This period is marked by the imitation of virgil and horaces literature in english letters. In this article on the history of english literature, youll be getting a glimpse of almost every age of english literature. It has also been an age of discovery and globalisation. The old english language or anglosaxon is the earliest form of english. Many of the poems of the period are pagan, in particular widsith and beowulf. The modern age in english literature started from the beginning of the twentieth century, and it followed the victorian age.
The principal english writers include addison, steele, swift, and alexander pope. The period is a long one and it is generally considered that old english was spoken from about a. The anglosaxon chronicle otherwise proves significant to study of the era, preserving a chronology of early english. Although st mary overie s, renamed st saviour s in the sixteenth century, later housed the tombs of the playwrights john fletcher d. The most important characteristic of modern literature is that it is opposed to the general attitude to life and its problems adopted by the victorian writers and the public, which may be termed victorian. As with the old english period, much of the middle english writings were religious in nature. The complexity of these issues also foregrounds the fact that all anthologies of literature, including the heath anthology, are not just chronicles of.
Pdf version by solitude among the most important works of this period is the poem beowulf, which has achieved national epic status in britain. A brief history of english literature literary theory. If you are searching for history of english literature pdf, please scroll down. The modern period has been a period of significant development in the fields of science, politics, warfare, and technology.
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