Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
THE AUGUSTAN AGE - Coggle Diagram
THE AUGUSTAN AGE
POLITICS
1714 - George I becomes king of England. He doesn't speak english and rarely visits England, so he relies a lot on the Parliament
among the ministers, Robert Walpole becomes the most important and is given the title of prime minister (1721-1742)
thanks to Walpole and his policies, England goes through a period of richness and stability
-
he's a pacifist, so he strongly opposes war and believes in diplomacy and negotiation
-
-
Walpole is forced to resign from his office with the outbreak of the War of austrian succession, since he failed at keeping England out of conflicts
William Pitt "the elder", who is from Walpole's same political party, takes his place (1756-1761, 1766-1768) and takes an opposite approach
believes in the importance of war so he invests in the navy, giving importance to military power and colonial expansion
increases Britain's wealth through mercantilism, a trading policy based on accumulating gold in the country by favouring exportation
joins the Seven years war, forming an alliance with Prussia
1727 - George II ascends to the throne after his father's death, his reign is characterised by conflicts
-
-
-
SOCIAL STRUCTURE
during this period there's an important agricoltural revolution that leads to a growth of the population, thanks to the opportunity of producing more food
it's the age of trade and commerce, so the merchant class (middle class) becomes really important
there's more flexibility among the social classes and some of the middle class people manage to become upper class, like nobles and aristocrats. A new upper class is born and there are more possibilities of changing social status
-
-
SOCIETY
this period is called "Augustan age"as a reference to the roman society under the first emperor, Augustus Caesar
it was a period of peace, stability, order, great ideals and cultural development, which english people identify with (infact english artists often quote latin writers such as Horace, Virgil and Ovid)
the 18th century in England is a golden age, an age of peace, stability, prosperity and freedom (gives origin to liberal thought)
during this period virtues like politeness, civilty, simplicity, moderation, elegance and wit become very important: to be accepted by society you have to be a gentleman
it' also the age of Enlightement, where reason becomes foundamental. Reason is seen as the source of knowledge (not God) and as a way to change and improve the world
there's an enormous developement of sciences: scientists start using the experimental method (an empirical method) and there's a scientific revolution
it's also a time of new explorations and discovery of new lands (Captain Cook is the most famous explorer of the time)
it's a topic that people are very interested in, and it reflects in literature too
coffee houses are born, they're places where intellectuals go to discuss and share ideas, in fact this is a period of debate where ideas are shared freely
in coffee houses you can find newspapers and periodicals and read the latest news, strike business deals, attend scientific lectures, discuss philosoficals matters...
-
it's a materialistic and pragmatic society, centered on individualism.
is diffused the idea of the "self-made man", it's valued success in commerce and trade, since richness is considered a symbol of personal success
LITERATURE
prose becomes really important and starts to be used more: political pampirets, philosophical/scientific essays, diaries, newspapers
-
in this period there's the birth of the novel, a new genre that reflects the ideals of the Augustan age and in particular the values of the middle class
-
-
-
-