Romanticism and Popular Culture

This evolving bibliography collects media that represent Romantic-era works and historical figures in fictional contexts. We welcome feedback and additions from the RC community.

Theater

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William Andrews Clark Memorial Library

Date:

1782

A play about Thomas Chatterton, the Romanticist writer who attributed a great many of his poems to Thomas Rowley.

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Longmans & Green

Date:

1938

"A play about Newman and Manning which is a delightful biography of Newman following fact rather than fancy yet as human, dramatic and enchanting as a play could be. Shows the many sides of Newman's character, his love of music, shyness, brilliant intellect, literary ability, spiritual sensitivity. In short, Mr. Lavery has conscientiously yet cleverly portrayed the sheer genius of the man. Manning is drawn with equal dexterity as are the lesser characters.

Publication Information:

B. Blackwell

Date:

1934

A play about the writer, Percy Shelley.

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London: Faber & Faber; New York: Grove Press.

Date:

1966

A play about the writer Percy Shelley.

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Sherman

Date:

1910

A play about the writer Thomas Chatterton -Hathi Trust

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Date:

1949

Dorothy Parker is a figure of legendary literary reputation, a fabled member of the Algonquin Round Table, and a highly visible literary personality of the twenties and thirties. Brendan Gill called her "a writer whose robust and acid lucidities were much feared and admired."

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Eyre Methuen

Date:

1976

"The Fool is a play by the English playwright Edward Bond. It traces the life of the poet John Clare against the backdrop of the Industrial Revolution, from his roots in rural East Anglia via literary success in London to his final years in a lunatic asylum." —Wikipedia

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Knopf

Date:

1923

Set largely in Nottingham in the early years of the 19th century, it depicts the suffering amongst the local weavers, caused by the introduction of mechanised looms - the 'machines' of the title. The resultant Luddite riots were defended in the House by Lord Byron in his maiden speech there. -Goodreads

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Jonathan Cape

Date:

1971

A play written in relation to "The Tyger" by William Blake.

Hypertext fiction

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Eastgate Systems

Date:

1995

" . . . hypertext with the premise that the female creature was in fact created (although by Mary Shelley, it seems, whose alter ego she seems to become). Jackson gives each of creature's body parts an individual biography, literalizing the 'body as text' metaphor in a very funny way. Towards the end (if these things have endings), the creature's seams start to fall apart and she has to hold herself together with (here I may be mis-remembering) duct tape, except that when she bathes she has to remove the tape, and then her parts float around separately in the soapy water.

The Poet and the Flea

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Date:

2020

"A reimagining of the life of the poet-painter William Blake. Set in 1790, at the onset of The Industrial Revolution, William suffers from the death of his beloved younger brother, Robert. Catherine (Kate) Blake attempts to comfort her husband, but cannot dispel his grief. During this spell of anxiety, William is visited by an ominous creature: The Ghost of the Flea. The Flea reveals an invested interest in William's spiritual well-being - the result of an unorthodox wager. Will William triumph over The Flea's sinister meddling? Or will he fall victim to The Flea's corruption?"

Visual Art

McQueen menswear ss2022

Date:

2021

Alexander McQueen's menswear spring/summer 2022 and resort 2022 collections included clothing inspired by William Blake, including several pieces that borrow images from his paintings. 

Slideshows with images of these collections are available here: https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/designer/alexander-mcqueen

Jane Austen action figure

Publication Information:

Archie McPhee

Date:

2015

A variety of Jane Austen-themed novelty merchandise, including toothpaste, an action figure, and temporary tattoos. From mcphee.com.

Picture of Bingley's Teas sampler

Date:

2008

"The Camellia Sinensis obsessed Temptress of Teas took the love she had for tea culture, Taiwan teas, her respect for the tea farmers and Jane Austen, and a little burlesque sass, to tie them all together. The result was The Jane Austen Tea Series, profiling characters of tea and Austen characters personalities for a match." -bingleysteas.com

New Yorker cartoon

Publication Information:

The New Yorker

Date:

1999

Artist George Booth created a cartoon for The New Yorker that references Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem "Ozymandias." http://www.condenaststore.com/-sp/My-name-is-Ozymandias-king-of-kings-Look-on-my-works-ye-Mighty-and-d-New-Yorker-Cartoon-Prints_i8575181_.htm

Graham Tyler grey suit

Date:

2019

Fashion Designer Graham Tyler's spring 2020 fashion collection, which debuted at New York Fashion Week in September 2019, was inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Tyler used letter manuscripts held at the New York Public Library's Pforzheimer Collection as a design motif.

Hark A Vagrant book art

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Publication Information:

Hark! a Vagrant

Date:

2006

A series of Jane Austen-themed comics by artist Kate Beaton, posted on her website Hark! A Vagrant.

Comic strip titles include "Jane Austen Comics," "Too Much Austen," and "Ooh Mister Darcy: a Fan Fiction."

Author:

Date:

2013

Jason Novak’s series of cartoons in the Paris Review in October 2013, “Shopping for Groceries with the Romantic Poets”

See The Paris Review of Books

Fashion from John Alexander Skelton

Date:

2017

John Alexander Skelton's Fall 2017 fashion line was inspired by Peterloo and Percy Shelley's Masque of Anarchy, and the models read the entire poem out loud on the runway.

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Date:

2015

Proposed LEGO toy block set of Ada Lovelace and Charles Babbage

See the article on io9

Date:

1968

The title of the work refers to the author, William Blake.

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