English Literature: From Old to Middle English

• English literature includes written works in the English language
• It covers different genres, time periods, and cultural contexts
• Literature reflects the historical, social, and intellectual evolution of English-speaking societies

Old English (c. 450-1066)

• Also known as Anglo-Saxon literature
• Epic poems, religious texts, and chronicles were most common
• Beowulf is an important epic poem, showing heroic acts and cultural values
• Caedmon's Hymn stands out as early religious poetry
• Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a prose work that records English history
• Uses alliterative verse, kennings, and focuses on heroism, fate, and religious beliefs

Middle English (c. 1066-1485)

• Followed the Norman Conquest, leading to linguistic and cultural shifts
• French had a large influence on language and literary styles
• Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales presents different social classes and storytelling methods
• Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a medieval romance, focusing on chivalry and courtly love
• Morality plays like Everyman use allegory to discuss salvation and moral questions
• Rise of the ballad form, known for simple stories and oral tradition

Renaissance (c. 1485-1660)

• Marked by renewed interest in classical learning and artistic innovation
• William Shakespeare became an important playwright and poet, exploring themes of love, ambition, and tragedy
• Shakespeare's notable plays include Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, and Romeo and Juliet
• Christopher Marlowe wrote tragic dramas such as Doctor Faustus
• Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene is an allegorical romance, celebrating virtues and exploring political ideas
• The King James Bible (1611) greatly influenced the English language and literary style
• Metaphysical poets like John Donne used wit and conceits to explore complex ideas about religion and philosophy

Neoclassical Period (c. 1660-1798)

• Focused on reason, order, and classical forms
• The Restoration period (1660-1700) saw the rise of satire and comedies about manners
• John Dryden was a well-known poet, playwright, and critic
• Alexander Pope showed neoclassical verse in works such as The Rape of the Lock
• Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels used satire to critique human nature and political systems
• Samuel Johnson created influential dictionaries and literary criticism
• The novel began to take shape, with authors such as Daniel Defoe (Robinson Crusoe) and Henry Fielding (Tom Jones)

Romantic Period (c. 1798-1837)

• Celebrated emotion, imagination, and individualism
• Emphasized the beauty and power of nature
• William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge started the Romantic movement with Lyrical Ballads (1798)
• Important romantic poets include Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and John Keats
• Mary Shelley's Frankenstein explored science, nature, and human ambition
• Jane Austen's novels offered social commentary and explored the lives of women in the English gentry

Victorian Period (c. 1837-1901)

• Marked by social, economic, and technological changes
• Reflected themes of industrialization, class divisions, and moral issues
• Charles Dickens' novels, like Oliver Twist and Great Expectations, showed social injustice and poverty
• The Brontë sisters (Charlotte, Emily, and Anne) explored psychological and social themes in novels like Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights
• George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans) wrote realist novels examining moral and social issues, such as Middlemarch
• Alfred, Lord Tennyson and Robert Browning were important poets
• Thomas Hardy explored fate and social change in rural England

Modern Period (c. 1901-1945)

• Marked by experimentation, fragmentation, and disillusionment
• World War I greatly influenced literary themes and styles
• Modernist writers broke from traditional forms to explore new ways of expression
• Prominent novelists include James Joyce (Ulysses), Virginia Woolf (Mrs. Dalloway), and Joseph Conrad (Heart of Darkness)
• T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land is an important poem, reflecting cultural fragmentation and loss
• William Butler Yeats explored Irish identity and mythology
• George Orwell critiqued totalitarianism and social injustice in novels such as Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four

Postmodern Period (c. 1945-present)

• Characterized by skepticism, self-awareness, and questioning of grand narratives
• Explores diverse perspectives, identities, and cultural experiences
• Common elements include metafiction, irony, and intertextuality
• Notable authors include Samuel Beckett, Harold Pinter, and Tom Stoppard with a focus on absurdist drama
• Postmodern novelists experiment with narrative structure and explore themes of reality and representation
• Focus is on multiculturalism and postcolonial literature, exploring the legacies of colonialism and cultural diversity
• Contemporary literature addresses issues such as globalization, technology, and environmental concerns