general introduction to Briish literature.ppt

An Outline of the History of English Literature The Old English Period The Middle Ages (Medieval) The Renaissance The 17th century The 18th century( the rise of novel) The 19th century (Romanticism Victorian period) The Old English Period(450-1066) I. The earliest settlers----the Britons The early settlers were a tribe of celts. Britons--Britain ( the land of Britons) II.The Roman Conquest (55 B.C-410 A.D) In 55 B.C, Britain was invaded by the Roman. Until 78 A.D, Britain was completely under the control of the Roman Empire. The Roman occupation lasted for about 400 years (ended in 410 A.D.) Idiom “All roads lead to Rome” III. The English Conquest (the Anglo-Saxon Conquest) In the middle of the 5th century, Britain was invaded by three Germanic tribes--the Angles, the Saxons, and the Jutes. By the 7th century, they were combined into a united kingdom called Angeland( the land of Angles),later, England; the three tribes mixed into a whole people English; the language they spoke is Called Anglo-Saxon, or old English. We often refer to this period as the Anglo-Saxon period in British history. Anglo-Saxon literature (Old English literature) IV. Literature in this period Anglo-Saxon or old English literature Poetry in Oral form, no written language, so their myths and legends were not recorded for many centuries. Almost in all kinds of literature, poetry flourishes before any other literary forms. Why? Some related words: poet, bard, gleeman, minstrel Representative work: Beowulf An English epic of about 3000 lines, a combination of legends and mythology; alliteration, metaphor, understatement The Middle Ages(1066-1500) I. What happened in 1066 in British history? Norman Conquest: William the conqueror, defeated the Anglo-Saxons. Influence: language, culture, political system Norman Conquest ended the Anglo-Saxon period and started the Medieval period in England. II. Medieval Literature 1. Romance(骑士传奇) form: in verse or in prose Content:describing the li