《英美文学教学资料》英国文学史总结.docVIP

Period Characteristics Writers Old English literature (450 - 1066 year) Old English poetry be divided into two groups: religious group and secular group. Beowulf (typical example) Medieval English literature (1066 year - the second half of the 14th century) The Norman Conquest; Reflection of the Christian doctrine (concerning personal salvation); Popularization of Romance Geoffrey Chaucer(杰弗里·乔叟) ,the father of English poetry The Renaissance Period (the 14th century - mid-17th century) Transition from the medieval to modern world; Perhaps the golden age of English literature; Humanism (the essence of this period): man is the measure of all things; Outstanding forms in the early stage: poetry and drama. Edmund Spenser(埃德蒙·斯宾塞）, the poets’ poet: Christopher Marlowe(克里斯托弗·马洛), perfecting blank verse and creating renaissance hero for drama William Shakespeare(威廉·莎士比亚), one of the most remarkable playwrights and poets Francis Bacon(弗兰西斯·培根), a representative of the Renaissance. A philosopher, scientist laying foundation for modern science; a essayist important for English prose. John Donne(约翰·邓恩) metaphysical school(玄学派) John Milton(约翰·米尔顿) The Neoclassical Period (1660 - 1798 year) The age of enlightenment and reason; The enlightenment movement(furtherance of the Renaissance), upheld rationality, equality and science.(provide views and theories for the French Revolution and the American war of independence); Eternal truth, justice and equality Central characteristic: interest in old classic work; Order and rules are important; New arising form in mid-century: the modern English novel John Bunyan (约翰·班扬) Alexander Pope(亚历山大·蒲柏)，the greatest poet, advocate literal rule of orders; Daniel Defoe(丹尼尔·笛福),the first to study the lower-class people; Jonathan Swift(乔纳森·斯威夫特) Henry Fielding(亨利·菲尔丁)，Father of the English Novel, first to write comic epic in prose and give modern novel its structure; Samuel Johnson(塞缪尔·约翰逊), the last English neoclassical; Richard Brinsley Sherid