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Who Influenced Modern Society Most? Puritans, Rationalists, or Romanticists?

(question taken from a college blog--http://ahshonorsamlit.blogspot.com/2009/09/cruclible-motiftheme-the...)

Some answers culled from the blog:

"Modern society is most influenced by the age of the Romantics because of the imagination, independence, and intuition which is found in it.
Today, we see paintings, writings, and more that express people’s
emotions and imagination. Expressing one’s self is greatly encouraged
while it was not always. Also, we have an independence of which we have
not always had. We have a freedom to speak freely, to express freely,
and to live differently while this liberty was not always welcomed. Most
people today have an intuition of which was not always noticed or
appreciated. We are able to feed off of our mind. We can dissect things
whether this is in science, English, or history and tell the meaning of
it. This insight on things has grown throughout the years and will
continue to develop into new and more difficult concepts. The world has
changed much since the age of the Romantics, but this age has
significantly influenced the way the world is today.
"


"In a world where individuality and free thinking are rooted in
today's principles and perspective, Romanticism appears to be the largest
influence. In the later half of the 18th century, Romanticism was the
direct result of the rigid and rationalistic beliefs of the
Enlightenment Era. In the perfect sense of balance, one extreme movement
has an equal and opposite reaction. The explosion of modern thinking in
the 50s and 60s propelled the world into unknown territory and forced
the world to accept the city life and structured classes. When society
moves closer to urban life the result is the push outward to seek solace
in nature. As more people set up their lives in the urban system, 50
years later there is a greater push to strip away this city life. In
this postmodernism world ingenuity and innovation are cherished ideals.
New developments in technology and art have widened and become broader
as individuals look to these to escape the every day. Now there are
greater opportunities in art and creative design than ever before. The
strongest shared trait however, is the powerful concept of the lone
individual. Never has the world focused so solely on the rights of the
individual and their unparalleled uniqueness. As in previous periods of
history the individual has been viewed as a mere piece to the all
important whole. Today the individual is at its greatest significance as
minorital rights are at the fore front. Though today's ideals and
paradigms are a melting pot of perspectives and philosophies it's
difficult to exclude the great influence the Romantic Era has taken in
modern society.
"

Tags: modern, society

Views: 4

Replies to This Discussion

I am teaching Arthur Miller'sThe Crucible next- a personal favorite of mine. It would be nice to hear some input.

I am more inclined to believe our science-oriented world today is more governed by rationalism (or rather, irrationality) than romanticism, but at a price. Science has improved the physical aspects of the human condition, but this very progress has caused a great epistemological disequilibrium as these more subtle human questions are pushed to fore, demanding some type of correction during the next centuryhttp://www.techcast.org/Commentary.aspx?ID=94

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