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1、,History of British LiteratureFor Undergraduate Students,British literature,a precious diamond,in the world literature,Westminster Abbey,The Poets Corner,William Shakespeare,Romeo and Juliet,Gullivers Travels,Auld Lang Syne,Should auld acquanintance be forgot，And never brought to mind?Should auld ac
2、quaintance be forgot，And days of auld lang syne?And heres a hand,my trusty friend And gies a hand o thine;Well take a cup o kindness yet.For auld lang syne.For auld lang syne my dear,For auld lang syne,Well take a cup o kindness yet For auld lang syne.,Preparation for the Class,Arrangement of reform
3、 Subjective preparation Relative knowledge Method of study,Introduction to the whole course,Anglo-Saxon period(5th-11th)Middle-Age Period(12th-15th)Renaissance Period(16th-early 17th)Revolution and Restoration period(17th)Neo-Classical Period(18th)Romantic period(early 19th)Victorian period(from mid
4、 19th)Turn(19th-20th)Modern period(20th),Anglo-Saxon Period,Historical background,literature,historical background:the making of Britain A.Briton(Celtic tribes)B.the Roman Conquest-Roman Briton B.C.55-54 Julius Caesar A.D.43 Claudius C.mid-5th Anglo-Saxons(Angles,Saxons,Jutes)Anglo-Saxon period seve
5、n kingdoms:north:Mercia and Northumberland(7th,8th)south:Wessex(9th,10th),Angles,Saxons,Jutes,D.Danish invasion late 8th,Danes late 9th,Alfred the Great 11th,Canute 25 years E.Norman Conquest 1066 William:Duke of Normandy-William I the end of Anglo-Saxon period beginning of feudal society,English Ho
6、uses,.House of Normandy William I 1066-1087 William II 10871100 Henry I 11001135 Stephen 1135-1154 House of PlantagenetHenry II 11541189 Richard I 11891199 John 11991216 Henry III 12161272 Edward I 12721307 Edward II 1307-1327 Edward III 1327-1377 Richard II 1377-1399,.House of Lancaster Henry IV 13
7、991413 Henry V 1413-1422 Henry VI 1422-1461(The War of the Roses 1455-1485)House of York Edward IV 1461-1483 Edward V 1483 Richard III 1483-1485 House of Tudor Henry VII 1485-1509 Henry VIII 1509-1547 Edward VI 1547-1553 Mary I 1553-1558 Elizabeth I 1558-1603,House of Stuart James I 1603-1625 Charle
8、s I 1625-1649(The CommonwealthOliver Cromwell,Lord Protector 1653-1658Richard Cromwell 1658-1659)Charles II 1660-1685 James II 1685-1688 William III&Mary II 1689-1702 Anne 1702-1714 House of Hanover George I 1714-1727 George II 1727-1760George III 1760-1820 George IV 1820-1830William IV 18301837 Vic
9、toria 1837-1901Edward VII 1901-1910,House of WindsorGeorge V 1910-1936 Edward VIII 1936George VI 1936-1952 Elizabeth II 1952-,F.social and religious featuresContinent:tribal society,agriculturelate:feudal shape:class division kingearlfreemanserfheathen St.Augustine in 597 within a century all Englan
10、d was Christianized,Anglo-Saxon Literature:Poetry and Prose,Two Kinds:Pagan“Beowulf”-Epic Christian-Caedmon:“The Paraphrase”Cynewulf:“Christ”a didactic poemB.Pagan-”Beowulf”Monster-Grendel Features:alliteration;metaphor;understatement,1.Beowulf national epic the longest and most monumental work of A
11、-S poems the oldest surviving epic in British literature.oral form(6th),written down(7th or 8th)set in Denmark and Sweden,Beowulf1.3183 lines2.contents:3 adventures Monster-Grendel Grendels mother fiery dragon,2.theme:primitive peoples struggle against hostile forces of the natural world under a wis
12、e and mighty leader 3.Features:part-historical and part legendary heathen tribal society,feudal elements,Christian coloring A-S or old English;alliteration;metaphor,Literary term Epic:a long narrative poem telling about the deeds of a great hero and reflecting the values of the society from which it
13、 originated.Many epics were drawn from an oral tradition and were transmitted by song and recitation before they were written down.,Literary term Alliteration:head rhyme;words beginning with the same consonants alliterate with each other within each line,or a word beginning with a vowel alliterates
14、with another word beginning with the same or another vowel.,B.Christian:Most of A-S poetry is religious or Christian two Christian poets Caedmon Cynewulf,1.Caedmon:the earliest known English poet(his story is charmingly told by the Venerable Bede).the first“Hymn”“Caedmonian poems”(anonymous authors)
15、:paraphrase of Bible“Genesis B”.,2.Cynewulf:mythical figureThe finest poem:“The Dream of the Rood”,the first known example of the dream vision,a genre later popular in Middle English literature.“Christ”:best known,didactic poem,3.Other Old English poems include various riddles,charms,saints lives,gn
16、omic poetry,and other Christian verse,C.A-S prose:earliest in Latin(p617)Bede Alfred the Great Aelfric,1.Bede“The Ecclesiastical History of the English People”published in Latin,translated into Anglo-Saxon by king Alfred in 891.Roman invasion to A.D.731,relates history from religious point of view a
17、nd full of strange stories and miracles.“Father of English History”,King Alfred the Great,2.King Alfred the Great(Wessex)Life story:traveling experience to cultural center of Europe,in 871 became the king of Wessex,fight against the Danes,strengthen his nation and gather many scholars,do translation
18、 together,died in 901.Alfreds contributions to English Literature numerous translation from Latin rather free way in translation the role he played in the launching of“Anglo-Saxon Chronicle”,“Anglo-Saxon Chronicle”“Old English Chronicle”A.D.1 to A.D.1154 contents:folk literature,natural phenomenon,c
19、omments on kings(point of view of common people),passages describing the terrible political oppression and economic exploitation of common people,3.Aelfricchiefly religious in content,mainly some homilies.translate in Anglo-Saxon the first seven books of the Bible and wrote a treatise“Concerning the
20、 Old and New Testament”a popular introduction to the contents of the Bible in old English.,Bible:holy book which forms the basis of the Christian faiththe Old Testament:God and the Laws of God(Hebrew)the New Testament:doctrines of Jesus Christ OHebrew NGreek first English version:John Wycliffe most
21、influential version:King James Version,Features of A-S literature 1.old English literature 2.verse literature in oral form 3.The authors are mostly unknown 4.poems in alliteration 5.prose in Latin,More materials on-line,http:/,homework,1.Review the knowledge you have learned about Anglo-Saxon litera
22、ture.2.Retell the story of“Beowulf”Pre-view homework1.Background information of the Middle Ages2.Literary forms in this period3.Romance and ballad,12th-15th,Historical background,literature,backgroundthe Norman conquest accelerated the development of feudalism.on land:the ruling class possessed larg
23、e tracts of landon society:distinct class division,miseries of peasants on language:scholar wrote in French and Latin;enriched English.,2.Conflicts between the serfs or peasants and their feudal lords the Hundred Years War with France(drafting of soldiers and extra taxes)the Black Death shortage of
24、laborers the church oppressed common people(1/3 land)the rising of 1381John Ball,had shaken the feudal system to the root and abolished serfdom.,3.rapid development in commerce and tradethe burghers class began to play an important role in politics distinction between the rich and the poor became ma
25、rked.the corruption of officials was rife4.The early flowering of Renaissance started to influence the English writers.,Middle-age literature,mid 11th c mid 14th c:romance second half of 14th c:John Wycliffe John Gower William Langland Geoffrey Chaucer 15th c:ballad,11th-14thAnglo-Latin literature 1
26、.Geoffery of Monmouth“The History of the Kings of Britain”:King Arthur and his Round Table Knights;Lear;Cymbeline;.2.Roger Bacon:the father of experimental scientistAnglo-Norman(French)literature:romancesSocial satires in verse,Literary term Romance:A long composition,sometimes in verse,sometimes in
27、 prose,describing the life and adventures of a noble man.The central character is the Knight,who has a noble birth,is skillful in the use of weapon and devotes to the church or King.The rules governing the manners and morals of a knight are known as chivalry.,Themes of romance:the matter of Britain
28、king Arthur and his knights of the Round Table(Arthurian romances)the matter of France Charlemagne and his knights the matter of Rome from the Trojan War to Alexander the Great,King Arthur:historical figure of Celts;mythological figure in Welsh literature;legendary hero in Geoffery of Monmouth:“Hist
29、ory of the Kings of Britain”Layamon:“Brut”Sir Tomas Malory:“Le Morte DArthur”,The most outstanding single romance on the Arthurian legend“Sir Gawain and the Green Knight”(four sections)a.The fight between Sir Gawain and the Green Knight at King Arthurs Christmas feast.b.Gawains adventures on the way
30、 to find the Green Knight of the Green Chapelc.three days of Gawains stay at the castle.d.the finding the Green Knight and Gawains returning to king Arthur.,theme:loyalty to the king and lordclass nature:composed for the nobles,the audience was usually of the Court or the castle,had nothing to do wi
31、th the common people.style:alliterative(most romances were metrical),second half of 14th c John Wycliffe John Gower William Langland Geoffrey Chaucer,John Wycliffe1.Life story:study on theology,in 1372 got degree of Doctor of Theology at Oxford,drawn into the struggle between Edward and the Pope in
32、Rome,first opposed the Pope and the church and advocated the absolute authority of the Bible,after the rising of 1381 deprived of all scholastic duties and left Oxford,in 1384 died of paralysis.,2.His works“Of the Truth of the Holy Scriptures”:absolute authority of the Bible“Of Divine Dominion”&“Of
33、Civilian Dominion”:clergy has no right to hold property,3.contributions responsible for the earliest translation of the entire Bible.(chief)his ideas paved the way for a thorough-going reformation in the church in later centuries.influenced the“poor priests”Lollards,Lollards:a group of priests in th
34、e late 14th century who were against the entire feudal system in the distribution of wealth and have a hatred of the whole church.They also disregarded the hierarchy of the church and took faith in the Bible as the only authority.,John GowerLife story:knightly family,connected with the court,devoted
35、 much of his time to literature and wrote in three language,went blind in 1400.2.His works:in 3 languages“Speculum Meditantis”or“Mirour de Lomme”“Vox Clamantis”“Confessio Amantis”,“Mirour de Lomme”(French):the mirror of mankindsins of man“Vox Clamantis”(Latin):the voice of the clamants”the peasants
36、rising of 1381(against)“Confessio Amantis”(English):a lovers confession the seven deadly sins:pride,luxury,envy,wrath,avarice,gluttony and sloth,William Langland,William Langland1.Life story:his father was possible a farmer,educated in church,lived a scanty life.(no definite information of his life)
37、2.Works:“Piers the Plowman”content:two parts:the vision of Piers the Plowman(two dreams)the vision of Do-wel,Do-bet,Do-best,The poet falls asleep in the Malvern Hills and dreams that in a wilderness he comes upon the tower of Truth(God)set on a hill,with the dungeon of Wrong(the Devil)in the deep va
38、lley below,and a fair field full of folk(the world of living men)between them.He describes satirically all the different classes of people he sees there;then a lady named Holy explains the meaning of all he sees and tells him to search for truth.Further characters(Conscience,Falsehood,Reason)enter t
39、he action;,Conscience finally persuades many of the people to turn away from the Seven Deadly Sins and go in search of St.Truth,but they need a guide.Piers(Peter),a simple Plowman,appears and says that he knows the way and will show them if they help him plow his half acre.Some help,but some shirk;A
40、fter this purification through labor,Piers starts his search for truth.,Fairy Land,east,west,.Analysis of the poemwritten in the form of a dream visiona.the first vision:social criticism at the prevalent corruption and bribery in English society at the time.b.the second vision:sympathy for the peasa
41、nts,the poor and the needy:toiling peasants to be the nearest to truth and salvation.,significancea realistic picture of medieval England.indignant satirical description of social abuses caused by corruption among ruling class,Geoffrey Chaucer,Geoffrey Chaucer founder of English poetry1.Life story:c
42、ourt page,in the army fighting France and was taken prisoner,ten years diplomatic errands(nine times to Europe),contact with Renaissance in Italian literature,met Petrarch,had many public employments,died in 1400 and was the first to be buried in the Poets Corner of Westminster Abbey.,Chaucer served
43、 in a great variety of occupation(courtier,office-holder,soldier,ambassador,legislator)and had broad and intimate acquaintance with persons high and low in all walks of life and knew well of the whole social life,which later had great impact in his literary career.,2.Chaucers literary career(3 perio
44、ds)(1360-1372):influenced by French poetry“Romanunt of the Rose”translation from French,first introduced into English verse the octosyllabic couplet“The Book of the Duchess”:original,Literary termcouplet:two successive lines of poetry that rhyme(aa bb cc dd)examples:This were to be new made when tho
45、u art old,And see thy blood warm when thou feelst it cold.To give away yourself,keeps yourself still,And you must live,drawn by your own sweet skill.,(13721385)influenced by Italian writers:Dante(“Divine Comedy”),Petrarch(“Rime Sparse”),Baccaccio(“Decameron”)“The House of Fame”“Troylus and Criseyde”
46、“The Legend of Good Women”,The Legend of Good Womennine“tragedies”of“good women”who suffered from or died of devotion to lovers(borrow from Boccaccio,Virgil,Ovid)used heroic couplet for the first time in English.,heroic couplet:two successive lines of rhymed poetry in iambic pentameter.It is a tradi
47、tional form for English poetry,commonly used for epic and narrative poetry.(first used by Chaucer in British literature)When that April with his shower swoote The drought of March hath pierced to the root and bathed every vein in such licour Of which virtue engendered is the flower,Troylus and Crise
48、ydepartly adapted and partly translated from Boccaccios poemTrojan war Troylus,Criseyde,Calchas,Pandarus,Diomede,Achilles,1386-1400:maturity free from foreign influence“The Canterbury Tales”masterpiece,Canterbury Cathedral,Trinity Chapel,The Canterbury Tales1.masterpiece:General Prologue+24 tales(un
49、finished)Outline of the story:in April,Tabard Inn,30 pilgrims to St.Thomas Beckets tomb in Canterbury,beguile the journey by story-telling,two going and two returning,the best story-teller will be given a free supper,24 were written.(General Prologue),The Prologue:framework;vivid sketches of all cla
50、sses of the English feudal society through 30 pilgrims.tales:most notable group tales:“marriage group”:whether husband or wife should be the dominating person in marital relationship.,the wife of Baths tale of an Arthurian knight:wifes domination leads to peace and happiness the Oxford clerks tale o
