English Russian literature works of art. Famous English writers

Everyone knows the plot of Daniel Defoe's novel. However, the book contains many other interesting details about the organization of Robinson’s life on the island, his biography, and inner experiences. If you ask a person who has not read the book to describe Robinson’s character, he is unlikely to cope with this task.

In the popular consciousness, Crusoe is a smart character without character, feelings or history. The novel reveals the image of the main character, which allows you to look at the plot from a different angle.

Why you need to read

To get acquainted with one of the most famous adventure novels and find out who Robinson Crusoe really was.

Swift does not openly challenge society. Like a true Englishman, he does it correctly and witty. His satire is so subtle that Gulliver's Travels can be read as an ordinary fairy tale.

Why you need to read

For children, Swift's novel is a fun and unusual adventure story. Adults need to read it to get acquainted with one of the most famous artistic satires.

This novel, although artistically not the most outstanding, is definitely iconic in the history of literature. After all, in many ways he predetermined the development of the scientific genre.

But this is not just entertaining reading. It raises problems of the relationship between creator and creation, God and man. Who is responsible for creating a being who is destined to suffer?

Why you need to read

To get acquainted with one of the main works of science fiction, as well as to experience complex issues that are often lost in film adaptations.

It is difficult to single out Shakespeare's best play. There are at least five of them: “Hamlet”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “Othello”, “King Lear”, “Macbeth”. The unique style and deep understanding of life's contradictions made Shakespeare's works an immortal classic, relevant at all times.

Why you need to read

To begin to understand poetry, literature and life. And also to find the answer to the question, what is better: to be or not to be?

The main theme of English literature in the early 19th century was social criticism. Thackeray in his novel denounces his contemporary society with the ideals of success and material enrichment. To be in society means to be sinful - this is approximately Thackeray’s conclusion regarding his social environment.

After all, the successes and joys of yesterday lose their meaning when a well-known (albeit unknown) tomorrow looms ahead, which we all will sooner or later have to think about.

Why you need to read

To learn to relate more simply to life and the opinions of others. After all, everyone in society is infected with “fair ambitions” that have no real value.

The language of the novel is beautiful, and the dialogue is an example of English wit. Oscar Wilde is a subtle psychologist, which is why his characters turned out to be so complex and multifaceted.

This book is about human vice, cynicism, the difference between the beauty of the soul and body. If you think about it, to some extent each of us is Dorian Gray. Only we do not have a mirror on which sins would be imprinted.

Why you need to read

To enjoy the stunning language of Britain's wittiest writer, to see how much one's moral character can deviate from one's appearance, and to become a little better person. Wilde's work is a spiritual portrait not only of his era, but of all humanity.

The ancient Greek myth about a sculptor who fell in love with his creation takes on a new, socially significant meaning in Bernard Shaw's play. How should a work feel towards its author if this work is a person? How can it relate to the creator - the one who made it in accordance with his ideals?

Why you need to read

This is Bernard Shaw's most famous play. It is often staged in theaters. According to many critics, Pygmalion is a landmark work of English drama.

A universally recognized masterpiece of English literature, familiar to many from cartoons. Who, at the mention of Mowgli, does not hear Kaa’s drawn-out hiss in his head: “Man-cub...”?

Why you need to read

As an adult, it is unlikely that anyone will take up The Jungle Book. A person has only one childhood to enjoy Kipling's creation and appreciate it. So be sure to introduce your children to the classics! They will be grateful to you.

And again the Soviet cartoon comes to mind. It's really good, and the dialogue in it is almost entirely taken from the book. However, the images of the characters and the general mood of the story in the original source are different.

Stevenson's novel is realistic and quite harsh in places. But this is a good adventure work that every child and adult will read with pleasure. Boarding boards, sea wolves, wooden legs - the nautical theme beckons and attracts.

Why you need to read

Because it's fun and exciting. In addition, the novel is divided into quotes, which everyone should know.

Interest in the deductive abilities of the great detective is still great today thanks to the huge number of film adaptations. Many people are familiar with the classic detective story only from films. But there are many film adaptations, but there is only one collection of stories, but what a one!

Why you need to read

H. G. Wells was in many ways a pioneer in the genre of science fiction. Before him, people were not at odds with, he was the first to write about time travel. Without the Time Machine, we would not have seen either the film Back to the Future or the cult TV series Doctor Who.

They say that all life is a dream, and a bad, pitiful, short dream at that, although you won’t have another dream anyway.

Why you need to read

To look at the origins of many science fiction ideas that have become popular in modern culture.

English literature– this is a centuries-old history, magnificent writers, unique works that reflect the characteristics of the national character. We grow up with the books of these great authors, we develop with their help. It is impossible to convey the importance of English writers and the contribution they made to world literature. We offer you 10 internationally recognized masterpieces of English literature.

1. William Shakespeare - “King Lear”

The story of King Lear is the story of a man blinded by his own despotism, who, in his declining years, encounters the bitter truth of life for the first time. Endowed with unlimited power, Lear decides to divide his kingdom between his three daughters Cordelia, Goneril and Regan. On the day of his abdication, he expects flattering speeches and assurances of tender love from them. He knows in advance what his daughters will say, but he longs to once again listen to the praises addressed to him in the presence of the court and foreigners. Lear invites the youngest of them and the most beloved Cordelia to talk about his love in such a way that her words will prompt him to give her a “more extensive share than his sisters.” But proud Cordelia refuses to perform this ritual with dignity. A fog of rage obscures Lear’s eyes and, considering her refusal an attack on his power and dignity, he curses his daughter. Having deprived her of her inheritance, King Lear abdicates the throne in favor of his eldest daughters Goneril and Regan, not realizing the dire consequences of his action...

2. George Gordon Byron - “Don Juan”

“I am looking for a hero!..” Thus begins the poem “Don Juan”, written by the great English poet George Gordon Byron. And his attention was attracted by a hero well known in world literature. But the image of the young Spanish nobleman Don Juan, who became a symbol of the seducer and womanizer, takes on new depth in Byron. He is unable to resist his passions. But often he himself becomes the object of harassment from women...

3. John Galsworthy - “The Forsyte Saga”

“The Forsyte Saga” is life itself, in all its tragedy, in joys and losses, a life that is not very happy, but accomplished and unique.
The first volume of “The Forsyte Saga” includes a trilogy consisting of novels: “The Owner,” “In the Loop,” “For Rent,” which presents the history of the Forsyte family over many years.

4. David Lawrence - “Women in Love”

David Herbert Lawrence shocked the consciousness of his contemporaries with the freedom with which he wrote about the relationship of the sexes. In the famous novels about the Brenguin family - “The Rainbow” (which was banned immediately after publication) and “Women in Love” (published in a limited edition, and in 1922 a censorship trial of its author took place) Lawrence describes the story of several married couples. Women in Love was filmed by Ken Russell in 1969 and won an Oscar.
“My great religion is the belief in blood and flesh, that they are wiser than the intellect. Our minds may make mistakes, but what our blood feels, believes, and says is always true.”

5. Somerset Maugham - “The Moon and a Penny”

One of Maugham's best works. A novel about which literary critics have been arguing for many decades, but still cannot come to a common opinion - should the story of the tragic life and death of the English artist Strickland be considered a kind of “free biography” of Paul Gauguin?
Whether this is true or not, “The Moon and a Penny” still remains the true pinnacle of English literature of the 20th century.

6. Oscar Wilde - “The Picture of Dorian Gray”

Oscar Wilde is a great English writer who gained fame as a brilliant stylist, an inimitable wit, an extraordinary personality of his time, a man whose name, through the efforts of enemies and a gossip-hungry mob, became a symbol of depravity. This edition includes the famous novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray” - the most successful and most scandalous of all the books created by Wilde.

7. Charles Dickens - “David Copperfield”

The famous novel “David Copperfield” by the great English writer Charles Dickens has gained the love and recognition of readers all over the world. Largely autobiographical, this novel tells the story of a boy forced to fight alone against a cruel, bleak world inhabited by evil teachers, selfish factory owners and soulless servants of the law. In this unequal war, David can only be saved by moral firmness, purity of heart and extraordinary talent, capable of turning a dirty ragamuffin into the greatest writer in England.

8. Bernard Shaw - “Pygmalimon”

The play begins on a summer evening in Covent Garden in London. A sudden torrential downpour of rain caught the pedestrians by surprise and forced them to take shelter under the portal of St. Paul's Cathedral. Among those gathered were professor of phonetics Henry Higgins and researcher of Indian dialects Colonel Pickering, who specially came from India to see the professor. The unexpected meeting delights both. The men begin a lively conversation, into which an incredibly dirty flower girl intervenes. While begging the gentlemen to buy a bouquet of violets from her, she makes such unimaginable inarticulate sounds that it horrifies Professor Higgins, who is discussing the advantages of his method of teaching phonetics. The disgruntled professor swears to the colonel that thanks to his lessons, this dirty woman can easily become a saleswoman in a flower shop, where now she won’t even be allowed to enter the door. Moreover, he swears that in three months he will be able to pass her off as the duchess at the envoy's reception.
Higgins gets down to business with great enthusiasm. Obsessed with the idea of turning a simple street girl into a real lady at any cost, he is absolutely confident of success, and does not think at all about the consequences of his experiment, which will radically change not only the fate of Eliza (that’s the girl’s name), but also his own life .

9. William Thackeray - “Vanity Fair”

The pinnacle of creativity of the English writer, journalist and graphic artist William Makepeace Thackeray was the novel “Vanity Fair”. All the characters in the novel - positive and negative - are involved, according to the author, in an “eternal circle of grief and suffering.” Full of events, rich in subtle observations of the life of its time, imbued with irony and sarcasm, the novel “Vanity Fair” took pride of place in the list of masterpieces of world literature.

10. Jane Austen - “Sense and Sensibility”

“Sense and Sensibility” is one of the best novels by the wonderful English writer Jane Austen, who is rightly called the “first lady” of British literature. Among her most famous works are such masterpieces as “Pride and Prejudice”, “Emma”, “Northanger Abbey” and others. “Sense and Sensibility” is a so-called novel of morals, representing the love stories of two sisters: one of them is reserved and reasonable, the other is passionately devoted to emotional experiences. Heart dramas against the background of the conventions of society and ideas about duty and honor become a real “education of feelings” and are crowned with well-deserved happiness. The life of a large family, the characters and the twists and turns of the plot are described by Jane Austen easily, ironically and heartfeltly, with inimitable humor and purely English restraint.

Truly admirable. It is based on the works of a whole galaxy of outstanding masters. No country in the world has given birth to as many outstanding wordsmiths as Britain. There are numerous English classics, the list goes on for a long time: William Shakespeare, Thomas Hardy, Charlotte Bronte, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, William Thackeray, Daphne Du Maurier, George Orwell, John Tolkien. Are you familiar with their works?

Already in the 16th century, the British William Shakespeare earned the reputation of the world's best playwright. It is curious that to this day the plays of the “spear-shaking” Englishman (as his last name is literally translated) are staged in theaters more often than the works of other authors. His tragedies “Hamlet”, “Othello”, “King Lear”, “Macbeth” are universal values. Getting acquainted with his creative heritage, we recommend that you MUST read the philosophical tragedy “Hamlet” - about the meaning of life and moral principles. For four hundred years now she has headed the repertoires of the most famous theaters. There is an opinion that English classic writers began with Shakespeare.

She became famous thanks to the classic romance novel “Pride and Prejudice,” which introduces us to the daughter of an impoverished nobleman, Elizabeth, who has a rich inner world, pride and an ironic view of her surroundings. She finds her happiness in love with the aristocrat Darcy. It’s paradoxical, but this book, with a fairly simple plot and a happy ending, is one of the most beloved in Britain. It traditionally outstrips the works of many serious novelists in popularity. At least for that reason it is worth reading. Like this writer, many English classics came to literature at the beginning of the 18th century.

He glorified himself with his works as a deep and genuine expert on the life of ordinary British people in the 18th century. His heroes are invariably heartfelt and convincing. The novel "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" shows the tragic fate of a simple, decent woman. She commits the murder of a scoundrel nobleman who is ruining her life in order to free herself from his persecution and find happiness. Using the example of Thomas Hardy, the reader can see that the English classics had a deep mind and a systematic view of the society around them, saw its flaws more clearly than others, and, despite having ill-wishers, still courageously presented their creations for the assessment of the entire society.

She showed in her largely autobiographical novel “Jane Eyre” the emerging new morality - the principles of an educated, active, decent person who wants to serve society. The writer creates a surprisingly holistic, deep image of the governess Jane Eyre, who goes towards her love for Mr. Rochester even at the cost of sacrificial service. Bronte, inspired by her example, was followed by other English classics, not from the noble class, calling on society for social justice and an end to all human discrimination.

Possessed, according to the Russian classic F.M. Dostoevsky, who considered himself his student, “instinct of universal humanity.” The writer’s enormous talent accomplished the seemingly impossible: he became famous in his early youth thanks to his first novel, “The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club,” which was followed by “Oliver Twist,” “David Copperfield,” and others, which earned the writer unprecedented fame. , putting him on a par with Shakespeare.

William Thackeray is an innovator in the style of presenting a novel. None of the classics before him turned bright, textured negative characters into the central images of his work. Moreover, as in life, often something individually positive was inherent in their characters. His outstanding work, “Vanity Fair,” was written in a unique spirit of intellectual pessimism mixed with subtle humor.

With her “Rebecca” in 1938, she did the impossible: she wrote the novel at a key moment, when it seemed that English literature had run out of steam, that everything possible had already been written, that the English classics had “run out.” Having not received worthy works for a long time, the English reading audience was interested and delighted by the unique, unpredictable plot of her novel. The opening phrase of this book has become a catchphrase. Be sure to read this book by one of the world's best masters of creating psychological images!

George Orwell will amaze you with the merciless truth. He wrote his famous novel “1984” as a powerful universal denunciation weapon against all dictatorships: present and future. His creative method was borrowed from another great Englishman - Swift.

The novel “1984” is a parody of a dictatorship society that has completely trampled on universal human values. He exposed and called to account for the inhumanity of the ugly model of socialism, which was actually becoming a dictatorship of leaders. An extremely sincere and uncompromising man, he endured poverty and hardship, passing away early - at the age of 46.

Is it possible not to love “The Lord of the Rings” by Professor This is a real miraculous and surprisingly harmonious temple of the epic of England? The work conveys deep humanistic messages to its readers and it is no coincidence that Frodo destroys the ring on March 25 - the day of the Ascension. The creative and competent writer showed insight: all his life he was indifferent to politics and parties, passionately loved “good old England”, and was a classic British bourgeois.

This list goes on and on. I apologize to dear readers who had the courage to read this article that, due to limited space, it did not include the worthy Walter Scott, Ethel Lilian Voynich, Daniel Defoe, Lewis Carroll, James Aldridge, Bernard Shaw and, believe me, many, many others. English classical literature is a huge, most interesting layer of achievements of human culture and spirit. Do not deny yourself the pleasure of meeting her.

Why you need to read

To get acquainted with one of the most famous adventure novels and find out who Robinson Crusoe really was.

Swift does not openly challenge society. Like a true Englishman, he does it correctly and witty. His satire is so subtle that Gulliver's Travels can be read as an ordinary fairy tale.

Why you need to read

For children, Swift's novel is a fun and unusual adventure story. Adults need to read it to get acquainted with one of the most famous artistic satires.

This novel, although artistically not the most outstanding, is definitely iconic in the history of literature. After all, in many ways he predetermined the development of the scientific genre.

But this is not just entertaining reading. It raises problems of the relationship between creator and creation, God and man. Who is responsible for creating a being who is destined to suffer?

Why you need to read

To get acquainted with one of the main works of science fiction, as well as to experience complex issues that are often lost in film adaptations.

Why you need to read

To begin to understand poetry, literature and life. And also to find the answer to the question, what is better: to be or not to be?

After all, the successes and joys of yesterday lose their meaning when a well-known (albeit unknown) tomorrow looms ahead, which we all will sooner or later have to think about.

Why you need to read

To learn to relate more simply to life and the opinions of others. After all, everyone in society is infected with “fair ambitions” that have no real value.

The language of the novel is beautiful, and the dialogue is an example of English wit. Oscar Wilde is a subtle psychologist, which is why his characters turned out to be so complex and multifaceted.

Why you need to read

This is Bernard Shaw's most famous play. It is often staged in theaters. According to many critics, Pygmalion is a landmark work of English drama.

A universally recognized masterpiece of English literature, familiar to many from cartoons. Who, at the mention of Mowgli, does not hear Kaa’s drawn-out hiss in his head: “Man-cub...”?

Why you need to read

Because it's fun and exciting. In addition, the novel is divided into quotes, which everyone should know.

Why you need to read

They say that all life is a dream, and a bad, pitiful, short dream at that, although you won’t have another dream anyway.

Why you need to read

To look at the origins of many science fiction ideas that have become popular in modern culture.