This literary movement was very popular in the eighteenth century. In drama, Sentimentalism is marked by melodramatic tendencies, excessive emotion, and ideal characters. The first instance in drama occurred in 1696 with Colley Cibber's Love's Last Shift or The Fool in Fashion performed at the Drury Lane Theatre.

Sentimentalism (literally, appealing to the sentiments), as a literary and political discourse, has occurred much in the literary traditions of all regions in the world, and is central to the traditions of Indian literature, Chinese literature, and Vietnamese literature (such as Ho Xuan Huong).

a predilection for sentimentality

a sentimental expression or idea

The quality of being sentimental; the character or behavior of a sentimentalist; sentimentality.