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Old English refers to the literature produced from the invasion of Celtic England by Germanic tribes in the first half of the fifth Century till the conquest of England in 1066 by William Conqueror, Old English was characterized by epic, heroic stories of violence and feudal loyalty, often written in alliterative verse.
Beowulf is an Old English epic poem in the tradition of Germanic It is one of the most important and often translated works of Old English literature, and its Author is unknown. -
This is a Timeline to understand the long history of English Literature starting in 450 going right until the present, and know the authors, topics and works.
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The Middle English period begins some time after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066 (The Battle of Hastings).
Some examples of Medieval Literature are The Divine Comedy (Dante) Composed in the early fourteenth century, Dante’s Divine Comedy is a trilogy of poems charting the poet’s journey from hell (Inferno) through Purgatory (Purgatorio) to heaven (Paradiso), and The Rubáiyát. (Omar Khayyám,) who was a Persian poet, philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician. -
The English Renassance began with the ascent of the House of Tudor to the Englsih Throne in 1485, the English Literary Renaissnace began with the Englsih Humanists such as SIr Thomas More and Sir Thomas Wyatt. Some examples are Don Quijote de la Mancha, publicated on 1605 and The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is a tragedy by the English playwright William Shakespeare publicated on 1611. -
Neoclassical literature was written between 1660 and 1785. This time period is broken down into three parts: the Restoration period, the Augustan period, and the Age of Johnson. Writers of the Neoclassical period tried to imitate the style of the Romans and Greeks.
Paradise lost is a narrative poem by John Milton (1608-1674), published in 1667. It is considered a classic of English literature. -
Romantic Literature is characterised by it personal nature, its strong use od feeling, its abundant use of symbolism and the exploration of nature and the supernatural. The Romantics were considered innovative based on their belief that literature could be spontanteous, imaginative, personal and free.
An example literature is the book Frankenstein publicated on 1818 written by Mary Shelley. -
Victorian literature refers to English literature during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901). The 19th century is widely considered to be the Golden Age of English Literature, especially for British novels. It was in the Victorian era that the novel became the leading literary genre in English.
An example of the Victorian Period Literature is "Alicia en el Pais de las Maravillas" written by Lewis Carroll on 1865 -
Edwardian Period is named after the King Edward VII and spans from Queen VIctorias death till the beggining of WWI. During this time the British Empire was at its height and lived lives of materialistic luxury. The writigns fromthe Edwardian Period reflect deeply on these social conditions. For example some authors attacked the selfishness of the upperclass.
An example of the Edwardian Period Literature is the book "El jardin secreto" written on 1911 by Frances Hodgson Burnett. -
Modernism is a period in literary history which started around the early 1900s and continued until the early 1940s. Modernist writers in general rebelled against clear-cut storytelling and formulaic verse from the 19th century.
One example of this period is The Waste Land written on 1922 by T. S. Eliot is a long poem features (as it must) in our pick of Eliot’s best poems, and it’s one of the landmark works of modernist literature – perhaps the most important poem in all of modernism. -
Postmodern literature is a form of literature that is characterized by the use of metafiction, unreliable narration, self-reflexivity, intertextuality, and which often thematizes both historical and political issues.
Gravity's Rainbow is a 1973 novel by the American writer Thomas Pynchon. The narrative is set primarily in Europe at the end of World War II and centers on the design, production and dispatch of V-2 rockets by the German military.