English Literature

CHAPTER V. THE REVIVAL OF LEARNING (1400-1550)

4. Describe More’sUtopia. Do you know any modern books
   like it? Why should any impractical scheme of progress be
   still called Utopian?


5. What work of this period had the greatest effect on the
   English language? Explain why.


6. What was the chief literary influence exerted by Wyatt
   and Surrey? Do you know any later poets who made use of
   the verse forms which they introduced?


7. Which of Malory’s stories do you like best? Where did
   these stories originate? Have they any historical foundation?
   What two great elements did Malory combine in his work?
   What is the importance of his book to later English literature?
   Compare Tennyson’s "Idylls of the King" and Malory’s sto-
   ries with regard to material, expression, and interest. Note
   the marked resemblances and differences between theMorte
   d’Arthurand theNibelungen Lied.