Literary MovementsLiterature in the context of historically developing perceptions of the world

The Medieval Chain of Being

The medieval world had a static view of a society ordered by God. Everyone had a place and their duty was to perform their allotted role, never to question or challenge.

God was at the top with the King as his representative on earth (hence the divine right of kings). Then came the nobility and finally the peasants. In the family the man was at the top, followed by the woman then the children. There was no concept of the needs of the individual or of social change.

The central idea of the chain of being is that everything imaginable fits into it somewhere, giving order and meaning to the universe.

The Renaissance 14th – 17th C

The Renaissance was brought about by technological advances which created enough wealth to support artists and intellectuals.These initially looked back to the learning of previous ages in which society had this wealth, Ancient Greece and Rome, hence the name ‘rebirth’.

Increasingly an interest in man as an individual with personal needs and desires developed. Literature began to explore the conflict between the individual and society e.g. Shakespeare.

Education became more widespread and there was the ideal of ‘renaissance man’ – knowledgeable about all strands of learning.

The Age of Enlightenment18th Century

With new scientific advances the Age of Reason in the late 17th century developed into the Age of Enlightenment. There was a widespread belief that the world could be understood and categorised through scientific enquiry and exploration.

Reason was seen as the source of legitimacy and authority politically. The French Revolution with the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the American Declaration of Independence expressed these ideals.

At its core was a critical questioning of traditional institutions, customs and morals. Reason was to be a guide to the individual, not the past. Even politically conservative writers like Jane Austen were concerned with how the individual decided their own life.

Romanticism late 18th/early 19th C

Romanticism took the focus on the individual’sneed for personal fulfilment to new extremes.Now emotion, not reason, was to be the guide to action.

The Enlightenment, for all that it’s ideals had led to revolution, had maintained aristocratic social and political norms. Romanticism revolted against this and the scientific categorisation of nature. It idealised the individual in romantic, natural surroundings, following his/her emotional impulses in a search for personal happiness.

It was primarily an artistic and literary movement which used emotion as a base for aesthetic experience. There was a new interest in ancient custom and folk art. The romantic poets such as Byron and Shelley were soon followed by writers like the Brontes.

Realism mid - late 19th Century

Realism developed with the industrial revolution. It is based on the concept that there is an empirical scientific reality which can be known, an objective Reality which can be discovered by the individual through the senses.

In the arts writers and artists attempted to depict this. Supposedly undistorted by personal bias, Realism believed in the idea of objective reality and revolted against the exaggerated emotionalism of the romantic movement. Truth and accuracy became the goals of many Realists.

Many realist painting showed people at work. The popularity of such 'realistic' works grew with the introduction of photography, a new visual source that created a desire for people to produce representations which look “objectively real.”

Modernism late 19th – mid 20th C

Modernism was primarily an artistic movement that looked for new artistic forms to express the new economic, social and political conditions of an emerging fully industrialised world.

Modernism believed that ‘traditional’ forms of art, architecture, literature, religious faith, social organization and daily life were becoming outdated. It rejected the certainties of the Enlightenment, such as God, and demanded that we question all beliefs.

An important characteristic of modernism is self-consciousness, often leading to experiments with form that draw attention to the processes and materials used. Modernist writers like Virginia Woolf, TS Eliot and e e cummings rejected traditional literary forms and some even abandoned rules of grammar and punctuation.

Post-modernism late 20th C

Post-modernism questions the existence of objective truth. It has developed as the third world has increasingly questioned the dominant global view and assumptions of the West.

It believes that realities are only social constructs, perceptions which are subject to the change inherent in time and place. It emphasizes the role of language, power relations, and motivations; in particular it attacks the use of sharp classifications such as male vs female, straight vs gay, white vs black, and imperial vs colonial.

Post-modernism holds realities to be plural and relative, dependant on the interested parties. One country’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter. Post-modernist writers often directly address their audience, breaking traditional narrative boundaries.