Literature 1066 - 1945

Chapter 1 - The Beginnings to 1066

HISTORY · There were three Germanic tribes in England after 450. They each spoke a different dialect and this became the "old-English". · 5t. Augustine arrived in 597. There was a conversion of the Anglo-Saxon pagans to Christianity. They introduced a new culture and books were written (by Monks) in England. · The Vikings attacked England in 789. · The Anglo-Saxon thought the family was the center of all. Only if some families had the same enemy, they united against this enemy. · The Anglo-Saxons weren't illiterate in fact they had their own alphabet of signs, Runes". They had some songs and these songs were passed from one 9eneration to the next, mouth to mouth, creating new poetry · The language of the church was (of course) Latin. New scripture and a new written tradition came under the Germanic tribes in England by the introduction of Christianity. TERMINOLOGY Alliteration: repetition of a sound at the beginning of a word in the same line or a number of lines.
Caesura: A break in a line of poetry Elegy: A poem of somber meditation. Epic/Heroic poem: A long poem telling the story of a hero with almost super-human qualities. Stanza: A group of verse lines in a poem.

Chapter 2: The later Middle Ages: 1066-1485

HISTORY · 1066 William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy invaded England. · French influenced the dialects which were spoken in England (William spoke French) · The dialect that developed in the southeast of England became the most important one: Early Modern English · English kings possessed parts of France: "Hundred Years" war · England lost French possessions · 2 English noble houses, The House of Lancaster (red rose as their emblem) and The House of York (white rose as their emblem), were fighting because of the throne: civil war called "War of the roses" · Henry married a queen from the opposing family: peace returned · In spite of wars, famines and Black Death, literature flourished · Literature was a way to escape from reality and showed a better world: dreams and allegory · Lyric: short, simple, anonymous poem · Themes: secular or religious · Romans: stories about knights and their ladies · Drama: part of the popular culture, guilds performed part of the Old Testament: mystery/miracle plays

Chapter 3: Reformation 1485-1558

HISTORY Italy 15th century: the study of writings of classical antiquity was encouraged, works and styles of classical times were imitated and the renaissance began. The authors of this period are often called humanists. The most common language is Latin. The humanist movement spread slowly across Europe and it reached England at a rather late stage. · Henry VIII encouraged the humanist movement in England. Therefore, Dutch humanist Erasmus called the 16th century a golden age. · Henry's son came to throne in 1547. He founded the grammar schools and he drew up "The Book of Common Prayer" to replace the Latin rite of the Church of Rome. · When he died, his half-sister Mary I attempted to re-impose Catholicism on England. She was the one that was responsible for the persecution and burning of Protestants during the period 1555-1558. That is why she was called "Bloody Mary". · The ideal "Renaissance Man": well mannered, civilized, learned scholar, brave soldier, accomplished horseman. · There was one kind of folksong: The ballad. This lived on in small rural communities. It was sung by a bard, the story is told in brief episodes, there is no introduction, the climax is often only hinted at, short stanzas (4 lines), it's often repetitive, slight change in every stanza, the story is told objectively, the tragic theme is often 'love'. · In the Middle Ages, drama had moved away from the church (building), but the bible still was of great influence. They were performed in the open air (central square). It took several days to perform a whole cycle. It attracted a lot of visitors from other towns. These were rowdy occasions. Because it was impossible to follow serious plays for such a long time, certain Biblical figures were turned into comic characters. · Another popular drama: The 'moralities' play. It was an allegory of an individual, spiritual life. There was no development in characters. The most famous play is Everyman. · In the Tudor period dramas were performed by professionals. In inns your seat could give status. Plays were also popular for the aristocracy; they sometimes arranged private plays in their own houses. · With all the popularity, literary men began to write for the stage. · Interludes: further development 'morality' play, strongly didactic, mundane or courtly subjects with dialogues.

Chapter 4: Settlement 1558-1603

· 1558-1603: Elizabeth I was queen of England. Her first concern was the establishment of an English church. · It was very important for Elizabeth to establish that she was a legitimate child of Henry '('II. In 1560 she was finally recognized as the legitimate queen of England by the Catholic powers of 5pain and England. · Elizabeth was Protestant. That is why she wanted to make the Protestant church in England legal. In 1570 she was placed outside the Catholic church by Pope Pius V. The English Catholics were now faced with the difficult choice of obedience to either the queen or the Pope. · Protestantism in Europe was still being challenged. · 1572: England began a long period of involvement in the Netherlands, united against the Spanish King. · 1588: A fleet of Spanish ships, the Armada, tried to invade England, but was defeated by English and Dutch ships. After that Elizabeth made a speech to her army, which is known now as the "Tilbury Speech". · 1596: A Catholic rebellion in Ireland was put down by the English. · Because Elizabeth had no children, the succession became important during the last years of her reign. · Elizabeth died in 1603. She was succeeded by James VI of Scotland, which led to the uniting of England and Scotland. · At this time the Stuart era began. · Theatre: In the early years of Elizabeth's reign, players toured the country in groups. Although the plays were popular, the players were not. They were seen as masterless men. In 1574 the Earl of Leicester was the first to give his protection to ~ 9roup of actors. Now that acting was a recognized profession, it became possible to look for a purpose-built location for plays. The first permanent theatre was built in London, in 1576. It was called "the Theatre."

Chapter 5: Dissent, 1603-1660

· In 1603 James VI succeeded Elizabeth I. The church of England retained the structures that had seen it safely through the reign of Elizabeth. In 1611 appeared a new Protestant translation of the Bible: Authorized/King James Version. Besides there were no new translations attempted until the nineteenth century! · Puritans were people who wished to purify the English Church of what they saw as Roman "Taints". They moved to Holland for a little while, but they finally moved to America in 1620, to settle there along the East coast. They moved there not for economical reasons, but as pilgrims. · James I's second son, Charles I, succeeded him. He was far less diplomatic than his father. Charles quarreled with Parliament before dissolving it in 1629. But Charles needed the money and therefore he recalled the Parliament in 1640. · In 1642 Charles faced the Civil War between his own party (The Royalists or Cavaliers) and the supporters of Parliament (the Republicans or Roundheads). The defeat of the Royalists led to Charles I1s execution in 1649. · The Commonwealth, England's only period of republicanism, began under the leadership of Oliver Cromwell. A Puritan Republic followed but did not long survive the death of its leader Oliver Cromwell. The monarchy was restored under Charles II in 1660.

Chapter 6: Restoration: 1660:1688

HISTORY · Before the Restoration, the court of Charles II had 1ived in exile in France and so they introduced their life-style and French novelties in London. The Puritans were not happy. The church of England was reestablished and became a political instrument of the Parliament. The Puritans saw the outbreak of the plague in 1665, The Great Fire of 1667 and the destruction of the English fleet by the Dutch in 1667 as a sign of Gods' discontent with the behavior of Charles and his court. After the death of Charles he managed to arrange that his brother James Ii, who was a Catholic, should succeed him. Because James II had two Protestant daughters Anne and Mary, so that1s why he became acceptable in England. And because Mary was married to Willem van Oranje, James II asked them to take James throne. · Restoration Theatre: When the king returned to England, many innovations came from the French theatre and new theatres were opened. They were very different, for example women were now allowed to act. The size of theatre was small, and going to the theatre was now a indoor experience. The indoor setting allowed the use of changeable scenery, so special effects could be created. Example: Restoration comedy. · Satire. This was the literary form which exposed folly or vice by making it ridiculous. Poets at court satirized the king and court life. John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester was effective in exposing vices and John Dryden also wrote political satires. · Biography and diary. The development of biography as a genre in this period shows new interest in the individual and society.

Chapter 7: Augustanism, Enlightenment and Sensibility: 1688-1776

People didn't want a civil war again · Tories (conservative) · Whigs (progressive) · Literature: · Tories' literature: in satires they exposed the folly of abandoning the old traditions. Wighs' literature: more and better education for the middle class new genre: novel · The Tatler was set up, a periodical. The writers Addison and Steele wanted to attract as many readers as possible. The periodical contained news items and essays on a great variety on topics, suitable for discussion. · The Spectator was set up. Same writers as the Tatler. It appeared 6 times a week and it was even read in the most remote corners of Britain.

Chapter 8: Romanticism, Revolutions and Reform (1776-1832)

HISTORY · There was much animosity between England and France, which led to quit some conflicts · Decline of Spain and Holland (Holland became independent) · Independence of the old English colonies in North America (1776). Therefore England paid more attention to India and in 1788 the first Britons landed in Sydney. Australia became the new place to dump convicted prisoners. · French revolution (1789)g the French emperor Napoleon initiated a number of wars in Europe. He was defeated at Waterloo (1815). · The Congress of Vienna made France's neighbors strong to prevent France from expanding again. · Thanks to the easy availability of coal, England became the first industrial country. There was a large economic growth and in the rural areas the industrial needed the land so much that the villagers had to move to the industrial centers for work. · The population of these new industrial centers increased tremendously, many people lived in poverty and children where exploited as cheap laborers. · There was many injustice, only rich men could vote and the new industrial centers weren't represented in Parliament. There was much corruption in the politics. · In 1828 they repealed the Test Act of Charles II. This meant that also Catholics and Dissenters could hold public offices and sit in Parliament.
TERMINOLOGY · Gothic Novel (late 18th until early 19th century): fiction about macabre and gloomy events, such as big castles and secret passages in medieval times at first an people in an abnormal physical state later. · Poet Laureate: a poet appointed as a court poet, his task was to write poetry for royal and state occasions. The first Poet Laureate was settled in 1668 and the Poet Laureate still exists but there is no more force used anymore. · Romantic Movement (beginning in 1750): An artistic movement a9ainst the neo-classical movement. It was all about the free and subjective expression of personal feelings. The favorite theme is the reaction of the artist to the forces of nature.

Chapter 9: Victorian Age 1832-1901

HISTORY · Industrialization led to urbanization and the improvement of the infrastructure. (The building of railways.) · The urbanization led to overpopulation in the cities. The fall of prices in agricultural goods made life harder for those who stayed in the country. · Writers lived sheltered lives: There was no mass-communication. · The poor in London had very little voice in the affairs in the country. There were inadequate hygiene conditions, which led to outbreaks of diseases. There also was: prostitution, incest, abuse and ignorance. · Henry Mayhew was the first journalist to investigate the conditions, which London's poor, lived in. This led to an affected conscience of the society · The most famous writer of this period is Charles Dickens. He had a relatively happy childhood1 but at a certain time1 he was sent to go work in a factory because his father got in prison. This had such an effect on him, the horrors going on inside there, that he wrote a lot about this topic. The thin line that separates the struggling middle classes from the poverty-stricken lower classes creates a subtle contrast that Dickens exploits in his characterization, often with a fine sense of humor. To Dickens' characters the city forms a threatening background to their lives. There is much social criticism in Dickens' novels. He blames the authorities for such misery to be. TERMINOLOGY Aestheticism: Artistic movement that believed in self-sufficiency of art. (Art for art's sake.) Decadence: Artificiality in literature, usually accompanied by the use of bizarre subject matter, which at times can become perverse. Dramatic Monologue: A character's utterance, uninterrupted by any other voice, is used in such a way that this character reveals himself unintentionally through his own words. Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood: An association of artists and writers founded in the mid-nineteenth century. They sought their inspiration in medieval art.

Chapter 10: The making of a nation: North America to 1901

· Before the European powers began to colonize the American continent, there were about 2 million people speaking as many as 300 different languages. · 1579: Sir Francis brake, who was on a voyage around the world, anchored just to the north of what is now San Francisco. · Sir Walter Raleigh was the first Englishman to have founded a colony in the ~ World. He called it Virginia, after his "Virgin Queen" Elizabeth. There were troubles around the settlement of Virginia, but they were solved when The Pilgrim Fathers came. · By the middle of the 18th century, the colonists were unhappy about the fact, that the English Parliament was still their law-making institution. · 1773: "Boston Tea Party" Colonists dumped tea from East India Company ships in Boston Harbor. This was the beginning of the American War of Independence. · 1776: America independent. · 1861: Civil war between the North (against the slavery) and the South (for slavery). The North Union won that war. · 1865: President Abraham Lincoln was shot dead by John W. Booth. · The American declaration of Independence became a very important document. TERMINOLOGY Free verse: Poetry that disregards fixed rules of rhyme and metre in favor of variable rhythms and line lengths. Parody: exaggerated imitation of a work of art.

Chapter 11: Modernism in Britain and America: 1901-1929

· Britain and America saw a rise in the years before 1914, but many injustices remained. · 1914: Europe drifted into the First World War. · After the war, there was an increasing financial crisis in the Western world. · 1901: Edward VII succeeded his mother, Queen Victoria. · 1910: George V succeeded his father, Edward VII. · The two great political leaders of the late nineteenth century were the Conservative Benjamin Disraeli and the Liberal William Gladstone. · The place of the liberal party was gradually taken by the Labor party. · 1928: Men and women had equal voting rights. · Many men were away from home in the Great War, so the expectations of women changed, many worked, but working conditions were going to be disadvantageous to women for many years. · 1930: The Church of England supported birth control. · After 1930, the period of economic depression that had begun in 1875 seemed over. · During and after the end of the Great War, Britain and America tried to attack of alcohol. Britain by licensing hours and America by banning alcohol. (The Prohibition Years.) · In America the beginnings of technical and cultural development were seen that would spread to Europe (transcontinental trains, the transoceanic liner, the first airplane flight.) · During the first years of the 20th century electricity, the telephone and running water were gradually becoming part of everyday life in both America and Europe, but communication was still primarily by letter. · Technology increasingly influenced people's lives. · Far-reaching scientific and artistic discoveries were made that influenced modern writers. · Impressionists and Cubist painters broke down the traditions of their art. · Many writers believed they were living in an era that marked a complete break in the past. They thought of themselves as belonging to what we now call the "Modernist" movement. The cities of Europe became the centers of their literary activity.

Chapter 12: Crisis and War in Britain and America: 1929-1945

· The depression in America caused the country to turn isolationist in the twenties. They only cared about themselves and meanwhile they saw the situation in Europe wasn't very hopeful. · The public attention in Britain was for a short period focused on the crisis in the monarchy, when Edward VIII succeeded his father George in 1936. Workers from the north of England marched to London to protest against the economic misery. The industry in the south was more progressive than in the north · Some writers became obsessed with travel and travel-writing. Most of them worked as journalist in foreign countries. Most of them support the Left. They saw the Spanish civil war as a confrontation between the forces of Good (Republicans) against Evil (Fascists.) · The period up to World War II constitute violation of human rights. Example: prison camps. It isn't possible to view the period until 1945 correctly, because of these horrors. · Because of the crisis there was a need to look on the lighter side of life. Especially the development of the film played an important role. Film appealed to a number of writers who wrote scripts for movies. · During this period, television was pioneered. · The Bright young things was a fashionable aristocratic society · Dystopia is the opposite of utopia. Dystopia is rather pessimistic. · The Roman a clef is a roman, which refers to a work of fiction.

Chapter 13: Ireland, Scotland and Wales

Scotland: · After the Norman Conquest of 1066, everybody wanted to master Great Britain. · There was a war between England and Scotland until 1328, Robert Bruce became king of Scotland and Scotland became an independent kingdom. · The Scottish monarchy was weak, but the nobility was independent and strong. · Many battles between England and Scotland. The two countries remained separate. · The Act of Union in 1707 brought the Parliaments together. · Scotland still has its own identity, its own church and systems of law and education. Wales: · Wales was of strategic interest to the English monarchy. · From 1284 the king's eldest son would be Prince of Wales, there could be no more chance of independence now. · Since the 1960s there have been successful moves to revive the Welsh language and culture. Ireland: · When the English landed in 1169, they never left a9(in. · The Gaelic chieftains were never completely conquered. · Henry VIII tried to impose a religious reformation on Ireland, the successive Tudor monarchs completed the conquest of Ireland. The also wanted to suppress the Irish identity. · Land-owning was made extremely difficult for Catholics, yet the 18th century, was probably the most prosperous for Ireland. · In 1800 Ireland became part of the United Kingdom. · In 1845-1848 failures of the potato caused a famine. Because the government reacted with lack of responsibility1 there were various groups which started pressing for Irish Independence. · Nationalism increased and the Easter rebellion of 1916 came. Because this failed, it caused a war of Independence. · The Irish Free State was established in 1921 by the Anglo-Irish Treaty · The population of Ireland is divided, there is a lot of violence and hatred between the Protestants and the Catholics, even until the present day. TERMINOLOGY Bilduingsroman: A novel dealing with an individual's "formation".

Chapter 14: Literatures other than British or American: The Commonwealth and after

· 1783: Britain lost the United States and turned her colonizing and imperial attentions to India. · 1857: Indian Mutiny. After a considerable expansion the Britons chose a more cautious approach. · 1947: The Britons left India. India: · When the Britons went to India, they wanted to transform India into a modern Western country. They wanted to impose English as the official language. The problem was that India was internally divided, both ethnically, linguistically and in terms of religious groups. · Because the Indian experiment failed, The Britons left in 1947. By t1946 the Muslim population wanted a separate independent state. Many people regarded the pacifist Mahatma Ghandi as their new leader.
Australia and New Zealand: · In 1788 the first British convicts had been transported to Australia. The Britons colonized the West- and Southeast-coast. · For the English speaking countries Canada, Australia and New Zealand the gaining of independence as such has never been a matter of such significance as it has been for the various Indian and African states.

Chapter 15: The United States of America since 1945

· After World War II, America emerged as the greatest superpower and richest country. The time after World War II can be described as thoroughly anti-Communist. This caused the Cold War, which lasted until 1991. · racial segregation was complete. In 1955 Martin Luther King started his peaceful sit-ins against segregation. · TV was becoming a mass-medium, which caused the whole world to become a global village". · Though Russia had put the first man in space, America was the first country to put a man on the moon. The Americans needed this to boost their self-consciousness. · The Vietnam war had turned into a full scale war between Capitalism and Communism. Because of the TV everybody could see the horrors going on there. This contributed to anti-war. The war ended and America was the bi9 loser. · The new generation developed their own culture. They were called Hippies and their slogan was "Make love, not war". · 1991: The Gulf War. Iraq invaded Kuwait. Saddam Hussein threatened Western Oil supplies by that, so America wasn't too happy about that. A mainly American force declared war on Iraq. America won this one, with their superior technologies. It seems that everything is right now in America, but there still is a lot to be done, before total equality will be met.

Chapter 16: The United Kingdom since 1945

· In July 1945 the first British General Election for ten years was called. The Conservatives were heavily defeated and Labor managed to built Britain's welfare state up. · Britain did not get anything from the Marshall-plan and because of that economic growth took a long time. There were some shortages of fuel and food, which caused real hardship during the severe winter of 1946-47. · Another Labor Government promised a technological revolution in 1964. There was a dramatic increase in public spending, and because of that income taxes rose. · During the 1960s social habits changed dramatically . Prosperity increased and the decade became known as "the swinging sixties." London led the way if it comes to a cultural development. · There was a growing conflict between the generations. The introduction of the Pill led to great sexual freedom. · Margaret Thatcher became Britain's first female Prime Minister in 1971. Income taxes were dramatically reduced and an enterprise culture encouraged. The gap between rich and poor increased once more. · Immigration has been a sensitive issue. Racial discrimination is still disturbingly present among Britain's police and judicial system. In the beginning there was enough work for everyone, but in the 1980s an unemployment crisis rose. With the new technologies, this will probably be a problem forever, because there isn't enough work for everyone.