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Speaking about art galleries of London we should first of all mention The national gallery, The national portrait gallery and The Tate gallery. I would like to tell you about National portrait gallery and about Tate gallery.

National gallery.

The national gallery houses one of the richest and most extensive collections of painting in the world. It stands to the north of the Trafalgar Square. the gallery was designed by William Wilkins and build in 1834-37. The collection covers all schools and periods of painting, but is a specially famous for it's examples of Rembrant and Rubents. The British schools is only moderately represented as the national collections are shared with the Tate gallery. The National gallery was founded in 1824 when the government bought the collection of John Angerstein which included 38 paintings.

The Tate gallery houses the national collection of British painting from the 16-th century to the present day. It is also the national gallery for modern art, including painting and sculpture made in Britain, Europe, America and other countries. It was opened in 1897 as the national gallery of British art. It owes it's establishment to Sue Henritate who built the gallery and gave his own collection of 65 painting.

National portrait gallery.

The National portrait gallery adjoins the National gallery. The collection was founded in 1856 with the object of illustration British history, literature, arts and science. By means of portraits of the most famous men and women. The collection numbers over 4500 paintings, sculpture and drawing representing about 3500 persons. A part from those of the Royal family no portrait is admitted until it’s subject has been dead for ten years. Only about one third of the collection is on view but any portrait can usually been show on request. The portraits in the gallery are arranged more or less in chronological order.

Outstanding British artists.

William Hogarth (1697-1764) is sometimes called “the father of English painting”, he created a great body of work based on English life and culture, and work hard to improve the position of British artists.

Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) was with Reynolds the greatest British portraitist of the 18th century. But he personally prefer landscape painting and made a central contribution to the development of this important aspect of British art.

THE RENAISSANSE.

The Renaissance or the revival of learning was the period then European culture was at it’s high. It lasted from the 14’th century till 17’th century, and was coursed by complex economic situation and social conditions. The feudal system was been shuttled by the bourgeoisie, which was getting stronger and stronger. It was more profitable to unite under a single rouler. Absolute monarchy came into being. This lead to the forming of nations and the true sense of the world. New social and economic conditions called for the new ideology, because the catholic dogmas didn’t correspond to the new trend of life. For this reason in many European countries the protestant religion spread up and national churches were established.

Instead of the blind face ordered by the catholic then appeared a new outlook which was called humanism. The time demanded positive recional knowledge and this demand was supplied: in astronomy by Copernicus, in philosophy by Tomas More, in geography by Columbus, Vaska de Gama and others. Leonardo de Vinci was force a new theory of art: “It was the greatest progressive revolution that mankind have so far experience, a time, which called for “Giants” and produced Giants in power and thought, passion and character in universality and language.”

An example of a typical men of the Renaissance period was: the famous Englishmen sir Walter Raleigh, he was a soldier, sailor, explorer, pirate, coloniser, historian, philosopher and a poet. He was much interested in science and literature. He wrote works of geography and lead expedition to South America. He was an outstanding poet. His poems are full of profound wisdom, written with great elegance and salacity of style. He organised of “academy”. Christopher Marlowe the greatest dramatist (before Shakespeare). But the most important of most this writer and one of the greatest men of this period was sir Thomas More.

Thomas More.

He came into great favour and made a repaid carrier as a statesmen, at the same time writing works of a political, philosophical and historical character. His most famous book is “Utopia”. “Utopia” - means “no place, no there”. The work is writing in Latin and divided into two books. Thomas More was the first writer in Europe to formulate communist principals as a bases of society.

THE RRNAISSANSE IN ENGLAND.

The prides of Shakespeare.

The most brilliant period of English literature was in the second half of the 16’th and beginning of 17’th century. Sometimes it’s called “Elizabethan age” after queen Elizabeth 5. England had become a great world power. It had established wide commercial contact with countries And rich trading company had been organised. The English people were now a great nation and the English language enriched was now not unlike the language of Chaucer. Many famous poetical and prose works appeared. Among those who enriched the literary heritage of this period ere sir Philip Sydney, Adnond Spenser and Christopher Marlowe. There were fine works of poetry and prose in the Elizabethan age but the greatest hight’s of literature of this period were reached in drama.

Life of Shakespeare.

The great poet and dramatist William Shakespeare is often called by his people “Our National Bard”, “The Immortal. Poet of nature” and “The Great Unknown”. More than two hundred contemporary references to Shakespeare have been located among church records, legal records, documents in the Public Record Office, and miscellaneous repositories. When these owe assembled, we have at least the skeleton out line of his life, beginning with his baptise on April 26, 1564, in Trinity Church, Stratford-on-Avon, and ending with his burial there on April 25, 1616. Shakespeare native place was Sratford-on-Avon, a little town in Warwickshire, which is generally described as begin in the middle of England.

Shakespeare’s father, John, was a prosperious glove maker of Stratford who, after holding minor municipal offices, was elected high bailiff of Stratford. Shakespeare’s mother Mary Arden, came from an affluent family of landowners.

Shakespeare probably received his early education at the excellent Stratford Grammar School, supervised by an Oxford graduate, where he would have learned Latin smattering of Greek.

In 1582 Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, who lived in a neighbouring hamlet. The first child born to Ann and William was their daughter Susanna. In about two years Ann bore him twins a boy and a girl, Hamlet and Judith.

Then life in Stratford became intolerable for William Shakespeare and he decided to go to London and began a theatrical career. Shakespeare major activity lay in the field of drama. He became a full shareholder in his acting company, he was part-owner of “the Globe” theatre and later of “the Blackfriars” theatre, and in 1597 he purchased property in Stradford. Including new place, one of the largest houses in the town. He probably refired there about 1610, travelling of London when necessary to take cave of his theatrical business. In all, 154 sonnets sequence. The sonnets were probably written in the 1590 but were first published in 1609.

Shakespeare’s works.
Shakespeare’s literary work is usually divided into three periods. The first period of his creative work falls between 1590 and 1600. Shakespeare’s comedies belong to the first period of his creative work. They all are written in his playful manner and in the brilliant poetry that conveys the spectator to Italy. Some of the first plays of the first period are: “Richard 3” (1592), “The comedy of errors” (1592), “Romeo and Juliet” (1594), “Julius Caesar” (1599), “As you like it” (1599), 1600 - “Twelfth night”. Shakespeare's poems are also attributed to the first period, “Venus and Adonis” and “Lucrece”, and 154 sonnets. “Venus and Adonis” was the first of Shakespeare’s works that came off the press. The second period of Shakespeare’s creative work during from 1600 to 1608. His famous tragedies appeared at this time. In the plays of this period the dramatist reaches his full maturity. He presents great humans problems. His tragedies and historical plays made Shakespeare the greatest humanist of the English Renaissance. Some plays of the second period: 1601 - “Hamlet”, 1604 - “Othello”.
Shakespeare’s plays of the third period are called the “Romantic dramas”. There is no tragic tension in these plays. This period lasted from 1609 till 1612.
1609 - “Cymbeline”, 1610 - “The Winters Tale”, 1612 - “Henry 8”.
Hamlet’s soliloquy.
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether its nobler in the mind to suffer.
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing and then. To die, to sleep -
No more, and by a sleep to say we end
The heart - ache, and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is hear to; ‘tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To die to sleep -
To sleep! Perchance to dream! Ay, there’s the rub
For in that sleep of death what dreams may comes,
When we have shuflled off this mortal coil
Must give pause - there’s the respect
That makes calimity of so long life.

The Enlightenment.

The history of England and second part of the 17’th century, and during the 18’th century was marked by British colonial, expression and struggle for the leading role in cowers. The writers and philosophises of this age protested against the sovivals of feudalism in which they saw the main evil of this time. Man they thought was vertains by nature and wise was duty ignorance to they started a pubic movement for enlightening the people. This movement was called “the enlightenment”. The enlightens believed in the power of reason and the period was also called “the age of reason”. This period saw a remarkable rise in literature. English literature of this period may be characterise by the following features: 1.The rise of the political pamphlets and issue. The novel became the leading genre. 2. The prose style became clever graceful and polished. 3. The hero of the novel was no longer a prince but a representative of the middle class. 4. Literature became very instructive.

The literature of this age may be divided into 3 periods:
The 1’st period is caricaturised by classicism in poetry. The greatest follower of the classical style was Alexander Pope. There appeared the first realistic novels written by Defoe and Swift.
The 2’nd period saw the development of the realistic social novel, representative by Richardson, Fielding and others.
The 3’rd period is marked by the appearance of a new trends: sentimentalism. Typified by the works of Goldsmith and Stern. This period also saw the rise of the realistic drama (R. Sheridan).

Daniel Defoe.

DD was the founder of the realistic novel. He was also a brilliant journalist and in many ways the father of modern English periodicals. He founded and paved the way for many magazines ( “The Revue”, “The Spectator”).
DD was born in London, his father a butcher, was wealthy enough to give his son a good education. D was to become a priest, but it was his cherished desire to become wealthy. His wished was never fulfilled. D was banckrote several times. He was always in deep debt. The inly branch of business in which he proved successful was journalism and literature. When D was about 23 he started writing pamphlets on question of the hour. He started writing pamphlets prassing King William 3, who was supported by the whig party. D wrote a setire in woth. No matter in whose defends his brilliant pamphlets were written they are irony was so subtle, that the enemy didn’t understand it at first. But as soon as his enemy realised the real character of the pamphlets D was sentensed to 7 years inprisonment. It was a cruel punishment, and when the came for him to be set free people carried him on their shoulders.. This was the climax of his political career and the end of it. In 1719, he tried his hand at another kind of literature - fiction, and wrote the novel he is now best known: “Robison Crusoe”. After the book was published, D became famous and rich and was able to pay his creditors in full. Other novels which D were also very much talked about during his lifetime, but we do not hear much about them now. For example “Captain Singleton”(1720), “Moll Flanders”(1722).

Robinson Crusoe.

Books about voyages and new discoveries were very popular in the first quater of the 18’th century and many stories of this then had been written but while Defoe was busy with politics he didn’t think of also trying his hand at it. However one story in in Steel magasine attracted his attention.
It was about Scotish sailor, who lived quite alone 4 years and 4 month on a desert island. Defoe’s hero, R.C., however spend 26 years on a desert island. The novel was a prase tohuman labour and the triumph the men over the nature. Labour and fortitude help Robinson to endure hardships. They save him from dispair. The very process of hardwork gives his satisfaction. R’s most characteristic tract is his optimism. His guiding prencipal in life was: “never said die” and “in trouble to be troubles is to have your trouble double.”

7. Jonathan Swift (1667-1745)

JS was the greatest of English satiriste. His better satire at the contempro-rary social order in jeneral and an the policy of English government towards in particular. That’s why the Irish people considered Swift the champion in the struggle for the wealthy and freedom of their country.
JS was born in Dublin, but he came from English family. His father died at the age of 25, liaving his wife and daughter penuiless. His son was born seven month later after his death. The boy knew little of his mother chearch. He hardly ever saw her, during his childhood. J was supported by his uncle Godwin. At the age of 6 he was send to school, which he left at 14. When he entered a college in Dublin and got his bacheloris degree in 1686.

Gulliver’s Travels.

In 1726 Swift’s masterpiece “Gulliver’s Travels” appeared. This work made a great sensation in Ireland as well as in England, it equally strirred the interests of those in politics as well as the readers of novels.
In this work Swift intended to satirise the evils of the existing society in the form of fictions travels. It tells of the adventures of ship surgeon, as related by himself and divided into four parts of four voyages:
1. A voyage to Liliput.
2. A voyage to Brobdignag.
3. A voyage to Laputa.
4. A voyage to the country of Houyhnhnms.

The first voyage was to a strange country Lilliput. As the result of a shipwreck Gulliver finds himself in a country, inhabited by a race of people about six inches high. Everything else in this country is on a correspondent scale. Swift meant this small country with it’s shallow interest, corrupted laws and evil customs to symbolize the England of the 18’th century, the court with it’s atmosphere of hostility, hypocrizy and flattery where the author felt as lonely as his hero when among the liliputians.
2. Before long Gulliver undertakes another voyage. The ship anchors near the land of the giants to take in a supply of water. While on shore Gulliver is captured by the giants. They are good-natured creatures and treat Gulliver kindly, though they are amused by his small size and look upon him as a plaything.
Brobdingnag is an expression of Swift’s desire to find the ideal and escape from the disgusting world of the Liliputians. The author idealizes an agricultural country ruled by ideal monarch. Swift creates such a monarch in the king of Brobdingnag. He is clever, honest and kind to his people. He hates wars and wants to make his people happy.
3. The third voyage is to Laputa, a flying island Laputa. Swift’s imagination the bitterness of his satire reach their climax in the third part where he shows the academy of sciences in Laputa (the author touches upon all the existing sciences). It is easy enough to understand that in ridiculing the academy of Laputa. Swift ridicults the scientists of the 18’th century. The scientists are shut in their chambers isolated from all the world.
3. In the 4’th part Swift describes Gulliver’s adventures at the Heuyhnhnms - a ideal land where were is neither sickness, dishonesty, non any of the frivo-lities of human scociety. The human race ocupies a position of servility there and a noble race of horces rules the country by reason and justice.
“Gulliver’s travels was one of the greatest works of the period of the Enlightenment in world literature. Swift’s democratic ideas expressed in the book had a great influence on the English writers who came after Swift.

Robert Burns.

RB is the national poet of Scotland. Every year on his bithday scotsmen all over the world gather together for a traditional celebration in which his memory is glorified,his poems are recited and his song are sung. Burns poetry is loved and enjoied by all his countrymen. They love Burns for the generosity and kindness of his nature, for his patriotism and truthfulness. In his poems he sang the pride and dignity of the Scotish peasantry.
Burns sang the beauty and the glory of his native land. He gloryfield true love and friendship.
Burns was born in Alloway, near Ayr, on the 25 of January, 1759. His father was a hard-working man and he took great trouble to give his family all the education he could.
When Robert was 6, he was send to a school at Alloway Miln. Robert were given a good knowledge of English.
For some years Burns worked on the family farm. They lived very poor.
Burns wrote his first poem at the age of 14. And from