From Beowulf to Frankenstein (Part II: Restoration & 18th Cent.) English 12 Honors Mr. Raber

Hello… The Restoration & 18th Century

The Restoration When Stuart King Charles II was returned to the throne in 1660, the Church of England regained its power Hence, the power was RESTORED (= Restoration) to the Church of England/ a Protestant

The Restoration Remember, during this time period (more specifically ) people from England and Europe were pouring into North America. It was also during this period that America broke from England

The Restoration English Overview: 1660 = England exhausted from nearly 20 yrs of civil war By 1700 = England had lived through the plague and a fire that left more than 2/3 of Londoners homeless Mid to late 1700s = American Colonies lost

The Restoration  Despite the American colonies lost, by mid 18th century, England had settled into a period of “calm and order”  The middle class g r e w  British men and women produced many brilliant works of philosophy, art, and literature…more on lit. later

The Restoration This long period of time, , has been given several labels: –the Augustan Age –the Neoclassical period –the Enlightenment –the Age of Reason

The Restoration Each of these labels apply to SOME characteristics of these 140 years, but none apply to all

“Augustan” Period This time period was often called this because just like Augustus was “the exalted one” who restored peace to Rome after Julius Caesar’s death, Charles II was brought back to rule England after exiling himself in France. =

“Augustan” Period Charles II replaced his father that was executed at the end of the civil wars and restored peace to England He (CII) was hailed as a ‘savior’

“Neoclassical” Period In this period many English writers consciously modeled their works on the old Latin classics These writings that imitate Latin works were called… NEOCLASSICAL = “new classical”

“Neoclassical” Period The classics, it was generally agreed, were more valuable because they represented what was permanent and universal in human experience All educated people knew the Latin classics better than they knew their own English Literature

“Age of Reason” / “Enlightenment” Period These labels reveal how people were gradually changing their view of themselves and the world. Example: ppl thought before horrific events such as the assassination of a ruler took place, that the earth and sky would give warnings (earthquakes/comets/etc.) Before, ppl asked WHY did this unusual event happen…and what does it mean?

“Age of Reason” / “Enlightenment” Period Now, ppl asked HOW did this unusual event happen? PPL started to wonder HOW everything worked from the human body to the laws of the universe Ex. Halley’s comet = appears every 76 yrs b/c that is how long it takes to complete its orbit…he calculated this…he did not guess at it or its meaning

Changes in Religion = More ?s The new scientific and rational explanations of phenomena gradually began to affect some people’s religious views… Thus, DEISM evolved Deism = a spiritual belief based on reason and the observation of nature Only a minority of “enlightened” rationalists and materialists adopted deism. The majority remained religious.

Religion & Politics Religion determined people’s politics in this period Charles II reestablished the Church of England…also known as the Anglican Church (this church is still present in England today and in the United States it is called the Episcopal Church) Charles attempted to outlaw all other churches and this caused persecution that lasted into the 18th century

Also during this period… Charles was a big advocate of THEATER …thus it was popular Both Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift popularized SATIRE by attacking the immorality and bad taste of the educated/leisured class

Also during this period… Daniel Defoe, Joseph Addison, and Sir Richard Steele practiced JOURNALISM in which they viewed themselves as reformers

Also during this period… Poems during this time period were said to have been by their author’s WITS (minds) and not the soul of the author This was viewed by a number of other poets as a negative

Also during this period… Rather, poetry during this time period was written for a specific purpose Thus, the purpose and kind of poem to be conceived was decided before the actual poem was composed Some types of poems included: ELEGY, SATIRE, and ODE

Also during this period… By the mid-eighteenth century ppl were writing, and others were buying Then, long fictional narratives called NOVELS Novels were developed by the middle class and were often broad and comical Some Novelists of the time: Defoe, Fielding, Richardson, and Sterne

ALMOST DONE… Let us now switch gears back to what was occurring in England and the monarch at this time…

The Bloodless Revolution Then, when Charles II died, w/out an heir, his brother James II became king. James was a Roman Catholic and the Protestant English political leaders acted quickly to transfer power to James’s Protestant daughter Mary It was worried that James was going to hand the country over to the pope

The Bloodless Revolution Then, Mary’s Dutch husband, William of Orange, attacked England and forced King James (not Lebron) to flee Thus, William and Mary assumed the throne and came to power in 1689 Not a drop of blood had been shed and this became known as the Glorious (Bloodless) Revolution

Wrapping up the 18th Century: By the last decade of the century, the English “world was changing in disturbing ways.” The INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION was turning English cities and towns into filthy, smoky slums. People knew that the age of elegance, taste, and reason was over

Wrapping up the 18th Century: As a reflection of all this change, writers were developing new interests Appalled at the industrial blight, they were turning to EXTERNAL NATURE and writing about the effect of the natural landscape on the human soul. (The HEALING POWER OF NATURE is a RBD in the upcoming ROMANTIC PERIOD)

Wrapping up the 18th Century: These writers were also becoming interested in the literary possibilities of the humble life and were trying to enter into the consciousness of the poor and simple A NEW LITERARY AGE WAS BEGINNING…

The ROMANTIC Time Period

ANY… QUESTIONS?