A brief introduction to English literature history

English literature can be divided into five stages: ancient and medieval English literature, neoclassical period, The Romantic Period, Victorian period and modern period.

1. In the history of English literature, ancient times probably started in the park in 450 and ended in 1066, that is, the year of the Normandy conquest, which was mainly divided into religious poems and secular poems. The Bible and Beowulf are typical examples that have been handed down to this day. Renaissance is the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of modern society, especially in the 15th and 17th centuries, and humanism is its spirit.

2. The neoclassical period was from 1660, the restoration of Stuart dynasty to The Romantic Period in 798. Britain was in turmoil in the early stage and developed its national strength in the later stage. The18th century in Britain was an age of enlightenment, advocating order, rationality and the rule of law.

3. From the lyric ballads of Wordsworth and Coleridge to the death of Scott 1832, The Romantic Period mainly emphasized human rights during the French Revolution and the British Industrial Revolution.

Victorian period was the climax of British industrial revolution. The reign of Queen Victoria was the most glorious period in British history, from 1836 to 190 1. The country is relatively prosperous and stable, the state power is gradually transferred to the middle class, and morality and common sense have become the theme of the times.

In modern times, due to the monopoly of the bourgeoisie, contradictions intensified, and the losses of World War I and World War II, the national strength of the empire declined, and philosophical thoughts came into being. There are many schools, such as Bernard Shaw, Ye Zhi, Eliot, Lawrence and Joyce.

Extended data:

Characteristics of English literature in the 20th century;

The first achievement of literature in the 20th century was a breakthrough in drama creation. First of all, Bernard Shaw, an Irishman, came to London with his provocative drama, named Ibsen's New European Realistic Drama, and then skillfully combined it with the European classical comedy tradition since aristophanes in his own creation.

He wrote 5 1 plays, including Mrs. Warren's Occupation (1894) and Man and Superman (1903)_ Another British Island (1904)_ Major Barbara (1.

They either debate social issues or express novel ideas, but they all give the audience noble artistic enjoyment. The appearance of Bernard Shaw has fundamentally changed the situation of English drama in the past hundred years.

Another powerful force of the new drama also comes from Ireland. With the upsurge of Irish national liberation movement, the Irish Renaissance movement appeared. The Abbey Theatre in Dublin, under the auspices of Mrs Gregory and the poet Ye Zhi, staged their own and newly created plays, which were created by Irish writers including Singer and O 'Casey.

Singer's Playboy in westworld (1907) and O 'Casey's Juno and Peacock (1924) are both representative works. They not only successfully wrote Irish themes, but also made great innovations in dramatic language. Ye Zhi wrote a play "Julius Katrina" (1902), which aroused the nationalism of the audience.

Later, he experimented in drama art, but his achievements in poetry were more outstanding. His early poems are famous for their beauty. Later, he wrote concise and profound poems. He absorbed and surpassed modernism and became one of the greatest poets in the western world.

References:

Baidu encyclopedia-English literature