1. Periodization of English Literature

Periodization of English Literature is divided into 9 periods. They are:

-Old English Period (450-1066)

-Middle English Period (1066-1485)

-The Renaissance (1485-1625)

-Civil War and Restoration (1625-1702)

-The Eighteenth Century (1702-1798)

-The Age of the Romantics (1798-1837)

-the Victorian Period (1837-1901)

-The Modern Period (1901-1945)

-Postmodern Period (1945-present)

The Old English Period refers to the literature produced from the invasion of Celtic England by Germanic tribes in the first half of the fifth century to the conquest of England in 1066.

One of the most well-known eight century Old English pieces of literature is ‘Beowulf’, a great Germanic epic poem. Two poets of the Old English Period who wrote on biblical and religious themes were Caedmon and Cynewulf.

The Middle English Period consists of the literature produced in the four and a half centuries between the Norman Conquest of 1066 and about 1500, when the standart literature language, derived from the dialect of London area, became recognizable as ‘modern English. Prior to the second half of the fourteeth century, vernacular(народная) literature consisted primarily of religious writings. The second half of the fouteenth century produced the first great age of secular(светскую) literature.The most widely known of these writings are Geoffrey Chaucer’s ‘The Canterbury Tales’, the anonymous ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’, and Thomas Malory’s ‘Morte d’Arthur’.

The English Reneissance began with the ascent(подъём) of the House of Tudor to the English throne in 1485, the English Literatury Renaissance began with English humanists such as Sir Thomas More and Sir Thomas Wyatt.

In addition, the English Literatury Renaissance consists of four subjects:

-The Elizabethan Age (the reign of Elizabeth I (1558-1603))

-The Jacobean Age (the reign of James I (1603-1625))

-The Caroline Age (the reign of Charles I (1625-1649))

-The Commonwealth Period (till 1660)

The Neoclassical Period of English literature (1660-1785) was much influenced by contemporary (современной) French literature. The Neoclassical Period can be divided into three subsets:

-The Restoration(1660-1700)

-The Augustian Age(1700-1745)

-Age of Sensibillity (1745-1785)

The Romantic Period of English literature began in the late 18^th century and lasted until approximately 1832. It was during the Romantic Period that Gothic Literature was born.

The Victorian Period of English Literature began with the accession of Queen Victoria to the throne in 1837, and lasted until her death in 1901.

The Modern Period applies to British Literature written since the beginning of World War I in 1914.

Following World War II (1939-1945) the Postmodern Period of British Literature developed.

2. The Anglo-Saxon Period: historical, cultural social and political background

The Jutes followed by the Angles and the Saxons – all tribes of Germanic origin – invaded Britain from the European continent in 449. As they invaded the Celts-led, stories tell us, by a Christian king named Arthur – retreated (отступили) slowly into the misty uplands of present-day Wales, and the Britain that we know began to take shape.

In the southern part of the island, the Angles and the Saxons soon united as Anglo-Saxons, began to introduce a society that was, in a sence, democrating and order-loving. In 787 the Danes – tribes from northern Europe, often called Vikings – began raids on England. By 878 the Anglo-Saxons had acquired (приобрели) a ruler strong enough to repel the invaders: Alfred the Great, a military leader who, like Julius Caesar before him, was also a writer and the author of history. Alfred’s history, however, was written not in Latin but in Anglo-Saxon, his native tongue.

The Anglo-Saxons preffered their own little villages, with timber-built shelters and communal farmland. Therefore, you would see new vagon trails connecting these villages. On these trails you would see you would see most often ox-drawn carts taking goods to market.Groups of clerics, pilgrims, or courtiers would remind you that the courts of nobles and the monasteries and cathedrals of the Roman Church formed the central institutions of the country. Warriors in unpleasantly stiff armor would remind you that Anglo-Saxon england was not only a farming society but a heavily military society as well. It was also a sea-going society, and from the air you could see the beginning of the great city of London.

Perhaps not easily distinguished from other parts of an Anglo-Saxon castle were the mead halls. People would gather in these great communal banquet halls to celebrate a battle or the return of a hero from a long journey.These meetings were the occasions for feasting and for drinking alr and mead.