ENGLISH LITERATURE, the mass of expression in written prose and poetry, of the mind of the English-speak ing peoples, through the medium of the English language.
Before any English literature, in the strict sense of the term, existed, four literatures had arisen in England—the Celtic, Latin, Anglo-Saxon, and Anglo Norman. The first included the name of Merlin. The Latin literature prior tc the Conquest presented the names of Bede, Alcuin, and Asser. With the ing of the Normans the native language practically ceased for a time to be used in literature, Latin being employed in law, history, and philosophy, French in the lighter forms of literature. The Norman trouvere displaced the Saxon scop, or gleeman, introducing the fabliau and the romance. By the fabliau the literature was not greatly influenced till the time of Chaucer; but the romance attained an early and striking develop ment in the Arthurian cycle, founded on the legends of Geoffrey of Monmouth's Latin "History of the Britons" (1147), by Geoffrey Gaimar, Maistre Wace, Wal ter Map, and other writers of the 12th century. The Latin literature included important contributions to the Scholastic philosophy by Alexander Hales (died 1245), Duns Scotus (died 1308), the philosophic works of Roger Bacon (1214-1292), the Golias poems of Wal ter Map, and a long list of chronicles or histories, either in prose or verse, by Eadmer (died 1124), William of Malmes bury (died 1143), Geoffrey of Monmouth (died 1154), Henry of Huntingdon (died after 1154), Joseph of Exeter (died 1195), Roger of Wendover (died 1237), Roger de Hoveden (12th and 13th cen turies), Joscelin de Brakelonde (12th and 13th centuries), and Matthew Paris (died 1259).
Apart from a few brief fragments, the first English writers after the Conquest are the "Brut" of Layamon (about 1200), and the "Ormulum," a collection of metrical homilies attributed to Orm or Ormin, an Augustine monk. Next in importance come the rhyming chroniclers Robert of Gloucester (time of Henry III., Edward I.) and Robert of Brunne or Mannyng (died 1340). To this pre Chaucerian period belong also several English translations of French ro mances. Between the beginning and middle of the 14th century a rapid ex pansion of the literature took place, having as the foremost figure Chaucer (1340-1400). Contemporary with him were the poets William or Robert Lang land (1332-1400), John Gower (1325 1408), John Barbour (1316-1395). In prose the name of John Wyclif (1324 1384) is pre-eminent.
The period from the time of Chaucer to the appearance of Spenser (from the end of the 14th to near the end of the lath century), is a very barren one in English literature. The center of poetic creation was for the time transferred to Scotland, where James I. (1394-1437)
headed the list, which comprises Andrew de Wyntoun (15th century), Henry the Minstrel or Blind Harry (died after 1492), William Dunbar (1460-15-) , Gavin Douglas (1474-1522), and Sir David Lyndsay (1490-1557). In Eng land the only noteworthy prose prior to that of More being that of Reginald Pecock (1390-1460), Sir John Fortescue (1395-1485), the "Paston Letters"(1422 1505), and Malory's "Morte d'Arthur" (completed 1469-1470) ; the only note worthy verse, that of John Skelton (1460-1529).
The Renaissance spread from Florence to England by means of Colet, Linacre, Erasmus, and Sir Thomas More (1480 1535), the last noteworthy as at the head of a new race of historians. Im portant contributions to the prose of the time were the Tyndale New Testament, printed in 1525, and the Coverdale Bible (1535). The first signs of an artistic advance in poetic literature are to be found in Wyatt (1503-1542) and Surrey (1516-1547), who nationalized the son net, and of whom the latter is regarded as the introducer of blank verse. The drama too, had by this time reached a fairly high stage of development. At length farces on the French model were constructed, the interludes of John Hey wood (died 1565) being the most im portant examples. To Nicholas Udall (1504-1556) the first comedy, "Ralph Roister Doister," was due. The first tragedy was performed in 1561, and_ the first prose play, the "Supposes" of Gas coigne, in 1566. The most prominent figures are those of Sidney (1554-1586) and Spenser (1552-1599). In drama Lyly, Peele, Greene, Nash and Marlowe (1564-1593) are the chief immediate precursors of Shakespeare (1564-1606), Marlowe, alone, however, being at all comparable with him. Contemporary and later dramatic writers were Ben Jonson (1573-1637), Middleton (died 1627), Marston (better known as a satir ist), Chapman (1557-1634), Thomas Heywood, Dekker (died 1639), Webster (17th century), Ford (1586-1639), Beau mont (1586-1616) and Fletcher (1576 1625), and Massinger (1584-1640). The minor poets include Michael Drayton (1563-1631), Samuel Daniel (1562 1619), John Davies (1570-1626), John Donne (1573-1631), Giles Fletcher (1580-1623), and Phineas Fletcher (1584-1650), Drummond of Hawthorn den (1585-1649). In Elizabethan prose the prominent names are those of Rogers Ascham (1515-1568), Lyly the Euphuist (1553-1606), Hooker (1554-1600), Ral eigh (1552-1618), Bacon (1561-1626), the founder in some respects of modern scientific method, Burton (1576-1640), Herbert of Cherbury (1581-1648), and Selden (1584-1654), with Overbury, Knolles, Holinshed, Stowe, Camden, Flo rio, and North. The issue of the author ized version of the Bible in 1611 closed the prose list of the period.