CONTENTS Page

PART 1 : (3-22)

1. Figures of Speech
(4-7)
2. Exercises
3. The Elements of Fiction (8-9)
4. A Story For Interpretation : The Luncheon . (10-14)
5. Verification (15-20)
(21-22)
PART 2 :
(23-76)
1. The Old English Period :
_ Beowulf: Summary
(24-26)
2. The Middle English Period :
_ Geoffrey Chaucer : A Biography
_ The Canterbury Tales. (27-28)

3. The Renaissance :
_ Shakespeare: A Biography
_ Hamlet : Soliloquy “To be or not to be”
(29-42)
_ Sonnet : What is a sonnet ?
_ Sonnets 73, 93, 116 for analysis

4. The Restoration
5. The Age of Reason
_ Daniel Defoe : A Biography
_ Robinson Crusoe : Extract
(43-44)
th (45-49)
6. The 19 century :
• The Romantic Period :

_ William Wordsworth : A Biography

I wandered lonely as a cloud (50-69)
The world is too much with us
_ Byron : A Biography
In silence and tears
On my thirty –third birthday
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 • The Victorian Period :
_ Charlotte Bronte : A Biography
Jane Eyre : Extracts
(70-76)
7. The Modern Age :
_ Virginia Woolf : A Biography
A Haunted House

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PART 1: SOME LITERARY DEVICES AND CONCEPTS

Part I provides students with some basic literary devices and concepts practically
intended to facilitate students’ interpretative work of the literary materials chosen for
the course.

FIGURES OF SPEECH

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Figurative language includes words and impressions that are not taken in the literal
sense.
It enables readers to get at the mood of the writer or to have profound understanding of
what is meant. With just a few words, the writer can communicate volumes about
feelings and impressions.

SOME COMMON TYPES OF FIGURES OF SPEECH :

1. Simile: A comparison that reveals similarities between otherwise dissimilar things.
My love is like a red, red rose.
My love for Clinton is like the foliage in the woods Time will change it. I’m well
aware, as winter changes the trees. My love for Heathcliff resembles the eternal rocks
beneath, a source of little visible delight, but necessary. I am Heathcliff_ He is always,
always in my mind. [Wuthering Heights]
2. Metaphor : a figure of speech containing an implied comparison, in which a word or
phrase ordinarily used for one thing is applied to another.
Metaphor may be grouped according to their parts of speech :
Noun : She was breathing fire.
The lash of his words.
A flash of hope.
Bloom of youth
Adjective: Stony heart , burning eye, smiling sun, angry sea.
Verb: His eyes flashed angrily.
Fortune has smiled on his family.
He threw himself in the mercy of court.

* Extended metaphor: expressed through a series of images all bearing some a central
point of resemblance:
_ All the world is a stage. And all the men and women are merely players. They have
their exits and entrances. And one man in his times plays many parts. (from As you like
it by Shakespeare)
_ Life is but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour on the stage.
And then is heard no more, it is a tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury, signifying
nothing. (from Macbeth by Shakespeare)
* Dead metaphor: Some words and phrases were originally metaphors or similes but
as they are so often used, the metaphorical characteristic is lost.
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The foot of the hill
The face of a clock.
3. Personification: a figure of speech which gives the qualities of a person to
an animal an object or an idea. The writer uses it to show something in an entirely new
light, to communicate a certain feeling or attitude towards it and to control the way a
reader perceives it.
The house was alive with soft, quick steps and running voices.
Little faint winds were playing chase (The Garden Party by Katherine Mansfield)
4. Apostrophe: Direct address to a person (often dead or absent), an abstraction or
thing often personified.
O! Solitude! Where are the charms that sages have seen in their face?(William Cowper)
Frailty, thy name is woman. (Hamlet)
5. Hyperbole (Overstatement) : an exaggerated statement not meant to be taken
literally but made for a special effect
She's said so millions of occasions
I'm dead tired.
I'm bored to death.
Her eyes are brighter than the very sun.
6. Litotes: (understatement): the expression of an affirmative by the negative of its
contrary.
She's not a bad- looking girl.
I shan't be sorry. (I shall be very glad)
7. Pun: The humorous use of a word or combination of words that are alike or nearly
alike in sound so as to emphasize different meanings
Is Life worth living? Yes, it depends on the liver.
She told the child to try not to be so trying.
8. Paradox: An apparently self- contradictory statement that may in reality express a
possible truth. It is also intended to cause surprise or arrest attention.
Still water run deep.
The child is the father of the man.
I can resist anything except temptation.
Haste makes waste.
9. Antithesis: A striking contrast of ideas marked by the choice and arrangement of
words in the same sentence to secure emphasis.
Give me liberty , or give me death.
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Speech is silver, but silence is gold.
To err is human; to forgive is divine.
10. Oxymoron: A figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms
appear in conjunction for a startling effect. Romeo utters a series of
oxymoron when he complains about his " loving hate ", his" heavy lightness"
"serious vanity", "cold fire", “sick heart”', “cold passion”.
11. Euphemism: The use of pleasant, mild or indirect phrases in place of
more accurate or direct ones.
Pass away for die
Pass water for urinate
Powder room for toilet
12. Climax : The arrangement of ideas in the order of more or less
importance.
What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason, how infinite in faculty!
In action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a God!
To gossip is a fault, to libel a crime, to slander a sin.
Simple, erect, severe, austere, sublime.
13. Synecdoche: The use of a part to stand for a whole, the whole for a part,
an individual name for a whole class.
He has many mouths to feed.
She was a girl of 20 summers.
I describe a sail steering to the southeast (a ship)
One of the finest marbles (sculptures carved out of marble)
14. Metonymy: The use of the name of one object for that of another with
which it is closely associated or of which it is a part. It is also the use of the
sign for the thing signified, the instrument for the agent, the container for
what is contained, the concrete objects for the abstract concepts.
The White House : the American president
The bench: the judges
The crown: the king.
The pen is mightier than the sword.
From the cradle to the grave.
15. Transferred epithet: a qualifying adjective is changed from the noun it
is intended to qualify to another word which is somewhat in connection with
that noun.
He passed a sleepless night.
The ploughman plods his weary way homeward.
He had a busy week.

SOUND DEVICES: Techniques for bringing out the sound of words

1. Onomatopoeia: the use of words that mimic sounds, like "buzz" or "hiss"
Tuk-Tuk-Tuk, clucked cook like an agitated hen
Pom! Ta- ta- ta tee-ta! The piano burst out so passionately....

2. Alliteration: The repetition of the same sound at the beginning of closely linked
words or syllables. It helps break up the tedium of prose and add zest to poetry
There was a haze on the horizon.
The golden mound of sweet oily ivory mounts in the milk glass bowl
It was hot and humid.
Hateful heap
3. Consonance : The repetition of the same consonants in a string of words.
All mammals named Sam are clammy.
4. Assonance: The repetition of the vowels
break, break, break
on thy cold, gray stones, O sea!

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EXERCICES
Identify the following figures of speech:

1. He paid the workers $5 per head.

2. How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank.
3. The heart of the matter.
4. A fleet of 40 sails.
5. The convict was thrown into the condemned cell
6. A flood of questions
7. I have read all of Milton.
8. Australia beat Canada at cricket.
9. Cotton suits you.
10. He glanced at the dew-covered grass, and it winked back at him.
11. How soon hath Time, the subtle thief of youth, stolen on his wing me three and
twentieth year.
12. And I will love you still, my dear,
Till the seas gone dry,
And the rocks melt in the sun.
13. She smiles and the whole world is happy.
14. We are caught in war, wanting peace. We are torn by division, wanting unity.
15. Though this is madness, yet there is method in it.
16. Someday you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.
17. I know that I know nothing.
18. I think we’ve reached a point of great decision, not just for our nation, not only for
all humanity, but for life upon the earth.
19. It is raining cats and dogs.
20. In June, the clouds are cushion in the mid-day sky.
21. The lawyers were waiting for a decision from the bench.
22. My wit is folly, my day is night, my love is hate, my sleep waking ( Chaucer)
23. Two minds are better than one.

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24. When you decide to give her a ring, give us a ring.
25. Good friends are hard to find, harder to leave,, and impossible to forget.
26. The best brains of our country.
27. Death, be not proud.
28. I came, I saw, I won (Cesar)
29. Seven days without water makes me weak.
30. Money is a bottomless sea, in which honor, conscience and truth may be drowned.

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THE ELEMENTS OF FICTION

PLOT

1. What is plot?

The arrangement of events that make up a story. It involves a sequence of incidents

that bear a significant causal relationship to each other. Causality in fiction simply
means that one thing happens because of or as a result of something else.

2. The function of plot:

We do not read for plot only. We read for the revelations of character or life presented
by means of plot.

3. The structure of plot:

A writer may use a predictable structure (the story moves from the beginning to the
end) or unpredictable one, in which the plot may start at the end. Then the author may
use flashback by looking back on the past to provide background information, or
interrupt the flow of time to project into the future.

4. The development of plot

A typical fictional plot follows a common pattern as follows:

a. Exposition or situation: serves as the introduction to the world of the text providing
information about the situation as the story opens, the major characters, their
relationship.
b. Complication: (The rising action) : when a sudden element is brought in to “
complicate” the struggle of the main character. This is a very important stage to affect
the whole course of the plot.
c. Climax: (The turning point or grand climax): the point of greatest tension when the
conflict is presented directly to be solved one way or another. After climax the story
comes to an end.
d. Resolution: when something finally happens to solve the conflict
• Close ending: the conflict has a definite solution
• Indeterminate or open ending: There is no definite resolution. The end is left open for
readers to interpret for themselves.

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5. The element of conflict: conflict is the key element in a good story. It is presented
through a series of incidents closely related intended to arouse readers’ interest in how
things are going to turn out. Without conflict the story is just like a newspaper article!
The central character in the conflict is referred to as the protagonist. The character who
can engage the reader’s sympathy is a hero or heroine (female). The opposite of the
hero is villain.

5. Types of conflict:
a. External conflict:
* Man versus man: when the protagonist confronts an opponent.
* Man versus nature: when the protagonist is pitted against the forces of Nature.
* Man versus the unknown : when the main character confronts something that is
beyond human control such as fate or death.
* Man versus society: the character is in conflict with the accepted ways of
thinking or living of society
b. Internal conflict:

* Man versus himself or herself: the character is in conflict with some elements in his
own nature.
Every story has at least one conflict. Some have more than one. The conflict may be
clear-cut or identifiable or more complex and therefore more difficult to determine.

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CHARACTER:
1. What is character: the doer of the actions in a story
2. Characterization: the way a writer develops characters to reveal their traits to readers
a. Direct presentation: the writer tells us directly what a character is like.
b. Indirect presentation: (Dramatic method): characters are revealed through their
actions, their reactions to situations or other characters, or their thought.
The direct method has the advantage of being clear and simple but it is not convincing
enough. A life-like character must be dramatized_ shown acting in
meaningful situations. That explains why a combination of the two methods is
of the time used by writers.
Characters are convincing to readers when they are:
a. Consistent
b. Clearly motivated
c. Life-like (plausible)
3. Types of character:
a. Flat characters:( one-dimensional): can be summed up on a single quality.
b. Round characters: ( multi-dimensional): fully developed, complex.
Characters may also be classified as:
a. Dynamic characters: grow and change in the course of a story, developing as they
react to events or to other characters
b. Static characters: remain essentially unchanged
Round characters tend to be dynamic; flat characters tend to be static. However even a
very complex, well-developed major character may be static; sometimes the point of a
story may lie on a character’s inability to change.
SETTING:
1. What is setting : setting establishes the historical, geographical and physical
environment of a work of fiction.

a. Historical context: establishes a social, cultural economic political context. Knowing

the historical context during which a story takes place can help readers understand
forces that act on characters or influence their behavior.
b. Geographical context: establishes where the story takes place. It may help
readers understand why characters act in ways we may find improbable.

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c. Physical context: includes varied miscellaneous factors as the time of day, indoors
or outdoors, the weather, the atmosphere. All these can facilitate readers’ understanding
of characters’ mood or psychological restraints.

THEME
What is theme? : The central or dominant idea of a fiction work. The central theme we
identify should be an idea that extends beyond the boundaries of a story, applying to
readers and their world.
Every element of a story can shed light on its theme: the title, the arrangement of
events, conflict, changes in a character etc..
POINT OF VIEW:
1.What is Point of view? Point of view answers the question “ who tells the story”. It is
the angle from which events are presented or the perspective from which a story is told.
2. Different kinds of Point of View:
a. First person point of view: The narrator is a character who uses the first person
pronoun I. This character may be a main character telling his or her own story or a
minor character who plays a small part in the story or simply an observer.
b. Third person point of view: can fall into 3 categories:
* Omniscient: The narrator can reveal not only what all characters are doing but also
move in and out of their minds.
* Limited Omniscient: The narrator focuses on only what a single major or minor
character experiences. In other words events are limited to one character’s perspective.
* Objective or dramatic point of view: the narrator records the action as a camera
would. He or she tells the story only by reproducing dialogue and descriptions of the
actions and offers no insight into the character’s feelings or thoughts. Thus readers are
allowed to interpret characters without any interference from the narrator.

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 A STORY FOR INTERPRETATION

The Luncheon (by Somerset Maugham)

1 I caught sight of her at the play, and in answer to her beckoning, I went over
during the interval and sat down beside her .. It was long since I had last seen her
and if someone had mentioned her name I hardly think I would have recognized
her.
5
She addressed me brightly.
“Well, it is many years since we first met. How time does fly! We’re none of us
getting any younger. Do you remember the first time I saw you? You asked me to
luncheon.”
Did I remember? It was twenty years ago and I was living in Paris. I had a tiny
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apartment in the Latin Quarter overlooking a cemetery, and I was earning barely
enough to keep body and soul together. She had read a book of mine and had
written to me about it. I answered thanking her, and presently I received from her
another letter saying that she was passing through Paris and would like to have a
chat with me, but her time was limited, and the only free moment she had was on
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the following Thursday; she was spending the morning at the Luxembourg and
would I give her a little luncheon at Foyot’s afterwards? Foyot’s is a restaurant at
which the French senators eat and it was so far beyond my means that I had never
even thought of going there. But I was flattered and was too young to have
learned to say no to a woman. I had eighty francs (gold francs) to last me the rest
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of the month and a modest luncheon should not cost more than fifteen. If I cut out
coffee for the next two weeks I could manage well enough.
I answered that I would meet my friend – by correspondence-at Foyot’s on
Thursday at half- past twelve. She was not so young as I expected and in
appearance imposing rather tan attractive. She was in fact a woman of forty ( a
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charming age, but not one that excites a sudden and devastating passion at first
sight), and she gave me the impression of having more teeth, white and large and
even, than were necessary for any practical purpose. She was talkative, but since
she seemed inclined to talk about me . I was prepared to be an attentive listener.

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 I was startled when the bill of fare was brought, for the prices were a great deal
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higher than I had anticipated. But she reassured me. “I never eat anything for
luncheon,” she said.

“Oh, don’t say that!” I answered generously.

“I never eat more than one thing. I think people eat far too much nowadays. A
little fish, perhaps. I wonder if they have any salmon.”
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Well, it was early in the year for salmon and it was not on the bill of fare, but I
asked the waiter if there was any. Yes, a beautiful salmon had just come in, it was
the first they had had. I ordered it for my guest. The waiter asked her if she would
have something while it was being cooked.
“No,” she answered. “I never eat more than one thing. Unless you have a little
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caviar. I never mind caviar.” My heart sank a little. I knew I could not afford
caviar, but I could not very well tell her that. I told the waiter by all means to
bring caviar. For myself I chose the cheapest dish on the menu and that was a
mutton chop.
“I think you are unwise to eat meat,” she said. “I don’t know how you can expect
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to work after eating heavy things like chops. I don’t believe in overloading my
stomach.”
Then came the question of drink.
“I never drink anything for luncheon,” she said.
“Neither do I,” I answered promptly.
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. “Except white wine,” she proceeded as though I had not spoken. “These French
white wines are so light. They ‘re wonderful for the digestion.”
“What would you like?” I asked, hospitable still, but not exactly effusive. She
gave me a bright and amicable flash of her white teeth.
“My doctor won’t let me drink anything but champagne.”
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I fancy I turned a little pale. I ordered half a bottle. I mentioned casually that my
doctor had absolutely forbidden me to drink champagne.
“What are you going to drink then?”
“Water.”

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 So she ate the caviar and then salmon. She talked gaily of art and literature and
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music. But I wondered what the bill would come to. When my mutton chop
arrived she took me quite seriously to task.
“I see you ‘re in the habit of eating a heavy luncheon. I am sure it’s a mistake.
Why don’t you follow my example and just eat one thing? I am sure you would
feel so much better for it.”
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“I am only going to eat one thing,” I said as the waiter came again with the bill of
fare.
She waved him aside with an airy gesture.
“No, no, I never eat anything for luncheon. Just a bite, I never want more than
that, and I eat that more as an excuse for conversation than anything else. I
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couldn’t possibly eat anything more - unless they had some of those giant
asparagus. I should be sorry to leave Paris without having some of them.”
My heart sank. I had seen them in the shops and I knew that they were horribly
expensive. My mouth had often watered at the sight of them.
“Madam wants to know if you had any of those giant asparagus,” I asked the
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waiter.
I tried with all my might to will him to say no. A happy smile spread over his
broad, priest-like face, and he assured me that they had some so large, so spendid,
so tender, that it was a marvel.
“I am not in the least hungry,” my guest sighed, “but if you insist I don’t mind
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having some asparagus.” I ordered them.
“Aren’t you going to have any?” “No, I never eat asparagus.
“ I know there are people who don’t like them. The fact is, you ruin your
palate by all the meat you eat.”
We waited for the asparagus to be cooked. Panic seized me. It was not a question
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now how much money I should have left over for the rest of the month, but
whether I had enough to pay the bill. It would be mortifying to find myself ten
francs short and be obliged to borrow from my guest. I could not bring myself to
do that. I knew exactly how much I had and if the bill came to more I made up my
mind that I would put my hand in my pocket and with a dramatic cry start up and
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say it had been picked. Of course, it would be awward if she had not money

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 enough either to pay the bill. Then the only thing would be to leave my watch and
say I would come back and pay later.
The asparagus appeared. They were enormous, succulent and appetizing. The
smell of the melted butter tickled my nostrils as the nostrils of Jehovah were
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tickled by the burned offerings of the virtuous Semites. I watched the abandoned
woman thrust them down her throat in large voluptuous mouthful and in my
polite way I discoursed on the condition of the drama in the Balkans. At last she
finished.
“Coffee?! I said.
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“Yes, just an ice cream and coffee,” she answered.
I was past caring now, so I ordered coffee for myself and an ice cream and coffee
for her.
“You know there ‘s one thing I thoroughly believe in, “ she said, as she ate the
ice-cream. One should always get up from a meal feeling one could eat a little
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more.”
“Are you still hungry?” I asked weakly.
“Oh no, I’m not hungry, you see, I don’t eat luncheon. I have a cup of coffee in
the morning and then dinner but I never eat more than one thing for luncheon. I
was speaking for you.”
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Oh, I see!”
Then a terrible thing happened. While we were waiting for the coffee, the head
waiter with an ingratiating smile on his false face came up to us bearing a large
basket full of huge peaches. They had the blush of an innocent girl; they had the
rich tone of an Italian country. But surely peaches were not in season then? Lord
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knew what they cost. I knew too-a little later, for my guest going on with her
conversation, absent-mindedly took one.
“You see, you’ve filled your stomach with a lot of meat” – my one miserable little
chop - and you can’t eat any more. But I’ve just had a snack and I shall enjoy a
peach.”
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The bill came and when I paid it I found that I had only enough for a quite
inadequate tip. Her eyes rested for an instant on the three francs I left for the
waiter and I knew that she thought me mean. But when I walked out of the
restaurant I had the whole month before me and not a penny in my pocket.
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 “Follow my example,” she said as we shook hands, “and never eat more than one
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thing for luncheon.
“I will do better than that,” I retorted. “I will eat nothing for dinner tonight.”
“Humorist!” she cried gaily, jumping into the cab. “You are quite a humorist.”
But I have had my revenge at last. I do not believe that I am a vindictive man, but
when the immortal gods take a hand in the matter it is pardonable to observe the
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result with complacency. Today she weighs one hundred and thirty-three
kilograms.

Notes:
Somerset Maugham (1874-1965): British fiction writer, essayist, playwright famous
for his mastery of story- telling skills.
• Luncheon: a light lunch
• Keep body and soul together: survive, stay alive with just enough of the food and
clothing that you need
• Bill of fare: list of food offered.
• Effusive: showing too much emotion.
• Took me quite seriously to task: ( take somebody to task for something): criticize me
strongly for what I have done
• Airy gesture: in a way showing that you are not worried
• Mortifying: embarrassing.
• Jehovah: the deity /jehouv /
• Semites: referring to Jewish worshippers
The burned offering was the higest order of Sacrifice in the Old Testament Bible. The
writer means the dish is horribly delicious and expensive
• Abandoned: indecent, not following accepted standards
• voluptuous: giving physical pleasure
• Complacency: satisfaction

QUESTIONS :
1. Analyze the plot of the story according to the common pattern you have learned in
the preceding part: situation, complication, climax and solution.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………
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……………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………
2. What methods of characterization does the writer adopt? Direct or Indirect?
.............................................................................................................................................
..........................................
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………
3. How is the woman characterized? Give evidence to prove the writer’s expert skill in
portraying character.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………
4. The writer makes use of some literary devices:
• Flashback: presentation of what occurred before the events of the story to provide
important information.
• Foreshadowing: providing hints or clues to prepare readers for what is going to
happen.
• Verbal irony : contrast between what a speaker literally says and what he or she says
• Situational irony: a situation turns out to be the reverse of what is expected.
• Dramatic irony: state of affairs known to the reader is the reverse of what the
character supposes it to be.
Identify where in the story these devices are adopted?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
5. State the theme of the story.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
6. If you were the writer, would you do the same?
.............................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................

7. From what perspective is the story told? What is effect of that perspective?

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……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………

VERIFICATION
Versification is the art or practice of composing verses.
1. Foot: In a line of poetry foot is the basic rhythmic unit of measurement. A foot often
consists of at least one stressed syllable and one or more unstressed syllables. The
number and types of feet in a line of a poem determine its meter.
The most common feet in English poetry are:
* Iamb (iambic: adjective): consists of one unstressed syllable followed by one
stressed syllable- a rising meter: the foot rising toward the stress. The iamb is said to be
the most common in English poetry
I saw the sky descending black and white.
* Trochee (trochaic) : one stressed syllable followed by one unstressed- a falling
meter: the foot falling away from the stress.
Let her live to earn her dinners
* Anapest: (anapestic) two unstressed syllables followed by one stressed- arising
meter
There are many who say that a dog has his day
* Dactyl ( dactylic): one stressed syllable followed by two unstressed- a falling meter
Take her up tenderly
* Spondee: consists of two stressed syllables.
Smart lad, to slip betimes away.

2. Meter: the fixed or nearly fixed pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in the
lines of a poem that produces its pervasive rhythm. The basic unit of rhythm is the foot.
Meter is determined by the type and number of feet in a line: monometer (1 foot),
dimeter (2 feet), trimeter ( 3 feet), tetrameter ( 4 feet), pentameter ( 5), hexameter (6),
heptameter (7), octameter (8).
Thus the meter of a line of poetry consisting of 5 iambic feet is called iambic
pentameter.
Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea. (Shakespeare).
A line ending with a stress has a masculine ending; a line ending with an extra
unstressed syllable has a feminine ending.
3. Rhyme: the repetition of the identical or similar stressed sound or sounds. It is
pleasant in itself ; it also may be related to meaning. The most common form of rhyme
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is end rhyme ( coming at the end of the lines of poetry). Rhyme within the line is
called internal rhyme. Rhyme of one syllable is masculine rhyme. Two-syllable rhyme
is called feminine rhyme.
Perfect or exact rhymes occur when differing consonant-sounds are followed by
identical stressed vowel sounds: foe/toe, meet/fleet, buffer/rougher.
Half rhyme ( slant/ approximate/near/ off rhyme): Only the final consonant sounds of
the rhyming words are identical; the stressed vowel sounds as well as the initial
consonant sounds, if any, differ : soul/oil, mirth/forth, trolley/bully.
4. Rhyme scheme: The pattern of rhymes in a stanza or poem is usually indicated by
letters of the alphabet. The most common rhyme scheme for the quatrain ( a four-line
stanza, in which the end sound of the first line rhymes with that of the third, and the
second with the fourth : ABAB.
5. Rhythm: the patterned flow of sound in poetry and prose based on meter. Other
sound devices such as rhyme, alliteration, consonance, assonance contribute greatly to
rhythm.

PART 2 : THE HISTORY OF BRITISH LITERATURE

Part 2 contains some basic knowledge of the development of British literature
throughout history, the social and historical background as well as the representative
literary works and authors of each particular period.
THE OLD ENGLISH PERIOD (450- 1066 A.D)

Historical Background

More important than the Celts and the Romans for the development of the
English language was the succession of invasions from continental Europe after
the Roman withdrawal. No longer protected by the Roman military against the
constant threat from the Picts and Scots of the North, the Celts felt themselves
increasingly vulnerable to attack. Other Germanic tribes soon began to make the
short journey across the North Sea: the Angles (from the land which connects
modern Denmark with Germany),the Frisian people from northern Holland and
western Germany and later, the Saxons (from north-western Germany). Over
time, these Germanic tribes began to establish permanent bases and to gradually
displace the native Celts.

21
 Later the war-like and pagan Saxons gradually became the dominant group. The
new Anglo-Saxon nation, became known as Anglaland or Englaland (the Land
of the Angles), later shortened to England, and its emerging language as
Englisc (now referred to as Old English or Anglo-Saxon) .
The first masterpiece of English literature, the epic poem, the song of Beowulf, is
a spendid story of adventure, a record of Anglo-Saxon life and an illustration of
the ideals and values, which constitute a part of Old English life
The story is set in Scandinavia written in Old English. It is assumed to be
composed around the 8th century The verse form contains complicated rules of
alliteration designed to help scops or poets remember thousands of lines by
heart. Beowulf also features the use of kenning, a short metaphorical
description of a thing used in place of the name of that thing. (sea-rider for ship,
gold-giver for the king).
SUMMARY OF BEOWULF
Fill in the blanks with the appropriate words given in the box:
Guarding, plight, jubilant, trophy, thriving, fulfil, terrorizes, merrily,disturbs, honor,
in praise of, treacherous, unarmed, slinks.

King Hrothgar of Denmark enjoys a happy ........................ reign. He builds a great

mead-hall, called Heorot, where his warriors can gather to drink, receive gifts from
their lord, and listen to stories sung by the scops. But the ......................... laughters from
Heorot angers Grendel, a horrible demon living in the swamplands of Hrothgar’s
kingdom. Grendel ……………………….. the Danes every night, killing and
kidnapping woman and children.. The Danes suffer many years of fear, danger, and
death at the hands of Grendel. Eventually, however, a young Geatish warrior named
Beowulf hears of the…………………. and sails to Denmark with a small company of
men determining to defeat Grendel.
The king holds a feast to greet the hero, which lasts …………………………. into the
night. At last, however, Grendel arrives. Beowulf fights him ……………………..
proving himself stronger than the demon. As Grendel struggles to escape, Beowulf tears
the monster’s arm off. Mortally wounded, Grendel ………………………… back into
the swamp to die. The severed arm is hung high in the mead-hall as a
……………………………… of victory.
Overjoyed, the king showers Beowulf with gifts and gold at a feast
to…………………… his victory. Songs are sung ……………………….. Beowulf,
22
and the celebration lasts late into the night. But Grendel’s mother , taking shelter in a
desolate lake, comes to Heorot to revenge for her son’s death. She kills one of
Hrothgar’s most trusted advisers before escaping. Beowulf follows the monster to her
murky swamp diving into the water to fights Grendel’s mother . He kills her with a
sword and brings the head as a prize to Hrothgar. The Danish countryside is now
disposed of its ……………………..monsters.
The Danes now can live in peace, and Beowulf’s fame spreads across the kingdom.
Beowulf departs in glory.
In time, Beowulf ascends the throne of the Geats. He rules wisely for fifty years,
bringing prosperity to Geatland. However, when a thief………………… a mound,
where a great dragon lies ……………….. a horde of treasure, the dragon is furious
and breathes fire to destroy the Geats. Beowulf- now an old man- goes to fight the
dragon. With the aid of Wiglaf, he succeeds in killing the beast, but at a heavy cost. The
dragon bites Beowulf in the neck, and its fiery venom kills him during their encounter.
To …………….Beowulf’s wishes, the Geats burn their king’s body and bury him on a
huge hill overlooking the sea.

THE MIDDLE ENGLISH PERIOD (1066-1485)

Historical Background

A historical event_ the Norman Invasion of Britain_ marks the transition from Old
English to Middle English . Middle English is the long period of accommodation
between the Germanic language of the Anglo-Saxons (Old English) and the Latin-based
language of the Norman French.

THE NORMAN INVASION

The end of the Anglo-Saxon period was ushered in abruptly with the Norman French
invasion under William the Conqueror in 1066 at the Battle of Hastings. William, The
Duke of Normandy, sailed across the British Channel to challenge King Harold of
England in the struggle for the English throne. After winning the Battle of Hastings
where he defeated Harold, William was crowned King of England. A Norman Kingdom
was now established. The Anglo-Saxon period was over.
The Norman invasion naturally had a profound effect on England's institutions and its
language. French became the language of the upper class ; the Anglo-Saxon of the

23
lower class, who while remaining English-speaking, were influenced nevertheless by
the new language. French became the language of the court, government, education…
GEOFFREY CHAUCER: A Biography ( 1340?_1400)

Geoffrey Chaucer was born into a well-to-do merchant family in London. He has been
honored as the Father of English Literature and the first great humorist and realist. .
He died in 1400 and was buried in Westminster Abbey. A monument was erected to
him in 1556 in the reign of Mary Tudor, beginning the tradition of Poet’s Corner.
THE CANTERBURY TALES ( by Geoffrey Chaucer)
Geoffrey Chaucer (1343 - 1400) is often called the Father of English literature. His
most famous work is the wonderful Canterbury Tales, written around 1387 and
published in 1400, the year he died.
Having recently passed the six hundredth anniversary of its publication, the book is still
of interest to modern students for several reasons. For one thing, The Canterbury
Tales is recognized as the first book of poetry written in the English language.
Before Chaucer's time, even poets who lived in England wrote in Italian or Latin, which
meant that poetry was only understandable to people of the wealthy, educated class.
English was considered low class and vulgar. The Canterbury Tales helped make
English a legitimate language to work in. Besides, the book also offers a rich
description of medieval social life combining elements of all classes, from nobles to
workers, from priests and nuns to drunkards and thieves. The General Prologue alone
provides a panoramic view of society that is not like any found elsewhere in all of
literature. Chaucer has been greatly admired for his technique in capturing the
variations of human temperament and behavior. The genius of The Canterbury
Tales is that the individual stories are presented in a continuing
narrative, showing how all of the various pieces of life connect to one another.
The Setting Of The Canterbury Tales
In April, on the beginning of spring, people of varying social classes come from all over
England to gather at the Tabard Inn in preparation for a pilgrimage to Canterbury to pay
homage to St.Thomas a Becket, the English martyr. That evening, the Host of the
24
Tabard Inn suggests that each member of the group tell tales on the way to and from
Canterbury in order to while away the tedium of the journey. The best story teller will
be awarded an elegant dinner at the end of the trip. The Host decides to accompany the
party on the pilgrimage to be the judge of the best tale.

THE RENAISSANCE (The Elizabethan Age) (1485-1660)

Historical background:

The Renaissance began in Italy during the 14th century and extended to England at
least past the middle of the 17th century.
Renaissance means rebirth_ the “rebirth” or revival of interest in ancient Greek and
Roman literature and civilization. Besides people of that age also seemed to be reborn
in the ways that they began to realize the capacities of the human mind and the
achievements of human culture, in contrast to the medieval emphasis on God and the
contempt for the things of this world. They were more optimistic believing that earthy
happiness was achievable and depended on their own capabilities. They were the real
masters of their life.
The Renaissance was a time of territorial exploration and discovery. Christopher
Columbus reached the New World in 1492. His voyage of discovery dramatically
expanded the world that Europeans had previously known. This was also an era of
wonderful scientific achievements: Newton with the law of Gravity, Galileo Corpenius
with his discoveries about the stars and planets, Kepler with those about the orbits of
planets.
In England, Henry Tudor was crowned King Henry VII (1485- 1509) to establish the
Tudor dynasty, which was to rule the country for more than a century. Henry VIII, a
wilful and audacious man, came to the throne in 1509. He asked for a divorce with his
wife Catherine of Aragon but was refused by the Pope. Henry then not only defied the
Pope and remarried he also declared himself Supreme head of the Church in England (
also known as the Anglican Church). The immediate consequence of this was that Sir
Thomas More-the leading figure of the early Renaissance in England- was executed due
to his opposition to Henry’s divorce.
On the death of Henry VIII in 1547, Edward VI –his nine-year-old son came to the
throne but he died prematurely in 1553. The crown fell to his older sister Mary (1553-
1558)_ the offspring of Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon. She was half
Spanish and a devout Catholic. She became the wife of Philip II of Spain and instituted
25
a reign of terror against English Protestants in an attempt to return England to Catholic
authority Bloody Mary). But Mary died after only 5 years on the throne , and her half-
sister Elizabeth 1 (1558-1603)_ Henry WIII’s daughter by his second wife- Anne
Boleyn_ became Queen. Only 25 when she came to the throne, she started one of the
most glorious ages in the history of England.
Her time witnessed a marvelous literary growth. Sir Philip Sidney (1554-1586) and
Edmund Spencer (1552- 1599) were two leading literary figure. Spencer’s masterpiece
The Faerie was written to dedicate to Queen Elizabeth.
Another literary achievement of her reign was the drama with the remarkable dramatic
works by William Shakespeare.
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE : A Biography

Shakespeare has been acclaimed as one of the greatest playwrights also the most
performed and read author of the world.
Born to John Shakespeare, a glovemaker and tradesman, and Mary Arden, the daughter
of an affluent farmer, William Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564, in
Stratford-upon-Avon. As the third of eight children, young William grew up in this
small town 100 miles northwest of London, far from the cultural and courtly center of
England.
Shakespeare attended the local grammar school, King's New School, where the
curriculum would have stressed a classical education of Greek mythology, Roman
comedy, ancient history, rhetoric, grammar, Latin, and possibly Greek. Throughout his
childhood, Shakespeare's father struggled with serious financial debt. Therefore, unlike
his fellow playwright Christopher Marlowe, he did not attend university. Rather, in
1582 at age 18, he married Anne Hathaway, a woman eight years his senior. Their first
child, Susanna, was born in 1583, and twins, Hamnet and Judith, came in 1585. In the
seven years following their birth, the historical record concerning Shakespeare is
incomplete, contradictory, and unreliable; scholars refer to this period as his “lost
years.”

26
 In a 1592, Shakespeare came back to the stage. Between 1590 and 1592,
Shakespeare's Henry VI series, Richard III, andThe Comedy of Errors were performed.
When the theaters were closed in 1593 because of the plague, the playwright wrote two
narrative poems, Venus and Adonisand The Rape of Lucrece, and probably began
writing his richly textured sonnets. One hundred and fiftyfour of his sonnets have
survived, ensuring his reputation as a gifted poet. By 1594, he had also written, The
Taming of the Shrew, The Two Gentlemen of Verona and Love's Labor's Lost.
Having established himself as an actor and playwright, in 1594 Shakespeare became a
shareholder in the Lord Chamberlain's Men, one of the most popular acting companies
in London. He remained a member of this company for the rest of his career, often
playing before the court of Queen Elizabeth I. Two years later, he joined others from
the Lord Chamberlain's Men in establishing the Globe Theatre on the outskirts of
London.. During King James's reign, Shakespeare wrote many of his most
accomplished plays about courtly power, including King Lear, Macbeth, and Antony
and Cleopatra. In 1609 or 1611, Shakespeare's sonnets were published, though he did
not live to see the First Folio of his plays published in 1623.
In 1616, with his health declining, Shakespeare revised his will. Since his only son
Hamnet had died in 1596, Shakespeare left the bulk of his estate to his two daughters,
with monetary gifts set aside for his sister, theater partners, friends, and the poor of
Stratford. A fascinating detail of his will is that he bequeathed the family's “second best
bed” to his wife Anne. He died one month later, on April 23, 1616. To the world, he left
a lasting legacy in the form of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, and two narrative poems.
Four Periods of Shakespeare's Life
Shakespeare’s dramatic work can be divided into into four periods.:
(1) The period of experimentation up to 1594: characterized by the exuberance of
youthful love and imagination. Among the plays typical of these years areThe Comedy
of Errors, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Romeo and Juliet, Richard II and Richard III.
(2) The second period from 1595 to 1600, shows progress in dramatic art. There is less
exaggeration, more real power, and a deeper insight into human nature. There appears
in his philosophy a touch of sadness. Some plays of this period are The Merchant of
Venice, Henry IV, Henry V, and As You Like It.
(3) We may characterize the third period, from 1601 to 1608, as one in which
Shakespeare felt that the time was out of joint, that life was a fitful fever. The great
plays of this period are tragedies, among which we may quote Julius
Caesar*, Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, and King Lear.
27
 (4) The plays of his fourth period, 1608_1613, are remarkable for calm strength and
sweetness. The fierceness of Othello and Macbeth is left behind. The greatest plays of
this period are Cymbeline, The Winter's Tale, and The Tempest.

HAMLET (Tragedy by William Shakespeare)

Some facts about Hamlet:
 Hamlet is the most frequently performed play around the world. It has been calculated
that a performance begins somewhere in the world every minute of every day.
 The opening line of the soliloquy,”to be or not to be, that is the question” is the most
searched for Shakespeare quote on the internet.
 Hamlet is Shakespeare’s longest play with 4,042 lines.
 The first performance of Hamlet was by the King’s Men at the Globe theater between
1600 and 1601.
Famous quotes in Hamlet:
 Frailty, thy name is woman!
 Something is rotten in Denmark.
 Though this be madness, yet there is method in it.
 One may smile, and smile and be a villain.
 God hath given you one face, and you make yourself another.
 The lady doth protest too much, me think.
QUESTION : Research the plot of the tragedy and state who the speakers are and in
what situation.

SOLILOQUY by HAMLET
1 To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
5 And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, ’tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish’d. To die, to sleep;
10
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;
28
 For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there’s the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
15 For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor’s wrong, the proud man’s contumely,
The pangs of despised love, the law’s delay,
The insolence of office and the spurns
That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
20 When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? Who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscover’d country from whose bourn
25 No traveller returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
And thus the native hue of resolution
30 Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action.
Notes:
* Ay there’s the rub: that’s where the problem is
* That flesh is heir to: that we are born to suffer .
* Shuffled off this mortal coil: leave this human life
* Contumely: insolence
* There’s the respect: that’s what we have to consider.
* Spurns: scorns, insolence
* Quietus: final peace, a release from life.
* With a bare bodkin: with just a small dagger
* Fardels: heavy loads
* Bourn: boundary
* Hue: color, cast
29
* of great pitch and moment: of great significance
* Turn awry: turn in the wrong direction
* Lose the name of action: can not be realized.

QUESTIONS:
1. What is the question for Hamlet to consider as shown in : “ to be or not to be”?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
2. What is the metaphorical meaning of “ the slings and arrows”?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
3. Identify the figures of speech used in : “the sea of troubles”
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
4.Hamlet ponders between the two ways to follow. What are they? Use your own
words. (lines 2-5)
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
5. What is the effect of “no more” in line 6?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
6. Summarize all the blows of fortune afflicted on human beings Hamlet mentions in
his soliloquy.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
7. Why is Death seen as a consummation?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………

30
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
8. “Ay, there’s the rub” ( line 10 ) marks a turning point that changes the direction of
the argument. In what way?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
9. If death is just a dream, why does it seem such a big problem for Hamlet?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
10.List other figures of speech used in the soliloquy.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………

SONNET :

1.What is a sonnet?
In modern usage the sonnet refers to a fourteen-line poem written in iambic pentameter
. The word sonnet comes from the Italian sonetto, which means “ “ little sound” or
“little song”. The sonnet originated in Italy in the 13th century and was introduced into
English poetry by Thomas Wyatt.
In the English sonnet, the lines are organized into three groups plus a final couplet. The
four-line groups are called quatrains. The rhyme scheme is usually abab, cdcd efef, gg.
The function of each quatrain is as follows:
Quatrain 1: Introduction to the theme.
Quatrain 2: Development of the theme
Quatrain 3: Reflection on the theme
Couplet : Conclusion
2.Shakespeare's Sonnets:
31
Sonnets are Shakespeare's most popular works. He wrote 154 sonnets over an extended
period from 1592 to 1598. All of them suggest a story, although the exact details of that
story are elusive and mysterious. The first 126 sonnets are addressed mainly to a young
man of great beauty and promise, with whom the poet has an intense romantic
relationship. The speaker expressed his affection and admiration for the young man
urging him to marry to perpetuate his virtues through children. He also warns him about
the destructive forces of time, old age and moral weakness. Sonnets 78-86 are
concerned with a rival poet who has also addressed poems to the young man. Sonnets
127-154 are addressed to a lady (dark lady) with dark hair, eyes and complexion. Both
the speaker and the young man seem to be involved with her romantically.
There has always been much speculation about the bibliographical meaning of the
sonnets, but no one has ever produced a convincing theory. The sonnets could finally be
understood as the fictional means by which Shakespeare explores universal questions
about Time and Death, Beauty and Love and about poetry itself.

SONNET 73
That time of year thou mayst in me behold
When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
Bare ruined choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.

In me thou see'st the twilight of such day

As after sunset fadeth in the west;
Which by and by black night doth take away,
Death's second self, that seals up all in rest.

In me thou see'st the glowing of such fire,

That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
As the death-bed, whereon it must expire,
Consumed with that which it was nourish'd by.

This thou perceiv'st, which makes thy love more strong,

To love that well, which thou must leave ere long.

QUESTIONS:
32
1. Who is the speaker? To whom does he address?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………….............................
2. Which season of the year does the speaker compare himself with? Give evidence in
quatrain 1.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………

3.What time of the day does the speaker mention in quatrain 2?

……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
3. There is a shift from the changing of the seasons to the passing of day and night.
What is its effect?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
4. What are the images of growing old in this quatrain?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
5. What does the speaker refer to by “ Death’s second self”?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
6. Explain what you understand by “ In me thou see….doth lie” ( quatrain 3)
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
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7. What does “that” ( line 12) refer to? And “this” ( line 14)?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
8. Explain the meaning of “ Consumed with that which it was nourished by”.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
10. How do the three principal images introduced in the three quatrains relate to the
mood and theme of the poem?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
11.What is the speaker’s warning as shown in the couplet?
.............................................................................................................................................
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
12. List some literary devices used in the sonnet.
.............................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................

SONNET 93:

So shall I live, supposing thou art true,

Like a deceived husband; so love's face
May still seem love to me, though altered new;
Thy looks with me, thy heart in other place:

For there can live no hatred in thine eye,

Therefore in that I cannot know thy change.
In many's looks, the false heart's history
Is writ in moods, and frowns, and wrinkles strange.

But heaven in thy creation did decree

That in thy face sweet love should ever dwell;
34
 Whate'er thy thoughts, or thy heart's workings be,
Thy looks should nothing thence, but sweetness tell.

How like Eve's apple doth thy beauty grow,

If thy sweet virtue answer not thy show!

Notes:
* So love’s face: your love for me - the appearance of love
* Thy looks with me: your loving look, your nice behavior
* In that: in your outward appearance, in your seeming affection for me.
* The false heart’s history: evidence of deception or betrayal.
* Answer not: not match, not correspond with

QUESTIONS:
1. What do you think is the theme of the poem?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
2. What is the effect of the syntax used in line 1?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
3. Explain the meaning of line 3.
.............................................................................................................................................
...........……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………
4. Explain lines 7 and 8.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………

35
5. What is the symbol of Eve’s apple? What is the relationship between this symbol and
the theme of the poem?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
6. In short why is the speaker unable to see the change in his beloved’s heart?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………

SONNET 116

Let me not to the marriage of true minds

Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:

O, no! it is an ever-fixed mark,

That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.

Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks

Within his bending sickle's compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.

If this be error and upon me proved,

I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

QUESTIONS:
1. What is the sonnet about?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
36
 ……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
2. What does the speaker mean by “ the marriage of true minds”?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
3. What is a synonym of “ impediments”?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
4. How does the speaker define love in lines 2 and 3?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
5. What is the nature of true love by the description “ever-fix’d mark?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
6. Identify a figure of speech used in line 6. What is its meaning?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
7. How is love defined in lines 7 and 8?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………

8. “Love’s not Time’s fool” . Explain the meaning.

37
….........................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................
.......................
9. What does “his” in line 10 refer to?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
10. What does” bending sickle’s compass “ mean?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
11.What does the writer mean about love in lines 11 and 12?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
12. Summarize what the speaker means as shown in the couplet.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………

THE RESTORATION
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The 17th century was a time of religious and political turmoil in England. The violent
conflict between Anglicans and Puritans was the cause of national instability. Thus in
1620, the first Pilgrims sailed across the Atlantic to the New World in pursuit of
religious freedom.

38
 This was also a time of political unrest. James VI of Scotland (succeeding the throne at
the death of Elizabeth 1) imposed high taxes and was rejected by Parliament dominated
by Puritans.
The Civil War or the Bourgeois Revolution happened when Charles I ( son of James
VI) imprisoned parliament members. Prince of Wales at the time of the English Civil
War, Charles II fled to France after Oliver Cromwell’s Parliamentarians defeated King
Charles I’s Royalists in 1646. In 1649, Charles II vainly attempted to save his father’s
life by presenting Parliament a signed blank sheet of paper, thereby granting whatever
terms were required. However, Oliver Cromwell was determined to execute Charles I,
and on January 30, 1649, the king was beheaded in London.
Oliver Cromwell established “The Commonwealth of England” with him serving as
Lord Protector leading to an interruption of the monarchy of England for the first time.
Oliver ran a dictatorial government.
After his father’s death, Charles II was proclaimed king of England by the Scots and by
supporters in parts of Ireland and England, and he traveled to Scotland to raise an army.
In 1651, Charles invaded England but was defeated by Cromwell at the Battle of
Worcester. Charles escaped to France and later lived in exile in Germany and then in
the Spanish Netherlands. After Cromwell’s death in 1658, his son Richard proved an
ineffectual lead; ,thus in 1660, in what is known as the English Restoration, General
George Monck met with Charles and arranged to restore him in exchange for a promise
of amnesty and religious toleration for his former enemies. On May 25, 1660, Charles
entered London in triumph. It was his 30th birthday, and London rejoiced at his arrival.
In the first year of the Restoration, Oliver Cromwell was posthumously convicted of
treason and his body disinterred from its tomb in Westminster Abbey and hanged from
the gallows at Tyburn.

When Charles II died. His brother James II- an all-powerful monarch- was not
supported. In 1688 he fled to France leaving the throne to Mary- his daughter- and her
husband- William of Orange. This marked the end of the Absolute Monarchy and the
beginning of Constitutional Monarchy.
Literature of the Restoration:
* Dryden was the most influential writer of the Restoration writing various literary
forms― verses, comedy, tragedy, heroic plays, , satires, translations of classical
works—and produced influential critical essays concerning how one ought to write
these forms.
39
John Milton: Paradise Lost.

THE AGE OF REASON

(The Enlightenment or The 18th century)
Historical Background

The Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason came into being during the 1700s
when mankind was emerging from centuries of ignorance into a new age enlightened by
reason, science, and respect for humanity. People of the Enlightenment were convinced that
human reason could discover the natural laws of the universe and assert the natural
rights of mankind; thereby vast progress in knowledge, technology, and moral values
would be realized.
This new way of thinking led to the development of a new religion known as Deism.
Deists believed in God as a great inventor or architect who had created the universe then
allowed it to function like a machine or clock without divine intervention. Deists believed
in a life after death, but they also supported that human achievement and happiness could
be achieved in the present life.
People of the Enlightenment valued the power of the mind to reason and to determine
realities. They deprecated passions and emotions. They saw reason as the ruling principle
of life and the key to progress and perfection. The most striking quality of the 18th
century was its optimism. People of that time thought they were passing through a golden
period similar to that of the Roman emperor Augustus. For this reason the name
“Augustan” was given to the early 18th century.
Merchants gained tremendous economic power at this time. Scientific discoveries were
encouraged. Many important inventions—for example, the spinning Jenny, the power
loom, and the steam engine—brought about an industrial society. Cities grew in size,
and London began to function as a great industrial and commercial center. In addition
to a comfortable life, the members of the middle class demanded a respectable,
moralistic art that was controlled by common sense.
Literature of the Age of Reason:
Swift: attacked hypocrisy in Gulliver’s Travels (1726): a famous satire in English.
Pope: The Rape of the Lock.
Addison and Steele: outstanding essayists: Both wrote to criticize to criticize the social
customs and attitudes of their day.
40
Novel : the development of the novel is one of the great achievements of English
literature of this age.
Daniel Defoe, Samuel Richardson.

DANIEL DEFOE : A Biography

Daniel Defoe was born in 1660 in London, England. He became a merchant and
participated in several failing businesses, facing bankruptcy and aggressive creditors.
He was also a prolific political pamphleteer. Late in life he started writing fiction and
wrote Robinson Crusoe, one of the most widely read and influential novels of all time
Daniel Foe was the son of James Foe, a London butcher. Daniel later changed his name
to Daniel Defoe, wanting to sound more gentlemanly.
Defoe graduated from an academy at Newington Green, run by the Reverend Charles
Morton. Not long after, in 1683, he went into business, having given up an earlier intent
on becoming a minister. He traveled often, selling such goods as wine and wool, but
was rarely out of debt. He went bankrupt in 1692 (paying his debts for nearly a decade
thereafter), and by 1703, decided to leave business forever.
Having always been interested in politics, Defoe published his first literary piece, a
political pamphlet in 1683. He continued to write political works, working as a
journalist until the early 1700s. Many of Defoe's works during this period targeted
support for King William III, also known as "William Henry of Orange." Some of his
most popular works include The True-Born Englishman, which shed light on racial
prejudice in England .
Defoe took a new literary path in 1719, around the age of 59, when he
published Robinson Crusoe, a fiction novel based on several short essays that he had
composed over the years. A handful of novels followed soon after—often with rogues

41
 and criminals as lead characters—including Moll Flanders, Colonel Jack, Captain
Singleton, Journal of the Plague Year and his last major fiction piece, Roxana (1724).
In the mid-1720s, Defoe returned to writing editorial pieces, focusing on such subjects
as morality, politics and the breakdown of social order in England. Some of his later
works include Everybody's Business is Nobody's Business(1725); the nonfiction essay
"Conjugal Lewdness , Matrimonial Whoredom" (1727)
He died on April 24, 1731.
While little is known about Daniel Defoe's personal life—largely due to a lack of
documentation—Defoe is remembered today as a prolific journalist and author, and has
been applauded for his hundreds of fiction and nonfiction works, from political
pamphlets to other journalistic pieces, to fantasy-filled novels.

ROBINSON CRUSOE ( by Daniel Defoe)

Robinson Crusoe : is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719.

The story is seen as an example of the late 17th and early 18th century_ a style
influenced by rationalism. It is a smooth and convincing narrarive_ what the
American writer Willa Cather called “ vigorous, unornamental English.” The
novel has remained a popular classic for both adults and children and has been
translated into many languages and made into an opera and films.
The story is about a seaman, who was shipwrecked on a desert island and spent
twenty- eight years living there alone but finally triumphed over his state of
isolation.

Extract:
1
He was a comely, handsome fellow, perfectly well made, with straight, strong limbs,
not too large; tall, and well-shaped; and, as I reckon, about twenty-six years of age. He
had a very good countenance, not a fierce and surly aspect, but seemed to have
something very manly in his face; and yet he had all the sweetness and softness of a
5 European in his countenance, too, especially when he smiled. His hair was long and
black, not curled like wool; his forehead very high and large; and a great vivacity and
sparkling sharpness in his eyes. The colour of his skin was not quite black, but very
tawny; and yet not an ugly, yellow, nauseous tawny, as the Brazilians and Virginians,
and other natives of America are, but of a bright kind of a dun olive-colour, that had in
10 it something very agreeable, though not very easy to describe. His face was round and
42
 plump; his nose small, not flat, like the negroes; a very good mouth, thin lips, and his
fine teeth well set, and as white as ivory.
After he had slumbered, rather than slept, about half-an-hour, he awoke again, and
came out of the cave to me: for I had been milking my goats which I had in the
15 enclosure just by: when he saw me he came running to me, laying himself down again
upon the ground, with all the possible signs of a humble, thankful disposition, making a
great many antic gestures to show it. At last he lays his head flat upon the ground, close
to my foot, and sets my other foot upon his head, as he had done before; and after this
made all the signs to me of subjection, servitude, and submission imaginable, to let me
20 know how he would serve me so long as he lived. I understood him in many things, and
let him know I was very well pleased with him. In a little time I began to speak to him;
and teach him to speak to me: and first, I let him know his name should be Friday,
which was the day I saved his life: I called him so for the memory of the time. I
likewise taught him to say Master; and then let him know that was to be my name: I
25 likewise taught him to say Yes and No and to know the meaning of them. I gave him
some milk in an earthen pot, and let him see me drink it before him, and sop my bread
in it; and gave him a cake of bread to do the like, which he quickly complied with, and
made signs that it was very good for him. I kept there with him all that night; but as
soon as it was day I beckoned to him to come with me, and let him know I would give
30 him some clothes; at which he seemed very glad, for he was stark naked. As we went
by the place where he had buried the two men, he pointed exactly to the place, and
showed me the marks that he had made to find them again, making signs to me that we
should dig them up again and eat them. At this I appeared very angry, expressed my
abhorrence of it, made as if I would vomit at the thoughts of it, and beckoned with my
35
hand to him to come away, which he did immediately, with great submission. I then led
him up to the top of the hill, to see if his enemies were gone; and pulling out my glass I
looked, and saw plainly the place where they had been, but no appearance of them or
their canoes; so that it was plain they were gone, and had left their two comrades behind
them, without any search after them.
40 But I was not content with this discovery; but having now more courage, and
consequently more curiosity, I took my man Friday with me, giving him the sword in
his hand, with the bow and arrows at his back, which I found he could use very
dexterously, making him carry one gun for me, and I two for myself; and away we
marched to the place where these creatures had been; for I had a mind now to get some
45 further intelligence of them. When I came to the place my very blood ran chill in my
43
 veins, and my heart sunk within me, at the horror of the spectacle; indeed, it was a
dreadful sight, at least it was so to me, though Friday made nothing of it. The place was
covered with human bones, the ground dyed with their blood, and great pieces of flesh
left here and there, half-eaten, mangled, and scorched; and, in short, all the tokens of
50 the triumphant feast they had been making there, after a victory over their enemies.

QUESTIONS:
1. Who is the young fellow the writer is describing?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
2. What does the term “perfectly-well made” refer to? ( line 1 )
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
3. List the words used in par.2 showing the submissive behavior of the fellow.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
4. Give a modern equivalent for “ to get some further intelligence of them”
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
5. Why does the young fellow seem not to feel horror at the scene do you think?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
6. What had just happened on the island?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
44
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………

THE 19th CENTURY

The Romantic Period ( 1798_1837)
The beginning of the Romantic Age in Britain is usually set in 1798 when William
Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge published Lyrical Ballads.
Romanticism is a European not just an English development. In Germany, Romanticism
established itself during the 1790s even more strongly than in England. The French
Revolution itself was the most historical event of the Romantic period. Jean Jacques
Rousseau (1772-1778) was the most important eighteenth-century influence on later
European Romanticism.
The word” Romance” originally referred to highly imaginative medieval tales of
knightly adventure often involving amorous encounters between a knight and his lady.
When we speak of the “ Romantic Age”, we mean” romantic” in this older sense. The
term also refers indirectly to an interest in the charming magical world of medieval
romance.
The chief characteristics of the Romantic Age are usually defined by contrast with those
of the Age of Reason:

The Age Of Reason Romanticism

Stressed reason and judgement Emphasized imagination and

Concerned with the general or
universal in experience
Asserted the values of society as a
whole
Sought to follow the rules derived
from authority
Took inspiration from classical
Greek and Roman authors
emotion
Concerned with the particular
Championed the value of the
individual human being
Strove for freedom
Took interest in medieval subjects
and settings

45
Historical background:
Two political revolutions disturbed the English sense of security and well_ being
prevalent in the time of great prosperity and confidence of the 18th century: the
American Revolution (1775) (the revolt by the English colonies in America against
British rule and its victory was a blow to English confidence , and the French
Revolution (1789) ( signaling a rejection of authority and the victory of radical
democratic principles). William Wordsworth himself was among the enthusiastic
supporters of the Revolution in its early stages.
But the promise and expectation aroused by the early years of the Revolution soon gave
way to bitter disappointment. People witnessed the “ September Massacres” when
hundreds of the imprisoned nobility were executed. King Louis XVI was killed and The
Reign of Terror ended the life of thousands of those associated with the old regime.
Napoleon became a dictator striving to conquer Europe to establish a new dynasty.
Wordsworth expressed his disillusionment in his poem ,The prelude:
Frenchmen had changed a great war of self-defence.
For one of conquest, losing sight of all which they had struggled for…
In many ways, the historical issues were reflected in the main literary concerns of
Romantic writers. The French Revolution signaled an attempt to break with the old
order to establish a new social system. Much in the same way Romanticism sought to
free itself from the rules and standards of the 18th century literature to open up
new areas of vision and expression. The democratic idealism insisting on the rights and
dignity of the individual, which characterized the early stages of the French revolution,
corresponded with the writers’ interest in the language and experience of the common
people and the belief that writers must be free to explore their own imaginative
worlds. The main consequence of the Industrial Revolution_ the urbanization of
English life and landscape and the exploitation of the working class_ underlie the
Romantic writers’ love of the unspoiled natural world or remote settings far away from
urban turmoil and their compassion for the downtrodden and the oppressed.
Lyrical Ballads : has been acclaimed as the foundation of English Romantic poetry. It is
a collaboration between William Wordsworth ( 1770-1850) and Samuel Taylor
Coleridge ( 1772-1834).
The Second Generation of English Romantics: Byron, Shelley and Keats.

46
Fiction: Gothic novels became a popular form of fiction characterized by a dark
mysterious setting amid an atmosphere of terror and gloom. Frankenstein (1818) by
Mary Shelley is an example
Two novelists of the highest order of the Romantic period : Jane Austen (1775-1817)
and Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832). The year in which Scott died (1832) is commonly
taken to mark the end of the Romantic period.

WILLIAM WORDSWORTH (1770-1850)

William Wordsworth was born on April 7, 1770, in Cockermouth, Cumberland,

England. His mother died when he was 7, and he was an orphan at 13. Despite these
losses, he did well at Hawkshead Grammar School,where he wrote his first poems, and
went on to study at Cambridge University. He did not excel there, but managed to
graduate in 1791.
Wordsworth had visited France in 1790—in the midst of the French Revolution—and
was a supporter of the new government’s republican ideals. On a return trip to France
the next year, he fell in love with Annette Vallon.The affair sparked his inspiration for
the poem “ Vaudracour and Julia”. However, the declaration of war between England
and France in 1793 separated the two.
In 1795, Wordsworth received an inheritance that allowed him to live with his younger
sister, Dorothy. That same year, Wordsworth met Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The two
became friends, and together worked on Lyrical Ballads (1798). The volume contained
poems such as Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Wordsworth's Tintern
Abbey, and helped Romanticism take hold in English poetry.
The same year that Lyrical Ballads was published, Wordsworth began writing The
Prelude, an epic autobiographical poem that he would revise throughout his life (it was
published posthumously in 1850).
In 1802, a temporary lull in fighting between England and France meant that
Wordsworth was able to see Vallon and their daughter, Caroline. After returning to
47
England, he wed Mary Hutchinson, who gave birth to the first of their five children in
1803. Wordsworth was also still writing poetry, including the famous I Wandered
Lonely as a Cloud and Ode: Intimations of Immortality. These pieces were published in
another Wordsworth collection ,Poems, in Two Volumes (1807).
In 1843, Wordsworth became England's poet laureate, a position he held for the rest of
his life. At the age of 80, he died on April 23, 1850, at his home in Rydal Mount,
Westmorland, England.

I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud (By William Wordsworth)

Notes :
I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud (also commonly known as Daffodils ) is a lyric
poem by William Wordsworth also his most famous work.
The poem was inspired by an event on 15 April 1802, in which Wordsworth and his
sister Dorothy came across a "long belt" of daffodils. Written some time between 1804
and 1807 it was first published in 1807 in Poems in Two Volumes and a revised version
was published in 1815
In a poll conducted in 1995 by the BBC Radio 4 Bookworm programme to determine
the nation's favourite poems, I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud came
fifth. Often anthologised, the poem is commonly seen as a classic of
English romantic poetry, although Poems in Two Volumes, in which it first appeared,
was poorly reviewed by Wordsworth's contemporaries.

I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud (By William Wordsworth)

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
48
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they

Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
QUESTIONS:
1. Identify the figure of speech as used in the title of the poem. What do you understand
by the comparison?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………

2. List the other figures of speech used in the poem. Explain the effect of these figures.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
3. Rewrite in the normal order the following lines:
• Ten thousand saw I at a glance.
• I gazed- and gazed- but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought.
What is the effect of the inversion?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
49
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
4. List the words that communicate the feeling of joy in the poem.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
5. “I saw a crowd”. Crowd is a clever choice of words. What do you think is the
suggestive meaning of the term?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
6. What does the speaker mean by “inward eye”? and “the bliss of solitude”?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
7. State the theme of the poem in your own words.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………

The World Is Too Much With Us

(by William Wordsworth)

The world is too much with us; late and soon,

Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;—
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
50
It moves us not. Great God! I’d rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;
So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathèd horn.
Notes:
* Sordid boon: use of oxymoron suggesting a sarcastic remark.
Sordid: dirty, vile, selfish
Boon: reward, benefit
* Proteus: sea god of rivers and oceans in Greek mythology. He could transform
himself into any shape like ever-changing sea waves.
* Triton: Greek god, who by blowing on his trumpet- wreathed or spiral, could make
the sea waves stormy or calm.
* Pagan: who does not not adhere to any of the traditional world religions ( he (she)
has no official doctrine but takes a strong spiritual interest in nature.
This sonnet is one of the many excellent sonnets written by William Wordsworth in the
early 1800s. It takes the form of a Petrarchan sonnet( modeled after the work of
Petrarch-an Italian poet)
It is organized into:
• An Octave: ( the first 8 lines of the poem): proposing a problem
• A Setest: the final 6 lines: suggesting a solution
The rhyme scheme of this sonnet: ABBA-ABBA for the octave and CDCDCD for the
setest.
QUESTIONS :
1. Explain what you understand by line 1.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
2. What does the speaker mean by “ our powers”? In what way do we “ lay waste our
powers”?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………

51
 ……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
3. In what ways have we “ given our hearts” away?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
4. Explain the meaning of “ out of tune”. Explain what the poet means by line 8.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
5. What is the effect of “Great God!” ?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
6. What could make the poet “ less forlorn”?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………

BYRON: A biography

52
Byron is regarded as one of the greatest British poets and is best known for his amorous
lifestyle and his brilliant use of the English language.
George Gordon Byron was born on January 22, 1788, the sixth of a rapidly fading
aristocratic family. As a boy, George endured a father who abandoned him, a moody
mother and a nurse who abused him. As a result, he lacked discipline and a sense of
moderation- the traits he held on to his entire life.
In 1798, at age 10, George inherited the title of his great-uncle, William Byron, and was
officially recognized as Lord Byron. In 1803, Byron fell deeply in love with his distant
cousin, Mary Chaworth, and this unrequited passion found expression in several poems,
including Hills of Annesley and The Adieu.
From 1805 to 1808, Byron attended Trinity College intermittently engaging in many
sexual escapades and fell deep into debt.
After receiving a bitter review of his first volume of poetry, Hours of Idleness, in 1808,
Byron retaliated with the satirical poem English Bards and Scotch Reviewers. The
poem attacked the literary community with wit and satire, and gained him his first
literary recognition. Upon turning 21, Byron took his seat in the House of Lords. A year
later, with John Hobhouse, he embarked on a grand tour through the Mediterranean Sea
and began writing Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, a poem of a young man's reflections on
travel in foreign lands.
When he came back London on his mother’s death he got entangled in a series of love
affairs, first with the passionate and eccentric Lady Caroline Lamb, and then with Lady
Oxford. Then, in the summer of 1813, Byron apparently entered into an intimate
relationship with his half sister, Augusta, then married. The frustration and guilt he
experienced as a result of these love affairs were reflected in a series of dark and
repentant poems, The Giaour, The Bride of Abydos and The Corsair.
In September 1814, seeking to escape the pressures of his amorous adventures, Byron
proposed to the educated and intellectual Anne Isabella Milbanke (also known as
Annabella Milbanke). They married in January 1815, and in December of that year,
their daughter, Augusta Ada, better known as Ada Lovelace, was born. However, by
January the union crumbled. He was badly criticized for his lack of responsibility in
that relationship. He then decided to leave England never to come back
In October 1816, Byron sailed for Italy. Along the way he continued his lustful ways
and portrayed these experiences in his greatest poem, Don Juan_ the work that brought
him the greatest applause_ It is a long poem about a handsome young man’s adventures
and many of his love affairs.
53
Byron died on April 19, 1824, at age 36. He was deeply mourned in England . His body
was brought back to England, but the clergy refused to bury him at Westminster Abbey,
as was the custom for individuals of great merit. Instead, he was buried in the family
vault near Newstead. In 1969, a memorial to Byron was finally placed on the floor of
Westminster Abbey.

When We Two Parted ( by Byron)

When we two parted

In silence and tears,
Half broken-hearted
To sever for years,
Pale grew thy cheek and cold,
Colder thy kiss:
Truly that hour foretold
Sorrow to this.
The dew of the morning
Sunk chill on my brow–
It felt like the warning
Of what I feel now.
Thy vows are all broken,
And light is thy fame;
I hear thy name spoken,
And share in its shame.
They name thee before me,
A knell to my ear;
A shudder comes o’er me–
Why wert thou so dear?
They know not I knew thee,
Who knew thee so well–
Long, long I shall rue thee,
Too deeply to tell
54
In secret we met
In silence I grieve,
That thy heart could forget,
Thy spirit deceive
If I should meet thee
After long years,
How should I greet thee?–
With silence and tears.

Notes:
It has 4 stanzas containing 8 lines in each.
The rhyme scheme is ABABCDCD.
It is said that the poem was first published in 1816 but Byron falsely attributed its
writing to 1808 to distract readers from the subject of his poem, Lady Frances
Wedderburn Webster. The poem is highly autobiographical as it recounts Byron’s deep
pain at their separation when the lady had a scandalous relationship with another man.

QUESTIONS:

1.What experience does the speaker describe in stanza 1? What emotion is evoked by
the “silence and tears” imagery?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
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2. What sort of feeling overwhelms the speaker when he wakes up in the morning with”
chill on my brow”?
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3. Why does the speaker feel shame when her name is spoken?
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……………………………………………………………………………………………
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4. Who does the speaker refer to by the pronoun” they” in stanza 3? Why does the
sound of the name give him “a shudder”?
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5. What is the effect of the repetition “in silence and tears?
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ON MY THIRTY-THIRD BIRTHDAY ( by Byron)

Through life’s dull road, so dim and dirty,

I have dragged to three-and-thirty
What have these years left to me?
Nothing- except thirty-three
QUESTIONS :
1. Comment on the choice of the term “ dragged”. What is the suggestive meaning of
the term?
.........................................................................................................................................
.........................................................................................................................................
......................
2. What is the prevalent tone of the poem?
…………………………………………………………………………………………
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3. Interpret the last line of the poem.

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 …………………………………………………………………………………………
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THE VICTORIAN PERIOD (1832_1900)
Historical background:

During the Victorian period England became the wealthiest nation through the
expansion of the British Empire. It was a time of remarkable social and political
development. Under the system of Free Trade London growing more rapidly than ever
had become the world center for banking, insurance, and shipping. Technological and
scientific inventions, such as Michael Faraday’s development of electromagnetic
machinery promised even greater prosperity for the country.
English political life was then dominated by the Whigs and the Tories seeking the
support of the voting public.
The last 30 years of Victorian reign, the British Empire reached the height of its power
and influence ( The sun never sets on the British Empire). English rule extended to
Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, South Africa and many other parts of the world.
Middle-class Victorians believed in hard work, moral seriousness, and social
respectability. They were conservative and often repressive in their attitudes toward
worldly pleasures, private emotions, and personal relationships. They believed that
happiness and success could be achieved through strenuous effort and constant devotion
to duty.
Victorian Literature:
Prose: Thomas Carlyle ( 1795-1881), John Stuart Mill ( 1806-1873), Matthew
Arnold ( 1822-1888), Oscar Wilde ( 1854-1900).
Poetry: Alfred , Lord Tennyson ( 1809-1892), Robert Browning ( 1812-1889).
The Novel: Charles Dickens ( 1812-1870), William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-
1863), George Eliot ( 1819- 1863), Charlotte Bronte.

CHARLOTTE BRONTE : A Biography

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Charlotte Bronte was born in 1816, to Reverend Patrick and Maria Bronte in Thornton
of Yorkshire, England. She was the third of six children, including her sisters Emily and
Anne who were born in 1818 and 1820. In 1820, the Bronte family moved to Haworth,
a small town on the edge of the industrial Pennines, so that Patrick could secure a job as
a curate. Shortly after in 1821, Maria Bronte took ill and died. After Maria’s death, her
sister (Charlottes’s aunt) Elizabeth Branwell came to care for the children.
In 1824, the four eldest girls of the Bronte family (Maria, Elizabeth, Charlotte, and
Emily) were enrolled as pupils at the Clergy Daughters School at Cowan Bridge, a
boarding school for daughters of clergy. A year later in 1825, Maria and Elizabeth both
took ill at school and returned home to die. Charlotte and Emily, understandably,
followed their sisters home.
For the next six years, the remaining Bronte sisters, along with their brother Branwell,
were educated at home. During this period of time, Charlottes imagination flourished.
The children developed complex fantasy worlds of glass towns, and wrote of them in
dozens of microscopically printed books. In 1834, Charlotte and Branwell conceived a
complex world called Angria.
In 1831 Charlotte left home and became a pupil at Miss Wooler’s Boarding School for
Young Ladies at Roe’s Head; she then taught there as a governess from 1835-1838. In
1839 Charlotte accepted a position as a private governess for the Sidgewick family, and
in 1841 took up the same position in the White family. She left both positions after a
few months time.
In 1841, upon Charlottes return to Haworth from being a governess, Charlotte, Emily,
and Anne Bronte decided to open their own school after the necessary and required
preparations had been fulfilled. Charlotte and Emily traveled to Brussels in 1842 to
complete their studies; Charlotte then, after a brief return home, remained in Brussels
until 1844.
Charlotte returned home in late 1844, and her and her sisters attempted to found their
own school, which was an utter failure. The following year, Charlotte decided to
publicly publish a selection of the three sisters poems under pseudonyms: Poems by

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Currer, Ellis, and Action Bell. Charlottes first novel, The Professor, was initially
rejected for publication (it was not published until 1857). In 1847 however, Charlotte’s
Jane Eyre, published again under the name Bell, became an instant success. Emily’s
Wuthering Heights and Ann’s Agnes Grey were also very popular.
Charlotte became engaged to Reverend Arthur Bell Nicholls, curate of Haworth and
associate of her father, in 1854. Though Charlotte and Nicholls were married, it is clear
that Charlotte only admired Nicholls and never truly loved him.
Emily and Branwell Bronte died in 1848, and Ann died in May of 1849. Later in 1854,
Charlotte, expecting a child, caught pneumonia and never recovered. She died on
March 31st 1855.

JANE EYRE

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 Extract 1

1 Habitually obedient to John, I came up to his chair: he spent some three minutes in
thrusting out his tongue at me as far as he could without damaging the roots: I knew he
60
 would soon strike, and while dreading the blow, I mused on the disgusting and ugly
appearance of him who would presently deal it. I wonder if he read that notion in my
5 face; for, all at once, without speaking, he struck suddenly and strongly. I tottered, and
on regaining my equilibrium retired back a step or two from his chair.
"That is for your impudence in answering mama awhile since," said he, "and for
your sneaking way of getting behind curtains, and for the look you had in your eyes two
minutes since, you rat!"
10 Accustomed to John Reed's abuse, I never had an idea of replying to it; my care was
how to endure the blow which would certainly follow the insult.
"What were you doing behind the curtain?" he asked.
"I was reading."
"Show the book."
15 I returned to the window and fetched it thence.
"You have no business to take our books; you are a dependent, mama says; you
have no money; your father left you none; you ought to beg, and not to live here with
gentlemen's children like us, and eat the same meals we do, and wear clothes at our
mama's expense. Now, I'll teach you to rummage my bookshelves: for they are mine;
20 all the house belongs to me, or will do in a few years. Go and stand by the door, out of
the way of the mirror and the windows."
I did so, not at first aware what was his intention; but when I saw him lift and poise the
book and stand in act to hurl it, I instinctively started aside with a cry of alarm: not soon
enough, however; the volume was flung, it hit me, and I fell, striking my head against
25 the door and cutting it. The cut bled, the pain was sharp: my terror had passed its
climax; other feelings succeeded.

QUESTIONS :

1. Set the situation for the extract.

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2. Give evidence in the extract to show that Jane is constantly the victim ofthe boy’s
violence.

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 .............................................................................................................................................
...........
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3. What do you think is going to happen when Jane said, “my terror had passed its
climax; other feelings succeeded”.
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Extract 2

1 "Jane, do you hear that nightingale singing in the wood? Listen!"

In listening, I sobbed convulsively; for I could repress what I endured no longer; I was
obliged to yield, and I was shaken from head to foot with acute distress. When I did
speak, it was only to express an impetuous wish that I had never been born, or never
5 come to Thornfield.
"Because you are sorry to leave it?"
The vehemence of emotion, stirred by grief and love within me, was claiming mastery,
and struggling for full sway, and asserting a right to predominate, to overcome, to live,
rise, and reign at last: yes, — and to speak.
10
"I grieve to leave Thornfield: I love Thornfield: — I love it, because I have lived in it a
full and delightful life, — momentarily at least. I have not been trampled on. I have not
been petrified. I have not been buried with inferior minds, and excluded from every
glimpse of communion with what is bright and energetic and high. I have talked, face to
face, with what I reverence, with what I delight in, — with an original, a vigorous, an
15
expanded mind. I have known you, Mr. Rochester; and it strikes me with terror and
anguish to feel I absolutely must be torn from you for ever. I see the necessity of
departure; and it is like looking on the necessity of death

QUESTIONS :

1. What is the situation of the extract?

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 ……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
2. Explain in simple English what you understand by “ The vehemence of emotion was
claiming mastery and struggling for full sway”.

……………………………………………………………………………………………
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Why does Jane grieve so much at having to leave Thornfield?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
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Extract 3

1 Rochester continued blind the first two years of our union; perhaps it was that
circumstance that drew us so very near that knit us so very close: for I was then his
vision, as I am still his
right hand. Literally, I was (what he often called me) the apple of his eye. He saw
5
nature--he saw books through me; and never did I weary of gazing for his behalf, and of
putting into words the effect of field, tree, town, river, cloud, sunbeam--of the
landscape before us; of the weather round us--and impressing by sound on his ear what
light could no longer stamp on his eye. Never did I feel weary of reading to him; never
did I weary of conducting him where he wished to go: of doing for him what he wished
10 to be done. And there was a pleasure in my services, most full, most exquisite, even
though sad- because he claimed these services without painful shame or damping
humiliation. He loved me so truly, that he knew no reluctance in profiting by my
attendance: he felt I loved him so fondly, that to
yield that attendance was to indulge my sweetest wishes.
15 One morning at the end of the two years, as I was writing a letter to his dictation, he
came and bent over me, and said--"Jane, have you a glittering ornament round your
neck?"
I had a gold watch-chain: I answered "Yes."
"And have you a pale blue dress on?"
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20 I had. He informed me then, that for some time he had fancied the obscurity clouding
one eye was becoming less dense; and that now he was sure of it.

QUESTIONS:
1. Where and when does the scene happen?
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2. Give evidence to prove Jane was a devoted partner for Rochester.
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3. Paraphrase the expression “ to yield that attendance was to indulge my sweetest
wishes”.
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4. What does Rochester’s question about Jane’s chain signify?
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THE MODERN AGE

Historical Background

The reality of British life in the 20th century had been drastic change. Some of that
change was for the better: votes and employment for women, free schooling for
everyone, social welfare programs intended to limit the worst effects of poverty,
advances in science and technology. But these very achievements created problems:
technology brought pollution, and the environment was now at risk. Thanks to mass
communications, people could instantly keep abreast of what was happening all over

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the world, but what we discovered was that much of the world’s population still lived in
misery and without basic human rights.
Thus 20th century literature has not been complacent. Lacking confidence in the ways of
things as they were, it often questioned views and values to which many people still
clung. The events of the century had been disastrous: two devastating world wars, the
destruction of millions in the Nazi Holocaust, the mass starvation of millions in Asia
and Africa, the nuclear armament etc. At no other time in history had there been such
widespread awareness of the gap between ideals and reality, between the high
expectations for happiness and the frustration of those hopes.
For Britain the twentieth century had been a time of declining fortune, The two world
wars cost many lives and the destruction of much property. In order to pay for the wars,
Britain had to give up many of its investments abroad that in the 19 th century had made
London the financial capital of the world. Under pressure from movements of national
liberation. It had to part with colonies like Ireland, India, Pakistan, Burma, Nigeria,
Kenya and Rhodesia. As a result, Britain lost the dominant position in world politics.
Besides Britain also had difficulty modernizing and expanding its industry.
Early 20th Century Literature: reflected momentous changes in social and political
life.
Dublin Stories of James Joyce (1882- 1941): about lower-middle-class and working-
class life.
D.H. Lawrence (1885-1930): wrote about the life of a miner’s family in the industrial
North of England.
Irish drama with the distinguished plays of William Butler Yeats, Lady Gregory
dealing realistically with the daily life of Irish people.
Bernard Shaw (1856-1950): explored a range of themes in middle-class British
society, militarism, education, and the situation of women.
The short lyrics flourished in the poetry of A. E. Housman, Thomas Hardy, and Yeats.
Impressionism in literature-focusing on individual moments of experience, and not
seeking to interpret life or moralize experience as Victorian literature had- became
increasingly important in poetry and fiction.
The literary movement known as Modernism: called for an absolute break with
prewar literary traditions: Virginia Woolf, E.M. Forster supported a turn inward to
explore the psychological depth of characters along with the technical experimentation
known as Stream of Consciousness.

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T.S. Eliot (1885-1965): The Waste land (1922). Joseph Conrad ( 1857-1924) and
Katherine Mansfield ( 1888-1923) exercised much influence on later writers.
Contemporary Writing:
Samuel Beckett: (1906-1989 ) drew dark but comic conclusions about life in general
in influential plays like Waiting for Godot (1952).
Orwell (1903-1950) and William Golding (1911-1993) give form to the moral and
political issues of the modern state
Doris Lessing (1919-2013) has used science fiction to express the alien view of
England. Similarly Nadine Gordimer (1923- 2014) a South African writer and the
Canadian Margaret Atwood (1939- ? ) use this genre to blend political vision with
psychological exploration finding in it a voice for the perspective of women.
Harold Pinter (1930-2008 ) one of the most innovative writers of modern British
drama.

VIRGINA WOOLF : A Biography

Virginia Woolf was raised in a remarkable family. Her father, Sir Leslie Stephen, was a
historian and author, and also one of the most prominent figures in the golden age of
mountaineering. Woolf’s mother, Julia Prinsep Stephen had been born in India and later
served as a model for several painters. She was also a nurse and wrote a book on the
profession. Woolf had three full siblings and four half-siblings; both of her parents had
been married and widowed before marrying each other. The eight children lived under
one roof at 22 Hyde Park Gate, Kensington.
Since her birth on January 25, 1882 until 1895, Woolf spent her summers in St. Ives, a
beach town at the very southwestern tip of England, which inspired her writing.. In her
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later memoirs, Woolf recalled St. Ives with great fondness. In fact, she incorporated
scenes from those early summers into her modernist novel, To the Lighthouse (1927).
As a young girl, Virginia was light-hearted and playful . She had, however, been
traumatized at the age of six when her half-brothers George and Gerald Duckworth
sexually abused her. Even worse her mother suddenly died at the age of 49 and 2 years
late her half sister, Stella, also died. All these losses spun her into a nervous
breakdown.
When Virginia was in her early 20s, her sister Vanessa and brother Adrian sold the
family home in Hyde Park Gate and purchased a house in the Bloomsbury area of
London. Through her siblings’ connections, Virginia became acquainted with several
members of the Bloomsbury Group, a circle of intellectuals and artists who became
famous in 1910. Leonard Woolf, a writer and a member of the group, fell in love with
Virginia. By 1912, they were married. The two shared a passionate love for each other
for the rest of their lives.
Several years before marrying , Virginia had begun working on her first novel. The
original title was Melymbrosia released in 1915 as The Voyage Out. Woolf used the
book to experiment with several literary devices including unusual narrative
perspectives, dream-states and free association prose. In 1925, Mrs. Dalloway, her
fourth novel, was released. Woolf used interior monologues to bring up issues of
feminism, mental illness and homosexuality in post World War I England in this
work. Mrs. Dalloway has been turned into a movie (1997) and the subject of a Michael
Cunningham novel and film, The Hours (2002).
Throughout her career, Woolf spoke regularly at colleges and universities, penned
dramatic letters, wrote moving essays and self-published a long list of short stories. By
her mid-forties, she had established herself as both an intellectual and an innovative
thinker and writer. Her ability to balance dream-like scenes with deeply tense plot lines
earned her incredible respect from her contemporaries and the publicalike alike.
Despite her outward success, she continued to regularly suffer from bouts of depression
and dramatic mood swings.
On March 28, 1941 she walked out into the River Ouse filling her pockets with stones
and drowned herself in the river .

A HAUNTED HOUSE (By Virginia Woolf)

67
1 Whatever hour you woke there was a door shunting. From room to room they went,
hand in hand, lifting here, opening there, making sure—a ghostly couple.
“Here we left it,” she said. And he added, “Oh, but here too!” “It’s upstairs,” she
murmured. “And in the garden,” he whispered “Quietly,” they said, “or we shall wake
5 them.”
But it wasn’t that you woke us. Oh, no. “They’re looking for it; they’re drawing the
curtain, one might say, and so read on a page or two. “Now they’ve found it,” one
would be certain, stopping the pencil on the margin. And then, tired of reading, one
might rise and see for oneself, the house all empty, the doors standing open, only the
10 wood pigeons bubbling with content and the hum of the threshing machine sounding
from the farm. “What did I come in here for? What did I want to find?” My hands were
empty. “Perhaps it’s upstairs then?” The apples were in the loft. And so down again, the
garden still as ever, only the book had slipped into the grass.
But they had found it in the drawing room. Not that one could ever see them. The
15 window panes reflected apples, reflected roses; all the leaves were green in the glass. If
they moved in the drawing room, the apple only turned its yellow side. Yet, the moment
after, if the door was opened, spread about the floor, hung upon the walls, pendant from
the ceiling—what? My hands were empty. The shadow of a thrush crossed the carpet;
from the deepest wells of silence the wood pigeon drew its bubble of sound. “Safe, safe,
20
safe,” the pulse of the house beat softly. “The treasure buried; the room...” the pulse
stopped short. Oh, was that the buried treasure?
A moment later the light had faded. Out in the garden then? But the trees spun darkness
for a wandering beam of sun. So fine, so rare, coolly sunk beneath the surface the beam
I sought always burnt behind the glass. Death was the glass; death was between us;
25 coming to the woman first, hundreds of years ago, leaving the house, sealing all the
windows; the rooms were darkened. He left it, left her, went North, went East, saw the
stars turned in the Southern sky; sought the house, found it dropped beneath the Downs.
“Safe, safe, safe,” the pulse of the house beat gladly. “The Treasure yours.”
The wind roars up the avenue. Trees stoop and bend this way and that. Moonbeams
30 splash and spill wildly in the rain. But the beam of the lamp falls straight from the
window. The candle burns stiff and still. Wandering through the house, opening the
windows, whispering not to wake us, the ghostly couple seek their joy.
“Here we slept,” she says. And he adds, “Kisses without number.” “Waking in the
morning—” “Silver between the trees—” “Upstairs—” “In the garden—” “When
68
35 summer came—” “In winter snowtime—” The doors go shutting far in the distance,
gently knocking like the pulse of a heart.
Nearer they come; cease at the doorway. The wind falls, the rain slides silver down the
glass. Our eyes darken; we hear no steps beside us; we see no lady spread her ghostly
cloak. His hands shield the lantern. “Look,” he breathes. “Sound asleep. Love upon
40 their lips.”
Stooping, holding their silver lamp above us, long they look and deeply. Long they
pause. The wind drives straightly; the flame stoops slightly. Wild beams of moonlight
cross both floor and wall, an, meeting, stain the faces bent; the faces pondering; the
faces that search the sleepers and seek their hidden joy.

45
“Safe, safe, safe,” the heart of the house beats proudly. “ Long years_” he sighs. “
Again you found me.”” Here,”she murmurs, “ sleeping, in the garden reading, laughing,
rolling apples in the loft. Here we left our treasure_”Stooping, their lights lift the lids
upon my eyes. “ safe! safe !safe” the pulse of the house beats wildly. Walking, I cry “
Oh, is this your buried treasure? The light in the heart.”

QUESTIONS :
1. Who is the narrator? What does he/she experience that night?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………….……………………
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……………

2. Give a summary of the story.

……………………………………………………………………………………………
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3.The writer adopts the modern literary technique “Stream of Consciousness” for her
work. What do you think is the effect of this device?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………
69
 4.What is the prevailing tone of the story?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
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5.Finally what is exactly the treasure the dead couple are trying to look for?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………
6.Do you think the story has a sad ending?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
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……………
7.The story has a Gothic element. What is it?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
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8.There are many choppy and incomplete sentences. Explain the effect of the technique.
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