Hellas Romanticism Dbq

During the 17 and 1800s, revolutions and nationalistic ambitions rocked through Europe. Despite the Protocol of Troppau where the great powers in Europe attempted to tamp down rebellion ignited by nationalism and liberal ideas, countries such as Greece still sought to break away from their oppressors. The Greeks gained their independence from the Turks in 1830 when the European powers finally stepped in after being reluctant due to their own personal interest in Greece and other territories in the Ottoman Empire. Leading up to their revolution, various opinions over the Greeks and the condition of Greece itself arised. Various people believed that the Greeks in the Ottoman Empire were either courageous, glorious beings or ignorant evil doers …show more content…
Percy Shelley, a romantic poet, described the Greeks as glorious beings in document 6. The preface to his poem Hellas is extremely nationalistic. He urges England to step in and help the Greeks gain their independence. He sees the Greeks as sensible and courageous. He wrote this document because as a Romantic poet, he would support the Greeks independence as view it as a great, passionate goal. He would be in full support of them. He also recognizes his own culture in rooted in Greece. In contrast, James Dallaway, an English chaplain, wrote in document 4 that the greeks were ignorant. He was a chaplin in Constantinople, which is within the Ottoman Empire. He would have first hand experience with the Turks and witness to how religiously tolerant they are. He writes that the greeks experience greater tolerance than any other conquered nation. He describes the upper class as being devious and the lower class as untrustworthy and opportunistic. Shelley and Dallaway illustrate how not all people in England viewed the Greeks the same. Percy Shelley, a romantic poet, would obviously differ in opinion over rebellion than Dallaway who lives within the Ottoman Empire and has lived under turkish control