English Literature

Old English or Anglo-Saxon Period (650-c. 1100)

what period where poems are handed down from generation to generation?

Beowulf and Dream of the Rood

there are two (2) notable works in the Old English or Anglo-Saxon Period, what are those?

Beowulf

what is the oldest surviving Germanic epic and the longest Old English poem?

Venerable Bede

Who is the greatest Anglo-Saxon scholar who wrote the Ecclesiastical History of the English people?

Alfred the Great

Who is the King of Wessex who wrote in his native tongue and encouraged scholarly translations from Latin into Old English?

Caedmon

Who is the unlearned cowherd who miraculously acquired the gift of poetic song?

Cynewulf

He signed his poems in a kind of cypher or anagram, made up of ancient figures called runes. His poems: The Fates of Apostles, Juliana, Elene, and Christ ll or The Ascension.

Middle English Period (Late 12th Century - 1500s)

This period’s works centered on religion, chivalry, courtly love, social satire, and moral dilemmas

Everyman

What is the notable work in the Middle English Period?

Death

Everyman talks about facing_____

Metrical Tale/Romance

What is the long rambling love story presenting knightly adventures and courtly love?

Miracle Plays

This is real or fictitious accounts of the life, miracles, or martyrdom of saints

Mystery Plays

This represents a scene from the Old or New Testament. Also known as Corpus Christi plays

Morality Plays

This dramatized homily or a sermon; personified such abstractions as Health, Death, or the Seven Deadly Sins and offered practical instruction in morality

Rennaisance (1500 - 1600s)

This period focused on humanism and aka rebirth

Sonnet

a 14-line iambic pentameter. this became the most favorite poetic form

Drama

This explores complex human emotions and conflicts

Christopher Marlowe

Who is the father of English Tragedy?

Doctor Faustus

In this literary work, the character sells his soul to the devil in exchange of power and knowledge

Christopher Marlowe

Who wrote Doctor Faustus?

Edmund Spenser

He introduced the Spenserian stanza (ABAB BCBC CDCD EE)

The Faerie Queene

One of the longest poem in the English language and celebrates Queen Elizabeth l and Protestant virtues

Francis Bacon

He is one of the founders of modern scientific methodology

Essays

Written by Francis Bacon. A collection of short, insightful writings that reflect on various aspects of life, morality, and society

Ben Jonson

He is the father of English Comedy

Song to Celia

Written by Ben Jonson. “Drink to me only with thine eyes”

William Shakespeare

Bad of Avon. He is the greatest writer in the English language and world’s preeminent dramatist

Romeo and Juliet

Written by William Shakespeare. star-crossed young lovers. came from feuding families prohibiting them from being with each other

Hamlet

Written by William Shakespeare. The ghost of the King of Denmark tells his son to avenge his murder by killing the new king, uncle Claudius.

Othello

Written by William Shakespeare. An angry lago plots to take revenge against him as he was overlooked for promotion. He manipulates everyone into believing his wife Desdemona is unfaithful to make him jealous.

King Lear

Written by William Shakespeare. He divided his kingdom to his two flatterer daughters and banishes the third one who loves him. His eldest daughters reject him and he goes mad.

Macbeth

Written by William Shakespeare. Receives prophecy that he will become king. Consumed by ambition and encouraged by his wife, he murders King Duncan and becomes a tyrannical ruler.

Age of Transition

The middle class began to show its power

Age of Revolution

The transition of power

Age of Exploration

Furtherance of scientific investigation

Age of Prose

Emphasized observation and scientific detail

17th Century (1600 to c. 1700)

What period? a surge in scientific discovery and global connectivity

John Donne

He was one of the leading figures of the Metaphysical Poetry movement

Holy Sonnets

Written by John Donne. A collection of 19 deeply spiritual and introspective poems

Cavalier Poetry

Lighthearted, elegant, and celebratory, often focusing on themes of love, loyalty, and carpe diem (sieze the day: “eat now and be merry for tomorrow we die”)

Richard Lovelace

He emphasized honor, courtly values, and the philosophy of carpe diem (sieze the day)

18th Century

This is the period of enlightenment and reason

Novel

This form arose as one of the more prominent literary forms

Poetry

Followed strict structures such as heroic couplets to emphasize balance and harmony

Samuel Johnson and Daniel Defoe

Who are the two (2) famous authors in 18th century?

Samuel Johnson

He was a famous lexicographer. Wrote the “A Dictionary of the English Language”.

Daniel Defoe

One of the pioneers of the modern novel. Wrote Robinson Crusoe

A Dictionary of the English Language

Written by Samuel Johnson. One of the first comprehensive dictionaries of English

Robinson Crusoe

Written by Daniel Defoe. Considered the first English novel. It tells the story of a castaway’s survival on a deserted island.

Romantic Movement

This period believed in the importance of the individual, imagination, and intuition. They believed that all humans deserve the treatment to which human beings are by nature entitled.

William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Who are the two (2) famous authors in Romantic Movement?

William Wordsworth

Author of Daffodils who launched the Romantic Age

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Author of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner who had a deep intellectual and imaginative engagement within the world.

Daffodils

Written by William Wordsworth. This literary work highlights the restorative power of nature and its ability to uplift the human spirit

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. This literary work is the gripping story of a mariner’s cursed voyage

Victorian Age (mid 1800s - 1901)

The Golden Age of British novels. An opposition against romanticism. A shift from the abstract and inward focus of Romanticism to addressing social issues and transformations brought about by the Industrial Revolution.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Robert Browning, and Oscar Wilde

Who are the three (3) famous authors in the Victorian Age?

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

This author in the Victorian Age focuses on feelings of love and devotion. This author wrote Sonnets from the Portuguese and Sonnet 43

Sonnets from the Portuguese

Written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. This literary work is a 44 sonnets that capture her profound love for her husband.

Sonnet 43

Written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.”

Robert Browning

Wrote My Last Duchess. This author in the Victorian Age focuses on dramatic monologue (long speech by an imaginary character used to expose pretense and reveal a character’s inner self)

My Last Duchess

Written by Robert Browning. This literary work is a duke points to a portrait of his deceased wife and begins speaking about her.

Oscar Wilde

Wrote The Picture of Dorian Gray. This author in the Victorian Age focuses on often poke fun at the society.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Written by Oscar Wilde. This follows a man, whose outward appearance remains young and perfect while his portrait reflects the consequences of his increasingly immoral life.

20th Century

With new inventions and upsetting old ways, it became increasingly difficult to find order or pattern in life. Talk of the “machine age" . Characterized by major movements like Modernism and Postmodernism. What period is this?

After the World Wars (1950s)

This period brought discontent and disillusionment. Fiction no longer followed a forward-moving narrative. Instead, it followed the twisted, contorted development of a single character or a group of related characters.