Introductory Unite
Background of English Literature
1. What is English Literature?
English literature is literature written in English. It is not merely the literature of England of the British Isles, or of the Unit states of America, but a vast and growing body of writing made up of the work of authors who use the English language as a natural medium of communication. In other word, the ‘English’ of ‘English literature’ refer not to the nation but to a Language.
Literature is an art which exploits Language; English literature is an art which exploits the English language. But it is not just an English art. It is international. Chinese, Malays, African and Indians reading this book may well one day themselves contribute to English literature. (Burgess. 1974: 9)
2. Period of English Literature: In this text we are mainly concerned which is literature of England and the United State of America.
2.1 Period of English Literature: ( A.D.)
450 – 1066 Old English (or Anglo - Saxon) Period
1100 – 1480 Middle English Period
1480 -1625 The Renaissance Period Elizabethan Poetry and prose
1625 – 1700 The seventeenth century
1700 – 1760 The Eighteenth century
1760 – 1900 The Nineteenth century
1760 – 1798 The Pre – Romantic Age
1798 – 1832 The Romantic Age
1832 – 1880 The Victorian Age
1800 – 1910 The Late Nineteenth and the Turn of the
Century
1900 - The Modern Period: the 20th century
From 1900 to 1945
Literature after 1945
2.2 Periods of American Literature
Early Seventeenth Century: Colonial Period: to 1700
The Literature of Discovery and Exploration
The Literature of European Settlement
Seventeenth Century wit
The Eighteenth Century: Colonial Period: 1700 – 1800
American Voices: in a Changing World
Poetry before the Revolution
Emerging Voices of a Nation Literature
Enlightenment Voices, Revolutionary Visions
The Nineteenth century
Early Nineteenth century: 1800 – 1865
Late Nineteenth century: 1865 – 1910
The Model Period: 1910 – 1945
The Contemporary Period: 1945 of the present