From ‘Hamlet’, ‘King Lear’, ‘Othello’ and ‘Julius Ceasar’ to ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, ‘As You Like It’ and ‘Romeo and Juliet’, William Shakespeare contributed many historical dramas and tragedies as well as romantic plays and comedies to the Golden Age.
The first comedy play under this age was ‘Ralph Roister Doister’ by Nicholas Udall. Moreover, Literary Dramas have a crucial role to play in making this age Golden. Sir Francis Bacon popularized the scientific method of analysis and wrote many intellectual and analytical essays in this period. John Donne also played a greater role in metaphysical poetry and beautiful sonnets of the Elizabethan age. John Lyly, Christopher Marlow, Thomas Nashe, George Peele were some of the celebrated names under this group. There was a famous group in the Golden age which was known as the ‘University Wits.’ This group would include noted alumni writers from the University of Cambridge and University of Oxford. Sir Philip Sidney’s ‘ Archadia’, ‘Michel Drayton’, ‘Sir Walter Raleigh’, ‘Ben Johnson’ are some of the important names in the medieval English literature. His famous poem in 1579, ‘The Shapaheardes Calander’ under 89 sonnets got highly popular. Edmund Spenser is another prolific names in Golden age who is also known as the poet’s poet. As the new humanism surged, there were many significant works like Sir Thomas Hoby’s Castiglione and Sir Thomas North’s Plutarch. It was a dynamic age filled with intellectual and religious revolutions and upheavals. The Golden Age in the history of English Literature brought a gallery of authors of genius and literary masterpieces. ‘Tottel’s Miscellany’ is considered as the first printed book amongst the different poetry works of this period. Thomas introduced Sonnets to Great Britain and the Earl of Surrey brought the use of blank verse which was later utilised by celebrated Elizabethan writers like Shakespeare, Christopher Marlow, John Milton, to name a few. Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard (Earl of Surrey) has a massive contribution to this age. ‘Everyman’ was a noted Morality play of the time and Miracle plays were taken from the Bible and were frequently performed in churches.īringing a distinctive paradigm shift in the history of English Literature, the Elizabethan Age represents the brilliant century of all the periods and is also known as the Golden Age. William Langland’s famous religious works including “Piers Plowman” also deserves a crucial mention as it represents another popular genre of this period of English Literature which was secular and religious prose.ĭuring the era of Medival English Literature, the most esteemed works also include morality plays, miracle plays and interludes. He became one of the core political servants in Britains’s court. Geoffrey Chaucer is amongst the highly regarded poets within the period of 1342 to 1400 and was renowned for his courtly love poetry including the famous “ Canterbury Tales” though it was left incomplete “The House of Fame”, and ‘ The Book of the Duchess’. Old English Literature: 5th – 14th CenturyĪlso referred to as the Later Middle English Literary Period, the Medieval English Literature comprises of a diverse range of works as the population of England during this time was literate and a considerable portion was also bilingual and trilingual.
Let’s explore some of these major periods of the English Literature in further detail: Looking for history of English Literature notes? We have summarized the long history of English Literature in its important 8 periods. Metafiction, Multiculturalism, Magic Poetry, etc.Ĭheck Out: Poetic Devices History of English Literature Summary
Sentimental Novels & Intellectual Movements The Victorian Period and the 19th Century The Middle English Period (c.1066-1450 CE) Here is a detailed outline of the History of English Literature from its beginning from the Classical Period to the Post-Modern Age: Major Periods Buy History of English Literature Book by Edward Albert An Outline History of English Literature
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