Europe's Literary Heritage

Europe's Literary Heritage

​European literature has reflected new ways of thinking over the centuries.

-1564 - 1616

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​-English Playwright

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-​Has influenced literature for centuries

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​William Shakespeare

Wrote the epic poems "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey."

Homer - 800 BCE

Wrote "The Aeneid" epic poem about the founding of Rome.

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A basis for modern love stories including "Romeo and Juliet."

Virgil - 20 BCE

​Literary Origins: The Ancient Greeks and Romans

Wrote the epic poem, "The Divine Comedy" about religious beliefs and politics during his life.

Dante 1265 - 1321

Don Quixote - the first "modern" novel.

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Miguel de Cervantes

1547 - 1616

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​Renaissance: Religious Beliefs vs Human Behavior

John Locke and Voltaire wrote about reason and government - inspiring the rights of the individual.

Mid-1700s

​-An emphasis on emotion and nature. The "Romantic" Period.

-​Johann Wolfgang von Goethe "The Sorrows of Young Werther."

1800s

​-Jane Austen 1775 - 1817

-Used a more realistic approach on life.​

-Used humor when looking at a women's role in society.​

1800s

​1700s - 1800s

​Focused on the inner workings of the mind.

James Joyce 1882 - 1941

​A Romanian playwright who used ridiculous situations to make comments about the "emptiness of life."

Eugene Ionesco 1909-1994

​Modern Literature:

Life is uncertain and unpredictable