Stendhal Romantique ? - Comparative and World Literature

French Literature Reviews - 2026

Stendhal Romantique ?
Comparative and World Literature

ELLUG is pleased to announce the publication of the book:

Stendhal “Romantic”?

Stendhal and European Romanticisms

Edited by Marie-Rose Corredor

Publisher's Overview:

Is Stendhal "romantic"? For the author of Racine and Shakespeare, "romanticism" is intrinsically linked to the legacy of the French Revolution, which "enters literature" in the wake of the Empire—from its zenith to its decline, culminating in the retreat from Russia, which signaled for him the death knell of "classicism." From "Naples to Moscow," as he put it, Stendhal traversed a Europe grappling with the upheavals of various nationalisms. He was able to engage directly with the diverse forms of "romanticism." The "romanticismo" discovered in Italy was nourished by English influences and, despite certain reservations, by complex influences from the Germanic sphere. Yet, for the first time, a work of synthesis has incorporated contributions from Hungary, Poland, and Russia, imparting a new scope to the notion of Stendhal’s "European romanticism."

Table of Contents

Introduction

Marie-Rose Corredor

Romanticisms: On Dominique and Jean-Jacques

Francesco Spandri

Part I - Romanticism, Romanticism(s)

1. Romantic Strategies

2. Romanticismo: Stendhal's Anglo-Italy

3. “Romanticism in the Fine Arts”

Part II – From the “Nation” to Europe

4. Beyond the Idea of the Nation

5. “Traversing Europe”

Appendices

Select Bibliography

Index

ISBN: 978-2-84310-321-6

Price: 24 €

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The intellectual landscape of nineteenth-century Europe was defined by shifting artistic currents and the profound aftermath of the French Revolution. Writers and thinkers across the continent grappled with the dissolution of classical paradigms, engaging with emerging national identities and cross-cultural exchanges that reshaped literary expression. Within this broader historical and aesthetic context, Stendhal's engagement with contemporary literature reflected a lifelong fascination with the political and cultural transformations of his era, spanning from the Napoleonic epoch to the subsequent decades of restoration and intellectual realignment across various European regions.

Edited by Marie-Rose Corredor, the book Stendhal “Romantic”? Stendhal and European Romanticisms addresses Stendhal's view that romanticism is intrinsically linked to the legacy of the French Revolution, as well as his encounters with diverse European movements from Italy to Russia. Readers interested in nineteenth-century French literature and European cultural history may find it relevant. The collection incorporates perspectives from various national contexts, including contributions from Hungary, Poland, and Russia, to broaden the scope of his literary connections.