The Puritan Age: English Literature (1600-1660)
The Literature of the Seventeenth Century can be divided into two distinct periods: The Puritan Age, also known as the Age of Milton, and the Restoration Period or the Age of Dryden (1660-1700). The Seventeenth Century witnessed the decline of the Renaissance spirit in England. Writers either emulated the great masters of the Elizabethan period or forged new paths, marking a shift towards a more modern temperament. The spirit of the age was characterized by a keen sense of observation, a systematic analysis of facts, feelings, and ideas, and a growing interest in realism. This intellectual climate, akin to the scientific spirit popularized by figures like Newton, Bacon, and Descartes, fostered a new era of literary criticism and introspection. The Rise of Biography and Realism A significant development during this period was the popularization of biography, previously unknown in the Sixteenth Century. Authors like Fuller and Aubrey meticulously chronicled the lives of prominent figures, r…