1. Nature and Natural Beauty: Romantic poets often associated beauty with the natural world, finding inspiration in the beauty of landscapes, flowers, sunsets, and other natural elements. Nature was often seen as a source of profound beauty and wonder.
2. Emphasizing Emotions and Subjectivity: Romantic poets believed that beauty is not objective but rather a subjective experience, closely tied to emotions and individual perception. They celebrated intense and sincere emotional responses to beauty, emphasizing the individual's unique perspective and interpretation of beauty.
3. Idealization of Beauty: Many Romantic poets idealized beauty, viewing it as an almost ethereal or divine quality. Beauty was often associated with perfection, purity, and a sense of transcendence beyond the physical realm.
4. Appreciation of Imperfection: While Romantic poets admired idealized beauty, they also found beauty in the imperfections and complexities of life. They celebrated the beauty of ruins and decay, the passage of time, and the melancholy associated with transience.
5. Beauty in Literature and Poetry: Romantic poets often explored the concept of beauty in their literary works, reflecting on the ways in which language and poetic expression could capture the essence of beauty and evoke aesthetic emotions.
6. Sensuality and Physical Beauty: Romantic poetry frequently celebrated sensual beauty, focusing on the physical attributes of individuals, such as graceful features, flowing hair, and shapely figures.
7. Connection to the Sublime: Romantic poets often associated beauty with the sublime, a concept that encompasses awe-inspiring and overwhelming grandeur in nature or aesthetic experiences.
8. Awe and Wonder: Romantic poets sought to evoke awe and wonder in their readers through their depictions of beauty, aiming to transport them into a realm of enchantment and imaginative delight.
9. Appreciation of Inner Qualities: While physical beauty was admired, Romantic poets also emphasized the beauty of inner qualities, such as virtue, nobility of character, and emotional depth.
10. Emotional Impact: Ultimately, the standard of beauty in Romantic poetry was often judged by the extent to which it could elicit strong emotions and deep resonance with the reader's own perception and experience of beauty.