Rabu, 30 September 2009

Periods of English literature

By Darini Bilqis Maulany (0807315)

There are some periods in English literature. According to Klarer in An Introduction to Literary Studies, they are classified based on movements of some fields such as the history (Colonial Period), politics and religion (Elizabethan and Puritan Age), and art (Renaissance and Modernism).
Old English-Anglo-Saxon- Period (5th-11th century)
This is the oldest period in English literature. It is begun from the invasion Celtic England by Germanic tribes to the conquest of England in 1066 by the Norman French. However, according to Klarer, the beginning of English literature is found in the Latin Middle Ages. At that time monasteries were the main institution which protected classical culture.
National literature like poetry was written in the vernacular –Anglo Saxon– called Old English.
The number of the texts which have been handed down is very small. They were anonymous magic charm, riddles and poems.
Some of works at this period are:
Poems: The seafarer (9th century), The Wanderer (9th-10th century)
Epic: Beowulf (c. 8th century, the greatest of Germanic epics) and The Battle of Maldon (c.1000, based on historical facts)
There were also some writer such as Caedmon and Cynewulf who wrote on religious and biblical themes. In addition, there was translator like Alfred the Great who translated several books of Latin prose into Old English, and also recorded the important events in England.
In the eleventh century, England was conquered by the French-speaking Normans and a rupture occurred in culture and literature.
Middle English Period (12th-15th century)
In this period (1066-1500), a number of texts from various literary genres have been protected. About 1500, the standard literary language took the form of “modern English”. In 1100-1350, the non-Latin literature was produced in the French dialect (by the invades who were then the ruling class of England)
Middle English Period also produced cycle of narratives. The important work of this period was Guillaume de Lorris’ and Jean de Meun’s Roman de la Rose. Later on, the narrative vernacular – middle English – became the literary language especially for religious writings. The other works are Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterury Tales (1387) and Giovanni Boccaccio’s Il decamerone (c. 1349-51).
The secular literature became more popular in the second half of the 14th century. This was the age of Chaucer and John Gower. Remarkable works of this time were William Langland’s great religious and satirical poem Piers Plowmen (1367-70) , and Thomas Malory’s the famous prose romance called Le Morte d’ Arthur (1470).
According a source, King James I and Robert Henryson occupied chief position in 15th century so 15th century was remarkable for popular literature addressed to the upper class. It was the age of excellent songs and of folk ballads, and was the time of the miracle and morality plays.

Renaissance Period (16th-17th century)
The other famous names of this period are Early New English Period where the literary much discuss about history of language, and Elizabethan Age (Queen Elizabeth I) or Jacobean Age (King James).
Some of works in this period are epic with Edmund Spenser’s (c. 1552-99) Faerie Queene, independent prose genres with John Lyly’s (c. 1554-1606) Euphues (1578) and Philip Sydney’s (1554-86) Arcadia (c. 1580). There are also some dramas which are written by William Shakespeare (1564-1616) and Cristopher Marlowe (1564-93).
The end of this era is closed by the great works written by John Milton (1608-60). They are political pamphlet and religious epics entitled Paradise Lost, 1667 and Paradise Regained, 1671).

Augustan Age (18th century)
Besides Augustan Age, this period is also called Eighteenth Century, Neoclassical, and Golden Age. Classical literature and literary theory were applied to suit contemporary culture. There are many authors who wrote translation, theoretical essays, and literary texts in variety genres such as John Dryden (1631-1700), Alexander Pope (1688-1744), Joseph Addison (1672-1719), and Jonathan Swift (1667-1745).
In this period the distribution of the text changed. In addition, the novel as a new genre and the introduction of newspapers and literary magazines such as The Tatler (1709-11) and The Spectator (1711-14) developed. The other works of this period "Pamela“ (1740-41) and “Clarissa” (1748-49) by Samuel Richardson, “Robinson Crusoe” (1719) by Daniel Defoe, "Tom Jones” (1749) by Henry Fielding, “Tristram Shandy” by Laurence Sterne, etc.
Romantic period (First half of 19th century)
This period is the beginning of a new period in Traditional English Literary history in which nature and individual, emotional, experience dominated enough. The mark of this new period is the first edition of the Lyrical Ballads (1798) by William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
It is said that romanticism was an reaction to Enlightenment and political changes throughout Europe and America at the end of eighteenth century.
The other important representative of English Romanticism include William Blake, john Keats, and Marry Shelley.
Victorian Age (Second half of 19th century)
In 1837 Victoria was accessed to be England Queen and lasted until her death in 1901. This period is also known as "early Victorian" and "late Victorian" because the Victorian Period of English literature spans over six decades. According to a source, Victorian literature deals with the issues and problems of the day. Some contemporary issues that the Victorians dealt with include the social, economic, religious, and intellectual issues and problems surrounding the Industrial Revolution, growing class tensions, the early feminist movement, pressures toward political and social reform, and the impact of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution on philosophy and religion. Some of the most recognized authors of the Victorian era include Alfred Lord Tennyson, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, her husband Robert, Matthew Arnold, Charles Dickens, Charlotte Brontë, George Eliot, and Thomas Hardy.
Modernism (First to second World War)
The Modern Period applies to British literature written since the beginning of World War I in 1914. According to Klarer, English modernism is a reaction to the realist movements of the nineteenth century. Realism and Naturalism focused on truthful portrayal or reality, while modernism discovered new narrative techniques such as stream of-consciousness or structural forms such as collage and literary Cubism.
Some of works of the Modern Period are James Joyce’s Ullysses (1922), and Finnegans Wake (1939), Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway and To The Light House (1927), etc.
Postmodernism (1960s and 1970s)
Postmodernism period is a literary movement of the second half of the twentieth century indirectly deals with Nazi crimes and the nuclear destruction of World war II while structurally developing the approaches of modernism.
Postmodernism blends literary genres and styles and attempts to break free of modernist forms. While the British literary scene at the turn of the new millennium is crowded and varied, the authors still fall into the categories of modernism and postmodernism. However, with the passage of time the Modern era may be reorganized and expanded.
Some of works in this period are "Lost in the Funhouse“ (John Barth), “The Crying of Lot 49” (Thomas Pynchon), “Double or Nothing” (Raymond Federman), "Tom Jones” (Henry Fielding), “Tristram Shandy” (Laurence Sterne), etc.

References:
Klarer, Mario.1998.An Introducing to Literary Studies. London: Routledge.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_literature
http://englisharticles.info/free-reading-articles/literature/literary-periods-of-english-liter.html

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