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Romantic Ideals in Contemporary Folk Music

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Date Issued:
2015
Abstract/Description:
This thesis examines contemporary folk music from no earlier than 2006, specifically music of the bands The Decemberists, Fleet Foxes, and Bon Iver. Providing a close reading of select songs, I prove that modern music is seeing a revival in the Romantic Era and Transcendentalist ideals and philosophy. The works and philosophy of Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), William Wordsworth (1770-1850), John Keats (1795-1821), as well as Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862), Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), among others and their critics are all considered for points of comparison to the modern lyrics. The reason for this revival is considered in the conclusion chapter in terms of why there is a reaction against the technology driven culture in favor of one that romanticizes the thoughts and ideas of the Romantic era writers, their emphasis on nature, emotion, and the imagination which opposed the logic, reason, and technology of the industrial revolution, just as today there is a reaction to the alienation caused by technology.
Title: Romantic Ideals in Contemporary Folk Music.
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Name(s): Schwartz, Brett, Author
Murphy, Patrick, Committee Chair
Kamrath, Mark, Committee Member
Meehan, Kevin, Committee Member
University of Central Florida, Degree Grantor
Type of Resource: text
Date Issued: 2015
Publisher: University of Central Florida
Language(s): English
Abstract/Description: This thesis examines contemporary folk music from no earlier than 2006, specifically music of the bands The Decemberists, Fleet Foxes, and Bon Iver. Providing a close reading of select songs, I prove that modern music is seeing a revival in the Romantic Era and Transcendentalist ideals and philosophy. The works and philosophy of Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), William Wordsworth (1770-1850), John Keats (1795-1821), as well as Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862), Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), among others and their critics are all considered for points of comparison to the modern lyrics. The reason for this revival is considered in the conclusion chapter in terms of why there is a reaction against the technology driven culture in favor of one that romanticizes the thoughts and ideas of the Romantic era writers, their emphasis on nature, emotion, and the imagination which opposed the logic, reason, and technology of the industrial revolution, just as today there is a reaction to the alienation caused by technology.
Identifier: CFE0005708 (IID), ucf:50147 (fedora)
Note(s): 2015-05-01
M.A.
Arts and Humanities, English
Masters
This record was generated from author submitted information.
Subject(s): Romanticism -- Folk Music -- Transcendentalism -- Poetry
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005708
Restrictions on Access: campus 2020-05-15
Host Institution: UCF

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