Alexander Pope was an English poet and satirist of the Augustan period and one of its greatest artistic exponents. Considered the foremost English poet of the early 18th century and a master of the heroic couplet he is best known for satirical and discursive poetry, includingTHE RAPE OF THE LOCK, THE DUNCIAD, and AN ESSAY ON CRITICISM, and FOR HIS TRANSLATION OF HOMER.
History of Poem
A Rape of the Lock
The Rape of the Lock was written by Alexander Pope and first published in 1712, then reworked and published again in 1714. Finally, in 1717, upon preparing for a publication of a collection of his work, Pope wrote the version that we know today. This version is five cantos long, and includes Clarissa’s speech, which aids in describing the morality behind the poem. However, it is interesting to note that by the time Pope had finished the latest version, Lord Peter had died of smallpox, and Arabella was married, so the feud which the poem was originally written to mend was no longer relevant.
The poem is a mock-epic that satirizes the upper-class in London at the time. The story focuses on the central character, Belinda, whose lock of hair is cut off at a social gathering. Although trivial to most, Belinda is outraged that her lock of hair has been cut by the Baron. In the Rape of the Lock, Pope uses Belinda and the Baron to mock two of his acquaintances, ARABELLA FERMOR, and LORD PETER. The poem follows the events of the night, leading up to Belinda’s “horrific” loss.
SUMMARY VIDEO
Thinking Activity
1)Who is the protagonist of the poem Clarissa or Belinda? Why? Give your answer with logical reasons.
Belinda
The protagonist of the poem, Belinda is a wealthy and beautiful young lady with wondrous hair, two locks of which hang gracefully in curls. She travels to Hampton Court for a day of socializing and leisure. Her remarkable beauty attracts the attention of the Baron, who snips (cut) off a lock of her hair in his infatuation(attraction).
The Pope presented Belinda as a complex character. He has presented her in different roles and under different shades, some are satirical, others ironical but all entertaining. Belinda is very mixed and complicated; mocking and yet tender, admiring and yet critical.
Belinda is a vain, upper class woman who is always seen as the center of attention. Her society puts her on a high pedestal, always giving her praise when possible. The Baron steals a curl of Belinda’s hair when given the scissors by Belinda’s friend, Clarissa. When The Baron cuts the curl from her head, the typically calm, collective Belinda flies into a horrible rage. She asks at once for her hair to be returned to her but when The Baron cannot find the curl, it is said that it traveled up into the stars and is now a constellation for all to admire. It looks as though the Pope used this mock-epic work to represent the fascination that society has of the members of the upper class. Belinda’s beauty was admired by all and many were jealous of her (The Baron, Clarissa). The tension between the people in the upper class is illustrated by these characters and the fight to steal another person’s power. Pope compares the trivial event in his poem to the events in epic poems by using satire. The events that occur in this poem show how the society being described has lost all capability of determining which problems are to be treated seriously and which should not.
Reason
It is her character around whom the story of the whole poem is woven. Belinda is a beautiful young lady and main character of poem because she is centered in the poem for her beautiful two golden curls. Baron is attracted towards it and cuts her lock without knowing her by which Belinda becomes curious about her lock. Throughout the poem she is centered in the poem for lock of hair snip by Baron. So she is the protagonist of the poem.
2) What is beauty?
Definition
Normal way of justifying beauty is highly pleasing to the sight; perceived physical perfection; attractive harmony of features, figure, or complexion; exceptional grace, elegance, or charm in appearance.” Many people tend to define beauty on what is on the outside rather than what's on the inside.
My thoughts about beauty
But in a real sense beauty should not be judged from outside, it should be judged by inside.
Beauty in Poem
In the poem it is talked about the outer beauty of the character Belinda.
Belinda's pleasing beauty is enhanced by two curling side locks of hair that charmingly set off her ivory white neck.
Her outer beauty is highly enhanced in the poem. Pope compares Belinda to the sun and suggests that it recognizes in Belinda a rival. Belinda is like the sun not only because of her bright eyes and not only because she dominates her special world. She was as beautiful as every eye was fixed on her alone.
“Bright as the sun, her eyes the gazers strike.
And, like the sun, shines on all alike."
3)Find out a research paper on "The Rape of the Lock". Give the details of the paper and write down in brief what it says about the Poem by Alexander Pope.
Research paper by RICHIK BANERJEE academia.edu
The Rape of the Lock as working out ideas of feminine psychology in terms of ‘irrational’ mythologies. In the research paper it talked about how Baron is attracted towards Belinda's lock of hair. And how both the families had a conflict that has attracted readers. The use of Supernatural machinery Sylph(imaginary spirit).
Pope's Comparing those giant work and issues to make fun of the genre and the society as well. Such comparison provokes use of parody (deliberate exaggeration for comic effect) mockery (comments)at the relativity of Being and genealogy(A Study of family history)of the Real through a cultural mirroring of selves(self) in a broader plane.
Words:- 1,033
Sources:- academia.edu ,British Literature Wiki, English Literature. Com
Q-1 Which version of the novel is more appealing? Novel or film (adaptation)? Why?
Ans-1Both are appealing Novel and Film. Firstly novel is more appealing because without knowing the full story we cannot understand movie. Firstly the base (summary )should be clear. So by watching movie we can understand the story. And our vision becomes clear.
Q-2Character of Elizabeth (Headstrong woman, woman with pride, judgmental, mature, strong-opinions, controlled, honest).
Ans-2 She is confident in herself and won’t let others’ bases bring her down.
She is fiercely loyal to her sisters even the annoying one.
She refuses to let men intimidate her andcalls them out on their rude behavior .
She challenges others through her witty and intelligent retorts rather than through anger and petty remarks.
She doesn’t conform to others’ low expectations of her.
She would rather sacrifice financial security than be stuck in a loveless marriage with a man unworthy of her.
She doesn’t place a man’s value on his appearance. She judges a man for his morals rather than his attractiveness.
She recognizes her faults and tries to right her mistakes rather than stay in denial.
Q-3Character of Mr. Darcy (Man with pride (male ego), reserved, introvert, observer, silent lover, superiority complex, true lover).
Ans-3 Darcy exhibits all the good and bad qualities of the ideal English aristocrat — snobbish and arrogant, he is also completely honest and sure of himself. Darcy is not actually a titled nobleman, but he is one of the wealthiest members of the landed gentry the same legal class that Elizabeth's much poorer family belongs to. While Darcy's sense of social superiority offends people, it also promotes some of his better traits. As Wickham notes in his sly assessment, "His pride never deserts him; but with the rich, he is liberal-minded, just, sincere, rational, honorable, and perhaps agreeable — allowing for fortune and figure. "It is, in fact, his ideal of nobility that makesDarcy truly change in the novel. When Elizabeth flatly turns down his marriage proposal and tells him that it was ungentlemanly, Darcy is startled into realizing just how arrogant and assuming he has been. He reflects later on why he was that way: "I was spoiled by my parents, who though good themselves allowed, encouraged, almost taught me to be selfish and overbearing to think meanly of all the rest of the world." Darcy's humbling makes him more sensitive to what other people feel. In the end, he is willing to marry into a family with three silly daughters, an embarrassing mother, and Wickham as a brother-in-law. It may be that he becomes more easygoing about other people's faults because he is now aware of his own.
Q-4Give illustrations of the society of that time. (Jane Austen's presentation)
Ans-4 In all her novels Austen portrays a society that closely restricts mental and physical space, particularly for women, who are allowed little solitude or independence. One of the reasons Austen’s world charms us is because it appears to follow stricter rules than our own, setting limits on BEHAVIOUR. There are precise forms of introduction andaddress, conventions for ‘coming out’ into society (meaning a young girl’s official entry into society and therefore her marriageability), for paying and returning social visits, even for mixing with differentsocial ranks.
Q-5 If you were director or screenplay writer, what sort of difference would you make in the making of movie?
Ans-5 If I would be director or screenplay writer, I would show Mrs. Bennet in different way She running behind the wealth I would show her a simple lady and rather then a lady running behind the wealth .
Q-6 Who would be your choice of actors to play the role of characters?
(Elizabeth, Mr. Darcy, Mr. Bingley, Jane, Mr. Collins, Wickham)
Ans-6 Alia Bhatt as Elizabeth, Ranbir Kapoor as Mr. Darcy ,Mr. Bingley as Arjun Kapoor, Jane as Parineeti Chopra, Mr. Collins as Raj Kumar Rao, Wickham as Ranveer Singh.
Q-7 Write a note on a scene you liked the most.
Ans-7 when Collins came to propose Elizabeth. He is not even looking at her. And that was funny scene in movie which I liked the most. When the full Bennet family stands out side the room and were listening the talks. That was the funniest in movie. And that I liked the most.
Q-8 Compare the narrative strategy of novel and Movie.
Ans-8 The movie was filmed in England and was marketed towards a mainstream audience. Originally, the movie was going to be very true to the book. All the dialogue was kept the same and almost the entire movie was going to be from the perspective of Elizabeth (like the book). In the end, the dialogue in the film varied between being exactly the same as the book in some scenes, while most scenes had altered dialogue. This was done to help a modern audience better connect with the movie and the characters. The movie also features scenes from the perspective ofMr. Darcy, these are additional and not in the book. This was done to show Darcy as more human as well as to show the genuine closeness of his friendship with the character of Mr. Bingley.
In the movie, Elizabeth keeps secrets from her family and grows apart from her older sister Jane. This is different from the book, while Elizabeth does become frustrated with events related to her family, she never keeps secrets from them. She also confides in her sister after difficult events, they never grow apart. The movie also portrays Mr. Bennett as a warmer, moresympathetic father than he is in the book. His role in the family misfortunes, caused by him spending money on the wrong things, is downplayed. His relationship with his wife is much more loving in the movie. However, the movie also makes the Bennet look poorer than they were in the book. Elizabeth also comes across as much more bold and impatient in the movie, she never yells at her parents in the book.
There have been various film adaptation of the Shakespearean play Macbeth, the most recent being Rupert Gold’s version of Macbeth in 2010. It stars Patrick Stewart as Macbeth and Kate Fleetwood as Lady Macbeth. There are various adaptations of Macbeth, and people usually prefer the Macbeth play in the Macbeth play vs. movie debate.
There are quite a few differences between the play and the film.
Change in Timeline
There are plenty of differences between Macbeth play and 2010 movie, and most of them don’t sit well with true Shakespearean fans. The original play is set in the late 1400s and early 1500s. However, the movie is set around the 1920s.
With this change in the time slots, the setting and background of the entire movie had to be changed. Accordingly, it adds an interesting contrast in the movie.
Change in Setting
Macbeth (2010) is a very strange adaptation of the play and has a relatively modern setting. It is set in Soviet Russia, whereas the play was set in the medieval time, located most probably in Scotland. The idea that we have of Macbeth in our minds from our school and college days clashes with the idea of Macbeth depicted in this movie.
Death of Macbeth
The death of Macbeth is a highly downplayed affair in the 2010 movie. He is sitting at his dining table all alone when Macduff attacks him, and the battle takes place privately. Moreover, Macbeth fights in a very hopeless way.
We don’t see his death; Malcolm gets his severed head in the end. The whole character of Macbeth has been downplayed in this movie. In real Macbeth was the hunger for power, the fire, the craziness .
Portray of Witches
The differences between Macbeth play and 2010 movie are very stark, and we can see that there is a complete deviation from the timeline in the movie.
We all remember the witches from Macbeth. In the play, they met Macbeth in the forest or in uninhabited areas. However, in the movie, the witches are depicted as nurses, and they present in Macbeth’s house, lurking in the shadows.
This is really weird since nurses are portrayed in all movies as kind and good, but here they depict evil. Furthermore, the witches don’t even say much; they just keep looking at the characters with big, weird eyes that creates awkwardness in the movie.
Apparitions (Ghost)
Another one of the differences between Macbeth play and 2010 movie is present in the occurrence of apparitions.
In the original play, there are apparitions of a bloody child, an armed head, and that of a little boy with a crown on his head. However, in the movie, there are only dead bodies inside the bags, and they speak through the witches. The only apparition that was shown in the movie was Banquo and the line of Kings.
The apparitions are one of the main reasons why Macbeth goes crazy. With all these changes, it seems as if the original spirit of the play has been changed completely.
Murder of the Mac duffs
In the family, when the Macduff family is murdered, Macbeth is not there. However, the opposite happens in the movie, and Macbeth is present. Furthermore, in the movie, Ross sees that they have been murdered while in the play, he only hears about it. The murder of the Mac duffs and all that it encompasses has not been portrayed in a great way in the 2010 version of Macbeth movie.
Conclusion
The movie has an overall great feel to it. But true Shakespeare fans will agree that there are a lot of changes in the movie, and the cutting and adding of some parts cause the story to lose its essence to some extent. We often have Macbeth play vs. movie debate, and many people don’t appreciate the changes made in the movie.
We have explained quite a few differences in our Macbeth play vs. movie analysis. Rupert Gold’s version didn’t stick to the main plot and time frame. It seemed as if he was trying very hard to be different. The madness and thirst for power depicted by Patrick Stewart seem to be lacking as well.
Movie JOJI
The movie JOJI inspired from Shakespeare's Macbeth”. The cool highlands of Scotland have been transposed to the rubber plantation of steamy Kottayam, but greed is a universal vice .FAASIL`s JOJI—the film’s Macbeth—is the son, not the lieutenant, of the brutish patriarch KUTTAPPAM(Sunny PN). The Banquo figure is his elder brother, JOMON(Baburaj), and BINCY (UNNIMAYA PRASAD)—Lady Macbeth—is not his wife but his brother Jaison’s. SYAM PUSKARAM, who’s written POTHAN’s earlier films as well as KUMBALANG NIGHTS, goes easy on the witches, moving woods and hands that won’t wash clean of blood.
Macbeth with audiences seeing the connection with the Shakespearean tragedy in some scenes and not in others, says Malayalam star FAHADH FAASIL who is drawn to lived in . There have set something inspired by Macbeth in today’s scenario.
The story revolves around JOJI, an engineering dropout and the youngest son of the rich plantation family who lives with his aspirations of becoming a super-wealthy NRI. But his father sees down on him and thinks of him as nothing more than a loser. Driven by greed and blind ambition, JOJI finally decides to execute his plans following an unexpected event in the family.
Movie Maqbool
Comparison of Maqbool and Macbeth
Macbeth is an upright Scottish leader (a general) dedicated in his service of the royal throne. He is naturally inclined to preservation rather the destruction of life as is his duty as a soldier. However, Macbeth desires more than just the position of general. Blinded by his unbridled ambition, Macbeth resorts to succumbing to his evil desires by killing King Duncan and every other character he considered a threat to his ascension to royalty; Banquo and Macduff's wife and children.
Lady Macbeth, on the other hand, is a strong willed lady considered even more than her husband, Macbeth. She desires nothing but to see her husband rise to the position of King. For this reason, she would stop at nothing to ensure her desired plans are realized. Lady Macbeth was responsible for persuading her Macbeth to accomplish the murder of King Duncan. Her unwavering determination even with Macbeth’s hesitation to commit cold-blooded murder led to Macbeth’s submission. However, Lady Macbeth’s ambitious nature seems to dwindle after Macbeth’s ascension to the royal throne. She is perturbed by her husband’s string of murders afterward.
Maqbool, however, is an Indian crime/drama film based on Mumbai’s world of organized crime. The movie features the boss of the underworld, Jahangir Khan, and his right-hand man Maqbool. Maqbool happens to fall in love with the boss' mistress, NIMMI, who persuades him to revolt against Jahangir and take control of his empire. NIMMI encourages Maqbool to be ambitious, and he does so eliminate all possible competition. Ultimately, Maqbool succeeds in overthrowing Jahangir by killing him in his sleep. However, Maqbool and NIMMI live dreadful lives tormented by the ghosts of those they murdered.
Maqbool’s plot is quite similar to that of Macbeth though several components have been altered such as the cultural setting. Macbeth is set in Scotland while Maqbool is based in Mumbai, India. For this reason, the characters had to be altered, and plot twisted to match the cultural surrounding. In Macbeth, the price was the king’s power while in Maqbool; the price being fought for was the love for a woman and subsequently the power over the criminal underworld.
Similarly, NIMMI also manipulates Maqbool into fulfilling her wishes as Lady Macbeth did Macbeth. However, instead of exercising authority, she infuses Maqbool's mind with ambitious ideas. NIMMI eventually gives Maqbool the ultimatum of killing either her or the boss. Maqbool's love for NIMMI pushes him to execute the crime boss instead.
The content changes whereby unlike in Macbeth; Maqbool initially has no earnest desires to overthrow the criminal boss and take over the criminal underworld. It is when he falls in love with the criminal boss' mistress that he is manipulated into desiring more. Maqbool wishes to take over the criminal empire so as to satisfy NIMMI. In this film, Maqbool's ambition is motivated by his love for a woman as opposed to Macbeth's natural ambitiousness.
The film also differs from the play where unlike Lady Macbeth, NIMMI bears a child under unclear circumstances of whose child it is (Jahangir/ Maqbool). In Macbeth, the Lady Macbeth does not bear any children. In Macbeth, the Lady Macbeth ultimately commits suicide while in Maqbool; NIMMI dies in Maqbool’s arms.
Movie Scotland PA
Macbeth vs. Scotland, PA
Mac Beth and his wife Pat Beth work at Duncan's, a fast food restaurant. Mac and Pat get the manager position. Norm Duncan, his boss, gives Mac the assistant manager position. Pat believes that Mac deserves more recognition for his hard work and ideas. She convinces him to rob and kill Norman Duncan. Norman gets killed by falling into a fryer. Mac and Pat then open up their own fast food restaurant with a drive thru called Mc Beth's. The guilt slowly eats at both of them. Mac kills two more people and Pat is consumed by her burn. McDuff is the investigator on the case who eventually kills Mac. Pat kills her self by cutting off her hand which was burned by the grease.
The most notable difference in the portrayal of Mac and Pat, in Scotland, PA versus the portrayal of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, in Macbeth, is the atrociousness, or lack of, with which we view them and their crimes. Mac and Pat seem to be less despicable than Macbeth and Lady Macbeth for several reasons. One key reason is the omission of the ordered murder of Mac duff ’family.
Movie Men of Respect
Comparison of Men of Respect and Macbeth
Set in present day New York in 1991, "Men of Respect" is a story of New York gangsters, in particular a mad-dog thug, Mike Battaglia, and his ambitious, highly unscrupulous wife Ruthie. “Macbeth” created by William Shakespeare was re-created into this modern day movie version. The various warring kingdoms of the play become organized crime factions in the film: King Duncan becoming the godfather of the main family, CHARLIE DI'MICO; Banquo becomes his buddy, BANKIE COMO; Macduff becomes Irish capo, Duffy. Screenwriter Reilly makes Macbeth over into ambitious Mafia underling, Mikey Battaglia, who is King Duncan’s lieutenant chief driven by a fortuneteller's prophecy and the influences of his even more treacherous wife to knock off the head of the D'Amico crime family and claim the top title for himself. The most significant aspect of the film is its total loyalty and devotion to the text of the play. The film follows the play scene for scene, at times line for line. A closer analysis of the characters and lines will compare the many differences and similarities between William Shakespeare's "Macbeth" and William Reilly's "Men of Respect".
The personality of Lady Macbeth or RUTHIEBATAGLIA remains instinctive yet ruthless in her goal to get Mikey to become the "PADRINO." Some lines are paraphrased to Shakespeare's original version word for word.
Comparison between the general characteristics of Elizabethan Age with Neoclassical Age.
SUMMARY OF ELIZABETHAN AGE
Many classics in art, literature, theatre, and intellectual discoveries are made in times where countries are wealthy, peaceful and have overall good living conditions.
The Elizabethan age saw the flowering of poetry (the sonnet, the Spenserian stanza, dramatic blank verse), was a golden age of drama (especially for the plays of Shakespeare), and inspired a wide variety of splendid prose (from historical chronicles, versions of the Holy Scriptures, pamphlets, and literary criticism to the first English novels). From about the beginning of the 17th century a sudden darkening of tone became noticeable in most forms of literary expression, especially in drama, and the change more or less coincided with the death of Elizabeth.
SUMMARY OF NEO-CLASSICAL AGE
Neoclassical literaturewas written between 1700 and 1800. This time period is broken down into three parts: the Restoration Period, the Augustan Period, and the Age of Johnson.
Writers of the Neoclassical period tried to imitate the style of the Romans and Greeks. Thus the combination of the terms 'neo,' which means 'new,' and 'classical,' as in the day of the Roman and Greek classics. This was also the era of The Enlightenment, which emphasized logic and reason. It was preceded by The Renaissance and followed by the Romantic era. In fact, the Neoclassical period ended in 1800. when Wordsworth published the Romantic 'Lyrical Ballads'.
RELIGIOUS CONDITION AT ELIZABETHAN AGE
RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE
The most characteristic feature of the age was the comparative religious tolerance, which was due largely to the queen's influence. The frightful excesses of the religious war known as the Thirty Years' War on the Continent found no parallel in England. Upon her accession Elizabeth found the whole kingdom divided against itself; the North was largely Catholic, while the southern counties were as strongly Protestant. Scotland had followed the Reformation in its own intense way, while Ireland remained true to its old religious traditions, and both countries were openly rebellious. The court, made up of both parties, witnessed the rival intrigues of those who sought to gain the royal favor. It was due partly to the intense absorption of men's minds in religious questions that the preceding century, though an age of advancing learning, produced scarcely any literature worthy of the name. Elizabeth favored both religious parties, and presently the world saw with amazement Catholics and Protestants acting together as trusted counselors of a great sovereign. The defeat of the Spanish Armada established theReformation as a fact in England, and at the same time united all Englishmen in a magnificent national enthusiasm. For the first time since the Reformation began, the fundamental question of religious toleration seemed to be settled, and the mind of man, freed from religious fears and persecutions, turned with a great creative impulse to other forms of activity. It is partly from this new freedom of the mind that the Age of Elizabeth received its great literary stimulus.
NEW MORALITY IN NEO-CLASSICAL AGE
Like the age of Elizabethan there no so more religious questions but in this period so many question about morality in work. The immorality of the Restoration, which had been almost entirely a Court phenomenon and was largely the reaction against extreme Puritanism, soon spent itself. The natural process of time was hastened by opinion in high quarters. William III was-a severe moralist, and Anne, his successor, was of the same character. Thus we soon see a new tone in the writing of the time. and n new attitude to life and morals. Addison, in an early number of The Spectator, puts the new fashion in his own admirable way: "I shall Endeavour to enliven morality with wit, and to temper wit with morality." Another development of the same spirit is seen in the revised opinion of women, who are treated with new respect and dignity. Much coarseness is still to be felt, especially in satirical writing, in which Swift, for instance, can be quite vile; but the general upward tendency is undoubtedly there.
SOCIAL CONDITION OF THE ELIZABETHAN AGE
SOCIAL CONTENTMENT
It was an age of comparative social contentment, in strong contrast with the days of England. The rapid increase of manufacturing towns gave employment to thousands who had before been idle and discontented. Increasing trade brought enormous wealth to England, and this wealth was shared to this extent, at least, that for the first time some systematic care for the needy was attempted. Parishes were made responsible for their own poor, and the wealthy were taxed to support them or give them employment. The increase of wealth, the improvement in living, the opportunities for labor, the new social content--these also are factors which help to account for the new literary activity.
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT IN NEOCLASSICAL AGE
In the latter half of the century the political and social progress is almost bewildering. The modern form of cabinet government responsible to Parliament and the people had been established under George I; and in 1757 the cynical and corrupt practices of Walpole, premier of the first Tory cabinet, were replaced by the more enlightened policies of Pitt. Schools were established; clubs and coffeehouses increased; books and magazines multiplied until the press was the greatest visible power in England; the modern great dailies, the Chronicle, Post, and Times, began their career of public education. Religiously, all the churches of England felt the quickening power of that tremendous spiritual revival known as Methodism, under the preaching of Wesley and Whitefield. Outside her own borders three great men--Clive in India, Wolfe on the Plains of Abraham, Cook in Australia and the islands of the Pacific--were unfurling the banner of St. George over the untold wealth of new lands, and spreading the world-wide empire of the Anglo-Saxon
DEVELOPMENT IN ELIZABETHAN AGE
It is an age of dreams, of adventure, of unbounded enthusiasm springing from the new lands of fabulous riches revealed by English explorers. Drake sails around the world, shaping the mighty course which English colonizers shall follow through the centuries; and presently the young philosopher Bacon is saying confidently, "I have taken all knowledge for my province." The mind must search farther than the eye; with new, rich lands opened to the sight, the imagination must create new forms to people the new worlds. Hakluyt's famous Collection of Voyages, and Purchas, His Pilgrimage, were even more stimulating to the English imagination than to the English acquisitiveness. While her explorers search the new world for the Fountain of Youth, her poets are creating literary works that are young forever. Marston writes: "Why, man, all their dripping pans are pure gold. The prisoners they take are fettered in gold; and as for rubies and diamonds, they goes forth on holy days and gather 'hem by the seashore to hang on their children's coats." This comes nearer to being a description of Shakespeare's poetry than of the Indians in Virginia. Prospero, in The Tempest, with his control over the mighty powers and harmonies of nature, is only the literary dream of that science which had just begun to grapple with the forces of the universe. Cabot, Drake, Frobisher, Gilbert, Raleigh, Willoughby, Hawkins,--a score ofexplorers reveal a new earth to men's eyes, and instantly literature creates a new heaven to match it. So dreams and deeds increase side by side, and the dream is ever greater than the deed. That is the meaning of literature.
THE DRAMA
To sum up, the Age of Elizabeth was a time of intellectual liberty, of growing intelligence and comfort among all classes, of unbounded patriotism, and of peace at home and abroad. For a parallel we must go back to the Age of Pericles in Athens, or of Augustus in Rome, or go forward a little to the magnificent court of Louis XIV, when Corneille, Racine, and Molière brought the drama in France to the point where Marlowe, Shakespeare, and Jonson had left it in England half a century earlier. Such an age of great thought and great action, appealing to the eyes as well as to the imagination and intellect, finds but one adequate literary expression; neither poetry nor the story can express the whole man,--his thought, feeling, action, and the resulting character; hence in the Age of Elizabeth literature turned instinctively to the drama and brought it rapidly to the highest stage of its development.
DEVELOPMENT IN NEO-CLASSICAL AGE
PROSE
In every preceding age we have noted especially the poetical works, which constitute, according to Matthew Arnold, the glory of English literature. Now for the first time we must chronicle the triumph of English prose. A multitude of practical interests arising from the new social and political conditions demanded expression, not simply in books, but more especially in pamphlets, magazines, and newspapers. Poetry was inadequate for such a task; hence the development of prose, of the "unfettered word," as Dante calls it,--a development which astonishes us by its rapidity and excellence. The graceful elegance of Addison's essays, the terse vigor of Swift's satires, the artistic finish of Fielding's novels, the sonorous eloquence of Gibbon's history and of Burke's orations,--these have no parallel in the poetry of the age. Indeed, poetry itself became prosaic in this respect, that it was used not for creative works of imagination, but for essays, for satire, for criticism,--for exactly the same practicalends as was prose. The poetry of the first half of the century, as typified in the work of Pope, is polished and witty enough, but artificial; it lacks fire, fine feeling, enthusiasm, the glow of the Elizabethan Age and the moral earnestness of Puritanism. In a word, it interests us as a study of life, rather than delights or inspires us by its appeal to the imagination. The variety and excellence of prose works, and the development of a serviceable prose style, which had been begun by Dryden, until it served to express clearly every human interest and emotion,--these are the chief literary glories of the eighteenth century.
SATIRE
In the literature of the preceding age we noted two marked tendencies,--the tendency to realism in subject-matter, and the tendency to polish and refinement of expression. Both these tendencies were continued in the Augustan Age, and are seen clearly in the poetry of Pope, who brought the couplet to perfection, and in the prose of Addison. A third tendency is shown in the prevalence of satire, resulting from the unfortunate union of politics with literature. We have already noted the power of the press in this age, and the perpetual strife of political parties. Nearly every writer of the first half of the century was used and rewarded by Whigs or Tories for satirizing their enemies and for advancing their special political interests. Pope was a marked exception, but he nevertheless followed the prose writers in using satire too largely in his poetry. Now satire--that is, a literary work which searches out the faults of men or institutions in order to hold them up to ridicule--is at best a destructive kind of criticism. A satirist is like a laborer who clears away the ruins and rubbish of an old house before the architect and builders begin on a new and beautiful structure. The work may sometimes be necessary, but it rarely arouses ourenthusiasm. While the satires of Pope, Swift, and Addison are doubtless the best in our language, we hardly place them with our great literature, which is always constructive in spirit; and we have the feeling that all these men were capable of better things than they ever wrote.
CONCLUSION
We can conclude that both age has rapid change in so many different ways. Elizabethan age is the beginning of the Renaissance in the English literature while Neoclassical followed the rules and regulation. Both ages are much different from each other. The Elizabethan age represent the freshness of each and every field while neoclassical followed the rules and regulations.
2) Favoritework of Neoclassical Age.
RAPE OF THE LOCK
ALEXANDER POPE.
Alexander Pope was born on (21 May 1688 – 30 May 1744) was a poet and satirist of the Augustan period and one of its greatest artistic exponents.
RAPE OF THE LOCK
The poem is a mock-epic that satirizes the upper-class in London at the time. The story focuses on the central character, Belinda, whose lock of hair is cut off at a social gathering. Although trivial to most, Belinda is outraged that her lock of hair has been cut by the Baron. In the Rape of the Lock, Pope uses Belinda and the Baron to mock two of his acquaintances, ARABELLA FERMOR, and LORDPETER. The poem follows the events of the night, leading up to Belinda’s “horrific” loss.
Born into the upper-class, ARABELLA FERMOR was the daughter of HENERY FERMOR. Known for her beauty, she was the belle of the London society in the early 18th century. After telling her family about the incident involving her lock of hair, they were offended and became estranged from their once good friends, the Peter. In Pope’s poem, Belinda represents the character of ARABELLA FERMOR.
CHARACTERS
Belinda: Beautiful young lady with wondrous hair, two locks of which hang gracefully in curls. The Baron: Young admirer of Belinda who plots to cut off one of her locks. Ariel: Belinda’s guardian sylph (supernatural creature). Clarissa: Young lady who gives the Baron scissors to cut off the lock Umbriel: Sprite who enters the cave of the Queen of Spleen to seek help for Belinda. Queen of Spleen: Underworld goddess who gives Umbriel gifts for Belinda. THALESTRIS: Friend of Belinda. THALESTRIS urges Sir Plume to defend Belinda’s honor. Sir Plume: Beau of THALESTRIS. He scolds the Baron.
ANALYSIS OF MAIN CHARACTERS
Belinda– A vain, upper class woman who is always seen as the center of attention. Her society puts her on a high pedestal, always giving her praise when possible. The Baron steals a curl of Belinda’s hair when given the scissors by Belinda’s friend, Clarissa. When The Baron cuts the curl from her head, the typically calm, collective Belinda flies into a horrible rage. She asks at once for her hair to be returned to her but when The Baron cannot find the curl, it is said that it traveled up into the stars and is now a constellation for all to admire. It looks as though Pope used this mock-epic work to represent the fascination that society has of the members of the upper class. Belinda’s beauty was admired by all and many were jealous of her (The Baron, Clarissa). The tension between the people in the upper class is illustrated by these characters and the fight to steal another person’s power. Pope compares the trivial event in his poem to the events in epic poems by using satire. The events that occur in this poem show how the society being described has lost all capability of determining which problems are to be treated seriously and which should not.
The Baron– The Baron is a representation of Lord Peter who Pope knew from his social circle.
Clarissa– Clarissa is Belinda’s jealous friend who wishes to hurt Belinda by stealing a lock of her hair. Following the mock-epic trend of the poem, Clarissa believes that cutting a small curl of Belinda’s hair will be devastating although truthfully many worse things could happen.
Sources
British Literature Wiki ,English Literature by William. J. Long, Britannica. Com ,Study. Com.
