https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ8KOWt6uNM
I got a number of requests from different corners of Odisha to make a video on Historical Overview of English literature from 14th century to 17th century basing on Odisha state model syllabus. The first part of the video series is now live on YouTube and in this blogpost I post the transcript of the important part of the video. I hope this post will serve as a valuable note on the topic.
Dear friends, when we consider English literature from 14th century to 17th century, it incorporates the following periods. They are namely,
1. The Age of Chaucer (1350-1400)
2. The Age of Revival (1400-1550)
3. The Age of Elizabeth (1550-1625)
4. The Puritan Age (1625-1660)
5. Restoration Age (1660-1700)
The period from 1350 to 1400 is widely referred as the age of Chaucer. So whenever we mention the term ‘The Age of Chaucer,’ we mean a time period that roughly begins from the year 1350 and continues up to 1400. It is needless to say that Chaucer was the most prominent as well as the representative poet of this time. As a result, this age was named after Chaucer. I must mention that Mathew Arnold called Chaucer, “the father of our splendid English poetry.”
One thing I must tell you that this classification of periods should not be rigid like water-tight compartments. These periods are approximations. For example, some books mention that the age of Chaucer begins from the year 1350 but some other books may mention that the age of Chaucer begins from the year 1340. Such different references may confuse you. In this connection, I must tell you that such classifications are just done for the sake of convenience and better understanding of Literature. And these classifications of periods are simply approximations. So do not take it rigidly and break your heads.
Now let us delve into the historical perspectives of the age of Chaucer because 14th century is represented by Chaucer.
The age of Chaucer or 14th century was a period of great political, social, religious, and literary activity. In 14th century England became the meeting ground of the old and the new, the mediaeval and the renaissance. It was a time when the old order was yielding place to the new. The renaissance influences were disrupting the mediaeval beliefs and habits of mind. There were three prominent institutions of mediaeval age. They were 1. Feudalism 2. Chivalry and Knight errantry and 3 Church. During Chaucer’s age, all of them witnessed a decline in their power and prestige.
During 14th century two great movements may be noted in the complex life of England. They were,
1. The growth of a National Spirit
2. Discontent among the people and the Peasants’ Revolt.
Under the heading “the growth of a National Spirit”, I must mention that in this age there was an upsurge of Nationalism and England was emerging as a strong nation. It was in this period that the crucial HUNDRED YEARS WAR between England and France took place. This war awakened English Nationalism and gave rise to a national consciousness. England won glorious victories at Crecy in the year 1346 and Poitiers in 1356. This gave a feeling of national pride and self-respect to the people of England. During this time the French Language lost its official prestige and English became the speech not only of the common people but of courts and parliament as well. The great works done by Chaucer, Langland and Wycliffe gave a distinct edge to English.
Now let us shift our discussion to the second movement. I have already hinted it at the beginning of my video, by the heading “Discontent among the people and the Peasants’ Revolt”. Why there was so much unrest and discontent in this age? Allow me to explain it to you. The unrest and discontent mainly had its roots in the growing differences between the idle wealthy classes and the over taxed peasants. The Hundred Years’ War, no doubt, made England a united nation and colonial power, but it also imposed unheard of hardships upon the people. The wars of kings depleted the royal treasury and led to unjust taxation on common people. The matters were further worsened by the great plague known as Black Death. It is estimated that half of England’s population died of Black Death in no time. All this resentment led to The Peasants Revolt of 1381.
Now I want to shift our discussion to the religious background of the age. The religious outlook of the age underwent many upheavals. There was dissatisfaction of people with rampant corruption in the church. Poets like Langland and Gower freely denounced the growing corruption in the church. These poets through their teachings wanted to revive the real Christianity. Thus the ideas of reformation were already becoming a force in the age of Chaucer. The Lollard movement led by John Wycliffe paved the way for reformation and the rise of Protestantism.
In addition to all these currents and cross currents of the age we find some other influences. One of them is the rise of modern spirit. People were asserting their rights of free thought and independent judgement. In other words, democratic spirit was growing. In this direction, the peasants’ movement did much to weaken the medieval feudal system and gave self-confidence to people.
The rise of humanism and a growing spirit of New Learning influenced the age of Chaucer. In this context, Hudson writes, “Ecclesiastical ideas (ecclesiastical ideas mean ideas related to Christian church and clergy) and the mediaeval habits of mind were still the controlling elements in Chaucer’s period, but their sway was now to some extent broken by the influx of a fresh and very different spirit”. “This fresh and very different spirit “is nothing but Italian renaissance which was to reach its full flowering in England during the age of queen Elizabeth. To make the things easy let me remind you that the age of Elizabeth spans from 1550 to 1625.
In addition to all these points you can also add “the decay of medieval chivalry” as another outcome of the age. Let me first explain what is medieval chivalry. In medieval Europe, the nobility was expected to uphold a set of principles called chivalry. Those set of principles included courage, military prowess, honour, loyalty, justice, good manners, and generosity but by the 14th century CE the notion of chivalry had become more romantic and idealized. In the age of Chaucer, the mediaeval chivalry was no more a practical system. Moreover, it turned out to be a mere sentiment. This is what we mean when we stress on the point, “the decay of mediaeval chivalry”
Dear students, at the end we can say 14th century England was a meeting ground of the Mediaeval and the Modern, the Old and the New, the Religious and the Secular. Get me 200 likes then I will make the next part of this video series. Bye!
With love,
