To understand how Romanticism changed society's way of thinking, you must first understand the meanings and reason behind the movement. The Romantic movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries has been described as a movement in cultural history, an aesthetic style, and an attitude of mind. (Fiero) Romanticism allowed the expression of their thoughts and ideas towards their own societies, which happened mainly in Europe and the United States. The movement was a reaction to the Enlightenment which provided for strict ideology and rationalism. The Church has a lot to do with the Enlightenment, as religion and the importance of God were incorporated into most aspects of their culture. Thus, Romanticism was a response to the Enlightenment movement and its religious ideology. Romantics began to believe that it was important to be in touch with one's emotions. Romanticism was seen as an affirmation of intuitive individualism and the primacy of feeling. (Fiero) These ideas lead to more detail and expression in art. Portraits are perfect examples of the subject of the individual because in portraits you can see what the person was feeling. Artists generally painted in reaction to what was happening around them, and portraits gave them the opportunity to express what their society was like. Traditionally, portraits, records of individual likenesses, became vehicles for expressing a range of psychological and emotional states in the hands of Romantic painters. (Galitz)In the book Towards a Theory of Romanticism, the author Morse Peckham gives his own idea about the theory of romanticism. He gave his opinion on the theory of romanticism because he proclaims that even though there is a definition of the romantic movement, ...... middle of article ...... they are well within their skin as human beings. Because they acquired this mindset, they used their instincts to form opinions on the issues they were dealing with at that time. People's morals changed because of romanticism, which improved the mentality of individuals. Without individuality, society would give in to all excitement and become very boring. Works Cited Galitz, Kathryn Calley. "Romanticism". In Heilbrunn Chronology of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.Fiero, Gloria K. The Humanist Tradition 6th ed. Flight. II New York: McGraw Hill, 2011Print. Gleckner, Robert F. and Gerald E. Enscoe. “Towards a theory of romanticism. » Romanticism; Viewpoints. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1970. Print. Curran, Stuart. The Cambridge Companion to British Romanticism. Cambridge [England: Cambridge UP, 1993. Print.