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Beethoven American Romanticism

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Take a drive. Take a drive about five miles south of the small town of Rolla, Missouri. Just past the Snake River Bridge you'll see a dirt road on the right with an old rusted, red street sign that reads "Route 4." Take this right and follow the winding rural road up the steep grades of the Ozark Mountains until you reach a small, modest farm at the top of the first ridge. This was my home when I was ten years old. Inside the walls of my family's log cabin was a life wrought with staunch rules and religious observations. On the outside, amidst the sheep and the fields, in the secrecy and mystery of the surrounding mountain woods, was my world of freedom and imagination. Every summer was the same. I would wake early with the sun, and bound for …show more content…
Both counter-culture and revolutionary, this style of writing was often scandalous and shocking in the opinion of the early readers. Whether discussing love and promiscuity with dark and mysterious women, or creating odes to the freedom found in emotions and pain, the romantics put onto paper and canvas their desires, experiences, and regrets. Romanticism's reach stretched into music as well. Consider the music of Beethoven, whose best work was born painstakingly within the agony of the composer's hearing loss. His heartbreak was not a deterrent but served as a motivator in his determination to create while he still could. Thus, his music was as raw as Wordsworth' words were honest. Such honesty was both refreshing and dangerous to a culture dictated by strict religious laws and strong traditions of …show more content…
I felt the battle within my own heart between human nature and the holy nature of God. These two paradigms- the paganistic focus on one's self within the world and the dogmatic observance of faith that is "in but not of" this world is the very root conflict of romanticism. Romanticism says to follow your heart and say yes to your desires. Religion, particularly Christianity, says to follow the law and deny your desires. So, therein lies the conundrum. The famous poets, artists, musicians, and politicians who followed their hearts towards greatness found that, in greatness, there is not always righteousness, for one can be both terrible and great. The gray area found within Christianity, the mystery of the spirit and the beauty of nature- this is where I believe we find Romanticism. It resides between greatness and humility and in the places where we are left to fill in the blanks with our personal experience and understanding. Those from history who have lived in this mysterious and spiritual place, who shared their experience through the arts and great revolutions so that the world may bear witness- these are the men and women who defined

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