Romanticism and Reason

Is there even a single primary source among the writers within the Romantic movement for the idea that Romanticism was a rejection of reason in favor of emotion, or was this whole idea imposed by later interpretations of Romanticism by historians?

It's difficult to pinpoint a single primary source among the Romantic writers that explicitly defines Romanticism as a rejection of reason in favor of emotion. However, this idea has some basis in the writings and beliefs of key Romantic figures. It's important to note that Romanticism was a diverse and multifaceted movement, with many different writers and artists emphasizing different aspects.

While the notion of Romanticism as a rejection of reason in favor of emotion might have been exaggerated or simplified by later historians, there were indeed Romantic writers who favored emotion and imagination over reason and rationality. These writers reacted against the Enlightenment's emphasis on reason, science, and objective knowledge. They believed that emotion, individual experience, and intuition could provide deeper understanding and insight into the world than reason alone.

For example, William Wordsworth, one of the most prominent Romantic poets, stated in the Preface to the second edition of "Lyrical Ballads" (1800) that poetry should be "the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings." Wordsworth and his fellow Romantic poet, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, sought to create a new kind of poetry that focused on emotion and the natural world, breaking away from the conventions of 18th-century poetry.

Similarly, the German philosopher and writer Friedrich Schiller, in his essay "On the Aesthetic Education of Man" (1795), emphasized the importance of the emotional and aesthetic aspects of human experience, arguing that they could lead to a higher form of knowledge and morality.

These examples, among others, show that some Romantic writers did indeed prioritize emotion and imagination over reason. However, the idea that Romanticism was solely about rejecting reason in favor of emotion is a simplification and does not capture the full scope of the movement. The relationship between emotion and reason in Romanticism was more complex, with different writers and artists exploring the interaction between these two aspects of human experience in various ways.