Learning English Online: Famous Authors in History, Their Books & Quotes

There more than 700 million people across the world speak English, either as their first or second language, as per the statistics. English is an extraordinary language influenced by different cultures and languages, such as Latin, French, Dutch, and Afrikaans. But who made this language prominent all over the world?

Also, have you noticed how every non-English speaking nation has the greatest number of online spoken English classes? Most online English speaking courses in India simply chase you with rote learning and this makes learning English an unnecessarily confusing or loathsome experience.

However, learning any language can be as boring or as interesting an experience as you plan on making it. Other than your learning mindset, the concept knowledge, a lot of onus lies with your online English tutors.

At Speechify, our online English teachers use several engaging concepts to build English vocabulary through poems, movies, books etc.

Renowned English Authors and their most famous quotes:

When it comes to English literature, there are numerous authors who can be listed. Books are certainly our best friends and they come as life savers in every situation.

Let’s have a look at some famous authors that had an important role in spreading the uniqueness of English literature.

William Shakespeare- Aptly known as The Bard of Avon- was an English poet, playwright and an actor. His contributions to English literature are indispensable. He introduced innumerable new words and phrases to the English language. The three types of plays Shakespeare wrote are tragedies, comedies, and histories. Shakespeare wrote comedies and histories in his early times. The comedies include The Taming of the Shrew,Twelfth Night, As you Like it, All's Well That Ends Well, Much Ado About Nothing, The Merchant of Venice, A Midsummer Night's Dream and many more. The Histories include King John, Henry IV, Richard I, II, III and many more. He wrote mainly tragedies, including Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth, and Othello. His plays have been translated in more than 50 languages and performed across the globe in theatres all around the world.

Famous Quotes: “All that glisters is not gold.”

“What’s done can’t be undone.”

“Words are easy, like the wind; faithful friends are hard to find.”

JK Rowling- We all know the character, “Harry Potter”; Rowling filled excitement in all generations with a magical new world about the young wizard and his friends. The world Rowling created has seized the imaginations of children and adults alike, in particular the school at the centre of the story, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I'm sure you all are fond of this magical school. Aren't you? She is a great writer in the fantasy genre of children's literature, to English children's literature through "Harry Potter”. She has also written ‘The Cuckoo’s Calling’ or ‘The Silkworm’, under the pseudonym of Robert Galbraith.

Famous Quotes: “It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends.”

“It does not dwell on dreams and forget to live.”

“Books are like mirrors: if a fool looks in, you cannot expect a genius to look out.”

Charles Dickens- Charles John Huffam Dickens was a writer and social critic who has given the world the best-known fictional characters. He was really popular and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. He is the author of 15 novels. Nevertheless, he wrote short stories, articles, and essays. The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, Nicholas Nickleby, Dombey and Son, David Copperfield, Hard Times, A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, and Christmas Carol are some of his famous writings.

Famous Quotes: “A day wasted on others is not wasted on one’s self.”

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”

“Have a heart that never hardens, and a temper that never tires, and a touch that never hurts.”

Jane Austen- Jane Austen was an English novelist whose books are known for their wit, and social observation into the lives of early 19th century women. Her work continues to be revived with film adaptations, prequels, sequels and retellings in new genres. Austen's six novels are a work of brilliance. Some of them are Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion, Emma and Northanger Abbey.

Famous Quotes- “Time will explain.”

“There is no charm equal to tenderness of heart.”

“To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love.”

Oscar Wilde- Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish playwright, poet, and author of various short stories, and one novel. Known for his biting wit, and numerous aphorisms, he became one of the most successful playwrights of the late Victorian era in London. Many of his plays are still performed, especially The Importance of Being Earnest.

Famous Quotes- "True friends stab you in the front."

"Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination."

"Art is the most intense mode of individualism that the world has known."

"To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all."

Virginia Woolf- Virginia Woolf was an English novelist, essayist, and a biographer. Being a feminist, She later fought for the rights of the women in a patriarchal society, rebuking her own father for automatically sending her brothers to schools and university, while she was never offered a formal education. Her famous works include novels like Mrs. Dalloway (1925), Jacob's Room (1922), To the Lighthouse (1927), and The Waves (1931).

Famous Quotes- "Books are the mirrors of the soul."

"If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people."

"No need to hurry. No need to sparkle. No need to be anybody but oneself."

“Humor is the first of the gifts to perish in a foreign tongue.”

Geoffrey Chaucer- Geoffrey Chaucer occupies a unique position in the Middle Ages. He was one of the most learned men of his time. He made numerous translations of prose and verse, including Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy, saints' legends, sermons, French poetry by Machaut and Deschamps, and Latin and Italian poetry by Ovid, Virgil, Boccaccio, and Petrarch. Some of his works include The House of Fame, The Miller's Tale, The Canterbury Tales and many more.

Famous Quotes- "Patience is a conquering virtue".

"People can die of mere imagination"

"The greatest scholars are not usually the wisest people"

The famous authors have gained immense popularity for their ability to express themselves in such a way evokes strong emotions in the reader be it sadness, and happiness, or anything that ignites your mind and provokes your thought process, so on and so forth. These authors provide inspiration to aspiring authors to write future works of art. Keep reading!

Contributed By- Anjana Dutta