Rousseau felt that feeling, derived from nature and sexual love, was the basis of his existence and creativity. My interests have both given me life and destroyed me. My needs are great, but I can never satisfy them. My imagination has made me a monster. It has made me feel intensely every sensation there is to feel and it has robbed me of my self-control. His solution was to return to nature and be free from civilization's corruption. He believed that humanity was naturally good but had been corrupted by society. To regain its true human nature, society must be restored to its original state with individuals living in natural groups called "noble savages". Romanticism is a term used to describe a period in European art and literature in the early 19th century when artists and writers showed strong feelings about nature, mythology, and history. This outlook began with an emotional response to modern civilization and technology and led to ideas about the redemptive power of nature, the horror of war, and the beauty of love.