Literature Through the Ages

  • 430 BCE

    Pericles Funeral Oration

    This is a speech given in response to what is happening politically, The oration was meant to be a speech for the parents of the soldiers, who had died during the war, but Pericles wrote it to convince the people that they were mighty and needed more soldiers.
  • Period: 500 to 1500

    Medieval

    Medieval literature originated from the tales and stores that were told and passed down from generation to generation.
  • 800

    The Odyssey by Homer

    This piece of literature relates back to a time where stories were passed down from generation to generation before there was ever real documentation.
  • Period: 1500 to

    Renaissance (English)

    The Renaissance was a time where people decided to move forward from the past and create a more exciting life. Many people began to focus on the advancement of humanism and turned to philosophy and art as their passions.
  • Period: to

    Enlightenment

    The Enlightenment period brought many people away from organized religion into scientific reasoning. This time led many to debate about beliefs and theories.
  • Period: to

    Romantic Movement

    This movement led to the writing of poetry. Many people debated their interests and beliefs with others.
  • Period: to

    Realism

    Realism was a new writing which only noted the facts with no biased opinion.
  • Period: to

    Transcendental Movement

    Those who contributed to this movement believed that what you learn is not only received by senses but also by your internal spirit.
  • Period: to

    Victorian Period

    This time is hard to distinguish between the romantic movement and modernism but there were many authors who discovered different ways to approach writing​,
  • Period: to

    Existentialism

    This was a time when writers would address different matters relating to the hardships of life in different ways.
  • Period: to

    Naturalism

    This time focused more on nature and free will that people that occurred​ in peoples live depending n their situation.
  • A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen

    The time when this play was written was a period where women were treated as dolls, who took care of the home, instead of true people who had a view on the things that surround them.
  • Period: to

    The Bloomsbury Group

    This was a time where a group of people came together to discuss topics related to their writings and gain ideas from those around them. Most of the writings presented were those that were debated greatly by the group.
  • Period: to

    Modernism

    After the two world wars, modernism was established. This time represented how the world was only growing worse and not advancing.
  • The Second Coming by W.B. Yeats

    This poem relates to a time when there was a change in the civilization and it had a great impact not only on the time period where it was presented but also during the time of when Things Fall Apart was written.
  • The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

    This is a short story written about a man who imagined living different lives. He would fantasize​ about the life he could be living if he had chosen a different path.
  • The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis

    This book was written for all people, who have questions about the afterlife. It describes a story of people from Hell that have been given the opportunity to travel to Heaven. The reality of the novel is that Heaven is true satisfaction and Hell is only a small speck compared to Heaven.
  • Period: to

    Beat Generation

    This generation completely rebelled against the generation before them and their writings were blunt and straightforward. Although the time period was shortlived, their works outlived the time.
  • Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

    This is a novel written about colonization from the point of view of the Africans. The book was released during the Civil Rights Movement.
  • Period: to

    Post-Modernism

    This literary period is a time where people are unable to be completely original and they decide to remake stories in their own way. Instead of creating a story that has never been told post-modernism is a time where nothing can be original because every thought and idea has already at some point been expressed.
  • Thousand Pieces of Gold by Ruthanne McCunn

    This piece of literature was written to express what life was like at this time for a Chinese​ woman to live in America.
  • How I got that Name by Marilyn Chin

    This poem illustrated how people can be very stereotypical, and it expresses that our identities are not seen as something we earn but they are what is given to us by how others perceive​ us.
  • Shisoi by Luci Tapaphonso

    This poem is written by a grandmother about her granddaughter​ and the love and joy the child brings to the family.
  • Teenagers by Pat Mora

    This poem was written to express a time when children transform into teenagers, and although they seem familiar, they are unrecognizable.
  • Immigrants

    This poem speaks to a time when immigrants have children in America​ and wonder if others will approve of the diversity.
  • The Desert is My Mother by Pat Mora

    This poem describes a desert as it acts like a mother to the one it nurtures.