1. Title of my proposal:
Title of my proposal writing is based of English literature. Here discussion is about the history,
work, research, problems, solutions, conclusion and much more on English literature.
The abstract/summary:
The summery of this proposal is the base, background, history, changes and many other things in
English literature. This also tells influence of other languages on English literature. Problems faced
by people of different countries while speaking English language. Even some problems and their
solutions are mentioned here about English literature. Arrival of the first printing press which help in
the spread of English literature nationwide. English literature in now-a-days in this modern era.
Aims and objectives:
My aim and objective are to enhance our knowledge about English literature. It also includes
language training, giving others the opportunity to enjoy the world of literature and development of
interest in reading literature. Furthermore, they hope that by enjoying literature people would
discover that their English also improved.
My objective is also to discover what is considered important, attainable and relevant for people and
how hey archive it.
Purpose of my proposal:
The purpose of this proposal is to investigate and compare the aims and objectives of people by
reading the teaching of English literature. This also help the people how to overcome their problem
and difficulties faced during study of English literature.
Introduction to English literature:
Literature refers to the practice and profession of writing. It comes from human interest in telling a
story, in arranging words in telling a story, in arranging words in artistic form and describing words
in some aspects of human experiences.
English Literature is one of richest literatures of the world. Being the literature of a great nation
which, though inhabiting a small island off the west coast of Europe, has made its mark in the world
on account of her spirit of adventure, perseverance and tenacity, it reflects these characteristics of a
great people.
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It has vitality, rich variety and continuity. As literature is the reflection of society, the various
changes which have come about in English society, from the earliest to the modern time, have left
their stamp on English literature. Thus in order to appreciate properly the various phases of English
literature, knowledge of English Social and Political History is essential.
For example: Shakespeare without taking proper notice of the great events which were taking place
during the reign of Elizabeth. The same is the case with other great figures and important movements
in English literature.
1. Use of English literature:
We read English literature for
1) Pleasure
2) Relaxation
3) Knowledge
Background study:
1. Old English: 450 AD – 1100 AD
• Descendant of the German language
• Spoken by Angles and Saxons
2. Middle English: 1100 AD – 1500 AD
• The Normans, who spoke French, invaded England
• Royalties and government officials began speaking French
• English became language of the poor (peasants, butchers, maids, servants)
• Also the language of poets and writers
• More people adapted French language, causing the decline of English usage
3. Modern English: 1500AD – present
There are two types of modern English:
• Early Modern English
• From 1500 to 1800s
• Late modern English
• 1800s until today
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• The Modern English era can be roughly divided into the following:
• Renaissance (1450 -1650)
• Restoration (1660- 1688)
• Classical Era (1740 -1800)
• Romanticism (1800 -1840)
• Victorian Era (1840 – 1900)
History of English literature:
Historyof oldEnglish:
• 5th Century AD: Angles and Saxons (Germanic tribes) invaded the Britain reunited,
became Anglo-Saxons.
• Their language is Englisc, which was where the word English originated.
• Circa 890 AD: Anglo-Saxons invaded a land called it Anglo-Land (now called England),
meaning Land of the Angles.
1. Migration:
• Irish missionaries came to England
• Brought the Latin alphabet
2. Roman Invasion:
• 597 AD: Roman invader Augustine attempted to Christianize England.
• Established kingdoms all over England.
3. Result:
• The Latin alphabet became the basis of English alphabet.
• Romans spread and popularized English throughout England.
Historyof Middle English:
1. Result:
• English children became bilingual
• Materials written in English became very scarce
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• Many French words were borrowed
• tax,estate,trouble, duty,pay,table,boil,serve, roast,dine,religion,savior,pray,and trinity
• French was England’s official language up until the beginning of 14th
century
2. Changes in Englishliterature:
• Three different words with one meaning
Kingly (Old English), royal (French), and regal (Latin). meaning of “relating to a
king”
• More French Influence
More borrowed words:
• Borrowed words, cellar and place affected the way c was pronounced
• Cene, cyssan, and cneow (Old English)
• Lice and mice
Arrival of printing press:
1st printing press is arrived in 1478.
Once luxury items, books became more affordable. Over 20,000 titles appeared following the
setting up of printing press by William Caxton. The 'Great Vowel Shift' which took place
during the 15th century, represented a major development in pronunciation. Spelling also
became more standardized and the pace of grammatical change slowed. Hence, we witness
the emergence of ‘Modern English’. The following slide contains a page from Shakespeare’s
“A Midsummer’s Night” which was one of the first printed books.
English literature in now-a-days:
1. Modern English:
Throughout the ages, English has been a vast canvas on which every country of the world has
used its brush to add fresh colors which proves its universal vision of accepting influence from
nook and corner of the world. Today, the language is spoken by billions and has been rightly
called a universal language.
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2. Great Vowel Shift
It is a massive sound change affecting the long vowels of English during the fifteenth to
eighteenth centuries. Basically, the long vowels shifted upwards; that is, a vowel that used to be
pronounced in one place in the mouth would be pronounced in a different place, higher up in the
mouth.
Noble prize winners in English literature:
• Rudyard Kipling (1907): UK
• Rabindranath Tagore (1913): India
• W. B. Yeats (1923): Ireland
• Sinclair Lewis (1930): US
• William Faulkner (1949): US
• Patrick White (1973): Australia
• Wole Soyinka (1986): Nigeria
• J. M. Coetzee (2003): South Africa
• Alice Munro (2013): Canada
Problem in English literature:
1. Changes and difficulties:
• Many English words are not pronounced as they used to be.
• Different pronunciation accent in different countries.
• There are certain sounds which every language possesses. Most of the sounds which a
language has seem to be similar, but they are not pronounced in the exact manner
• A person born in 1400 would have difficulty understanding a person from the 1500.
• Very careful listening and analysis of written documents were done for better understanding.
House and mouse used to rhyme with moose.
• There is a problem in recognition of speech sounds and we can observe that the same letter
has different sounds.
• There is a problem that the students mix up the various sounds of English language with the
sounds of their mother tongue and there is lack of ability to recognize foreign sounds with
ease.
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• The segmental features deal with the vowels and the consonants. Vowels in English are
uttered with different positions of lips, tongue and jaws, but in Urdu vowels are realized in
the natural position of the oral cavity.
• The alphabet which we use to write English has 26 letters but it has 44 sounds. One must be
clear about the shapes and pronunciation of these symbols.
• There is a problem faced by the learners of English with respect to the American and English
Pronunciation as we mix up the pronunciation of these two.
• There is a problem of transliteration with the non-native speakers in the pronunciation of
English language.
2. Influence of foreign languages on English:
a) Norse – 5 %
b) French – 40 %
c) Latin – 40 %
d) Arabic, Spanish, Germanic – 10 %
Almost all of administrative, political and military terms such as lieutenant, government, Marshall,
colonel, admiral, naval etc are derived from French language, while words relating to art and music
have come from Italian.
Scientific words, medical terminology, and academic words come from Latin, as it was the official
language of Roman Empire. If you were to look at the Latin language itself, even a person without
classical training would be able figure out the meaning of most Latin words due to the fact that most
Latin vocabulary has made its way into the English language in one form or another.
This also causes a great problem for the speaker because English is the mixture of man languages.
Speaking of different languages at a same time in the same accent causes a great difficulty.
Solution of these problems:
1. People should learn English language.
2. We should learn how to pronounce different words.
3. We have to learn that how we speak English.
4. We should speak English in our daily routine life.
5. We ask our youngsters to speak English every time.
6. We have to read the English books, newspapers and etc.
7. We should increase our vocabulary.
8. We should listen English as much as we can.
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Conclusion:
The ways of learning literature described above is actually one of the alternatives in the
contextual method. Actually, the more important is the teachers should teach students in situations
that are comfortable, fun, and challenging. Teachers should develop students in accordance with the
conditions of his personality. The contextual based learning characteristics are as follows, based on
real-world, student-centered, meaningful knowledge, solve problems and asked, formation of
learning communities, collaboration, fun, exciting, integrated, using a variety of sources, students are
active and critical-creative teacher, classroom walls and school hallways filled with student work,
learning outcomes measured in many ways not just a test.
References:
1. Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Problem
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Understanding
4. http://www.thefreelibrary.com