English literature summary (0)

English   literature  is  one  of  the  oldest  literatures  in   Europe ;   dates   back  to  the  6th   century  
AD.   Oral    literature ,   i.e.   not   written   down,    spread   from    person   to   person.   In   449   AD  
Anglo-­‐ Saxon    tribes   invaded    England   –    beginning   of   the   Anglo-­‐Saxon    period   in   English  
literature.  The   first  form  of  literature  was   folklore ,  carried  by  scops  and  gleemen,  who  
sang  in  alliterative  verse  (a  kind  of  simple   poetry ).   Prose  developed  much   later .  
 
The  first  form  of  recorded  English  literature  was  the  epic  Beowulf,  which  was  produced  
sometime   near  the  end  of  the  7th  and  beginning  of  the  8th  century.  It  has  no   known  single  
author .  The  text  that  has  preserved   until   today  is  not  the  entire  text  (partly  destroyed  in  
a  fire  in  1731).  The  story  describes  Anglo-­‐Saxon  ideals  –  the  protagonist  is  a  just,   noble ,  
courageous  and  devoted  hero.    
 
1066   –   Normans,   William   the   Conqueror   invade   England;   beginning   of   Anglo-­‐Norman  
period.   Importance  of   religion ;  the   stories  of   King   Arthur  (also  Tristan  and  Isolde,   based  
on  Celtic  legends).    
 
Importance  of  the   church   during  the   Middle   Ages  (5th  c  to  15th  c).  Three  languages  used  
in   England:    French ,   English   and    Latin .   Main    literary   genres:   (1)   chivalric   romance,   (2)  
the  fabliau  (a  comic,  often  anonymous   tale  that  is  characterised  by  an  excess  of   sexual  
and    other   types   of   obscenity)   and   (3)   literature   on   religious   topics   –   either   moralistic  
( teach  right  from  wrong)  or  ecclesiastical  (biblical  subject).    
 
Middle   ages   –   English   becomes   a   literary    language .   Geoffrey    Chaucer   (1343–1400)   –  
Father   of   English   literature,   The   Canterbury   Tales   in   English,   increased   the   prestige   of  
the  language,   provided  a  standardised  form.    
 
The   Canterbury  Tales:    frame   story.    Majority   in   verse,   some   prose.   Intended   to   contain  
124   stories,   only    finished   24.   Story:   a   pilgrimage   to   Canterbury    Cathedral ,   where  
archbishop    Thomas   Becket   had   been   murdered.      The   stories    present   a    portrait   of  
medieval  society,  e.g.  a  knight,  a   student ,  a  monk,  a  miller  (a  flour  maker  at  a  mill),  a   wife  
of    Bath ,   etc.   Stories   from   a    humanist    approach   ( philosophical   and   ethical   stance   that  
emphasizes  the  value  and   agency  of  human  beings),  i.e.  not  moralistic,  does  not  judge.  
 
William   Shakespeare  (1564–1616)  
 
No  biography  during  his  life,  the  first  written  93   years  after  his   death .  Born  in  Stratford-­‐
upon -­‐Avon.   No   official   schooling.   In   1592   joined    Lord   Chamberlain’s   Men.   1599,   the  
Globe.    
 
Legacy:  37   plays ,  2   narrative  poems  and  154  sonnets.    
 
Shakespeare’s    drama   follows   the   principles   of   renaissance   drama,   derived   from   the  
Greek  drama  tradition.    
 
Shakespeare’s   drama:   historical   plays,   tragedies   (sad   ending)   and   comedies   (anything  
but  sad;  does  not   mean  funny!)  Catharsis  –  the  therapeutic  effect  of  tragedies.  
 
17th  century  in  England.   Political  changes,  crisis  of  humanism.   Puritanism ,  new   economic  
possibilities    through   colonization.   A   transformation   towards   bourgeois   society.   The  
number  of  educated  people  increased,  as  did  literacy  and  printing  technologies.  Changes  
in  the  perception  of  the  self  and  authorship.  A  politically  sober  and  restricted  era.    
 
1642–49   republican    revolution   (monarchy   dethroned   very   briefly);   followed   by  
Cromwell’s  dictatorship.  In  1660,  monarchy  restored  under  Charles  II.  1668  the  Glorious  
Revolution  +  constitutional  monarchy,  i.e.  constitution  added  to  restrict  the   power  of  the  
monarch  and  divide  obligations  and  power  with  the  Parliament.    
 
Beginning   of   the   century,   literature,   especially   drama   flourished.   Emergence   of  
puritanism   –   poetry   becomes    leading   form.   Puritanism   –   purification   of   religion,   of   all  
unnecessary  rituals  and  decorations,  in  essence,  all   pleasure  equals  sin.  Closed  theatres  
and  denounced  all  drama,   dance ,   rural  festivals,   even   country  sports.    
 
Puritan   poetry   is   logical   and   undecorated   in   style;   it   strives   to   render   God’s   word  
directly,  undecorated  by  human  wit.    
 
John  Donne  (1572–1631)  –  a  puritan   poet  who  rebelled  against  established  traditions  in  
poetry.  Uses  a  lot  of  colloquial  (characteristic  of  or  appropriate  to  ordinary  or  familiar  
conversation    rather    than    formal    speech   or   writing;   informal)    words   and    original  
metaphors.    
 
He  only  has  one  sonnet  that  conforms  to   traditional  rules;  his   songs  are  not  lyrical  at  all.  
He  introduces  sex,  death  and  erotic  love  into  poetry.    
 
John   Milton   (1608–74)   –   poet;   introduced   the   blank   verse   into   English   poetry.    Best  
known  for  epic   poem  Paradise  Lost;  story  of  the   fall  of  man  and  the  eventual  expulsion  
from  the   Garden  of  Eden.    
 
Literature  after  the  Restoration  (of  Monarchy  in  1660)  –  rich  and  many-­‐sided,  covering  
poetry,   drama,   non-­‐ fiction ,   literary   criticism   and   the   emergence   of   the   first   English  
novel .   Traditionally    Daniel   Defoe’s   Robinson   Crusoe   (1719)   or   Moll   Flanders   ( 1722 );  
nowadays  Aphra  Behn’s  Oroonoko  published  in  1688  is  cited  as  the  first  English  novel.  
Aphra   Behn   is   also   the   first   English   professional    female   literary   writer.   So   many  
candidates  because  it  is  not   clear  what  qualifies  as  a  novel  and  what  not.  
 
End  of  the  17th  century  –  emergence  of  the  reign  of  common   sense  introduced  by  John  
Locke   (1632–1704).   According   to   him,    there   are    limits   to   the   human   intelligence   and  
power  and  man  should  settle  for  the  possible.  
 
18th   century   –   England    became   a   leading    industrial   country   with    growing    colonies .  
Darker   side:    conditions   in   industrial   towns   were   awful   and   industrialism   ruined   the  
countryside;   corruption.   Enlightenment   was   the   ruling    philosophy   –   reform   society  
using   reason,    challenge    ideas   grounded   in   tradition   and    faith ,   advance   knowledge  
through   the    scientific   method.   Promoted   scientific    thought ,   scepticism   and   intellectual  
interchange.  
 
Developments  in  literature:   change  in  subject   matter ,  verisimilitude  (likeness  to   reality  
or   truth ,  believability  of  a  narrative;  not  the   same  as   realism !)  employed  by  Daniel  Defoe  
(1660–1731).    Characters   increasingly   more   often   common   people,   the   new   industrial  
class  or  female  characters.  New  values,  the  distinction   between   good  and   evil  becomes  
less   clear.   Texts   often   set   in   exotic   lands   (an   example    could   be    travel   literature).   The  
novel  becomes  the  leading  literary  form.   Early  novelists   include  Daniel  Defoe,  Jonathan  
Swift  and   Samuel  Richardson.    
 
Gothic  Novel  –   part  of  the   romantic  revival,   included  a  denial  of  the  power  of  reason,  an  
emphasis  on  the  power  of  (extreme)   emotions ,  and  a   freedom  of  invention.  The  name  of  
the    genre   comes   from   the    fact   that   the   novels   were   often   set   in   gothic   castles   or  
cathedrals.   The   colours   red,    black ,    grey   and   white   are   associated   with   the   genre.   The  
past  as   driving  force  –  characters  are  often  troubled  or  haunted  by  the  past.  No  historical  
accuracy  or  time  (“once  upon  a  time…”);  blend   beauty  with  terror.    
Examples :  Ann  Radcliffe’s  The  Mysteries  of  Udolpho,  Mary  Shelley’s  Frankenstein,   works  
of  Clara  Reeve,  Harriet  Lee  and  Charlotte  Smith.  
 
Beginning  of  the   19th  century  –  romanticism  and  realism  
End  of  the  18th  century  –  beginning  of  romantic  literature  in  England.  Roughly   appeared  
in   England   in   1798,   when   William    Wordsworth   and   Samuel   Taylor    Coleridge   jointly  
published  Lyrical  Ballads;  approximate  end  in  1832  with  the  death  of  Walter   Scott .    
 
A  reaction  to  the  Enlightenment  and  the  French  Revolution  in  1789.  Opposed  reason  and  
the    violence   of   the   Revolution;   more   interested   in   intangible   things   –   feelings,   senses,  
intuition.    
 
The  main  form  of  literature  –  poetry  (expresses  emotions  better  than  prose).    
Love   (especially   tragic   love)   main   topic;   heroes    sensitive   men   and    women   crushed   by  
the   cruelties   of   life;   mood   –   often   melancholy   and   sad.   Women   often   idealised   and  
represented  as  mysterious  and  magical.  
 
Romantic  literature  in  England  can  roughly  be  divided  into  two  stages.    
1)   End   of   the   18th   century.   Group   of    poets   called   the   Lake   Poets   (lived   in   the   Lake  
District   in   the   north   of   England):   William   Wordsworth,   S.T.   Coleridge   and   Robert  
Southey.    
2)  Beginning  of  the  19th  century;  more   important  –  poets  more   active  politically.  George  
Gordon  Byron,  Percy  Bysshe  Shelley  and  John  Keats.    
 
G.G.  Byron  (1788–1824)  –  the  prototype  of  romanticism.  His   influence  felt  all   around  the  
world.  After  publishing  Childe  Harold’s  Pilgrimage  ( 1812 -­‐18)  –  fame.  Most  famous   work  
Don  Juan  –  long  narrative  poem  that  reads  like  a  monologue  and   consists  of  16  cantos.  
Never  finished  the   work ,  died   before .    
Byronic  hero  –   male   character  that  is  idealized  but  flawed,  gloomy,  passionate,  sensitive,  
moody,  loner,  relies  only  on   himself ,  ready  to  fight  against  the  world  if  necessary  –  exile,  
secret  past,  disrespect  for   authority  and  privilege,  though  has   both ;  self-­‐destructive.  
 
Women  in  romantic  literature  even  more  restricted  than  during  Middle  Ages;  depicted  
as  utterly  devoted  to  their  men  with  no  character  of  their  own.    
Early   19th   century   –   “feminine   romantics”   or   “anti-­‐romantics”.   Maria   Edgeworth,   Mary  
Hays  and   Jane  Austen  portrayed  the   lack  of  intelligence  and  moral   virtue  of  both  men  
and  women;  dangers  of  romantic  love  and  failures  of  traditional  marriages.    
 
Jane  Austen  (1775–1817)  –  best  known  for  Sense  and  Sensibility,  Pride  and  Prejudice  and  
Mansfield  Park.  Writes   much   about    marriage   and    families ;   sisterhood.   Women   did   not  
have  the  right  to  inherit;  problems  of  traditional  marriages.  To  her,  the   ideal  marriage  is  
based  on   rational  love,  mutual  understanding  and  respect.  
 
The   Bronte   sisters ,  Ann,  Emily  and  Charlotte,  wrote  a  few  decades  later.  Although  often  
viewed   collectively,   their   literary   output   differs    greatly   from   each   other.   Wrote   under  
male  pen  names  –  difficult  to  get  published  as  a   woman .  At  the  time  they  wrote,  their  
works  were   considered  blasphemous  (dealt  with  sexuality  and  death).  
Emily   Bronte   –   Wuthering   Heights,   critics   presumed   was   written   by   a   woman.   Not  
understood  by  her  contemporaries.  Controversial  issues,   such  as  incest,  self-­‐starvation,  
violent  love  and  power.    
Charlotte  Bronte’s  Jane  Eyre  –  best  received  work  of  the  sisters.  A   version  of  the  Byronic  
hero,  but  undermines  its  principles.  The  novel   takes  from  both  the  romantic  and  realist  
tradition.  A  female  bildungsroman  –  coming-­‐of-­‐age  story.    
Beginning   of   the   Victorian   Age   –    rise   of   the   realist    movement .   In   part   appeared   a  
reaction   to   romanticism.   Realists   strove   (1)   to    understand   what   exists,    determined   to  
learn   the   truth;   an   exploration   of   reality,   i.e.    everyday   life.   Represents   life   with   all   its  
faults,   documenting   facts   and    details   accurately.   Realist    authors   (2)    avoid   poetic  
language,   exaggerations,   emotions   and   melodrama.   They   (3)   oppose   all   idealisation   in  
art,   writing   instead   about   the    average   and   common.   The   common   man,   heroes   of  
working   class   origin   with   no    special   talents.   Charles    Dickens ,   William   Makepeace  
Thackeray,   George    Eliot   (actually   a   woman),    Elizabeth   Gaskell   and   also   the   Bronte  
sisters.    
 
Charles   Dickens   (1812-­‐1870)   –   best-­‐known   English   realist.   A    social    critic ,   journalist,  
public  speaker,  actor  and  many  other  things.  At  12  he  became   almost  homeless  and  had  
to  work  at  a  shoe-­‐blackening   factory  after  his  father  was  arrested  for  debt.  This  helped  
form  his  personality  and  also  gave   material  for  his  writings.  His  novels  are  a  mixture  of  
romantic   and   realist    elements .   His   writing   is   satirical   (form   of   humorous   criticism),  
ironic   (inconsistencies   btwn   what   is   said   and   what   is   meant)   and   funny   and   criticizes  
some   social   evil.   Oliver   Twist   opposes   workhouses;   Nicholas   Nickleby   concentrates   on  
children ’s   education   in   boarding   schools.    Child   characters   –   not   used   as   protagonists  
before  him.  
1842  Dickens   goes  to  America.  At  first  enthusiastic;  soon  shaken  as  he  sees  the  horrors  
of  slavery.   Late  1840s  –  writing  on  general  issues  in  England;   money ,  power  positions,  
reputation,   etc.   1850   bildungsroman   David   Copperfield,   criticizes   child   labour   and  
unhappy   Victorian   marriages.   Great    Expectations ,   published   between   1860   and   1861,  
summary   of   his   life,   a   reassessment   of   his    former   views.   A   book   of   lost   illusions,   the  
conclusion  that  the  social  system  of  the  19th  century  is  a  vast  jail.    
 
Victorian  England  and  Victorian  poetry  
 
Victorian   Age   1837–1901.   Rapid   developments;   England   leading   industrial   country;  
large    empire .   Steam   power,   railways/ iron   ships,   printing   presses,   the   telegraph,   the  
intercontinental   cable,   photography,   farmer’s   combines,   anaesthetics,   compulsory  
education.  
 
National   wealth   accumulated:   markets   all   over   the   world,   many   factories;   social  
contradictions   i.e.   double   standard:   rich/poor,   empire/colonies,   wealth/exploitation,  
family/law,   personal   expression/social   criteria,   great   expectations/ failure .   Conflict  
between   religious   beliefs   and    science ,   e.g.   Darwin’s   theory   of   evolution,   discoveries   in  
geology  and  biology  disprove  the  Bible.    
Early  Victorians  –  boundless  optimism,  mid-­‐Victorians  –   confident  but  conservative,  late  
Victorians  –  anti-­‐Victorian.    
Spiritual  and  religious  issues,  the  woman  question,  conflict  between  art  and  reality  and  
the  double  standard.  Also  human  psyche  and  its  dark  side.    
 
Victorian  literature  covered  a  variety  of  subjects  and  styles,  it  was  also  the  height  of  the  
novel.  
 
Poetry   from   the   1850s   onward   departed   from   romantic   and   realist    concerns ,   instead  
concentrated   on   meditations   on    nature   and   the    fate   of   the   world.    Artists   became   the  
elite.  An  escape  from  the  everyday  and  contemporary  –  history,  feelings,   myth ,   fairy -­‐tale,  
medieval  idealism.  Lord   Alfred  Tennyson,  Elizabeth  Barrett  Browning,  and  Lewis  Morris.    
 
Pre-­‐Raphaelite  Brotherhood  –  a  group  of  English  painters,  poets  and  critics  was   founded  
in   1848.   Idealised   classical   art,   especially   Raphael.   Initially   seven   members   but   many  
more  associated  with  the  group.   Highly  romantic,  sometimes  didactic  (intended  to  teach  
or  instruct)  and  moralistic  (teach  morals/ call  to  morality);  subjects:  romantic  and  tragic  
love,   medieval   and   literary    themes ,    conscious   of   social   evils,   controversial   themes:  
Victorian  woman,  forced  immigration,  prostitution,  etc.    
 
Rossetti  family  was  at  the   heart  of  the  Pre-­‐Raphaelite  Brotherhood;  Christina  Rossetti.  
Writes   about   the   limiting   and   limited   choices   of   Victorian   women;   strict   Anglican   but  
had  many  involvements  with  men  –  inner  contradictions.  Her  brothers  revised  her  work  
and   were   extremely   supportive   of   her.   Went   against   Victorian   conventions,   spinster  
throughout  her  life,  participated  in  social  work  alongside  Florence  Nightingale.  “Goblin  
Market ”.  
 
Lord  Alfred  Tennyson  (1809–  1892)  –  greatest  poet  of  the  time,  “lord  of  language”  and  
“poet  of  the  people”.  Sheltered  and  isolated  life,  troubled  youth.  
Relation  of  man  to  God  and  nature,  religious  uncertainties,  the  sense  of  cycles  in  history,  
the   rise   and   fall   of   civilisations.   “The   Lady   of   Shalott”   based   on   Arthurian   legends;  
gender   and   society   issues,    position   of   the   woman.   Ivory   Tower   (an   ideal    place  
disconnected  from  the   real  world  where  academics  and  artists   find  refuge).  The   role  of  
the  artist;  setting  art  aside   means  death  for  the  artist.  
 
Decadence/aestheticism  and  Oscar   Wilde  
Appeared   in   the   1880s–90s,   i.e.   late   Victorian   era.   Decadence   used   in   Continental  
Europe,  aestheticism  in  England.    
Abandonment   of   Victorian   society.   Proud   of   being    different   from   the   philistines   (the  
middle  class  of  Victorian  society  that  were  not  interested  in  art  and  proud  of  it).    
Aestheticism   –   “science   of   beauty”,   “art   for   art’s   sake”   –   art   need   not   have   a   deeper  
meaning .  Fin-­‐de-­‐siecle,  French  for  ‘end  of  the  century’.    
Paintings   by   Aubrey   Beardsley;   literature   by   Oscar   Wilde.   Celebration   of   decadence  
( decay   of   standards,   morals,   dignity),   paganism,   perversity   and   the   bizarre.   No   real  
theory   behind  it,  deals  more  with  feelings  and  tastes.  Beauty  in  the  perversity  of  form  
and  matter;  deformed  language  and  paradoxes.  Literature  reflects  the  perversity  of  the  
world  around,   while  the  language  used  is  highly  polished.    
Authors:   Algernon   Swinburne,   Walter    Pater ,   Oscar   Wilde.   Took   influence   from    France .  
Stressed  the   artificial  and   hedonistic  (seeking  pleasure  as  the   primary  goal).  Art  as  an  
alternative  for  life  and  life  as  a  work  of  art  ( idea  from  Pater  –  influenced  Wilde).   Writers  
were  aristocrats,  could  afford  to  enjoy  life  and  do  what  they  liked.    
 
Walter   Pater   –   theorist   of   English   aestheticism.    Experience   as   an   ever-­‐vanishing   flux  
(flow/ continuous  movement).  
 
Oscar  Wilde  (1854-­‐1900).  Born  in   Ireland  but  lived  in  England  and  travelled  to  America  
and   many   countries   in   Europe.   Gave   lectures   on   aestheticism,   became   known   for   his  
sharp  wit  and  flamboyant  dress.  Also  worked  as  a  journalist  and  wrote  essays,  poetry  
and  drama.  Believed  in  the  supremacy  of  art.  Only  novel  The  Picture  of   Dorian  Gray,  first  
published  in  1890  as  a  story  and  criticized  for  its  decadence  and  homosexual  references.  
The  version  read  today  was  altered  significantly  by  Wilde  and  republished  in  book  form  
1891 .    
 
The   problem   farce   (a    light ,   humorous   play   in   which   the    plot   depends   upon   a   skilfully  
exploited  situation  rather  than  upon  the   development  of  character),  i.e.   drawing -­‐ room  
drama.  The  Importance  of  Being  Earnest.  The  objects  of  ridicule  are  often  the  Victorian  
philistines.   Set   in   London   drawing    rooms ,   dining   rooms,   etc.   Elaborate   language   and  
elegant  paradoxes.  
Wilde’s  imprisonment.  Gay  –  sent  to  prison  for  sodomy;  remained  for  two  years.  Health  
greatly   suffered;   wrote   De  Profundis  and   The  Ballad  of  Reading  Gaol  (pronounced   jail).  
Every  man  kills  the   thing  he   loves .  The  death  of  Wilde  is  the  end  of  decadence  in  English  
literature.    
 
Late  Victorian  novel,  Thomas  Hardy.   Modernism ,  James   Joyce .  
Realism  continued  to  flourish  in  England  throughout  the  second  half  of  the  19th  century.  
Late  Victorian  novel.  Took  influence  from  continental  Europe,  e.g.  Emile  Zola.   Concern  
for   the   social   role   of   women   –   the   heroines   broke   the   conventional   roles   of   Victorian  
women   by   supporting   suffrage,   smoking   and   adopting   a   more   “rational”   dress,   also  
rejected  the  traditional  double  standards  in  sexual  behaviour.    
 
Thomas   Hardy   (1840-­‐1928)   –   first   novel   in   1871;   end   of   his    career   –   poetry.   Tragic  
novels   on   the   decay   of   rural   life:   Tess  of  the  D’Urbervilles   (1891)   and   Jude  the  Obscure  
( 1895 ).  Ideas   of   early   modernism.   Hardy   depicts   the   journeys   of   the   protagonists   that  
are  initially  hopeful,  momentarily  ecstatic,  but  persistently  troubled  and  eventually  end  
in  deprivation  and  death.    
 
20th  century  
Modern   period.   Contradictory   in   many    ways ,    diverse   and   chaotic.   Scientific  
developments;  Einstein  –  theory  of  relativity.  Friedrich   Nietzsche  –  God  is  dead,  multiple  
truths / perspectives ,  life  lacks   purpose ;  Übermensch.  (Nietzsche  was  mad.)  
 
Freud  –  psychoanalysis.  Superego  –  society,  conscience,  morals,  religion,  a  moral  sensor;  
ego   –   rational   behaviour,   motivation,   self-­‐identification,   conscious   decisions;   ID   –  
instincts,  natural  responses.  
 
Modernism   –   end   of   the   19th   century,   until   the    1920s /40s.   Combines   surrealism,  
formalism,  avant-­‐ garde ,  symbolism,  imagism,  etc.  (all  the  –isms).  A  breaking   away  from  
conventions,   a   denial   of   traditional   structure   in   literature   (plot,   presentation   of  
characters,  temporal  and  spatial  relations).  
Literary   works   borrow   structures   from   myth   (e.g.   Joyce’s    Ulysses ),   music   (e.g.    Richard  
Aldington  Death  of  a  Hero,   Woolf ’s  The  Waves).    
Almost  no  new  topics,  just  new  ways  of  treating  old  topics.  Things  happen  in  the  mind  at  
the  same  time  as  other   daily  things.    
Stream  of  consciousness  –  constant  flow  of  thoughts.  Allusiveness  (allusion  –  a   figure  of  
speech   that   either   directly   or   indirectly    makes   a    reference   to   other   people,   places,  
events ,  literary  work,  myths,  works  of  art,  etc.).  Written  for  the  elite,  difficult  to  read.    
 
First  author  to  incorporate   modernist  ideas  Joseph  Conrad  but  not  a  true  modernist.    
 
James  Joyce  (1882-­‐1941)  –  born  in  Ireland,  educated  well.  Rebelled  against  all  inhibiting  
forces  –  family,  church,  school,  etc.  Moved  to  Continental  Europe,  and  for  a  time  lived  in  
Paris.  First  to  introduce  the  stream  of  consciousness.  Self-­‐consciously  a  modernist,  made  
a  deliberate  effort  to  make  reading  his  works  difficult  –  he   wanted  to  belong  to  the  elite  
–  art  for  a  select  few.    
Difficult  time  for  Ireland;  national  awareness,  advocated  freedom  from   Britain  and  the  
Catholic   Church.   1916   Easter   Rising   against   the    British ;   “Culture   Revival”,   “Celtic  
Twilight”;  a  revival  of  the  Celtic  (Gaelic)  language,  nationalism,  glorification  of  all  Irish.    
 
Joyce’s  writings  tightly  connected  to  Ireland.  Left  the  country  in   1904  but  never  truly  left  
at  heart.  Ulysses  is  like  a  guidebook  through  Dublin.      
Autobiographical  piece  A  Portrait  of  the  Artist  as  a  Young  Man.  Künstlerroman,  subtype  
of  the  Bildungsroman.  Stream  of  consciousness,  interior  monologue  (avoids  impressions  
and   perceptions,   and   violation   of   grammar/ logic   –   more   grammatically   correct   than  
SoC),  reference  to  the  character’s  psychic  reality,  instead  of  external  surroundings.    
 
The   book   is   a   revolution   in   literary   style   and   composition   –   title,   breaks   chronology,  
selects  the  most  characteristic  moments  and  portrays  those  –  only  the  instrumental  in  
the  development  of   Stephen ’s  consciousness.    
 
Ulysses  –  hardly  has  any  plot;  Dublin,   June  16,  1914;  majority  of  the  events  take  place  in  
the  characters  minds.    
 
T.S.  Eliot  kodus  lugemiseks  +   objective  correlative.  Modernist  poetry.  
 
World  War  I   brought  the  first  period  of  the  Modernist  revolution  to  an  end;  while  not  
destroying   its   impulse,   it   made   the   Modernists   aware   of   the   gulf   between   their   ideals  
and  the  chaos  of  the  present.    
Poets  –  most  critical  and  satirical.  
 
T.S.  Eliot  (Thomas  Stearns  Eliot;  1888-­‐1965)  –  born  in  America,  travelled  to  London  in  
1928.   Most    influential   modernist   poet;   Nobel   prize   in   literature   in.   Also   a   playwright,  
literary  critic  and  editor.  Good   friend  Ezra  Pound.  
Earlier  works  –  mood  of  despair  about  the  condition  of  the  modern  civilisation.  Believed  
the  height  of  the  civilisation  in  Europe  was  during  the  middle  ages.    
He  was  disgusted  by  American  mass  culture  and  the  decay  he  saw  in  the  modern  world.  
Traditional   poetry   was    something   boring,   used   very   standardised   diction,   repeated  
themes,  etc.  He  wanted  to  make  poetry  more  subtle,  suggestive  and  precise;  to  convey  
the   tempo   and   contradictions   of   modern   life.   Uses   a   lot   of   allusions,   to   show   that  
literature   (poetry)   is   one   continuous   body   from   past   to   present.   Uses   the   objective  
correlative,   includes   many   new   elements   that   used   to   be   considered   unpoetic   before  
him.   Highly   experimental   with   language,   believed   that   a   poet   should   write   verse  
imitating  actual  speech  –  different  rhythms,  varying  form  –  free  verse,  rhyme,  etc.    
 
First   masterpiece   “The   Love   Song   of   J.   Alfred   Prufrock”.   Best   known   for   “The   Waste  
Land ”  (1922)  –  post-­‐WWI  world,  sterile  and  empty,   full  of  death.  Divided  into  vignettes  
(a   short   impressionistic    scene   that   focuses   on   one   moment   or   gives   a   clear-­‐cut  
impression  about  a  character,  idea,  setting,  or   object ),  loosely   linked  to  each  other  by  the  
legend  of  the  search  for  the  Holy  Grail.  Barrenness  of  standardised  civilisation,  boredom  
of  life.  The  wasteland  for  Eliot  is  an  ever-­‐present  dimension  of  any  civilisation;  its  true  
protagonist   is   a   man   of   all   ages.   Modern   life   is   full   of   agony   and    horror ,   many    fool  
themselves  into  hope  but  some  don’t  and  see  the  truth.  
The  poem’s  style  is  very   complex ,  erudite  and  allusive;  Eliot  provided  notes  to  explain  
the  quotations  and  allusions.  Originally  800  lines;  cut  down  to  433.    
Highly  symbolic  –  the  barren  land  of  the  human  heart.    
Eliot  provided  poets  with  a  new  range  of  technical  innovations,  e.g.  abrupt  scenematic  
cutting   (scenes   end   suddenly);   shift   in    tone ;   bathos   (an   abrupt   stylistic   transition,   e.g.  
from   elevated   to   the   commonplace);   collection   of   fragments;   experimentation   with  
language.    
At  the  end  of  Eliot’s  career  –  plays,  e.g.  “Murder  in  the  Cathedral”  (1935).  
Also  a  critic  –  criticism  and  poetry  become  almost  indistinguishable.  
Virginia  Woolf  
 
Virginia   Woolf,   nee   Stephen   (1882-­‐1941)   –   modernist,   one   of   the   most   innovative  
writers   of   her   age,   influential   theorist.   Great   influence   on    feminist   ideas.    Strong   visual  
quality  of  works.    
 
Bloomsbury  group  –  English  writers,  philosophers  and  artists;  met  between  about  1907  
(though   the   Stephens    already   moved   to   Bloomsbury   in   1904)   and   1930   at   the  
Bloomsbury   house   in   the   Bloomsbury   district   of   London.   Time   of   great   changes   in  
England   –    Queen   Victoria   died   in   1901;   Britain   affected   by   WWI.   They   searched   for  
definitions   of   the   good,   the   true,   and   the   beautiful   and   questioned   accepted   ideas.  
Challenged  strict  Victorian  norms  by  practicing  sexual  freedom  and  bisexual  relations.  
 
The   Bloomsbury   group   included   the   novelist   E.M.   Forster,   the   biographer   Lytton  
Strachey,   the   art   critic   Clive   Bell,   the   painters   Vanessa   Bell   and   Duncan   Grant,   the  
economist  John  Maynard   Keynes ,  the  writer   Leonard  Woolf,  and  the  novelist  and  critic  
Virginia   Woolf.   Bertrand   Russell,   Aldous    Huxley ,   and   T.S.   Eliot   were   sometimes  
associated  with  the  group,  as  was  the  economist  Gerald  Shove.  
The   younger   and   more   contemporary    voice   of   the   Bloomsbury   group   set   themselves  
against  the  hypocrisy  that,  they  believed,  had  marked  their   parents ’  generation  in  upper  
class  England;  they   aimed  to  be  uncompromisingly  honest  in  personal  and  artistic  life.    
 
For   30   years   after   her   death,   Virginia   was   considered   an   aesthete   and   eccentric.   This  
changed  in  the  1970s  –  rediscovered  by  the  feminist  movement.  
 
No   university  education.    Family  of  intellectuals.   Married  to  Leonard  Woolf  –  a  marriage  
of  the  minds,  no  children.  Together  they  ran  Hogarth  Press.  WWII  brought  pressures  for  
their  company  and  after  the  death  of  her   brother  Virginia  began  to  experience  more  and  
more  mental  instability,  which  eventually   lead  to  her  suicide.    
 
Her   writing   is   often   called   “new   prose”;   musical   quality   –   the    rhythm   and    imagery   of  
poetry.    
Limitations   of   the   self   that   could   be   transcended   by   engagement   with    another   self,   a  
place,   or   a   work   of   art.   Stream   of   consciousness.   Problems   of    identity ,   relationships,  
time,  change,  memory  as  part  of  the  human  personality.    
 
Woolf   believed   she   offered   an   alternative   to   the   destructive   egotism   of   the   masculine  
mind  that  had  found  its  outlet  in  World  War  I.    
In   her   fiction   –   men   who   possessed   what   she    held   to   be   feminine    characteristics ,   a  
regard   for    others   and   an   awareness   of   the   multiplicity   of   experience.   She   remained  
pessimistic  about  women  gaining  positions  of  influence.    
 
Mrs   Dalloway   (1925)   –   transformed   the   treatment   of   subjectivity,   time,   and   history   in  
fiction.    
 
In    addition   to   prose,   Woolf   wrote   many   essays.   Best   known   “A   Room   of   One’s   Own”  
(1929)   –   position   of   the   woman   writer   across   history   and   in   her   time;   women   need   a  
room  of  their  own  and  also  money  in   order  to  write.    
 
Mrs  Dalloway,  To  the  Lighthouse,  The  Waves,  Orlando,  The  Years,  Three  Guineas,  Between  
the   Acts .  
Diaries   –   her   inner   struggle,   key   to   her   creative    manner   and   writing    process .    Finding  
one’s  voice  meant  for  her  to  “speak  in  tongues”;  spontaneous  and  uncontrollable,  NOT  a  
conscious  effort.  Role  of  the  unconscious.  
 
Mrs   Dalloway   –   one   day,   June   20,   1923,   in   London.   Very   accurate   historically   and  
topographically.  Presents  only  what  is  necessary.  Big  Ben  –   symbol  of  time;  opposition  
between  the  time  of  the  clock  and  the  time  of  the  mind.    
 
English   literature   between   the   world   wars;    existentialism .    Postmodernism ;    Anthony  
Burgess  
 
Interwar  period,  i.e.  the   1930s  –  a  change  in  the  mood,  the  aesthetic   programme ,  moral  
convictions  and  public  taste  in  England.  1900-­‐1920s  –  the  time  of  high  modernism,  a  lot  
of   experiments;   1920s   –   emergence   of   the   “lost   generation”,   marked   by   a   search   for  
stability  and  faith.  
 
1930s  –  some  began  sympathising  with  authoritarian  governments  that  promised  some  
sort  of  quasi-­‐order  within  the  chaotic  world.  
 
This  period  between  the  wars  in  English  literature  was  the  golden  age  of  the  detective  
story.    
1920s   Agatha  Christie    and  Hercule  Poirot.  Her  best-­‐known   crime  stories  were  written  
between  1926  and  1939.  The  reason  –  a  wave  of  crime  after  WWI  and  thus  a  renewed  
interest   in   crime   fiction.   Also,   modernism   had   resulted   in   a   general   tiredness   with  
literature  that  was  only  aimed  at  the  highly  intellectual  crowd.    
 
Fiction   as   a   way   of   finding   order   in   the   chaotic   world.   In   crime   fiction,   chaos   in   the  
beginning,  but  order  and  also  balance  restored  through  the  work  of  the  intellect.    
 
Stock  market  crash  took  in  America  in  1929,  spread  to  Europe  –  the  1930s  and  the  Great  
Depression.   Mass   unemployment,   Nazism,   fascism   in   Europe,    Stalin   –   people   feared  
these  powers.  Many  authors  politically  active  (for   instance  Aldous  Huxley).  Much  of  the  
literature   of   the   1930s   is   very   bleak   and   pessimistic.   Topics:    questions   of   class   and  
sexual  repression.  The  literature  of  the  interwar  period  was  extremely   versatile  –  from  
modernist   experimentation   to   realism,   to    propaganda ,   to   conventional   fiction,   drama  
and  poetry  for  the  general  market.   Film  –  a  great  impact;  the  question  of  time.    
 
WWII   –   interest   in   religion.   E.g.   Graham   Greene.    Communication   as   impossible   and  
fruitless.  
 
Post  WWII    
A   threat   of    total   annihilation.   General    feeling   of    fear ,   reflected   in   literature.   America  
began  to  have  more  and  more  influence;  consumerism  and  mass  culture.  Many  former  
values  substituted  by  material  values.  A  sense  of  doom  and  pessimism.    
 
Existentialism  from  ex-­‐sistere,  which  means  ‘to   stand  out’  in  Latin.  It  contrasts  existence  
with   being   (which   is   sometimes   referred   to   as   da   sein).   Existentialist   novels   are  
philosophical;  two  of  the  main  authors  of  the  period  in  English  literature  were  William  
Golding  (1911-­‐93)  and  Iris  Murdoch  (1919-­‐99).  
 
Existentialist   authors   dealt   with   the   general   problem   of   existence.   The   purpose   of   the  
existentialist   novel   is   to   analyse   ideas.   Often   take   place   in   an   artificial   and   fictional  
world;   the   characters   help    express   the   ideas   of   existentialist   philosophy.   The   most  
frequently   used   genres   are   (1)   parables   (short,   didactic   story   that   serves   to   illustrate  
some    particular   idea   or   lesson;   only   has   human   characters;   a   type   of   analogy),   (2)  
allegories   (the   representation   of    abstract   ideas   or   principles   through   the   use   of  
symbolised  characters,  figures,  ideas,  events  or  concepts  in  the  narrative;  in  essence  a  
sustained   metaphor)   and   (3)   fables   (a   succinct   story   that   features    animals ,   mythical  
creatures,   plant ,  objects,  etc.  that  serves  to  illustrate  a  moral  lesson)  that  are  written  in  a  
realist  manner.    
 
They    centre   on   the   tragedy   of   existence,   the   total   loneliness   of   man   in   a   world   that  
cannot  be  understood  –  no  god,  no  principles,  etc.  The  impossibility  of  communication  –  
the  tragedy  of  lovers  and  friend;  it  is  impossible  to  change  and  become   someone  else;  
you   can   never    really    know   another   person.   According   to   the   existentialist   line   of  
thought,  we  are  thrown  into  the  world   without  being   asked ;  thus  we  have  no  purpose,  
which   results  in  angst  –  fear  and  despair,   anxiety  and  a  realisation  of  purposelessness.  
To  exist  refers  to  ‘standing  out  from  the  mud’,  to   live  with  full  awareness  of  oneself;  an  
ability  to  take  responsibility  for  one’s  actions.    
 
1960s  –   Western  world  torn  into  two  by  the  Cold  War,  the   contrast  between  capitalism  
and  communism,  growing  threat  of  nuclear  war.    
 
Radical  youth  –  student  and  intellectuals  that  attacked  the  authoritarian  governments.  
June   1968   –   widespread   student   revolts.   Associated   with   left-­‐ wing    causes ,   such   as  
communism   and   anarchism.   Advocated   personal   and   political   freedom,   also   sexual  
freedom  and  free  love.    
 
A   process   of   liberation   all   over   the   world   –   fall   of   the   colonial   regime,   pacifist  
movements,   shifts   from   conservatism   to   liberalism   and   back   again.   Education   became  
accessible   to   all;   women’s   liberation   movement;    technological   advances   (TV,  
computers ),  communication  and  connections  became  more   global  and  widespread.    
 
“Counter  culture”  movements  of  the  1960s  –  rejection  of  conventions.    
 
Emergence  of  postmodernism.    
 
Postmodernism   sees   the   author   as   impotent.   Postmodernism   has   a   sceptical,   anti-­‐
humanist   attitude;   it   is   also   antirealism,   follows   from   deconstructivism   and   post-­‐
structural  theory.  The  attitude  in   postmodernist  literature  is  colder,  and  filled  with  more  
contradictions;  postmodernist  literature  uses  the  anti-­‐narrative  method.  
 
Anthony  Burgess  (1917-­‐93).  A  Clockwork  Orange  deals  with  a  futuristic  super-­‐state  with  
an  authoritarian   government  that  manipulates  its  citizens  into  passive  complacency.  
 
Women’s  liberation  movement;   Angela  Carter,  A.S.  Byatt  
The  women’s  liberation  movement  is  part  of  postmodernism  and   feminism .  
A  campaign  for:  reproductive  rights,  against  domestic  violence,  sexual  harassment,  for  
maternity   leave,   equal   pay,   suffrage,   etc.   Demonstrations   and   conferences   in   the   late  
1960.    
Women’s   rights   movements   divide   into   three   periods   of   activity.   First   wave   feminist  
movement  at  the  end  of  the  19th  century;  second  wave  feminism  in  the  1960s  and  the  
third  wave  in  the  1980s  and  90s.    
 
 “Her-­‐story”   vs.   history.   Eva   Figes.   Her-­‐story   contests   the   idea   of   a   single   unitary   and  
linear   history.   The   subjectivity   of   history   and   its   fragmented   nature.   History   is   just  
another  story,  someone  has  chosen  what  to  include  and  what  to  exclude.    
 
Helene   Cixous   and   ecriture   feminine,   i.e.   writing   in   the   feminine.   The   idea   is   that  
women’s   writing   is   more   cyclical   and   endless,   women   also   violate   syntax   more   than  
men.  
 
Much  imagery  is  reinterpreted;   mythology ,  fairy-­‐tales,  etc.  viewed  in   connection  to  these  
ideas  and  new  meaning  attributed  to   them .  E.g.  women  in  fairy-­‐tales  –  very  strict  roles  
(good  maiden  waiting  to  be  rescued,  the  evil  mother/grandmother  figure,  but  one  hardly  
ever  sees  a  woman  capable  of  taking  care  of  herself).  Fairy-­‐tales  are   seen  as  reproducing  
traditional  patriarchal  gender  roles.  All  stereotypes  and  social  roles   related  to  patriarchy  
get  revisited  and  reinterpreted.    
 
Distinction   between   gender   and   sex    appears   –   from   there   on,   sex   is   viewed   as   the  
biological,  the  body,  which  can  be  either  male  or  female,  whereas  gender  is  something  
socially   determined   and   constructed,   the   feminine   and   masculine.   Gender   stereotypes  
are  learned  behaviour,  imposed  by  society  –  gender  is  not  natural,  it  is  performative  and  
need  not  necessarily  be  connected  to  the   physical  body  at  all.  Simone  de  Beauvoir,  Judith  
Butler .  
 
Some  characteristic  traits  of  the  feminist  literature  of  the  period:    
1)  the  idea  of   performance  –  all  sorts  of  masks,  cross-­‐dressing,  masquerade,  circus,  etc.;  
2)   who   are   opposed   to   a   vicious    puppet   master,   who   serves   as   the   symbol   of   the  
patriarch;    
3)  non-­‐linear  texts;  
4)   the   postmodernist   type   of   play   –   intertextuality,   allusions,   references   to   myth,  
violations  of  syntax,  etc.;    
5)  revision  of  the   cultural  canon;    
6)   images   of   women   in   classical   texts   and   mythology,   fairy-­‐tales   revisited   (Ophelia;  
Sleeping  Beauty,  Red  Riding  Hood);  
7)  wrote  in  the  new  genres  of  fantasy  and  dystopia.    
The   feminist   literature   of   the   1960s   and   70s   often   resorted   to   radicalism   and   the  
previous   female   victim   was   turned   into   a   terrorist;   by   the   1980s   and   onward   this  
changed   and   feminist   literature   became   more   imaginative   and   complex;   a   return   to  
common  values  can  also  be  viewed,  though  there  are  few  new  ideas,  instead  mostly  old  
ideas  revisited.  
 
Angela   Carter   (1940-­‐1992)   –   Bristol   in   the   1960s,   in   the   middle   of   the   atmosphere   of  
rebellion.   Bricolage   –   instance   of   intertextuality,   i.e.   shaping   a   text’s   meaning   in  
reference  to  other  texts;  often  the  elements  do  not  match  well.  
Shadow   Dance   –   woman   in   a   male   dominated   world.   Travelled   to   Japan,   experienced  
being   the   cultural   “other”.   Geisha   culture   and   Kabuki   theatre   –   gender   becomes  
undistinguishable;   the   construction   of   femininity   has   been   created   by   men   and  
patriarchy.  
Postmodernist   characteristics,   e.g.   blurring   the   lines   between   tale   and   story:   a   tale   is  
something  imagined  and  improbable,  based  on  myth,  often  stylized  and  removed  from  
the  everyday  world  with  flat  characters;  stories,  on  the  other   hand ,  are  straightforward,  
realistic,   have   three-­‐dimensional   characters   and   are   psychologically   complete.  
Impressionistic  autobiographical  sketches.  
Elements   of   performance,   a   fascination   with   puppetry,   gothic   elements,   fantastic  
transformations,   elements   of   what   is   called    magic   realism.   The   Company   of   Wolves   –  
short  story;  revision  of  the  red  riding  hood  fairy  tale.    
The  Passion  of  New  Eve  (1977),  Sadeian  Woman  (1979).  
 
A.S.  Byatt  (1936-­‐)  –   major  British  author  and  a  highbrow  intellectual,  literary  critic.  Has  
rejected  any  ties  with  feminism  but  is  often  viewed  as  part  of  feminist  literary  discourse.  
Special   interest   in   the   Victorian   age,   the   1960s   but   also   WWII.   Possession,   Angels   and  
Insects.    
Relationship  between  real  and  fiction,  past  and  present,  interdependence  and  sense  of  
ownership  between  lovers,   issue  of  female  creativity.    
 
Magic  realism;  Salman   Rushdie .  Historiographic  metafiction.  
 
Magic   realism   first   appeared   already   after   WWI.   Part   of   postmodernism.   Combines  
dream-­‐like   elements   with   realism.   Angela   Carter,   Salman   Rushdie,   D.M.   Thomas,   Kate  
Atkinson  (Jeanette  Winterson’s  Sexing  the   Cherry ;  Skellig  by  David  Almond).    
Characters   with   additional   powers:   for   instance,   telepathy,   the   ability   of   flight   or  
telekinesis,  (semi-­‐)immortality,  etc.  
Magic   realism   became   prominent   in   English   literature   in   the   1980s,   often   associated  
with   historiographic   metafiction.   Subvert   reality   –   the   idea   that   reality   is   not   always  
what  it  seems.  
One   of   the   main   theoreticians   of   postmodernism   and   also   magic   realism   is    Linda  
Hutcheon .    
 
Salman   Rushdie   (1947,   in   India)   –   examines   many   historical   and   philosophical   issues,  
characters   with   magical   and   surreal   qualities,    specific   sense   of   humour   and   a  
melodramatic  prose  style,  postcolonial  element.  
 
The  Satanic  Verses  (1988)  –  historical  accounts  of  Indian  history;  caused  outrage  among  
conservative  Muslims,  who  demanded  Rushdie’s  death.      
Midnight’s  Children  (1981).  Narrated  by  Saleem  Sinai,  born  in  India  at  midnight  14/15th  
August,   1947   –   independence   declared   from   Britain.   Actual   historical   context   and  
events,  combined  with  fictional  elements.  Magical  qualities.    
 
Strives  to  challenge  recorded  history  and  retell  it  from  an  individual’s  point  of  view.  It  
combines  material  from   Eastern  fables,  Hindu  and  Islamic  myths,  Bombay   cinema ,  Latin  
American  magic  realism,  advertising  billboards,  etc.  –  postmodern  eclecticism.    
 
Postcolonialism   became   very   popular   in   English   literature   in   the   1980s   –   most   of   the  
empire’s  colonies  had  become  independent  and  the  stories  of  previous  colonies   finally  
began  to  be  told.  Second  and  third  generation   immigrants ,  “the  other”.  
 
First   generation   immigrants   refer   to   the   people   who   were   born   in   one   country   and  
migrated  to  another,  and  also  their  children;  2nd  generation  immigrants  are  people  born  
in   the    target   culture   (in   this   case   England)   with   at    least   one    foreign   born    parent ;   3rd  
generation  immigrants  are  people  born  in  the  target  culture,   whose  both  parents  were  
also  born  in  the  target  culture,  but  whose  at  least  one  grandparent  is  foreign  born.  
 
Historiographic   metafiction   –    term   coined   by   Linda   Hutcheon.   Tightly   connected   to  
magic  realism;  contrast  between  history  and  story,  can  we  ever  truly  know  the  truth  or  
meaning   behind   the   representation   of   history,   and   what   the   truth   really   is.   Hutcheon:  
“there  is  no  truth  or  falseness  per  se,  there  are  only  other  people’s  truths”.    
 
Viewing   great   historical   events   from   the   perspective   of   small   individuals.   Combines  
history  and  the  present;  goes  back  to  the  beginning  of  history  of  the  particular  story,  to  
before   the    birth   of   the   protagonist   of   the   particular   novel   and   by   tracing   exact   dates,  
events,  places,  etc.  builds  on  the  individual  story  and  place  in  history  of  the  characters.  
Combines  magical  elements;  challenges  the  reliability  of  history  and  the  existence  of  a  
stable  reality.    
 
Postcolonial   situation   –   people   have   been   colonised   (politically,   socially,   economically,  
culturally,   etc.).   Characters   are   often   silent   or   their   speech   is   ignored   (for   instance  
women  or  marginalised   ethnic  groups  may  be  abused  in  such  a  way  –  Spivak,  Bhabha).    
 
Historiographic  metafiction  and  postcolonial  literature  strive  to  provide  a  voice  to  such  
marginalised  groups;  representation  in  literature  is  a  form  of  empowerment.    
“Postcolonial   trauma ”  as  a  metaphor  for  the  devastating  effects  of  colonisation.    
 
Donald   Michael   Thomas   (1935-­‐)   –   combines   magic   realism   and   historiographic  
metafiction.  The  White  Hotel  (1981).  Holocaust  through  the  perspective  of  one  woman.  
Pastiche   is   an   imitation   of   other,   oftentimes   non-­‐fiction,   genres   or   media   in   a   work   of  
fiction.    However ,   unlike   parody,   which   is   another   technique   that   involves   imitation,  
pastiche  does  not  mock  the  thing  it  imitates,  instead  it  celebrates  it.  Examples  of  pastiche  
could   be   the   use   of   an   ad,    essay ,   article   of   law,   encyclopaedia   entry,   etc.   in   a   work   of  
fiction.  
 
Turn  of  the   millennium ;  Ian   McEwan  
Much  of  book  culture  commercially  oriented.    
 
Literature   of   the   millennium   is   extremely   versatile.   Issues:   third   wave   feminist   issues,  
genders;   post-­‐feminism;   the   underworld,   counter   and   subcultures;   drug   and   club  
culture,  identity,   Internet  and  computer  gaming,  history.  Peter  Ackroyd,  Kazuo  Ishiguro,  
Ian  McEwan,  etc.    
 
Two   major   events:   the   fall   of   the   Berlin   Wall   in   1989   and   in   2001,   the   9/11   terrorist  
attacks.  
 
Post-­‐colonial   literature;   whose   history   Western   written   history   really   is?   –   the  
experiences  of  ethnic  minorities  are  seemingly  ignored.  
 
The   literature   of   the   2nd   and   3rd   generation   immigrants   serves   to   give   voice   to   the  
cultural   “other”   and   is   aimed   at   fighting   clichés,   such   as   those   that   emerged   after   the  
9/11  attack.    
Salman  Rushdie,  Hanif  Kureishi,  Andrea  Levy,  Nadeem  Aslam,  etc.  
 
Realist   literature   of   the   millennium:   new   fears   and   anxieties   regarding   the   turn   of   the  
millennium,   blurring   of   boundaries   between   fiction   and   reality,   a    reduction   of   the  
contrast   between   high   and   low   (both   in   culture   and   literature),   the   importance   of   the  
media,   celebrity   culture,   reality   TV,   postmodern   film,   communication   (the   internet,  
social  media,  blogs,  etc.).  
 
Humanism  has  also  been  central  in  the  literature  of  the  millennium.  
Ian  McEwan  (1948)  –  a  celebrated  British  author,  reflect  many  of  the  major  movements  
and  developments  that  have  occurred  in  English  literature  from  the  1970s  onward.    
First   novel   The   Cement   Garden   (1978)   –    strange   sex,   death,   violence,   perversion   and  
even  disembodiment,  children  –  not  innocent.  
 
Humanistic  traits,  e.g.  The  Innocent  (1990),  Black   Days  (1992),  Atonement  (2001)  –  some  
things  are  impossible  to  atone,  to  undo  and  to  forget.    
 
For  him,  to  write  “conventionally”  means  to  be  a  rebel.  He  is  anti-­‐postmodern  and  anti-­‐
theory.    
 
More  recent  works   Solar  (2010),  Sweet  Tooth  (2012)  and  The  Children  Act  (2014).    
Solar  –  ecocritical  novel.    
 
Female  authors  of  the  millennium.  Jeanette  Winterson,  Meera  Syal,  Zadie  Smith.  
 
Historical  fiction  dominated  in  the  women’s  writing  of  the  pre-­‐millennium.  Escapist  in  
nature   and   does   not   romanticise   the   past.   Constructed   fictional   illusion   then   uncover  
that  illusion,  i.e.  create  fiction  the  make  statements  about  the  fiction  (remind  the  reader  
that  they  are  reading  a  book).    
 
Turning  away  from  contemporary  subjects.  Historiographic  metafiction  and  the  issue  of  
whose   history   Western   history   really   is.   How   history   changes   over   time:   A.S.   Byatt,  
Angela  Carter,  Eva  Figes,  Sarah  Waters,  Jeanette  Winterson.  
 
Some  events  that  women’s  literature  of  the  period  covers:  the  Victorian  age,  along  with  
the  position  of  women  at  the  time  –  glorious  age  with  few  glorious  women;  the  1920s  
and  WWI;  WWII  –  emancipation,  importance  of  women  at  the  time;  gender  norms  and  
how  they’ve  changed;  a  focus  on  personal  details.  
 
Pat   Barker’s   Regeneration   (1991)   –   postmodern   blend   of   actual   history   and   fictional  
characters  that  discusses  class,  sexual  and  power  relations.  The  characters  in  this  novel  
are  presented  gender  ambiguously  –  many  strong  female  characters,  while  the  men  are  
separated  from  their  masculinity  and  are  sensitive  and  care  for  each  other.  The  reverse  
side  of  war,  its  shell-­‐shocked  victims.  
 
Jeanette  Winterson  (1959)  –  given  up  by  her  birth  parents  and  adopted  by  her  adoptive  
parents   when   she   was   6   months   old.   Pentecostal   faith.   Intended   to   become   a   church  
missionary  but  as  she  grew  older  began  to  identify  as  lesbian  –  leaves  home  at  the  age  of  
16.    
First  novel  in  1985  and  her  last  to   date  in  2012.    
Highly   controversial,   goes   against   the   grain   of   what   is   normal   and   right.   Issues   of  
identity  and  love,  the  boundaries  that  the  outside  world,  along  with  mainstream  culture,  
society,   history   and   even   people   themselves   set   upon   them.   Has   also   written   short  
stories   and   film   scripts.   Stories   are   at   the   heart   of   everything,   history   is   a   story   and  
identity  is  a  product  of  a  story.  Postmodern  interested  in  metanarratives,  in  re-­‐telling,  
re-­‐writing,   and   re-­‐ thinking   them.   Her   works   are   very   explicit   but   the   voice   of   what   is  
“proper”  is  always  present.  
 
Oranges  are  not  the  Only  Fruit  (1985)  –  her  autobiography.    
 
The  PowerBook  (2000)  –  cyberspace  vs.  the  meatspace  (the  real  world)  –  language  is  a  
costume.  
The  idea  of  the  panopticon.    
 
Post-­‐colonialism  in  feminist  literature.  Issues  of  ethnicity  and  culture.    
 
Zadie  Smith  (1975)  is  an  English  novelist,  essayist  and  short  story  writer.  Born  in  Britain  
to  a  Jamaican-­‐born  mother  and  British  father.  
White  Teeth  (2000)  –  a  portrait  of  the  contemporary  multicultural  London  and  looks  at  
the  lives  of  three  ethnically  diverse  families;  the  beauty  myth.  
 
Meera  Syal  (1961)  is  a  British  writer,  playwright,  comedian,  singer,  journalist,  producer  
and  actor.  Her  parents  are  of  Punjabi  Indian  heritage.  Anita  and  Me  (1996),  Life  Isn’t  All  
Ha  Ha  Hee  Hee  (1999),  The  House  of  Hidden  Mothers  (2015).  
 
Anita   and   Me   –   semi-­‐autobiography.   Young   girl    named   Meena,   her   role-­‐model   is   her  
English  neighbour  Anita,  but  she  is  a  false  role-­‐model,  not  worthy  of  her  admiration.  A  
contradiction   between   British   pop   culture   and   Meena’s   grandmother’s   ethnic   culture,  
which  actually  helps  develop  Meena’s  true  identity.  The  novel  is  witty  and  funny.  
 
Life   Isn’t   All   Ha   Ha   Hee   Hee   (1999)   –   three   best    friends ,   Tania,   Sunita   and   Chila,   of  
Punjabi   background.   The   common   problems   all   women    face ,   regardless   of   where   or  
when   they   live,   plus   culture   specific   concerns.   Questions   whether   the   “ever   after”   is  
actually   happy .    
 
Ecocriticism  emerged  as  a  critical  literary  method  in  the  1990s  and  focuses  of  an  earth-­‐
centred  approach  to  writing.  It  began  as  an  analysis  of  existing  texts  but  as  a  by-­‐product  
new  text  were  also  produced,  until  it  soon  developed  into  a  separate  literary  movement.  
Place,  nature,  the  environment  (even  the  city  environment)  are  extremely  important  to  
ecocritical   novels,   as   is   the   characters’   part   in   and   connection   to   the   physical  
environment.   An   often-­‐employed   metaphor   is   that   of    roots ,   which   refers   to   physical  
belonging.   Identity   linked   to   a   place.   Also   the   issue   of   place   vs.    space   –   space   is  
something  empty  and  abstract,  while  place  is  concrete  and  meaningful.  Of  course  this  is  
a   discursive   distinction,   not   a   natural   one.   Ecocritical   novels   also   use   a   lot   of  
environmental   metaphors,   natural   imagery   and   an   abandonment   of   hierarchy.   The  
emergence   of   ecocriticism   is   connected   to   the   explosion   of   various   environmentalist  
movements   in   the   late   1960s   and   70s.   However,   it   was   not   an   organised    study   or  
movement  and  only  became  that  in  the  1990s.  Ian  McEwan’s  Solar  is  an  ecocritical  novel,  
as  is  A.S.  Byatt’s  Babel  Tower  and  David  Mitchell’s   Cloud  Atlas,.    
 
Ecocritical  feminism  or  ecofeminism  draws  parallels  between  the  rhythms  and  cycles  of  
earth   to   the   cycles   of   the   female   body.   Exploitation   of   earth   is   a   form   of   abuse.   The  
metaphor   of   rape.    Gaia   as   the   earth,   traditional   earth   worshipping,    Native   American  
culture,  etc.