Book Description

Art is basically a creation, which is the product of both the man and nature. Nature creates beautiful fleeting visitations like sunset, snowfall, gorgeous waterfalls, and strange creatures etc. So also, man creates art in imitation of Nature in the form of fine arts. Literature is rather later growth compare to painting and music in the history of mankind. Literature is an art of writing by means of words. It has a direct link with life and its realities. Literature is nothing but the reflection of life. It deals with human hopes, aspirations, joys, sorrows and conflicts. Nothing in the world comes so close to life as literature. In short, it holds mirror up to life and society. Men of literature constantly in touch with social movements and strive hard to reform and correct the social mistakes and failures. So literature acquires human significance as Homer, Ovid, Cicero, Shakespeare, Milton, Carlyle, Tagore, Tolstoy, Rousseau and Voltaire did in the previous generations to solve the problems of their contemporary society. English literature has its unique identity in World’s literature. It has acquired more significance during the colonial world. It has become the major discipline of the study at both graduate and post graduate level in almost all the Universities of Globe. Millions of students and teachers constantly read and teach History of English literature in Higher education all over the world. Here, an attempt has been made to simplify the History of English Literature, keeping in mind the receptive and conceptual ability of the students. There is a critical analysis and a microscopic observation of each writer and their contextual relevance of the text. The Book sheds a light on the developments of each genre from Chaucer to T.S Eliot. The stress is laid on major literary movements like Romanticism, Classicism and Realism from the beginning to the end and simplified the concepts. So the content of the book is prepared to appeal the critical ability of the students and their urge to understand it for aesthetic pleasure as well as for competitive examinations. No doubt the book will satisfy the quest of students in gaining the better understanding of the subject clearly at ease. In writing this book I have leaned more or less heavily on almost all the existed literary sources and I acknowledge all these writers and publishers for their explicit reference in the body of the text.