famous english literature

famous english literature

Exploring the Most Influential Works in English Literature

1. Introduction to English Literature

It is not new to catalog literary works, but selecting out of thousands of great works is obviously an enormous task. People, especially teachers, who know these 100 great works, and consequently require their students to know them, often have to remind each other that they and their students approach literature always as readers. They do not serve these works well, or only in limited ways, when they treat them as artifacts for a quiz, play, examination, or paper. I asked a number of teachers to read as readers and to supply the list of great works; I asked a number of readers to use lists supplied without any knowledge of the source or sources.

What is English literature? According to the Oxford Dictionary, it is defined as “the term used to describe literary works in the English language made especially by the writers of England.” It is inevitably a world literature, but it is also important to remember that Scotland, Wales, and Ireland have each developed a wonderful literature in English. Canada, the United States, Australia, South Africa, and many countries in the Caribbean and Africa have produced literature in English that should not be ignored.

2. Key Movements and Periods in English Literature

Comedy of Manners: A sophisticated, artificial form of dramatic comedy which lampoons the vices of its own society. Miracle Plays: Popular Medieval plays which concerned the lives of saints and which were played in the streets and on pageant wagons. Morality Plays: A dramatic presentation of a moral or ethical issue in which characters personify abstract qualities or concepts. Mystery Plays: Dramatic representation of an event or series of events from the Bible, dealt with in the form of farces, comedies, and dramas. Neoclassical Period: A period based on the rediscovery of the classical art and thought of ancient Greece. Neoclassicism: A literary movement following the Romantics, based on reason and moderation. It held that humans possessed inherent dignity, and writers explored the nature of the individual and the nature of the “good.” Neoclassicism sought to imitate, in both writing and criticism, the values and aesthetic principles of ancient Greece and Rome. Writers also devoted care to social analyses and to refining the techniques of literary composition. Period of the Painters and the Poets: The beginning of the Romantic Period, when painters and poets both leaned towards romantic depictions of nature. Petrarchan Sonnet: A sonnet rhyming abbaabbacdecde in recognition of the two-part structure employed by the Italian poet Petrarch. Picturesque Movement: A period during the late 18th century when art, theatre and literature all reflected a renewed interest in ancient and medieval themes. Pindaric Ode: An irregular ode in which the first stanza follows the structure of the classic Pindaric ode. Rest are free with no fixed structure. Poetry: Literature which presents imagery and rhythm working together to convey a message or emotional experience. Romantic: The Romantic period in England took place, roughly, during the latter part of the 18th and early 19th centuries. In the Romantic period, literature and poetry most often presented wild, emotional and imaginative themes. Writing from the heart, rather than intellect, became the rule. Ideals of the period sought to echo mankind’s longing for spiritual regeneration, especially in connection with nature. Romantic writing often employed a reaction against the control and balance of the Augustan poets.

3. Notable Authors and Their Works

Critically speaking, I’m a loss either way, because, while I’ve often gone on the record as saying Neil Gaiman’s most iconic work is something I feel about as personal connection to as does Carrie Bradshaw (really, with that name) to reality, I’ve never quite been able to close the lid on Gaiman’s Jack-in-the-Box. He has managed to prevent me from finding Finalities, in the protagonist, much as he has prevented me from quite writing him off. And the governing equation of the Gaiman Phenomenon Fictionally, at least, is relative to futures and End Texts, one I find difficult to resist. Even if Gaiman himself isn’t, it often seems, particularly interested in making his argument in the first place. Countless words have been spilled discussing the connection of Gaiman’s works – Sandman particularly, but also American Gods, Stardust, and Coraline – to the encompassing deities of Robert Graves’ The White Goddess, Joseph Campbell, and similar myths and archetypes, and the full gamut of Christian apocrypha.

Neil Gaiman’s work first gained attention from the angsty dispossessed – frankly, a group he has rarely managed to leave entirely behind since. As I write this, you might be hard-pressed to locate anyone who isn’t sitting next to me who actively dislikes Gaiman’s work. Sally Bowles was known to express a similar sentiment, so what do I know? High-Functioning Depression Chick (best-selling author division), Karen Hines, never mentions him without the note of “Neil Gaiman, my loooove.” The general readership functions on the critic’s old maxim that one should speak ill of the dead or Neil Gaiman work personal favorites.

4. Themes and Motifs in English Literature

The antagonist is faceless and indifferent to anything outside his personal goals. They may also be larger and far stronger than the protagonist, representing a power greater than himself. The elemental story of Beowulf is one such ancient tale of good versus evil, with this mighty hero fighting the heart of darkness itself, embodied in the giant demon, Grendel. Occasionally, antagonists develop complicated grounds for strife, partially or completely winning sympathy from the readers. Such background introduces even more conflict between the two characters. As much of any overarching storyline of a novel results from the readers’ interpretation of interactions in the text.

A novel may contain any number of themes, depicted through characterization and plot. Authors can pull themes directly from each other. However, there are common themes in literature and familiar motifs. Throughout time, each culture developed its own set. And while centuries have come and gone since they were written down, the themes continue to be incorporated into contemporary society: man versus man, man versus nature, man versus himself. Central to most literary works is the conflict between protagonist and antagonist. Plots generally are based on this premise: Moby Dick, War and Peace, The Ox-Bow Incident, Billy Budd. In most conflicts, the protagonist must engage himself with the world around him and take action. He is identified with his locale, social station, or other individualizing aspect of his life and, as a consequence, is able to make decisions about the future. The second nature of his property further reveals his character.

5. Impact and Legacy of English Literature

Given this potential field of influence, we should question what possible importance is there for literary works to be considered classic? There is an apprehension that this kind of literary canon, being far from the everyday life, seems repetitive, as are countless monographs and books of criticism applied to the same works. The canon of English literature is not an impoverishing entity, for what makes its vast range so important is to ensure such variety and freedom of choice, facilitating the interpretation of the multiple contradictions through which Victorian and contemporary literature did, does, and will always deal with the universal problems of human consciousness.

English literature is a unique medium for recording and reflecting on the various aspects of human life and thought. It is a powerful tool for understanding people, their ideas, and the various elements that allow individual cultures to exist. This is why we have chosen to look at its most influential works and authors in the hopes of answering why they had, and many still have, such a significant impact. The idea is not to exhaust the list, ‘exclusion’ is inevitable, but to offer a selection that will suggest themes of subsequent reflection. Anyone with the slightest interest in the subject could contribute to this corpus with justifiable reasons, comforted by the Brazilian adage that implies, ‘writing is to make money’.