Brief British Literature Timeline
The Anglo-Saxon Period
Earliest written history up to 1066
Gaelic and Old English were the spoken language
It includes the major historical events like the Invasion of the Roman Empire
The most notable piece of literature was Beowulf (it survived for so long)
Epic Genre
The Medieval Period
1066-1400
Languages spoken; Middle English (kinda a stepping stone between the old English and our more modern English), Latin, French, Gaelic
Canterbury Tales, the King Arthur legends
Ballads, Allegories and Romances (Genres) Code of Chivalry
The English Renaissance
1400s-1500s
Early Modern English and Gaelic
The English Renaissance marks the transition from the Medieval World to the Modern World
It was a turbulent time, full of wars, new monarchies, religious reformation, and a complete change in the social structure of all of Britain
Literature really exploded during this time, all of the arts really. We see poetry, drama and the beginnings of the novel
There are so many notable authors from this time;
Thomas More,
Edmund Spenser,
Shakespeare,
Francis Bacon
The Restoration
1600s
Early modern English
The first dictionary is published so there begins to be much more stability in the language.
Gaelic still survives
The novel is born (return to literature for masses)
Drama and poetry continue to be major
Paradise Lost by John Milton
Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan
Poetry of John Dryden
Religious themes during the restoration time
the idea of Lucifer etc.
The Enlightenment
Modern English almost the same as we speak today. (Still Gaelic survives)
Period of intellectualism
Authors not only wanted knowledge but they wanted to write about knowledge
Alexander Pope, Rape of Lock
Jonhaton Swift, Gulliver’s Travels
William Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe
Samuel Richardson’s Pamela