19. Modernism

About this Lecture

Lecture

And so we arrive at the 20th Century – and we begin with a loosely-defined group of writers and poets known as the Modernists. While it is nearly impossible to give a concise definition of what Modernism is, we can pick up a few themes. Firstly, this was a period where linguistic and sexual liberty went further than ever before – not least of which in the novels of D. H. Lawrence, which present both male-female and male-male love.

Course

This course explores the theme of love from the earliest English literature to the present day – from authors that you have likely heard of, such as Chaucer, Shakespeare, Byron and Keats, to authors that are perhaps less well-known. This is a course that celebrates love in all it forms and between all kinds of people.

Lecturer

John McRae is Special Professor of Language in Literature Studies and Teaching Associate in the School of English at Nottingham University, and holds Visiting Professorships in China, Malaysia, Spain and the USA. He is co-author of The Routledge History of Literature in English with Ron Carter, and also wrote The Language of Poetry, Literature with a Small 'l' and the first critical edition of Teleny by Oscar Wilde and others.