f. marriage with Harriet, and Marry;
g.left England and wandered in EUrope, died in Italy; h.radical and sympathetic with the French revolution; i. Friend with Byron
（2） works: two types – violent reformer and wanderer （3） Characteristics of poems. a.pursuit of a better society; b.radian beauty;
c. superb artistry: imagination. （4） Defense of Poetry. 4. John Keats. （1） Life: a.from a poor family; b.Cockney School;
c.friend with Byron and Shelley;
d.attacked by the conservatives and died in Italy. （2） works.
（3） Characteristics of poems a.loved beauty;
b.seeking refuge in an idealistic world of illusions and dreams. V. Novelists of the Romantic Age. 1. Water Scott. Novelist and poet
（1） Life: a.Scotland;
b.university of Edindurgh; c.poem to novel;
d.unsuccessful publishing firm; e.great contribution: historical novel. （2） three groups of novels （3） Features of his novels. （4） his influence. 2. Jane Austen （1） Life: a.country clergyman;
b.uneventful life, domestic duties; （2） works.
（3） features of her writings.
Austen's novels are britened by their witty conversation and omnipresent humour. Her stories are skillfully woven together; her plots never leave the path of realism, and have always been sensible. Her language shines with an exquisite touch of lively gracefulness, elegant and refined, but never showy. She herself compared her work to a fine engraving made up on a little piece of ivory only two inches square. The comparison is true. The ivory surface is small enough, but the lady who made the drawings of
human life on it was a real artist.
（4） rationalism, neoclassicism, romanticism and realism. VI.Familiar Essays. 1. Introduction
2. Charles Lamb: essayist and critic （1） life: a.poor family; b.friend of Coleridge; c.sister Mary;
d.worked in the East India House; e.a miserable life; f. a man of mild character. g.a Romanticist of the city.
（2） works: Essays of Elia. Three groups. （3） Features.
a. The most striking feature of his essays is his humour. b. Lamb was especially fond of old writers. c. His essays are intensely personal. d. He was a romanticist
Chapter 7 English Literature of the Victorian Age I.Introduction 1. Historical Background （1） An age of expansion
（2） The conditions of the workers and the chartist movement （3） Reforms
（4） Darwin's theory of evolution and its influence （5） The women question 2. Literary Overview: critical realism.
In Victorian period appeared a new literary trend called critical realism. English critical realism of the 19th century flourished in the 40s and in the early 50s. It found its expression in the form of novel. The critical realists, most of whom were novelists, described with much vividness and artistic skill the chief traits of the English society and criticized the capitalist system from a democratic viewpoint. II.Novels of Critical Realists. 1. Charles Dickens. （1） Life: a. clerk family;
b. a miserable childhood; c. a clerk, a reporter, a writer; d. a man of hard work. （2） works of three periods. a. optimize b. frustration c. pessimism
（3） Features of his works. a.character sketches and exaggeration b.broad humour and penetrating satire c.complicated and fascinating plot d.the power of exposure 2. William Makepeace Thackeray （1） Life: a. born in India; b. studied in Cambridge;
c. worked as artist and illustrator and writer. （2） work: The Vanity Fair
（3） Thackeray and Dickens – features
a. Just like Dickens, Thackeray is one of the greatest critical realists of the 19th century Europe. He paints life as he has seen it. With his precise and thorough observation, rich knowledge of social life and of the human heart, the pictures in his novels are accurate and true to life. b. Thackeray is a satirist. His satire is caustic and his humour subtle. c. Besides being a realist and satirist, Thackeray is a moralist. His aim is to produce a moral impression in all his novels. 3. The Bronte Sisters
（1） Charlotte Bronte and Jane Eyre
（2） Emily Bronte and The Wuthering Heights.
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