Skip to main content
Assignment 2

Paper No. 2- The neoclassical literature

Sem. 1

Prinjal shiyal


 Q. What are general characteristics of the Neoclassical age?

Ans...

      Literature can be broadly divided into ages, starting from the middle ages, renaissance, neoclassical period, romantic period, modern period, to the post-modern period.
Neoclassical authors saw the world under a new light. Unlike the previous two eras, the writers of this era gave more importance to social needs as compared to individual needs. They believed that man can find meaning in society, religion, natural order, government, and literature. In no time, the winds of a new revolution swept through Europe and North America, and changed everything from art and literature to society and fashion, on its way. Though the neoclassical era later transitioned into the romantic era, it left behind a prominent footprint which can be seen in the literary works of today.
The term neo means new while classical refers to the Roman and Greek classics, hence the name is aptly coined as neoclassical. Neoclassical literature emulated the Greek and Roman styles of writing.
Characteristics
Neoclassical literature was defined by common sense, order, accuracy, and structure. In the literature of the renaissance period, man was portrayed to be good; however, this genre of writers showed man to be flawed and relatively more human. Their characters also practiced conservatism, self-control, and restraint.A large number of literary works came out during this period, which included parody, fables, melodrama, rhyming with couplets, satire, letters, diaries, novels, and essays. More emphasis was given to grammar and etymology (study of words).
The Restoration Period (1660-1700)
After the beheading of King Charles I, the monarchy was 'restored', and so this period got the name 'restoration'. A new era had dawned with epic works such as Paradise Lost and Areopagitica by Milton and Sodom by Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester. It also saw a new age of both sexual comedy and wisdom, with works such as The Country Wife and The Pilgrim's Progress respectively. While writers like Richard Blackmore wrote King Arthur, it also saw critics like Jeremy Collier, John Dryden, and John Dennis who gave a new direction to understand literature and theater.
Poetry too was revamped and saw the beginning of rhyme schemes. The iambic pentameter was one of the popular forms of poetry, preferred by the poets and the listeners. Odes and pastorals became the new means for exchanging ideas.
The poems were mostly realistic and satirical, in which, John Dryden reigned supreme. He further divided poetry into three heads, that of fables, political satire, and doctrinal poems. You will not find any spiritual bias, moral highness, or philosophy in these poems, which became the signature style of the Restoration Era.
Augustan Age (1700-1745)
The Augustan Age took its name from the Roman Emperor Augustus, whose monarchy brought stability in the social and political environment. It is during his reign, that epic writers such as Ovid, Horace, Virgil, etc., flourished.

Writers such as Pope, Dryden, Daniel Defoe, Swift, and Addison were the major contributors to this era. Dryden's attempts at satiric verse were highly admired by many generations. This era was also called the Age of Pope due to his noteworthy contributions.

Age of Johnson (1745-1785)
This era made its way into the literary world by stepping out of the shadows of its previous age. Shakespearean literature found appreciation during this era. It brought forth the Gothic school of literature. Qualities like balance, reason, and intellect were the main focus of this era. Hence, this age is also called the Age of Sensibility.

Important works such as Burke's, A Philosophical Inquiry into the Origins of Our Ideas on the Sublime and Beautiful, Johnson's, The Rambler, and Goldsmith's, The Vicar of Wakefield are still read.

Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) gave a massive literary contribution, which till date is a great boon to one an all. And that is the Dictionary of the English Language, which was first published in the year 1755. Though many similar books were used prior to this book, the dictionary in particular was the one that was most popularly used and admired, right until the printing of the Oxford English Dictionary in 1928.
Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784), A Dictionary of the English Language
A new class of poets and writers rose out of the flickering ashes of neoclassical literature, and a new genre called Romanticism manifested itself with prominent writers like William Wordsworth, Coleridge, John Keats, Lord Byron, Shelley, and William Blake.
John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under its Council of State and later under Oliver Cromwell. He wrote at a time of religious flux and political upheaval, and is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), written in blank verse.
Writing in English, Latin, Greek, and Italian, he achieved international renown within his lifetime, and his celebrated Areopagitica (1644), written in condemnation of pre-publication censorship, is among history's most influential and impassioned defences of free speech and freedom of the press. His desire for freedom extended into his style: he introduced new words (coined from Latin) to the English language, and was the first modern writer to employ non-rhymed verse outside of the theatre or translations.

William Hayley's 1796 biography called him the "greatest English author",[1] and he remains generally regarded "as one of the preeminent writers in the English language",[2] though critical reception has oscillated in the centuries since his death (often on account of his republicanism). Samuel Johnson praised Paradise Lost as "a poem which...with respect to design may claim the first place, and with respect to performance, the second, among the productions of the human mind", though he (a Tory and recipient of royal patronage) described Milton's politics as those of an "acrimonious and surly republican".[3] Poets such as William Blake, William Wordsworth and Thomas Hardy revered him.
John Dryden;
   
   Dryden was born in the village rectory of Aldwincle near Thrapston in Northamptonshire, where his maternal grandfather was rector of All Saints. He was the eldest of fourteen children born to Erasmus Dryden and wife Mary Pickering, paternal grandson of Sir Erasmus Dryden, 1st Baronet (1553–1632), and wife Frances Wilkes, Puritan landowning gentry who supported the Puritan cause and Parliament. He was a second cousin once removed of Jonathan Swift. As a boy Dryden lived in the nearby village of Titchmarsh, where it is likely that he received his first education. In 1644 he was sent to Westminster School as a King's Scholar where his headmaster was Dr. Richard Busby, a charismatic teacher and severe disciplinarian.[3] Having recently been re-founded by Elizabeth I, Westminster during this period embraced a very different religious and political spirit encouraging royalism and high Anglicanism. Whatever Dryden's response to this was, he clearly respected the headmaster and would later send two of his sons to school at Westminster.

As a humanist public school, Westminster maintained a curriculum which trained pupils in the art of rhetoric and the presentation of arguments for both sides of a given issue. This is a skill which would remain with Dryden and influence his later writing and thinking, as much of it displays these dialectical patterns. The Westminster curriculum included weekly translation assignments which developed Dryden's capacity for assimilation. This was also to be exhibited in his later works. His years at Westminster were not uneventful, and his first published poem, an elegy with a strong royalist feel on the death of his schoolmate Henry, Lord Hastings from smallpox, alludes to the execution of King Charles I, which took place on 30 January 1649, very near the school where Dr. Busby had first prayed for the King and then locked in his schoolboys to prevent their attending the spectacle.

In 1650 Dryden went up to Trinity College, Cambridge.[4] Here he would have experienced a return to the religious and political ethos of his childhood: the Master of Trinity was a Puritan preacher by the name of Thomas Hill who had been a rector in Dryden's home village.[5] Though there is little specific information on Dryden's undergraduate years, he would most certainly have followed the standard curriculum of classics, rhetoric, and mathematics. In 1654 he obtained his BA, graduating top of the list for Trinity that year. In June of the same year Dryden's father died, leaving him some land which generated a little income, but not enough to live on.[6]

Returning to London during the Protectorate, Dryden obtained work with Cromwell's Secretary of State, John Thurloe. This appointment may have been the result of influence exercised on his behalf by his cousin the Lord Chamberlain, Sir Gilbert Pickering. At Cromwell's funeral on 23 November 1658 Dryden processed with the Puritan poets John Milton and Andrew Marvell. Shortly thereafter he published his first important poem, Heroic Stanzas (1658), a eulogy on Cromwell's death which is cautious and prudent in its emotional display. In 1660 Dryden celebrated the Restoration of the monarchy and the return of Charles II with Astraea Redux, an authentic royalist panegyric. In this work the interregnum is illustrated as a time of anarchy, and Charles is seen as the restorer of peace and order.
 Daniel Defoe
      Daniel Defoe, the son of a butcher, was born in London in 1660. He attended Morton's Academy, a school for Dissenters at Newington Green with the intention of becoming a minister, but he changed his mind and became a hosiery merchant instead. In 1685 Defoe took part in the Monmouth Rebellion and joined William III and his advancing army. Defoe became popular with the king after the publication of his poem, The True Born Englishman (1701). The poem attacked those who were prejudiced against having a king of foreign birth. In 1703 Robert Harley, Earl of Oxford, a Tory government official, employed Defoe as a spy. With the support of the government, Defoe started the newspaper, The Review. Published between 1704 and 1713, the newspaper appeared three times a week. As well as carrying commercial advertising The Review reported on political and social issues. Defoe also wrote several pamphlets for Harley attacking the political opposition. In 1719 Defoe turned to writing fiction. His novels include: Robinson Crusoe (1719), Captain Singleton (1720), Journal of the Plague Year (1722), Captain Jack (1722), Moll Flanders (1722) and Roxana (1724).

Defoe also wrote a three volume travel book, Tour Through the Whole Island of Great Britain (1724-27) that provided a vivid first-hand account of the state of the country. Other non-fiction books include The Complete English Tradesman (1726) and London the Most Flourishing City in the Universe (1728). Defoe published over 560 books and pamphlets and is considered to be the founder of British journalism. Daniel Defoe died in 1731. James Foe was a Dissenter. Thirteen years old Daniel was not admitted to either Oxford or Cambridge Universities as he did not take an oath of loyalty to the Church of England. He was sent to the excellent academy at Newington Green, administrated by Reverend Charles Morton. From Charles Morton, Defoe learned a vast deal; and the standard of Morton's teaching was almost parallel to that of any English University. Defoe's literary style was based on Morton's clarity, simplicity and ease in writing style. His destiny was almost decided as his father wanted him to enter the church. Along with his study in classics, he learnt Latin and Greek as well as Spanish, French, Dutch and Italian. This, in fact, helped him in his career as a pamphleteer and a writer.

As the years passed he felt more and more uncomfortable with the idea of becoming a minister. His leaning towards becoming a word-smith disturbed his parents. But, respecting his decision, James Foe invited him to join his business. Daniel, however, could not function as a butcher all his life. During this time he traveled to Spain, France and Portugal as an agent or a negotiator. These tours provided him with vast knowledge and experiences as well as intimate relations. As he dealt in many commodities as a merchant, he had enough opportunities to travel, which helped him in becoming an intelligent economic theorist.

He wrote of himself : "No man has tasted differing fortunes more, And thirteen times I have been rich and poor."

Defoe is notable for being one of the earliest proponents of the novel, as he helped to popularize the form in Britain and is even referred to by some as among the founders of the English novel. A prolific and versatile writer, he wrote more than 500 books, pamphlets and journals on various topics (including politics, crime, religion, marriage, psychology and the supernatural). He was also a pioneer of economic journalism.

1. Early life

Daniel Foe was probably born in the parish of St. Giles Cripple gate London. The date and the place of his birth are uncertain, with sources often giving dates of 1659 to 1661. His father James Foe, though a member of the Butchers' Company, was a tallow chandler. In Defoe's early life he experienced first-hand some of the most unusual occurrences in English history: in 1665, 70,000 were killed by the Great Plague of London. The Great Fire of London (1666) hit Defoe's neighborhood hard, leaving only his and two other homes standing in the area.[3] In 1667, when Defoe was probably about seven years old, a Dutch fleet sailed up the Medway via the River Thames and attacked Chatham. By the time he was about thirteen years old, Defoe's mother had died. His parents were Presbyterian dissenters; he was educated in a Dissenting Academy at Newington Green run by Charles Morton and is believed to have attended the church there. Although Defoe was a Christian, he decided not to become a dissenting minister and entered the world of business as a general merchant, dealing at different times in hosiery, general woollen goods and wine. Though his ambitions were great and he bought both a country estate and a ship (as well as civet cats to make perfume), he was rarely out of debt. In 1684, Defoe married Mary Tuffley, receiving a dowry of ?3,700. With his debts, their marriage was most likely a difficult one. They had eight children, six of whom survived. In 1685, he joined the ill-fated Monmouth Rebellion but gained a pardon by which he escaped the Bloody Assizes of Judge George Jeffreys. In 1692, Defoe was arrested for payments of ?700 (and his civets were seized), though his total debts may have amounted to ?17,000. His laments were loud and he always defended unfortunate debtors but there is evidence that his financial dealings were not always honest. Following his release, he probably travelled in Europe and Scotland and it may have been at this time that he traded in wine to Cadiz, Porto and Lisbon. By 1695 he was back in England, using the name "Defoe", and serving as a "commissioner of the glass duty", responsible for collecting the tax on bottles.
  Conclusion ;
     So, here is charecteristics of Neoclassical literature. And Samuel Johnson is also a good writer and reflect his life and work.

     Thank you!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

"Waiting for the Barbarians" by J. M. Coetzee

                    " Waiting for the Barbarians"    ◆About the author:-    "The waiting for the Barbarian" novel written by John Maxwell Coetzee. E born on February 9, 1940 and now his age 80. Coetzee is a South African novelist because, he born there and his mother land was more influenced throughout his life and work. He is known as essayist, linguist, translator and recipient and he got the Nobel Prize in 2003 for Literature. He has also won two other prize first one is the Booker Prize and second is the Jerusalem Prize, and some other also like, CNA Prize, the Prix Femina étranger, The Irish Times International Fiction Prize, and other awards and honorary doctorates. 💝NOTABLE WORKS 🎊The childhood of Jesus, 🎊Foe, 🎊Dusklands, 🎊Slow Man, 🎊Disgrace, 🎊Diary of a Bad Year, 🎊The Schooldays of Jesus, 🎊The master of Petersburg, 🎊Age of Iron, 🎊Life & Times of Michael K, et...

ELT: 1 The role of English in India (Unit. 1)

   ◆English language Teaching:- 1◆    ● Let's start with Vaidehi ma'am's task -link,  https://vaidehi09.blogspot.com/2019/07/the-role-of-english-in-india-unit1-elt.html   ● I will try to give this five questions answers, (1) What is english language for me? Ans. English language is like, equal to Treasure for me, because more and more I get and It becomes deeper and logical. People always like foreign language and It is English language. So, when I was in U.G. at that time I choose Compulsory with main english language. So, other students tell me, Why you choose only english? And my ama was , because I get knowledge, I want to understand and I want to teach other weak children and students. So, that's why I choose main subject as a english. And english language for me like imagine, "one word to another word's journey for me." Because, it was important in past, Now in present and also in future time. So, it's my own importanc...

Learning outcomes in the Harry Potter.

            ●Harry Potter and Learning outcome       ◆  Hello, readers here I'm going to give -information about my group task on the Harry Potter series and its very useful or interesting for me. This is a children's literature and we all know please type of fantasy real world and in betweenT some type of logics and world way of solution some questions problems end some type of evil mind set and person like Voldemort. I give some good and bad effect of these novels or movies but its all views are according to me and its all about how this topics through I get good and bad both types of lessons. In this series I find two types of different worlds between connection; Real world and Fantasy world in J. K. Rowling's novels.        I think in this series of novels through I learn a lot for example, "When we face Good and Evil both types of situations and than whatever we chose and we become." And I think ...