Notes

 Postcolonialism The postcolonial theory draws upon key ideas and concepts developed in the anti-colonial struggle. It would not be accurate to say that postcolonial theory originated with Edward said- though he certainly generated the modes of  ‘postcolonial reading’ that we now so everywhere- because much of his much of the idea of resistance, cultural nationalism, … Read more

 Humanism in English Literature ‘Humanism’ is a term freely applied to a variety of beliefs, methods, and philosophies that place central emphasis on the human realm. Most frequently, however, the term is used with reference to a system of education and mode of inquiry that developed in northern Italy during the 13th and 14th centuries … Read more

 Essay on the Different Types of Sonnet The term ‘sonnet’ which derives from the Provencal word ‘sonet’ and the Italian Word ‘sonetto’ both meaning ‘little song’, had come to signify, by the thirteenth century, a poem of fourteen lines that follows a strict rhyme scheme and logical structure. Traditionally, when writing sonnets, English poets usually … Read more

 Melancholy in Shakespeare’s Sonnets She dwells with Beauty-Beauty that must die, And Joy, whose hand is ever at his lips Bidding adieu; aching Pleasure nigh, Turning to poison while the bee-mouth sips:            -John Keats, Ode on Melancholy Contrary to the familiar notion, true melancholy, as Keats notes in his ‘Ode … Read more

Feminism is both a political stance and a theory that focuses on gender as a subject of analysis and as a platform to demand equality, rights, and justice. Feminism’s key assumption is that gender role are predetermined and the woman is trained to fit into those roles. This means that roles like ‘daughter’ or ‘mother’ … Read more

 Structuralism theory in literature Structuralism believes that the world is organized as structures. ‘Structures’ are forms made up of units that are arranged in a specific order. These units follow particular rules in the way they are organized or related to each other. A poem is a structure constituted by units such as sounds, phrases, … Read more

 Anglo-Saxon Prose In the history of any nation’s literature, prose as a form of conscious art has flourished much later than verse. The development of prose has nearly always been slower and more uncertain than that of poetry. In the history of English literature, we have to wait almost three centuries after the composition of Beowulf to get the … Read more

Donne as a Metaphysical Poet John Donne, whose poetic reputation languished before he was rediscovered in the early part of the twentieth century is remembered today as the leading exponent of a style of verse known as “metaphysical poetry,” which flourished in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. In fact, Metaphysical poetry and John Donne are so inherently … Read more

How did the Renaissance influence English Literature? The term ‘Renaissance’ which seems to have been first used by the French historian Jules Michelet in his Historie de France, published in 1885, has been described as the birth of the modern world out of the ashes of the Dark Ages; as the discovery of the world … Read more

Aristotle’s concept of Tragedy and its Six formative Elements or Parts The term tragedy is used in common parlance, and yet it cannot be reduced to a formula, for it has so many shades that it actually defies logical analysis. An American critic has admirably summed up Tragedy in a few words: “courage and inevitable … Read more