Stages of European Romanticism: Cultural Synchronicity across the Arts, 1798–1848 by Theodore Ziolkowski

Abstract

 Reviews weakness, it is a tendency towards facile generalization. When Goethe consulted with his two guides as he and Tischbein ate their midday lunch on Vesuvius, it was hardly an image of sociability and egalitarian ‘commensality’ (p. ); he simply wanted to discuss their next steps. But such occasional lapses cannot detract from a masterful work rich in detail, organized with compelling logic, and presented with vivid clarity. P U T Z Stages of European Romanticism: Cultural Synchronicity across the Arts, –. By T Z. Rochester, NY, and Woodbridge: Camden House. . xiv+ pp. £. ISBN ––––. For his latest book, eodore Ziolkowski, one of our foremost comparatists, has chosen a device that is as astute as it is engaging. In order to gain a new perspective on Romanticism he treats all three major arts—literature, music, and fine art—as well as politics by comparing examples created in five specific years ranging from  to . He treats thirty-three works in all, including such masterpieces as Schubert’s Winterreise () and Constable’s Hampstead Heath (). By means of these cross-sections, or tranches, as he calls them, he aims to demonstrate the synchronicity of Romantic art across Europe. e rigour with which he pursues his theme throws up numerous unexpected juxtapositions, including Rossini’s Mosè in Egitto and Hoffmann’s Die Serapionsbrüder (). is device proves wonderfully illuminating. e two main approaches Ziolkowski combines are the historical narrative and close reading. Readers familiar only with his literary-critical skills may well be surprised by the expertise with which he treats his musical and artistic examples; for he brings the same suasion to bear when interpreting Beethoven or Rossini as when explicating Mary Shelly or Poe. e result is a cornucopian chef-d’œuvre, as rich in individual insights as it is insightful in expounding the coherence of Romanticism as a whole. e opening chapter is in some ways the most remarkable as it brings together several groundworks of the new movement, including Beethoven’s Pathétique, Wordsworth and Coleridge’s Lyrical Ballads, the Schlegel Brothers’ Athenaeum, and Goya’s El sueño (). Each of Ziolkowski’s analyses brings new insights, enriched by surprising cross-references, such as between Anne Brontë, Dumas fils, and Grillparzer. But perhaps the most significant comparison here and indeed in the whole book is that between Wordsworth and Coleridge on the one hand and the Schlegel Brothers on the other. It is characteristic of the nascent movement that in both Germany and Britain it began with collaborative efforts which set a new tone subsequently taken as a point of reference by a whole generation. Ziolkowski pinpoints several features that define the new sensibility: an evolution from existing forms; a sense of mystery and the demonic; Romantic irony; and a new fragmentariness. It is to be hoped that future studies of Romanticism will develop these insights and follow the path here mapped out. roughout, Ziolkowski reveals a passion for the arts that marks him out as MLR, .,   a humanist. In his view art is life-enhancing. His default mode is celebration. He includes precise philological details—the dates of composition and publication and so forth—together with affective criticism touching on the emotional value of his exhibits. When exploring the ambiguous ending of Schubert’s Winterreise, for instance, he combines the views of previous experts, notably Charles Rosen and Ian Bostridge, with his own sense that it is not death but alienation that defines this tragic song cycle. He is wonderfully apt in his quotations, too. In treating Scott’s e Fair Maid of Perth he takes issue with Georg Lukács’s phrase (borrowed from Balzac) that Scott displays a ‘conservative philistinism’, and in so doing ‘rescues’ Scott, arguing that he introduced a new historicism to Romanticism, suitable to a growing bourgeois audience. By thus subtly attending to context Ziolkowski restores allure and dignity to an unvisited monument. We read, see, hear, and feel anew in his company. Ziolkowski’s voice is simple, clear, unassuming. He wears his immense erudition lightly. Although he is discussing one of the most debated themes in all criticism, and certainly does not lack sophistication, he seems to approach it...