Romantic poetry is not about love poems, it is a philosophical approach to literature, arts and culture which began in the mid/late-1700s as a reaction against the prevailing Enlightenment ideals of the day (Romantics favoured more natural, emotional and personal artistic themes)*. The poets of the era like William Wordsworth, Percy Shelley, Charlotte Smith and others, tended to focus on subjects and themes that included the world of myth and legend and mysticism**. The reigning belief of this era was that the poets, writers and authors had superior imagination, a creative genius that put them above ordinary mortals therefore all that was created came strictly for the mind of the poet/artist/writer and wasn't influenced by anything external***.

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sources: *wikipedia. **English in Context (1997), Maskew Miller Longman.  ***Introduction to Theory of Literature (2007), Unisa .