Periods of English Literature

NIKA ASRI/3B’08/0807329

PERIODS OF ENGLISH LITERATURE

What is Literature?
Etymologically, in the Latin world “litteratura” is derived from “littera” (letter), which is the smallest element of alphabetical writing. In other hand, literature is referred to as the entirety of written expression.

Periods of English Literature
The criteria for classification of period English literature derive from fields such as the history of the language (Old and Middle English), national history (Colonial Period), politics and religion (Elizabethan and Putiran Age) and art (Renaissance and modernism). There are several periods of English Literature which can be learned by us, they are can be seen in this table.

Period Name of Period The explanation Example
5th-11th century
(450-1066) Old English This period is begun with the invasion of Britain by Germanic. Beowulf
12th-15th century
(1066-1500) Middle English There are various literary genres. E.g. lyric poetry, long poems. Geoffrey Chaucer
16th-17th century
(1500-1660) Renaissance (Early New English Period) -This term was focused on the history of the language.
-Revival of classical genres which influence and dominated the further course. Edmund Spenser,
Sir Philip Sidney,
William Shakespare.
18th century
(1700-1745) Augustan Age Classical literature and literary theory were adapted to suit contemporary culture. Alexander Pope
First half of 19th century
(1785-1830) Romanticism This period marks the beginning of a new period in traditional English literary history. William Wordsworth
Second half of 19th century
(1832-1901) Victorian Age During the period of Queen Victoria’s reign. Charles Dickens,
George Eliot,
Robert Browning,
Alfred,
Lord Tennyson
First to Second World War
(1914-1945) Modernism Indirectly deals with Nazi crimes and nuclear destruction of modernism.
Narrative techniques with multiple perspectives, interwoven strands of plot, experiment in typography characterize this era. G.M. Hopkins,
H.G. Wells, James Joyce, D.H. Lawrence,
T.s. Eliot
(1945 onward) Postmodern This period were overshadowed by Women’s and ‘Minority’ Literature.
Literature is written by marginalized group including women, gay or ethnic minorities, etc. Ted Hughes,
Doris Lessing,
John Fowles,
Don DeLillo, A.S. Byatt.

REFERENCES:
1. Klarer, Mario. (1998). An Introduction to Literary. London. Roudledge.