British literature Summary

War and Peace in British Literature British Literature Introduction War and peace wrestle with one another throughout the pages of human history. If war is broadly defined as armed conflict between tw... Read more

In the following excerpt, Rollins explains that a great many sixteenth- and seventeenth-century broadsides, ballads, and jigs served not only as popular entertainments but as journalism and social com... Read more

In the following excerpt, Hodgart examines how broadside ballads went from being considered “low art” in the seventeenth century to being a form that was embraced by British literary mas... Read more

In the following excerpt, Würzbach analyzes the relationship between English ballads, theater, and commerce between 1550 and 1650. 1.1 Performance and Rendition The text of the street ballad... Read more

In the following excerpt, Shaaber shows that broadside ballads and other inexpensive verse often served as a means of disseminating news about the British royalty and popular heroes, and he notes that... Read more

In the following excerpt, Hilliard examines why Thomas Nashe's 1592 pamphlet Pierce Penniless, with its satire of Elizabethan ideals, opened the author up to widespread criticism. A suggesti... Read more

In following excerpt, Stephens traces the history of Addison and Steele's periodical the Guardian, emphasizing its involvement in politics as the cause of its demise. If The Spectator had no... Read more

In the essay that follows, Bond analyzes Addison's efforts in the Spectator to redefine the scope and methods of literary criticism. The series of daily essays published by Addison and Steel... Read more

In this essay, first presented at a 1976 symposium, Winton examines Steele's editorial direction of the Tatler and the Spectator. The critic maintains that Steele introduced a number of innovat... Read more

In the following essay, Pallares-Burke describes how admiration for the Spectator quickly spread beyond England, spawning imitations throughout Europe. She also discusses how the journal's infl... Read more

In the essay that follows, Berry examines how satire was used and developed in the Spectator, primarily by Joseph Addison. The critic asserts that Addison felt that legitimate satire must be good-natu... Read more

In the essay that follows, Knight considers the linking of morality and economics in the Spectator, maintaining that the journal delineated “the workings of ethics through an economic order in ... Read more

In this essay, Maurer explores how early periodicals depicted and defined gender roles, family dynamics, and other social and domestic values. The revolution in which the slogan “libert�... Read more

What does it mean to be British? Britain's national identity has evolved and transformed over the years. Through the works of Phyllis Wheatley, Aphra Ben, William Shakespeare, Daniel DeFoe, Coetzee a... Read more

Nature is a fundamental aspect of people's lives. It encapsulates our everyday lives because it is everywhere we go and who we are; it's the air we breathe, the ground under our feet, the way we act... Read more