TOPIC:THE INFLUENCE OF RENAISSANCE IN THE ELIZABETHAN AGE

PAPER NAME:ENGLISH LITERARY AND CULTURAL HISTORY

PAPER CODE:MEN 101

NAME:ABUL MUJAHID AZAD

ROLL NO:0035

SEMESTER:FIRST

MA ENGLISH

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THE INFLUENCE OF THE RENAISSANCE
IN THE ELIZABETHAN AGE
Renaissance is a French word meaning “rebirth.” It refers to a period in European civilization
that was marked by a revival of Classical learning and wisdom. The Renaissance saw many
contributions to different fields, including new scientific laws, new forms of art and
architecture, and new religious and political ideas.

The term, “Elizabethan Age” refers to the English history of Queen Elizabeth I’s reign from
1558–1603. Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history because it was a time
of immense progress,stability and national pride. During Elizabeth's reign, England flourished
politically and economically. The country also began extending its reach to the New World,
making its status as a world power.. The Elizabethan age is considered to be a time of English
Renaissance that inspired national pride through classical ideals, international expansion, and
naval triumph. This English Renaissance saw the flowering of poetry, music and literature. The
era is most famous for theatre, as William Shakespeare and many others composed plays that
we still read and watch today. It was also an age of exploration and expansion.

During Elizabethan age Renaissance had made a massive contribution to art, culture and
literature. In drama there has been massive progress or development. Prose and Poetry alike
rang with a fervid enthusiasm for life in its most varied aspects. Major writers of this period are
Philip Sidney,Thomas Moore,Edmund Spenser,Thomas Kyd,Christopher Marlowe,William
Shakespear,Francis Bacon and Ben Jonson.

The impact of Renaissance on the different fields of English literature are discussed below-

a)Impact on drama:

The Renaissance had its first impact on drama.During the Renaissance,drama become more
secularized and reached the glory in the hands of University Wits. Marlowe has been called“The
true child of the Renaissance.The heroes in his plays show an infinite desire for knowledge,
wealth and power. Shakespeareintroduced all the forms of drama. He wrote historical and
romantic plays. His greatest achievement was in the field of tragedy. Ben Jonson introduced a
new kind of drama known as comedy of humour. In his plays, the social evils and lust for money
are shown that found in the English society. The tragic plays of blood and revenge were
introduced by John Webster in this age. Marlowe’s “Doctor Faustus”, “Tamburlaine”, “Jew of
Malta” and “Edward II” .Shakespeare’s “Macbeth”, “Othello”, “Hamlet”, “King Lear” and “A Mid

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Summer Night’s Dream”. Ben Jonson’s “Alchemist”, “Everyman in His Humour” and
“Volpone”.These are a few examples of the dramas of the Renaissance age.

b)Impact on poetry:

Poetry in the Renaissance became one of the most valued forms of literature and was often
accompanied by music. These poems focused on human emotions and feelings in the present
time, and were a departure from earlier styles that emphasized changes in emotion over time.
A great deal of Renaissance poetry is inspired by love or passion, with many poets dedicating
works to their love interests. In Poetry, the spirit of Renaissance can be seen in the works of
Wyatt, Surrey, Spenser,Sidney, Shakespeare and etc. Sir Thomas Wyatt and the Earl of Surrey
were the pioneers of the new poetry in England. They both gave English poetry a new sense of
grace, dignity and harmony. They did their best to imitate Italian Renaissance. Wyatt has
introduced the sonnet in English literature. Though in his sonnets Wyatt did not employ regular
iambic pentameters, yet he created a sense of discipline among the poets of the era. Surrey’s
works are characterized by exquisite grace and tenderness. He was a better craftsman
and gives greater harmony to his poetry. Surrey employed blank verse in English literature with
the translation of the fourth book of The Aeneid. Some of the examples are -Shakespeare’s
“154 sonnets”, Sidney’s “Astrophel and Stella”, Spenser’s “Amoretti”, Milton’s “Paradise Lost”.

c)Impact on prose:

talian wind brought the tradition of the novel in English literature. The most important
prose writers who exhibit well the influence of the Renaissance on English prose are Erasmus,
Sir Thomas More, Lyly, and Sidney. In the 15th century, the prose writings of Bacon are true
spirit of the Renaissance. He is called the father of English essays. His essays provided the best
worldly wisdom in the era of Renaissance.Some examples are-Sir Thomas More’s “Utopia”,
Erasmus’ “Praise and Folly”, Browne’s Religio Medic and Malory’s “Morte – de – Arthur”.

England was well-off compared to the other nations of Europe. The conflict between France
and England was suspended during the Elizabethan era. An attempt by Philip II of Spain to
invade England with the Spanish Armada in 1588 was famously defeated, but the tide of war
turned against England with a disastrously unsuccessful attack upon Spain in 1589 called the
Drake-Norris Expedition. The Elizabethan era also saw England begin to play a leading role in
the slave trade and saw a series of bloody English military campaigns in still Catholic Ireland—
notably the Desmond Rebellions and the Nine Years’ War.

Elizabethan court fashion was heavily influenced by Spanish and French styles. Notable
garments of this period include the farthingale for women, military styles like the mandilion for

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men, and ruffs for both sexes. The Elizabethan era also saw a great flowering of domestic
embroidery for both clothing and furnishings. Predominant styles include canvas work generally
done in tent stitch and blackwork in silk on linen. Toward the end of the reign the fashion for
blackwork gradually gave way to polychrome work in silk that foreshadowed the crewelwork in
wool that would dominate Jacobean embroidery.

The food of this time period included lear and all types of animal meat, and numerous types of
fruits and vegetables. A banquet was used for a dessert or snack course .

Thus boyh the influence of the renaissance and the influence of the queen combined to make
the age”The Golden Age of literature”. The ascetic ideal of the middle Ages was replaced by
the new ideal of the enjoyment of life. This new ideal reflects everywhere in Renaissance
literature.

Works Cited
“The Elizabethan Age and the English Renaissance”.Brewminate, February 10, 202,
https://brewminate.com/the-elizabethan-age-and-the-english-renaissance/

“Elizabethan Era”. The Lost Colony, https://www.thelostcolony.org/the-lost-colony/bring-

Amin,MD Al. “Impact of Renaissance on Elizabethan Literature. Or, Elizabethan age is the
golden age of English Literature”.24 Study, http://24study.blogspot.com/2012/07/impact-of-
renaissance-on-elizabethan.html

“The Impact of Renaissance on English Literature”.Weebly,