(According to BA English Honors Syllabus for Students of Odisha State)
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In English literature, 17th century was a time of great social and political disturbances. 17th century was a time of great social and political disturbances. 17th Century is marked by Civil war, Regicide, Restoration and the Glorious Revolution. This century witnesses all these upheavals.
The first half of
this century which roughly spans from the year 1603 to 1660 is known as the age
of Milton. John Milton was the greatest literary force of this period. The same
period, that is from the year 1603 to 1660, can also be called the Puritan age
because Puritanism was a dominant force during this period.
Who were the
puritans and what is puritanism?
The Puritans were
a group of English-speaking protestants…. They were dissatisfied with the
religious reformation movement carried out during the reign of Elizabeth. The
puritans wanted a complete purification of Church of England and they also
wanted removal of practices such as hierarchical leadership, clerical vestments
and various rituals of church which were associated with Rome. The puritans
stood for the belief of
Pure Christianity and hence the name Puritans was adopted.
A question may
come to your mind why the years 1603 and 1660 are selected to mark the
beginning and ending of the first half of 17th century. The year
1603 and the year 1660 are used to mark the beginning and the ending of the
first half of 17th century because the years 1603 and 1660 are important
for us from historical perspective.
In the year 1603,
Queen Elizabeth died and James VI of Scotland became James 1 of England and ascended
to the throne of England. He ruled up to 1625. After his demise Charles 1
became the king but during the kingship of Charles 1 a civil war broke out and
the king was beheaded. The civil war spanned from 1642 to 1651. This English
Civil War was a series of conflicts between Charles 1 and the parliamentarians.
The supporters of King Charles were called the cavaliers and the
parliamentarians were called the Roundheads. The Roundheads mainly comprised of
puritan middle classes.
The war ended with
the victory of the Parliamentarians. Charles 1 was executed while his Son Charles
2 fled to France. All hopes of monarchy were demolished and the monarchical
rule was replaced with a strong puritan Government or Commonwealth under Oliver
Cromwell. For 12 years till the death of Cromwell in 1659, the puritans ruled
the country. Afterwards the Puritan Government did not last long and in 1660,
Charles 2 was restored to the throne. Hence the term Restoration is used. Restoration
of Charles 2 to the throne put an end to the puritan period.
The first half of
17th century (1603-1660) which marks the death of Elizabeth and
continues up to Restoration can be sub-divided as follows for the sake of
convenience.
1.
The
Jacobean Period (from 1603 to1625)
2.
The
Caroline Period (from
1625 to1649)
3.
The
Commonwealth Period (from 1649 to1660)
Now let us learn
something more about The Jacobean Period
The period from
1603 to 1625 in English literature is known as the Jacobean Period. It is
because in 1603 James 1 ascended to the throne and he ruled up to 1625. Viewers, you must learn that the term Jacobean
is derived from the Latin word Jacobus which refers to James 1.
From the literary
view-point this period is an extension of the Elizabethan age but the optimism and promise of
Elizabethan era are missing in Jacobean Literature. We see a sombre,
darker and doubting tone in the literature of this period. To explain this
tendency of literature it can be assumed that the conflict between the
parliament and the king gave a darker and doubting tone to the literature of
this time.
The Jacobean
period is followed by the Caroline Period
The Caroline age
is named after Charles 1. He reigned England for 24 years from 1625 to 1649. The
name Caroline is derived from the word CAROLUS. It is the Latin version of
Charles. During Caroline period 3 schools of poetry came into existence. They
were
Metaphysical
Poetry
Cavalier Poetry
Puritan Poetry
Caroline period is
deeply affected by political unrest and civil war. The civil war was fought
between the Cavaliers and the Roundheads. The supporters of the king were known
as cavaliers and the supporters of Parliament were known as Roundheads. Most of
the Roundheads were the puritans.
Caroline age is
characterised by civil
war, rise of Puritanism, lack of spirit of unity, dominance of intellectual
spirit and decline of drama. Caroline age was not an age of drama. The
enactment of Drama was discontinued due to civil war and puritanical attacks. Sermons,
pamphlets, history and philosophy were written in prose. Metaphysical poetry
was the main literary output during the period.
Now let us learn
more about The Commonwealth Period (1649-1660)
In this period
there was a rise of puritanism. This is the period when there was no Monarch in
England. After the death of Charles-1, Oliver Cromwell, the Puritan leader,
came to power. He died in 1658 and his son Richard Campbell became the ruler of
England. But he lacked authority. He ruled England till 1660. In this period,
Puritanism became gradually unpopular. The English people realised that the
monarchy was essential for them.
The first half of
17th century produced a few immortal books like King James version
of Bible, Paradise Lost. However, the literature of the age is extremely
diverse in character, and this diversity is due to the collapse of the ideals
of political and religious unity. The literature differs from that of the preceding
age in three marked ways. The preceding age was the Elizabethan age and it was
the golden age of English literature. The literature of 17th century
differed from Elizabethan age in three fronts. First, the literature of this
period has no unity of spirit. For example, in the days of Elizabeth the
patriotic enthusiasm of all classes used to unite all but such sentiments were
missing in this era. Second, in contrast to the hopefulness and vigour of
Elizabethan writings, much of the literature of this period became sombre in
character. The literature of 17th century saddens rather than
inspires. Last but not the least, 17th century literature had lost
the romantic impulse of youth and it became more critical and intellectual. It
makes us think but does not prompt to feel deeply.
For the sake of convenience,
the historians earmark the period from 1660 to 1700 as the age of Dryden or as
the age of Restoration.
John Dryden was
the representative writer or the trend setter of this period. Hence, it is
legitimate to call this period as the age of Dryden. This period began with the
restoration of King Charles-II to the English throne. Therefore, this period is
also called the restoration period.
There are 3
historical events which deeply influenced the life and literature of the 2nd
half of 17th century. It must be borne in mind that this age is
otherwise known as the age of Restoration or the age of Dryden. Those three
historical events are
1.
Restoration
of Charles-II to the throne in 1660
2.
The
Religious and Political controversies
3.
The
Glorious Revolution of 1688
Restoration of
Charles-II to the throne in 1660
Restoration of
Charles-II to the throne brought about a revolution. All those activities that
had once remained supressed previously during the puritan government surfaced
again. Now the English people consciously engaged themselves in violent
excesses. Theatres reopened, bear and bull baiting revived. Sports, music,
dancing and all wild delights were practiced again.
The King and many
of the loyalists who returned from exile were heavily influenced by French
cultural attitudes. They brought back with them French lifestyle and French
standards. The previous Elizabethan age was dominated by Italian standards but the
restoration age was dominated by French influence and it continued through the
next century.
The King had no
redeeming patriotism. He had neither the sense of responsibility to his country
nor care for his countrymen. However, he had a number of mistresses and
numerous children. Most of the time, he used to remain surrounded by corrupt
and degenerate ministers. As a result, profligacy was glorified in the royal
court and Corruption was rampant in all walks of life. The Great Fire of 1665
and the Plague that followed were popularly regarded as suitable punishments
for the sins of the profligate and selfish King.
While London was
burning and the people were suffering, the King and his nobles were busy with
their revels. The utter degeneration of the nation was realised when a handful
of Dutch Navy swept the English fleet from the sea.
During
the Restoration period there was a rapid development of science. The
establishment of the Royal Society was a landmark in history of England. The
interest in science began to grow. The growing interest in science resulted in
the beginning of rational inquiry and scientific and objective outlook.
Objectivity, rationality and intellectual quality also enlivened the literature
of this period.
The Religious and
Political controversies
This age also
witnessed the rise of two political parties the Whigs and the Tories. These
parties played a significant role in English politics. The Whigs sought to
limit the royal powers in the interest of the people and the Parliament whereas
the Tories supported the Divine Right theory of the King, and tried to restrain
the powers of the people in the interest of the hereditary rulers. The rise of
these political parties gave a fresh importance to men of literary abilities.
Almost all the writers of this period had political affiliations. For example, Dryden
was a Tory and he used to advocate the cause of his Monarch.
The religious
controversies were bitter in this age. The supporters of the previous regime
were fanatically persecuted. The nation was predominantly Protestant and the
Catholics were unduly harassed and marginalised. They were suspected, had to
pay higher taxes and were not permitted to hold any office under the crown. The
intense hatred for Catholics influences the writings of this period.
The religion of
the King himself was doubtful. Although Charles II outwardly expressed support
for Anglicanism, he had Catholic sympathies. Charles had no legitimate heir,
but only a Catholic brother James. It was certain that after Charles II, his
brother James, who was a Catholic, would succeed to the throne. Efforts were
made to exclude James from the throne. Anti-Catholic Parliament led by Earl of
Shaftesbury tried to prevent the coming of James to the throne. Charles however
defended the Royal line against Parliament’s attempt to determine the
succession. The return of tensions and conflict between the King and Parliament
led to the emergence of political factions or parties in parliament (Whigs and
Tories). This whole attempt to exclude James from the throne was called as THE
EXCLUSION CRISIS. Charles ended this crisis by dissolving the Parliament. The
King sided with his brother and he removed all obstacles for the accession of
James. Finally, James II was crowned as the king in 1685. Dryden ‘s famous poem
Absalom and Achitophel reflects these religious and political
conflicts of the day.
The Glorious
Revolution of 1688
In this age we see
the Glorious Revolution which laid foundations of Modern England. The Glorious
Revolution, also called “The Revolution of 1688” and “The Bloodless
Revolution,” took place from 1688 to 1689 in England. It involved the overthrow
of the Catholic king James II, who was replaced by his Protestant daughter Mary
and her Dutch husband, William of Orange. Motives for the revolution were
complex and included both political and religious concerns. The event
ultimately changed how England was governed, giving Parliament more power over
the monarchy and planting seeds for the beginnings of a political democracy.
Students,
according to your syllabus the following sub-points needs to be discussed. They
are
· Metaphysical
poetry
· Cavalier poetry
· Comedy of humors
· Masques
· Beast fables
