Chapter 6 British Literature
I
Explain each of the following in English:
1 William Shakespeare
2. Elizabethan drama
3. the Bronte sisters
4. Charles Dickens
5. Walter Scott
6. Joseph Conrad
7. The Canterbury Tales
8. King Arthur
9. Virginia Woolf
10. D.H. Lawrence
11. the Romantic Movement
12. Modernism
13. Postmodernism
II.Fill in the blanks:
1. One of the oldest of the early "old English" literary works is called_____________.
2. __________ is generally regarded as Geoffrey Chaucer's masterpiece.
3. Shakespeare's plays fall into three catagories. They are _________, ___________
and ______________.
4. Name two of the tragedies written by Shakespeare:___________ and __________.
5. Charlotte Bronte and Emily Bronte are noted for their novels __________ and
___________ which are largely the love stories of a woman for a man.
6. Charles Dickens and Elizabeth Gaskell are regarded not only as ________ but
also as social ____________ in the19th century.
7. The author of lvanhoe was __________; Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was done
by ____________; Charles Dickens wrote _________ and ___________ among many
other works.
8. Twentieth-century literature can be broadly divided into two stylistic periods:
_________ and ___________.
9. Virginia Woolf was one of the most famous writers of the ________ century. Her
work was concerned with the individual consciousness, especially the _________
consciousness. She sometimes used the technique called_________ in her writing.
10. The Heart of Darkness was written by __________; the French Lieutenant's
Woman was done by ____________and the author of 1984 was ____________.
11. The most famous novel by John Fowles was called ______________________.
12. Smiley's People was written by______________.
III. Choose the correct answer form each of the following:
1. Which of the following books is written by Geoffrey Chaucer ?
A. The Canterbury Tales
B. Beowulf
C. The Ulster Cycle
D. MorteD'Arthur
2. What flourished in Elizabethan age more than any other form of literature ?
A. Novel
C. Drama
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B. Essay
D. Poetry
3. Among the following writers, who was NOT one of the great trio?
A. Ben Johnson
C. Geoffrey Chaucer
B. William Shakespeare
D. Christopher Marlowe
4. Which of the following did NOT belong to Romanticism ? Chapter 6 British
Literature 81
A. Keats
C. Wordsworth
B. Shelley
D. E.M.Foster
5. Which of the following is a tragedy written by Shakespeare ?
A. Dr. Faustus
C. Frankenstein
B. Hamlet
D. Sense and Sensibility
6. Which of the following was the most famous Scottish novelist ?
A. D.H. Lawrence
C. Robert L. Stevenson
B. Charles Dickens
D. Walter Scott
7. Several gifted women played a part in 19th-century literature. Which of the
following is an exception ?
A. Virginia Woolf
C. Jane Austen
B. Emily Bronte
D. Charlotte Bronte
8. Which of the following writers was NOT associated with Modernism ?
A. D.H. Lawrence
C. Charles Dickens
B. E.M.Forster
D. Virginia Woolf
9. Which of the following is generally considered to be the masterpiece by Joseph
Conrad ?
A. Sybil
C. Bleak House
B. The Heart of Darkness
D. Wathering Heights
10. Which of the following was a Postmodemist writer ?
A. George Orwell
C. Jane Austen
B. Robert L. Stevenson
D. Virginia Woolf
Key: Chapter 6
I Explanations:
1. William Shakespeare
He was an English dramatist and poet in the Elizabethan age. He is generally regarded
as the greatest playwright in English literature. His plays fall into three catagories:
tragedies such as Hamlet, comedies such as Merchant of Venice and historical plays
like Charles II.
2. Elizabethan drama
It refers roughly to the drama produced during the 15th and 16th centuries which is
known as the Renaissance. The first professional theatre was founded in London in
1576 and many famous playwrights appeared. ChristopherMarlowe, Ben Jonson and
William Shakespeare were among the best.
3. the Bronte sisters
They were daughters of the vicar of a village church in Yorkshire. Though they were
poor, they were educated and respectable. They all died young, but were remembered
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long after their death for their contribution to English literature. Charlotte was
well-known for Jane Eyre and Emily was noted for her Wuthering Heights. They had
to use
male pseudonyms in order to get their books published.
4. Charles Dickens
He is now regarded as one of the greatest English writers. His works were
characterized by vivid comic characterization and social criticism. He wrote many
well-known novels, including Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield,
just to name the best known.
5. Walter Scott
He was the most famous Scottish novelist and wrote many novels in the early decades
of the nineteenth century.Some of the novels were concerned with Scottish history.
Some remain popular today and several have been made into films.
6. Joseph Conrad
He is one of the most famous English Modernist writers. Polish-born, Conrad was
brought up in Poland and was in his twenties before he knew any English. After
becoming a British subject, he wrote brilliant novels in his adopted tongue. His most
well-known novel is The Heart of Darkness.
7. The Canterbury Tales
The Canterbury Tales is the most important work in Middle English Literature. It's
made up of a series of stories told by 31 pilgrims to entertain each other on their way
to the Christian Church at Canterbury in south-east England.It's quite noticeable for
its diversity, not only in the range of social status among the pilgrims, but also in style
of the stories they tell.
8. King Arthur
He was the King of England in the 5th Century and was the central figure of many
legends. History of the Kings of Britain published in 1138 well established King
Arthur in literary form. The book in-vented material to fill the broad gaps in the
historical record. The stories of King Arthur's court, his knights and their famous
round table and the search for the Holy Grail were mainly based on a very few vague
"facts". The ruined castle at Tintagel in Cornwall mentioned in the legends of King
Arthur is now a popular tourist destination.
9. Virginia Woolf
Virginia Woolf is regarded as a modernist writer and one of the most famous writers
of the century. Her works are concerned with the individual consciousness, especially
female consciousness. Her novels have become important to feminists for the way
they show women's personalities to be limited by society. In her writing, she uses the
technique called the stream of consciousness. One of her best novels is Mrs.
Dalloway.
10. D.H.Lawrence
D.H. Lawrence was one of the most famous modernist writers in English literature.
His novels were critical of the modern world, especially of the modern industrial
society. In his writing, he gave up the conventions and forms that had been typical of
the 18th century. One of the features of his writing was that his language was easy and
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sentences were short.
11. The Romantic Movement .
The Romantic Movement started at the end of the 18th century and the beginning of
the 19th century. The spirit of Romantism places emphisis on nature, originality, the
emotional and personal. The great poets of this movement are Keats, Shelley and
Wordsworth. Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters are among the famous Romantic
novelists.Their writings are characterized by rich imaginations and strong feelings.
12. Modernism
Modernism in literature began before the Second World War (1939?945). Modernism
in literature can be seen as a reaction against the 19th century form, which can be
considered as assuming understanding between writer and reader. This approach to
writing is called "realism". However, modernist writers express the difficulty they see
in understanding and communicating how the world works. Modernist writing seems
disorganized and hard to understand. One of the most famous English Modernist
writers is Virginia Woolf.
13. Postmodernism
Postmodernism generally refers to literature after the Second World War. It's
characterized by a high degree of experimentation, George Orwell's 1984 begins
"Postmodernism" in English literature. The horrors of the Second World War
weakened ideas of human progress, and of meaning in life. One of the characteristics
of Postmodernism is to give up the search for meaning in life. In the Postmodemist
novel the French Lieutenant's Woman, the reader is offered a choice of endings.
III.Fill ill the blanks:
1. Beowulf
2. The Canterbury Tales
3. tragedies; comedies; historical plays
4. Hamlet; Romeo and Juliet
5. Jane Eyre; Wuthering Heights
6. novelists; critics
7. Walter Scott; Robert Louis Stevenson; Oliver Twist; Bleak House
8. Modernism; Postmodernism
9. 20th: female: the stream of consciousmess
10. Joseph Conrad; John Fowles; George Orwell
11. The French lieutenant's Woman
12. John Le Carre
III. Tick the correct answer in each of the following:
I .A 2.C 3.C 4.D 5.B 6.D 7.A 8.C 9.B lO.A
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