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Period: 476 to 1492
Middle Age
Traditionally called "oscurantism". It was all about religious, and Christianity in its various forms of literature, from lyric to narrative. -
1000
Beowulf
It is a long epic poem of Anglo-Saxon origin and unknown author, whose composition date is unknown -
1070
Turoldo
"La Chanson de Roland", is an epic poem thousands of verses long, composed in the late 11th century. -
1140
The Song of Mío Cid
Another anonymous deed song, inspired by the last days of the Cid Campeador, the Castilian knight Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar. -
1220
The Song of the Nibelungs
It is a collection of 24 stories. -
1360
The Amadís de Gaula
An anonymous author, it is the masterpiece of the Spanish medieval tradition, and one of the most famous chivalric books. It narrates the adventures of Amadís, son of King Perión, a knight errant. -
Period: 1492 to
Renaissance
The purpose of renaissence is where the man focuses all his activity as such, the cult of life and love of nature. The Ren fought to rescue the values and practices of classical antiquity. -
1532
Niccolò Machiavelli (Nicolas Maquiavelo)
was an Italian politician and writer. Often considered to be the father of political philosophy. His book : II Principe (The prince) is a turn point in literature. -
1578
Pierre de Ronsard
His most famous book : "Sonnets pour Hélène" was the representation of a derivation of the renaissance movement in France called "La Plèiade". -
William Shakespeare
The most well known writter of the movement. He initially wrote comedy and histories, but then took into tragedies like "Romeo and Julliet" -
Miguel Cervantes
He's the representator of the Renaissance in Spain and is actually the symbol of this movement. His book "The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha" is a classic of literature. -
Period: to
Baroque
It points an obsession with the rapidity of death with an Interest in realism including deformity, ugliness and language that departs from everyday speech and the ideal of Renaissance naturalness. -
Period: to
Neoclassical Period
The period is called neoclassical because its writers looked back to the ideals and art forms of classical times, emphasizing even more than their Renaissance predecessors the classical ideals of order and rational control. -
Moliére
"Tartuffe (The Impostor)". A book full of satire and the bourgeois nonconformity of Moliére reflects a harsh critique to society. -
John Milton
"Paradise Lost" is a book which is against censorship and an advocate for freedom of speech. -
Period: to
The Enlightement
Literature was characterized by the spirit of realism and romantic features like enthusiasm, passion, imaginations etc. declined in this period. Reason, intellect, correctness, satirical spirit etc. were the main characteristics of 18th-century literature. -
Charles Perrault
He's most know by his traduction "Le Petit Chaperon Rouge (Little Red Riding Hood)". -
Denis Diderot
Denis Diderot was a famous philosopher, novelist and playwright, but his most prominent of work is for "Encyclopédie", for which he worked as the editor. It linked knowledge and established connections and interrelations. -
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
best known as an influential 18th-century philosopher who wrote the acclaimed work t "The Social Contract". Through his work he was able to transform mostly despotic government institutions into democratic institutions based on individual freedoms. -
Period: to
Romanticism
It was an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement originated in Europe. It was against the Enlightement and it gave priority to the feelings. -
Jane Austen
Considered one of the greatest writers in English history, Jane Austen is best known for her novel "Pride and Prejudice". It established the template for an infinity of romance novels. -
Mary shelly
An author who was admired for her exploration of the Gothic genre, Mary Shelley is best remembered for her novel "Frankenstein" which can be considered as the first work of science fiction. -
Period: to
Transcendentalism
It arouses as a protest against the general state of intellectualism and spirituality at the time. -
Period: to
Victorian
The 19th century is widely considered to be the Golden Age of English Literature, especially for British novels. It was in the Victorian era that the novel became the leading literary genre in English. It emerged in the UK with the Kingdom of Queen Victoria. -
Charles Dickens
He was an English writer and social critic. One of his most known works is "Oliver Twist" which is about tthe good versus evil. -
Gérard de Nerval
was the nom-de-plume of the French writer, poet, and translator. A major figure of French romanticism best known by his book "Les Filles du feu", is a collection of short prose works and stories. -
Victor Hugo
Most known by his book " Les Misérables".In which he delivers critiques of wealth distribution, the justice system, industrialism, and republicanism. -
George Elliot
A famous female writer most known by her last novel "Daniel Deronda" which in its times was a controversial book because it portrays the repression and yearning in the English upper class. -
Period: to
Avant Garde
A century highly marked by the constant and fast change of society, the many wars and revolutions which derived in new ways of thinking. -
Alexandre Dumas
"Les Trois Mousquetaires". It was about chivalry and a subtle introduction to modernism. -
Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle's novel, "A Study in Scarlet" introduced the character of Detective Sherlock Holmes. He wrote 60 mystery stories featuring the wildly popular detective character Sherlock Holmes and his loyal assistant Watson. -
Period: to
Feminism
The social activism concentrates in gaining power speacially the womans, specifically the right of women's suffrage. -
Period: to
Lost Generation, Jazz Age, Roaring 20s & The Harlem Renaissance
African American culture in Harlem, New York was flourishing. Much of the style derived from poetry rhythms based on spirituals, jazz lyrics on the blues, and the use of slang in everyday diction. -
Period: to
Surrealism
It was based primarily in France, that sought to break down the boundaries between rational and irrational, conscious and unconscious. -
F. Scott Fitzgerald
He revolutionized American literature through his accurate portrayal of the 1920's in "The Great Gatsby". He was an amazing writer who influenced the life of many and gave the American people a peek into the somewhat mysterious world of the roaring twenties. -
Marcel Proust
He's considered as one of the most influential authors of the 20th century by his book “In Search of Lost Time” which is considered by many critics to be the definitive modern novel. -
Aldous Huxley
He's an author and screenwriter, he's best known for his novel 'Brave New World,' a nightmarish vision of the future. -
Agatha Christie
She's one of the well known writters of that century she contribuited to the century with many works but the most famous is "Murder on the Orient Express" -
J.R.R Tolkien
English writer and scholar who achieved fame with his children's book “The Hobbit" -
Jean-Paul Sartre
He was a French novelist, playwright, and philosopher. A leading figure in 20th-century French philosophy, he was an exponent of a philosophy known as existentialism. His most notable work is "Being and Nothingness". -
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
French writer, poet, aristocrat, and journalist, he's best remembered for his novella, ”The Little Prince”. -
Colette
Colette was a French author who received a nomination for the prestigious Nobel Prize in Literature in 1948. She is remembered for her novella ”Gigi”. -
George Orwell
He was an english novelist, essayist, and critic famous for his novel "Animal Farm" which talks about the totalitarism. -
Simone de Beauvoir
She's a feminist icon. She didn't just write the feminist book, she wrote the movement's bible, "The Second Sex". She was an engaged intellectual who combined philosophical and literary productivity with real-world political action that led to lasting legislative change. -
Period: to
Beat
This was a counterculture and youth culture movement beginning in the 1950s. -
Ernest Hemingway
Nobel Prize winner Ernest Hemingway is seen as one of the great American 20th century novelists, and is known for his last work "The Old Man and the Sea". -
Jack Kerouac
He was an American writer best known for the novel 'On the Road,' which became an American classic, pioneering the Beat Generation in the 1950s -
Period: to
Postmodern
It extends the disillusionment and disruption that characterized modernism by further fragmenting language and literary structures
