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South African literature

(Encyclopedia)South African literature, literary works written in South Africa or written by South Africans living in other countries. Populated by diverse ethnic and language groups, South Africa has a distinctive...

Spanish-American literature

(Encyclopedia)Spanish-American literature, the writings of both the European explorers of Spanish America and its later inhabitants. See also Spanish literature; Portuguese literature; Brazilian literature. T...

realism, in literature

(Encyclopedia)realism, in literature, an approach that attempts to describe life without idealization or romantic subjectivity. Although realism is not limited to any one century or group of writers, it is most oft...

Rivas, Ángel de Saavedra, duque de

(Encyclopedia)Rivas, Ángel de Saavedra, duque de änˈhĕl ᵺā säˌävāˈᵺrä do͞oˈkā ᵺā rēˈväs [key], 1791–1865, Spanish romantic poet and dramatist. A liberal, Rivas was condemned to death and f...

Arnold, Matthew

(Encyclopedia)Arnold, Matthew, 1822–88, English poet and critic, son of the educator Dr. Thomas Arnold. Arnold was educated at Rugby; graduated from Balliol College, Oxford in 1844; and was a fellow of Oriel Coll...

Martin, John

(Encyclopedia)Martin, John, 1789–1854, English painter and engraver. Martin's visionary and grandiose landscapes, the pictorial counterparts of English romantic poetry, won him international popularity. He is als...

Garneau, François Xavier

(Encyclopedia)Garneau, François Xavier fräNswäˈ zävyāˈ gärnōˈ [key], 1809–66, French Canadian historian. He was educated at the Quebec seminary. He is remembered for his Histoire du Canada (3 vol., 1845...

Norman Conquest

(Encyclopedia)Norman Conquest, period in English history following the defeat (1066) of King Harold of England by William, duke of Normandy, who became William I of England. The conquest was formerly thought to hav...

Saintsbury, George Edward Bateman

(Encyclopedia)Saintsbury, George Edward Bateman sāntsˈbərē [key], 1845–1933, English critic and historian. His many works on English and French literature, notable for their breadth of knowledge and spirited ...

Hauptmann, Gerhart

(Encyclopedia)Hauptmann, Gerhart gĕrˈhärt houptˈmän [key], 1862–1946, German dramatist, novelist, and poet. He showed the influence of the theories of Zola and the plays of Ibsen in his play Before Dawn (188...