劉炳善英國文學(xué)簡史筆記

1、英 國 文 學(xué) 簡 史 完 全 版A Concise History of British LiteratureChapter 1 English Literature of Anglo-Saxon PeriodI. Introduction1. The historical background(1) Before the Germanic invasion(2) During the Germanic invasiona. immigration;b. Christianity;c. heptarchy.d. social classes structure: hide-hundred;

2、eoldermen(lord )-thane - middle class (freemen) - lower class (slave or bondmen: theow);e. social organization: clan or tribes.f. military Organization;g. Church function: spirit, civil service, education;h. economy: coins, trade, slavery;i. feasts and festival: Halloween, Easter; j. legal system.(1

3、) The mixture of pagan and Christian spirit.(2) Literature: a. Poetry: two types; b. prose: two figures.II. Beowulf.1. A general introduction.2. The content.3. The literary features.(1) the use of alliteration(2) the use of metaphors and understatements(3) the mixture of pagan and Christian elements

4、III. The Old English Prose1 . What is prose?2 .figures(1) The Venerable Bede(2) Alfred the GreatChapter 2 English Literature of the Late Medieval AgesI.IntroductionI. The Historical Background.(1) The year 1066: Norman Conquest.(2) The social situations soon after the conquest.A. Norman nobles and s

5、erfs;B. restoration of the church.(3) The 11th century.A. the crusade and knights.B. dominance of French and Latin;(4) The 12th century.A. the centralized government;B. kings and the church (Henry II and Thomas );(5) The 13th century.A. The legend of Robin Hood;B. Magna Carta (1215);C. the beginning

6、 of the ParliamentD. English and Latin: official languages(the end )(6) The 14th century.a. the House of Lords and the House of Commonsconflict betweenthe Parliament and Kings;b. the rise of towns.c. the change of Church.d. the role of women.e. the Hundred Years' War starting.f. the development

7、of the trade: London.g. the Black Death.h. the Peasants' Revolt 1381.i. The translation of Bible by Wycliffe. The 15th century.a. The Peasants Revolt (1453)b. The War of Roses between Lancaster and Yorks.c. the printing-press William Caxton.d. the starting of Tudor Monarchy(1485)j. The Overview

8、of Literature.(1) the stories from the Celtic lands of Wales and Brittany great myths of the Middle Ages.(2) Geoffrye of Monmouth-HistoriaRegum Britanniae -KingAuthur.(3) Wace Le Roman de Brut.(4) The romance.(5) the second half of the 14th century: Langland, Gawin poet, Chaucer.II. Sir Gawin and Gr

9、een Knight.1. A general introduction.2. The plot.III. W川iam Langland.1. Life2. Piers the PlowmanIV. Chaucer1. Life2. Literary Career: three periods(1) French period Italian period(3) master period3. The Canterbury TalesA. The Framework;B. The General Prologue;C. The Tale Proper.4. His Contribution.(

10、1) He introduced from France the rhymed stanza of various types.(2) He is the first great poet who wrote in the current English language.(3) The spoken English of the time consisted of several dialects, and Chaucer did much in making the dialect of London the standard for the modern English speech.V

11、. Popular Ballads.VI. Thomas Malory and English ProseVII. The beginning of English Drama.1. Miracle Plays.Miracle play or mystery play is a form of medieval drama that came from dramatization of the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church.It developed from the 10th to the 16th century, reaching its hei

12、ght in the 15th century. The simple lyric character of the early texts was enlarged by the addition of dialogue and dramatic action.Eventually the performance was moved to the churchyard and the marketplace.2. Morality Plays.A morality play is a play enforcing a moral truth or lesson by means of the

13、 speech and action of characters which are personified abstractions figures representing vices and virtues, qualities of the human mind, or abstract conceptions in general.3. Interlude.The interlude, which grew out of the morality, was intended, as its name implies, to be used more as filler than as

14、 the main part of an entertainment. As its best it was short, witty, simple in plot, suited for the diversion of guests at a banquet, or for the relaxation of the audience between the divisions of a serious play. It was essentially an indoors performance, and generally of an aristocratic nature.Chap

15、ter 3 English Literature in the Renaissance I.A HistoricalBackgroundII. The Overview of the Literature(1485-1660)Printingpress readership growth of middleclass trade-education for laypeople-centralizationofpower-intellectual life-exploration-new impetus and direction of literature.Humanism-study of

16、the literature of classical antiquity and reformed education.Literary style-modeled on the ancients.The effect of humanism-the dissemination of the cultivated, clear, and sensible attitude of its classically educated adherents.1. poetryThe first tendency by Sidney and Spenser: ornate, florid, highly

17、 figured style.The second tendency by Donne: metaphysical style complexity and ingenuity.The third tendency by Johnson: reaction Classically pure andrestrained style.The fourth tendency by Milton: central Christian and Biblical tradition.2. Dramaa. the native tradition and classical examples.b. the

18、drama stands highest in popular estimation: Marlowe Shakespeare - Jonson.3. Prosea. translation of Bible;b. More;c. Bacon.II. English poetry.1. Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard (courtly makers )(1) Wyatt: introducing sonnets.(2) Howard: introducing sonnets and writing the first blank verse.2. Sir P

19、hilip Sidney poet, critic, prose writer(1) Life:a. English gentleman;b. brilliant and fascinating personality;c. courtier. worksd. Arcadia: pastoral romance;e. Astrophel and Stella (108) : sonnet sequence to PenelopeDvereuxplatonic devotion.Petrarchan conceits and original feelings-moving to creativ

20、eness building of a narrative story; theme-love originality-act of writing.f. Defense of Poesy: an apology for imaginative literature beginning of literary criticism.3. Edmund Spenser(1) life: Cambridge - Sidney's friend - "Areopagus - Ireland-Westminster Abbey. worksa. The Shepherds Calend

21、ar: the budding of English poetry in Renaissance.b. Amoretti and Epithalamion: sonnet sequencec. Faerie Queen:l The general endA romantic and allegorical epic steps tovirtue.l 12 books and 12 virtues:Holiness, temperance, justice andcourtesy.l Two-level function: part of the story and part of allego

22、ry (symbolic meaning )l Many allusions to classical writers.L Themes: puritanism, nationalism, humanism and RenaissanceNeoclassicism a Christian humanist.(3) Spenserian Stanza.III. English Prose1. Thomas More(1) Life: aRenaissance man , scholar, statesman, theorist, prose writer, diplomat, patron of

23、 artsa. learned Greek at Canterbury College, Oxford;b. studies law at Lincoln Inn;c. Lord Chancellor;d. beheaded.(2) Utopia: the first English science fiction.Written in Latin, two parts, the secondplace of nowhere.A philosophical mariner (Raphael Hythloday ) tells his voyagesin which he discovers a

24、 land-Utopia.a. The part one is organized as dialogue with mariner depictinghis philosophy.b. The part two is a description of the island kingdom where gold and silver are worn by criminal, religious freedom is total and no one owns anything.c. the nature of the book: attacking the chief political a

25、nd social evils of his time.d. the book and the Republic: an attempt to describe the Republic in a new way, but it possesses an modern character and the resemblance is in externals.e. it played a key role in the Humanist awakening of the 16th century which moved away from the Medieval otherworldline

26、ss towards Renaissance secularism.f. the Utopia(3) the significance.a. it was the first champion of national ideas and national languages; it created a national prose, equally adapted to handling scientific and artistic material.b. a elegant Latin scholar and the father of English prose: he composed

27、 works in English, translated from Latin into English biography, wrote History of Richard III.2. Francis Bacon: writer, philosopher and statesman(1) life: Cambridge - humanism in Paris- knighted - LordChancellor - bribery - focusing on philosophy and literature.(2 ) philosophical ideas: advancement

28、of science people: servants and interpreters of nature method: a child before nature facts and observations: experimental.(3) “Essays" ： 57.a. he was a master of numerous and varied styles.b. his method is to weigh and balance maters, indicating the ideal course of action and the practical one,

29、 pointing out the advantages and disadvantages of each, but leaving the readerto make thefinal decisions. (arguments)IV. English Drama1. A general survey.(1) Everyman marks the beginning of modern drama. two influences.a. the classics: classical in form and English in content;b. native or popular dr

30、ama.(3) the University Wits.2. Christopher Marlowe: greatest playwright before Shakespeare and most gifted of the Wits.(1) Life: first interested in classical poetrythen in drama. Major worksa. Tamburlaine;b. The Jew of Malta;c. The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus.(3) The significance of his play

31、s.V. William Shakespeare1. Life(1) 1564, Stratford-on-Avon;(2) Grammar School;(3) Queen visit to Castle;(4) marriage to Anne Hathaway;(5) London, the Globe Theatre: small part and proprietor;(6) the 1st Folio, Quarto; Retired, son Hamlet; H. 1616.2. Dramatic career3. Major plays-men-centered.(1) Rom

32、eo and Juliettragic love and fate(2) The Merchant of Venice.Good over evil.Anti-Semitism.(3) Henry IV.National unity.Falstaff.(4) Julius CaesarRepublicanism vs. dictatorship.(5) HamletRevengeGood/evil.(6) OthelloDiabolic characterjealousygap between appearance and reality. King LearFilial ingratitud

33、e(8) MacbethAmbition vs. fate.(9) Antony and Cleopatra.Passion vs. reason(10) The TempestReconciliation; reality and illusion.3. Non-dramatic poetry(1) Venus and Adonis; The Rape of Lucrece.(2) Sonnets:a. theme: fair, true, kind.b. two major parts: a handsome young man of noble birth; a ladyin dark

34、complexion.c. the form: three quatrains and a couplet.d. the rhyme scheme: abab, cdcd, efef, gg.VI. Ben Jonson1. life: poet, dramatist, a Latin and Greek scholar, the a literary king (Sons of Ben )2.contribution:(1) the idea ofa humor".(2) an advocate of classical drama and a forerunner of clas

35、sicism in English literature.3. Major plays(1) Everyone in His Humor “ humoL ; three unities.(2) Volpone the FoxChapter 4 English Literature of the 17th Century I.A HistoricalBackgroundII. The Overview of the Literature(1640-1688)1. The revolution period(1) The metaphysical poets;(2) The Cavalier po

36、ets.(3) Milton: the literary and philosophical heritage of the Renaissance merged with Protestant political and moral conviction2. The restoration period.(1 ) The restoration of Charles II ushered in a literature characterized by reason, moderation, good taste, deft management,and simplicity.(school

37、 of Ben Jonson )(2 ) The ideals of impartial investigationand scientificexperimentation promoted by the newly founded Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge(1662) were influentialin the development of clear and simple prose as an instrument of rational communication.(3) The great ph

38、ilosophical and political treatises of the time emphasize rationalism.(4) The restoration drama. The Age of Dryden.III. John Milton1. Life: educated at Cambridgevisiting the continent involvedinto the revolution persecuted writing epics.2. Literary career.(1) The 1st period was up to 1641, during wh

39、ich time he is to beseen chiefly as a son of the humanists and Elizabethans, althoughhis Puritanism is not absent. L'Allegre and IL Pens eroso(1632)are his early masterpieces, in which we find Milton a true offspring of the Renaissance, a scholar of exquisite taste and rare culture.Next came Com

40、us, a masque. The greatest of early creations wasLycidas, a pastoral elegy on the death of a college mate, EdwardKing.(2) The second period is from 1641 to 1654, when the Puritan was in such complete ascendancy that he wrote almost no poetry. In 1641, he began a long period of pamphleteering for the

41、 puritan cause. For some 15 years, the Puritan in him alone ruled his writing. He sacrificed his poetic ambition to the call of the liberty for which Puritans were fighting.(3) The third period is from 1655 to 1671, whenhumanist and Puritan have been fused into an exalted entity. This period is the

42、greatest in his literary life, epics and somefamous sonnets. The three long poemsare the fruit of the long contest within Milton of Renaissance tradition and his Puritan faith. They form the greatest accomplishments of any English poet except Shakespeare. In Milton alone, it would seem, Puritanism c

43、ould not extinguish the lover of beauty. In these works we find humanism and Puritanism merged in magnificence.3. Major Works(1) Paradise Losta. the plot.b. characters.c. theme: justify the ways of God to man.(2) Paradise Regained.(3) Samson Agonistes.4. Features of Milton's works.(1) Milton is

44、one of the very few truly great English writers who is also a prominent figure in politics, and who is both a great poet and an important prose writer. The two most essential things to be remembered about him are his Puritanism and his republicanism.(2) Milton wrote manydifferent types of poetry. He

45、 is especially a great master of blank verse. He learned muchfrom Shakespeare and first used blank verse in non-dramatic works.(3) Milton is a great stylist. He is famous for his grand stylenoted for its dignity and polish, which is the result of his life-long classical and biblical study.(4) Milton

46、 has always been admired for his sublimity of thought and majesty of expression.IV.John Bunyan1. Life:(1) puritan age;(2) poor family;(3) parliamentary army;(4) Baptist society, preacher; prison, writing the book.2. The Pilgrim Progress(1) The allegory in dream form.(2) the plot.(3) the theme.V. Met

47、aphysical Poets and Cavalier Poets.1. Metaphysical PoetsThe term a metaphysical poetry is commonly used to designate the works of the 17th century writers who wrote under the influence of John Donne. Pressured by the harsh, uncomfortable and curious age, the metaphysical poets sought to shatter myth

48、s and replace them with newphilosophies, newsciences, newwords and new poetry. They tried to break away from the conventional fashion of Elizabethan love poetry, and favoured in poetry for a more colloquial language and tone, a tightness of expression and the single-minded working out of a theme or

49、argument.2. Cavalier PoetsThe other group prevailing in this period was that of Cavalier poets. They were often courtiers who stood on the side of the king, and called themselves “sons of Ben Jonson. The Cavalier poets wrote light poetry, polished and elegant, amorous and gay, but often superficial.

50、 Most of their verses were short songs, pretty madrigals, love fancies characterized by lightness of heart and of morals.Cavalier poems have the limpidity of the Elizabethan lyric without its imaginative flights. They are lighter and neater but less fresh than the Elizabethan's.VI. John Dryden.1

51、. Life:(1) the representative of classicism in the Restoration.(2) poet, dramatist, critic, prose writer, satirist.(3) changeable in attitude.(4) Literary careerfour decades. Poet Laureate2. His influences.(1) He established the heroic couplet as the fashion for satiric, didactic, and descriptive po

52、etry.(2) He developed a direct and concise prose style.(3) He developed the art of literary criticism in his essays andin the numerous prefaces to his poems.Chapter 5 English Literature of the 18th CenturyI. Introduction1. The Historical Background.2. The literary overview.(1) The Enlightenment.(2)

53、The rise of English novels.Whenthe literary historian seeks to assign to each age its favourite form of literature, he finds no difficulty in dealing with our own time. As the Middle Ages delighted in long romantic narrative poems, the Elizabethans in drama, the Englishman of the reigns of Anne and

54、the early Georges in didactic and satirical verse, so the public of our day is enamored of the novel. Almost all types of literary production continue to appear, but whether we judge from the lists of publishers, the statistics of public libraries, or general conversation, we find abundant evidence

55、of the enormous preponderance of this kind of literary entertainment in popular favor.(3) Neo-classicism: a revival in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries of classical standards of order, balance, and harmony in literature. John Dryden and Alexander Pope were major exponents of the neo-classica

56、l school.(4) Satiric literature. SentimentalismII. Neo-classicism.(a general description )1. Alexander Pope(1) Life:a. Catholic family;b. ill health;c. taught himself by reading and translating;d. friend of Addison, Steele and Swift.(2) three groups of poems:e. An Essay on Criticism(manifesto of neo

57、-classicismf. The Rape of Lock;g. Translation of two epics.(3) His contribution:h. the heroic couplet finish, elegance, wit, pointedness;i. satire.(4) weakness: lack of imagination.2. Addison and Steele(1) Richard Steele: poet, playwright, essayist, publisher ofnewspaper.(2) Joseph Addison: studies at Oxford, secretary of state, created a literary periodical aSpectator (with Steele, 1711)(3) Spectator Club.(4) The significance of their essays.a. Their writings in “The Tatler