THE HISTORY OF BRITISH LITERATURE
THE HI STORY OF BRI TI SH LI TERATURE
ERA
1. Old English
(Anglo-Saxon)
450-1050 BC
RELI GI OUS, POLI TI CAL, OR SOCI AL
LI TERARY FI GURES AND THE
CONDI TI ON
LI TERARY WORKS
- The lit er ar y wor ks wer e inf luenced by Saxon
Lit er at ur e.
- (410) Romans began t o leave Br it ain.
- (664) Roman Cat holicism became t he of f icial
r eligion t hr oughout England.
-(878) English Kingdom was est ablished (in
Alf r ed r eign)
- (1016)-1042) Danish invader s r uled England.
- Most of lit er ar y wor ks came up
wit h anonymous aut hor s.
- Beowulf (a f olk epic discover ed
and edit ed in 19 t h cent ur y)
appear ed. Lat er , it was claimed
by Danish and Ger man
scholar s as t heir ear liest epic.
2. Anglo-Nor man
Per iod
(1066-1350)
- The English wer e def eat ed by t he Nor mans.
- Chr ét ien de Tr oy’s
- This br oke down t he Old English Gr ammar
- The Legend of King Ar t hur
and pr ovided t he count r y wit h new vocab.
- The language: Fr ench was super ior t han
English.
3. Middle English
Per iod
(1350-1400)
- Lat in was t he language of Chur ch and of
lear ning.
- The lit er ar y cult ur e was mor e int er nat ional.
- English was mor e spoken.
- Geof f r ey Chaucer ’s Cant er bur y
Tales
- William Langland’s Pier s
Plowman
- Sir Gawain and t he Gr een
Knight (anonymous)
4. Renaissance
(1400-1440)
The Age of New
Discover ies
- Geogr aphical discover ies: explor at ions of t he
new wor ld
- I nt ellect ual discover ies: Coper nicus f ound
- Sir Philip Sidney’s A St r ophe
And St ella (poet r y)
- Dr ama and music f lour ished.
t hat t he sun is t he cent er of planet ar y syst em
- Religious movement s: Mar t in Lut her
challenged Chur ch as t he maj or inst it ut ion
- Henr y VI I I f ounded a new Pr ot est ant
Chur ch in England.
5. Elizabet han
Per iod
(1550-1620)
- Rebellion of Mar t in Lut her in Ger many
against Roman Cat holic aut hor it y.
- Sonnet was popular .
- The poet s had a st r ong love of music and
lyr ics
- Emphasizing on beaut y and imaginat ion
- Edmund Spencer ’s The Fair y
Queen
- Shakespear e’s Hamlet , Romeo
and J uliet
- Fr ancis Bacon’s Of Tr avel
- J ohn Bunyan
6. Pur it an Age
(1620-1660)
- The r eligious and int ellect ual awakening:
a. Pr ot est ant want ed t o pur if y t he Chur ch
- The Ser mon of J ohn Donne
- J ohn Milt on’s Par adise Lost
b. Ther e was Cr omwell’s r ebellion, which
began t he Civil War
c. The Civil War dominat ed all aspect s of lif e
& t hought
- Pur it an migr at ed t o New England
- Theat r es wer e closed.
7. The Rest or at ion
Per iod
(1660-1700)
- I t was t he t ime of amazing expansion.
- People wer e int er est ed in seeing whet her
har mony& balance can be cr eat ed in societ y.
- Ther e was a view t hat cor r ect ness & good
sense was essent ial.
- Theat r es wer e r eopened.
- Daniel Def oe’s Robinson
Cr usoe
8. Neo Classic Age
(Pr e Romant ic)
(1700-1800)
- Ther e was a gr eat use of sat ir e
- The Fr ench Revolut ion gave a big inf luence
t o t he ent ir e wor ld.
- J onat han Swif t ’s Gulliver ’s
Tr avels
- Alexander Pope’s I liad
- William Blake’s Songs of
I nnocence
9. Romant ic Age
(1800-1850)
- Lyr ical Ballads emer ged.
- William Wor dswor t h, Samuel
- They viewed nat ur e as f r ee & wild
T Coler idge, Lor d Byr on, J ohn
- Ther e was a wor ship of nat ur al beaut y.
Keat s
- I t r ebelled on t yr annical aut hor it y.
- I t had a belief in liber t y f or t he individual.
- Per cy B Shelley’s Ode t o t he
West Wind
- J ane Aust en’s Pr ide &
Pr ej udice, Emma
10. Vict or ian Age
(1837-1901)
- A gr eat per iod of indust r ial development
- Ther e was a mass migr at ion of wor ker s t o
indust r ial t owns
- Lit er ar y wor ks por t r ayed t he r eal condit ion
- Char les Dickens’s Oliver Twist ,
David Copper f ield, Nicholas
Nickleby, et c.
- W.M. Thacker ay’s Vanit y Fair
of social lif e
- Ar guing t he benef it s & evil of indust r ial r ev.
- Dar win’s t heor y of The Or igin of Species
emer ged.
11. Moder n Er a
(1901-1939)
- People wer e f ed up wit h war s.
- The Gr eat Depr ession in t he USA
- Dr ama was r evit alized af t er many year s of
St agnat ion
- Lit er ar y wor ks have mor e per sonal &
I ndividual t hemes.
- J oseph Conr ad, Vir ginia Wolf ,
T.S. Elliot
- Ber nar d Shaw’s Pygmalion,
Ar ms & t he Man, The Doct or ’s
Dilemma
ERA
1. Old English
(Anglo-Saxon)
450-1050 BC
2. Anglo-Nor man
Per iod
(1066-1350)
RELI GI OUS, POLI TI CAL, OR SOCI AL
LI TERARY FI GURES AND THE
CONDI TI ON
LI TERARY WORKS
3. Middle English
Per iod
(1350-1400)
4. Renaissance
(1400-1440)
The Age of New
Discover ies
5. Elizabet han
Per iod
(1550-1620)
6. Pur it an Age
(1620-1660)
7. The Rest or at ion
Per iod
(1660-1700)
8. Neo Classic Age
(Pr e Romant ic)
9. Romant ic Age
(1800-1850)
10. Vict or ian Age
(1837-1901)
11. Moder n Er a
(1901-1939)
ERA
1. Old English
(Anglo-Saxon)
450-1050 BC
RELI GI OUS, POLI TI CAL, OR SOCI AL
LI TERARY FI GURES AND THE
CONDI TI ON
LI TERARY WORKS
- The lit er ar y wor ks wer e inf luenced by Saxon
Lit er at ur e.
- (410) Romans began t o leave Br it ain.
- (664) Roman Cat holicism became t he of f icial
r eligion t hr oughout England.
-(878) English Kingdom was est ablished (in
Alf r ed r eign)
- (1016)-1042) Danish invader s r uled England.
- Most of lit er ar y wor ks came up
wit h anonymous aut hor s.
- Beowulf (a f olk epic discover ed
and edit ed in 19 t h cent ur y)
appear ed. Lat er , it was claimed
by Danish and Ger man
scholar s as t heir ear liest epic.
2. Anglo-Nor man
Per iod
(1066-1350)
- The English wer e def eat ed by t he Nor mans.
- Chr ét ien de Tr oy’s
- This br oke down t he Old English Gr ammar
- The Legend of King Ar t hur
and pr ovided t he count r y wit h new vocab.
- The language: Fr ench was super ior t han
English.
3. Middle English
Per iod
(1350-1400)
- Lat in was t he language of Chur ch and of
lear ning.
- The lit er ar y cult ur e was mor e int er nat ional.
- English was mor e spoken.
- Geof f r ey Chaucer ’s Cant er bur y
Tales
- William Langland’s Pier s
Plowman
- Sir Gawain and t he Gr een
Knight (anonymous)
4. Renaissance
(1400-1440)
The Age of New
Discover ies
- Geogr aphical discover ies: explor at ions of t he
new wor ld
- I nt ellect ual discover ies: Coper nicus f ound
- Sir Philip Sidney’s A St r ophe
And St ella (poet r y)
- Dr ama and music f lour ished.
t hat t he sun is t he cent er of planet ar y syst em
- Religious movement s: Mar t in Lut her
challenged Chur ch as t he maj or inst it ut ion
- Henr y VI I I f ounded a new Pr ot est ant
Chur ch in England.
5. Elizabet han
Per iod
(1550-1620)
- Rebellion of Mar t in Lut her in Ger many
against Roman Cat holic aut hor it y.
- Sonnet was popular .
- The poet s had a st r ong love of music and
lyr ics
- Emphasizing on beaut y and imaginat ion
- Edmund Spencer ’s The Fair y
Queen
- Shakespear e’s Hamlet , Romeo
and J uliet
- Fr ancis Bacon’s Of Tr avel
- J ohn Bunyan
6. Pur it an Age
(1620-1660)
- The r eligious and int ellect ual awakening:
a. Pr ot est ant want ed t o pur if y t he Chur ch
- The Ser mon of J ohn Donne
- J ohn Milt on’s Par adise Lost
b. Ther e was Cr omwell’s r ebellion, which
began t he Civil War
c. The Civil War dominat ed all aspect s of lif e
& t hought
- Pur it an migr at ed t o New England
- Theat r es wer e closed.
7. The Rest or at ion
Per iod
(1660-1700)
- I t was t he t ime of amazing expansion.
- People wer e int er est ed in seeing whet her
har mony& balance can be cr eat ed in societ y.
- Ther e was a view t hat cor r ect ness & good
sense was essent ial.
- Theat r es wer e r eopened.
- Daniel Def oe’s Robinson
Cr usoe
8. Neo Classic Age
(Pr e Romant ic)
(1700-1800)
- Ther e was a gr eat use of sat ir e
- The Fr ench Revolut ion gave a big inf luence
t o t he ent ir e wor ld.
- J onat han Swif t ’s Gulliver ’s
Tr avels
- Alexander Pope’s I liad
- William Blake’s Songs of
I nnocence
9. Romant ic Age
(1800-1850)
- Lyr ical Ballads emer ged.
- William Wor dswor t h, Samuel
- They viewed nat ur e as f r ee & wild
T Coler idge, Lor d Byr on, J ohn
- Ther e was a wor ship of nat ur al beaut y.
Keat s
- I t r ebelled on t yr annical aut hor it y.
- I t had a belief in liber t y f or t he individual.
- Per cy B Shelley’s Ode t o t he
West Wind
- J ane Aust en’s Pr ide &
Pr ej udice, Emma
10. Vict or ian Age
(1837-1901)
- A gr eat per iod of indust r ial development
- Ther e was a mass migr at ion of wor ker s t o
indust r ial t owns
- Lit er ar y wor ks por t r ayed t he r eal condit ion
- Char les Dickens’s Oliver Twist ,
David Copper f ield, Nicholas
Nickleby, et c.
- W.M. Thacker ay’s Vanit y Fair
of social lif e
- Ar guing t he benef it s & evil of indust r ial r ev.
- Dar win’s t heor y of The Or igin of Species
emer ged.
11. Moder n Er a
(1901-1939)
- People wer e f ed up wit h war s.
- The Gr eat Depr ession in t he USA
- Dr ama was r evit alized af t er many year s of
St agnat ion
- Lit er ar y wor ks have mor e per sonal &
I ndividual t hemes.
- J oseph Conr ad, Vir ginia Wolf ,
T.S. Elliot
- Ber nar d Shaw’s Pygmalion,
Ar ms & t he Man, The Doct or ’s
Dilemma
ERA
1. Old English
(Anglo-Saxon)
450-1050 BC
2. Anglo-Nor man
Per iod
(1066-1350)
RELI GI OUS, POLI TI CAL, OR SOCI AL
LI TERARY FI GURES AND THE
CONDI TI ON
LI TERARY WORKS
3. Middle English
Per iod
(1350-1400)
4. Renaissance
(1400-1440)
The Age of New
Discover ies
5. Elizabet han
Per iod
(1550-1620)
6. Pur it an Age
(1620-1660)
7. The Rest or at ion
Per iod
(1660-1700)
8. Neo Classic Age
(Pr e Romant ic)
9. Romant ic Age
(1800-1850)
10. Vict or ian Age
(1837-1901)
11. Moder n Er a
(1901-1939)