1. The Restoration and the Eighteenth Century: 1660-1800
(Lit Book pg. 468)

2. Augustan and Neoclassical
The Shape of England
England in 1660: exhausted by 20 years of civil war, the Black Plague, and the Great Fire of London (which left 2/3 of citizens homeless)
The other labels of this time period include Age of Reason, Age of Enlightenment, Augustan Age, Neoclassical period
Augustan and Neoclassical
Both the ruler of Rome and the rulers of England restored peace and order after a leader’s death and civil war (Emperor Octavian in Rome, Stuart family—Charles II—in England)
Both the people of Rome and the people of England were weary of war, suspicious of radicals and revolutionaries, wanted peace/order to work and enjoy life
To warn future revolutionaries, the people of England dug up Oliver Cromwell (who led during the civil wars) and cut off his corpse’s head to strike fear in any dissenters (Cromwell had become a military dictator with Puritanical values)
Writers during this time modeled their works after Latin works, classics of Rome (probably Greek works, too). Because they were deemed to have permanence and represented universal values in human experience

3. Oliver Cromwell ( )
Helped overthrow/execute Charles I
Established Commonwealth ( )
“Lord Protector”
Charles II ( )
Son of executed Charles I
Returned from France in 1660
No legitimate heirs

4. Reason and Enlightenment
In the Renaissance, people had superstitious beliefs about unnatural events; they believed that nature gave warnings about social disaster. People looked for supernatural intervention in trying to explain WHY certain events transpired
During the Enlightenment, the focus shifted from “WHY did this happen?” to “HOW?” It became acceptable and popular to question to old explanations, even popular – scientific observation
The Birth of Modern English Prose
The members of the Royal Society of London call for more precise, plain and exact writing (such as shortening long sentences) There was a new form of English prose: popularity of journals, pamphlets, and travel writing
For what reasons (this means more than one) is John Dryden is important because he is considered “founder and first true master” of modern English prose. In poetry, he popularized regularized meter, made diction precise

5. The Bloodless Revolution
Changes in Religion
Deism: Religious belief based upon reason and observation of nature; “watchmaker” analogy says God built complex universe, then let it run by itself
Christianity (in its various forms) still held power over almost all Europeans during this time period
Religion and Politics
Charles II reinstituted the Anglican Church as official church of England
He attempted to outlaw Puritan and independent sects. This resulted in the popularity of British colonies in America. Also, it made the public scared to voice opposing views on any subject
The Bloodless Revolution
When Charles II died he had no legal (legitimate) heir. The problem was, his brother James II was a Roman Catholic
Unpopular James II eventually fled to France in 1688, his Protestant daughter Mary took over
Since then, all English monarchs have been Anglicans (in name)

6. Restoration/18th Century Monarchs
James II ( )
William and Mary ( )
Anne ( )
George I ( )

7. Restoration/18th Century Monarchs
George II ( )
George III ( )
William IV ( )
George IV ( )

8. Addicted to Theater The Age of Satire
When Charles II came to power, one of his first acts was to reopen the theaters Cromwell had closed
Charles and brother James supported play companies financially; this era saw the first real female actresses!
Plays were produced during this time period: Witty comedies, included emphasis on sexual relationships; these plays were another outlet for satire of the age
The Age of Satire
The most accomplished writers of the eighteenth century were Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift (remember “A Modest Proposal?)
They both criticized contemporary society. They believed in order and discipline.
Pope attacked immorality and bad taste, usually of the upper class
Pope and Swift were both appalled by the squalor and shoddiness (in art, manners, morals) that underlay the polished surfaces of Augustan life—its violent and filthy underside
Both writers deplored corrupt politics, materialism, and commercialism

9. “I never wonder to see men wicked, but I often wonder to see them not ashamed.” Jonathan Swift
“For fools rush in where angels fear to tread.” Alexander Pope

10. Journalism Public Poetry
Daniel Defoe stood for middle class values: thrift, prudence, industry, respectability
Journalists of the eighteenth century were reporters and reformers of public manners and morals
Public Poetry
Poets of this time had no desire to write about the soul/feelings; believed poetry was a public function
An Augustan poet would craft a poem by deciding in advance the kind of poem they wanted, with its exact meter and rhyme
Augustan elegy: celebrated the dead by recalling the best about a person, even if it was not true
Poetic satire: says the worst thing about someone or something to expose them/it to ridicule
Ode: Expression of public emotion, often celebratory
Poetry of this time period was highly crafted according to proper format

11. The First English Novels
Early novels were long, fictional, broad stories – often comical
These novels had a lasting importance: fiction is a reflection of the time in which is was written. These novels help us understand humor and insights of human experiences. They helped expand literacy and had a wider public audience (written in a simpler, more common form of English to be read and understood)
The Commanding Figure of Johnson
Samuel Johnson criticized optimism, the idea of progress (that human society was always improving for the better) and the idea that humans are fundamentally moral (if we reformed society, everyone would just do the right thing)
Searching for a Simpler Life
By the end of the eighteenth century, the world was changing: Industrial Revolution changed manufacturing, cities were booming, pollution, the French (and American) Revolutions
New writers disgusted by pollution and mass expansion. They turned to writing about nature and the effects of mass industrialization on the soul