Introduction: In the tenth century
Anglo-Norman conquered a part of northern France, which is still called
Normandy, and rapidly adopted French civilization and the French vernacular. The
Normans, who were residing in Normandy (France) defeated the Anglo-Saxon King
at the Battle of Hastings (1066) and conquered England. They brought with them
law, culture the prestige of success, and above all the strong impulse to share
in the great world’s work and to join in the moving currents of the world’s
history.
Social Setup: The conquest
affected a wholesome awakening of national life. The people were suddenly
inspired by a new vision of a greater future. So rapidly did they adopt and
improve the Roman civilization of the natives that, from a rude tribe of
heathen Vikings, they had developed within a single country into the most
polished and intellectual people. The will power and energy of the one, the eager
curiosity and vivid imagination of the other. When these Norman-French people
appeared in Anglo-Saxon England they brought with them three noteworthy things;
1) a lively Celtic disposition, 2) a vigorous and progressive Latin
civilization, and 3) a Romance language for mankind.
Literary Features: The foreign types of
literature introduced after the Norman Conquest. The French literature of the
Norman period is interesting chiefly. English thought for centuries to come was
largely fashioned in the manner of the French. Love, chivalry and religion all
pervaded by the spirit of romance. In England this metrical system came in
contact with the uneven lines, the strong accent and alliteration of the native
songs. The poetry of the Anglo-Norman period has nothing in common the
Anglo-Saxon poetry. The most obvious change in literary expression appears in
the vehicle employed. In spite of the English language having been thrown into
the background, some works were composed in it, though they echoed in the main
the sentiments and tastes of the French writers, as French then was the supreme
arbiter of European literary style. The most popular form of literature during
the Middle English period was the romances. These romances are notable for
their stories rather than their poetry. The romances were mostly borrowed from
Latin and French sources. In the Middle English period Miracle plays became
very popular, in these plays the growth and development of the Bible stories,
scene by scene, carried to its logical conclusion. Another form of drama which
flourished during the Middle Ages was the Morality plays, in these plays the
uniform theme is the struggle between the powers of good and evil for the
mastery of the soul of man.
Historical Event: The battle of Hasting (1066) between the Anglo-Saxon and
Anglo-Norman in which the king of Anglo-Saxon “Harold” was defeated by the King
of Anglo-Norman “William”, became master of England. The completion changed the
civilization of a whole nation. The Normans were the first to bring the culture
and the practical ideas of Roman civilization home to the English people. Second,
they forced upon England the national idea, that is, a strong, centralized
government to replace the loose authority of a Saxon chief over his tribesmen.
Third, they brought to England the wealth of a new vernacular and literature,
and English gradually absorbed both. French became the language of the upper
classes, of courts and schools and literature.
Writers:
1. Chaucer (1340-1400): Chaucer was the real founder of English poetry and he is
rightly called the “Father of English Poetry”. Chaucer’s poetry has been read
and enjoyed continuously from his own day to this. His education as a poet was
two-fold. Chaucer made a fresh beginning in English literature. Chaucer works
fall into three periods. During the first period he imitated French models. The
poems of the second period (1373-84) show the influence of Italian literature.
And Chaucer’s third period (1384-90) may be called the English period because
in it he threw off foreign influence and showed native originality. Chaucer’s
importance in the development of English literature is very great because he
removed poetry from the region of Metaphysics and Theology, and made it hold as
“twere the mirror up to nature”.
After Chaucer there was a decline in English poetry for about one hundred
years.
The most famous and
characteristics work of Chaucer is the Canterbury
Tales, which is the collection of stories related by the pilgrims on their way
to the shrine of Thomas Becket at Canterbury Tales. The Canterbury Tales is a
landmark in the history of English poetry.
2. John Gower (1325-1408): Gower occupies an
important place in the development of English poetry. Gower represents the
English culmination of that courtly medieval poetry which had its rise in
France two or three hundred years before. He was a great stylist and he proved
that English might compete with the other languages which had most
distinguished themselves in poetry. Though Gower was inferior to Chaucer.
Gower, like Chaucer, performed the function of establishing the form of English
as a thoroughly equipped medium of literature. Gower is mainly a narrative poet
and his most important work is Confession
Amantis, which is in the form of conversation between the poet and a divine
interpreter.
3. William Langland: One of the greatest poets of the Middle Ages was William
Langland. In spite of its archaic style, it is a classical work in English
literature. He represents the dissatisfaction of the lower and the more
thinking classes of English society. Although the Langland is essentially a
satiric poet, he has decided views on political and social questions. The
feudal system in his ideal and he is intensely real.
·
Famous Work: A Vision of Piers the
Plowman.
4.
John Wycliffe (1324-1384): Wycliffe, as a man,
is by far the most powerful English figure of the fourteenth century. Though a
university man and profound scholar, he sides with Langland. His great work
which earned him his title of ‘father of English prose’, is the translation of
the Bible. His translation of the Bible was slowly copied all over England.
Because of his prose English was established in the homes of the common people.
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