History

=The Romantic focused on emotion in art and literature, The Enlightenment Movement, and the intensification of the importance of the individual which all began to increase social rebellion and the concept of individuality. All of these aspects would impact Soren Kierkegaard's views on society and the individual, eventually creating an entire new philosophy "Existentialism" at the end of the time period.= = = =Technological:= Denmark made many agricultural advances in technology. Thomas White International states that, "The Industrial Revolution changed the face of Denmark by modernizing agricultural equipment and bringing railroad networks. The world famous Tivoli amusement park was established in 1843." Denmark was becoming a bustling, technological advanced culture, that was catching up with the rest of the world. After overcoming the famine that broke out throughout the entire country; "Three major Universities: The Technical University of Denmark, the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University in 1858 and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences in 1892 were able to correct the problem, and even created new methods for the processing of milk, and later cheese and butter (Hansen). Butter and cheese not only helped solve the widespread famine, but also they become large exports that Denmark could share with the rest of Europe. In the late 1800s, new steamships flooded Europe with wheat from other countries, so Denmark switched to concentrating in pork and dairy (Jepsen). Denmark's technological advanced stemmed from agricultural because that was their major concentration. The new agriculture methods and technology provided the country with wealth, and their main trade materials.

=Economical:= Although for part of the century, Denmark was broke, it was able to overcome those obstacles to become its own shining beacon. Denmark had reached a very low point in its history during the early 1800s, however; by the end of the 1800s Denmark could provide its own food again (Hansen). The government of Denmark took charge and decided to find a way to try and save their country. Hansen comments, "[The government] set in motion the work of developing the country and especially its agriculture through massive investment in education and research." By educating the people, the people of Denmark could make sure that they would never go hungry again, and that they would have more than enough food to satisfy themselves. After losing territories in wars, Denmark had become of the smallest countries in Denmark, however; the economic wealth that soon flowed in reimbursed the country" (Jepsen). Kierkegaard Senior was able to escape the poverty that befell on most of Denmark, so although Soren Kierkegaard was born into Denmark's darkest hour, he was sheltered from it. Kierkegaard never had to keep a job to support his family, and since his family was very wealthy, he could explore into his writing and philosophy which were thought of as leisure activities. However, it is his love of literature that provided him with his future career of being an author, and changing the world's views of philosophy with existentialism.

=Political:= Many new philosophies became popular such as The Enlightenment, as periods of political radicalism broke through Europe. During this time, "a new Danish constitution was promulgated (1849), thereby ending the absolute monarchy and establishing wide suffrage (Jepsen). This hugely impacted Kierkegaard's own philosophies as he didn't think people could handle the responsibility. According to Strand, "There's no room for joint deliberation, or public judgement, or voting in the Kierkegaardian corpus". Kierkegaard felt that people would not be able to make the right choice in voting. Since he was very critical of society, he believed people would always follow the masses as in the mass opinion at the time. People could not handle the power. The amount of power could destroy them. Kierkegaard views also contradicted the new philosophy that was soon to come. The intense philosophy that circulated around this time became known as The Enlightenment Movement. According to Fernie, "The theory goes that in order to achieve certain knowledge we must rid ourselves of all thoughts and ideas about which we have any doubt. What remains after this process of refinement is what we know." However, Kierkegaard believed that the only thing we understand is that we understand nothing. It's impossible to know the reality of the situation, or even if we exist in that matter. He also believed that one could not use reason for all judgements. Although he was a devout Christian, he didn't think it was right to try and prove God. In trying to complete this task, it is admitting that part of you doubts his existence, which defames your faith. The only reality was absurdity itself, he thought that we had to acknowledge the absurdity of the world and even ourselves. The Enlightenment also provoked philosophers to doubt the existence of God, for we should use our senses and the world around us to prove theories (Fernie). Reason and universal truths contradicted how Kierkegaard thought. The very thought of God not existing would anger him to the core. Religion was his life, faith burned through his heart and soul. He took it to the grave with him. Existentialism eventually rose in popularity in the twentieth century, which argued people's existence instead of God's existence like The Enlightenment did (Fernie). Although Kierkegaard was the father of existentialism, he was never able to see it rise into power, as he died before it began to change the ways of normality.

=Social:= In the Romantic era, political and social rebellion raged through Europe as social inequalities continued to get worse. Many proclamations were issued to try and prevent social rebellion, sedition, and blasphemous publications (Heath). This largely placed censorship on the Romantic Era poets, who produced some of the most renown poems throughout history. Kierkegaard criticized the press for the lack of responsibility and public ideas of masses. Kierkegaard started his own magazine called The Moment before he died, which spat at the Danish Church teachings. His major publications were written under pseudonyms, and he had complete anonymity. Society basically banished those whose opinions drastically differed, or those who challenged beloved people, places, or things. However, that is the only way that the world can grow. Kierkegaard angered the beloved Danish Church, and eventually became a social outcast from his works. He was able to take responsibility and recognition for what he said, so why couldn't the press? Even the proclamations meant to keep social order and suppress the rebellious outbursts couldn't keep the chaos from breaking out. No matter what law is set, one person will break it. Kierkegaard did this by challenging those who had never been challenged. Gender issues also began stirring up society which called for social reform even more. According to Powell, "During the Romantic Era, the state of marriage illustrated women’s continued inequality in society." Women were still treated like children by their husbands. They were not considered fit for independence, and needed "protection" from their husbands. Women were considered property instead of actual human beings. Powell also states that "the ability to bear children was considered woman’s foundational contribution to society, but it was also a source of concern, since this power, if left unchecked, would pose a threat to social order." Women were not educated as men were, they weren't expected to actually contain any knowledge or insight. Even feminists began to belittle other woman. Woman were criticized for marrying for love, which was considered foolish because it didn't make a solid foundation, but instead could become corrupted, and "in late eighteenth-century terms, passion and an excess of emotion primarily defined love" (Powell). Although some would think Kierkegaard would agree with this, many think it was impossible he was a misogynist. However, some of his works contained beautiful writings about women and love. He also had experienced his own love with Regine Olsen who was an inspiration for some parts of his works.

=Artistic:= The art in the Romantic Era began changing to incorporate the artist's emotions, imagination, and nature. Although nature was a prime figure in most paintings, "biblical, mythological, and supernatural subjects were also used" (Furst). According to Furst, "Romantic painters generally used radiant colors and unrestrained, expressive brushwork." Romantic art highly differed from Classical art which depicted proportional figures, portraits and realistic aspect. Since Romanticism incorporated passion, lust and a high regard for imagination, artists began depicting these characteristics into their works. Furst states, "As exceptional individuals, artists were free to pursue their creativity, unrestrained by the demands of society." Now much of the artwork differed from other pieces at that time. Every artist had the ability to do what no artist could do before them. they were able to forget about society, and create what they wanted. It was entire freedom in the artistic world. The romantics loved to paint nature since they believed it to be living proof that society couldn't corrupt everything around it (Furst). However, they had no issue in also painting a darker side of nature such as storms and crashing waves. Furst comments that "[t]hrough nature, artists could escape from an unsatisfying present into a better world." Many artists probably felt like social outcasts, similar to how Kierkegaard felt. Neither could fully relate to the masses, and believed in social corruption highly.

=Literary:= Europe, including Denmark, bloomed in literature and philosophy in the Romantic Era because of the high regard of imagination and concepts such as spirituality. Short poems that reflected writer's emotions, the historical prose novel, and the Gothic novel which depicted the supernatural became very popular (Furst). Romantics forgot about theater, and focused on literature. Romantic literature also focused on spirituality and the connection of an individual to their faith (Furst). Kierkegaard's works all focused on his obsession with religion, guilt, and how someone could ever truly be a Christian. Whereas Romanticism highlighted the scriptures and the spiritually it depicted, Kierkegaard questioned certain things. Although he did not question God's existence, but instead his own, he also wondered if Abraham had been guilty of sin. Many of his famous works explore his own view of religion, and analyzing certain aspects and choices some of the most prominent figures made.



=Romantic Art:= Romantic art often depicted the importance of nature, such as the beauty found in //The Lady of Shallots.// The girl depicted in the painting is mystical looking, spirituality was also often expressed in painting, and she is surrounded by a serene and peaceful scene. However, the expression of her face shows a longing sadness. The painting corresponds to a poem which illuminates the artist's tendency to be a social outcast, and never be able to relate to common people. In the poem, the girl dies when she sees the cruelty and inhumanity of society. //The Nightmare// is similar because it portrays emotion that the artist could have felt, along with a deep sense of fear. The creatures look supernatural, which was another popular art concept. Both women are similar, with forsaken facial expressions and hopeless body positions. Romantics often painted events that were changing mankind as well, such as the train during the Industrial Revolution. Although its hard to tell at first, the definitive brush strokes and blend of colors in //Rain, Steam and Speed// depict a train.

Citations: Fernie, Stuart. "From Idealism to Existentialism." //Potted Philosophy//. Web. 2 Oct. 2014.
 * http://stuartfernie.org/philo.htm**

Furst, Lilian. "Romanticism (late 1700s-mid 1800s)." //Scholastic Publishes Literacy Resources and Children's Books for Kids of All Ages//. Scholastic Inc. Web. 2 Oct. 2014
 * http://www.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3753923**

Hansen, Jesper. "From Famine to Food Mecca." //Denmark.dk.// Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. Web. 2 Oct. 2014.
 * http://denmark.dk/en/lifestyle/food-drink/from-famine-to-food-mecca/**

Heath, Shannon. "Censorship and Print Culture During the Romantic Era." //Romantic Politics//. University of Tennessee Department of English. Web. 2 Oct. 2014.
 * http://web.utk.edu/~gerard/romanticpolitics/censorship.html**

Jepsen, Anders. "MyDanishRoots.com." //A Brief History of Denmark//. Anders Buch-Jepsen. Web. 2 Oct. 2014
 * http://www.mydanishroots.com/history-culture-heritage/a-brief-history-of-denmark-denmark-in-the-1800s.html**

Powell, Kat. "Marriage." //Romantic Politics//. University of Tennessee Department of English. Web. 2 Oct. 2014.
 * http://web.utk.edu/~gerard/romanticpolitics/censorship.html**