In the Enlightenment period, the term “romanticism” was often employed to challenge rationalism and materialism. In this context, modernity and romanticism looked to be diametrically opposed extremes that never agreed. This blog will compare and contrast the two theories held by distinct groups of people.
When considering the similarities of modernism and romanticism, classifications and fundamental characters are often considered. To begin with, modernism and romanticism are both ideologies of abstract notions about life values and various ways of thinking. Take the Enlightenment period as an example, both modernism and romanticism are the product of historical events; these labels are a summary of diverse people’s perspectives about the hard lives and tragedies they were currently encountering. Secondly, the underlying characteristics of both theories are similar. Modernism and romanticism are both philosophical views that comment on social phenomena, with the goal of determining the balance between nature and humanity. Various groups of people demonstrated an understanding and preference for subjective emotion, creativity, and objective reasoning and explanations.
Despite the fact that the approaches and perspectives for analyzing the balance are the same, completely different conclusions are reached. The first distinction is between subjectivity and objectivity. Romanticism saw emotional subjectivity as a more significant norm of behavior since it was thought to be the only way to divert people’s attention away from tragic reality. Nonetheless, materialism felt that confronting the truth openly was the most effective method to progress and improve in the face of adversity. Furthermore, materialism concentrates on scientific advancements, whereas romanticism brought about a humanities revolution. Impressionism, with its emphasis on nature, light, and color rather than actual objects and shapes, emerged as a result of this creative period. The revered creative energies of Romanticism provided artists with spiritual freedom and fostered the creation of wonderful artworks.
Regardless of the distinction between romanticism and modernism, both ideologies move towards a path of modernity and innovation after removing themselves from the traditional norms that conveyed society at the time.