Choose a writer from the Romantic movement that interests you and analyze his life and works. You can compare how his life and specific work compare and contrast. You can analyze how his work was truly representative of the Romantic movement. Some examples could be analyzing how John Keats wrote about actual love in his works. Another choice could be an analysis of the life of Lord Byron. Another topic could be how Mary Shelley's unconventional upbringing inspired works such as "Frankenstein." Always focus on the author's life and how it relates to something whether it be the Romantic movement or a specific work of his.
Analyze a specific work of literature from the Romantic movement. Make certain you do not pick a general or broad topic. You must get specific when developing your thesis statement. Use literary criticism topics such as historical, biographical, social, psychological, archetypal, feminist, and gender. Some thesis topics could range from gender representations in "Frankenstein", social evolution in "Pride & Prejudice," and historical changes in William Blake's "London."
Pick a piece of romantic literature and analyze why and how it fits into the romantic genre. Analyze how the qualities of romanticism is portrayed throughout the work. Choose "Bright Star" by John Keats and describe how romantic ideas are portrayed. Explain William Wordsworth's use of romanticism in a few poems from his "Lyrical Ballads". Analyze nature, a key element of romanticism in Percy Shelley's "To a Skylark". Utilize key romantic literature elements such as imagination, emotions, and nature to analyze how the work of literature is romantic.
Here is a list of Romantic writers. You can analyze their lives or their works:
- Jane Austen
- William Blake
- Lord Byron
- Samuel Taylor Coleridge
- John Keats
- Edgar Allan Poe
- Percy Shelley
- Mary Shelley
- Henry David Thoreau
- William Wordsworth