PROSE

Non-fiction

Features of Romantic Non-fiction

• The essay, especially the personal essay, was the dominant form

• Essays often explored the psychological state of the author

• Longer polemical works were also common

• Notions of freedom and justice inspired by the French Revolution informed many of the works

• Diaries, memoirs and travelogues were also important genres

• Much of the literary criticism of the period appeared in the form of review essays and in letters.

The Romantic essay was influenced by the writings and style of Rousseau and Montesquieu. The essays of Charles Lamb, William Hazlitt and others were very personal in style and autobiographical in nature. Since many of these writers were interested in the psychology and personality of human beings, the essays were often explorations of their own mental states and emotional conditions. Thus, a subjective tone informs many of these essays and non-fictional prose, even when the author is writing a so-called ‘objective’ critical essay.

An important context for the essay form during the Romantic period was the launch of numerous literary periodicals and magazines. Periodicals like Gentleman's Magazine introduced the writings of many newcomers, who then went on to become famous: Walter Scott, Coleridge, Hazlitt, Leigh Hunt, Charles Lamb and William Beckford, to name a few. The periodicals also played an important role in the dissemination of political and literary culture across England.