5. The Enlightenment. The 17th-18th century literature

The Enlightenment was an important intellectual movement of the 17th and 18th centuries. Its main ideas were reason, progress, education, and the belief that human society could be improved. Writers of this period criticized ignorance, injustice, and social inequality. They also discussed problems such as freedom, morality, religion, and the role of the individual in society.

Several literary forms flourished during the Enlightenment, especially the essay, the novel, and satire. An essay is a short literary composition in which the author expresses personal thoughts or opinions about a certain topic. Essays were often used to discuss social, philosophical, and political problems.

One of the most important writers of the Enlightenment in England was Daniel Defoe. He was born in 1660 in London in the family of a merchant. Defoe received a good education and worked as a businessman, journalist, and political writer. He travelled a lot and was actively involved in public life.

Defoe became famous for his novel Robinson Crusoe. The story was partly inspired by the real adventure of a sailor named Alexander Selkirk, who lived alone on an island for several years. The novel tells the story of a man who survives a shipwreck and lives on a deserted island for many years.

At the beginning of the story Robinson Crusoe is adventurous and somewhat careless. During his life on the island he becomes more responsible, hardworking, and thoughtful. His intelligence, courage, and ability to work help him survive. He also becomes more religious and learns to value life and human relationships.

The novel reflects the philosophy of the Enlightenment because it shows the power of human reason, hard work, and self-reliance. Another famous writer of this period was Jonathan Swift. Unlike Defoe, Swift had a more pessimistic view of society and human nature.

Swift’s most famous work is Gulliver’s Travels. It is a satirical novel that criticizes politics, society, and human pride. The book describes four voyages of the main character, Lemuel Gulliver.

In the first voyage Gulliver travels to the land of Lilliput, where tiny people live. In the second voyage he finds himself in Brobdingnag, a country of giants. The third voyage describes strange scientists and philosophers who live on the flying island of Laputa. In the fourth voyage Gulliver meets intelligent horses called Houyhnhnms and savage human-like creatures called Yahoos.

Another important figure of the period was Robert Burns, the great Scottish poet. He is considered a national symbol of Scotland because he wrote about Scottish life, nature, and traditions. Burns was born in 1759 in a poor farmer’s family and received only a simple education.

His father taught him to respect Scottish culture and literature. Burns’s life was difficult and often full of financial problems and personal disappointments. He died at a young age in 1796, but his poetry remains very popular and loved by many people around the world.

6. The 19^th century literature. Romanticism

The Romantic Movement in English literature developed at the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century. It appeared as a reaction against the Enlightenment and its focus on reason and logic. The main reasons for its growth were social changes, the Industrial Revolution, and political events such as the French Revolution. People became disappointed with rationalism and turned to emotions, imagination, and nature.

Romanticism as a literary movement emphasized feelings, individuality, and the beauty of nature. It is usually dated from around 1798, when Lyrical Ballads was published, to the 1830s. Romantic writers focused on personal experience, freedom, creativity, and the inner world of a person. They were also interested in the supernatural, history, and folk traditions.

The group known as the Lake Poets included William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Robert Southey. They lived in the Lake District and were inspired by nature. Their poetry often described simple rural life and deep emotions.

Among the most prominent works of the Lake Poets are Wordsworth’s poems about nature and childhood, and Coleridge’s famous works like The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. These works show imagination, mystery, and strong emotional expression.

George Gordon Byron was another important Romantic poet. His travels to Europe greatly influenced his творчество and inspired many of his poems. As a result, he created the image of the “Byronic hero,” a proud, lonely, and rebellious character.

Byron was forced to leave England because of personal scandals and criticism from society. During his travels he made close friendships with other Romantic poets, including Percy Bysshe Shelley. He later became involved in the Greek struggle for independence.

Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, was also a key figure of Romanticism. She wrote the novel when she was very young. The story is about a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, who creates a living being, but then rejects it. The novel explores themes of ambition, responsibility, and the dangers of uncontrolled scientific progress.

Walter Scott was famous for his historical novels. He is considered the founder of the historical novel genre in English literature. His works combined history, adventure, and vivid characters, and they influenced many later writers.

Jane Austen focused on everyday life, especially the lives of the middle and upper classes. Her novels explore themes such as love, marriage, and social manners. Among her most famous works are Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and Emma.

In conclusion, Romanticism was an important literary movement that changed the focus of literature. It emphasized emotion, imagination, and nature instead of reason. Romantic writers created new types of heroes and explored deep human feelings. Their works remain popular and continue to influence literature today.

7. The 19^th century literature. Realism

The Victorian novel became very popular in the 19th century because of several important factors. The growth of literacy and education meant that more people could read books. The expansion of the middle class also created a large audience interested in literature. In addition, novels were often published in magazines in serial form, which made them cheaper and more accessible.

The social novel appeared in the 1830s as a response to serious social problems caused by the Industrial Revolution. Writers wanted to show poverty, child labor, and the difficult lives of workers. They used literature as a way to criticize injustice and call for social reform.

One of the greatest Victorian writers was Charles Dickens. The characters in his novels are often vivid, emotional, and memorable, including both kind-hearted heroes and cruel villains. Among his most important works are Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, and A Christmas Carol.

Charles Dickens had a difficult childhood, as his father was imprisoned for debt and he had to work in a factory. These experiences influenced his writing and made him sensitive to social injustice. His literary style is characterized by humor, strong emotions, detailed descriptions, and unforgettable characters.

William Makepeace Thackeray was another important novelist of the time. He is often seen as opposed to Dickens because his writing is more realistic and less sentimental. Thackeray’s most famous work is Vanity Fair, and his life was marked by work as a journalist and writer.

One of the most memorable characters in English literature is Becky Sharp from Vanity Fair. She is clever, ambitious, and manipulative, and she uses her intelligence to improve her social position. Unlike traditional heroines, she is not purely good, which makes her complex and interesting.

The lives of the Brontë sisters—Charlotte, Emily, and Anne—were hard and full of difficulties. They lived in isolation in the countryside and experienced the early deaths of family members. Despite these hardships, they created powerful novels such as Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.

Thomas Hardy was another important Victorian writer who focused on rural life and human судьба. He described the struggles of ordinary people and the influence of fate and society on their lives. His most famous works include Tess of the d’Urbervilles and Far from the Madding Crowd.

In addition to the novel, other literary genres also developed during the Victorian period. Poetry remained important, with writers such as Alfred Tennyson and Robert Browning. Detective fiction also became popular, especially with Arthur Conan Doyle and his famous character Sherlock Holmes.

Overall, the Victorian period was a time of great development in literature. Writers explored social issues, human psychology, and moral questions. Their works remain influential and widely read today.

8. English and American literature since 1901. Realism

At the beginning of the twentieth century realism remained one of the leading trends in English and American literature. One of the most important representatives of realism in English literature was John Galsworthy. He became famous for his series of novels called The Forsyte Saga. This work describes the life of the upper middle-class Forsyte family over several generations. Galsworthy showed the conflict between material values and human feelings. The main characters, such as Soames Forsyte, are intelligent and successful, but often unhappy and emotionally lonely. The novel criticizes greed, possessiveness, and the strict moral rules of Victorian society. Galsworthy paid much attention to family relations, love, property, and social change. His realistic style made him one of the greatest English novelists of the period.

Another famous writer of the early twentieth century was Rudyard Kipling. He was born in India, and his childhood greatly influenced his works. Kipling wrote poems, stories, and novels about British colonial life and adventures in exotic countries. His best-known works include The Jungle Book, Kim, and the poem If—. Kipling’s life was not easy because he experienced many tragic events. He lost his daughter Josephine at a young age, and later his son died during the First World War. These losses made him more isolated and pessimistic in his later years. Nevertheless, he remained one of the most popular English writers of his time.

American realism also became very important in the twentieth century. Among the greatest American realistic writers were Theodore Dreiser, Ernest Hemingway, and Francis Scott Fitzgerald. Theodore Dreiser wrote about social inequality, ambition, and the influence of money on people’s lives. His most famous novels are Sister Carrie and An American Tragedy. Dreiser showed how society could destroy human dreams and morality. His works are often connected with naturalism because he believed that people were strongly influenced by social conditions.

Ernest Hemingway made a huge contribution to world literature with his simple and powerful literary style. He used short sentences, realistic dialogues, and deep emotional meaning hidden under simple words. This style is often called the “iceberg theory.” Hemingway wrote about war, courage, loneliness, and the struggle of people against difficulties. His best-known works are The Old Man and the Sea, A Farewell to Arms, and For Whom the Bell Tolls. Hemingway’s own life was adventurous and dramatic. He worked as a journalist, participated in wars, traveled a lot, and loved dangerous activities such as hunting and bullfighting. His experiences influenced his writing greatly.

Francis Scott Fitzgerald became one of the symbols of the “Lost Generation.” He wrote about the rich society of the 1920s, known as the Jazz Age. His most famous novel is The Great Gatsby. The novel tells the story of Jay Gatsby, a mysterious millionaire who dreams of winning back his lost love, Daisy Buchanan. Fitzgerald described the glamour and luxury of the 1920s, but he also showed the emptiness and moral decay behind it. The novel criticizes the American Dream and materialism. Although Fitzgerald is considered one of the greatest American writers today, he died believing himself a failure because his books were not very successful during his lifetime. The Great Gatsby depicts the period of the Roaring Twenties in American history, a time of economic growth, parties, jazz music, and social change. Today the novel is regarded as one of the masterpieces of American literature.