The Age of Renaissance in English Literature l Major Characteristics of Renaissance Period l Renaissance Drama - Renaissance Playwrights - Renaissance Poetry - Renaissance Poets - Renaissance Prose Writers l BS English Subject introduction of Literature History of English Literature Semester 1 Punjab University

''The word Renaissance basically means as "Rebirth." The movement had its beginnings in Italy and expanded gradually across the rest of Europe. The movement had a major impact on the development of English literary culture.''

The Renaissance was an English artistic and cultural movement of the late 15th to the early 17th centuries in England. It is linked to the pan-European Renaissance, which in Italy generally starts around the end of the 14th century. Like much of northern Europe, England did not see much of this until more than a century later. It is generally accepted that the beginning of the English Renaissance came in 1485 when the battle of Bosworth Field ended the Wars of the Roses and the dynasty of Tudor began. However, the Renaissance style and concepts were sluggish to permeate England; the Elizabethan period was generally seen as the high point of the British Renaissance in the second half of the 16th century.

Queen Elizabeth I appears on a map of England. The English Renaissance is distinct in many ways from the Italian Renaissance. Literature and music were the main art genres of the English Renaissance. Visual arts were considerably less important in the English Renaissance than in the Italian Renaissance. The English era started much later than the Italian period, generally seen to be beginning at the end of the 14th century, and by the 1550s and earlier it became manneric and baroque. Instead, the English Renaissance can only begin in the 1520s, shakily, and last until 1620.

Literature in the Renaissance age 
England had a rich literary history in the vernacular, which grew gradually as the English printing press became widespread by the middle of the 16th century. Poets like Edmund Spenser, whose verse epic The Faerie Queene had a great effect on English literature, was during the period of Elizabethan literature but was ultimately eclipsed by the lyrics from William Shakespeare, Wyatt, and others. In general, the works of these playwrights and poets circulated for some time in manuscript form before they were published, with English Renaissance plays above all as the exceptional legacy of the period.

The English theatre scene, which was produced in private shows for the court and aristocracy and was the most packed of theatres in Europe. The playwrights and towering figures of Christopher Marlowe, Shakespeare, and Ben Jonson were among the most crowded. Elizabeth herself was a product of the humanism of the Renaissance, which was educated by Roger Asham, and at certain times her life had written poetry like On Monsieur's Departure. Thomas More and Francis Bacon were among the philosophers and thinkers. The Tudor kings of the 16th century, as was a great aristocracy, were well-trained and the Italian literature provided the basis for many of Shakespeare's plays. The Baconian method, a precursor of the scientific method, led English to contemporary science. The Book of Common Prayer, first published in 1549 and the Authorized Version of the Bible (1611) towards the conclusion of that era had a lasting influence on the English mind.

Renaissance/Elizabethan Drama

The hallmark of Renaissance drama is its devotion to the genre, with the most popular being comedy, tragedy, and history. It was also heavily influenced by the history of both theatre and literature, ranging from Greek theatre to morality plays, and was particularly interested in historical literature. Apart from that, it was a kind of drama that had broad appeal and was, more so than today, considered a popular art form.

English Renaissance playwrights

• Thomas Dekker
• John Fletcher
• Christopher Marlowe
• Thomas Middleton
• William Shakespeare
• Ben Jonson
• John Ford
• John Lyly
• Robert Greene
• Philip Massinger
• James Shirley
• John Webster

Renaissance/Elizabethan Poetry

Renaissance poetry is full of wit, beauty, and truth. Poets used the technique of repetition to highlight their ideas. During the Renaissance, Shakespeare was the undisputed master of the dramatic genre. His ability to create characters and words was proof of his brilliance in these areas. The themes of the renaissance were Beauty, Aging, Desire, Identity, Self-love, Death, Religion, Spirituality, and Nature.

Renaissance/Elizabethan Poets

• Sir Philip Sidney
• Ben Jonson
• John Donne
• John Milton
• Edmund Spenser
• Francesco Petrarch
• Mary Sidney Herbert
• Thomas Campion
• William Shakespeare

Renaissance/Elizabethan Prose

The Elizabethan era gave rise to contemporary English writing. During Elizabeth's reign, prose became more popular as a means of entertainment and knowledge due to the advent of the printing press. Many books about history, travel, adventure, and Italian tales were translated. There were many prose authors, but only two were aware of their craft and made significant contributions to the English writing style in its infancy. The Elizabethans were charmed with the English language, which had been enhanced by previous writers' borrowings. They enjoyed using flowery language and grandiloquent expressions. The English language, formerly overshadowed by Latin and consigned to a lesser position, suddenly came to its own and was extensively utilized. The Elizabethans favored ornamental and floral flair.

Renaissance/Elizabethan Prose Writers

• Richard Hooker
• Walter Raleigh
• Sir Philip Sidney
• John Fox
• William Camden 
• Thomas North
• Francis Bacon

Major Characteristics of Renaissance Period

• A time of peace, economic success, peace, and freedom, and an age of exploration.
• Variety of endless creative strength; various types of poetry and prose genres included.
• Often the manner of wealth took the shape of costly affections.
• It is greatly affected by Italian, Spanish, and French literature.
• It was an era of experimentation and discoveries.

• Renaissance was the beginning of prose fiction writing in English, for example, in many of Shakespeare's plays.
• Lyrical poetry was another attempt since 'The Faerie Queene,' for example, was Spenser's most renowned lyrical poem.
• Drama has taken over the mysterious plays.
• It was a fresh start for traditional comedy and tragedy.
• Regular English tragedies, comedies, and historical plays have been written effectively.
• The literary mood was overwhelming and the writers were mostly males.

Themes in Renaissance Literature

• Humanism
• Religion and magic are two opposing viewpoints.
• Mathematics, science, and technology are three of the most important disciplines.
• Exploration was done at this age.
• Gender and sexuality-based works were produced.
• The Elevation of the Merchant-Aristocratic Class
• Elizabeth II is the monarch of the United Kingdom.
• Mythology and the Classical Tradition are intertwined.
• In the sixteenth century, the Protestant Reformation took place.

Conclusion

Literary tradition has endured the test of time. Each period after the Renaissance has been affected by the writings of great authors, and this is especially true today. Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is a well-known play in many parts of the globe. The plays have been adapted into a variety of different films and are currently being adapted for a variety of other projects. The literary style, the language, and the genres have all had an impact on the current works and will continue to have an impact on the works of the future.

Video Lecture: Renaissance Age in English Literature