Biography of William Shakespeare and his works || Literary Foundation ||

William Shakespeare's Biography (1564-1616)An English playwright, poet, actor, a renounced figure of the Elizabethan age, and one of the greatest dramatists of English drama Shakespeare was born on 23 April 1564 in Stratford, England. He was baptized on 26th April 1564 at Stratford-on-Avon's church. His father was John Shakespeare, the son of a farmer who came from the nearby village of Snitterfield to Stratford in about 1551. He was prosperous as a trader in corn, meat, leather, and other agricultural products. His mother's name was...

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Biography of Annie Ernaux || Literary Foundation ||

 Annie Ernaux Annie Ernaux (Annie Thérèse Blanche Ernaux) is a French writer and professor of literature and Nobel Laureate who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2022. she was born on 1st September 1940 in Lillebonne, France. Her parents ran a cafe and a grocery in a working-class part of Lillebonne town in Normandy where she was born and grew up. She was educated at the University of Rouen and then Bordeaux where she qualified as a school teacher and gained a higher degree in modern literature. She married  Philippe...

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Touchstone Method by Arnold || Literary Foundation ||

The term Touchstone was first coined by Matthew Arnold in his work The Study of Poetry. Touchstone means a piece of fine-grained dark jasper formula used for testing alloys of gold by observing the colour of the mark they made on it. But in literature, it is used to is used to judge the quality of poetry.A Victorian poet and critic, Matthew Arnold (1822-1888) was considered the first modern critic and could be called a critic's critic.  He was a champion in both poetry and literary criticism. As...

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Biography of Samuel Johnson

Samuel Johnson was born on 18th September 1709 in  Lichfield, England. Michael Johnson was his father who was a bookseller. He was a biographer, essayist, lexicographer, editor, and poet.He was educated at Grammer School in Lichfield in 1719 and entered Pembroke College Oxford in 1728. When his father died in 1713, he was forced to leave the college. However, poverty did not stop him from securing respect and probity, he was received in the best society of his native place. He has strong and virtuous power of...

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Analysis of Life of Abraham Cowley by Johnson

Samuel Johnson, a renowned figure of the 18th century, was known for his many talents as a critic, essayist, moralist, editor, and biographer. His intellect was highly respected and he produced numerous notable works, including "The Lives of British Poet", originally titled "Biographical and Critical, to the Works of the English Poets" from 1771 to 1781. This work is considered one of his most acclaimed pieces and consists of biographical and critical evaluations of 52 poets from the 18th century. Johnson divides the work into three parts.In the...

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Poem- An Introduction by Kamala Das

TEXT OF POEMSI don't know politics but I know the namesOf those in power, and can repeat them likeDays of weeks or names of months, beginning with Nehru.I am Indian, very brown, born in Malabar,I speak three languages, write in Two, dreams in one.Do not write in English, they said, English is Not your mother tongue.Why not leave me alone critics, friends, visiting cousins,every one of you?Why not let me speak in any language I like?The language I speak becomes mine its distortions its queernessAll mine, mine alone.It is half English, half Indian,...

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Analysis of poem An Introduction || Literary Foundation ||

The poem An Introduction (1965) is an autobiographical poem by Kamala Das (1934-2009). She was an iconoclast and one who introduced confessional elements in Indian English poetry. This poem was published in her first volume of poetry Summer in Culcatta in 1965. Her other works are- The Descendent (1967), The Old Play House, and Another Poems (1984). She is essentially known for her bold and frank expression. An acute obsession with love and confessional modes are important features of her poetry. As per M.H Abrams-      ...

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