James-Thurber2匯總教學講解課件

JamesThurber1894---1961JamesGroverThurber

詹姆斯?瑟伯Genres:

shortstories,cartoons,essaysOccupation:Humorist,writer,cartoonistNationality:AmericanValuation:ThurberisgenerallyacknowledgedasthegreatestAmericanhumoristsinceMarkTwain.OutlineHisLifeandTimesCareer

BibliographyevaluationThankyou

HisLifeandTimes

JamesThurberwasborninColumbus,Ohio.Hisfather,CharlesL.Thurber,wasaclerkandminorpolitician,whowentthroughmanyperiodsofunemployment.MaryThurber,hismother,wasastrong-mindedwomanandapracticaljoker(惡作劇者).

Thurberdescribedheras"aborncomedienne"and"oneofthefinestcomictalentsIthinkI'veeverknown."

Thurberhadtwobrothers,WilliamandRobert.Once,whileplayingagame,hisbrothershotJamesintheeyewithanarrow,andThurberlostthateye.Thisinjurywouldlatercausehimtobecomealmostentirelyblind.Unableinchildhoodtoparticipateinsportsandactivitiesbecauseofhisinjury,hedevelopedacreativeimagination,whichheexpressedinhiswritings.

From1913to1918,Thurberattended

TheOhioStateUniversity,wherehewasamemberofthe

PhiKappa

Psi

fraternity(聯(lián)誼會).Henevergraduatedfromtheuniversitybecausehispooreyesightpreventedhimfromtakingamandatory

ROTC(后備軍官訓練)

course.

In1995hewasposthumously(于死后)awardedadegree.From1918to1920,atthecloseof

WorldWarI,Thurberworkedasacode

clerk

forthe

DepartmentofState,firstinWashington,D.C.,andthenatthe

Embassy(大使館)oftheUnitedStates,Paris,France.AfterthisThurberreturnedtoColumbus,wherehebeganhiswritingcareerasareporterforthe

ColumbusDispatch

from1921to1924.Duringpartofthistime,hereviewedcurrentbooks,films,andplaysinaweeklycolumncalled“CredosandCurios,”atitlethatlaterwouldbegiventoaposthumouscollectionofhiswork.ThurberalsoreturnedtoParisinthisperiod,wherehewroteforthe

ChicagoTribune

(論壇)andothernewspapers.

In1925,Thurbermovedto

GreenwichVillage

inNewYorkCity,gettingajobasareporterforthe

NewYorkEveningPost.Hejoinedthestaffof

TheNewYorker

in1927asaneditor,withthehelpof

E.B.White,hisfriendandfellow

NewYorker

contributor.Hiscareerasacartoonistbeganin1930afterWhitefoundsomeofThurber‘sdrawingsinatrashcan(垃圾桶)andsubmittedthemforpublication;Thurbercontributedbothhiswritingsandhisdrawingsto

TheNewYorker

untilthe1950s.MovetoNewYork

Thurberwasmarriedtwice.In1922,ThurbermarriedAltheaAdams.ThemarriagewastroubledandendedindivorceinMay1935.

TheyhadadaughterRosemarytogether,andlivedinFairfieldCounty,Connecticut.ThurberremarriedinJune1935toHelenWismer.Hewasagreatloverofdogs,andcompetedwidelyindogshowswithseveralpoodles(貴賓犬).Hediedin1961,attheageof66,duetocomplications(并發(fā)癥)from

pneumonia,whichfolloweduponastroke(中風)sufferedathishome.Hislastwords,asidefromtherepeatedword"God,"were"Godbless...Goddamn,"accordingtoHelenThurber.MarriageandfamilyEstablishedin1997,theannual

ThurberPrize

honorsoutstandingexamplesofAmericanhumor.In2008,

TheLibraryofAmerica

selectedThurber’sstory,“ASortofGenius,”firstpublishedin

TheNewYorker,forinclusioninitstwo-centuryretrospective(回顧展)ofAmericanTrueCrime.TwoofhisresidenceshavebeenlistedontheU.S.

NationalRegisterofHistoricPlaces:hischildhood

ThurberHouse

inOhioandthe

Sanford-Curtis-ThurberHouse

in

FairfieldCounty,Connecticut.LegacyandhonorsUniquelyamongmajorAmericanliteraryfigures,hebecameequallywellknownforhissimple,surrealistic(超現(xiàn)實主義的)drawingsandcartoons.Bothhisskillswerehelpedalongbythesupportof,andcollaborationwith,fellow

NewYorker

staffmember

E.B.White,whoinsistedthatThurber‘ssketchescouldstandontheirownasartisticexpressions.Thurberdrewsixcoversandnumerousclassicillustrations(插圖)for

TheNewYorker.CareerwriterManyofhisshortstoriesarehumorousfictionalmemoirsfromhislife,buthealsowrotedarkermaterial,suchas"TheWhip-Poor-Will,"astoryofmadnessandmurder.Hisbest-knownshortstoriesare"TheDogThatBitPeople"and

"TheNighttheBedFell";theycanbefoundin

MyLifeandHardTimes,thecreativemixofautobiographyandfictionwhichwashis"break-out"book.Amonghisotherclassicsare"TheSecretLifeofWalterMitty","The

CatbirdSeat","ACoupleofHamburgers","TheGreatestManintheWorld"and"If

Grant

HadBeenDrinkingat

Appomattox".

TheMiddle-AgedManontheFlyingTrapeze

hasseveralshortstorieswithatenseundercurrentofmaritaldiscord.Thebookwaspublishedtheyearofhisdivorceandremarriage.Inadditiontohisotherfiction,Thurberwroteoverseventy-five

fables,mostofwhichwerecollectedin

FablesforOurTime&FamousPoemsIllustrated

(1940)and

FurtherFablesforOurTime

(1956).Thesewereshort,featuredanthropomorphicanimalsasmaincharacters,andendedwithamoralasatagline.Anexceptiontothisformatwashismostfamousfable,"TheUnicornintheGarden",whichfeaturedanall-humancastexceptfortheunicorn,whichdidn'tspeak.Thurber'sfableswere

satirical,andthemoralsservedas

punchlines

ratherthanadvicetothereader.Hisstoriesalsoincludedseveralbook-lengthfairytales,suchas

TheWhiteDeer

(1945),

The13Clocks

(1950)and

TheWonderfulO

(1957).ThelatterwasoneofseveralofThurber'sworksillustratedby

MarcSimont.CartoonistWhileThurberdrewhiscartoonsintheusualfashioninthe1920sand1930s,hisfailingeyesightlaterrequiredchanges.Hedrewthemonverylargesheetsofpaperusingathickblackcrayon(蠟筆)(oronblackpaperusingwhitechalk).Regardlessofmethod,hiscartoonsbecameasnotedashiswritings;theypossessedaneerie(怪異的),wobblyfeelthatseemstomirrorhisidiosyncratic(特殊的)viewonlife.ThelastdrawingThurbercompletedwasaself-portrait(自畫像)inyellowcrayononblackpaper,whichwasfeaturedasthecoveroftheJuly9,1951,issueof

TimeMagazine.Thesamedrawingwasusedforthedustjacketof

TheThurberAlbumBibliography

IsSexNecessary?or,WhyYouFeelTheWayYouDo,

(1929with

E.B.White)TheOwlintheAtticandOtherPerplexities,1931TheSealintheBedroomandOtherPredicaments,1932MyLifeandHardTimes,1933TheMiddle-AgedManontheFlyingTrapeze,1935LetYourMindAlone!andOtherMoreOrLessInspirationalPieces,1937TheLastFlower,1939TheMaleAnimal

(stageplay),1939(withElliotNugent)FablesforOurTimeandFamousPoemsIllustrated,1940MyWorldandWelcometoIt,1942ManyMoons,1943Men,Women,andDogs,1943TheGreatQuillow,1944TheThurberCarnival

,1945TheWhiteDeer,1945TheBeastinMeandOtherAnimals,1948The13Clocks,1950TheThurberAlbum,1952ThurberCountry,1953Thurber'sDogs,1955FurtherFablesForOurTime,1956TheWonderfulO,1957AlarmsandDiversions

(anthology),1957TheYearsWithRoss,1959AThurberCarnival

(stageplay),1960LanternsandLances,1961Shortstories"TheSecretLifeofWalterMitty"TheNighttheBedFell"TheUnicornintheGarden""TheMothandtheStar""TheRabbitsWhoCausedAlltheTrouble""TheMacbethMurderMystery",1937(printedinTheNewYorker)"YouCouldLookItUp",1941"TheCatbirdSeat",1942"TheBreakingupoftheWinships",1945"ACoupleofHamburgers""TheGreatestManintheWorld""IfGrantHadBeenDrinkingatAppomattox""TheBearWhoLetItAlone""ThePrincessandthe