The English Renaissance
维多利亚大学排名Renaissance means “rebirth” (of learning). It began in the 14th century in Italy.
The revival of learning led scholars back to the culture of Greece and Rome.
It was a great cultural and intellectual movement that swept the whole of Europe.
Renaissance in England
It was only near the end of the 15th century that Italian influence came to be important in England, and it was not until the accession of Henry VIII to the throne in 1509 that a notable Renaissance took place.
Characters of
English Renaissance
1. European works were translated into English.
nbc universal2. The social development was not influenced by the other countries.
3. Chaucer made English literature not subordinate to others.
4. The newly-born bourgeois developed fast.
5. English Renaissance was an “art” first.
6.English Renaissance happened simultaneously with the Religious Reform.
The significance of Renaissance
1.It signified the beginning of the disruption of feudal system;
2.It became a movement against feudalism and hierarchy;
3.It had the most far-reaching influence and paved the way for the Religious Reformation and the Bourgeois Revolution;
4.It led to the outbreak of the Puritan Revolution in England.
5.Humanism began to develop in Britain.
Main Traits of the Renaissance Literature
1. It emphasizes the dignity of man, affirms and eulogizes the value of man.
2. It advocates the full expression of individualism and the fulfillment of one’s ability, against the despotic rule of feudalism.
3. It affirms the delight of earthly achievement, as well as man’s desire for happiness and pleasure.
Humanism
Humanism was a literary and philosophic system of thought which attempted to place the affairs of mankind at the centre of its concerns.
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Humanism took as a major interest the life of man in the prent and attempted to lay the foundations for a life of justice, nobility and goodness on earth.
It was an attitude taking the exploration of human potential for a full and rewarding
life.
Literary Genres in the English Renaissance
The first period was one of imitation and assimilation.
Poetry and poetic drama were the most outstanding literary forms carried on especially by Shakespeare and Ben Jonson.
The real mainstream of the English Renaissance is the Elizabethan drama.
The essay was another main literary form in the English Renaissance.
Elizabethan Drama
Beginning of modern Drama
Everyman at the end of the 15th century
The influence came from the classics—imitation of Italian and Greek comedies and
tragedies.
Characterization, unity, and the progression of a plot through five acts are imitated.
Thomas More (1478-1535)impex
Masterpiece—Utopia
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Utopia means “Nowhere Land” from two Greek words. It was published in 1516 in Latin and translated into English in 1551.hawkeye
More was the first to e the relation between wealth and poverty, and to bring up the ideal of an advanced society—a communist society.
He was one of the forerunners of modern socialist thought, and the predecessor of the English Renaissance.
《乌托邦》--英国哲理幻想小说
Francis Bacon’s The New Atlantis —Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels —Samuel Butler’s Erewhon —20th century
More’s Thoughts in Utopia
1. The private ownership of property has been abolished.
2. All citizens are politically equal.
3. Everybody takes part in labor.
4. The products of the society are distributed according to the needs of each citizen.
a third dimension
Edmund Spencer
(1552-1599)
The first master of English ver.wangwa
His first work was The Shepherd’s Calender (1579).
His masterpiece was Faerie Queene. The dominating thoughts of the poem are nationalism, humanism, and puritanism, all typical of the poet’s age. It was written in a nine-line stanza.
Spencerian
Nine-line stanza with the form of abab bcbc c;. The first eight are iambic pentameter lines, and the ninth line has two more syllables. This form has since been utilized by Thomson, Keats, Shelley, and Byron.
Technical Skills of Spencer’s poetry
(1) A perfect melody
(2) A rare n of beauty
(3) A splendid imagination
(4) A lofty moral purity and riousness
(5) A delicate idealism
倒闭英文Christopher Marlowe
(1564-1593)
Marlowe was the greatest predecessor of Shakespeare and the greatest pioneer of English drama.
His works: four tragedies: Tamburlaine, Dr. Faustus, The Jew of Malta and Edward II.
