“As a cultural historian, Gay surveys his terrain from a wide angle. . . . [T]here are particular treasures to be found in the book, not the least of which is the pleasure of reading Gay's blessedly jargon-free prose.”—Lisa M. Steinman, Review 19
"An accessible, engaging introductory overview of ways in which Romanticism exceeds historical and geographical boundaries as a critical mode and creative disposition."—Margaret Linley, European Romantic Review
Winner of the 2015 Jean-Pierre Barricelli Prize given by the International Conference on Romanticism.
“In this instructive and insightful book, a capstone to a career that has now spanned more than six decades, Peter Gay muses with characteristic brilliance and learning about the deep connections between Romanticism and Modernism, and how they have shaped the way the modern age thinks and feels.”—David A. Bell, Princeton University
"With his usual deft, even chatty style, Peter Gay leads us through the paradoxes of the major European Romantics and documents their impact on Modernism. There is no page in his book that is not thoughtful and witty."—Geoffrey Hartman, author of The Eighth Day: Poems Old and New
“Peter Gay, a brilliant scholar of both the Enlightenment and Modernity, turns now to Romanticism. Drawing on a lifetime of reading and thinking, he is perfectly situated to explain to a new generation Why the Romantics Matter.”—Valerie Steele, Director of The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology
“With Peter Gay's characteristic elegance and erudition, Why the Romantics Matter celebrates the power of Romanticism from the late eighteenth century to the early twentieth—a movement whose energies are inseparable from the self-image of men and women today.”—David Bromwich, Yale University
