Thursday, August 9, 2018

What are characteristics of Elizabethan Period (1558-1603) ?

Elizabethan period of English literature was marked by great composers such as William Shakespeare, Sir Edmund Spencer, Sir Philip Sydney, Christopher Marlowe and Francis Bacon.
Characteristics of Elizabethan Period:
  • It was dominated by the spirit of romance.
  • Largely influenced by the literature of Italy.
  • The literary spirit was all persuasive and the authors were men (not yet women) of almost every class.
  • Poetry preferred pastoral theme.
  • Idealized the ‘Golden Age’ of old England.
  • The comedies used Italian or Latin comedies as sources.
  • Tragedian were melodramatic and concerned with the darker side of human character.
  • Lust, adultery, corruption and death were literary themes.
  • Politics and history interested all the play writes.
  • Idealization of women, love, marriage and courtship remain the main theme.
  • Religious allegory, themes of humour and chivalry, courage and fidelity were important themes.
  • Satire on London life, it’s corruption, moral depravity, and lack of faith were also pervasive in literature.
  • Elizabethan poets were under the influence of Homer and other classical poets.
  • Poetry, sonnet, drama and metaphysical poetry were also in use in literature.


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