who speaks it will have plenty of knowledge and training to back it up. Immigrant Patriotism : The period that birthed nationalism was also a golden period for cosmopolitanism with philosophers travelling across Europe and America and sharing ideas.
Living Forever Is Awesome : While this is not a universal belief among Enlightenment-leaning authors, they are likely to regard immortality as yet another achievement of science, and therefore welcome it. This branch is also vital for the Transhumanist philosophy, desiring the right for all to live as long as they like without the burden of aging, and everyone is allowed the right of euthanasia.
Lovecraft Lite : To counter the Romanticist Cosmic Horror Story , the Enlightnment proposes that such seemingly undefeatable horrors can truly be conquered through knowledge, science, and technology. Medieval Morons : Resulting from or in ignorance of the fact that the medieval period was actually a time of great social upheavals and mechanical innovation. Morality Kitchen Sink : Not always, but a frequent feature of post-WWII-Enlightenment-styled works of sufficient scale is that the world is sufficiently complex, and people have sufficiently varied motivations, that any Black And White classification is going to be flawed—you either are going to have shades of grey, or areas where Black and White overlap.
Nature Is Not Nice : The Enlightenment idea that the outside world is indifferent, or even very dangerous to humans. The Needs of the Many : Utilitarian works may sometimes emphasize the majority needs outweigh the needs of the minority. Some may emphasize that if sacrifices need to be made, it will be on the minority. Outgrown Such Silly Superstitions : Since religion is commonly seen as an irrational system of beliefs, Enlightenment utopias often discard it as a relic of old pre-scientific societies.
The Paragon : Protagonists in Enlightenment stories will usually be this. Pro-Human Transhuman : Transhumans do not to have to be enemies of unmodified humans. Reasonable Authority Figure : The legitimacy of an authority figure in an Enlightenment work depends on their competence and on how adequately they respond to their challenges. Reluctant Mad Scientist : The pursuit of knowledge is in itself morally neutral; what other people choose to do with that knowledge is their responsibility.
Rousseau Was Right : Predominantly among the Continental schools of Enlightenment thought, historically. Neon Genesis Evangelion Science Hero : Science is seen as a force of good by the Enlightenment, while ignorance was seen by many Enlightenment thinkers as the root of all evil. Science Is Good : Science as a whole is portrayed in a positive light. The only real bad from science is simply the abuse of it for selfish gain, but the good that science brings should never be overlooked, especially if responsible use of it benefits all of society.
Screw Destiny : The Enlightenment puts no stock in prophecies, preferring instead to let science and reason to guide them. Shining City : Civilization, science and technology are good - therefore, an ideal society would look like this.
Solar Punk : Science and technology can give people all the comforts of an advanced civilization and also save nature. The Spock : A character who relies on logic in all decisions would be portrayed in Enlightenment-leaning works as an ideal to aspire to.
Strawman Emotional : The more anvilicious Enlightened works may feature such characters. Transhuman : Or more specifically, optimistic portrayals of it The Unchosen One : The power to change the reality lies not in the hands of a few chosen, but in the hands of every ordinary person. White-and-Grey Morality : Since Rousseau Was Right , the enlightened heroes are motivated by a desire to bring as much good as possible , and the villains that they encounter are humanized in some way, along with having logical reasons for their antagonistic upbringing.
The heroes believe that the villains can be redeemed , especially if said villains are well-meaning but misguided , and the heroes can teach the redeemed villains how to contribute to good without hurting others.
A World Half Full : No matter how bad the world gets in an Enlightenment story, there will always be hope for improvement. Team Romanticism. Tropes usually associated with Romanticism : Agent Scully : A strawman portrayal of a skeptical and scientifically-minded character. Anti-Intellectualism : Even though romantics can be considered intellectual philosophers. Arcadia : In contrast with the Enlightenment Shining City utopias, a Romanticist utopia usually looks like a Garden of Eden untouched by civilization.
Appeal to Nature : Works claiming or implying it to be true generally fall on the side of Romanticism. If the fallacy is exposed instead, it is more in line with Enlightenment.
Appeal to Tradition : There is nothing new under the sun, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, etc. More common in the conservative strains of the Romantic tradition. Art Nouveau : Due to being flowy and nature-themed. Barbarian Hero : Such a hero is likely to be portrayed to possess some kind of "primeval wisdom" that the more civilized characters have lost. Black-and-White Morality : Since a lot of adventure and fantasy literature tends toward romanticism, they will usually have a clear set of well-defined heroes and villains by default.
This is especially true in books targeted towards children, which usually have a romanticist slant. Black-and-Gray Morality : Alternatively, cynical works against the foundations of society will usually portray this set of morality, showing that Humans Are Flawed or Humans Are the Real Monsters.
Expect any form of remote goodness to come from a decidedly heroic and above-society entity. Book Dumb : A character relying on their intuition rather than formal training is very much in line with Romanticist thinking.
A strongly individualistic figure who is driven by passion, misunderstood by society, and rebellious against conventions. Chivalric Romance : Differs from actual medieval chivalry and romances, in that it's more idealistic and nostalgic than its inspirations. The Chosen One : Truly heroic feats can only be accomplished by one who is "destined" to do so. Cloning Blues : Cloning is on the Scale of Scientific Sins , so it is bound to have some bad consequences in a Romanticist work.
Cosmic Horror Story : A grimdark backlash against humanity's trust in eternal improvement. Frankenstein , one of Romanticism's classic works, has this trope as its central premise. Cybernetics Eat Your Soul : Modifying oneself is on the Scale of Scientific Sins , as Romanticism sees any interference in one's biology as evil and dangerous. Cyberpunk : Another grimdark backlash, this time against the techno-utopianism of the 40's and 50's.
Doing In the Scientist : Scientific explanations are undermined or found wanting, possibly to emphasise that there are Things Man Was Not Meant to Know , or that in fully comprehending reality, there are limits to what we can rationally explain.
Downer Ending and Sudden Downer Ending : A story has a very cynical ending, a common trait for the romanticist storyline. Founder of the Kingdom : Looking over the founder of a country as a larger than life figure. Gaia's Lament : The Enlightenment belief that Nature Is Not Nice may tempt the villains to destroy the environment, and the Earth suffers the consequences. Gaia's Vengeance : Earth and its biosphere is often a sentient entity in Romanticist works, and any attempt to interfere in it will hurt it.
Therefore, as soon as Earth is hurt badly enough, it will fight back , with disastrous consequences for civilization. Ghibli Hills : Beautiful, peaceful scenery features heavily in Romanticist works. Good Old Ways : Romanticism has been known to idealize the past, especially pre-industrial societies. Gothic Horror : Ironically had its heyday during the Enlightenment age where like the Renaissance they associated Gothic with irrationality, backwardness and feudal past.
The Romantics however revived Gothic with a more neutral and fantastic attitude. History Repeats : Far from universal, but a general rejection of the Enlightenment idea of progress made some Counter-Enlightenment philosophers adopt a cyclical theory of history, positing that each generation thinks itself smarter than the one came before them, and wiser than those that come after, but are in fact not that different from one another except perhaps in appearance and living quality.
Hollywood Atheist : Some flavors of this trope appear in Romantic works, with atheists portrayed as having lost something essential, being nihilists, arrogant and even villainous if they embrace supposedly more "rational" ideologies that cause great harm. Humanity Is Insane : And they are proud of it. Industrialized Evil : It is common of Romanticist works to portray machines as cold, callous, and creepy, so using them as a tool for evil is fitting.
In Harmony with Nature : Romanticism is known to idealize nature, and it is a common sentiment in Romanticist works that the best path is through, well, living in harmony with nature, rather than trying to expand and develop civilization. Intellectually Supported Tyranny : Intellectuals are not inherently good, and can sometimes back oppressive regimes.
Living is More Than Surviving : It is not enough to survive using practical skills; there are other things that we should live for as well. Loaded Words : Using emotionally-connoted words to win an argument. Ludd Was Right : Romanticism is distrustful of the social changes that come with technological progress, which is exactly what the Luddite movement was about. Mad Oracle : in Romanticist works Cassandra Truth is more likely to come through supernatural means and be voiced by a nameless Cloudcuckoolander rather than an Ignored Expert.
Mad Scientist : A direct consequence of The Spark of Genius often mixed with Science Is Bad , scientists are very commonly portrayed as not entirely sane if not outright evil in Romanticist works. The McCoy : The most ethical decisions are based on emotion rather than logic. Measuring the Marigolds : Stereotyping scientists' insistence on order and rationality as inhibiting creativity and destroying our appreciation of the world around us for what it is.
The Middle Ages : Resulting in more sandpapering off of its traits than usual. Morally Ambiguous Doctorate : As mentioned in Mad Scientist , an evil maverick scientist is a common Romantic archetype. Nature Hero : If wild nature untouched by civilization represents the ideal state of life, it makes sense that the best heroes would champion this ideal. Nature Lover : See Nature Hero. Nature Spirit : Romantic works tend to glorify Paganism. Noble Savage : See Barbarian Hero.
Older Is Better : Romanticism was known to idealize the past, and treats the very possibility of progress with skepticism. Obstructive Bureaucrat : Bureaucracy is usually portrayed as inherently bad, stifling and even oppressing people. The Power of Love : If one's love is strong enough, it can drive one to accomplish feats that are literally impossible otherwise.
Powered by a Forsaken Child : Romantic works will often portray things like this as a criticism of Enlightenment utilitarianism. Robot War : Since A.
Is a Crapshoot , creating an AI is asking for war. Scale of Scientific Sins : Portraying some branches of science and technology as inherently evil. This runs counter to the Enlightenment's idea of knowledge being inherently good. Science Is Bad : While individual Romanticists' attitudes towards science may vary from simple caution to outright rejection, Romanticism in general is characterized by a very skeptical attitude towards scientific progress and the change it brings, or rather the utopian idea of science the Enlightenment possessed.
Science Is Wrong : Romanticism saw science and logic as inferior to emotion, and therefore science alone would come to wrong conclusions. Skeptic No Longer : An Enlightened scientific skeptic is often shown as being in the wrong and admitting the error of their ways e. The Spark of Genius : Romanticism often portrays all creative activity as something defying all rational explanation - and science is no exception when scientists are not portrayed as Straw Vulcans.
Straw Vulcan : The more anvilicious Romanticist works may feature such characters, portraying characters that are supposed to be epitomes of logic as shallow caricatures, who ironically are not very logical. Supernatural Elite : Romanticist utopias are often led by supernatural characters, ones that are fundamentally above mere mortals. Techno Dystopia : A dystopia caused by the introduction of new technology is fundamentally contrary to the Enlightenment's idea of technology in and of itself being a force of good.
Technophobia : In a world where technology cannot be fully trusted, it's better to stay with the Good Old Ways. A milder version of Ludd Was Right. Theory Tunnelvision : A character adheres to their theories, rejecting conflicting facts that are even truthful. That character is expected to be emotionally broken , or worse , if they are in a situation where maintaining their filter is impossible. Three Chords and the Truth : That one does not need a thorough formal education to produce good music - or that "good" equals "raw" and "unpolished" - is a very Romanticist argument.
Totalitarian Utilitarian : Romanticists are usually Naturalists who portray Enlightened Utilitarians as willing to go to extremes for the sake of Utopia. Transhuman Treachery : Transhumanism is on the Scale of Scientific Sins , and creating a transhuman much like creating an AI or any other form of artificial life is likely to result in them being evil.
World of Ham : A setting in which everyone is highly emotional. Ye Goode Olde Days : A past era is often lionized and portrayed as better by Romanticists if not ideal in comparison to modern society. You Can't Fight Fate : Romantics believe heavily in prophecies, saying that they will occur no matter what. Common Tropes. Tropes shared between them, but handled in different ways: All-Loving Hero : Both Romantic and Enlightened works on the idealistic end of the Sliding Scale of Idealism vs.
Cynicism have heroes with this belief. The difference is in how their beliefs are handled. The Romantic may assert that human nature of love must triumph over " totalitarian " rationality of utilitarianism, while the Enlightened hero embraces rationalism and utilitarianism and proves his or her love and compassion for other beings through them.
The Anti-Nihilist : These are found on both sides. Enlightenment existentialists like Randall Munroe tend to take a For Happiness approach, focusing on the needs and wants of humanity in the absence of a higher morality.
Romantic existentialists most famously Friedrich Nietzsche and Soren Keirkegaard reject rationalism as just as meaningless as anything else, and tend to suggest embracing a personal Blue-and-Orange Morality.
Blood Knight : Generally approved of by Romantics, due to their associations with bravery, honourable combat, glory, individual prowess and a Dying Moment of Awesome ; By contrast, the Blood Knight is generally rejected by the Enlightenment due to a lack of discipline and respect for law and order, and encouraging a War Is Glorious attitude they view dangerous.
Captain Patriotic : The Enlightenment invented nationalism, because the nation, in theory , was opposed to the kingdom and The Church , and it was a consensual secular identity around which one can build The Republic , which until this period was contained only in city-states but now governed over areas bigger than Kingdoms and with more central authority than any King before.
This led to the idea of creating national institutions and cultural centers museums, science institutions, art galleries, monuments built to celebrate the nation, but it must be emphasized that the nation as defined by the early Enlightenment thinkers was about involvement in the community—meaning that outsiders could join the nation if they pitched in and got involved.
Team Enlightenment blames romantic sentimentality towards folklore and Rose-Tinted Narrative for having corrupted nationalism from its radical origins.
The Romantics who later came around to nationalism, were obsessed with folklore emphasized cultural heritage as the definition of national identity, and essentially invented the culture wars about which values and which individuals are the true representatives of the nation. Creating Life Is Awesome : Enlightenment works are theoretically okay with this, skeptical in practise, whereas Romantics argue against playing God.
The very first science-fiction, Frankenstein tackled this very concept, and it was a romantic work. It must be noted that Enlightenment-inspired revolutions, especially the French and the Russian one, had the idea of creating "a new man" which they meant to be a citizen with values and references entirely different from the past, but which in the eyes of critics amounted to be similar to treating man as tabula rasa with new values inserted like a program given to a robot.
Mary Shelley's book argued that in taking the role of God, man is likely to repeat the same mistakes to his creations and the consequences it creates. Curiosity Is a Crapshoot : Romanticists believe that Curiosity Killed the Cast , or at least make us Go Mad from the Revelation and turn us into nihilists, the Enlightened do recognize that curiosity does have its flaws, but overall it can be used for further learning and self-improvement. Democracy Is Bad : You can find arguments for this among both Enlightenment and Romantic schools, though more in the case of the latter.
Although democracy tends to be an Enlightened philosophy, many early Enlightened works and philosophers pondered a technocracy e. Romanticists are more varied in their positions; some want to return to old-fashioned feudalism , others advocate for a democratic system, and often their chosen form of government is whichever form is not in place in their society. Basically, Enlightenment hates democracy because it puts truth to a popular vote rather than using reason, while Romanticism hates democracy because it becomes a bureaucratic mess where leaders care more about winning elections than ruling.
It should be noted that what is considered Democracy as we live it today where everyone can vote, no discrimination to minorities, no slavery and exploitation of other people is quite different from what many Enlightened and Romantic writers thought vis-a-vis democracy Enlightenment thinkers were content with limited suffrage, while Voltaire would probably insist that a secular France remain anti-semitic with the exception of Rousseau, Diderot, Condorcet and a few others.
Romanticists are also more likely to point out that "it is not too much ignorance, but too much conformity , that causes Dystopia".
Enlightenment advocates will usually believe that "widespread ignorance causes Dystopia" sometimes bringing up the era that they called the " Dark Ages " and squabble about how education will save us all from it.
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