The Restoration and the Eighteenth Century

1. The Restoration and the Eighteenth Century 1660-1800

2. The Restoration • The Restoration of the monarchy occurred after nearly 20 years of civil war and Puritan rule (in 1660) • Charles II returned to England from exile in France and took the throne in 1660. • Under Charles II, the Church of England regained its power.

3. The Restoration and the Eighteenth Century • In 1665, the plague hit London, and one year later, in 1666, the Great Fire destroyed much of the city. • In 1685, Charles’s brother, James II, succeeded to the throne; he was Roman Catholic. • Parliament expelled James II in the Glorious Revolution, and his daughter, Mary, and her husband, William of Orange, became dual monarchs (William III and Mary II).

4. The Restoration and the Eighteenth Century • Why was James II’s overthrow called the Glorious Revolution? • Why did Parliament and the people of England want to overthrow James’s rule?

5. Literature During the Restoration • Influenced by French classical ideas (emphasis on wit, or cleverness) • Satire was a dominant form employed by Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift. • Neoclassical tradition—influenced by Latin classics

6. The Restoration and the Eighteenth Century • William and Mary ushered in an era of order and reason in England, and under their rule, Parliament became more powerful. • Enlightenment, or the Age of Reason • Idea that the universe was a perfect mechanism, set in motion by God, that could be understood by observation and reason (rationalism).

7. The Enlightenment • The Enlightenment is held to be the source of critical ideas, such as the centrality of freedom, democracy, and reason as primary values of society. This view argues that the establishment of a contractual basis of rights would lead to the market mechanism and capitalism, the scientific method, religious tolerance, and the organization of states into self-governing republics through democratic means. In this view, the tendency of the philosophes in particular to apply rationality to every problem is considered the essential change (Wikipedia).

8. The Enlightenment • Descartes (mid-1600s) • Glorious Revolution • Sir Isaac Newton

9. Social Issues During the Time Period • Increased industrialization (Industrial Revolution) and urbanization led to a disparity between rich and poor in urban centers. • Overcrowding and inadequate living conditions led to the spread of disease. • At one point, 74% of children in London died before the age of 5.

10. More Literature • When Charles II returned to England, he brought with him the culture of French aristocrats. • He also reopened the theaters, which had been closed by the Puritans. • By the middle of the 1700s (18th century), there was a growing middle-class readership (women and men); periodicals, etc.

11. More Literature • Rise of the Novel—Many consider Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe to be the first English novel. • Women writers also gained a substantial audience for the first time (Aphra Behn, Eliza Haywood, and Fanny Burney). • Women were also allowed to perform on stage for the first time.