AP Literature Poetry Unit
Medieval Period
1066- 1485
1066
• Battle of Hastings: Harold the Saxon, the
King of England was defeated by William
the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy
Changes brought by William the
Conqueror
• Due to a more European business
exposure, England became stable and
very powerful
• People trained to be soldiers, lawyers,
doctors etc.
• In addition to English (Middle English) the
people spoke Norman and French
Religion
• Played a great role in the lives of the
Medieval people- All people wanted to
attain Heaven
• Latin was the official language of the
church
• Abbeys and Monasteries were built
“Christendom”
• Commonwealth- a spiritual and cultural
empire uniting men of different
nationalities, different languages and
different regional ways of life
• This basically refers to countries in which
Christians make up the majority of the
population, or the world wide community
of Christians
Feudal System
• Based on land holdings
• Vassals or overlords owed allegiance to a
noble or king
Feudal System
• Everyone knew his place
• The only way the common man could
advance was through the church
• Priest, Bishop, Cardinal, Pope
Life of Medieval Period
• Austere- No modern comforts
• Travel was very difficult
• Difficulty and harsh life was made up for
in church splendor
• Priests preached that life on earth was
less important than life after death
Life of Medieval Period
• The Crusades: A series of religious wars to
“save” Jerusalem from Turks (Muslims)
Chivalry
• The definition of chivalry today means the
conduct of a mannered and sensitive man
toward women
• In the Medieval period it was part of the
code that knights were sworn to live by
along with courage, justice, mercy,
generosity, faith, nobility and hope
Chivalry
Chivalry
• This idea joined with romance in literature
• Feature: fairy enchantments, giants,
dragons, wizards, sorceresses
• Seen in stories like: King Arthur and his
Knights, King Charlemagne and The
Conquest of Troy
Black Death
• 1348- Plague hit – 1/3 of England died
Canterbury Tales
Chaucer
• Born into the rising middle class in the
15th cent.
• Was trained for a career in the court of
King Edward III
• Served in the army, held several
governmental positions, and evenrtually
married a lady of the court.
Canterbury Tales
• One of the 1st books ever printed.
• Chaucer planned 120 tales, 2 told by each
pilgrim on the way to the shrine and 2 on
the return trip.
• Before his death, he completed 22 tales
and 2 fragments.
• CT comments on the people and problems
of this time period.
Before the Selection Begins…
• Archbishop Becket was murdered in 1170
by 4 knights of Henry II.
• King Henry and Becket had a longstanding
feud.
• Thinking the King wished Becket dead, 4
knights went to Canterbury to commit
murder.
• The King was too late to stop them –
Becket was later canonized as a Saint.
The Genre
• Canterbury Tales is an anthology of
popular taste in the Middle Ages.
• These varied groups viewed the purpose
of literature to be both entertaining and
morally instructive.
• During Chaucer’s time, the more literature
stressed the moral and instructive aspects,
the more it was regarded as high
literature.
Wife of Bath’s Tale
• “Trial by Ordeal”
• Set in the time of King Arthur
• Another example of the flawed romantic
hero – our knight commits rape, but
ultimately proves himself to be worthy.
• The story centers around the male-female
relationship. The Wife of Bath claims to
be an expert in this area.
Pardoner’s Tale
• Exemplum – Teaches “by
•
•
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example”
Rioters fail to see the
prophesy that “death
awaits them” under the
tree
Allegory – “Death” is a
character, possibly the
mysterious old man
Irony of the story – It is a
sermon told by a greedy,
corrupt church official.
The Nun’s Priest Tale
• Beast Fable
• Mock Epic Poem
• Satirizes epic poetry of the past while
teaching a valuable lesson about pride
The Miller’s Tale
• Farce – A story involving “low humor,”
including bodily functions, improbable
situations, nudity, etc.
• Still teaches a lesson – dangers of pride
and immorality
• Stands in opposition to the Knight’s Tale,
which exemplifies the code of chivalry
th
th
17 -18
Century and the
Restoration
General Mood of the Time
• The early 17th century was a time of
political insecurity and religious
controversy.
• The optimism of the Elizabethan era
changes to a mood of uncertainty,
skepticism, and even pessimism.
Poetry during the Elizabethan Era
• The typical Elizabethan poem used verbal
patterns to delight; it had ideal sentiments
and witty descriptions
Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18
• Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee.
New Types of Poetry
• Metaphysical – appeals to
•
the mind instead of
emotions. These poems
are usually short and
deep with meaning.
They also make use of
the conceit: an extended
metaphor relating
surprising things.
John Donne is the most
revolutionary within this
group.
New Types of Poetry
• Cavalier – Often
•
expressed an attitude
of “carpe diem” or
“seize the day.”
Ben Jonson is the
leader of this group.
Similarities between Cavaliers and
Metaphysicals
• Poetry is lyrical, personal and universal.
• Deals with topics such as honor, death,
love, loyalty, etc.
Political Troubles
• King Charles I is beheaded in 1649. this
ends the civil war in England and begins
the Puritan Commonwealth under General
Oliver Cromwell.
• Under Puritan control, England embraces
a stern moral code.
Background on Puritans
• A Separatist movement to
“purify” the Anglican church
began under Elizabeth I
• By 1620 some frustrated
Puritans immigrated to the
American colony of
Massachusetts.
• Puritans eventually gained the
upper hand back in England.
Background on Puritans
• Puritans gain power in
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•
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Parliament by 1642.
Led by General Oliver
Cromwell, Puritans fight a
civil war against Charles I
and his forces.
Puritans capture Charles I
and behead him.
Cromwell established the
Puritan Commonwealth.
England under the Puritans
• Class structure is transformed. Puritans rise
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•
•
from the middle class and take control.
They considered the Anglican Church to be full
of sin and excess. They also believed it to be
unconcerned with the needs of the common
man.
They emphasized the individual religious
experience and relied on the Bible as the chief
source of guidance.
Puritans were unwilling to give religious freedom
to others.
Puritans Lose Control
• They had no powerful
•
•
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successor when Cromwell
dies in 1658.
In 1660 they gave in to
popular demand for a
monarch.
Charles II, son of Charles
I, becomes King.
This is known as “the
Restoration.”
John Milton
• The greatest of the
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17th century writers.
Work reflects his
Puritan beliefs.
Paradise Lost is an
epic poem that tells
the story of Genesis.
Alexander Pope
• The subject of his poetry
•
•
is human nature and
everyday life
Poetry discusses politics,
economics, education,
public taste, and the arts.
Criticizes the values of
the upper class through
use of satire.
Neoclassical Poetry
• Preference for heroic couplets – recalls the
great poetry of previous ages
• Intellectual experiences rather than
emotional ones
• Power of imagination
The Rape of the Lock
• Pope was asked by a
•
friend to write a poem to
reconcile two feuding
families.
The argument started
when Robert Lord Petre
cut off a lock of hair from
the head of Arabella
Fermor without her
permission.
The Rape of the Lock
• A mock epic poem
• All conventions of the
epic poem are used
for comic effect
Characteristics of an Epic Poem
• Great battles
• Heroic characters
• Intervening gods
• Long journeys
• Dire consequences
• Elevated language
Thomas Gray
• Considered a poet who
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•
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predates Romanticism
“Elegy” moves away from
Neoclassical form
Poem still follows a
pattern, but differs from
the rhyming couplets
seen in works by
Neoclassical writers
Depicts nature and the
common life
High degree of emotion in
the poem
Thomas Gray
• Represents a transition from
the Neoclassical couplet of
Pope (Rape of the Lock) to the
more expansive Romantic
form.
• The diction of the poem is
precise and polished, much like
other Neoclassical works.
However, the focus on nature
and the common man
resembles the Romantic poetry
that would come later.
The Romantic Movement
• Mostly a rebellion against the social and
artistic values of the 18th Century
• Embodies a desire for freedom and
individuality
• Romantics were influenced by the
revolutions in America and France –
middle classes develop a sense of
independence and become more powerful
Neoclassical Era Vs. Romantic Era
• Neoclassical
– Expresses “general truths” of
Nature by appealing to man’s
reason
– The purpose of art is to teach
and delight by reflecting
eternal truths known to all
right-thinking men
– Art should strive to hold a
mirror up to Nature, to be
objective and impersonal
– “Wit” is the poet’s gift to
accomplish these tasks
through the stylistic rules of
the Classical poets and
philosophers of Greece and
Rome
• Romantic
– Poetry is a form of individual
expression; it reveals the
unique thoughts and feelings
of the poet
– The content of the poem is
momentary and subjective
– The poet writes, not to teach,
but to reveal the poet’s mind
– Poetry is a momentary
window into the soul of the
poet
– Poetry is never IMPERSONAL,
but can be TRANSPERSONAL:
poet becomes a visionary who
sees spiritual truth
Neoclassical Era Vs. Romantic Era
• Neoclassical
– Emphasis on reason
– Love treated as a game of
socio-sexual aggression
• Romantic
– Emphasis on strong
emotion
– Love regarded as the most
intense and important of
human faculties; it ranges
from spiritually sublime to
erotic desire to self
destructive and perverse
Neoclassical Vs. Romantic
• Neoclassical
– Fancy: a poetic gift that
emphasizes clever
imagination, but never
distorts the poet’s clear,
rational view of the world.
– Fancy allows poets to
make-believe (sylphs in
Rape of the Lock)
• Romantic
– Imagination: a poetic gift,
not only over language, but
the individual’s mind so
that the poet can perceive
the world differently and
more intensely than others.
– Imagination allows the
poet to become a visionary,
seeing spiritual truths and
patterns in the universe
that lie beyond the bounds
of reason
Neoclassical Vs. Romantic
• Neoclassical
– Nature is eternal and
universal through laws
created by God.
• Romantic
– Nature stands in
opposition to urban
life; it stimulates the
imagination and leads
to the discovery of
transcendent truths
Robert Burns
• Poetry embodies the
•
philosophy of
“primitivism” or the idea
that the people of the
countryside are more
noble than the “civilized”
people of urban areas.
Country people are closer
to nature and are
uncorrupted by cities
Robert Burns
• Known as “Robbie” to the
•
•
•
people of Scotland
Poems covered a vast
range of topics –
philosophy, politics,
nature, and love
He is the national hero of
Scotland
Writes in the dialect of
the Scottish people.
Many believe his poetry
embodies the Scottish
spirit.
William Blake
• Opposed tyranny and
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avidly supported the
goals of the French
and American
Revolutions
Exalted imagination
and individuality
Songs of Innocence and of
Experience
• “Experience” is equated
•
with the world of adults –
recognizes the presence
of evil and hypocrisy
“Innocence” refers to the
world of children –
spontaneity, energy, and
vulnerability
The Sick Rose
• O Rose thou art sick.
The invisible worm,
That flies in the night
In the howling storm:
Has found out thy bed
Of crimson joy:
And his dark secret love
Does thy life destroy.
Samuel Coleridge
• Poems are far removed from
everyday life
• He wanted to take the
supernatural and the exotic
and make it believable
• Fell asleep after taking opium
and dreamed about the
Chinese emperor Kubla Khan
• Wrote down lines of poetry
when he woke up and
produced the poem “Kubla
Kahn”
In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure-dome decree:
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea.
So twice five miles of fertile ground
With walls and towers were girdled round:
And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills,
Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree;
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery.
But oh! that deep romantic chasm which slanted
Down the green hill athwart a cedarn cover!
A savage place! as holy and enchanted
As e'er beneath a waning moon was haunted
By woman wailing for her demon-lover!
And from this chasm, with ceaseless turmoil seething,
As if this earth in fast thick pants were breathing,
A mighty fountain momently was forced:
Amid whose swift half-intermitted burst
Huge fragments vaulted like rebounding hail,
Or chaffy grain beneath the thresher's flail:
And 'mid these dancing rocks at once and ever
It flung up momently the sacred river.
Five miles meandering with a mazy motion
Through wood and dale the sacred river ran,
Then reached the caverns measureless to man,
And sank in tumult to a lifeless ocean:
And 'mid this tumult Kubla heard from far
Ancestral voices prophesying war!
The shadow of the dome of pleasure
Floated midway on the waves;
Where was heard the mingled measure
From the fountain and the caves.
It was a miracle of rare device,
A sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice!
A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw:
It was an Abyssinian maid,
And on her dulcimer she played,
Singing of Mount Abora.
Could I revive within me
Her symphony and song,
To such a deep delight 'twould win me
That with music loud and long
I would build that dome in air,
That sunny dome! those caves of ice!
And all who heard should see them there,
And all should cry, Beware! Beware!
His flashing eyes, his floating hair!
Weave a circle round him thrice,
And close your eyes with holy dread,
For he on honey-dew hath fed
And drunk the milk of Paradise.
Questions
• What is the mood of the poem?
• What qualities does this poem share with
•
•
dreams? How does it differ from reality?
What ideas about creativity and recreation does
the poet bring out in the second part of the
poem?
Many people feel a sinister and foreboding about
“Kubla Khan.” Find 10 words that give the
reader that impression.
Percy Shelley
• A free-thinking young man
who often found himself at
odds with convention
• After three years of marriage ,
he found that he was not in
love with his wife, Harriet
Westbrook.
• He fell in love with Mary
Wollstonecraft Godwin.
Shelley proposed that the
three of them live together.
• Harriet did not agree to this.
After Shelley eloped with Mary,
Harriet killed herself.
Shelley’s Poetry
• Shelley writes of the ideal.
• Through his poetry, he
envisions humanity as it should
be.
• Shelley believed that with
liberation mankind would
achieve perfection.
• “Ozymandias” presents the
idea that, with the passage of
time, even the most powerful
rulers will be forgotten. The
fear they inspire will
evaporate, leaving only aging
ruins behind.
Definition!
• Ode – A complex, often lengthy poem
with a formal style and a serious subject.
John Keats
• Lost both his mother and brother
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to tuberculosis, a disease
Romantics called “consumption.”
Worked as an apprentice to a
doctor and attended medical
school.
Did not finish his studies when he
decided that his true calling was
to become a poet.
At 23, he met Fanny Brawne, the
love of his life.
Shortly after becoming engaged,
Keats began to show signs of
tuberculosis.
Died in Rome at the age of 26.
Keats’s Poetry
• Perhaps because he was
•
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most attuned to the
transitory nature of life,
Keats’s work often
emphasizes the intensity
of experiences in the
present.
Poetry revels in sensory
imagery.
Epitaph reads “Here lies
one whose name was writ
in water.”
Matthew Arnold
• Poetry is characteristic of the Victorian
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Age.
This period was fraught with religious,
social, and scientific conflict.
Many people believed they had to
choose between science and faith – a
conflict still in debate today!
Darwinian theory forces people to view
the natural world as hostile.
“Dover Beach” expresses the
uncertainty of the time: one can no
longer find comfort in the natural
world. The “Sea of Faith” is now
irrelevant.
Arnold’s answer to this problem is to
seek solace in in personal
relationships.
Thomas Hardy
• Considered by many to be the
last great poet of the 19th
century.
• The sadness in his work may
stem from his upbringing in
southwest England – a bleak,
remote region.
• Hardy was also a member of
the generation in recovery
from the optimism of the
Industrial Revolution.
• Hardy looked at nature not as
a pessimist, but as one who
saw endless energy and
constant change.
G.M. Hopkins
• Sprung Rhythm – All feet in a poetic line
begin with a stressed syllable and contain
a varying number of unstressed syllables.
• Inscape – The patterns in nature that
reveal both individuality and commonality.
This, he believed, was evidence of God’s
hand.