Literary History 2018
Prof. Dr. Thomas Claviez Prof. Annette Kern-Stähler PD Dr. Ursula Kluwick Prof. Gabriele Rippl
Prof. Dr. Thomas Claviez Prof. Annette Kern-Stähler PD Dr. Ursula Kluwick Prof. Gabriele Rippl
Set of flashcards Details
Flashcards | 213 |
---|---|
Students | 10 |
Language | English |
Category | English |
Level | University |
Created / Updated | 25.04.2018 / 11.12.2019 |
Licencing | Attribution (CC BY) (Prof. Dr. Thomas Claviez Prof. Annette Kern-Stähler PD Dr. Ursula Kluwick Prof. Gabriele Rippl) |
Weblink |
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Periodisation
Periodisation satisfies a profound need of human beings:
• manages change and gives us the illusion of control
• estabishes a limited and protected area in which to work
• terms given refer to different things: centuries, kings or queens (Victorian/Elizabethan age), cultural innovations (printing press), authors (Shakespearean age)
Pitfalls: American romanticism (1828-1865) vs. British Romanticism (1780-1830); did not happen at the same time and needs therefore to be separated although ideas might have been very similar
Recent developments
Literature has expanded to include various forms of expression (scientific writing, diaries, autobiography, journalism, film )
The history of literature is now generally understood to be several stories, not one,
e.g.: English did not suddenly stop being used with the arrival of the Normans; American Indian writers did not fall silent when Europeans arrived
The canon
• the books of the Bible officially recognized by the Church (canonical texts)
• texts that have a seal of approval from cultural and academic establishments.
• an authoritative list of the works of an author (the Shakespeare canon)
How do works find their way into a literary canon?
Gatekeepers:
• Influential literary critics, editors (anthologies, literary histories)
• Teachers (school, university)
• Booker Prize Committee etc.
Canon: subject to change
the Middle Ages
“Between” two eras of greatness:
ancient Greece and Rome – medieval – revival of ancient Greece and Rome (Renaissance: rebirth; or: Early Modern period)
- A period of darkness (tenebrae) (Francesco Petrarca, 1304- 74)
“a misty time” (Sir Philip Sidney, 1554-86)
The 'Pre-English' days
Celtic tribes (Britonnic language) / Roman colony (43-410 AD)
The English Middle Ages
— Anglo-Saxon arrival (5th century)
— Scandinavian invasions (late 8th-11th century)
— Norman conquest (1066)
Anglo-Saxon migration
Jutes: from the north of the Danish peninsula
Angles: from the south of the Danish peninsula (modern-day Schleswig- Holstein)
Saxons (south and west of the Angles, roughly between Elbe and Ems)