我為美而死 I died for beauty賞析

EmilyDickinsonIdiedforbeauty

——butwasscarceContentsIntroductionTheformandtherhymeTextanalysis&importantmetaphorsComparisonbetween《IDiedforBeauty——ButWasScarce》&《OdeonaGrecian》ThethoughtsandthethemeEnlightenment一、IntroductionofEmilyDickinsonEmilyDickinson“IfI

read

a

bookanditmakesmywholebodysocoldthatnofireevercanwarmme,Iknowthatispoetry.IfIfeelphysicallyasifthetopofmyheadweretakenoff,Iknowthatispoetry.”——EmilyDickinsonBriefIntroductionBeingconsideredapioneerinmodernpoetposthumously（于死后，于身后）.AlongwithWhitman,beingregardedasoneofthegreatestAmericanpoets.1830.12.10——1886.05.15BorninAmherst,Massachusetts&aprominentfamilyReligiousbeliefwasCalvinismthatruledthepoet’searlyyearsPublishedlessthan10poemsamong1800poemsbeforeherdeath.Knowingforbeingarecluse,shedidn’tleaveherfamily’shomesteadafterthelate1860s.After70yearsofherdeath,shebegantoreceiveseriousattentionoftheliterary.HadlittleformaleducationHadhighinterestsinworksofmanyfamouswriters(suchasShakespeare,ElizabethBrowning,Brontesister)whoaffectedherintellectualthinkingandworks.ThreeimportantmenBenjaminNewton,ayounglawyer,whoimprovedherliteraryandculturaltastes.Shereferstohim“afriend,whotaughtmeimmortality”.Hedirectedhertointellectualindependenceandultimatelytopoetry.(Emilywas18)CharlesWadsworth,amarriedministerwhoprovidedherwithintellectualchallengeandcontactwiththeoutsideworld.Dickinsonfeltanaffectionforhimthathecouldnotreturn.(Emilywas24)ThomasHigginson,apoetrycriticfortheAtlanticMonthly,wholaterhelpedgatheringherpoemsforpublications.(Emilywas33)thesourcesofherinspirationandguidancePoem’sThemesBasedonherownexperiences:joys,sorrowsandimagination.Religion——doubtandbeliefaboutreligioussubjectsDeathandimmortalityLove——sufferingandfrustrationcausedbylovePhysicalaspectofdesireNature——benevolent(kind)andcruelFreewillandhumanresponsibilityTheartisticfeaturesofDickinson’swriting●Notitles.●Dashesareusedasamusicaldevice.●Capitallettersasameansofemphasis.●Sheoftenusedpersona（人格面具）andpersonalification.Herpoetryisremarkableforitsvariety,subtletyandrichness.●Brevity,directnessandplainness.Herpoemsareusuallyshort,rarelymorethantwentylines,andmanyofthemarecenteredonasingleimageorsymbolandfocusononesubjectmatter.二、Theformandtherhyme（一）FormThefirstandthethirdlinesareiambictetrameter(抑揚(yáng)格四音步）thesecondandthefourthlinesareiambictrimeter

(抑揚(yáng)格三音步)IdiedforBeauty－butwasscarceAdjustedintheTombWhenonewhodiedforTruth,waslainInanadjoiningRoom－Hequestionedsoftly“WhyIfailed?”“ForBeauty,”Ireplied－“AndI－forTruth－ThemselfareOne－WeBrethren,are,”Hesaid－Andso,asKinsmen,metaNight－WetalkedbetweentheRooms－UntiltheMosshadreachedourlips－Andcoveredup－ournames－（二）RhymePerfectRhyme(完美押韻):Rhymeinwhichthefinalaccentedvowelandallsucceedingconsonantsorsyllablesareidentical,whiletheprecedingconsonantsaredifferent.SlantRhyme(缺陷押韻):Apartialorimperfectrhyme,oftenusingassonance(元韻)orconsonance(和韻)only.Alsocalledhalfrhyme(半韻),nearrhyme(鄰韻),obliquerhyme(斜韻),andoffrhyme.Rhymescheme:abcbIdiedforBeauty－butwasscarceAdjustedintheTombWhenonewhodiedforTruth,waslainInanadjoiningRoom－Hequestionedsoftly“WhyIfailed?”“ForBeauty,”Ireplied－“AndI－forTruth－ThemselfareOne－WeBrethren,are,”Hesaid－Andso,asKinsmen,metaNight－WetalkedbetweentheRooms－UntiltheMosshadreachedourlips－Andcoveredup－ournames－PerfectrhymeTomb[tu?m]Room[ru?m]SlantrhymeRooms[ru?mz]

Names[ne?mz]SlantrhymeReplied[r??pla?d]

said[sed]

Rhymescheme

Evennumberlines:rhymeregularly

Oddlines:changefreely

Inpairsalone·Itmeansthatholdingontothefaithoftruthandbeautyisdoomedtobelonely.·Thereisnoabsolutefreedominthepursuitofbeautyandtruth.（三）ThedashesDashesareusedasmusicaldevicetocreatecadence(韻律).Whenfullstop(句號(hào))meanstheend,thepoetusedthedashestoindicatethatthedeathisn’ttheendtopursuethetruthandbeauty.（四）ThefirstpersonnarrationThepoetisthenarrator,asiftodirectlytellthereaderherownexperienceandfeelings.Thecolloquial,conciseandnaturallanguageismoreimpressiveinauditions.三、TextAnalysis

&ImportantMetaphors:以大寫字母開頭的詞作為強(qiáng)調(diào)的特點(diǎn)Beforewestartthispart,weshouldlearnthatthepoemsofDickinsonhaveanobviousartisticfeaturewhichisthatshetendstoapplythewordsbeginningwithcapitalletterforemphasis.Howtounderstand'scarce’?InDickinson'stime,fewwriterswouldchoosetosecludeinordertopursueBeauty&Truth,especiallywhenintheirgoldenageandintheascendantoftheircareer.↓

（與世俗格格不入的性格）Thefirststanza:IdiedforBeauty—butwasscarce(rare)我為美而死，但還不怎么AdjustedintheTomb適應(yīng)墳?zāi)估锏纳頦henOnewhodiedforTruth,waslain這時(shí)一位為真理而死的人InaadjoiningRoom

(neighboringnextdoor)—被安放在隔壁墓室里MainIdeaofthe1ststanza:Dickinsondiedpursingthebeautyofartandimmediatelyasshebecameaccustomedtothenewcircumstanceofatomb,shewastoldthattherewasanotherwhodiedfortruthandarrivedinthenextroom.Tomb:referstotheroomshelivedduringherreclusionRoom:referstothelifeaftershesecluded(ReasonswhyDickinsonwasdeterminedtoseclude:①forbeauty②fortruth)Thesecondstanza:Hequestionedsoftly“WhyIfailed”?他柔聲問道：“你為何而死”？“ForBeauty,”Ireplied—“為了美”，我回答說—“AndI—forTruth—ThemselvesareOne—“我，為真理—兩者都一樣WeBrethren，are,”（wearebrothers）Hesaid—我們倆是兄弟”，他說?！癢hyIfailed”？---Dickinsonwasmurmuringtoherselfandactuallyitisaquestionsheaskedherself（P14最后一段倒數(shù)第三行）ShethoughtthatpeopleatthattimeconsideredshewasaloserbecauseshecouldnotcreatethegreatworksastheprominentwritersinRenaissancedid.---WhyDickinsoncompareherselfwiththefamousfiguresinRenaissance?①Beforethecivilwar,therewasAmericanRenaissancewhenmanyexcellentpoetsandwritersflooded,likeEmerson,Thoreau,Hawthorne（霍桑）andMelville（麥爾維爾）.TheywerepopularatthattimewhileDickinsonwasn’t.②Oneofthecharacteristicsofartisthat：TheAestheticNatureofArtisthecrystallizationoftruth,goodnessandbeauty.“藝術(shù)的審美性是真善美的結(jié)晶”

That’salsowhatDickinsonpursuedinherworks.areOne:BeautyisasimportantasTruthinDickinson’seyes.（美與真理的同一性）Brethren:referstopeoplewhohavethesamereligion（為了美和真理而奉獻(xiàn)自我的人是同一種人）

Thethirdstanza:Andso,asKinsmen（relative親人）,metaNight—就這樣，像近親在夜里相遇—WetalkedbetweentheRooms—我們隔墻而談UntiltheMosshadreachedourlips—直到青苔爬到我們唇邊Andcoveredup—ournames—將我們的名字掩埋Room:Dickinsonreplaces“tomb”appearedbeforewiththeword“room”,whichexpressesherfeelingofthe“tomb”.---The”tomb”isnotdarkorcheerless,instead,itisquietandsecluded,wheretherewasaconfidant知己

tochatwithallnight.Moss:

①elapse流逝of

time（theyhavetalkedforalongtime）

②themetaphorofdeath（Comparedwithman’slife,deathislengthy.Whenthemossreachedherlip,shewasforgottenbyhumanworldafterher“death”.Butshewould

keeponpursuingBeautyandTruth.）相對(duì)于生，死的時(shí)間漫長(zhǎng)無期。當(dāng)青苔蔓延上唇際，詩人在死亡中被遺忘，她仍會(huì)不懈地追求美與真。Whydidtheymeetat

Night?---①Nightisnotonlyaserenemomentbutagoodtimeforwriterstomeditate,createandgetinspired.②Ontheotherhand，Nightalsosetsoffthequietatmosphereofthe“tomb”.Dickinsonwas

notsolitaryinherreclusivelifebecauseshetooktruthandbeautyashercompanions.Dickinson’sattitude

towardsreclusion:peacefultowardsBeautyandTruth:persistent四、Comparisonbetween《IDiedforBeauty——ButWasScarce》&《OdeonaGrecianUrn》“Beauty”and“Truth”FindouttypicalwritingfeaturesofEmilyDickinsonIdiedforbeauty——EmilyDickinsonHequestionedsoftly“WhyIfailed?”“Forbeauty，”Ireplied－“AndI－forTruth－ThemselfareOne－WeBrethren，are，”Hesaid－OdeonaGrecianUrn

——JohnKeatsOAtticshape!Fairattitude!withbredeOfmarblemenandmaidensoverwrought,Withforestbranchesandthetroddenweed;Thou,silentform,dostteaseusoutofthoughtAsdotheternity:ColdPastoral!Whenoldageshallthisgenerationwaste,Thoushaltremain,inmidstofotherwoeThanours,afriendtoman,towhomthousay'st,"Beautyistruth,truthbeauty,"—thatisallYeknowonearth,andallyeneedtoknow.SameIdeaEventhoughKeats(1795~1821)andDickinson(1830~1886)didnotliveinthesameperiodorthesamecountry,theyheldthesameaestheticconception,regardingbeautyandtruthasawhole.Difference1IdiedforbeautyShorter3Stanzas×4LinesOdeonaGrecianUrnLonger5Stanzas×10LinesActually,EmilyDickinson’spoemsarealwaysshort,seldommorethan20lines.Difference2IdiedforbeautyPresentthetopicbytellingastoryofdeaths.Hequestionedsoftly“WhyIfailed?”“Forbeauty，”Ireplied－“AndI－forTruth－ThemselfareOne－WeBrethren，are，”Hesaid－他輕聲問我“為什么倒下？”我回答他：“為了美”——他說：“我為真理，真與美——是一體，我們是兄弟”——OdeonaGrecianUrnPresentthetopicbydescribingthepatternofanurn.OAtticshape!Fairattitude!withbredeOfmarblemenandmaidensoverwrought,Withforestbranchesandthetroddenweed;Thou,silentform,dostteaseusoutofthoughtAsdotheternity:ColdPastoral!Whenoldageshallthisgenerationwaste,Thoushaltremain,inmidstofotherwoeThanours,afriendtoman,towhomthousay'st,"Beautyistruth,truthbeauty,"—thatisallYeknowonearth,andallyeneedtoknow.哦，希臘的形狀！唯美的觀照！上面綴有石雕的男人和女人，還有林木，和踐踏過的青草；沉默的形體呵，你象是“永恒”使人超越思想：呵，冰冷的牧歌！等暮年使這一世代都凋落，只有你如舊；在另外的一些憂傷中，你會(huì)撫慰后人說：“美即是真，真即是美，”這就包括你們所知道、和該知道的一切。Dickinsonlikedwritingaboutdeath.Aboutone?third?of?the?total?collection?of?her?poems?deal?with?death.Death,?and?the?problem?of?life?after?death,?obsessed?her.Difference3IdiedforbeautyHequestionedsoftly“WhyIfailed?”“Forbeauty，”Ireplied—“AndI—forTruth—ThemselfareOne—WeBrethren，are，”Hesaid—OdeonaGrecianUrnOAtticshape!Fairattitude!withbredeOfmarblemenandmaidensoverwrought,Withforestbranchesandthetroddenweed;Thou,silentform,dostteaseusoutofthoughtAsdotheternity:ColdPastoral!Whenoldageshallthisgenerationwaste,Thoushaltremain,inmidstofotherwoeThanours,afriendtoman,towhomthousay'st,"Beautyistruth,truthbeauty,“—thatisallYeknowonearth,andallyeneedtoknow.1“—”5“—”Dickinsonusedmanydashes“—”inherpoems,to?interrupt?the?flow.Difference4IdiedforbeautyIndirectPresenttheideabyaconversationoftwodeaths.“Forbeauty，”Ireplied－“AndI－forTruth－ThemselfareOne—WeBrethren，are，”Hesaid－我回答他：“為了美”——他說：“我為真理，真與美——是一體，我們是兄弟”——OdeonaGrecianUrnDirectPresenttheideadirectlybyatopicsentence.“Beautyistruth,truthbeauty,”“美即是真，真即是美?！盡anyofEmilyDickinson’spoemsarebasedonasingleimage（意象）

orsymbol（象征）,whicharenotsodirect.五、Thethoughtsandthetheme（一）Thethoughts1.Thepursuitofbeautyandtruth.Whatisbeauty？Whatistruth？濟(jì)慈：美即是真，真即是美。別林斯基：失去了真，同時(shí)也就失去了美。黑格爾：美與真是一回事，這就是說美本身必須是真的。法朗士：富于美之中的真要比真本身更高尚深?yuàn)W?！吨潞悺罚?/p>