The Restoration Period: A Golden Age for English Literature

Q: Question 4: What clothing was worn in the restoration period?

Answer 4: Fashion during the Restoration Era is also known as Carolean fashion. One can identify the cloth by watching the various curls on it. Ribbons were used on the dresses. Moreover, bows, feathers, and puffs were the main attractions of clothing during that era.

Are you a student pursuing English literature? If yes, then this blog from All Assignment Help is the one for you. In this write-up, we will discuss the literary trends of the Puritan and Restoration periods. The Puritan age started in 1600 and lasted until 1660. There were many upheavals during that period. King James I was the ruler at that time. 1660 marks the beginning of the Restoration Period. The restoration period brought many changes to the political and social scenario. The establishment of two political parties in England, i.e., the Tories and the Whigs, also happened in the restoration period.

The above was just a short introduction to the two important periods of English literature. To know more about literary trends in these periods and all the other factors, we would recommend you continue reading this blog post.

Let’s see what we are going to discuss in this blog post.

Puritan Age: 1600 to 1660
Important Characteristics of Puritan Literature
The Restoration Period (1660–1685)
Religion and Politics During the Restoration Period
Literary Trends in the Restoration Period

Puritan Age – (1600 to 1660)

The Puritan movement in England during the 17th century inspired the term “Puritan Age. The religious reformation movement is another name for this era. People often wonder, Who founded the Puritans? Well, the answer is that there is not a single person who founded it. There was a group of people who demanded religious freedom. They demanded the complete purification of the Church of England. Puritanism dominated throughout this period.

The term “Age of Milton” is another name for this era. He was the most talented poet of the time. There were also other popular poets at that time. A few of them were: John Bunyan (1628–1688), Robert Burton (1577–1640), Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679), Izaak Walton (1593–1683), Sir Thomas Browne (1605–1682), and Thomas Fuller (1608–1661). During the Puritan era, King James I ruled. The Puritan era’s primary objective was:

To facilitate religious freedom.
Full civil liberty
Removal of practices such as hierarchical leadership, clerical vestments
To uphold the word of God and the Bible
Popularize the Puritan beliefs

Puritans wanted the purity of life. During this period, the church and court were highly criticized. This led to a strong political force and the rise of the English Civil War (1642–1651). Puritan literature is one of the most important concepts in English literature. The students studying English literature are often assigned different literature assignments that test their knowledge and develop their understanding. Below, we have listed some important characteristics of this literature to help you with your learning.

Important Characteristics of the Puritan Literature

Puritan literature is a movement that marked its beginning in 1600 and ended in 1660. The main motive of this literature is to better the relationship with God and to preach biblical knowledge to everyone. The people made every effort to make puritanism a part of their day-to-day lives. The Puritans believed in freedom of religion and wanted to rid of the Church of England. The Puritan literature gave them a way to connect with other people and teach them religious values. Below is a list of some of this literature’s key attributes to aid in your comprehension.

1- Puritans Followed a Plain Writing Style

The Puritan writing style was plain. Writers used simple sentences, not ornamented language. There was less use of metaphors and similes in the literary works as Puritans were against this.
The use of symbols was popular during that time, and it created a strong impact on the audience. Symbols help easily deliver the truth about God.
Religious poems played a role in this period and were considered important. John Donne was one of the most famous religious poets of his age.
The Puritans believed that fictional elements in works of art should be limited. They perceive literary work as a religious practice rather than a piece of entertainment. The literary work of the Puritans was all about spirituality. They talk about pilgrims and journeys. They tried to motivate society by creating the illusion of an ideal state.
The four main characteristics of Puritan writing styles are biblical influence, spiritual quest, plain style, European style,
The Puritan writing styles were influenced by church sermon styles, purposefulness, plain prose styles, and a focus on history.
The Bible played an important role in this age, and Puritan writing was influenced by the Bible and biblical narratives.
Every writing of the Puritans was related to God. Even their letter written to their friends and family does not discuss their issues but factors like the importance of church, the influence of God in their lives, Christian values, and all other aspects related to Christianity.
The people of this age considered literature and entertainment a waste of time and banned the watching of fiction movies and dramas.

If you are a student learning about Puritan Literature, you can attain great benefits from it. However, if you fail to absorb the regular benefits and thoughts like can an expert take my online class to educate me more about the concept comes to your mind, you must meet this requirement as soon as possible. Because the experts will help you understand how you can integrate the biblical doctrine into your daily life.

2- Puritan’s Poetry

Earlier forms of love poetry were Petrarchan. One can see the platonic form of love in earlier forms of poetry, but Puritan love poetry was based on realism. Women were not seen as goddesses but as humans with flesh and blood. The poets of this age used sonnets in their writing. Their poetry was based on the following things:

Creation as a source for knowledge of God’s Character
Creation as a source of delight
Weaning from the world.

Puritan poets such as John Milton, Anne Bradstreet, Edward Taylor, and John Dryden were a few of the popular poets of Puritanism who contributed to the protest movement of the church with their writings. The Puritan age of poetry was divided into three stages. The first one is the poetry of the School of Shakespeare, which represented Puritan spirit. The second one is the poetry of the metaphysical school. The poets of this time were original thinkers. The third one is cavalier poetry. The poets of this era used light and elegant verse in their literature, which marked the name of this poetry age.

Also Read: Literary Analysis Essay Writing Tips

3- Religious Themes of Puritans

Providing readers with religious lessons was the main motive behind Puritan literature. They did not want to promote entertainment. All they wanted was to make people live a more virtuous and pious life through God’s word. Their main understanding behind the religious themes was that all of us are born sinners, and we should correct ourselves and make every effort to be people of heaven. They encouraged everyone to live virtuously and morally to be one of God’s favorites.

4- Introduction of Fear Through Writings

The people of Puritanism led their lives with fear, and they constantly instilled fear in the minds of other people as well. The main essence of each piece of Puritan literature was fear. They had the mindset that people with a fear of God could live a more peaceful life and change their lives towards the right path. The Puritan authors were well aware of the fear of the afterlife and used this emotional tactic in their literature to motivate people to live their lives according to the rule of the gods.

5- Addition of Biblical Allusions in Puritan Literature

The Bible was the sole source of belief for Puritans. There were different key beliefs held by the Puritan people, like Bible study, prayer, sermons, fasting, the Sabbath, education, and work. However, they kept emphasizing the importance of Bible study above everything else. The Bible was their main framework, and the biblical allusions were founded in all the Puritan literature. The writers of this age try to connect everything with biblical references to give a clear understanding of religion.

The above are a few of the main characteristics of Puritan literature. Many popular literature works of this time educated people on how to live with a good purpose and how to follow biblical influences. A few of the examples of this great work were The Bay Psalm Book (1640), Of Plymouth Plantation (1630–1651) by William Bradford, and “To My Dear Beloved Husband” (1650) by Anne Bradstreet. If you are interested in developing your knowledge about literature, then the best way is to pursue a bachelor’s or master’s in English literature. When studying, if you encounter any difficulties, you can rely on assignment writing services to learn more about intricate areas of literature.

The Restoration Period – 1660 to 1685

Do you know the meaning of “restoration period”? Why do people call it a restoration period? Have you wondered what is restored in this period? If not, let us guide you through this important part of English literature. It refers to the beginning of the Stuart monarchy in England in 1660. Most people also considered it to be the year when the theatre Ban was removed after a long 18 years. Many other important events occurred during this period, which we will discuss further.

The restoration period began in 1660 after King Charles II came to the English throne (after years of no king and no queen in England). This period began in 1660 and ended in 1685, after the reign of James II. The period is known as restoration because the monarchy was restored in England. During the restoration period, the English, Irish, and Scottish monarchies were restored. This period denotes the events surrounding the restoration of the monarchy and the new political establishment. During the reign of King Charles II, there was an increase in commercial and global trade for Britain. Education was also expanded during this period; the middle and lower classes were also encouraged to study.

In the Puritan period, all the festivals were banned, including Christmas. Theatres were closed, and poetry and other entertainment were banned. However, in the Restoration period, when King Charles II came into power, everything returned to normal. People started to live a normal life. This period in English literature is considered to be one of the most interesting eras in which people came out of the constant religious pressure of the Puritans.

Religion and Politics During the Restoration Period

As we stated earlier, the Restoration period in English literature is one of the most exciting eras of literature. Are you an English literature student and curious about knowing what happened in this age and why it is considered interesting? Yes, then explore the below-given points to find an answer to your knowledge. Moreover, if you need any academic assistance, you may at any time hire an online homework doer to come to your rescue. Let us take a look at some of the important events of the “Restoration Period”.

The restoration period brought good news for English theatre. Theatres were closed during Cromwell’s Puritan period. When Charles II returned to the throne, he ordered the reopening of theatres and churches as well.
Charles II’s parliament was stuffed with an anti-Catholic cabinet; he conformed to Anglicanism but had sympathy for Catholics. Due to this, you will find him at odds with his parliament.
The king was morally corrupt, and so was the public. He had many mistresses and illicit relationships.
Charles II had no legitimate heir. James (brother of Charles) was the next one who could take over the throne. Parliament was not in favor of James and forced Charles II to exclude his brother from the line of succession.
The exclusion crisis resulted in the formation of two political parties: the Tories, who were in favor of the king, and the Whigs, who opposed Charles II.
The whole nation under the king was corrupt. Protestants were on the rise at that time, and Catholics were dominated by them.
James II came to the throne in 1685 and dispensed with the test act.

Literary Trends in the Restoration Period

English literature written during the restoration period is known as English restoration literature. The writers of this age were completely out of touch with moral sense and seriousness. English literature was highly influenced by French literature. Boileau’s essay, Comedies of Moliere, was taken as inspiration by the writers of this era. One can easily see the change in the literature of this age. From fancy to wit and from poetry to prose, this shift in literary preference was also due to the political atmosphere during that time. Satire and wit became more popular than fancy and love. One more category of literature to add to this was pamphlet literature. John Evelyn and Samuel Pepys were two renowned diarists of that age.

The drama became popular during the restoration period. Two forms of drama got great recognition. One is a heroic play, and the other is the restoration of the comedy of manners.

1- Heroic Plays

During the Restoration Age, heroic plays were in style. Heroic plays are often called heroic tragedies. These plays present characters with superhuman qualities; they are larger than life and have noble virtues. These plays have a strong portrayal of themes like love, honor, and courage. They imitate the style of epics and depict love and valor as the main themes. The plot involved the destiny of an empire.

Though Dryden was more popular for heroic drama, it was Sir William Davenant who introduced this style during the restoration period. He was the one who wrote the first heroic drama, ‘The Siege of Rhodes’.

Dryden’s first heroic drama was ‘The First Indian Queen, along with the joint efforts of Robert Howard.

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2- Restoration Comedy of Manners

Restoration comedy of manners plays are satires. They satirized the mannerisms, behavior, and ideas of the elite class. The comedy of manners is a depiction of the relations between men and women in aristocratic society. These plays include a portrayal of wit, sexual dialogues, sensual innuendos, and rakish behavior.

The comedy of manners of the restoration period was influenced by Ben Johnson’s comedy of humor. English society needed new forms of entertainment as it had earlier starved due to the banned theatres during the Puritan age. The Restoration Comedy of Manners is full of sexual dialogue and morally corrupt characters. Earlier, these were completely banned. The main dramatists who wrote a comedy of manners were William Congreve, George Etherege, and Aphra Behn.

Restoration comedy was like a mirror of upper-class society. It shows a society where Bourgeoisie has a main role and females find new liberty. The comedy of manners was considered immoral due to its consistent attack on the sanctity of the marital bond and growing preference for free love to fulfill sexual needs. Most of the writers were openly writing and portraying promiscuous scenes in the drama, which was considered a corruption of morality. Such an open display of sexual frankness and openness resulted in criticism of Restoration comedy.

3- Beginning of Neoclassicism

When we talk about the literature of the Restoration period, one can see an abrupt change from old standards. It was similar to the way society broke the chains of Puritanism. Writers went back to ancient Greek literature, taking inspiration from the epics.

4- Imitating the Ancient work

To get guidance and inspiration, writers started following classical writers. Latin writers influenced the writers of the Restoration Age.

5- Influence from the French

The reason for French influence in the restoration period was that Charles II and most of the writers had spent their time in France. When they arrived in England, they brought French culture and ideas with them. As discussed earlier, you can see the indecency and coarseness of French literature in the Comedy of Manners.

6- The Restoration Was an Age of Reasons and Prose

This was the period when prose evolved and found its place in England. This was an age of reasons. Imagination was left behind, and now people were becoming more practical and logical. The growth of science and reasoning, religious discontent, and political controversies are the reasons behind the rise of prose.

7- End of Lyrics and the Emergence of Satire

Lyrical poetry was almost on the verge of dying. Most of the poems were argumentative and narrative. The best and most popular type of poetry during the restoration era was satirical. Absalom and Achitophel are two of the best examples of political satire of that time. It was based on the life of Charles II.

8- Female Dramatists Came Into Existence

Before the restoration period, there were no female playwrights in English literature. However, after the restoration period, two female dramatists started to work professionally. They made a new contribution to the field of literature. Are you curious about knowing who they are? The first female dramatist was Aphra Behn (1670–1689). She was the first female dramatist to rise to fame, all thanks to the opening of theatres. She had written plays in different genres, including marriage, gender equality, love, and many others. The second female professional dramatist was Mary Pix (1666–1709). In the Restoration period, she wrote many famous plays, like The Thirteenth Emperor of the Turks (1696).

Also Read: Guidelines to Write a Critical Essay on Literature

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Frequently Asked Questions

Question 1: What things were considered sinful by the Puritan people?
Answer 1: Three things were strictly opposed by Puritans. They are dancing, reading fictional stories, and playing music. However, they were not against playing music in churches and other religious spots.

Question 2: Who were the prominent literary figures of the restoration period?
Answer 2: Many popular authors had written many successful plays and contributed to the literature of the Restoration period. John Dryden, Samuel Butler, Abraham Cowley, John Bunyan, and William Congreve were a few of the known authors.

Question 3: What is the restoration period?
Answer 3: The restoration period is a period that came into existence with the restoration of the monarchy in England. The period started when King Charles II came to the throne in 1660 and lasted until 1685. The term ” restoration ” was coined to indicate the period when new political rules were established.

Question 4: What clothing was worn in the restoration period?
Answer 4: Fashion during the Restoration Era is also known as Carolean fashion. One can identify the cloth by watching the various curls on it. Ribbons were used on the dresses. Moreover, bows, feathers, and puffs were the main attractions of clothing during that era.