WHAT IS LITERATURE?

• Literature broadly refers to any collection of written or oral

work, but it more commonly and narrowly refers to writings
specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose
fiction, drama, and poetry in contrast to academic
writing and newspapers.

• Literature, as an art form, can also include works in various

non-fiction genres, such
as autobiography, diaries, memoir, letters, and the essay,
as well as in the disciplines of history and philosophy.[3]

• Literature is classified according to whether it is poetry,

prose or drama, and such works are categorized according
to historical periods, or their adherence to
certain aesthetic features, or genre.
• Genres of Literature
• Genres of literature are important to learn about. The two
main categories separating the different genres of
literature are fiction and nonfiction.
• Finally there is the general genre of Nonfiction. This is
Informational text dealing with an actual, real-life
subject. This genre of literature offers opinions or
conjectures on facts and reality. This includes
biographies, history, essays, speech, and narrative non
fiction. Nonfiction opposes fiction and is distinguished from
those fiction genres of literature like poetry and drama
which is the next section we will discuss. The genre
of Fiction can be defined as narrative literary works
 whose content is produced by the imagination and is
not necessarily based on fact. In fiction something is
feigned, invented, or imagined; a made-up story.
•
• Genres of Fiction:
• Drama 
• Poetry 
• Fantasy 
• Humor 
•  Fable 

What is English literature?

• Includes writers from Scotland, Wales & literature in

English of former British empire including United States.

BRITISH Literature?

• British literature is literature from the United Kingdom of

Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man, and
the Channel Islands.
Different AGES IN LIT:

SLIDE

THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF ENGLISH DRAMA

 • The origin of English drama seems vague.

• There is no evidence proving its origin. However, it can be

traced back from century of succeeding Norman Conquest
to England on 1066. NORMAN CONQUEST – SLIDE

• Normandy- region in the northern part of France.

NORMAN CONQUEST:

he Norman conquest of England was

a military invasion of England by William the Conqueror in 1066.

William was Duke of Normandy, a country on the other side of

the English Channel, now a region in France. He invaded
England after the death of King Edward the Confessor because
he believed he had the most right PERSON to be King of England,
but King Harold II had himself crowned king instead. King
Harold, with his Saxon (GERMANIC PPL) army, and Duke
William fought at the Battle of Hastings on October 14, 1066.
King Harold was killed in the battle and his army left. On
December 25, 1066 William was crowned the new King of
England.

The Norman conquest was an important change in English

history. England has never been successfully invaded since the
Norman invasion nearly 1000 years ago.

•
• Many historians believe that drama came to England along
with them. There was information that when the Roman
where in England, they established vast amphitheatre
SLIDE
 •
• for production some plays, ( an open circular or oval
building with a central space surrounded by tiers of seats
for spectators, for the presentation of dramatic or sporting
events.)
•

Originally, the term drama came from Greek word meaning

“action” or “to act” or “to do”. William J. Long argues that “drama
is an old story told in the eye, a story put into action by living
performers”.
Thus, drama is the form of composition/ STRUCTURE design for
performance in the theatre, in which the actors tOOK role for
certain characters, perform certain action and utter certain
dialogues. (Abrams and Harpham, 2015:95).

In England, drama had a distinctly religious origin from the

church as the part of services. The motives of the church began
to use dramatics elements seem unclear. But, it was certain that
the purpose was didactic, that is, to give deep understanding
about the truth of their religion to the believer.