Brit Lit Review

Anglo-Saxon Literature

Beowulf

  • Author: Unknown (likely composed by a scop, transcribed by Christian monks)

  • Dates: Setting - 6th century Scandinavia; Transcribed - c. 1000 CE

  • Characters: Beowulf (heroic Geatish warrior), Grendel (man-eating monster), Grendel's Mother (vengeful creature), Hrothgar (Danish king), Wiglaf (loyal warrior)

  • Plot Summary: Beowulf travels to Denmark to defeat the monster Grendel and later Grendel’s mother. He returns home as a hero and later becomes king of the Geats. In his old age, he faces a dragon but dies in the battle, leaving his people mourning their loss.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Heroism, loyalty, fate (wyrd), the tension between pagan and Christian values

  • Anglo-Saxon Culture: Warrior ethos, comitatus (bond between lord and thane), mead-hall as a center of community

  • Major Themes: Heroic deeds, mortality, legacy

  • Supernatural Influence: Monsters (Grendel, Grendel's mother, dragon), divine intervention

Judith

  • Author: Unknown (likely Anglo-Saxon poet)

  • Dates: Setting - Biblical times; Transcribed - c. 10th century CE

  • Characters: Judith (heroic widow), Holofernes (Assyrian general)

  • Plot Summary: Judith uses her wit and faith to decapitate Holofernes, the enemy general, saving her people from destruction. Her courage inspires her community to fight back and win.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Faith in God, divine justice, female heroism

  • Anglo-Saxon Culture: Blend of Christian values with warrior ethos

  • Major Themes: Religious devotion, divine retribution, gendered strength

  • Supernatural Influence: Divine guidance and intervention

Dream of the Rood

  • Author: Unknown (possibly a monk)

  • Dates: Setting - Biblical era (Crucifixion); Transcribed - 8th century CE

  • Characters: The Dreamer, the Rood (personified cross), Christ

  • Plot Summary: A visionary dream recounts the crucifixion of Christ from the perspective of the cross, emphasizing the heroism of Christ and the sanctity of the Rood.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Christian redemption, Christ as a heroic figure

  • Anglo-Saxon Culture: Fusion of pagan heroism and Christian martyrdom

  • Major Themes: Sacrifice, salvation, spiritual vision

  • Supernatural Influence: Visionary experience, sacred relics

Arthurian Literature/14th Century Literature

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

  • Author: Unknown (Gawain Poet or Pearl Poet)

  • Dates: Composed - c. 14th century

  • Characters: Sir Gawain (Arthur’s nephew and knight), Green Knight/Bertilak (enchanted challenger), Morgan le Fay (sorceress)

  • Plot Summary: Sir Gawain accepts a challenge from the Green Knight, involving a beheading game. Gawain’s journey tests his courage, honor, and adherence to the chivalric code. He learns humility and the flaws of human nature.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Knightly virtue, honor, human fallibility

  • Arthurian Culture: Code of Chivalry, loyalty, bravery, respect toward women

  • Major Themes: Temptation, moral testing, the nature of honor

  • Supernatural Influence: Magical transformations, enchanted settings

Chaucer and the General Prologue

  • Author: Geoffrey Chaucer

  • Dates: Composed - c. 1387-1400

  • Characters: Pilgrims including the Knight, Wife of Bath, Clerk, and others

  • Plot Summary: The General Prologue introduces a group of pilgrims traveling to Canterbury, each with unique personalities and backgrounds, setting up the tales they will tell.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Satirical depiction of social classes, critique of corruption (especially in the Church)

  • Genres: Satire, social commentary

  • Major Themes: Hypocrisy, human nature, social hierarchy

The Knight’s Tale

  • Characters: Palamon (noble prisoner), Arcite (rival), Emily (love interest)

  • Plot Summary: Two imprisoned knights fall in love with Emily and become rivals. A divine intervention decides their fates, emphasizing courtly love and chivalric ideals.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Courtly love, fate, divine justice

  • Major Themes: Chivalry, love, conflict

  • Supernatural Influence: Intervention by gods (Venus, Mars, Diana)

The Wife of Bath’s Tale

  • Characters: Wife of Bath (Alison, storyteller), unnamed knight, old woman (magical guide)

  • Plot Summary: A knight accused of a crime must discover what women most desire. He learns about sovereignty in marriage through the guidance of a magical old woman.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Female agency, the nature of true sovereignty

  • Major Themes: Gender roles, marriage, power dynamics

  • Supernatural Influence: Magical transformation (old woman to young lady)

The Clerk’s Tale

  • Characters: Griselda (patient wife), Walter (testing husband)

  • Plot Summary: Walter tests Griselda’s loyalty and patience through extreme trials, revealing themes of virtue, faith, and endurance.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Patience, humility, divine order

  • Major Themes: Loyalty, suffering, virtue

Renaissance Literature

Elizabeth I Speeches: The Golden Speech, The Speech at Tilbury

  • Author: Queen Elizabeth I

  • Dates: Delivered - 1588 (Tilbury), 1601 (Golden Speech)

  • Characters: Elizabeth I (as speaker)

  • Plot Summary: The speeches emphasize her leadership during crises (Tilbury) and her gratitude and governance philosophy (Golden Speech).

  • Beliefs and Morals: Devotion to her subjects, emphasis on unity and loyalty

  • Renaissance Culture: Heightened focus on rhetoric, humanism, national pride

  • Major Themes: Leadership, political acumen, gendered influence

Dr. Faustus

  • Author: Christopher Marlowe

  • Dates: Composed - c. 1592

  • Characters: Dr. Faustus (ambitious scholar), Mephistopheles (devil’s intermediary), Lucifer (Satan)

  • Plot Summary: Dr. Faustus sells his soul to the devil for knowledge and power. He enjoys his gains but ultimately faces eternal damnation for his choices.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Renaissance pursuit of knowledge, moral consequences of ambition

  • Renaissance Culture: Focus on human potential, skepticism of authority

  • Major Themes: Hubris, damnation, redemption

  • Supernatural Influence: Deals with the devil, magical powers

Macbeth

  • Author: William Shakespeare

  • Dates: Composed - c. 1606

  • Characters: Macbeth (ambitious nobleman), Lady Macbeth (manipulative partner), Banquo (noble general), the Witches (prophetic figures)

  • Plot Summary: Macbeth’s ambition leads him to murder King Duncan and seize the throne. Consumed by guilt and paranoia, he faces his downfall and death.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Ambition, guilt, consequences of regicide

  • Renaissance Culture: Interest in supernatural, reflection on leadership and morality

  • Major Themes: Power, fate vs. free will, guilt

  • Supernatural Influence: Witches, prophecies, apparitions

17th and Early 18th Century Literature

Oroonoko: The Royal Slave

  • Author: Aphra Behn

  • Dates: Published - 1688

  • Characters: Oroonoko (noble slave), Imoinda (his beloved)

  • Plot Summary: Oroonoko, an African prince enslaved in the Americas, faces betrayal and tragedy in his pursuit of freedom and love, culminating in his tragic death.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Critique of colonialism, the complexity of slavery

  • Genres: Early novel, tragic narrative

  • Major Themes: Honor, betrayal, racial and social critique

A Modest Proposal

  • Author: Jonathan Swift

  • Dates: Published - 1729

  • Characters: Narrator (satirical persona)

  • Plot Summary: The narrator proposes a grotesque solution to Ireland’s poverty—selling children as food—to satirize British exploitation and indifference.

  • Beliefs and Morals: Satirical critique of exploitation, highlighting the inhumanity of British policies toward Ireland.

120 Tales

All the Above are probably all right