Outline History of English Literature

by William Henry Hudson

The Purpose and plan to this little book may easily be gathered from the introductory chapter. Only a few words of preface, therefore, are needed. As i conceive it, a history of English Literature, however brief, should still be a history of English literature in fact as well as in name; and for a history something more is required than a list of author and their books, and even than a chronologically-arranged collection of biographical sketches and critical appreciations. It is true that a nation's literature is made up of the works of individual Writers, and that for the ordinary purposes of study these writers may be detached from their surroundings and treated separately. But we cannot get a history of such literature unless and until each one has been put into his place in the sequence of things and considered with reference to that great body of literature production of which his work must now be regarded as a part. A history of English literature, then must be interested primarily in English literature as a whole. Its chief aim should be to give a clear and systematic account, not of the achievements of successive great writers merely, as such, but of national changes and development. This does not imply neglect of the personal factor. On the contrary, it brings the personal factor into relief; for if each writer is to be considered with reference to literature as a whole, one main subject of enquiry must be the nature and value of his particular contribution to that whole. But it does mean vi that, together with the personal factor, the great general movement of literature from age to age has to be investigated, and that every writer has to be interpreted in his connection with this general movement. To exhibit the interplay of the personal and the impersonal in the making of history is, indeed, one of the fundamentals of the historian's task; and since history, properly understood, is as much concerned with the explanation of facts as with the facts themselves, it follows that a history of English literature must also include some record of the forces which, period by period, have combined in the transformation of literary standards and tastes.

Genres: Nonfiction, Literature, History

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2021

About the author

William Henry Hudson was an Anglo-Argentine author, naturalist and ornithologist. His works include Green Mansions (1904).

Argentines consider him to belong to their national literature as Guillermo Enrique Hudson, the Spanish version of his name. He spent his youth studying the local flora and fauna and observing natural and human dramas on then a lawless frontier, publishing his ornithological work in Proceedings of the Royal Zoological Society, initially in an English mingled with Spanish idioms. He settled in England during 1874. He produced a series of ornithological studies, including Argentine Ornithology (1888-1899) and British Birds (1895), and later achieved fame with his books on the English countryside, including Hampshire Days (1903), Afoot in England (1909) and A Shepherd's Life (1910). People best know his nonfiction in Far Away and Long Ago (1918). His other works include: The Purple Land (That England Lost) (1885), A Crystal Age (1887), The Naturalist in La Plata (1892), A Little Boy Lost (1905), Birds in Town and Village (1919), Dead Man's Plack and an Old Thorn (1920), and A Traveller in Little Things (1921).

Reviews

[Fiza Pathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

'An Outline: History of English Literature' is an excellent resource for those who are beginners in the study of literature. It highlights the various literary time frames from a British perspective. It is comprehensive, well edited & the time lines at the end of each chapter help a lot in the understanding of the subject at hand. As a history & sociology student, I found the book as a good introduction to a subject which I am unfamiliar in. English Literature students will find this book very useful in their field of research & study. The book was a real eyeopener for me & I will keep on dipping into it for reference. It is a very good reference book for beginners. Hudson's book gets 4 stars from me.

[Suhasini Srihari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hudson has effectively accounted the details of the history of English Literature, ranging from a little period before Chaucer to the recent 1955. It is a good read for the beginners to understand how the language has evolved and how writers of different ages have contributed in depicting the scenarios of their respective ages. We also see several movements taking its form and gradually evading through the progress of history. Hudson's language is fluid and the reader can find the book gripping for a longer time.

[Atram Buddhewad · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best introductory books on the history of english literature. Must read book for the learner of english literature. Book contains general history and social background of particular literary period and literary scholars.