Literature
& writing though obviously connected are not synonymous. The very
first writings from ancient Sumer by any reasonable definition do not
constitute literature; the same is true of some of the early
hieroglyphics or the thousands of logs from ancient Chinese regimes.
Scholars have already disagreed concerning when written record keeping
became more like "literature" than anything else; the definition is
largely subjective.
Many texts handed down by oral tradition over several centuries before they were fixed in written form are difficult or impossible to date. The core of the Rig-Veda may date to the mid second millennium BC. Homer's Illiad & Odyssey date to the eighth century BC & mark the beginning of classical antiquity. They also stand in oral tradition that stretches back to the late Bronze Age.
English Literature is the literature written in English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England. In other words English Literature is as diverse as the varieties & dialects of English spoken around the world.
Despite the variety of authors of English Literature, the works of William Shakespeare remain paramount through out the English speaking world.The first works in English written in old English appeared in the early middle ages (the oldest text is Caedmon's Hymn). The oral tradition was very strong in the early English culture & most literary works were written to be performed. Epic poems were thus very popular & many, including Beowulf have survived to the present day in which corpus of Anglo Saxon Literature that closely resemble today's Norwegian, Northumbrian & Scots English dialects of modern English.
In the 12th century, a new form of English now known as Middle English evolved. This is the earliest form of English literature which is comprehensible to modern readers & listeners. Middle English Bible translations notably, Wycliffe's Bible helped to establish English as a literary language. There are three main categories of Middle English literature: Religious, Courtly Love & Arthurian.
The most significant Middle English author was Geoffrey Chaucer, who was active in the late 14th century. Often regarded as the father of English Literature, Chaucer is widely credited as a first author to demonstrate the artistic legitimacy of the vernacular English language rather than French or Latin. The Canterbury Tales was Chaucer's magnum opus & a towering achievement of western culture.
Following the introduction of printing press into England by William Caxton in 1476, vernacular literature flourished. The poetry, drama & prose produced under both Queen Elizabeth I & King James I constitute what is today labeled as early modern age (Renaissance).
The Elizabethan era saw a great flourishing of literature especially in the field of drama. Elizabethan plays such as Gorbuduc by Sackville & Norton & The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd that was to provide much material for Hamlet. William Shakespeare stands out in this period as a poet & playwright as yet unsurpassed. Shakespeare was not a man of letters by profession & probably had only some grammar education. But he was very gifted & incredibly versatile. Though most dramas met with great success, it is in his later years that he wrote what have been considered his greatest plays: Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, Othello, King Lear , Macbeth, Antony & Cleopatra and The Tempest, a tragi comedy that inscribes within the main drama, a brilliant pageant to the new king. Shakespeare has also popularized English sonnet which made significant changes to Petrarch's model. The sonnet was introduced into English by Thomas Wyatt in the early 16th century.
After Shakespeare's death, the poet & dramatist Ben Johnson was the leading literary figure of Jacobean Era. Besides Shakespeare whose figure towers over the early 17th century, there were John Donne & other metaphysical poets.
Restoration literature includes both Paradise Lost & Earl of Rochester's Sodom, the high spirited sexual comedy of Country wife & the moral wisdom of Pilgrim's Progress. The largest & most important poetic form of the era was Satire. In general, publication of Satire was done anonymously. There was great danger in being associated with a satire. John Dryden was set upon for being merely suspected of having written the satire on Mankind.
Prose in Restoration Poetry is dominated by Christian religious writing but Restoration also saw the beginnings of two genres that dominate later periods, Fiction & journalism. Puritan authors such as John Milton were forced to retire from public life. John Bunyan stands out beyond other religious authors of that period. Bunyan's ‘The Pilgrim's Progress' is an allegory of personal salutation & a guide to the Christian life.
The period from 1689-1750 was called ‘The Augustan Age' because of the aptness of the metaphor throughout the 18th century (including Voltaire & Olivee Goldsmith). The literature of this period is completely political. It is an age of exuberance & scandal, of enormous energy & inventiveness & outrage that reflected an era.
The most outstanding poet of the Age is Alexander Pope. The mock-heroic was at its zenith. Pope's "Rape of the Lock" & "The Dunciad" are still the greatest mock –heroic poems ever written. It was during this time that James Thomson produced his melancholy.
The superiority of nature & instinct over civilization had been preached by Jean Jacques Rousseau & his message was picked by almost all European Poets. The first in England were the Lake poets, a small group of friends including William Wordsworth & Samuel Taylor Coleridge. These early Romantic Poets brought a new emotionalism & introspection & their emergence is marked by the first romantic Manifesto in English Literature; the ‘Preface to the Lyrical Ballads'. This collection was mostly contributed by William Wordsworth although Coleridge must be credited for his long & impressive ‘Rime of the Ancient Mariner' a tragic ballads about the survival of one sailor through a series of supernatural events on his voyage through the south seas which involves the slaying of an albatross, the death of the rest of the crew, a visit from death & his mate, life-in death & the eventual redemption of the Mariner.
Coleridge & William Wordsworth understood romanticism in two entirely different ways. While Coleridge sought to make the supernatural "real", Wordsworth sought to stir the imagination of readers through his down to earth characters taken from real life.
Next set of romantic poets includes Lord Byron, P B Shelley & John Keats. Byron was influence by 18th century satirists & was perhaps the least romantic of the three.
It was in Victorian era that the novel became the leading form of Literature in English. The Best known works of the era include the emotionally powerful works of Bronte sisters; the satire Vanity Fairs by William Makepeace Thackeray & realist novels of George Elliot.
Charles Dickens emerged on the literary scene in the 1830s. Dickens wrote vividly about London life & the struggles of the poor, but in a good humored fashion which was acceptable to readers of all classes. His famous work The Pick wick Papers are masterpieces of comedy.
The major lyric poet of the first decade of the 20th century was Thomas hardy. His classic novels are Tess of d'Ubervilles, Far from the Madding Crowd & Jude the Obscure. The most widely popular writings of early years of 20th century was arguably Rudyard Kipling, a highly versatile writer of novels, short stories & poems
Many texts handed down by oral tradition over several centuries before they were fixed in written form are difficult or impossible to date. The core of the Rig-Veda may date to the mid second millennium BC. Homer's Illiad & Odyssey date to the eighth century BC & mark the beginning of classical antiquity. They also stand in oral tradition that stretches back to the late Bronze Age.
English Literature is the literature written in English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England. In other words English Literature is as diverse as the varieties & dialects of English spoken around the world.
Despite the variety of authors of English Literature, the works of William Shakespeare remain paramount through out the English speaking world.The first works in English written in old English appeared in the early middle ages (the oldest text is Caedmon's Hymn). The oral tradition was very strong in the early English culture & most literary works were written to be performed. Epic poems were thus very popular & many, including Beowulf have survived to the present day in which corpus of Anglo Saxon Literature that closely resemble today's Norwegian, Northumbrian & Scots English dialects of modern English.
In the 12th century, a new form of English now known as Middle English evolved. This is the earliest form of English literature which is comprehensible to modern readers & listeners. Middle English Bible translations notably, Wycliffe's Bible helped to establish English as a literary language. There are three main categories of Middle English literature: Religious, Courtly Love & Arthurian.
The most significant Middle English author was Geoffrey Chaucer, who was active in the late 14th century. Often regarded as the father of English Literature, Chaucer is widely credited as a first author to demonstrate the artistic legitimacy of the vernacular English language rather than French or Latin. The Canterbury Tales was Chaucer's magnum opus & a towering achievement of western culture.
Following the introduction of printing press into England by William Caxton in 1476, vernacular literature flourished. The poetry, drama & prose produced under both Queen Elizabeth I & King James I constitute what is today labeled as early modern age (Renaissance).
The Elizabethan era saw a great flourishing of literature especially in the field of drama. Elizabethan plays such as Gorbuduc by Sackville & Norton & The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd that was to provide much material for Hamlet. William Shakespeare stands out in this period as a poet & playwright as yet unsurpassed. Shakespeare was not a man of letters by profession & probably had only some grammar education. But he was very gifted & incredibly versatile. Though most dramas met with great success, it is in his later years that he wrote what have been considered his greatest plays: Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, Othello, King Lear , Macbeth, Antony & Cleopatra and The Tempest, a tragi comedy that inscribes within the main drama, a brilliant pageant to the new king. Shakespeare has also popularized English sonnet which made significant changes to Petrarch's model. The sonnet was introduced into English by Thomas Wyatt in the early 16th century.
After Shakespeare's death, the poet & dramatist Ben Johnson was the leading literary figure of Jacobean Era. Besides Shakespeare whose figure towers over the early 17th century, there were John Donne & other metaphysical poets.
Restoration literature includes both Paradise Lost & Earl of Rochester's Sodom, the high spirited sexual comedy of Country wife & the moral wisdom of Pilgrim's Progress. The largest & most important poetic form of the era was Satire. In general, publication of Satire was done anonymously. There was great danger in being associated with a satire. John Dryden was set upon for being merely suspected of having written the satire on Mankind.
Prose in Restoration Poetry is dominated by Christian religious writing but Restoration also saw the beginnings of two genres that dominate later periods, Fiction & journalism. Puritan authors such as John Milton were forced to retire from public life. John Bunyan stands out beyond other religious authors of that period. Bunyan's ‘The Pilgrim's Progress' is an allegory of personal salutation & a guide to the Christian life.
The period from 1689-1750 was called ‘The Augustan Age' because of the aptness of the metaphor throughout the 18th century (including Voltaire & Olivee Goldsmith). The literature of this period is completely political. It is an age of exuberance & scandal, of enormous energy & inventiveness & outrage that reflected an era.
The most outstanding poet of the Age is Alexander Pope. The mock-heroic was at its zenith. Pope's "Rape of the Lock" & "The Dunciad" are still the greatest mock –heroic poems ever written. It was during this time that James Thomson produced his melancholy.
The superiority of nature & instinct over civilization had been preached by Jean Jacques Rousseau & his message was picked by almost all European Poets. The first in England were the Lake poets, a small group of friends including William Wordsworth & Samuel Taylor Coleridge. These early Romantic Poets brought a new emotionalism & introspection & their emergence is marked by the first romantic Manifesto in English Literature; the ‘Preface to the Lyrical Ballads'. This collection was mostly contributed by William Wordsworth although Coleridge must be credited for his long & impressive ‘Rime of the Ancient Mariner' a tragic ballads about the survival of one sailor through a series of supernatural events on his voyage through the south seas which involves the slaying of an albatross, the death of the rest of the crew, a visit from death & his mate, life-in death & the eventual redemption of the Mariner.
Coleridge & William Wordsworth understood romanticism in two entirely different ways. While Coleridge sought to make the supernatural "real", Wordsworth sought to stir the imagination of readers through his down to earth characters taken from real life.
Next set of romantic poets includes Lord Byron, P B Shelley & John Keats. Byron was influence by 18th century satirists & was perhaps the least romantic of the three.
It was in Victorian era that the novel became the leading form of Literature in English. The Best known works of the era include the emotionally powerful works of Bronte sisters; the satire Vanity Fairs by William Makepeace Thackeray & realist novels of George Elliot.
Charles Dickens emerged on the literary scene in the 1830s. Dickens wrote vividly about London life & the struggles of the poor, but in a good humored fashion which was acceptable to readers of all classes. His famous work The Pick wick Papers are masterpieces of comedy.
The major lyric poet of the first decade of the 20th century was Thomas hardy. His classic novels are Tess of d'Ubervilles, Far from the Madding Crowd & Jude the Obscure. The most widely popular writings of early years of 20th century was arguably Rudyard Kipling, a highly versatile writer of novels, short stories & poems
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