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Introduction to the Eighteenth Century I. Historical Background 1. British Monarchs in the 18th century Queen Anne (r. 1702-14) George I (r. 1714-27) (The House of Hanover, (1714-1901, 自乔治一世至维多利亚女王) George II (r. 1727-60) George III (r. 1760-1820) 2. Party politics 3. The Enclosure 4. The Industrial Revolution 5. Overseas expansion II. Cultural Background 1. Enlightenment Movement The great enlighteners: Alexander Pope, Joseph Addison, Jonathan Swift, Samuel Johnson. 2. Cultural Progress More schools were set up throughout the country Copyright Act of 1709,The appearance of such popular press as pamphlets and newspapers and periodicals. The flourish of coffeehouses and all kinds of social clubs III. Literature of the Period (1) The Realistic Novel The English middle-class people were ready to cast away the aristocratic romance and to create a new and realistic literature of their own to express their ideas and serve their interests. The whole life in its ordinary aspects of the middle class became the major source of interest in literature. Daniel Defoe, Samuel Richardson, Henry Fielding (2) Satire A literary manner which blends humor with criticism for the purpose of instruction or the improvement of humanity. The best and most representative works are found in those written by Pope and Swift. (3).Sentimentality The representatives of sentimentalism continued to struggle against feudalism but they vaguely sensed at the same time the contradictions of bour’geois progress that brought with it enslavement and ruin to the people. The later enlighteners concluded that social injustice still held strong, the power of reason is insufficient, and therefore appealed to sentiment as a means of achieving happiness and social justice. Laurence Sterne (169); Thomas Gray British Literature Lecture 11 Cast Away (Tom Hanks and Helen Hunt ) Modern version of Robinson Crusoe The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe