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Jandy Stone
ENG5374: European Romanticism
Dr. Stephen Prickett
! "e#ruary $%%7
&he 'mportance o( the Su#)ime in the Romantic *esthetic
&he term +Romantic, descri#es a mo-ement #oth phi)osophic
and artistic )oose)y uni(ied #y a
re/ection o( neo0c)assica) aesthetic princip)es. &hou1h the
Romantics did not a)2ays a1ree in the speci(ics
o( their aesthetic theories nor did a)) o( them mo-e (rom theory
into practice many o( them (ound in the
idea o( the su#)ime an attracti-e a)ternati-e to the strict
ru)es and (orms o( the neo0c)assica) era. &he
Romantics did not create the idea o( the su#)ime or e-en share a
common conception o( it. o2e-er the
(act that so many o( the Romantic 2riters in Germany and En1)and
especia))y #ut a)so in "rance
approached the uestion o( the su#)ime in their 2ritin1s
indicates ho2 per-asi-e and important a concept it
2as.
*s Samue) onk sho2s in his semina) study The Sublime theori6in1
on the nature causes and
e((ects o( su#)imity 2as a popu)ar pastime throu1hout the
ei1hteenth century startin1 2ith the redisco-ery
o( c)assica) rhetorician on1inus. &he e8act de(inition o(
+the su#)ime, chan1es (rom author to author #ut
most a1ree that su#)imity is marked #y 1randeur -astness
incomprehensi#i)ity and the po2er to cause an
intense p)easure in the o#ser-er a p)easure that has
transcendent ua)ities. &hou1h 1rand ideas in the
a#stract cou)d #e su#)ime the concept uick)y #ecame associated
2ith nature: hu1e mountains 2i)d
)andscapes or terri(ic storms. Edmund 9urke makes terror itse)(
the essentia) e)ement o( the su#)ime
e8perience 3!; a (ocus mirrored #y the 1ro2in1 interest in the
1othic no-e) in the )ast (e2 decades o( the
ei1hteenth century.
Perhaps the most important e)ement o( the su#)ime as (ar as
Romanticism is concerned is the
emphasis on the e((ect the su#)ime o#/ect has on the o#ser-er.
&hou1h ei1hteenth0century theorists
continued to seek o#/ecti-e ua)ities to de(ine the su#)ime the
theory came to re)y more and more on the
su#/ecti-e response to su#)imity cu)minatin1 in 'mmanue) that is
su#)imity +is not a ua)ity residin1 in the o#/ect #ut a state o(
mind a2akened #y an
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o#/ect, onk ?;. &his mo-e (rom o#/ecti-e to su#/ecti-e is
part o( the 1enera) mo-e to2ard the emphasis
on interior space 2hich a))o2ed Romanticism to come into
#ein1.
@hen Pierre 9oi)eau trans)ated on1inus into "rench in A74 and
popu)ari6ed his theory o( the
su#)ime neo0c)assicism he)d the aesthetic s2ay throu1hout Europe
and 2as especia))y stron1 in "rance.
9oi)eau himse)( 2as a (irm neo0c)assicist and did not seem to
ha-e a pro#)em reconci)in1 on1inus=
su#)ime 2ith his o2n (ocus on proper neo0c)assica)
(orm>pro#a#)y #ecause on1inus (ocused much more
on the su#)ime sty)e as a rhetorica) de-ice rather than on the
transcendent e((ect o( the su#)ime. o2e-er
soon the su#)ime #ecame e-erythin1 that 2as not neo0c)assica) in
sty)e yet had a po2er(u) emotiona)
e((ect: +9eauty came to inc)ude 1enera))y speakin1 those
ua)ities and 1ent)e emotions that neo0c)assic art
sou1ht to em#odyB su#)imity mi1ht contain anythin1 e)se that
seemed suscepti#)e o( 1i-in1 aesthetic
p)easure pro-ided that it 2as 1rand enou1h and mi1ht concei-a#)y
Ctransport=, onk 55;. ence the
#eauti(u) and the su#)ime 2ere usua))y concei-ed as
irreconci)a#)y di((erent. *s the century mo-ed to2ard
Romanticism the emphasis shi(ted more and more a2ay (rom
neo0c)assica) ru)es and more to2ard an
appreciation (or the su#)ime as mediated throu1h indi-idua)
perception.
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Schi))er sa2 as essentia) to the su#)ime odiano %? 4;. "or
o)erid1e the su#)ime is a transcendent
e8perience #ut not necessari)y a terri(yin1 one and rather than
seein1 in the su#)ime moment an assertion
o( human reason o-er nature he sees an a#sorption o( the
indi-idua) into the in(inite. Re(errin1 to his sense
o( a2e upon enterin1 a Gothic cathedra) he says: +' am )ost to
the actua)ities that surround me and my
2ho)e #ein1 e8pands into the in(initeB earth and air nature and
art a)) s2e)) up into eternity and the on)y
sensi#)e impression )e(t is Cthat ' am nothin1=, td in odiano
$$;. Rather than a denia) o( e8istence
thou1h this statement is an e8pression o( transcendent unity
2ith an entity 1reater than himse)(. o)erid1e
a)so (ound su#)imity in nature especia))y in -a1ue (orms that
su11est tota)ity #ut do not e8press a -isua)
2ho)e odiano 5;. o2e-er nature (or o)erid1e and more so (or his
c)ose (riend @i))iam
@ords2orth 2as not a threat to humanity as it 2as (or
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percei-es, 55;. ertain)y this is true o( @ords2orth 2hose poems
speak o( nature on)y as he persona))y
e8perienced it.
p unti) the ear)y ?%%s near)y e-ery theory o( the su#)ime had
care(u))y separated the #eauti(u)
(rom the su#)ime. o)erid1e (o))o2in1 erder connected the t2o a
)itt)e more stron1)y thou1h he
maintained a di((erentiation #ased on o#/ecti-e -ersus
su#/ecti-e ua)ity in a 2ay -ery simi)ar to
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&he idea o( the su#)ime 1rotesue is o#-ious)y o( 1reat
import inotre!"ame de Paris as u1o
)inks the 1rotesue Huasimodo #oth to the su#)ime occupation o(
rin1in1 the hu1e church #e))s at the -ast
cathedra) o( Notre0Dame and to the no-e)=s sym#o) o( the su#)ime
the 1ypsy Esmere)da. &he union o(
these t2o contrary (i1ures is emphasi6ed in the (ina) )ines o(
the no-e) as Huasimodo=s misshapen ske)eton
is (ound ho)din1 Esmere)da=s remains a(ter her e8ecution 5%5;.
&hou1h the sym#o)ism is )ess c)ear
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&hou1h the su#)ime is not a uniue)y Romantic concept it
pa-ed the 2ay (or Romanticism
especia))y in its emphasis on indi-idua) e8perience and #reakin1
the #oundaries o( neo0c)assica) (orm.
Romantics 2riters (rom Schi))er and erder in Germany to o)erid1e
and @ords2orth in En1)and took the
theories cu)ti-ated ear)ier in the century #y 9urke
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9i#)io1raphy
*sh(ie)d *ndre2 and Peter De 9o))a eds. The Sublime% &
'eader in British (ighteenth!Century &esthetic
Theory. am#rid1e: am#rid1e ni-ersity Press !!A.
9urke Edmund.& Philosophical (nquiry )nto the Origin of Our
)deas of the Sublime and Beautiful. Ed.
James &. 9ou)ton. ondon: Rout)ed1e
