LITERATURE IN FRANCE.—In France, with the exception of Montaigne, it was Rabelais (1495-1553), a physician, philosopher, and humorist, who, notwithstanding his profanity and obscenity, was the most popular author of his day, and who well represents the tone of the Renaissance in that country. Ronsard (1524-1585), an imitator of the Latins and Greeks, was the favorite poet of Mary, Queen of Scots. In the first half of the seventeenth century the light literature of the French is ruled by fashion, and is void of serious feeling. In this time the literary societies of France take their rise. Madame de Rambouillet (1588-1665), a lady of Italian birth, set the example in establishing such reunions. She made her hotel a resort for writers and politicians. Being an invalid, she kept her bed, which was placed in an alcove of the salon where she received her visitors.
LITERATURE IN ENGLAND.—In England, in the age of Elizabeth, there is a galaxy of great authors in prose and verse. The events and debates of the Reformation, the voyages and geographical discoveries of the period, gave a powerful quickening to thought and imagination. The Renaissance culture, which made familiar the stories of Greek and Roman mythology, and the romantic tales and poetry of Italy and Spain, was potent in its effect. Some of the numerous theological writers, as Bishop Hall (1574-1656), Jeremy Taylor (1613-1667), and Richard Hooker (1553-1600), have gained a high place in general literature. Bacon, apart from his philosophical writings, towers above almost all his contemporaries in the field of letters. The chivalrous Sir Philip Sidney (1554-1586) wrote the pastoral romance of Arcadia. Burton (1576-1640), the author of The Anatomy of Melancholy, and Sir Thomas Brown, who published (1642) the Religio Medici (the religion of a physician) and, at a later date, the Urn Burial, are quaint and original authors. The merit of Shakspeare (1564-1616) is so exalted and unique that he almost eclipses even the greatest names. The English drama did not heed what are called the classic unities of time and place, which limit the action of a play to a brief duration and a contracted area. Other celebrated dramatic writers are Beaumont (1586-1615) and Fletcher (1579-1625), who wrote many plays jointly; Ben Jonson (1574-1637), and Massinger (1584-1640). The imaginative poetry which is not dramatic, in this period, begins with Spenser (1553-1599), whose Faërie Queene is a poem of chivalry; and it ends with Milton (1608-1674), the Puritan poet, imbued with the culture of the Renaissance, whose majesty and beauty place him almost on a level, at least in the esteem of readers of the English race, with Dante. Among the religious poets is George Herbert (1593-1635). One of the most famous of the lyric authors was the last of them, Cowley (1618-1667).
LITERATURE IN GERMANY.—In Germany, the great literary product of this period was Luther's translation of the Bible. The immediate effect of the controversy in religion was not favorable to the cause of letters. Attention was engrossed by theological inquiries and discussion. But in most of the countries, in the department of theology, preachers and writers of much ability and learning appeared on both sides of the controversy. Biblical study and historical researches were of necessity fostered by the exigencies of religious debate.
ASIATIC NATIONS.
I. CHINA.
THE JESUIT MISSIONS.—The Ming dynasty continued in power in China until 1644. About the middle of the sixteenth century the Portuguese came to the island of Macao, and commercial relations began between China and Europe. They brought opium into China, which had previously been imported overland from India. In 1583 Matteo Ricci, a Jesuit missionary, began his labors in China. He and his associates had great success. His knowledge of the book language was most remarkable. The concessions of the Jesuit fathers to the Chinese in matters of ritual excited much opposition in the Church. But for this dissension among the different Catholic orders, the Roman Catholic faith, which had gained very numerous converts, would have spread far more widely.
THE MANCHU CONQUEST.—There were notable literary achievements in this period, one of which was an encyclopedia in more than twenty-two thousand books. Four copies were made: only one, a damaged copy, now remains. The great political event of the time was the seizure of the throne by the Manchu Tartars (1644), who came in as auxiliaries against a rebellion, but have worn the crown until now. The shaved head and the long cue are customs introduced by the Tartar conquerors. Certain privileges, and certain habits to which the natives clung, as the mode of dress for women, and the compression of their feet, were retained by express stipulation.
II. JAPAN.
FEUDAL SYSTEM.—In 1603 Iyéyasu, an eminent general, founded the Tokugawa dynasty, which continued until the resignation of the last Shôgun (or Tycoon) in 1867. The rulers of that line held their court at Yedo, which grew into a flourishing city. The long period of anarchy and bloodshed that had preceded, was brought to an end. Iyéyasu laid the foundation of a feudal system which his grandson Iyémitsu (1623-1650) completed. Japan was divided into fiefs, each under a daimiô for its chief, who enjoyed a large degree of independence. The people consisted of four classes: (1) the military families, who had the right to wear two swords, the clansmen of the great nobles; (2) the farming class; (3) the artisans; (4) the tradesmen.
CHRISTIANITY IN JAPAN.—Christianity was preached in Japan by Xavier, a successful Jesuit missionary, in 1583. Other Jesuit preachers followed. A multitude of converts were made. But on account of immoralities of Europeans, and the dread of foreign political domination, the government engaged in a series of severe persecutions. In 1614 an edict proscribed Christianity. A portion of the peasants who were converts were so oppressed, that they revolted (1637). The result was an act of terrible cruelty,—the massacre of all Christians; so that none remained openly to profess the Christian faith.