chapter 7胡蔭桐 美國文學選讀

Chapter7

AmericanLiteraturebetweentheTwoWorldWarsContentsⅠ.ModernismⅡ.RobertLeeFrost&“StoppingbyWoodsonaSnowyEvening”Ⅲ.WilliamFaulkner&“DrySeptember”Ⅰ.Modernism1.Modernism1).Modernismisaninternationalmovementinliteratureandarts,especiallyinliterarycriticism,whichbeganinthelate19thcenturyandflourisheduntil1950s.2).Modernismtakestheirrationalphilosophyandthetheoryofpsycho-analysisasitstheoreticalcase.3).Themodernistwritersconcentratemoreontheprivateandsubjunctivethanonthepublicandobjective,mainlyconcernedwiththeinnerofanindividual.2.LostGeneration

1).TheLostGenerationisatermfirstusedbyGertrudeSteintodescribethepost-WorldWarOnegenerationofAmericanwriters:menandwomenhauntedbyasenseofbetrayalandemptinessbroughtaboutbythedestructivenessofthewar.2).Fullofyouthfulidealism,theseindividualssoughtthemeaningoflife,drankexcessively,hadloveaffairsandcreatedsomeofthefinestAmericanliteraturetodate.3).ThebestknownrepresentativesofLostGenerationareF.ScottFitzgeraldandErnestHemingway.3.Imagism

1).ImagismcameintobeinginU.S.around1910asareactiontothetraditionalEnglishpoetrytoexpressthesenseoffragmentationanddislocation.2).Theimagistsholdthatthemosteffectivemeanstoexpressthesemomentaryimpressionsisthroughtheuseofonedominantimage.3).ThethreeImagistprinciples:theeconomyofexpression,theuseofadominantimage,arhythmlikethatofamusicalphrase.

Ⅱ.RobertLeeFrost&“StoppingbyWoodsonaSnowyEvening”

1.ABriefLiteraryBiographyofRobertLeeFrost(1874-1963)1).RobertFrostwasborninSanFranciscoonMarch26,1874.HemovedtoNewEnglandattheageofelevenandbecameinterestedinreadingandwritingpoetryduringhishighschoolyearsinLawrence,Massachusetts.HewasenrolledatDartmouthCollegein1892,andlateratHarvard,thoughheneverearnedaformaldegree.2).Frostdriftedthroughastringofoccupationsafterleavingschool,workingasateacher,cobbler,andeditor.Hisfirstprofessionalpoem,“MyButterfly,”waspublishedonNovember8,1894.3).In1895,FrostmarriedElinorMiriamWhite,whobecameamajorinspirationinhispoetryuntilherdeathin1938.ThecouplemovedtoEnglandin1912,aftertheirNewHampshirefarmfailed.WhileinEngland,FrostalsoestablishedafriendshipwiththepoetEzraPound,whohelpedtopromoteandpublishhiswork.4).BythetimeFrostreturnedtotheUnitedStatesin1915,hehadpublishedtwofull-lengthcollections,ABoy'sWill(《少年的意志》)andNorthofBoston(《波士頓之北》),andhisreputationwasestablished.Bythe1920s,hewasthemostcelebratedpoetinAmerica,andwitheachnewbook—includingNewHampshire(《新罕布什爾》1923),AFurtherRange(《又一片牧場》1936)–hisfameandhonors(includingfourPulitzerPrizes)increased..5).AboutFrost,PresidentJohnF.Kennedysaid,"HehasbequeathedhisnationabodyofimperishableversefromwhichAmericanswillforevergainjoyandunderstanding.“6).RobertFrostlivedandtaughtformanyyearsinMassachusettsandVermont,anddiedinBostononJanuary29,1963.2.CommentsonRobertFrost1).RobertFrostisabelovedAmericanpoet,andmanypeopleassociatehimwithnatureandwiththeNewEnglandlandscape,because,well,helikedtowriteaboutnatureandtheNewEnglandlandscape.2).Frostisknownforcreatingsimplepoemsthatcanbeinterpretedonmanydifferentlevels.Healsolovedtoinjecteveryday,colloquialspeechintohispoems.Hewasoftentalkingabouthowthesoundsofwordscarrymoremeaningthanthewordsthemselves.3).ThemesLove,friendship,family,socialrelationshipFindingsufficientfaithintheself,nature,andthecosmostofuelpersistenceamidsufferingandchaosIsolationanddependence3.“StoppingbyWoodsonaSnowy

Evening”1).BackgroundInformationRobertFrostwrote"StoppingbyWoodsonaSnowyEvening"in1922,twoyearsbeforewinningthefirstofhisfourPulitzerPrizes.

Thepoemtellsthestoryofamantravelingthroughsomesnowywoodsonthedarkesteveningoftheyear,andhe'sprettymuchinlovewithwhatheseesaroundhim.He'sonhiswaybacktotown,buthecan'tquitetearhimselfawayfromthelovelyanddarkwoods.2).ThemeIsolationChoicesManandtheNaturalWorldNatureisabeautifulsireninthispoem,compellingthespeakertohangoutinspiteofthedangerousconsequences.3).Rhyme,FormandMeterRhymescheme:AABABBCBCCDCDDDDThefirsttwolinesandthelastlineofeachstanzarhymetogether,whereasthe

thirdlineintroducesanewrhymealtogether.Whenthenextstanzabegins,threeofthefourlinesrhymewiththethirdlineofthepreviousstanza.RubaiyatStanza

WhosewoodstheseareIthinkIknow.A

Hishouseisinthevillagethough;A

HewillnotseemestoppinghereB

Towatchhiswoodsfillupwithsnow.A

MylittlehorsemustthinkitqueerB

TostopwithoutafarmhousenearB

BetweenthewoodsandfrozenlakeC

Thedarkesteveningoftheyear.B

HegiveshisharnessbellsashakeC

Toaskifthereissomemistake.C

Theonlyothersound'sthesweepD

Ofeasywindanddownyflake.C

Thewoodsarelovely,darkanddeep,

D

ButIhavepromisestokeep,D

AndmilestogobeforeIsleep,D

AndmilestogobeforeIsleep.DMeter:IambicTetrameter雪夜林畔小駐

－－余光中譯

想來我認識這座森林，林主的莊宅就在鄰村,卻不會見我在此駐馬，看他林中積雪的美景。我的小馬一定頗驚訝：四望不見有什么農(nóng)家，偏是一年最暗的黃昏，寒林和冰湖之間停下。它搖一搖身上的串鈴，問我這地方該不該停。此外只有輕風拂雪片，再也聽不見其他聲音。

森林又暗又深真可羨，但我還要守一些諾言，還要趕多少路才安眠，還要趕多少路才安眠。Ⅲ.WilliamFaulkner&“DrySeptember”1.ABriefLiteraryBiographyofWilliamFaulkner(1897-1962)1).WilliamFaulknerwasbornSeptember25,1897,inNewAlbany,Mississippi.OnSeptember22,1902,theFalknerfamilymovedtoOxford,Mississippi.2).Faulknerstartedtoshowhistechniquethroughdrawingandwritingpoetryatanearlyage.Duringthistime,Faulknermethischildhoodsweetheart,EstelleOldham,andhislifetimefriendPhilStone.3).In1918,FaulknerwasdeniedacceptanceintotheU.S.AirForcesoheturnedtotheCanadianRoyalAirForce.InDecember,FaulknerwasdischargedfromtheRAF(RoyalAirForce)andreturnedtoOxford.4).Faulkner'sreturnbroughthimbacktoschoolwhereheenteredtheUniversityofMississippiasaspecialstudentinSeptember,1919.Onlyafterthreesemestershedroppedoutofschool,butheacceptedajobasapostmasterattheUniversityofMississippipostoffice.5).In1924,FaulknerpublishedhisfirstcollectionofpoemsTheMarblefaun(《大理石牧神》).February25,1926,SoldiersPay(《士兵的報酬》)waspublished.ThiswasthestartwhenmanyofFaulkner'sworksbegantobepublished.Betweentheyearsof1927and1934,hehadabookpublishedeveryyear.6).InNovemberof1950,theannouncementthatFaulknerhadreceivedtheNobelPrizewasmade.HealsoreceivedtheNationalBookAwardandthePulitzerPrize.FaulknerdiedonJuly6,1962,ofaheartattack,inOxford.2.Works

Mosquitoes(《蚊群》1927)Sartoris(《沙多里斯》1929)TheSoundandtheFury(《喧囂與躁動》1929)AsILayDying(《我彌留之際》1930)LightinAugust(《八月之光》1932)Absalom,Absalom!(《押沙龍，押沙龍！》1936)TheHamlet(《村子》1940)GoDown,Moses(《去吧，摩西》1942)IntruderintheDust(《墳墓里的闖入者》1948)TheTown(《小鎮(zhèn)》1957)TheMansion(《大宅》1959)3.AmericanSouthernLiteratureandTheSouthernRenaissance

1).CharacteristicsofAmericanSouthernLiteratureafocusonacommonsouthernhistorythesignificanceoffamilyasenseofcommunityasenseofjusticetheregion'sdominantreligionandtheburdens/rewardsreligionoftenbringsissuesofracialtensiontheuseoftheSoutherndialect4.CommentsonWilliamFaulkner1).MajorThemesWilliamFaulknerisregardedasanimportantinterpreteroftheuniversalthemeof"theproblemsofthehumanheartinconflictwithitself.""[I]discoveredthatmyownlittlepostagestampofnativesoilwasworthwritingaboutandthatIwouldneverlivelongenoughtoexhaustit,andthatbysublimatingtheactualintotheapocryphalIwouldhavecompletelibertytousewhatevertalentImighthavetoitsabsolutetop.Itopenedupagoldmineofotherpeople,soIcreatedacosmosofmyown."---–WilliamFaulkner2).WritingTechniqueStreamofconsciousness/interiormonologueStreamofconsciousnesshassomethingtodowithamethodofstorytellinginwhichtheauthortellsthestorythroughthefreelyflowingthoughtsandassociationsofoneofthecharacters.Itisusedtodepictthementalandemotionalreactionsofcharacterstoexternalevents,ratherthantheeventsthemselves.MultiplepointofviewBypresentingmultiplepointofview,anauthorisintendedtoshowwithinthesamestoryhowthecharactersreacteddifferentlytothesamepersonofthesamesituation.Themultiplepointofviewstimulatesseveralquitedifferentstreamsofthought,allofwhichmakesense.Theuseofthistechniquegivesthestoryacircularformwhereinoneeventisthecenter,withvariouspointsofviewradiatingfromit.Themultiplepointofviewmakesthereaderrecognizethedifficultyofarrivingatatruejudgment.Dislocatedtimesequences5.“DrySeptember”1).PlotArumor

MissMinnieCooperWillMayesMclendon2).ThemeViolence"DrySeptember"issuffusedwithviolence.Muchoftheviolenceisrumored,