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450
Old English Period
Poetry, Alliterative verse, The major manuscripts, Problems of dating, Religious verse, Elegiac and heroic verse, Prose, Early translations into English, Late 10th- and 11th-century prose. Authors:
- Saxons
- William the Conqueror -
Period: 673 to 735
Baeda: ‘The Venerable Bede
Bede’s works fall into three groups: grammatical and “scientific,” scriptural commentary, and historical and biographical. His earliest works included treatises on spelling, hymns, figures of speech, verse, and epigrams. -
Period: 800 to 950
Beowulf: 8th - 10th century
The story tells of fantastic fights against fierce dragons, but it is set in an authentic historical context of Scandinavia in the 6th century(see Beowulf - the story). The language is Old English - the dialect of the Angles and Saxons, who invade England from northern Germany and Scandinavia during the 5th and 6th century AD. -
Period: 950 to 1001
Edda: The Eddas and Sagas of Iceland: 9th - 13th century.
Iceland provides the fullest surviving record of Germanic mythology, legend and history. The earliest examples are found in a manuscript written in the 13th century, known as the Elder Edda (or sometimes Poetic Edda), which is preserved in the Royal Library in Copenhagen. The opening poem in the Elder Edda (entitled Völuspá) recounts Norse mythology, from the creation story onwards. -
1066
Middle English One
Literature in England in this period was not just in English and Latin but in French as well, and developed in directions set largely in France. Epic and elegy gave way to Romance and lyric. English writing revived fully in English after 1360, and flowered in the reign of Richard II (1377–99). It gained a literary standard in London English after 1425, and developed modern forms of verse, of prose and of drama. -
Period: 1265 to 1308
Blessed John Duns Scotus
Duns Scotus, known as the Subtle Doctor in medieval times, later provides humanists with the name Dunsman or dunce. During his regency Duns Scotus conducted quodlibetic disputations covering a wide variety of theological and philosophical questions about God and creatures proposed by his audience. -
Period: 1287 to 1347
William of Ockham
He is probably best known today for his espousal of metaphysical nominalism; indeed, the methodological principle known as “Ockham’s Razor” is named after him. But Ockham held important, often influential views not only in metaphysics but also in all other major areas of medieval philosophy—logic, physics or natural philosophy, theory of knowledge, ethics, and political philosophy—as well as in theology. -
Period: 1367 to 1390
Piers Plowman and Sir Gawain: 14th century
Of these two great English alliterative poems, the second is entirely anonymous and the first virtually so. The narrator of Piers Plowman calls himself Will; occasional references in the text suggest that his name may be Langland. Nothing else, apart from this poem, is known of him. Piers Plowman exists in three versions, the longest amounting to more than 7000 lines. -
Period: 1375 to 1400
The courtly poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight tells of a mysterious visitor to the round table of King Arthur
The rest of the poem concerns Gawain, a year later, at the green knight's castle. In a tale of love (for the green knight's wife) and subsequent deceit, Gawain emerges with little honour. The green knight spares his life but sends him home to Arthur's court wearing the wife's girdle as a badge of shame. -
Period: 1380 to 1385
Troilus and Criseyde: 1385
Chaucer's first masterpiece is his subtle account of the wooing of Criseyde by Troilus, with the active encouragement of Criseyde's uncle Pandarus. The tender joys of their love affair are followed by Criseyde's betrayal and Troilus's death in battle. -
Period: 1387 to 1400
The Canterbury Tales: 1387-1400
Collections of tales are a favourite literary convention of the 14th century. Boccaccio's Decameron is the best-known example before Chaucer's time, but Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales outshines his predecessors. He does so in the range and vitality of the stories in his collection, from the courtly tone of 'The Knight's Tale' to the rough and often obscene humour of those known technically as fabliaux. -
Period: 1469 to 1471
Malory, Sir Thomas.
In 1469 an English knight, Thomas Malory, is in gaol. With time heavy on his hands he begins to compile, from French texts, the first English account of King Arthur and his knights. He completes the task some time in 1470. All that is known of Malory comes from the last words of his book, where he gives his name and prays for deliverance from prison. -
1500
English Renaissance
The English Renaissance was a cultural and artistic movement in England dating from the late 15th to the early 17th century. ... The dominant art forms of the English Renaissance were literature and music. Visual arts in the English Renaissance were much less significant than in the Italian Renaissance. -
Period: 1510 to 1524
Northern humanism: 16th century
The interest which unites them can be described as Christian humanism. These men wish to use the classics not as an alternative to Christianity but as a means of strengthening Christian life. Erasmus learns Greek so as to edit the New Testament in its original form, stating in his preface that he wants the holy text translated into every language to bring the Gospel truth closer to ordinary men and women. -
Period: 1558 to
Elizabethan Era
s considered by many historians to be the golden age in English History. During this era England experienced peace and prosperity while the arts flourished. The time period is named after Queen Elizabeth I who ruled England during this time. Important things about this era:
- English Renaissance Theatre
- Navigation and Exploration
- Clothing and Fashion
- Government -
Period: to
Jacobean Period – King James one
The Jacobean era refers to a period in English and Scottish history that coincides with the reign of King James I. The Jacobean era succeeds the Elizabethan era and specifically denotes a style of architecture, visual arts, decorative arts, and literature that is predominant of that period. Another development of crucial significance was the foundation of the first British colonies on the North American continent.
Important things about this era:
- Literature
- Science
- Arts -
Period: to
Carolina Period – King Charles One
The Caroline era was dominated by growing religious, political, and social discord between the King and his supporters, termed the Royalist party, and the Parliamentarian opposition that evolved in response to particular aspects of Charles's rule. Important things:
- Arts
- Poetry
- Theatre
- Painting
- Science -
The Puritan Period
The Puritans were a religious collective who can be said to have invented their identity by means of the word. Arriving in large numbers to America during the first half of the 17th century, they constantly modified and expanded that identity through a flood of sermons, histories, hagiographies, jeremiads and, to a lesser extent, poems. Taken as a whole, this body of literature constitutes a unique example of rhetorical self-definition. Authors:
- John Milton Prominent writer.
- Puritans -
Period: to
Puritan Period Literature
In the literature of the puritan Age we fined the same confusion as we find in religion and politics.As there were no fixed literary standards, imitations of older poets and exaggeration of the poets replaced the original, dignified and highly imaginative compositions of the Elizabethan writers. The literature produced during this period so called gloomy age ,as not of a higher order. -
Restoration Age
In 1660 King Charles II was brought to the throne. The people of England were suffering from tension due to the strict rule of Cromwell. Thus the nation welcomed the Restoration of Charles II. This Restoration brought about a revolutionary change in social life and literature. The restoration period was, above all, a great age of drama, heroic plays, influenced by principles of French Neoclassicism. Relevant Literary forms:
- Novels
- Biography,
- History
- Travel writing
- Journalism -
Period: to
The Restoration Period
THE RESTORATION: During this period gravity, spiritual zeal, moral earnestness, and decorum were thrown to winds. The king was a thorough debauch. He had several mistresses. He was surrounded by corrupt courtiers. Corruption was rampant in all walks of life. -
Period: to
The Restoration era: Religious and Political Quarrels
Religious and Political Quarrels: In the Restoration period we see the rise of two political parties. They were the Whigs and the Tories. The Whigs were opposing and the Tories were supporting the king. The rise of these parties gave fresh importance to men of literary ability. -
Period: to
The Restoration Era: Realism and Formalism.
Realism and Formalism: The writers of the Restoration age reacted against the romanticism of Elizabethan age. They developed realism to a marked degree. The early Restoration writers presented the realistic picture of a corrupt court and society. -
The 18th Century
During the 18th century is often referred to as the Age of Reason And it was divided into 2 periods: Augustan literature and Age of Sensibility. Begins in English Literature, claming comparison with the equivalent flowering under Augustus Caesar. Thomas Paine published "Age of Reason" Literature became very instructive. creative works show a sense of order and moderation. Arguments in prose are calm and logical; poems are carefully structured and often contain classical allusions. -
Period: to
18th Century Period - Augustan literature
During the 18th century literature reflected the worldview of the Age of Enlightenment (or Age of Reason): a rational and scientific approach to religious, social, political, and economic issues that promoted a secular view of the world and a general sense of progress and perfectibility. Led by the philosophers who were inspired by the discoveries of the previous century by people like Isaac Newton and the writings of Descartes, John Locke and Francis Bacon. -
Period: to
18th Century Period - Age of sensibility
This period is also sometimes described as the "Age of Johnson". Samuel Johnson often referred to as Dr Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. Johnson has been described as "arguably the most distinguished man of letters in English history". -
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe toward the end of the 18th century. Various dates are given for the Romantic period in British literature, but here the publishing of Lyrical Ballads in 1798 is taken as the beginning, and the crowning of Queen Victoria in 1837 as its end, even though, for example, William Wordsworth lived until 1850 and both Robert Burns and William Blake published before 1798. -
Period: to
Romanticism - Literature
Romanticism proper was preceded by several related developments from the mid-18th century on that can be termed Pre-Romanticism. Among such trends was a new appreciation of the medieval romance, from which the Romantic movement derives its name. -
Period: to
Romanticism - Literature 2nd period
The second phase of Romanticism, comprising the period from about 1805 to the 1830s, was marked by a quickening of cultural nationalism and a new attention to national origins, as attested by the collection and imitation of native folklore, folk ballads and poetry, folk dance and music, and even previously ignored medieval and Renaissance works. -
Victorian Period
In British history, the period between approximately 1820 and 1914, corresponding roughly but not exactly to the period of Queen Victoria’s reign (1837–1901) and characterized by a class-based society, a growing number of people able to vote, a growing state and economy, and Britain’s status as the most powerful empire in the world. Authors:
Charles Dickens is the most famous Victorian novelist. -
Period: to
Victorian Period - Literature
The Victorian period was significant for Britain because it was the most powerful nation in that era. This period was too hard for several writers, who were sentenced for engaging in homosexual activities and the novelists of this period responded to industrial and political scenes.
Some slangs of the Victorian era
• Afternoonified.
• Back slang it.
• Bang up to the elephant. -
20th Century Modern Literature
The 20th century was like no time period before it. Einstein, Darwin, Freud and Marx were just some of the thinkers who profoundly changed Western culture. These changes took distinct shape in the literature of the 20th century. Modernism, a movement that was a radical break from 19th century Victorianism, led to postmodernism, which emphasized self-consciousness and pop art. While 20th century literature is a diverse field covering a variety of genres. Lirary forms:
- Poetry
- Epiphanies -
Postmodern Period
Postmodern literature is a form of literature which is marked, both stylistically and ideologically, by a reliance on such literary conventions as fragmentation, paradox, unreliable narrators, often unrealistic and downright impossible plots, games, parody, paranoia, dark humor and authorial self-reference. Postmodern authors tend to reject outright meanings in their novels, stories and poems, and, instead, highlight and celebrate the possibility of multiple meanings. -
Present Literature Contemporany
Contemporary literature is defined as literature written after World War II through the current day. While this is a vague definition, there is not a clear-cut explanation of this concept - only interpretation by scholars and academics. While there is some disagreement, most agree that contemporary literature is writing completed after 1940.
