The chronological overview of English literature

By diana2507
  • The Old English Period (anglo-saxon)
    450

    The Old English Period (anglo-saxon)

    • Oral tradition
    • Different dialects
    • Translation of something else Important works:
    • The Venerable Bede (731)
    • Beowulf (975)
    • The material of the Eddas (959)
  • The Middle English Period
    1066

    The Middle English Period

    • Catholic influence (religious writings)
    • Anonymous writers
    • Allegorical fable, verse and secular lyrics Works:
    • Piers Plowman, Langland (1367)
    • The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer (1387)
    • Morte d'Arthur, Thomas Malory (1469)
    • Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
  • The Renaissance
    1500

    The Renaissance

    • Human emotions
    • Rebirth of ancient Greek and Roman worlds
    • Subdivided in Elizabethan Age (1558–1603), the Jacobean Age (1603–1625), the Caroline Age (1625–1649), and the Commonwealth Period (1649–1660) Authors:
    • Shakespeare
    • Michael Drayton
    • John Webster
    • Elizabeth Cary
    • Ben Jonson
  • The Neoclassical Period

    The Neoclassical Period

    • Subdivided in Restoration (1660–1700), The Augustan Age (1700–1745), and The Age of Sensibility (1745–1785)
    • Order, structure and control
    • Materialism and empirical science
    • Inspiration: classical art and culture of Ancient Greece and Rome Works:
    • Paradise Lost, John Milton (1667)
    • Gulliver's Travels, Jonathan Swift (1726)
    • Dictionary of the English Language, Samuel Johnson (1755)
  • The Romantic Period

    The Romantic Period

    • Influence of French Revolution
    • Great and diverse age of British literature
    • Feelings of loneliness and sadness, not just love
    • Gothic era
    • Awareness and acceptance of emotions
    • Spiritual elements
    Works:
    - A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, Mary Wollstonecraft (1792)
    - Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen (1813)
    - The Last Leaf, Oliver Wendell Holmes (1831)
  • The Victorian Period

    The Victorian Period

    • Influence of the Industrial Revolution
    • Proliferation of women writers
    • More realism, passion and pessimism
    • It was named for the reign of Queen Victoria
    • It is related to the Romantic period for being the most popular, influential, and prolific period. Works:
    • Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens (1843)
    • The Time Machine, H.G. Wells (1895)
    • The Wonderful Wizard, Frank Baum (1900)
  • The Edwardian Period

    The Edwardian Period

    • Influence of the World War I
    • It is named for King Edward VII
    • Elegance and luxury are evident in this period Works:
    • The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Beatrix Potter (1901)
    • Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery (1908)
    • The History of Mr. Polly, H.G. Wells (1910)
  • The Georgian Period

    The Georgian Period

    • It is named like that because of the reign of George V
    • Rural or pastoral in nature themes
    • Passion and experimentation
    • Use of metaphoric and symbolism in written
    • Revolutionary movements (cubism, expressionism, futurism) Works:
    • Rupert Brooke's 1914 and Other Poems (1915)
    • Mrs Dalloway, Virginia Woolf (1925)
    • My Life and Loves, Frank Harris (1928)
  • The Modern Period

    The Modern Period

    • It is called ''The Lost Generation''
    • Influence of World War I
    • Encompassing narrative, verse, and drama
    • New Criticism appeared at this time Works:
    • Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell (1936)
    • For Whom the Bell Tolls, Ernest Hemingway (1940)
    • Animal Farm, George Orwell (1945)
  • The Postmodern Period

    The Postmodern Period

    • Influence of World War II
    • Direct response to modernism
    • Poststructuralist literary theory and criticism Works:
    • Narnia in the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis (1950)
    • I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou (1979)
    • Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling (1997)