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Period: 400 to 750
Beowulf, heroic poem, the highest achievement of Old English literature
Beowulf, heroic poem, the highest achievement of Old English literature and the earliest European vernacular epic. It deals with events of the early 6th century and is believed to have been composed between 700 and 750. Although originally untitled, it was later named after the Scandinavian hero Beowulf, whose exploits and character provide its connecting theme. -
1066
1066-1500 Middle English Period
About 1500 – the standard literary language took the form of “modern English” 1100-1350 – the non-Latin literature was produced in the French dialect (by the invades who were then the ruling class of England) The important work of this period was Guillaume de Lorris’ and Jean de Meun’s Roman de la Rose -
Period: 1500 to
1500-1600 The Renaissance (Early Modern) Period
The secular literature became more popular in the second half of the 14th century. This was the age of Chaucer and John Gower. Remarkable works of this time were William Langland’s great religious and satirical poem Piers Plowmen, and Thomas Malory’s the famous prose romance called Morte d’ Arthur. -
1516
Early British Literature
A survey of English literature course or test will most likely begin with the oral traditions of Old and Middle English. The most popular is the epic poem "Beowulf." Although there are numerous written versions of the work, it was originally a spoken poem passed through generations of early inhabitants of England called Anglo-Saxons. -
Victorian and Modernist British Literature
The Victorian period, which lasted from the mid-1800s to the beginning of the twentieth century, includes the love poems of Elizabeth and Robert Browning, Lord Alfred Tennyson's sweeping saga of Camelot entitled "Idylls of the King. -
Period: to
Important Authors and Titles
The most famous example of Old English literature is the anonymous epic "Beowulf." The most famous work in Middle English is "The Canterbury Tales" by Chaucer. Although he had many famous contemporaries, William Shakespeare is the best known author of the Elizabethan period. John Milton, known for his epic poem "Paradise Lost," and John Bunyan -
1616
John Smith publishes A Description of New England, an account of his exploration of the region in 1614 -
History of English Literature
Some of English literature’s most distinguished practitioners in the 20th century—from Joseph Conrad at its beginning to V.S. Naipaul and Tom Stoppard at its end—were born outside the British Isles. -
Early Tales Set by Firelight
The earliest British literature features horrors and moral degradation by firelight. Beowulf dismembers Grendel in the light of the great hall of Hrothgar; the hero goes on to uncertain glory as his epic details his moral decay. The flickering fire of an inn illuminates the tale of the Pardoner in Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales -
17th-Century British Literature
William Shakespeare's plays and poems figure prominently in any English literature course. His plays fall under three headings: comedies, where the characters use deceit and disguise to gain true love; tragedies, where a hero succumbs to a tragic flaw in his character causing his own and quite a few other deaths; and histories, where the central character is a former king whose flaws cause his demise. -
Period: to
Literary Terms and Devices
Included in any study of literature is the study of literary elements. Students should be familiar with the definitions and uses of "theme," "mood," "style," and "symbolism" in regard to written works. Knowing poetic devices and forms such as "meter," "rhyme," "alliteration," "sonnet," and "quatrain" is also essential. -
1702
1702
The Augustan Age begins in English literature, claiming comparison with the equivalent flowering under Augustus Caesar -
Period: to
Modern English Flames
The flame of civilization goes out quickly in Golding's "Lord of the Flies" as the boys in the novel go native in the sun and turn cannibal by torchlight, a strong reference to the moral lapses of war-motivated mankind. -
Period: to
The Age of Johnson
This period marks the transition toward the upcoming Romanticism though the period is still largely Neoclassical. Major writers include Dr. Samuel Johnson, Boswell, and Edward Gibbon who represent the Neoclassical tendencies -
VI. The Victorian Period and the 19th Century
Writings from the period of Queen Victoria's reign include sentimental novels. British writers include Elizabeth Browning, -
The Renaissance (Early Modern) Period
1558-1603 Elizabethan Age
1603-1625 Jacobean Age
1625-1649 Caroline Age
1649-1660 Commonwealth Period
1600-1785 The Neo-classical Period
1660-1700 Restoration Period
1700-1745 The Augustan Age
1745-1783 The Age Of Sensibility
1785-1830 The Romantic Period
1832-1901 The Victorian Period
1848-1860 The Pre-Raphaelites -
1960
1960
Penguin Books are prosecuted for obscenity for publishing D.H. Lawrence's novel Lady Chatterley's Lover, and are acquitted -
English literature
he body of written works produced in the English language by inhabitants of the British Isles (including Ireland) from the 7th century to the present day. The major literatures written in English outside the British Isles are treated separately under American literature, Australian literature, Canadian literature, and New Zealand literature. -
2000 The Amber Spyglass completes Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials
is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of Northern Lights (1995) (published as The Golden Compass in North America), The Subtle Knife (1997), and The Amber Spyglass (2000). It follows the coming of age of two children, Lyra Belacqua and Will Parry, as they wander through a series of parallel universes.
