Early Modern English

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Early Modern
English
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Introduction
Early Modern English began in 1450 and ended in
1755. Throughout this time period there were many
important people who started to pop up. During
the Early Modern English period came great
authors / play writers such as William
Shakespeare, Edmond Spencer, and Jonathan Swift.
The time period also brought a dictionary, a
printing press and a readable bible. The Early
Modern English was a step for the English
language and without it, we might not be where we
are today.
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William Caxton

• There is little known about the life of William
  Caxton.
• His date of birth is somewhere ranging from
  1415-1425.
• By 1446, he was successful in business and
  became governor of the Merchant Adventures.
• It was when he travelled to Cologne, when he
  observed the new printing industry, and was
  significantly influenced by German printing.

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William Caxton

• Once returned, he began immediately in setting
  up a printing press in bruges in collaboration
  with Colard Mansion, on which the first book in
  English was to be published in 1473.
• During the course of his life he wrote romances,
  classical-authored works and English and Roman
  histories.
• The most important works printed by him were le
  Morte dArthur, Geoffrey Chausers Canterbury
  Tales.
• It is unknown the exact date of his death, but
  it is estimated that he dies in March of 1492

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Printing Press

• The printing press is A machine that transfers
  lettering or images by contact with various forms
  of inked surfaces onto paper or similar material
  fed into it in various ways.

• Johann Gutenberg is a German goldsmith who took
  different systems and assembled them to produce a
  printing press in 1439.
• Already 2 Types of printing woodblock -
  printing
• -movable type
• Gutenbergs printing press spread throughout
  Europe and the World becoming the most used
  format of modern movable type.

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Printing Press

• William Caxton was the person who brought the
  first printing press into England. He was the
  first to work as a printer and sell English
  books.
• Caxton printed most of his work in English. He
  translated and edited most works into English
  himself. This was no easy task as the dialects
  and styles in which the works were written could
  be very different.
• In doing this he expanded the English vocabulary
  and is responsible for the development of
  inflection and syntax,
• and for further widening the gap between the
  written and spoken language.

Fun Fact Caxton printed ghost with the silent
h because of Dutch spelling.
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William Shakespeare

• Shakespeare was born in a small town of
  Stratford-on-Avon on April the 23rd in 1564 which
  also happens to be the date of his death
• He almost attended the Stratford grammar school
  where he could pick up an impressive education
  and a good knowledge of Latin, although he didnt
  proceed to Oxford or Cambridge
• By the age of 18 of 1582, he married Anne
  Hathaway and together they had three children
  Susanna and twins Hamnet and Judith
• By the year of 1592 his career became successful
  in London as an actor, writer and a part owner of
  the playing company the lord chamberlains Men
  which was later known as the kings men
• Shakespeare didnt only act with this company
  but he eventually became a leading shareholder
  and the principal playwright 

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William Shakespeare

• It wasnt easy for Shakespeare to make a living
  during his professional life considering how
  stiff the competition against the repertoire
  companies and religious regarded play-acting as a
  sinful, a waste of time and they wanted to ban
  it all
• Government officials carried out censorship over
  the contents of the plays and periodic outbreaks
  of bubonic plague led to temporary closing of the
  London theaters
• Although in 1599 Shakespeares company began to
  perform in the globe, an open air theater .
• He wrote plays for performances by his company
  and his scripts existed in his own handwritten
  manuscripts, in scribal copies, playhouse prompt
  books and in pirated texts based on shorthand
  reports. Although none of these manuscript
  versions survived.

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William Shakespeare

• Only 18 of his plays were published during his
  life, in small-format, inexpensive books that are
  called quartos
• It was Shakespeares comedies, histories and
  tragedies that were published seven years after
  his deathShakespeares first comedies show fewer
  signs of preparation.
• One of his first efforts in comedy, displayed a
  rare command of the recourses of comedy such as
  mistaken identity, madcap confusion and the
  threat of disaster

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Shakespeares Definition

• Shakespeare is known for writing three types of
  famous plays tragedies, comedies and histories.
• The Tragedy
• Has a protagonist character, that is capable of
  good and evil, and in which the audience can
  understand and sympathize with.
• The play also always insists on the operation of
  the doctrine of free will, where the anti-hero is
  always able to back out, to redeem himself, but
  the author dictates, they must move unheedingly
  to their doom.
• Some tragedies that Shakespeare has written
  include
• Macbeth
• Romeo and Juliet
• King Lear
• Hamlet
• Othello
• And many others.

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Shakespeares Definition
The Comedy Always has a happy ending, and
usually involves marriage for all the unmarried
characters. Is generally more light-hearted,
compared to Shakespeares other plays. Usually
consist of Mistaken identities A clever
servant Multiple intertwining plots Heightened
tensions, often within a family Separation and
unification Frequent use of puns Some comedies
include The Taming of the Shrew The
Tempest Twelfth Night A Midsummers Night
Dream Measure for Measure Cardenio The Two
Gentlemen of Verona The Winters Tale And many
others.
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Shakespeares Definition
The History The histories are usually based on
the lives if English kings. His history plays are
often regarded as Tudor propaganda because they
show the dangers of civil war and celebrate the
founders of the Tudor dynasty. Some histories
include King John Richard II Richard III Henry
VIII And many others.
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Othello
The Play Othello Shakespeare wrote many plays
throughout his career, one of them being Othello.
The play Othello is a tragedy, which was first
known in 1604, when it was performed in front of
King James I and VI. This play, involves a man by
the name of Othello who marries a woman by the
name of Desdemona. When word gets out to
Roderigo, a man that has been trying to seduce
Desdemona, he gets very angry and goes to see the
daughters father with his friend Iago, stating
that Desdemona was kidnapped and forced to marry
Othello. Othello is confronted by Desdemonas
father and Iago, they go to court and Othello
proves that he wooed Desdemona with stories and
not witchcraft. Roderigo confronts Iago and tells
him that he wants Desdemona to be his wife and
not Othellos. Iago then comes up with a plan, he
will convince Othello that Cassio and Desdemona
are having an affair, Othello will leave his wife
and kill Cassio. This plan backfires though, as
Othello ends up killing his wife because she was
not faithful. Iago kills Emilia because she found
out about his plan. Roderigo then tries to kill
Cassio, but he ends up dying instead. In the end
Othello finds out about the plan and tries to
kill Iago, he then kills himself.
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Othello
Should we underline the word Othello or no? When
referring to Othello as the play and not the
character, you should either underline it or put
it in italics. The title of a play, a novel or
even a magazine should always be either
underlined or in italics because they are long
pieces of writing. If in your text you are
referring to Othello as the character, then do
not underline it or put it in italics, you do not
underline Juliette when writing about her from
the play Romeo and Juliette by Shakespeare.
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Othellos Quote Analysis

• The following quotes are from Othello, Act V
  Scene II. Othello has killed his wife and is
  about to kill himself, he tells Lodovico that he
  would like to be remembered as he was. He doesnt
  want the events of that day downplayed or
  exaggerated in any way. And he talks of his
  faults which are as follows

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Othellos Quote Analysis
1) "One that loved not wisely but too
well". Othello claims that he loved too much the
wrong person. The wrong person was his wife
because he was in love with her but she cheated
on him. 2)  "One not easily jealous, but being
wrought Perplex'd in the extreme."
Othello is not easily jealous but once he is
tricked into confusion he becomes obsessive and
crazy. 3)  "one whose hand, Like the base
Indian, threw a pearl awayRicher than all his
tribe." Othello was foolish to throw
away something valuable, like he didnt know what
it was worth. I assume he was talking about his
wife. In this last line he explains his
fault with a simile. He compares himself to a
base Indian. A base Indian is morally low or
dishonorable. Therefore he feels remorse for
murdering his wife. And then he kills himself.
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King James's Bible

• King James himself did not actually write the
  "King James version" of the Bible, also known as
  the "Authorized Version" although his
  authorization was needed in order for the Book to
  be distributed throughout all of England.
• King James and the Bishop of London did write a
  brief summary that guided the translation and
  prohibited marginal notes (from the Geneva Bible)
  and made sure the Church of England was mentioned
  numerous times.

• This new "Authorized" version was used to
  replace the "Bishops Bible" in the church of
  England.
• Later on some texts were taken from this bible
  and placed in the "Book of Common Prayer" by
  Parliament.

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King James's Bible

• The Authorized King James Version is basically
  an English translation of the original Christian
  Bible. The translation begun in 1604 and lasted
  until 1611.
• The King James Bible was translated primarily
  from Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic texts. There were
  also some references taken from the Latin
  Vulgate
• In the King James Bible, words imply that mostly
  exact translations occurred but otherwise the
  translators rejected word for word equivalence.
  F.F Bruce gives an example from Roman Chapter 5

2 By whom also wee haue accesse by faith, into
this grace wherein wee stand, and reioyce in hope
of the glory of God. 3 And not onely so, but we
glory in tribulations also, knowing that
tribulation worketh patience
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King James's Bible

• The English terms "rejoice" and "glory" stand for
  the same word in the Greek original. In Tyndale,
  Geneva and the Bishops' Bibles, both instances
  are translated "rejoice". In the Rheims New
  Testament, both are translated "glory". Only in
  the Authorized version does the translation vary
  between the two verses.
• The title page to the 1611
• First edition of the King James Bible by
  Cornelius Boel shows the Apostles Peter and Paul
  seated centrally at the top. Moses and Aaron
  flank the central text. In the four corners sit
  Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, authors of the
  four gospels, with their symbolic animals. The
  rest of the Apostles stand at the top.

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Edmond Spencer The Fairy Queene

• Born in 1552 and died 13th January, 1599.
• An important English poet and poet Laureate.
• Most famous work The Faerie Queene.
• Education
• As a young boy, he was educated in London at the
  Merchant Taylors School.
• Later went to Pembroke College, Oxford.

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• The Faerie Queene
• Was originally published in 1590 in three books
• published in six books in 1596.
• Poem was written in celebration of Queen
  Elizabeth I.
• Poem largely symbolic, follows two knights,
  Redcrosse and Britomart, in an examination of
  holiness and chastity.

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Jonathan Swift

• Born November 30th 1667 in Dublin.
• His father was Irish, and his mother English. He
  was born 7 months just after his fathers death.
• Most of Jonathon Swifts early life facts are
  obscure, confused and sometimes contradictory.
• Its believed that at a very young age, his
  mother left him to be raised by his fathers
  family, so she could return to England.
• His uncle Godwin took primary responsibility for
  him, sending him to Kilkenny College.

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Jonathan Swift

• He attended Dublin University in 1682 and
  received his B.A. in 1686.
• He was studying for his Masters Degree in 1688,
  when troubles in Ireland came up, so he left for
  England, where his mother helped him get a job as
  a secretary and personal assistant to Sir William
  Temple at Moor Park.
• While growing confidence with his employer he
  was often trusted with matters of great
  importance.
• Temple had introduced him to William III, and
  sent him to London to try and persuade the king
  to consent to a bill for triennial Parliament.
• He met 8 year old Esther Johnson, when he moved
  to Moor Park.
• She was the fatherless daughter of one of the
  servants, Swift was her tutor and mentor, he
  also gave her the nickname Stella.
• In 1690, he returned to Ireland, due to his
  health but a year later went back to Moor Park.
  His illness was what is now known as Ménières
  disease.

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Jonathan Swift

• Some symptoms of the disease include dizziness,
  spinning, hearing loss, ringing ears. It happens
  it attacks, so he could act completely normal
  with no syndromes between them.
• In 1692, Swift received his M.A. from Hertford
  College.
• He then left Moor Park to become an ordained
  priest in the Established Church of Ireland.
• In 1694 he was appointed to be the prebend of
  Kilroot in the Diocese of Connor.
• It appears that he was not happy with his new
  position, being isolated in a small time, but
  while there he did become romantically involved
  with Jane Waring. In Swifts remains a letter had
  been found, in which he had written to her,
  saying that if she married him, he would stay,
  and if she refused he would leave Ireland. It
  seems as though, she refused, because in 1696, he
  returned to Moor Park, and to Temples service.
  Where he stayed until Temple died.

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Jonathan Swift

• In 1699, after Temples death, swift stayed on
  briefly to complete the editing in Temples
  Memoirs, perhaps in the hope of earning a post in
  England. However, the Memoirs left him with
  enemies in Temples family.
• After a while, he finally settled in Laracor,
  where he ministered to a congregation of about
  fifteen.
• In 1701, he anonymously published a political
  pamphlet A Discourse On The Contests and
  Dissentions in Athens and Rome.
• In 1702, he received his Doctor of Divinity from
  Trinity College in Dublin.
• That spring he travelled to England, and in
  October returned with Esther Johnson, also
  nicknamed Stella. Many believe that they were
  married in 1716, however there is no actual
  proof.
• He began visited England quite often, and during
  these trips, he published A Tale of a Tub and
  The Battle of the Books in 1704, and slowly
  began to earn a reputation as a writer.

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Jonathan Swift

• During the next few years, Swift began very
  politically involved, and in 1710 when the
  opposition Tory came to power, he was recruited
  as the editor of Examiner.
• In 1711, he published another political
  pamphlet, The Conduct of the Allies.
• Swift was in the inner circle of the Tory
  government, and often acted as mediator between
  Henry St. John and Robert Harley.
• He recorded all these events and more, in his
  long letters to Esther Johnson, which were all
  later published in The Journal to Stella.
• During these years in London, Swift meant another
  fatherless girl, Esther, who he nicknamed
  Vanessa. She is featured in his poem Candenus
  and Vanessa.
• In 1720, he published Proposal for Universal
  Use of Irish Manufacture.
• The Drapiers Letters in 1724
• A Modest Proposal in 1729
• Which all earned him the status as Irish patriot.

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Jonathan Swift

• During these years he began to work in his
  masterpiece Travels into Several Remote Nations
  of the World, in Four Parts by Lemuel Gulliver
  first a surgeon, and then a captain of several
  ships. Also known as Gullivers Travels. It was
  first published in November 1726.
• It is known as a classic of English literature.
• It is his most enduring satire. Swift adopts an
  old satirical device the imaginary voyage.
• The main character Lemuel Gulliver, and is also
  the narrator of the story.
• He goes on four voyages, which are all
  disastrous among several remote nations of the
  world.
• In 1742, he suffered a stroke, and lost the
  ability to speak.
• And on October 19th 1745 he died, he was buried
  by Esther Johnsons side.

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John Milton

• Born on December 9th, 1608 in London, England.
• An English poet, prose polemicist, and civil
  servant for the Commonwealth of England.
• Most famous for his poem, Paradise Lost.
• Died November 8th 1674, in London, England.
• Education
• Obtained his Masters of Arts degree on July 3rd,
  1632 from Cambridge.
• Undertook 6 years of private study to prepare
  for his poetical career read ancient and modern
  works of theology, philosophy, history, politics,
  literature and science

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John Milton

• Paradise Lost
• Originally published in 1667 in ten books
  second edition came in 1674 (divided into 12
  books).
• Poem influenced by the Bible.
• Concerns the Judeo-Christian story of the Fall
  of Man the temptation of Adam and Eve by Satan
  and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden.

Example of his work On the morning of Christs
Nativity This is the month, and this the happy
mourn Wherein the son of Heavens eternal King,
Of wedded maid and virgin mother born, Our
great redemption from above did bring For so the
holy sages once did sing, That he our deadly
forfeit should release, And with his Father work
us a perpetual peace.
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Samuel Johnson

• Born September 18th, 1709 and died 13th December
  1784
• One of Englands best known literary figures
• He was an essayist, biographer, poet,
  lexicographer and critic of English Literature
• Was the son of a poor bookseller
• Born in Lichfield, Staffordshire
• Education
• Attended Lichfield Grammar School
• On October 31st, 1728, he entered Pembroke
  College, Oxford but eventually was forced to
  return to Lichfield because of poverty
• 1755, Oxford University awarded him the degree
  of
• master of arts
• Was awarded an honorary doctorate in 1765 by
  Trinity College Dublin and in 1775 by Oxford
  University.
• In 1736, Johnson established a private academy
  in Edial, near Lichfield had only three pupils
  one David Garrick, who became the most famous
  actor of his day.
• 1737, left for London where he found employment
  with Edward Cave, writing for the Gentlemans
  Magazine

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Samuel Johnson

• The Dictionary
• Written between 1745-1755 published 15th April,
  1755
• His best known work, A Dictionary of the
  English Language, one of the most influential
  dictionaries in the history of the English
  language
• Mostly wrote the dictionary himself, except for
  a few assistances
• Not the first dictionary but rose above all
  others because of its meticulous research and the
  clarity of his definitions
• Dictionary contained 42,773 word
• Written because of an increase in literacy
  rates, requiring a compilation of standard
  grammatical and spelling formats (caused by
  England breaking away from the Roman Catholic
  Church during King Henry VIIIs rule)
• Also written because England felt they needed to
  keep up with France, who had recently appointed a
  group of scholars to form a dictionary