Romantic–with a Capitol 'R'–Poetry

After taking the elixir, Reginald has a change in character that not only affects him, but affects his wife, Marguerite. As he describes it, “Marguerite and myself appeared at this time to have changed characters,” and Reginald recognizes how his life has changed through the secrets of the stranger (264). From the beginning of the novel, it’s clear that Reginald relies on Marguerite to care for him, yet as we reach a point in the novel where Reginald begins to develop an autonomous mentality, he becomes the caregiver of the family.

In part two, Reginald distances himself from his family and grows closer to the stranger. Now in part three, we see how the distance has changed him and Marguerite. He becomes “the steward” of the family where Marguerite once was. The shift in characters is significant because Reginald needed another person to interrupt his relationship with his wife to gain the independence he needed after the death of his mother. Not only was it another person, but a man, who motivated Reginald to mature. Reginald’s relationship with Marguerite switches to force him to grow up, but at the detriment of Marguerite. Reginald takes away from Marguerite to make himself better. Though he becomes a better man, it is at the deterioration of his wife, meaning his growth is limited to what he can take from his wife. For Reginald to make a difference in his life to better his family, he needs to learn to grow without taking away from his family.

William Godwin’s St. Leon displays many of the characteristics that describe the Romanticism period. The characteristic I focused on while reading this novel is the celebration of nature. Godwin represents this quality in two different ways: one, being the nature of the natural world, and one being the nature of humans.

            Godwin depicts the natural world as a calming, sobering part of Reginald’s character. Reginald admits his greatest problems, specifically his gambling addiction, takes place while he is in the city. When he takes his son Charles to school in Paris, he gambles away the money he and his wife had saved (Godwin 93, 101). For Reginald, being trapped within the manmade structures of the city causes him to make questionable decisions that hurt the family. This is made clear when Marguerite takes him from the city to the countryside in Switzerland (124-125). In the country, Reginald is surrounded by open landscapes that remind him of his freedom. The country allows Reginald to be free of his disease—gambling—and become a better husband and father. Godwin’s illustration of the natural world affecting Reginald shows that escaping into nature is sometimes necessary to overcome the depression of the city.

            In comparison, Godwin also represents the nature of humanity through the thoughts and feelings of Reginald. Specifically, the quote, “The value of man is in his intrinsic qualities; in that of which power cannot strip him, and which adverse fortune cannot take away” (130). In this sentence, Godwin is explaining how humanity is given specific qualities naturally that cannot be taken by someone else. Reginald says this line to Marguerite to convince her that his value comes from the qualities he was given and not from society. Godwin is telling his readers that their value comes from how they perceive themselves and not how others perceive them. The nature of humanity becomes just as important as nature in the natural world because both enable humans to lead a better life when cared for properly.

After reading the works of Shelly, Blake, and Barbauld, my interpretation of Romantic prophecy is based on how each of these authors used real events to inspire fantastical ideas about the world. Shelly speaks of the West Wind, which is a real occurrence, and writes how he would like to be moved by the West Wind. The West Wind is associated with happiness and summer breezes, and Shelly’s poem focuses on the new possibilities the West Wind can bring. He writes, “Drive my dead thoughts over the universe / Like withered leaves to quicken a new birth,” asking for the wind to grant him new thoughts (Shelly lines 63-64). Shelly is being prophetic because he uses the natural occurrence of the wind to help guide his thoughts toward new ideas.

In the same way, Blake writes a poem about the Revolutionary War to warn America and Britain of the consequences of their actions. The poem is a recount of the war, but uses mythological and biblical references as the characters. Blake is being prophetic because he uses the references to explain that the war between both countries affects other countries around them. Blake warns America and Britain that once their conflict is over, they must check their relationships with other countries.

With Barbauld, she addresses Britain as it strains to mend its relationship with France. She warns Britain, “If prayers may not avert, if ‘tis thy fate / To rank amongst the names that once were great,” meaning if they want to remain a top power in the world, they must fix their relationships with their allies and enforce their power in an intelligent manner (Barbauld lines 71-72). The prophetic nature of her writing is revealed in her attempts to help Britain right the wrongs of its past.