History and Anthology of English Literature

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History and Anthology of English Literature
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The teaching plan of this course

• Historical background
• Introduction of the main writers and their
  masterpieces
• The detailed analysis and appreciation of a
  specific work or some excerpts
• Discussion and presentation by students
  sometimes
• Watching videos adapted from certain works
  sometimes

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Requirements of this course

• Attend class on time
• Finish assignments (reading, presentation or
  recitation) on time
• Read as widely as possible, even do some further
  research.

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1. What is Literature?

• Literature refers to the practice and profession
  of writing. It comes from human interest in
  telling a story, in arranging words in artistic
  forms, in describing in words some aspects of
  human experiences.
• Literature is characterized by beauty of
  expression and form and by university of
  intellectual and emotional appeal.
• Literature shows us not only what a society is
  like in a certain age, but also what individual
  feel about it, what they hope from it, and how
  they can change it or escape from it.
• As a matter of fact, it is very hard to define
  what is literature for it includes many genres,
  such as poetry, prose, drama ,fiction and
  non-fiction.

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2. Why we read Literature?

• a. reading for pleasure
• Howells observed that the study of Literature
  should begin and end in pleasure.
• b. reading for relaxation
• Modern life is full of pressure. It is peoples
  common desire to seek temporary relaxation from
  the stress in life.
• c. reading to acquire knowledge.
• Literature gives readers an insight into the
  tradition, custom, beliefs, attitudes, folklore,
  values of the age in which it is written.

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3. How to study Literature?

• a. analytical approach
• The elements of fiction include plot, character,
  setting, point of view, theme, symbol, allegory,
  style, and tone.
• b. thematic approach
• What is the story, the poem, the play, or the
  essay about?
• c. historical approachIt aims at illustrating
  the historical development of literature. All the
  Literature exists in time and bears the
  unmistakable imprint of the period and culture in
  which it is written

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d. Other approaches

• Marxist/sociological criticism(?????/?????)
• psychoanalytical criticism(??????)
• feminist/gender criticism (????/????)
• mythic and archetypal criticism(??-????)
• reader-response criticism (??????)
• formalist /new criticism (????/???)
• Structuralism (????)
• post-structuralism (?????)
• Deconstructuralism (????)
• Our textbook is arranged in chronological order,
  but we deal with each period analytically with
  emphasis on theme.

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II the Anglo-Saxon period (449-1066)

• 1. historical background
• Three conquests Roman conquest in 43 AD
  Anglo-Saxon conquest in 449 Norman conquest in
  1066
• 43 AD, Roman conquered Britain ,making the
  latter a province of Roman Empire the withdrawal
  of Roman troops ,the Teutonic tribes, esp., the
  Anglos conquered the island and called it
  Angle-land, then England, their language is
  Anglo-Saxon old English.

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2. literature

• 1) pagan oral sagas the Song of Beowulf
• 2) Christian copied by the monk.
• The influence of the Christianity upon language
  and culture.
• Two ecclesiastic poets Caedmon and Cynewulf
• 3. the Song of Beowulf----Englands national epic
• 1) creation time written in 10-th century

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2).plot and theme

• fight with Grendel
• fight with Grendels mother
• fight with firedrake
• death and funeral

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3). Characteristics of Beowulf

• 3). Characteristics of Beowulf
• a. the mixture of pagan elements with Christian
  coloring. The most outstanding example is the
  frequent reference in the epic to Wyrd (fate)
  as the decisive factor in human affairs, while on
  other occasions God or Lord is also mentioned
  as the omniscient and omnipotent being that rules
  over the whole universe.

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Characteristics of Beowulf(2)

• b. the frequent use of metaphors and
  understatements. Ring giver is used for king,
  Swan road, whale-path or seal bath for the
  sea, wave-traveler or sea-wood for ship,
  shield-bearer, battle-hero or spear-fighter
  for soldier.
• c. Beowulf is written in alliterative verse. Its
  rhythm depends upon accent and alliteration. That
  is, the beginning of two or more words in the
  same line with the same sound or letter. The
  lines are made up of two short halves, separated
  by a pause. No rhyme is used but a musical
  effect is produced by giving each half line two
  strongly accented syllables. Each full line,
  therefore, has four accents, three of which
  usually begin with the same sound or letter.

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Characteristics of Beowulf(3)

• Beowulf towers above all other Anglo-Saxon
  literature, not only because it is a powerful
  poem about peoples hero written in true epic
  style, but also because it tells in artistic form
  the tale in a leisurely way, full of elaborations
  in legendary details, and the verse rises at
  places to heights of poetic grandeur.

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The significance of Beowulf

• 4).The significance of Beowulf
• a. This glorious epic presents us a vivid picture
  of the life of Anglo-Saxon people and highly
  praises the brave and courageous spirit of the
  fighting against the elemental forces.
• b. The epic reflects the situations of the epoch
  of pagan tribalism and of the era of the
  Christianized feudal society.
• c. The epic gives the vivid portrayal of a great
  national hero, strong and courageous people and
  his kinfolk.

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Part II the Anglo-Norman period (10661350)

• 1.   historical background
• Norman Conquest of Anglo-Saxon England, under
  William, Duke of Normandy after the battle of
  Hastings in 1066, accelerated the development of
  feudalism in England.
• The Middle Ages the dark age (449-16th century)

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2.literature-----romance

• 1). three chief effects of the Conquest.
• a. The bringing of Roman civilization,
• b. the growth of nationality
• c. the new language and literature, proclaimed
  by Chaucer.
• 2). Four kinds.
• a. Geoffreys history a source book of
  literature
• b. the work of the French Writers Arthurian
  legends
• c. Riming/rhythmic chronicles history in
  doggerel verse
• d. metrical romances, or tales in verse.

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Three major themes

• a. the matter of France about Charlemagne and
  his peers/knights
• b. the matter of Greece and Rome about
  Alexander the great and the Trojan War and the
  fall of Troy
• c. the matter of Britain king Arthur and his
  Round Table knight

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3.Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

• a. the plot
• 1). Feast in the palace
• 2) journey for the green chapel
• 3) test in the castle
• 4). blow in the chapel

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b. characteristics and theme

• the bravest of knights
• a test of his virtue and truth
• one of the best told stories in all the
  medieval literature of Europe
• Motif the tests of faith, courage and
  purity----nobility of hero
• the human weakness for self-preservation-----human
  ness
• romance the heroic adventure for adventures
  sake
• Beowulf to help the heros kinsfolk out of the
  distress or to protect them from disaster

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Part III Geoffrey Chaucer (13401400)

• 1.his life
• born in a wine merchant family, page to Elizabeth
• he had broad and intimate acquaintance with
  persons high and low in all walks of life and
  knew well the whole social life of his time.

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His literary career

• a. French period(1360-1372) in French Romance
  of the rose
• b. Italian period(1372-1385) in Latin the legend
  of Good Women
• English period(1386-1400) in English The
  Canterbury Tales

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3. The Canterbury Tales

• It is one of the most famous works in all
  literature. It begins with a general prologue
  that explains the occasion for the narration of
  the tales and gives a description of the pilgrims
  who narrate the tales, and then follow the
  twenty-four tales that make up the bulk of the
  book, plus the separate prologues and the links
  that accompany some of the tales.

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The translation of the prologue

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5. Chaucers contributions to English Literature
and Language

• a. a master of realism
• b. founder of English literary language
• c. Chaucers English London dialect
• d. Father of English poetry heroic couplet (The
  heroic couplet is an iambic pentameter heaving
  the lines rhyming in pairs.
• e. the first occupant of the Poets Corner

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Popular Ballads

• 1. Definition anonymous narrative songs that
  have been preserved by oral transmission.
• 2. Classification of Popular Ballads
• a. the reflection of the historical events
• b. the reflection of myths and legends
• c. the adaptation of some literary works.
• Another classification
• a. border ballads age-long struggle between
  Scots and English
• b. the ballads of Robin Hood
• c.  the humorous ballads

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the characteristics of Robin Hood

• a. his hatred for the cruel oppressors and his
  love for the poor and down-trodden
• b.strong, brave and clever
• c.tender-hearted and affectionate for the poor
  and down-trodden
• d.his pure love for Marian
• e.his simple loyalty to the monarchy

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4.Varieties of themes

• a. matters of class struggle
• b.the border wars between England and Scotland
• c.conflict between love and wealth
• d.the cruel effect of jealousy and treachery
• e.the struggle of young lovers against their
  feudal families
• f.of humors
• g.some about supernatural ghost and spirits

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.The characteristic features of the popular
ballads

• a. the extensive use of dialogue
• b. the refrain
• c. the ballad meter It is the common form for
  the ballads. It contains four-line stanzas. The
  odd numbered lines have four feet each and the
  even numbered lines have three feet each. Rhymes
  fall on the even numbered lines.
• d. the repetition of words or phrase
• The terms
• Epic(??) it is a long verse narrative on a
  serious subject, told in a formal and elevated
  style, and centered on a heroic or quasi-divine
  figure on whose actions depends the fate of a
  tribe, a nation, or the human race.
• Heroic couplet
• Alliteration The repetition of the same
  consonant sounds or of different vowel sounds at
  the beginning of words or in stressed syllables.