Medieval Period

500-1500

Medieval PeriodEssentially works written in the

middle ages in Europe

The types of book in this age1. Secular2. Religious3. Women’s Literature4. Allegory

Possibly the oldest surviving long poem in old English

The Divine Comedy is full of allegories to convey morals

English Renassainc

e1500-1670

The printing press became common in the 16th century

Shakespeare wrote 36 plays and 154 sonnets

Romeo and Juliet

“Don't waste your love on somebody, who doesn't value it.” ― William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

Hamlet

““Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice.” ― William Shakespeare, Hamlet

The Enlightment

1700-1800

Enlightenment thinkers questioned

traditional authority and embraced the

notion that humanity could be improved

through rational change.

"Dare to know! Have courage to use your own reason!"

"What Is Enlightenment?" (1784)

1. The Enlightenment thinkers thought that

advances in science and industry would bring

progress for humankind.

2. The industrial revolution decrease the cost of

literature during this period.

3. There was opposition from the church and

monarchs.

4. Reasoning and observation was a key element of

this period. (Scientific Revolution)

Isaac Newton

A man may imagine things that are false, but he can only understand things that are true

“Tact is the art of making a point without making an enemy.” 

Isaac Newton

Voltaire attacks on the established Catholic Church, and his advocacy of freedom of religion, freedom of expression, and separation of church and state. Voltaire was a versatile writer, producing works in almost every literary form, including plays, poems, novels, essays, and historical and scientific works

Main Views

A satirical view of the state of European government, and of petty differences between religions

An inquiry into whether men are inherently corrupt or whether they become corrupted

“It is never too late to be wise.” ― Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe

Romantic Period

1798-1870

1. Romanticism placed human emotions, feelings, instinct and

intuition above everything else. 

2. The Romantics were interested in the supernatural.

Characteristics of the American Romantic Literature

Books

Books

Trascendentalism1830 - 1860

Trascendentalism

The movement professes skepticism of all established religionThe father of the movement was Ralph Waldo Emerson

Immanuel Kant Philosopher

Individuals have their power to reason for themselves whether a thing be true or not.

A healthy level of doubt and skepticism is encouraged, but not to the point of despair

humans must embrace the fact that some things cannot be known with certainty, no matter how advanced science and technology become.

Literary Works

“Be yourself; no base imitator of another, but your best self. There is something which you can do better than another. Listen to the inward voice and bravely obey that. Do the things at which you are great, not what you were never made for.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance and Other Essays

Literary Works

“To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart, is true for all men--that is genius.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance and Other Essays

Victorian Period

1837-1901

The Victorian Period

• The movement roughly comprises the years from 1830 to 1900.

• In the early years of the Victorian Period, poetry was still the most

visible of literary forms.

• At some point in the Victorian era, the novel replaced the poem as

the most fashionable vehicle for the transmission of literature.

Novels

Charles Dickens is the most prominent victorian novelist

Charles Darwin

Realism1820-1920

What’s Realism?

Realism, in literature, an approach that attempts to describe life

without idealization or romantic subjectivity. 

 It is attention to detail, and an effort to replicate the true nature of

reality in a way that novelists had never attempted

Literary Works

Literary Works

“I do not wish any reward but to know I have done the right thing.” ― Mark Twain, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Literary Works

“If you tell the truth you do not need a good memory!” ― Mark Twain, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Literary Works

Naturalism1870 -1920

Naturalism

1. Many authors of that time were naturalist and realist.

2. The dominant theme of Naturalist literature is that persons are shaped to

whatever station in life their heredity, environment, and social conditions

prepare them for.

3. Naturalistic works exposed the dark harshness of life, including poverty, racism

, violence, prejudice, disease, corruption, prostitution, and filth. As a result,

naturalistic writers were frequently criticized for focusing too much on human 

vice and misery.

Ethan Frome

Existencialism

1850 till today

Existencialism

1. In the most general sense, existentialism deals with the

recurring problem of finding meaning within existence. 

2.  the individual must find or create meaning for his or her

life

Existencialism

1. The Existence precedes essence : We are not stereotypes , label ,

we are individuals

2. Absurdism : There is no meaning in the world unless we give it

one

3. Facticity: It is both a limitation and a condition of freedom

4. Authenticity : You must find your own purpose in life

Fear and Trembling

Albert Camus

The Beat Generation1945-1965

Central Elements of the Beat Generation

• rejection of standard narrative values

• the spiritual quest

• exploration of American and Eastern religions

• rejection of materialism

• explicit portrayals of the human condition

• experimentation with psychedelic drugs

• sexual liberation and exploration

The Beat Generation

Modernism1910-1965

Why Literary Modernism?

It is a response to a lot of destruction caused by WWI

Sigmond Freud questioned the rationality of mankind

Karl Marx questioned the rationality of mankind

the narrative constantly migrates from the present to the past, and from one

character’s mind to another’s

Post-Modernism

1965 till today

Post Modernism relies on literary conventions such as

ParadoxUnreliable narratorsDownright impossible plotsParodyParanoia

Stylistic techniques used in post-modern literature

Pastiche: The taking of various ideas from previous writings and

literary styles and pasting them together to make new styles.

Intertextuality: The acknowledgment of previous literary works

within another literary work.

Metafiction: The act of writing about writing or making readers

aware of the fictional nature of the very fiction they're reading.

Temporal Distortion: The use of non-linear timelines and narrative

techniques in a story.

Stylistic techniques used in post-modern literature

Maximalism: Disorganized, lengthy, highly detailed writing.

Faction: The mixing of actual historical events with fictional events

without clearly defining what is factual and what is fictional.

Reader Involvement: Often through direct address to the reader and

the open acknowledgment of the fictional nature of the events being

described.

It combines magical realism with minimalism

Magical Realism: The introduction of

impossible or unrealistic events into a

narrative that is otherwise realistic.

Minimalism: The use of characters and

events which are decidedly common and non-

exceptional characters.