British Literature

Name : Nurasiah Hilmi
NPM : 06211210284
Class : IV/B
Subject : Foundation of Literature

British literature is literature from the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. By far the largest part of this literature is written in the English language, but there are also separate literatures in Latin, Welsh, Scottish Gaelic, Scots, Cornish, Manx, Jèrriais, Guernésiais and other languages. Northern Ireland is the only part of Ireland still part of the United Kingdom and it possesses literature in English, Ulster Scots and Irish. Irish writers have also played an important part in the development of English-language literature.
The earliest form of English literature developed after the settlement of the Saxons and other Germanic tribes in England after the withdrawal of the Romans and is known as Old English or Anglo-Saxon. The most famous work in Old English is the epic poem Beowulf. The only surviving manuscript is the Cotton manuscript. The precise date of the manuscript is debated, but most estimates place it close to the year 1000.(The oldest surviving text in English is Cædmon's Hymn).
In the later medieval period a new form of English now known as Middle English evolved. This is the earliest form which is comprehensible to modern readers and listeners, albeit not easily.
The most significant Middle English author was the poet Geoffrey Chaucer who was active in the late 14th century. His main works were The Canterbury Tales and Troilus and Criseyde.
The multilingual audience for literature in the 14th century can be illustrated by the example of John Gower, who wrote in Latin, Middle English and Anglo-Norma.