Engl 202

Anglo-Saxen Era Themes

Alienation Loss

Anglo Saxen Works

Caedmon’s Hymm, Dream of the Rood, The Wanderer, Beowulf

The Story of Caedmon

Bede

Dream of the Rood summary

A religious poem about a man who has a dream about a tree that represents the cross. The tree starts explaining how he feels when they cut him down and place Jesus upon him. The tree tells about how Jesus climbed up on the cross even when he did not want to to release mankind. It tells how Jesus will come back a second time and how everyone will succeed if they seek the cross

the wanderer summary

When the sailor is older and finds everyone he loved dead when he comes home— he becomes a lost wanderer

what are the two tribes in beowulf

the danes and the geats

who questions Beowulf’s ability in battle?

unferth

the story of caedmon summary

a Celtic herdsman who became the first English poet after being visited by a heavenly being in his dreams

who is grendel

cain’s descendant and a monster that terrozies the danes

how was beowulf spread

oral tradition

who wrote down beowulf

christian monks

epic hero

the central figure in a long narrative that reflects the values and heroic ideals of a particular society

what are the two important literary elements in beowulf

alliteration and kennings

what are the two religions in beowulf

Paganism and Christianity

What three things does Beowulf say when he meets Hrothgar?

1. He identifies himself and his lineage

2. He identifies the problem of the Danes

3. He speaks of his achievements - meaning his past defeats of monsters

What kind of abilities does Grendel have?

He has sharp claws, he can lift and devour many men, he can hunt at night and lives in the water

What does Grendel represent?

evil, fear of the unknown, the outsider

Grendel and his mother had a curse put on them which entails that what cannot hurt them?

man made weapons

beowulf decides to fight grendel with what

his bare hands

what did chaucer write

the canterbury tales

what is the general prologue about

renewal (april, spring)

how is the squire characterized

lover not fighter

how is the prioress charactersized

into courtly manners yet from church orders

how is the monk characterized

Into hunting and wealthy but supposed to be clustered

How many tales did Chaucer intend to write VS how many did he actually write?

120 but wrote 24

how is the wife of bath described

Gap teeth (=lusty), ostentatious, into younger men, in a violent relationship with her 5th husband Jankins

In “The Prologue,” Chaucer’s main objective is to

introduce his characters

The pilgrims are traveling to Canterbury because

the shrine of St. Thomas à Becket is there

The pilgrims agree to tell tales during the journey to

win a free meal and entertain each other

The unworldly student who prefers philosophy to riches is the

oxford cleric

The Haberdasher, the Dyer, the Carpenter, the Weaver, and the Carpet-maker are all —

skilled members of crafts guilds

how is utopia structued

Part 1: focus on England and a dismal picture of the present

Part 2: utopia

How does More explore the natural and the unnatural?

Peninsula turned into an island so not 100% natural

Who are the main characters in Utopia?

Raphael Hythloday: idealist

Thomas More: pragmatist

What does More say in the Letter to Peter Giles?

Wants to remain faithful to the truth

What does More say in Their Occupations?

Collective occupations: agriculture but individual particular trade too

Focus on recreational and educational practices

What does More say in Social Relations?

Families of 10 to 16 and extra ppl sent to colonies Patriarchal model

Traditional customs (elders, respect...)

What does More say in Their attitude to gold and silver?

No money to trade

Gold and silver used to make chamber pots and chains for slaves

What does More say in Their Philosophy?

Emphasis on education not wealth

Focus on happiness, good, study of pleasure and virtue

What does More say in Their Delight in learning?

Interest in Greek philosophy and arts

What does More say in Slaves?

PoWs

Bought from other countries

Volunteers

What does More say in Suicide and euthanasia?

Euthanasia encourage in case of incurable illness

Suicide is frowned upon

What does More say in Marriage and divorce?

Premarital sex is forbidden

Divorce only if adultery/offensive behavior

Only consensual separation

Adultery once = slavery, twice = death

What does More say in Customs and laws?

Case by case basis

Gravest crime punished by slavery

What does More say in The Religions of the Utopians?

Dominant Christianism and deism

No conflict

Belief in happy afterlife

what did petrarch create

The Petrarchan sonnet which focuses on unrequited love through conceits

What does Wyatt say in "The Long Love" / Petrarch in "Rima 140" / Henry Howard Early of Surrey in "Love, that doth reign"?

Unrequited love and ready to die for it

What does Wyatt say in "Whoso List to Hunt" / Petrarch in "Rima 190"?

Woman as the deer and speaker tries to pursue her

What does Wyatt say in "I find no peace" / Petrarch in "Rima 134"?

Speaker is suffering from unrequited love

What does Wyatt say in "My Galley" / Petrarch in "Rima 189"?

Speaker is like a ship braving a tempest as a metaphor for love

What does Wyatt say in "They flee from me"?

The speaker laments the fact that he has fallen from favor—the women who used to "seek" him in his "chamber" now seem to "flee" from him.

What does Wyatt say in "Mine Own John Poins"?

Note of dissatisfaction with courtly life, which is presented as the reversal of all real-live values

What does Henry Howard Earl of Surrey say in "The soote season" / Petrarch in "Rima 310"?

Coming of summer and the various ways in which a world previously in a sort of stasis or hibernation is now springing into life (love)

What does Henry Howard Earl of Surrey say in "Wyatt Resteth Here"?

Eulogy of Wyatt's virtues, not only as a poet but also as a courtier and a virtuous man

Who translated Castiglione's Book of the Courtier?

Sir Thomas Hoby

What does Castiglione say in the Book of the Courtier?

Explains what the perfect courtier is

what does sidney say in astrophil and stella in sonnet 1

Explains his motivation for writing sonnets (getting lady to love him back)

what does sidney say astrophil and stella in sonnet 6

Describes why he is unable to copy other poets

what does sidney say in astrophil and stella in sonnet 15

Explains that poets just need original inspiration to write and not based on myths, metaphors...

what does sidney say in astrophil and stella in sonnet 71

Expresses praise and desire for Stella but also regrets his position

what does spenser say in amoretti in sonnet 65

About the fear the beloved expressed about losing her liberty in marriage but reassured that she gains a certain freedom

what does spenser say in amoretti in sonnet 67

Imitation of "Whoso List to Hunt" (Wyatt/Petrarch) but doe enters into submission voluntarily

What does Spenser say in Amoretti in "Sonnet 68"?

Religious poem inspired by Easter day and addressing Jesus directly which ends which praise of lady

What does Shakespeare say in "Sonnet 1"?

The poet reminds the young man that time and death will destroy even the fairest of living things. Only if they reproduce themselves will their beauty survive. The young man's refusal to beget a child is therefore self-destructive and wasteful.

What does Shakespeare say in "Sonnet 19"?

The sonnet addresses time directly, as it allows time its great power to destroy all things in nature, but the poem forbids time to erode the young man's fair appearance. Poetry is portrayed as an act of redemption against the decay of time.

What does Shakespeare say in "Sonnet 55"?

the subject's beauty will outlive all monuments of princes and will live even after the destruction time will bring to the world in the form of war and death

What does Shakespeare say in "Sonnet 129"?

physical and psychological devastation of lust

What does Shakespeare say in "Sonnet 130"?

inverted love poem because it implies that the woman is very beautiful indeed, but suggests that it is important for this poet to view the woman he loves realistically

What does Shakespeare say in "Sonnet 138"?

complicated and difficult love affair as the speaker focuses on the dynamics of this love affair: the way that he lies to his mistress about his age; the way she lies to him about whether she cheats on him or not; and the way that both know the other is lying.

What does Lady Mary Wroth say in from Pamphilia to Amphilanthus in "Sonnet 1"?

The poet feeling the most passionate when she is asleep, and how while she is sleeping, the feelings in her heart communicate louder than those of her mind.

What does John Donne say in Holy Sonnets in "Sonnet 5"?

The speaker tries to imagine how his corrupted world can be redeemed. He decides that the only way for his world to be redeemed is through destruction.

What does John Donne say in Holy Sonnets in "Sonnet 14"?

Speaker's personal crisis of faith. The speaker thinks his soul is captured by the devil. But he wishes to come back to the religious path. So, he asks God to slam into his heart and take hold of it

Who wrote the Defense of Poetry?

phillip sidney

What are Sidney's arguments?

Sydney argues that poetry is much more than that. It does not merely imitate the real world, but also shapes it

Defending the fictional realm that poetry creates, Sydney says that the world created by poetry is the epitome of all histories, mythologies, and philosophies.

poetry offers a range of views and choices; it gives individuals a sense of freedom. Poetry is designed to express emotions and feelings—which can never be false

Poetry = moral dimension

who wrote the october eclogue

edmund spenser

What does Spenser say in the October Eclogue?

Return to pastoral register

Desire for simplicity ≠ complicated court

Thinks of place of poet in materialistic society

What did Christopher Marlowe write?

The Passionate Shepherd to His Love

What did Marlowe say in "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love"?

A shepherd asking his beloved to come live with him, either as his wife or lover

What did Sir Walter Raleigh write?

The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd

What did Raleigh say in The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd?

Filled with pastoral images that contain a negative response to the shepherd's plea

Throughout this poem, the nymph describes how time, pleasure, and all possessions, are fleeting. These joys won't last forever, nor will impetuous choices and sweet words.

who wrote the faerie queene

edmund spenser

which characters in faerie queene represent queen elizabeth

Gloriana, Belphoebe, Britomart

What does Spenser say in "A Letter of the Authors"?

Book grounded in traditions

Use of allegory to have fun teaching

Chaste love

Redcross is otherwise known as

Saint George, patron saint of England

Redcross represents

christians fighting for the true faith (aka Una)

Redcross's sword represents

the sword of truth/ the gospel of christ

What is a Petrarchan sonnet?

One-sided and unrequited and impossible love

14 lines (octave+sestet)

No rhyming couplets

ABBA ABBA CDC DCD/CDE CDE

Volta in final lines

Miliatry or hunting or treasure conceits

Paradoxes

Mention of fame and gold

When was the Anglo-Saxon conquest?

450 AD

What were the consequences of Christianization?

More books as churchmen were writers (ex: Bede)

Anglo-Saxon invaders brought tradition of oral poetry

What were the consequences of the Norman conquest?

Changes in language and culture (more French because French ruling class)

Romance chivalry created by Chrétien de Troyes

When was the Battle of Hastings (=Norman conquest)?

1066

What is romance chivalry?

Knightly adventures as a means of exploring psychological and ethical dilemmas that the knights must solves in addition to displaying martial prowess in saving ladies from monsters, giants, and wicked knight

What happened in the 14th century?

English gains traction in literature

Some religious prose aimed at regulating women's behaviour

Main dates in late 15th and 16th century?

1485: Henri VII inaugurates the Tudor dynasty

1509: Henri VIII

1517: Martin Luther & beginning of Reformation

1558: Elizabeth I

1603: James I

What is the Shakespearian sonnet?

ABAB CDCD EFEF GG, 3 quatrains, 1 couplet

Main dates in the 17th century?

1603: Death of Elizabeth I, ascension of James I (formerly, James VI of Scotland)

1605: Gunpowder plot

1607: 1st English colony in Jamestown, Virginia

No specific literary period: ongoing Protestant reformation, expansion of literacy thanks to printing press, rise of manufacturing and trade sectors, establishment of colonial power

No specific authors: most mid-careers

How did literature evolve in the 17th century?

New norm = short, concentrated and witty poems, love elegy, satire, epigrams, religious-lyric poem...

More women as central characters in novels + women emancipation (Quakers = women preachers)

When and what was the Caroline Era?

1625-1640

Conjuction of chivalric virtue and divine beauty/love symbolized by royal couple

When and what was the Revolutionary Era?

1640-1660

1649: Charles executed

Questioning legitimacy of political power, religious tensions, refusing absolutism but also dislike of the Parliament

Rebellions in Ireland and Scotland

What did Francis Bacon do?

Inaugurated the genre of the scientific utopia

Bacon focused on objectivity, as a mouthpiece of society. Very scientific approach to life and writing