What develops when readers understand how texts are written?
Critical thinking develops.
Which revolution in 1688 marks the eighteenth century?
The Glorious Revolution.
Which major historical event occurred between 1775 and 1783?
The American Revolution.
Which revolution began in 1789 during the eighteenth century?
The French Revolution.
What literary form rose during the eighteenth century?
The novel.
Who wrote The Eighteenth-Century Literature Handbook?
Gary and Bridget Keegan.
In which year was The Eighteenth-Century Literature Handbook published?
2009.
What do Gary and Bridget Keegan say shapes how people see the contemporary world?
Events from three hundred years earlier.
When does the long eighteenth century begin and end?
It runs from 1688 to 1815.
What event triggered the start of the Glorious Revolution in 1688?
The birth of King James II's son.
Who landed in England with a large Dutch army in November 1688?
William of Orange.
What did Parliament do after James II fled to France in 1689?
Offered the crown jointly to William and Mary.
What did the Bill of Rights of 1689 establish about parliamentary power?
It established parliamentary supremacy over the monarchy.
What did early- to mid-18th-century writing emphasize due to fear of conflict?
Order, stability, politeness, and the middle class.
Which groups did the Whigs represent in British politics?
Aristocratic landowners, wealthy merchants, and emerging professionals.
Which groups did the Tories represent and what did they support?
The gentry and small landholders who supported the Anglican Church and opposed high taxation.
How did didactic literature and periodicals influence gender ideals?
They helped create ideals of masculine and feminine behaviour.
What role did sensibility play in 18th-century gender ideals?
It promoted open expression of feelings and challenged some masculinity ideals.
When were England and Wales united with Scotland?
In 1707.
When did Ireland join the Union with England, Wales, and Scotland?
In 1800.
What did the union of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland contribute to?
The emergence of a sense of Britishness.
What was the consumer revolution?
The spread of access to goods and services previously limited to the wealthiest.
Which authors spoke out against slavery in the 18th century?
Olaudah Equiano and Ottobah Cugoano.
What was Ottobah Cugoano's 1787 abolitionist publication?
Sentiments on the Evil and Wicked Traffic of the Commerce of the Human Species.
What was significant about Cugoano's 1787 publication?
It was the first abolitionist publication in English by an African.
What effect did the lapse of the Licensing Act in 1695 have?
It contributed to a huge increase in publications.
How many books were published annually in England by 1800?
About 6,000 books were published annually.
How many books were published annually in England in 1700?
About 1,800 books were published annually.
How many newspapers outside London sold millions of copies by the 1780s?
England had fifty newspapers outside London selling millions of copies.
What did the Enlightenment promote for discovering knowledge?
The systematic use of reason.
What did Enlightenment thinkers believe about the universe?
It was governed by discernible laws.
What did Enlightenment thinkers believe was possible for humans?
Human progress was possible.
Who argued that knowledge comes from experience through sensations and reflections?
John Locke.
In which work did John Locke argue that knowledge comes from experience?
Essay Concerning Human Understanding.
Who emphasized perception through impressions and ideas in empiricism?
David Hume.
In which work did David Hume retain Locke’s empiricism ideas?
A Treatise of Human Nature.
What did Mary Wollstonecraft argue about women in her 1792 work?
Women are essential to society and should receive proper education.
What did eighteenth-century writers believe art should do in the early century?
Art should imitate nature.
What became more interesting in art from the mid-eighteenth century onward?
The imagination.
What did the eighteenth century increasingly emphasize in art?
Pleasure.
When did art become a distinct domain?
During the eighteenth century.
Test your knowledge with 18 questions on Eighteenth-Century British Literature.
1. How does understanding the way a literary text is constructed strengthen a reader’s critical thinking?
2. Which combination best identifies major features of the historical period commonly called the eighteenth century?
Review the complete course in the study sheet for Eighteenth-Century British Literature.
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