Romanticism, republicanism, and the Swiss myth / Patrick Vincent, University of Neuchâtel.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Vincent, Patrick H., author.

Series:

Cambridge studies in Romanticism ; 138.

Cambridge studies in Romanticism ; 138

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

English literature--19th century--History and criticism.

English literature.

English literature--18th century--History and criticism.

Switzerland--In literature.

Switzerland.

Romanticism--Great Britain--History--19th century.

Romanticism.

Romanticism--Great Britain--History--18th century.

Republicanism--Great Britain--History.

Republicanism.

Liberalism--Great Britain--History.

Liberalism.

Switzerland--Foreign public opinion, British.

Political culture--Switzerland.

Political culture.

National characteristics, Swiss.

Literature.

Public opinion, British.

Great Britain.

Genre:

Criticism, interpretation, etc.

History.

Literary criticism.

Physical Description:

xi, 308 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, United Kingdom ; New York, NY : Cambridge University Press, 2023.

Summary:

"The first detailed treatment of Switzerland in British literature and culture from Joseph Addison to John Ruskin, this book analyzes the aesthetic and political uses of what is commonly called the 'Swiss myth' in the parallel development of Romanticism and liberalism. The myth merged the country's legends going back to the Middle Ages with the Enlightenment image of a happy, free nation of alpine shepherds. Its unique combination of conservative, progressive, and radical associations enabled writers before the French Revolution to call for democratic reforms, whereas those coming after could refigure it as a conservative alternative to French liberté. Integrating intellectual history with literary studies, and addressing a wide range of Romantic-period texts and authors, among them Byron, the Shelleys, Hemans, Scott, Coleridge, and, above all, Wordsworth, the book argues that the myth contributed to the liberal idea of the people as a sublime yet sleeping sovereign"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

'Not / A pastoral fable': Republicanism, Liberalism, and the Swiss Myth

Comparative Republicanisms: The Swiss Myth in Eighteenth-Century Britain

Revising Republicanism: Revolutionary Period Travel Writing on Switzerland

Switzerland No More: 1798 and the Romantic Imagination

Switzerland in Miniature: Wordsworth's 'Visionary Mountain Republic'

Restoration Republicanism: The Swiss Myth after 1815

Coda: John Ruskin's Switzerland.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781009210294

1009210297

9781009210300

1009210300

OCLC:

1334721656