The English Renaissance

1
The English Renaissance

• 1485-1625

2
Key Characteristics

• Religious devotion now focuses on a persons
  place here on earth rather than just the
  afterlife.
• Universities broaden studies to include the
  humanities (history, modern languages, etc).

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Key Characteristics (2)

• The printing press was invented by Johann
  Gutenburg.
• More and more writers began writing in the
  vernacular English.

4
Major Developments

• The Age of Exploration (New World!)
• The Protestant Reformation

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Tudor Monarchs

• 1. Henry VII
• 2. Henry VIII (six wives two of whom were
  beheaded)
• 3. Edward VI (died at age 15)
• 4. Mary I (known as Bloody Mary)
• 5. Elizabeth I

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Stuart Monarch

• 1. James I (James VI in Scotland)

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Literature of the Era

• Poetry mainly the sonnet and lyric poetry.
• Drama came into full bloom.
• 1. Tragedies
• 2. Comedies

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Literature of the Era (2)

• Prose The most monumental prose achievement
  was The Bible (King James Version), which was
  commissioned to be translated into common English
  by King James I.

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The Seventeenth Century
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The Seventeenth Century

• The English Renaissance is divided into two
  sections
• 1. The rise of England under the Tudors
• 2. The decline of England under the Stuarts.

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Stuart Monarchy

• During the Stuart monarchy there were two main
  problems
• 1. Religious unrest Anglican Church vs.
  Puritans (Roundheads) How far should the
  Reformation go?

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Stuart Monarchy (2)

• 2. Political unrest Royalists (Cavaliers) vs.
  Puritans (Roundheads) - How much authority should
  the monarch have? Divine Right of Kings or not?

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James I

• 1603 Elizabeth I, the last of the Tudors, died.
  James I, King of Scotland, a Stuart, ascended to
  the throne of England. The reign of James I
  (Snotty Scot) was known as the Jacobean Age
  (Jacobean the Latin version of James).

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James I (Contd)

• James I believed in the Divine Right of Kings.
  He had ruled Scotland for 36 years. His reign
  united England and Scotland under one crown.

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James I Significant Facts

• He wore padded clothes because he feared being
  stabbed.
• Jamestown, Virginia named for him.
• He wrote about demonology.
• He condemned the smoking of tobacco.

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James I Significant Facts (2)

• Shakespeare wrote Macbeth in honor of the king.
  The length of the play and the inclusion of
  witches as characters reflected the playwrights
  consideration of the kings preferences and
  interests

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Immigration

• 1620 The first immigration of pilgrims to the
  New World took place on the Mayflower.

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Charles I

• 1625 Charles I (Chopped Charlie), son of
  James I, became king.

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Charles I Significant Facts

• He perceived himself as high and mighty no
  one sat in his presence (arrogance).
• He was at the forefront of all portraits so as
  to appear taller (vanity).
• He sought money from the Puritan-controlled
  Parliament to fight France and Spain.

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Charles I Significant Facts (2)

• He abused his power.
• He was forced to sign the Petition of Right,
  which said that he could have no money without
  the consent of Parliament.

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Charles I Significant Facts (3)

• Charles I did not honor the Petition of
  Right, and he dissolved the Parliament, which
  began a civil war between the Royalists and the
  Puritans.

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Charles I Significant Facts (4)

• He was arrested, and then he was condemned to
  death by one vote.
• 1649 Charles I was beheaded.

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Charles I Execution Facts

• On the day of his execution, Charles I wore
  extra clothes, so he would not shiver in the
  cold. He did not want anyone to believe he was
  afraid. His arrogance and vanity would not permit
  that possibility.
• His head was sewn back on, so the family could
  grieve.
• Snow fell on his coffin during the funeral
  procession which some felt was a sign of his
  innocence.

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The Commonwealth

• 1649 - The Commonwealth was established under
  the leadership of Oliver Cromwell who was named
  Lord Protector.

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The Commonwealth (2)

• Under the Commonwealth the theatres were closed.
  
• For the Royalists, the period between kings was
  called the Interregnum.

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The Restoration

• 1660 The end of the Protectorate. The crown
  was offered to the son of Charles I who became
  Charles II (Cheerful Charlie). The time was
  called the Restoration.

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Charles II

• Charles II had a great interest in science.
  While studying the heavens, ravens left a
  calling card on his telescope. He wanted to
  have them killed, but a superstition prevented
  this.

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Charles II (Contd)

• It was said that the crown would fall if ravens
  ever left the tower, so he moved his telescope to
  Greenwich.

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Two Tragedies

• The Plague (100,000 died in 6 months).
• The Great Fire burned four-fifths of London.

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James II

• 1685 James II (Dim Jim) succeeded his
  brother as king. He was a Catholic, as was his
  son, and when he tried to return the country to
  Catholicism, he was deposed without bloodshed.

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James II (2)

• James II fled to France during this Glorious
  Revolution.
• 1688 William and Mary were invited to take the
  crown.

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The Act of Settlement

• 1701- The Act of Settlement was passed by
  Parliament that said Britain would never be ruled
  by a Catholic monarch.

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Literature of the Period

• 1. Metaphysical (beyond the physical)
• 2. Cavalier (carpe diem)
• 3. Puritan

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Metaphysical Poetry
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Characteristics of Metaphysical Poetry

• Precise, witty, and intellectual like trying to
  figure out a riddle.
• Written for the aristocracy or well-educated.

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Characteristics of Metaphysical Poetry (2)

• Brief and concentrated in its meaning.
• Centered on dramatic situations.
• Fondness for conceits complex figures of
  speech (extended metaphors) that compare two
  seemingly dissimilar things.

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Characteristics of Metaphysical Poetry (3)

• Basis of comparison is surprising.
• Use of paradox apparent contradictions that
  are true.
• Use of hyperbole (exaggeration).

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Characteristics of Metaphysical Poetry (4)

• Draws on specialized areas of experience to
  describe love.
• Law
• Medicine
• Philosophy
• Religion

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Metaphysical Poets

• John Donne - leader
• Herbert
• Marvell
• Vaughan

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John Donne Life was a Paradox

• Early he was worldly, and he focused on
  witty, love poetry while pursuing a career in
  government.
• Later he became religious, and as a serious
  preacher, he focused on serious verse.

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Cavalier Poetry
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Characteristics of Cavalier Poetry

• Witty, elegant poetry written for song and dance.
• Focused on the theme of carpe diem (Latin for
  seize the day).

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Cavalier Poets

• Leader Ben Jonson others were called sons of
  Ben.

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Puritan Writers
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Puritan Writers

• John Milton Paradise Lost (1667) an epic
  poem written to explain the ways of God to men.
  Milton is considered the greatest writer of the
  seventeenth century.

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Puritan Writers (2)

• John Bunyan Pilgrims Progress (1678) an
  allegorical novel of a Christians progress from
  this world to the next.

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THE END