lecture 1.ppt

Lecture ⅠA Brief Introduction to English Literature Given by Jackie Gao The Origin of English Literature The English Bible The first complete English Bible was translated by John Wycliffe and his followers. In 1611 Authorized Version appeared, made under the auspices of James I and so was sometimes called the King James Bible. About 93 percent of the 6,000 words used in it are the main words of native English The Greek and Roman Mythology Literature before Shakespeare The Song of Beowulf (written at the beginning of the 10th century)：National epic of the English people with over 3,000 lines Introduction: Hrothgar, Heorot, Grendel, She-Monster, firedrake, Roman Conquest Effects: the bringing of Roman civilization to England; the growth of nationality; the new language and literature The Romance The most prevailing kind of literature in feudal England was the romance. It was a long composition, sometimes in verse, sometimes in prose, describing the life and adventures of a noble hero. The central character of romances was the knight, a man of noble birth skilled in the use of weapons. He was commonly described as riding forth to seek adventures, taking part in tournaments, or fighting for his lord in battle. He was devoted to the church and the king. The code of manners and morals of a knight is known as chivalry. Literature before Shakespeare King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table; Sir Gawain and the Green Knight The English Ballads The Robin Hood Ballads Geoffrey Chaucer His works: About French: Romance of the Rose About Italian; Troilus and Cressie About English: the Canterbury Tales The English Renaissance started in Italy, painting, sculpture and literature----spread to the rest of Europe Representative humanists Thomas More and his Utopia Francis Bacon(1561-1626) Christopher Marlowe(1564-93) William Shakespeare (1564-1616) The 17th Century (The Period of the English Bourgeois Revolution) John Milton Shorter poems: L