Things to Remember while Making a Precis

Conceptual Preparation

Ideally you’re supposed to take the following course:

-          Read the whole passage once just to have an overall view. After reading, you must be able to have a general impression of

.   What it is about?

.   The purpose of writing it?

.   Who would be the readers?

-          Read the passage The Second Time, to scan it thoroughly.  Remember this is laborious reading. You have to concentrate not only on the details but more importantly on the development of paragraphs.

.   Try to guess why the passage is divided into different paragraphs. However, if there’s only one paragraph, you’ll have to divide it into different sections with the shift of meanings.

.   Underline the key sentence of each paragraphs, if u can’t, write down a sentence of your own to describe it.

.   Identify the statistical data, examples and details to separate them from the central idea. Try to see how the paragraphs look without them.

-          Do Third and final reading to make a flow chart of the passage how the thought develops, identifying the twists in the thought by concentrating on the conjunctions used in it.

(note: Conjunctions are the words like “and, with, however, similarly, in contrast etc.” which link, harmonize, and sometimes shape and modify the thought.)

Now you can think of writing a Precis

Steps of Writing

Ask yourself..!!

Do you understand the central idea of the whole passage? What is the thesis statent here? This sentence ought to be based on the central idea of different paragraphs.

-          Write the thesis statement on a rough page.

-          Guess if you can begin your Précis with this statement, to prove it with the relevant points given in the passage, or you’ll give it in the end.

-          Take a special care of making it coherent by using Conjunctions.

-          Make a rough draft before putting down neatly.

NOTE: Practice this method during preparation without caring about the amount of time you spend on each passage, though it be hours. Your time will reduce accordingly very soon

Non Dramatic Poetry of Sixteenth Century under Renaissance

Sorry document moved to:

http://www.docsinn.com/doc/7/renaissance-poetry.html

please sign up there for  more related documents too

English Prose in Renaissance

     The prose of Renaissance age, though inferior to the contemporary poetry and drama, bears all the hallmarks of literary peak. The great writers of the era have all the highlights of Italian Renaissance like the novelty of thought, height of imagination, search for new truths, and the revival of Greek ideals.

     With the introduction of movable printing machine brought to England by William Caxton, the volume of prose print increased manifold. This genre always considered inferior from literary perspective was infact the same when viewed as a whole, because the bulk of prose in the sixteenth century was in the form of pamphlets, propaganda by Protestants and Catholics for their support during Reformation. However, there are a few literary genius who left their marks qualitatively on the contemporary literature.

Sir Thomas More:

“what has nature ever created more gentle, more sweet, and more happy than the genius of Thomas more”, wrote Erasmus on his first visit to England.

An epitome of an ideal renaissance figure, Sir Thomas More was the strongest of English voices on the political, social, and human fronts. Voicing against the king Henry VII attempt to increase the tax revenue, Thomas More exactly knew his boundary line which he never stepped over. Never calling King’s name directly More entered politics, but lost his poise only once which proved fatal as King Henry VIII imprisoned More’s father during his conflict against the King’s Reformative adventure. His ‘Utopia’ though written in Latin, is a typical Italian inspiration inspired by the great Plato’s philosophy. It’s a philosophical romance, a fanciful account of an ideal republic. His “Edward V” is the first example of good English according to Hallam.

Sir Walter Raleigh: A soldier, navigator, courtier, author wrote “A History of the World” during Prison. Other works are “A Nymph’s Reply”, “A Lie”, “On Sidney”.

John Lyly: A courtier, a soldier, a poet, a knight the brilliant John Lyly’s ‘Euphues; Anatomy of Wit’ is a prose romance with poetic expression and subtlety of thought. Lyly pioneered a new genre of Euphuism in English literature. Its subject was the adventures of a young man (Euphues) well-endowed by nature but not disciplined by education. Apparently, the hero is an Athenian and Naples is the town of temptation, but beneath the disguise Euphues is an Oxford undergraduate corrupted by Italianate society of London. Lyly cared little of the criticism launched against him, and stuck to his style as in 1580 he came up with “Euphues and his England”.

Sir Philip Sidney: Another remarkable man with an all-round genius was Sir Philip Sidney whose famous attempt in prose was his “An Apologie for Poetrie” which defended poetry and poets in the same way as Aristotle did in his times.

Religious Prose:

     As mentioned earlier, the bulk of prose written in the age of Renaissance was religious in nature, sometimes serving the people with translations of the Bible, and at another merely abusing the teachings of opponents’ faith for propaganda. The pamphlets printed during the conflicts of Catholics and Protestants were in millions which developed a taste for the printed things though but did no practical good to the literary spirit of the age. However, the remarkable attempts in this respect are:

-          The translation of the Bible in English by William Tyndal

-          Thomas Cranmers “The Book of Common Prayers”

Sir Francis Bacon: Bacon’s Essays titled as “Novum Organum” though in Latin, are considered the greatest attempt in prose literature of that age because of two reasons: first, it is the maiden introduction of French literary genre of Essay which became increasingly popular in the ages to follow; secondly, the philosophy presented in them reflects the true Renaissance freedom of thought infused by the Italian Renaissance philosopher, Machiavelli.

Age of Chaucer

The Literature of any age, being a mirror to life and the replica of attitudes, cannot be attributed to a single factor or even combination. There are always a host of variables lurking behind and at the forefront to manoeuver the literature of a particular age. This is precisely true in case of English literature of Chaucer’s age. It took centuries of turmoil, political and religious upheavals, and the merging of different races which led to the environment that was suitable for Chaucer and his contemporaries to create something genuinely unprecedented English.

Broadly speaking, the major feature which pervades all others was the emergence of National Pride in English people that is ultimately reflected through their literature. There are three main reasons of this English Pride: first, the amalgamation of different races taking place since Saxons’ time ultimately shaped into a common shared culture of eight centuries together; secondly, the recent conquests of Edward III against the former lords of French gave them a sense of supremacy; thirdly, the Scottish war of independence ensured them of being a nation.

Obviously, as the name of this age suggests, Chaucer stands tall among all his contemporaries because of the universality of the characters of Canterbury Tales and the rhythm of language he accorded to the Midland dialect. The nationalism was so uniformly divided among all the major dialects that all of them stand different from others. The English language was divided into a number of dialects which were employed in different parts of the country. The four of them vastly more prominent than the others were: The Southern, The East Midland, The West Midland and The Northern or Northumbrian. The writers of each dialect were strikingly different from others according to their local traditions and literary preferences. Each was fighting for its own supremacy but The East Midland, where now Oxford and Cambridge are located, emerged as “The King’s Accent” because of the quality and magnitude of literature it produced in the age of Chaucer. Geoffrey Chaucer and John Gower belonged to the Midland Creed. According to a renowned critic, “What Dante did for the dialect of Florence; Chaucer did for the East Midland dialect of England.”

Poetry:

    Poetry was the most popular genre of literature tried in the Age of Chaucer. There were a number of poets who wrote in various dialects but the notables whose works had quality and flare of the age were a few. These few were, however, extraordinary because each of them is genuine who contributed to the development of poetic culture in that age at least.

     Chronologically speaking the first poet of the 14^th century was John Barbour with his “The Bruce”. It is a 13,000 lines poem written in praise of the great Scottish freedom fighter Robert Bruce who defeated Edward II in 1314. The poet as well as the subject clearly suggests that it was written in The Northumbrian dialect.

     “The Morning Star of English Poetry” Geoffrey Chaucer born in London appears the horizon. Shaw divides his poetry into two categories: Chivalric and Of the Italian. The chivalric poems represent the Anglo Norman touch in his age. The poems are: “Romaunt of the Rose”, “Assembly of Fowls”, “Court of Love”, “Cuckoo and the Nightingale”, “House of Fame” etc. The poems written under Italian influence stand higher than the contemporary. Here we find the masterpiece, the expression of a genius written with heart and soul under the shadow of universal spirit_ _ “The Canterbury Tales” , “Legends of good Women”, “Troilus and Cresseide”.

     William Langland, belonged to the West Midland dialect, who spoke loud in the congregation of poets. His “Piers Plowman” is a great poem having the rudimentary images of the pastoral poetry of 15^th century. His other works are “Do Wel”, “Do Bet”, “Do Best”, “The Disposition of Richard II”.

     John Gower. Chaucer speaks of his friend “Moral Gower”. He was Learned, tedious, but popular in his day. His poems are “Confessio Amantis” and “Vox Clamantis”.

Prose:

    Although the literature of 14^th century is known chiefly for the quality poetry it is pregnant with, the prose herein also carries the worth because of the religious touch and literary importance. There are a couple of names like Sir Thomas Malory (King Henry IV) who wrote “The Byrth”, “Lif” and “Actes of Kyng Arthur”; and also Sir John Mandeville with his quaint and interesting “Travels”, but the tallest of all the prose writers of this age is John Wycliff with his Translations of Scriptures in 1380 and 1382. His labours in spreading the scriptures were so influential that he has been called the morning star of the Reformation.

English Literature, before Chaucer

English Literature, before Chaucer

Literature is not something like a dormant volcano which keeps sleeping for ages to erupt suddenly, nor is it comparable to anything mechanical such as found around us these days; it is, as quoted by Emile Legouis, like a river which is shaped gradually by numerous tributaries and streams which keep it flowing. This is especially true with reference to English literature of Chaucer’s times. The literature preceding the Age of Chaucer (1340-1400) cannot be termed as English Literature because of two theoretical reasons: we find no span of time when language remained persistently single from first to last; secondly, there has not been the continuity of written works handed down from generation to generation. Despite these pedagogical limitations, the literature produced or acquired is by no means inferior in its content and quality from thematic or stylistic perspective.

Generally speaking we can divide the Pre-Chaucerian literature into two main parts: Anglo Saxon and Anglo Norman.

 

Anglo Saxon’s Literature:

By the end of 5^th century, a many Teutonic tribes from the neighbor invaded Britain where Brythons of Celtic race had already settled. These locals were already Christianized by Romans. The invaders came from two directions: Engle_land (Germanic) invaders settled in Northumbria and Merice, whereas Saxons (Scandinavian and Icelanders) and Jutes invaded the Southeast part of Britain and the food resources kept them there forever. By the next couple of centuries they transformed into the local settlers. These settlers brought with them the tales, inspirations and folklore of their parent culture which haphazardly inspired the literature if there was any in infancy. Their tales and inspirations marked the spirit of paganism in contrast to the Christian inspiration and religious zeal of the native people. The invaders’ values match exactly with the spirit of their contemporary parent culture in those times. For example, German Hagen Epic of Nibeungen Lied and Edda and prose sagas of Scandinavia and Iceland depict the similar flare which was found in the invaders taste. Their tales relating the contests between savage men and god warfare reflect the similar spirits.

Anglo Saxons did not affect the later English literature as much as it contributed the English vocabulary. We find Germanic and Franco Latin roots in English words even today.

      By themes, most of the literature concerned with the contests between savage men, gods’ warfare, religious travelogues and monks’ fervor. In Latin prose of that age, we find treatises mostly written by courtiers to administer the savage tribes.

      In poetry the most influential piece is a Long poem of 6000 lines Beowulf which truly represents the pagan spirit of the age. This poem relates the heroics of a strong godlike hero who kills the giant Grendel in fierce fights. At times the pieces in the poem appear with the emotional grandeur as powerful as are found in the Greek tale of Hercules. Beowulf is such a forceful piece that it still survives though in fragments. Apart from Beowulf, the other mentionable pieces are Caedmon’s “Paraphrase of Scriptures” and Cynewuf’s “Elene”, a series of poems relating to Christ.

      In prose, we find Aldhem with his Book of Riddles; the venerable Bede wrote many treatises but the most valuable work was Ecclesiastical History of England. Alcuin also wrote treatises, letters and a few poems. Last but not the least, the monks and clerks added a flare of Saxon Chronicles which show the religion as an important segment of Anglo Saxon’s lives.

Marsh observes, “Anglo Saxon Literature, so far from being the mother, was not even the nurse of the infant genius who opened its eyes to the sun of England.”

 

Anglo Norman’s Literature:

     Anglo Norman era starts with the French conquest of Britain in 1066. The conquest in those times meant a complete change of status quo in all the forms of life from geographical to social level. William 1 the conqueror brought with him a complete change of set up so comprehensive that changed the themes, and even modes of literature. The French brought with them “the Norman feudalism with its lordly barons and degraded serfs; its castles, moats and drawbridges; its Wambas and Robin Hoods; its troubadours or wandering minstrels; men of no small esteem and importance; and its armour clad knights, __ chivalrous defenders of ladies, brave champions in the battle or tournament.” For nearly three hundred years the slow amalgamation of ruling Normans and enslaved Saxons, with the fusion of their languages resulting in English, was in progress. Literally no big name whose work survives, quoted or even remembered today, however potentially Anglo Norman era is so important that according to Emile Legouis: “no knowledge of Anglo Saxon is needed in order to understand Chaucer; but it is impossible to understand the origin of his work without knowing something of the French poetry which preceded it.”

Generally speaking we can divide Anglo Norman literature into three categories: The Latin writings of numerous monks and historians, Norman French, and Semi Saxon.

The Latin writings of numerous monks and historians

-    Walter Map or Mape wrote stories of King Arthur, De Nugis Curialium (trifles of courtiers)

-    Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote History of Britons (preserving the tales of King Arthur)

-    Ralph Higden wrote 24 miracle plays titled as “Chester Plays”, also wrote polychronicon (in 7 books).

Norman French:                                

-    Wace wrote “Brut d’Angleterre” a versified history of Britons.

 

Semi_Saxon: (Morley calls it the transitional English)

-    Layamon wrote the “Brut” (a superior translation and enlargement of Wace’s poem)

-    Orm or Ormin wrote “Ormulum”

-    Romances in poetry by Nichoas of Guildford

 

 

Introduction

This Plateform is primarily meant to save the personal notes of the writer, however the benefits for general readers and students is not a distant thought either. Please feel free to leave your comments with suggestion for further improvement.
Thank You
Muhammad Bilal Ashraf
Assistant Professor of English
Pakpattan, Pakistan