英國文學與美國文學復習講義

1、英國文學與美國文學復習講義 英美文學重點English & American Literature Old & Medieval English LiteratureOld English: 450-1066 <Beowulf> the national epic of the Anglo-Saons Medieval English： 1066 - middle 14th century Geoffrey Chaucer - the father of English poetry (wisdom, humor, humanity)<The Canterbu

2、ry Tales> first time to use 'heroic couplet' The Renaissance Period: 14th mid 17th started in ItalyA series of historical events:1. rediscovery of ancient Roman & Greek culture2. new discoveries in geography & astrology(占星學)3. the religious reformation & economic expansionThe

3、Renaissance - rebirth or revivalHumanism - the essence of the Renaissance, the dignity of human being & the importance of the present life Best representatives: Thomas More, Christopher Marlowe, William ShakespeareThe Elizabethan drama: the real mainstream of English RenaissanceMost famous drama

4、tists: Christopher Marlowe, William Shakespeare, Ben JonsonEdmund Spenser - the poets' poet 5 quality: 1) a perfect melody 2)a rare sense of beauty 3)a splendid imagination4)a lofty(高尚的) moral purity and seriousness 5)a dedicated idealism<The Shepherdes Calender> lament(哀悼) over the loss o

5、f Rosalind<The Faerie Queene> 主角：Arthur - who possess 12 virtues Gloriana the Fairy QueenThe theme is not “Arms and the man,” but something more romantic “Fierce warres and faithfull loves”READING: excerpt from The Faerie Queene 仙后Content: Redcrosse Knight set out on his adventures. Christophe

6、r Marlowe “University Wits”, the pioneer of English dramaHyperbole(夸張)Marlowes achievement: 1) blank verse無韻詩歌It is Marlowe who brought vitality(活力) and grandeur(偉大) into the blank verse with his “mighty lines,” which carry strong emotions.2) his creation of the Renaissance hero for English drama.(n

7、ot strong in dramatic construction.) the pioneer of English drama3 tragedies: <Dr. Faustus> the human passion for knowledge, power and happiness <Tamburlaine> 帖木耳大帝 a play about an ambitious and pitiless overpowering king.<The Jew of Malta> 馬爾他的猶太人 non-drama <The Passionate Shep

8、herd to His Love> pastoral(田園的) life ，the most beautiful lyrics(抒情詩)READING: 1. excerpt from Dr. Faustus 浮士德博士的悲劇A play based on the German legend Content: Faustus is a scholar who has a strong desire to acquire knowledge. By conjuration(念咒文召喚) he call up Mephistophilis, the Devils servant. He ma

9、ke a bond(契約) to sell his soul to the Devil in return for 24 years of life in which Mephistophilis to give him everything he desires. Devils name is Lucifer.Dominant moral is human rather than religious2. The Passionate(熱情的) Shepherd to His Lovethis short poem is considered to be one of the most bea

10、utiful lyrics(抒情詩) in English literature.The shepherd(牧羊人) enjoy an ideal country life, cherishing(珍愛) a pastoral(田園的) and pure affection for his love. Strong emotion is conveyed through the beauty of nature. William Shakespeare playwright & poet (above all writers in the past and in the present

11、 time)1. <Henry >, <Richard > 2. <Richard >, <Henry >, <Henry >, <King John> Comedies: <A Midsummer Nights Dream>, <The Merchant of Venice>, <Twelfth Night> Tragedy: <Romeo and Juliet> romantic tragedy. To praise the faithfulness of love an

12、d the spirit of pursuing happiness.3. Four tragedies -<Hamlet>, <Othello>, <King Lear> & <Macbeth>4. tragicomedies：<The Tempest>Achievement: A. exploring the characterss inner mind. soliloquy(獨白) or monologue - fully reveal the inner conflict of the characters contr

13、asts bring vividness to the charactersB. adroit（精巧的） plot constructionC. Irony is a good means of dramatic presentation. Disguise is an important device to create dramatic irony.D. the language.READING： 1. Sonnet 18 (14 line)<Sonnet 18> eternal or immortal（不朽的） beauty, have a faith in the perm

14、anence of poetry.A nice summers day is usually transient(短暫的), but the beauty in poetry can last for ever.2.excerpt from The Merchant of Venice<The Merchant of Venice> to praise the friendship between Antonio and Bassanio, to idealize Portia a heroine of great beauty, wit and loyalty, to expos

15、e the insatiable（不知足的） greed and brutality of the Jew.Double plot:(1) Bassanio ask Antonio for a loan so that he might marriage with Portia(2) Antonio borrow money from Shylock, the Jewish usurer. Shylock make a strange bond that requires Antonio to surrender a pound of his flesh if he fail to repay

16、 him within a certain period of time. Portia disguised as a young lawyer instructed to judge the case: Shylock can take his pound of flesh, but there is no mention of blood in the bond. Otherwise, his lands and goods will be confiscated(充公) according to he law of Venice.3Excerpt from Hamlet<Hamle

17、t> hesitate between fact and fiction, language and action, too sophisticated（復雜的） to degrade his nature to the conventional role of a stage revenger content: Hamlet, the prince, appearing in a mood of world-weariness（厭世） occasioned by his fathers death and his mothers hasty remarriage with Claudi

18、us, his fathers brother. Hamlet is informed that Claudius has murdered his father and then taken over both his fathers throne and widow. Thus Hamlet is urged to seek revenge. Note: To be, or not to be - to live on in this world or to die; to suffer or to take action Francis Bacon philosopher, scient

19、ist, essayist, lay the foundation for modern scienceHis Essays is the first example of that genre in English literature.Bacons essays are famous for their brevity, compactness & powerfulness, well-arranging and enriching by Biblical allusions（典故）, metaphors（隱喻） and cadence（韻律）.<The Advancemen

20、t of Learning> mans understanding consists of three parts: history to mans memory, poetry to mans imagination and creation, and philosophy to mans reason.<Novum Organum> written in Latin on methodology方法論Bacon suggests the inductive reasoning歸納法 ( i.e. proceeding from the particular to the

21、general) in place of Aristotelian method, the deductive reasoning 演繹法( i.e. proceeding from the general to the particular)READING: Of Studies<Of Studies> uses and benefits of study studies serve for delight, for ornament, and for ability. Studies perfect nature, and are perfected by experience

22、. Different ways adopted by different people to pursue studies - studies and experience are complementary (互補) to each other. The correct attitude to reading books - to weigh and consider. How studies exert influence over human character - reading maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writi

23、ng an exact man. John Donne Metaphysical poetry（玄學詩）- break away from love poetry, the diction(用語) is simple, the imagery is from the actual, the form is frequently an argument with the poets beloved, with God, or with himself. A)conceits B)syllogism (三段論) Poetry早期:<The Songs and Sonnets> hold

24、s that the nature of love is the union of soul and body.晚期:<Holy Sonnets> <A Hymn to God the Father> religious poemProse: his sermons, which are both rich and imaginativeREADING: 1. The Sun Rising 2. Death, Be Not Proud ( a sonnet,14 lines) <The Sun Rising> the busy sun is always r

25、eady to interfere with other things and everywhere <Death, Be Not Proud> whatever you are, you can not escape from death. When you are living, you are always in the shadow of death. Death only lasts a moment, our life after death is eternal. The more pleasure the death gives people, not only t

26、he pleasure of the rest & the sleep, because 'whom the gods love die young'. Though death is usually considered powerful, it actually provides a rest for a man's body and a birth for his soul. John Milton Achievement: 1)the early poetic works 2) the middle prose(散文) 3)the last great

27、poemsElegy(挽歌) -<lycidas>利西達斯 (his early work)Epic(史詩) - <Paradise Lost> <Paradise Regained>Dramatic poem(詩劇) - <Samson Agonistes>力士參孫 the most perfect example of the verse drama after the Greek style in English.READING: excerpt from Paradise Lost<Paradise Lost> the onl

28、y generally acknowledged epic in English literature since Beowulf. The conflict is between human love and spiritual duty. The freedom of the will is the keystone of Miltons creed(綱領).Take from the Old Testament, the theme is the “Fall of Man”: Satan rebel against God and are driven from Heaven. He d

29、etermined to revenge by seduce(引誘) Adam and Eve to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge against Gods instructions. So, Adam and Eve are exiled by God from the paradise. The Neoclassical Period : 1660-1798 with the publication of Lyrical ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge- a revival of interest

30、in the old classical works, order, logic, restrained emotion(抑制情感) & accuracythe Age of Enlightenment/Reason the movement was a furtherance of the Renaissance of the 15th and 16th centries,a progressive intellectual movement, reason (rationality), equality & science (the 18th century)modern

31、English novel newly rising literary form現(xiàn)實主義小說誕生（the mid-century）Gothic novel(哥特式小說) - mystery, horror & castles (from middle part to the end of century) John BunyanREAING: The Vanity Fair名利場 an excerpt form The Pilgrims Progress (天路歷程)<The Pilgrim's Progress>, a religious allegory(寓言)

32、, its purpose is to urge people to abide by Christian doctrines and seek salvation(拯救) through constant struggles with their own weaknesses and all kinds of social evils. Its predominant metaphor life as a journey Alexander Popeone of the first to introduce rationalism to England, for him the suprem

33、e value was order.READING: excerpt from An Essay on Criticism(論批評)<An Essay on Criticism> a poem written in heroic couplets(對句), criticize the present poem lack of true taste & call on people to turn to the old Greek and Roman writers for guidance, true wit which is best set in a plain (si

34、mple & clear) style. Daniel Defoe - the first writer study of the lower-class people, his language is smooth, easy, colloquial and mostly vernacular(方言).READING: excerpt from Robinson crusoe<Robinson Crusoe> praise the human labor and the Puritan fortitude (清教徒堅韌). an adventure story, Robi

35、nson, narrates how he goes to sea, gets shipwrecked and marooned(放逐) on a lonely island, struggles to live for 24-years there and finally gets relieved and returns to England. Robinson grew from a naïve and artless youth into a shrewd and hardened man, tempered by numerous trials in his eventfu

36、l life. Jonathan Swift In his opinion, human nature is seriously and permanently flawed (缺點)Achievement: 1)a master satirist. <A Modest Proposal> <Gulliver's Travels> 2) one of the greatest of English prose, he defined a good style as “Proper words in proper places”READING: excerpt f

37、rom Gullivers Travels (格列佛游記)<Gulliver's Travels> fictional work, four parts Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Flying Island & Houyhnhnm (小人國) (大人國) (飛島) (有人類理性的馬) the book is one of the most effective and devastating criticisms and satires of all aspects in the then English and European life.Hen

38、ry Fielding - Father of English novel, he was the first to write a “Comic epic in prose” (散文體史詩), the first to give the modern novel its structure and style. He adopted “the third-person narration”.<The History of the Adventures of Joseph Andrews> (約瑟夫·安德魯)<The History of Jonathan Wild

39、 the Great> (偉大的喬納森·懷爾德) <The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling> a masterpiece on the subject of human nature<The History of Amelia> the unfortunate life of an idealized woman, a maudlin(傷感的) picture of the social life at the time.READING: excerpt from Tom JonesBrings the author

40、the name of the “Prose Homer”In a way, Tom and Sophia, stands for a wayfaring(旅行的) Everyman, who is expelled from the paradise and has to go through hard experience to gain a knowledge of himself and finally to approach perfectness. Samuel Johnson the author of the first English dictionary by an Eng

41、lishman, the last neoclassicist enlightener. <A Dictionary of the English Language> 英語大詞典READING: To the Right Honorable the Earl of Chesterfield<To the Right Honorable the Earl of Chesterfield> the letter is written in a refined and very polite language, with a bitter undertone of defia

42、nce and anger. The seemingly peaceful retrospection, reasoning and questioning express, to the best satiric effect, the authors strong indignation at the lords fame-fishing. Richard Brinsley Sheridan - the only important English dramatist of the 18th century<The Rivals> and <The School for

43、Scandal> are regarded as important links between the masterpieces of Shakespeare and those of Bernard Shaw. READING: excerpt from The School for ScandalA story about two brothers: Joseph Surface and Charles Surface. Charles in love with Maria, Sir Peter Teazle is loved by Lady Sneerwell. The lady

44、 instigates(教唆) Joseph to pursue Maria For her Money. Joseph secretly seduce(引誘) Lady Teazle, Sir Peters young wife. The play ends with great disgrace for Joseph and Charles wins his loves and the inheritance of his rich uncle.It is a sharp satire on the moral degeneracy(墮落) of the aristocratic-bour

45、geois society in the 18th England. Thomas Graythe leader of the sentimental(悲情的) poetry of the day ,especially “The Graveyard School”READING:Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard<Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard> reflects on death, the sorrows of life, and the mysteries of human life with

46、 a touch of his personal melancholy. He sympathized for the poor and the unknown, but mocks the great ones who despise the poor and bring havoc(破壞) on them.The Romantic Period Romantic - emotion over reason, spontaneous (自發(fā))emotion, a change from the outer world of social civilization to the inner w

47、orld of the human spirit, poetry should be free from all rules, imagination, nature, commonplace The romantic emphasized the special qualities of each individuals mind. The romantic period began with： in 1798 the publication of Wordsworth and Coleridge's <Lyrical Ballads> end in 1832 with

48、Sir Walter Scotts death two major novelists of the Romantic period are Jane Austen (realistic) and Walter Scott (romantic).William Blake - poet & engraver(雕刻家) <Songs of Innocence>: a happy and innocent world from children's eye <Songs of Experience> : a world of misery, poverty,

49、 disease, war and repression with a melancholy (憂郁的)tone from men eyes. Childhood, paradoxes, a pairing of opposites <Marriage of Heaven and Hell> marks his entry into maturity.<The book of Urizen>(先知書) prophetic(預言的) book in his later periodHe presents his view in visual images. Symboli

50、sm is also a distinctive feature of his poetry.READING: 1. The Chimney Sweeper (from Songs of Innocence)2. The Chimney Sweeper (from Songs of Experience) 3. The Tyger(from Songs of Experience)William Wordsworth- the leading figure of the English romantic poetry, simple, spontaneous(自發(fā)的), “worshipper

51、 of nature”- He defines the poet as a 'man speaking to men', and poetry as 'the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings, which originates in 'emotion recollected in tranquillity'. “Lake Poets”: William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge & Robert Southey<The Prelude>(

52、序曲) his masterpiece<To a Skylark> <Tintern Abbey>READING: 1. I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud <I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud> the poet is very cheerful with recalling the beautiful sights. In the poem on the beauty of nature, the reader is presented a vivid picture of lively and lovely

53、daffodils (水仙) and poet's philosophical ideas and mystical thoughts. 2. Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802<Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802> the sonnet describes a vivid picture of a beautiful morning in London, silent, bright, glittering（閃爍的）, smokeless

54、 & mildly（柔和的）. It is so touching a sight that the poet expressed his religion piety （虔誠）for nature. 3. She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways4. The Solitary Reaper <The Solitary Reaper> thanks to poet's rich imagination, the mass of associations, this commonplace happening becomes a strik

55、ing event, the poet succeeds in making the reader's share his emotion. The poem also shows the poet's passionate love of nature. Samuel Taylor Coleridge - supernatural, remoteWilliam Wordsworth and Coleridge: <Lyrical Ballads>Poet can be divided into two groups - the demonic 惡魔的(supern

56、atural) & the conversational - The demonic group includes 3 masterpieces: <The Rime of the Ancient Mariner>, <Chrisabel>, <Kubla Khan> 老水手之行克麗斯塔貝爾忽必烈汗Feature: mysticism, demonism with strong imagination, a strange territory- Conversational poem: <Frost at Midnight> <Th

57、e Nightingale>READING: Kubla Khan George Gordon Byron 'Byronic hero': is a proud, mysterious rebel figure of noble origin, against tyrannical（暴君的） rules or moral principles. Such a hero appears first in <Childe Harold's Pilgrimage> 懷爾德·哈羅德游記<Don Juan> （唐璜）(the masterp

58、iece of Byron, a long satirical poem, comic epic) by make use of Juans adventures, to present a panoramic（全面） view of different types of society.READING: 1.Song for the Luddites<Song for the Luddites> 'will die fighting, or live free' Byron show his support of the Luddites who destroye

59、d the machines in their protest against unemployment. The poet's great sympathy of the workers in their struggle against the capitalists is clearly shown. 2. The Isles of Greece (from Don Juan) <The Isles of Greece> song by a Greek singer at the wedding of Don Juan and Haidee. 'Fill high the bowl with Samian wine'? By contrasting the freedom of ancient Greece and the present enslavement, the poet appealed to people to struggle for liberty.Percy Bysshe She