Terry Eagleton The Rise Of English Pdf __full__ -
Eagleton begins by tracing the emergence of "English" to the decline of religious authority in the Victorian era. As traditional Christianity lost its grip on the working class due to the pressures of the Industrial Revolution and scientific advancement, the British ruling class faced an ideological crisis.
In eighteenth-century England, the concept of literature was not primarily about fiction or imagination. Instead, it referred to a body of "polite letters"—essays, letters, sermons, and histories—that embodied the tastes, values, and ideals of the upper class. As Eagleton notes, literature was defined by what it excluded: popular forms like street ballads or certain types of drama. It was a tool for unifying the aristocracy with the rising middle class, promoting neoclassical ideals of Reason, Nature, and order in the aftermath of the English Civil War. Terry eagleton the rise of english pdf
"English" stepped in to fill this gap. It was designed to provide a secular, unifying "culture" that could promote a sense of national identity, duty, and social harmony, often distracting from the material inequalities of capitalism. 2. Key Figures in the Rise of English Eagleton begins by tracing the emergence of "English"
To understand Eagleton’s thesis, one must look at 19th-century Britain. Before English became a standard university subject, academic institutions prioritized Classical studies (Latin and Greek). Eagleton traces how and why this shifted, identifying three major catalysts for the institutionalization of English literature. 1. The Decline of Religion Instead, it referred to a body of "polite
After WWII, the rapid expansion of universities (the Robbins Report of 1963) meant that thousands of first-generation students were studying English. Eagleton argues that this democratization unwittingly sowed the seeds of its own critique – leading to the rise of Theory (Marxism, Feminism, Post-structuralism) that would eventually expose English’s ideological origins.