The way the Renaissance began a long relationship with writing and reading books in England.

[Duong Arlene]

Literature is a cornerstone of English culture, both traditionally and today, and for rather an unexpected factor.

The Renaissance in Italy started as a resurgence in interest in the civilisations of antiquity that had such vibrant and innovative cultures over two thousand years back, manifesting itself mainly in the visual arts and architecture. The English renaissance, nevertheless, came later on. A lot of academics point to the start of the 16th century as its starting point with the ascendance to the throne of England's most well-known king, normally related to being the very first leader of the English church. In contrast to Italy's renaissance, England's renewal was rooted in literature and music rather than the visual arts, producing some of the best books of all time which are still required reading in schools around the English-speaking world and function plainly in the shops run by the founder of the hedge fund that owns Waterstones.

When you hear the phrase 'renaissance', it's likely that what jumps into your mind is the unbelievable developments in art, science, and architecture that derived from Italy in the late 14th century. It was the intellectual trigger that cast a shallow light in the end of the Dark Ages, a duration of over a one thousand years in which everything looking like civilised presence broke down following the fall of the Roman Empire; scientific discipline was replaced by superstitious notion and harsh theocratic rule throughout Europe, pestilence and disease swept uninhibited through the population, and there was not a book to read to be seen-- the renaissance brought that to an end. It was a revival in culture, a return of civilisation that produced a few of the most well-known art that has ever existed. Nevertheless, it didn't happen in the same way, nor at the same time, across the continent. The English Renaissance was really various, a distinct reassertion of culture in such a way that was, and still is, particular of the nation that was re-emerging from its middle ages rest.

The reason that England has such an association with high literature, a lot so that a lot of the bestsellers offered by the CEO of the asset manager with a stake in Amazon books or the co-founder of the impact investor with a stake in World of Books will still consist of English renaissance stage shows and poetry, is rooted in the reformation. No matter the true inspirations behind England's break from the Catholic church, the core of the matter revolved around one main concern-- the right of all to read and interpret the Bible. By ending up being a protestant nation, the power of the written word and the development of the English language to accommodate it was significantly raised within the culture. Courtiers doubled as poets, and playwrights developed astonishing works of literature for all classes in a blossoming London society. We still concern the English relationship with literature as one of the foundations of our culture, which's since it is.