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Period: 410 to 1066
ANGLO-SAXON, OR OLD ENGLISH
This period began when the Romans withdrew from Britain, leaving it to Germanic and Scandinavian settlers.
The Old English period ended with the Norman invasion of 1066. FEATURES
- Strong believe in fate.
- Express religious faith
- Old English poetry is alliterative IMPORTANTANT AUTHORS AND TITLES
The most famous example of Old English literature is the anonymous epic "Beowulf."
-This period is known for its beautiful elegies, including "The Wanderer" and "The Seafarer. -
800
Beowulf
Beowulf, the first great work of Germanic literature, mingles the legends of Scandinavia with the experience in England of Angles and Saxons -
Period: 1066 to 1500
MIDDLE ENGLISH PERIOD (MEDIEVAL PERIOD)
This period consists of the literature produced between the Norman Conquest and when the standard literary language,became recognizable as "modern English." FEATURES
- The medieval romance, were popular and captured the new concerns and ideals of feudalism, including courtly love, courtesy and chivalry IMPORTANTANT AUTHORS AND TITLES
The most famous work in Middle English is "The Canterbury Tales" by Chaucer.
- Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
-Domesday Book
-L’Morte de Arthur -
1375
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
The courtly poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight tells of a mysterious visitor to the round table of King Arthur -
1387
Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
The Canterbury Tales is a collection of 24 stories that runs to over 17,000 lines written in Middle English -
Period: 1500 to
THE RENAISSANCE
The English Literary Renaissnace began with the Englsih Humanists such as SIr Thomas More and Sir Thomas WyattY Genres:
-poetry
-the sonnet
-drama: written in verse and supported by royalty o tragedies, comedies, histories Authors:
- William Shakespeare
-Thomas Wyatt
-Ben Jonson
- Andrew Marvell
-Robert Herrick -
1558
Elizabethan Age
ELIZABETHAN AGE 1558-1603
The Elizabethan Age of English Literature coincides with the reign of Elizabeth I. During this time medieval tradition blended with Renaissance optimism.
Lyric poetry, prose and drama were major styles of literature that were made in the Elizabethan Age. Witers as Sir Philip Sidney, Edmund Spenser, Roger Ascham, Richard Hooker, Christopher Marlowe, and William Shakespeare flourished. -
Period: to
NEOCLASSICAL PERIOD
This Period was influenced by contemporary French Literature, which was in the midst of its greatest age. This literature is known for use of philosphy, reason, skepticism, wit and refinement. The Neoclassical Period marks that first great age of English Literary critism. Genres:
-satire
-poetry
-essays
-letters
-diaries
-novels Authors
- Alexander Pope
-Daniel Defoe
-Jonathan Swift
-Samuel Johnson
-John Bunyan
-John Milton -
Shakespeare
Shakespeare's central character in Hamlet expresses both the ideals of the Renaissance and the disillusion of a less confident age -
Jacobean Age
JACOBEAN AGE 1603-1625
The Jacobean Age of English Literature coincides with reign of James I, During this time the literature became sophisticated, sombre and conscious of social abuse and rivarlry. Rich prose and drama were written in this time.
The dominant literary figure was Ben Jonson , whose varied and dramatic works followed classical models. His satiric dramas, notably the great Volpone (1606), all take a cynical view of human nature. -
"A Description of New England"
John Smith publishes "A Description of New England", an account of his exploration of the region in 1614 -
Caroline Age
CAROLINE AGE 1625-1649
The Caroline Age of English Literature coincides with the reign of Charles I.
During his age the writers wrote with refinement and elegance.
The dramaists in this age were the last to write in the Elizabethan tradition.
Cavelier Poets - Thomas Carew, Robert Herrick, John Suckling, William Davenant and Richard Lovelace -
The Restoration
THE RESTORATION 1660-1700
The Restoration Period is marked by the restoration of the monarchy and the triumph of reason and tolerance over religious and political passion.
The Restoration produce a multitude of prose and poetry and the distinctive restoration comedy. John Milton - English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under its Council of State and later under Oliver Cromwell - Paradise Lost & Paradise Regained -
"Robinson Crusoe " by Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, with its detailed realism, can be seen as the first English novel -
The Age Of Sensibility
THE AGE OF SENSIBILITY 1745-1785
The Age of Sensibility began to reflect the worldview of Enlightment and started to emphasize instinct and feeling rather than judgement and restraint. The Age of Sensibility bloomed a growing sympathy of Middle English and sparked an interest in medieval ballads and folk literature. It was also known as the Age of Johnson due to dominant authors being Samuel Johnson and his literary and interlectual circle. -
Period: to
THE ROMANTIC PERIOD
Is characterised by it personal nature, 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, personal and free.
During this Period, the Gothic Literature was first created. This Literature include dark and gloomy settings and characters and situations that are fantasic, grotesque, wild, mysterious and melodramatic. Authors
Mary Shelley
Jane Austen -
"Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen
based on a youthful work of 1797 called First Impressions, is the second of Jane Austen's novels to be published -
"Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley publishes Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, a Gothic tale about giving life to an artificial man -
Period: to
THE VICTORIAN PERIOD
Begins with the accession of Queen Victoria onto the throneand lasted till her death.
Victorian literature deals with the issues and problems of the day. Some issues include; social, economic, religious and intellectual issues and problems surrounding the Industrial Revolution, growing class tensions, the early feminsit movement, pressures towards political. Authors
Charles Dickens.
The Brontë sisters (Emily, Charlotte y Anne)
Lewis Carroll.
Oscar Wilde. -
"Oliver Twist," by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens' first novel, Oliver Twist, begins monthly publication (in book form, 1838) -
"On the Origin of Species" Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin puts forward the theory of evolution in On the Origin of Species, the result of 20 years' research -
Period: to
THE MODERN PERIOD
This period break with traditional ways of writing, and was characterized by stylistic experimentation and the questioning of traditional values. The most prominent novelists of the interwar period were D.H. Lawrence and Virginia Woolf
The most important popular literature writers were P.G. Wodehouse and Agatha Christie. -
Period: to
POSTMODERN
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. This style of experimental literature emerged strongly in the United States in the 1940s through the writings of authors such as Kurt Vonnegut, Thomas Pynchon, and John Barth. -
Period: to
CONTEMPORARY
Contemporary literature is defined as literature written after World War II through the current day. While this is a vague definition, there is not a clear-cut explanation of this concept -- only interpretation by scholars and academics. .
