The Restoration Period (1660-1700)

1: The Restoration began in 1660, when Charles II came to the throne, there was a
complete repudiation (Rejection of a proposal or idea) of the Puritan ideals and way of
living. In English literature the period from 1660 to 1700 is called the period of
Restoration, because monarchy was restored in England, and Charles II, the son of
Charles I who had been defeated and beheaded (Cut off the head of (someone),
especially as a form of execution), came back to England from his exile in France and
became the King.
2: It is called the Age of Dryden, because Dryden was the dominating and most
representative literary figure of the Age. As the Puritans who were previously
controlling the country, and were supervising her literary and moral and social
standards, were finally defeated, a reaction was launched against whatever they
held sacred (holy).
3: Instead of having Shakespeare and the Elizabethans as their models, the poets
and dramatists of the Restoration period began to imitate French writers and
especially their vices (wisdom).
4: The tendency (An inclination towards a particular characteristic or type of behaviour) to
preciseness (shorten) which ultimately became the chief characteristic of the
Restoration period, made a lasting contribution to English literature. It emphasized
directness (The quality of being plain and straightforward) and simplicity of expression,
and counteracted (Act against (something) in order to reduce its force or neutralize it) the
tendency of exaggeration (A statement that represents something as better or worse than it
really is) and extravagance (Lack of restraint in spending money or using resources) which
was encouraged during the Elizabethan and the Puritan ages.
5: Dryden accepted this rule for his prose, and for his poetry adopted the easiest
type of verse-formthe heroic couplet (A pair of successive lines of verse,
typically rhyming and of the same length). Under his guidance, the English writers
evolved a styleprecise, formal and elegant (Graceful and stylish in appearance or
manner )which is called the classical style, and which dominated English literature
for more than a century.
Restoration Poetry
6: John Dryden (1631-1700). The Restoration poetry was mostly satirical, realistic
and written in the heroic couplet, of which Dryden was the supreme master. He was
the dominating figure of the Restoration period, and he made his mark in the fields
of poetry, drama and prose.
7: The poetry of Dryden can be conveniently divided under three headsPolitical
Satires, Doctrinal Poems and The Fables. Of his political satires, Absolem and
Achitophel and The Medal are well-known.

8: The two great doctrinal (concerned with belief or set of beliefs held and taught by a
Church, political party, or other group) poems of Dryden are Religio Laici and The Hind
and the Panther. These poems are neither religious nor devotional, but theological
(Relating to the study of the nature of God and religious belief) and controversial
(Giving rise or likely to give rise to controversy or public disagreement). The first was written
when Dryden was a Protestant (A member or follower of any of the Western Christian
Churches that are separate from the Roman Catholic Church in accordance with the principles
of the Reformation, including the Baptist,Presbyterian, and Lutheran Churches), and it
defends the Anglican Church. The second written when Dryden had become a
Catholic, vehemently (Showing strong feeling) defends Catholicism. They, therefore,
show Drydens power and skill of defending any position he took up, and his
mastery in presenting an argument in verse.
9: The Palamon and Arcite, which is based on Chaucers Knights Tale, gives us an
opportunity of comparing the method and art of a fourteenth century poet with one
belonging to the seventeenth century.
10: The poetry of Dryden posess all the characteristics of the Restoration period
and is therefore thoroughly representative of that age. It does not have the poetic
glow, the spiritual fervor (Intense and passionate feeling), the moral loftiness (of
Grand and impressive in appearance) and philosophical depth which were sadly lacking
in the Restoration period.
Restoration Drama
11: In 1642 the theatres were closed by the authority of the parliament which was
dominated by Puritans and so no good plays were written from 1642 till the
Restoration. In 1660 when the theatres were re-opened. The drama in England after
1660, called the Restoration drama.
12: The common people still under the influence of Puritanism had no love for the
theater, the dramatists had to cater (Provide people with food and drink at a social event
or other gathering) to the taste of the aristocratic class which was highly fashionable,
frivolous (Provide people with food and drink at a social event or other gathering), cynical
(Believing that people are motivated purely by self-interest) and sophisticated.
13: The Restoration drama had characteristics which appealed to the upper strata
upper level) of society whose taste was aristocratic (higher in society), and among
which the prevailing fashions and etiquettes (manners) were foreign and
extravagant.
14: Comedy loses its ideal universality: wit (The capacity for inventive thought and
quick understanding) succeeds humour; we laugh from self-complacency (A feeling
of self satisfaction with oneself or ones achievements) and triumph; instead of pleasure,
malignity (Evil in nature or effect) , sarcasm (mock) and contempt, succeed to
sympathetic merriment (General cheerfulness and fun); we hardly laugh, but we smile.

15: In tragedy, the Restoration period specialised in Heroic Tragedy, which dealt
with themes of epic magnitude (The great size or extent of something). The heroes and
heroines possessed superhuman qualities.
16: It was characterized by bombast (High-sounding language with little meaning, used
to impress people), exaggeration and sensational effects wherever possible. As it was
not based on the observations of life, there was no realistic characterization, and it
inevitably ended happily, and virtue was always rewarded. The chief protagonist
and writer of heroic tragedy was Dryden.
Restoration Prose
17: The Restoration period was deficient in poetry and drama, but in prose it holds
its head much higher. During the Restoration period English prose was developed
as a medium for expressing clearly and precisely average ideas and feelings about
miscellaneous matters for which prose is really meant.