美国文学期末复习提纲2012
2012美国文学复习提纲
1．Match the literary work in column B with the author in the column A. (20 points)
2. Decide the following statements true or false. (10 points)
3. Define the following literary terms (20 points)
一、时间（1分）；二、代表人物（1分）；三；主要特征（2分）；四、文学文化意义（1分）
Hemingway’s “iceberg theory” and “the code hero”
Iceberg theory: It was firstly proposed by Ernest Hemingway, the representative writer of the Lost Generation, in Death In the Afternoon (1932) which has
such a description “The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it
being above water.”
The theory suggests that the writer include in the text only a small portion of what he knows, leaving about ninety percent of the content a mystery that grows beneath the
surface of the writing. It?s influence as a stylist was nearly expressed in the praise of the
Nobel Prize Committee about “his powerful style-forming mastery of the art” of writing
modern fiction.
The code hero: Term Coined by Philip Young in 1952 to refer to Hemingway characters that have learned to control the chaos in their lives, chaos in the form of
physical or mental stress, sometimes both. As Bertrand Russell comments, Hemingway?s
heroes have such kind of courage that enables a man to behave like a man, to assert this
dignity in face of diversity. A code hero could be destroyed but not defeated.
Modernism:
Modernism is an omnibus term for a number of tendencies in the arts which were prominent in the first half of the 20th c.; In English literature it includes symbolism,
futurism, expressionism, imagism, dada, and surrealism. It is particularly associated
with the writings of T. S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, James Joyce etc. Broadly, Modernism
reflects the impact upon literature of the psychology of Freud and the anthropology of
Sir J. Frazer, as expressed in The Golden Bough (1890-1915). A sense of cultural
relativism is pervasive in much modernist writing, as is an awareness of the irrational
and the workings of the unconscious mind. Modernist literature is a literature of
discontinuity, both historically, being based upon a sharp rejection of the procedures
and values of the immediate past, to which it adopts an adversary stance; and
aesthetically.
The Lost Generation:
The "Lost Generation" is a term was popularized by Ernest Hemingway in his novel, "The Sun Also Rises" used to refer to his generation; those who experienced alienation
and the loss of ideals yet unable to come to terms with the new era when civilization had
gone mad resulting from World War I .This generation included distinguished artists
such as Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, T.S. Eliot
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美国文学期末复习提纲(呕心沥血完全版）
1. Why does the poet call the faces of pedestrians “apparition”?
Pound contrasts the factual, mundane image that he actually witnessed with a metaphor from nature and thus infuses this “apparition” with visual beauty. There is a quick transition from the statement of the first line to the second line?s vivid metaphor; this …super-pository?technique exemplifies the Japanese haiku style. The word “apparition” is considered crucial as
it evokes a mystical and supernatural sense of imprecision which is then reinforced by the metaphor of the second line.
2. What do “petals” and “bough” stand for?
The plosive word …Petals? conjures ideas of delicate, feminine beauty which contrasts with the bleakness of the …wet, black bough?.
The Red Wheelbarrow:
1. How does the first two lines differ from the other pairs of lines?
There is no exact thing presented in the 1st two lines. But, by adding those first four words the meanings of the poem just explode into a million different possible meanings.
2. What is the meaning of “depends upon” in the 1st pair of lines?
“Hardness and aesthetics of life.”
One’s-self I sing
The 1855 "Song of Myself" had announced that the "word of the modern" was "a word en masse," and eventually Whitman would revise this 1867 Inscription to affirm that
"En-Masse" was also "the word Democratic." In a modern, democratic society, as Tocqueville had said, no intermediate allegiances stand between the individual citizen and the entire body politic. The Self is indeed separate, isolated; it has renounced party and creed and local custom, all mediating bodies that provide a system of preference or exclusion.
"One?s-Self I sing, a simple separate person," run the opening lines of Leaves of Grass
from 1871 on, "Yet utter the word Democratic." A poetic universe of productive tension is
hinted by that "Yet"; the tense equipoise between individualism and democracy, this poem suggests, is the foundational theme of Whitman?s book. The poem then goes on to introduce
the site and symbol for this reconciliation of individual to mass: the body, "physiology from
top to toe." We receive individual identity through our body, . . . yet at the same time, physicality, and especially physical affection, are universal, binding us together in common humanity. Much of the boldly progressive politics of Whitman?s poetry will follow from this emphasis on the body; thus his introduction of the theme of "physiology" is followed by his (then quite radical) insistence on the political equality of male and female.
The poet he imagines in the 1855 preface is, like his ideal republic, balanced between self and other: "The soul has that measureless pride which consists in never acknowledging any lessons but its own. But it has sympathy as measureless as its pride and the one balances the other and neither can stretch too far while it stretches in company with the other. The inmost secrets of art sleep with the twain. The greatest poet has lain close betwixt both and they are
vital to his style and thoughts."
This vision of a poet stretching within a universe bounded by pride and sympathy had as
its political analogue the paradox of an American republic poised between self-interest and public virtue, liberty and union, the interests of the many and the good of the one. The secret
美国文学期末复习提纲(呕心沥血完全版）
of Whitman's art and the American Union, the paradox of many in one, eventually became the
opening inscription and balancing frame of Leaves of Grass:
One's-Self I sing, a simple separate person,
Yet utter the word Democratic, the word En-Masse.
Balanced between the separate person and the en masse, the politics of Leaves of Grass is
neither liberal nor bourgeois in the classical sense of the terms; rather, the poems represent
the republican ideals of early-nineteenth-century artisan radicalism, emphasizing the
interlinked values of independence and community, personal wealth and commonwealth.
The open boat
Nature’s Indifference to Man
Despite the narrator?s profusion of animistic (animal-like), humanistic (manlike),
and deistic (godlike) characterizations of nature, Crane makes clear that nature is
ultimately indifferent to the plight of man, possessing no consciousness that we can understand. As the stranded men progress through the story, the reality of nature?s lack
of concern for them becomes increasingly clear. The narrator highlights this development
by changing the way he describes the sea. Early in the story, the sea snarls, hisses, and
bucks like a bronco; later, it merely “paces to and fro,” no longer an actor in the men?s drama. In reality, the sea does not change at all; only the men?s perception of the sea changes. The unaltered activity of the gulls, clouds, and tides illustrates that nature does
not behave any differently in light of the men?s struggle to survive.
Crane strengthens the idea that nature is indifferent to man by showing that it is as randomly helpful as it is hurtful. For every malevolent whim that the men suffer, they experience an unexpected good turn in the form of a favorable wind or calm night. The
fact that the men almost seem to get assistance from nature destroys the notion of nature
as an entirely hostile force. Nothing highlights this point so much as the correspondent?s final rescue. Plowed to shore and saved by a freak wave, the correspondent must embrace
the fact that the very thing that has put him in harm?s way has saved him. This freak wave , however, may also be responsible for killing the much hardier oiler, a turn of events that demonstrates two ideas: nature is as much a harsh punisher as it is a benefactor, and
nature does not act out of any motivation that can be understood in human terms.
Man’s Insignificance in the Universe
“The Open Boat” conveys a feeling of loneliness that comes from man?s understanding
that he is alone in the universe and insignificant in its workings. Underneath the men?s
and narrator?s collective rants at fate and the universe is the fear of nothingness. They
have an egotistical belief that they should have a role in the universe, that their existence should mean something. When the correspondent realizes by section VI that fate will not answer his pleas, he settles into despair. His subsequent recollection of the poem about
the soldier who lies dying in Algiers reflects his feelings of alienation at being displaced
from his position in the universe. Like the soldier who dies in alien territory, the correspondent fears that he too will perish without a connection to whatever gives him
his sense of self.
Throughout “The Open Boat,” the correspondent understands pain to be the necessary byproduct of his efforts to overcome nature, the willful enemy. He comes to value his
美国文学期末复习提纲(呕心沥血完全版）
suffering because it is nobly derived; in the earlier sections, the correspondent, whom the narrator says is cynical, is often cheerful and talkative in his descriptions of the physical pain he experien ces. By the end of the story, however, the correspondent?s new awareness that the universe is unconcerned with the situation?s outcome makes him physically and spiritually weary. He decides that there is no higher purpose to surviving other than prolonging a life that is meaningless. His comment in section VII that the coldness of the water is simply “sad” underscores this despair. At this point, all sensations of pain and pleasure are merely physical and have no spiritual meaning.
A clean well-lighted place
Life as Nothingness
In “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place,” Hemingway suggests that life has no meaning and that man is an insignificant speck in a great sea of nothingness. The older waiter makes this idea as clear as he can when he says, “It was all a nothing and man was a no thing too.” When he substitutes the Spanish word nada (nothing) into the prayers he recites, he indicates that religion, to which many people turn to find meaning and purpose, is also
just nothingness. Rather than pray with the actual words, “Our Father wh o art in heaven,” the older waiter says, “Our nada who art in nada”—effectively wiping out both God and the idea of heaven in one breath. Not everyone is aware of the nothingness, however. For example, the younger waiter hurtles through his life hastily and happily, unaware of any reason why he should lament. For the old man, the older waiter, and the other people who need late-night cafés, however, the idea of nothingness is overwhelming and leads to despair.
The Struggle to Deal with Despair
The old man and older waiter in “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” struggle to find a way
to deal with their despair, but even their best method simply subdues the despair rather than cures it. The old man has tried to stave off despair in several unsuccessful ways. We learn that he has money, but money has not helped. We learn that he was once married, but he no longer has a wife. We also learn that he has unsuccessfully tried to commit suicide in a desperate attempt to quell the despair for good. The only way the old man can deal with his despair now is to sit for hours in a clean, well-lit café. Deaf, he can feel the quietness of the nighttime and the café, and although he is essentially in his own private world, sitting by himself in the caféis not the same as being alone.
The older waiter, in his mocking prayers filled with the word nada, shows that religion is not a viable method of dealing with despair, and his solution is the same as the old man?s: he waits out the nighttime in cafés. He is particular about the type of caféhe likes: the
cafémust be well lit and clean. Bars and bodegas, although many are open all night, do
not lessen despair because they are not clean, and patrons often must stand at the bar rather than sit at a table. The old man and the older waiter also glean solace from routine. The ritualistic café-sitting and drinking help them deal with despair because it makes life predictable. Routine is something they can control and manage, unlike the vast nothingness that surrounds them.
A rose for Emily
美国文学期末复习提纲(呕心沥血完全版）
Tradition versus Change
Through the mysterious figure of Emily Grierson, Faulkner conveys the struggle that
comes from trying to maintain tradition in the face of widespread, radical change.
Jefferson is at a crossroads, embracing a modern, more commercial future while still
perched on the edge of the past, from the faded glory of the Grierson home to the town
cemetery where anonymous Civil War soldiers have been laid to rest. Emily herself is a
tradition, steadfastly staying the same over the years despite many changes in her
community. She is in many ways a mixed blessing. As a living monument to the past, she represents the traditions that people wish to respect and honor; however, she is also a
burden and entirely cut off from the outside world, nursing eccentricities that others
cannot understand.
Emily lives in a timeless vacuum and world of her own making. Refusing to have
metallic numbers affixed to the side of her house when the town receives modern mail
service, she is out of touch with the reality that constantly threatens to break through her
carefully sealed perimeters. Garages and cotton gins have replaced the grand antebellum homes. The aldermen try to break with the unofficial agreement about taxes once forged
between Colonel Sartoris and Emily. This new and younger generation of leaders brings
in Homer?s company to pave the sidewalks. Although Jefferson still highly regards
traditional notions of honor and reputation, the narrator is critical of the old men in their Confederate uniforms who ga ther for Emily?s funeral. For them as for her, time is relative . The past is not a faint glimmer but an ever- present, idealized realm. Emily?s macabre
bridal chamber is an extreme attempt to stop time and prevent change, although doing so
comes at the expense of human life.
The Power of Death
Death hangs over “A Rose for Emily,” from the narrator?s mention of Emily?s death at
the beginning of the story through the description of Emily?s death -haunted life to the foundering of tradition in the face of modern changes. In every case, death prevails over
every attempt to master it. Emily, a fixture in the community, gives in to death slowly.
The narrator compares her to a drowned woman, a bloated and pale figure left too long in
the water. In the same description, he refers to her small, spare skeleton —she is
practically dead on her feet. Emily stands as an emblem of the Old South, a grand lady
whose respectability and charm rapidly decline through the years, much like the outdated sensibilities the Griersons represent. The death of the old social order will prevail, despite
many townspeople?s attempts to stay true to the old ways.
Emily attempts to exert power over death by denying the fact of death itself. Her
bizarre relationship to the dead bodies of the men she has loved —her necrophilia —is
revealed first when her father dies. Unable to admit that he has died, Emily clings to the controlling paternal figure whose denial and control became the only —yet extreme —form
of love she knew. She gives up his body only reluctantly. When Homer dies, Emily refuses
to acknowledge it once again —although this time, she herself was responsible for
bringing about the death. In killing Homer, she was able to keep him near her. However,
Homer?s lifelessness rendered him permanently distant. Emily and Homer?s grotesque marriage reveals Emily?s disturbing attempt to fuse life and death. However, death
ultimately triumphs.
美国文学期末复习提纲(呕心沥血完全版）
5. Writing: focus on the main characters in the following texts. 5选2。(20 points)
A. Catch 22
John Yossarian: John Yossarian, the protagonist of Catch-22, is both a member of the squadron?s community and alienated by it. Although he flies and lives with the men, he is
marked as an outsider by the fact that many of the men think he is insane. Even his Assyrian
name is unusual; no one has ever heard it before. His difference from the rest of the men leads
us to expect something exceptional from Yossarian.
But Yossarian?s characteristics are not those of a typical hero. He d oes not risk his life to save others; in fact, his primary goal throughout the novel is to avoid risking his life whenever
possible. But the system of values around Yossarian is so skewed that this approach seems to
be the only truly moral stance he can take, if only because it is so logical. What we come to
hate about military bureaucracy as we read Catch-22 is its lack of logic; men are asked to risk
their lives again and again for reasons that are utterly illogical and unimportant. In this
illogical world, Yossarian seizes hold of one true, logical idea —that he should try to preserve
life. Unlike a conventional hero, however, Yossarian does not generalize this idea to mean that
he should risk his own life in attempts to save everybody else?s. In a world w here life itself is
so undervalued and so casually lost, it is possible to redefine heroism as simple
self-preservation.
This insistence on self-preservation creates a conflict for Yossarian. Even though he is
determined to save his own life at all costs, he nonetheless cares deeply for the other members
of his squadron and is traumatized by their deaths. His ongoing horror at Snowden?s death
stems both from his pity for Snowden and from his horrified realization that his own body is
just as destructible as Snowden?s. In the end, when offered a choice between his own safety
and the safety of the entire squadron, Yossarian is unable to choose himself over others. This concern for others complicates the simple logic of self-preservation, and creates its own
Catch-22: life is not worth living without a moral concern for the well-being of others, but a
moral concern for the well- being of others endangers one?s life. Yossarian ultimately escapes
this conundrum by literally walking away from the war —an action that refuses both the
possibility of becoming an officer who avoids danger at the expense of his troops and that of remaining a soldier who risks his life for meaningless reasons.
Colonel Cathcart: The ambitious, unintelligent officer in charge of Yossarian?s squadron. Colonel Cathcart wants to be a general, and he tries to impress his superiors by
bravely volunteering his men for dangerous combat duty whenever he gets the chance. As he
tries to scheme his way ahead, he considers successful actions “feathers in his cap” and unsuccessful ones “black eyes.”
B. Moby Dick
Moby Dick: In a sense, Moby Dick is not a character, as the reader has no access to the
White Whale?s thoughts, feelings, or intentions. Instead, Moby Dick is an impersonal force, one that many critics have interpreted as an allegorical representation of God, an inscrutable and all-powerful being that humankind can neither understand nor defy. Moby Dick thwarts free will and cannot be defeated, only accommodated or avoided. Ishmael tries a plethora of approaches to describe whales in general, but none proves adequate. Indeed, as Ishmael points out, the majority of a whale is hidden from view at all times. In this way, a whale mirrors its environment. Like the whale, only the surface of the ocean is available for human observation and interpretation, while its depths conceal unknown and unknowable truths. Furthermore, even when Ishmael does get his hands on a “whole” whale, he is unable to determine which part —the skeleton, the head, the skin —offers the best understanding of the whole living, breathing creature; he cannot localize the essence of the whale. This conundrum can be read as a metaphor for the human relationship with the Christian God (or any other god, for that matter): God is unknowable and cannot be pinned down.
Ahab: Ahab, the Pequod?s obsessed captain, represents both an ancient and a quintessentially modern type of hero. Like the heroes of Greek or Shakespearean tragedy, Ahab suffers from a single fatal flaw, one he shares with such legendary characters as Oedipus and Faust. His tremendous overconfidence, or hubris, leads him to defy common sense and believe that, like a god, he can enact his will and remain immune to the forces of nature. He considers Moby Dick the embodiment of evil in the world, and he pursues the White Whale monomaniacally because he believes it his inescapable fate to destroy this evil. According to the critic M. H. Abrams, such a tragic hero “moves us to pity because, since he is not an evil man, his misfortune is greater than he deserves; but he moves us also to fear, because we recognize simil ar possibilities of error in our own lesser and fallible selves.”
Unlike the heroes of older tragic works, however, Ahab suffers from a fatal flaw that is not necessarily inborn but instead stems from damage, in his case both psychological and physical, inflicted by life in a harsh world. He is as much a victim as he is an aggressor, and the symbolic opposition that he constructs between himself and Moby Dick propels him toward what he considers a destined end.
Ahab has the qualities of a tragic hero — a great heart and a fatal flaw — and his deeply philosophical ruminations are expressed in language that is not only deliberately lofty and Shakespearian, but also so heavily iambic as often to read like Shakespeare's own pentameters.
C. The Great Gatsby
Jay Gatsby: The title character of The Great Gatsby is a young man, around thirty years old, who rose from an impoverished childhood in rural North Dakota to become fabulously wealthy. However, he achieved this lofty goal by participating in organized crime, including distributing illegal alcohol and trading in stolen securities. From his early youth, Gatsby despised poverty and longed for wealth and sophistication — he dropped out of St. Olaf?s College after only two weeks because he could not bear the janitorial job with which he was paying his tuition. Though Gatsby has always wanted to be rich, his main motivation in acquiring his fortune was his love for Daisy Buchanan, whom he met as a young military officer in Louisville before leaving to fight in World War I in 1917. Gatsby immediately fell in love with Daisy?s aura of luxury, grace, and charm, and lied to her about his own background
in order to convince her that he was good enough for her. Daisy promised to wait for him
when he left for the war, but married Tom Buchanan in 1919, while Gatsby was studying at
Oxford after the war in an attempt to gain an education. From that moment on, Gatsby
dedicated himself to winning Daisy back, and his acquisition of millions of dollars, his
purchase of a gaudy mansion on West Egg, and his lavish weekly parties are all merely means
to that end.
Fitzgerald delays the introduction of most of this information until fairly late in the novel.
Gat sby?s reputation precedes him— Gatsby himself does not appear in a speaking role until Chapter 3. Fitzgerald initially presents Gatsby as the aloof, enigmatic host of the unbelievably opulent parties thrown every week at his mansion. He appears surrounded by spectacular
luxury, courted by powerful men and beautiful women. He is the subject of a whirlwind of
gossip throughout New York and is already a kind of legendary celebrity before he is ever introduced to the reader. Fitzgerald propels the novel forward through the early chapters by shrouding Gatsby?s background and the source of his wealth in mystery (the reader learns
about Gatsby?s childhood in Chapter 6 and receives definitive proof of his criminal dealings in Chapter 7). As a result, the reader?s fir st, distant impressions of Gatsby strike quite a different note from that of the lovesick, naive young man who emerges during the later part of the
novel.
Fitzgerald uses this technique of delayed character revelation to emphasize the theatrical
quality of Gatsby?s approach to life, which is an important part of his personality. Gatsby has literally created his own character, even changing his name from James Gatz to Jay Gatsby to represent his reinvention of himself. As his relentless quest for Daisy demonstrates, Gatsby
has an extraordinary ability to transform his hopes and dreams into reality; at the beginning
of the novel, he appears to the reader just as he desires to appear to the world. This talent for
self-invention is what gives Gatsby his quality of “greatness”: indeed, the title “The Great
Gatsby” is reminiscent of billings for such vaudeville magicians as “The Great Houdini” and
“The Great Blackstone,” suggesting that the persona of Jay Gatsby is a masterful illusion.
As the novel progresses and Fitzgerald deconstructs Gatsby?s self -presentation, Gatsby reveals himself to be an innocent, hopeful young man who stakes everything on his dreams, not
realizing that his dreams are unworthy of him. Gatsby invests Daisy with an idealistic
perfection that she cannot possibly attain in reality and pursues her with a passionate zeal
that blinds him to her limitations. His dream of her disintegrates, revealing the corruption
that wealth causes and the unworthiness of the goal, much in the way Fitzgerald sees the
American dream crumbling in the 1920s, as America?s powerful optimism, vitality, and individualism become subordinated to the amoral pursuit of wealth.
Gatsby is contrasted most consistently with Nick. Critics point out that the former, passionate
and a ctive, and the latter, sober and reflective, seem to represent two sides of Fitzgerald?s personality. Additionally, whereas Tom is a cold-hearted, aristocratic bully, Gatsby is a loyal
and good-hearted man. Though his lifestyle and attitude differ greatly from those of George Wilson, Gatsby and Wilson share the fact that they both lose their love interest to Tom.
Daisy Buchanan: Nick?s cousin, and the woman Gatsby loves. As a young woman in Louisville before the war, Daisy was courted by a number of officers, including Gatsby. She fell in love with Gatsby and promised to wait for him. However, Daisy harbors a deep
美国文学期末复习提纲(呕心沥血完全版）
need to be loved, and when a wealthy, powerful young man named Tom Buchanan asked her to marry him, Daisy decided not to wait for Gatsby after all. Now a beautiful socialite, Daisy lives with Tom across from Gatsby in the fashionable East Egg district of Long Island. She is sardonic and somewhat cynical, and behaves superficially to mask her pain at her husband?s constant infidelity.
D. Death of a Salesman
Willy Loman: Despite his desperate searching through his past, Willy does not achieve the self-realization or self-knowledge typical of the tragic hero. The quasi-resolution that his suicide offers him represents only a partial discovery of the truth. While he achieves a professional understanding of himself and the fundamental nature of the sales profession,
Willy fails to realize his personal failure and betrayal of his soul and family through the meticulously constructed artifice of his life. He cannot grasp the true personal, emotional, spiritual understanding of himself as a literal “loman” or “low man.” Willy is too driven by his
own “willy”-ness or perverse “willfulness” to recognize the slanted reality that his desperate
mind has forged. Still, many critics, focusing on Willy?s entrenchment in a quagmire of lies, delusions, and self-deceptions, ignore the significant accomplishment of his partial
self-realization. Willy?s failure to recognize the anguished love offered to him by his family is crucial to the climax of his torturous day, and the play presents this incapacity as the real tragedy. Despite this failure, Willy makes the most extreme sacrifice in his attempt to leave an inheritance that will allow Biff to fulfill the American Dream.
Ben?s final mantra—“The jungle is dark, but full of diamonds”—turns Willy?s suicide into
a metaphorical moral struggle, a final skewed ambition to realize his full commercial and material capacity. His final act, according to Ben, is “not like an appointment at all” but like a “diamond . . . rough and hard to the touch.” In the absence of any real degree of
self-knowledge or truth, Willy is able to achieve a tangible result. In some respect, Willy does experience a sort of revelation, as he finally comes to understand that the product he sells is himself. Through the imaginary advice of Ben, Willy ends up fully believing his earlier
assertion to Charley that “after all the highways, and the trains, and the appointments, and
the years, you end up worth more dead than alive.”
Biff Loman: Unlike Willy and Happy, Biff feels compelled to seek the truth about himself. While his father and brother are unable to accept the miserable reality of their respective lives, Biff acknowledges his failure and eventually manages to confront it. Even the difference between his name and theirs reflects this polarity: whereas Willy and Happy
willfully and happily delude themselves, Biff bristles stiffly at self-deception. Biff?s discovery
that Willy has a mistress strips him of his faith in Willy and Willy?s ambitions for him. Consequently, Willy sees Biff as an underachiever, while Biff sees himself as trapped in Willy?s grandiose fantasies. After his epiphany in Bill Oliver?s office, Biff determines to break through the lies surrounding the Loman family in order to come to realistic terms with his own life.
Intent on revealing the simple and humble truth behind Willy?s fantasy, Biff longs for the territory (the symbolically free West) obscured by his father?s blind faith in a skewed, materialist version of the American Dream. Biff?s identity crisis is a function of his and his
father?s disillusionment, which, in order to reclaim his identity, he must expose.
Happy Loman: Happy shares none of the poetry that erupts from Biff and that is buried in Willy —he is the stunted incarnation of Willy?s worst traits and the embodiment of the lie of the happy American Dream. As such, Happy is a difficult character with whom to empathize. He is one-dimensional and static throughout the play. His empty vow to avenge Willy?s death by finally “beat[ing] this racket” provides evidence of his critical condition: for Happy, who has lived in the shadow of the inflated expectations of his brother, there is no escape from the Dream?s indoctrinated lies. Happy?s diseased condition is irreparable— he lacks even the tiniest spark of self-knowledge or capacity for self-analysis. He does share Willy?s capacity for self-delusion, trumpeting himself as the assistant buyer at his store, when, in reality, he is
only an assistant to the assistant buyer. He does not possess a hint of the latent thirst for knowledge that proves Biff?s salvation. Happy is a doomed, utterly duped figure, destined to be swallowed up by the force of blind ambition that fuels his insatiable sex drive.
E. The Scarlet Letter
Hester Prynne: Although The Scarlet Letter is about Hester Prynne, the book is not so much a consideration of her innate character as it is an examination of the forces that shape her and the transformations those forces effect. We know very little about Hester prior to her affair with Dimmesdale and her resultant public shaming. We read that she married Chillingworth although she did not love him, but we never fully understand why. The early chapters of the book suggest that, prior to her marriage, Hester was a strong-willed and impetuous young woman—she remembers her parents as loving guides who frequently had to restrain her incautious behavior. The fact that she has an affair also suggests that she once
had a passionate nature.
But it is what happens after Hester?s affair that makes her into the woman with whom the reader is familiar. Shamed and alienated from the rest of the community, Hester becomes contemplative. She speculates on human nature, social organization, and larger moral questions. Hester?s tribulations also lead her to be stoic and a freethinker. Although the narrator pretends to disapprove of Hester?s independent philosophizing, his tone indicates that he secretly admires her independence and her ideas.
Hester also becomes a kind of compassionate maternal figure as a result of her experiences. Hester moderates her tendency to be rash, for she knows that such behavior could cause her
to lose her daughter, Pearl. Hester is also maternal with respect to society: she cares for the poor and brings them food and clothing. By the novel?s end, Hester has become a protofeminist mother figure to the women of the community. The shame attached to her scarlet letter is long gone. Women recognize that her punishment stemmed in part from the town fathers? sexism, and they come to Hester seeking shelter from the sexist forces under which they themselves suffer. Throughout The Scarlet Letter Hester is portrayed as an intelligent, capable, but not necessarily extraordinary woman. It is the extraordinary circumstances shaping her that make her such an important figure.
Roger Chillingworth: As his name suggests, Roger Chillingworth is a man deficient in human warmth. His twisted, stooped, deformed shoulders mirror his distorted soul. From what the reader is told of his early years with Hester, he was a difficult husband. He ignored his wife for much of the time, yet expected her to nourish his soul with affection when he did condescend to spend time with her. Chillingworth?s decision t o assume the identity of a
“leech,” or doctor, is fitting. Unable to engage in equitable relationships with those around him, he feeds on the vitality of others as a way of energizing his own projects. Chillingworth?s death is a result of the nature of his character. After Dimmesdale dies, Chillingworth no longer has a victim. Similarly, Dimmesdale?s revelation that he is Pearl?s father removes Hester from the old man?s clutches. Having lost the objects of his revenge, the leech has no choice but to die.
Ultimately, Chillingworth represents true evil. He is associated with secular and sometimes illicit forms of knowledge, as his chemical experiments and medical practices occasionally verge on witchcraft and murder. He is interested in revenge, not justice, and he seeks the deliberate destruction of others rather than a redress of wrongs. His desire to hurt others stands in contrast to Hester and Dimmesdale?s sin, which had love, not hate, as its intent. Any harm that may have come from the young lovers? deed was unanticipated and inadvertent, whereas Chillingworth reaps deliberate harm.
美国文学史及选读试卷 Ⅰ.Each of the following statements below is followed by four alternatives. Choose the one that would best complete the statement. (60points in all, 2 for each) 1. Which of following can be said of the common features which are shared by the English and American Romanticists ? A. An increasing emphasis on the free expression of emotions. B. An increasing attention to the psychic states of their characters. C. An increasing emphasis on the desire to return to nature. D. both A and B. 2. Which of the following statements about the Romantic period in the history of American literature is NOT true? （） A. In most of the American writings of this period there was a new emphasis upon the imaginative and emotional qualities of literature. B. The writers of this period placed an increasing emphasis on the free expression of emotions and displayed an increasing attention to the psychic states of their characters. C. There was a strong tendency to exalt the individual and the common man. D. Most heroes and heroines in the writings of this period exhibited extremes of reason and nationality. 3.______ is unanimously agreed to be the summit of the American Romanticism in the history of American literature. A. New England Transcendentalism B. England Transcendentalism C. the Harlem Renaissance D. New Transcendentalism 4.Hawthorn e’s unique gift was for the creation of ______ which touch the deepest roots of man’s moral nature. A. symbolic stories B. romantic stories
The literature of colonial America John Smith 1）The1st American writer 2）作品“reports of exploration”have been de scribed as the1st distinctly American literatur e written in English,attracted Pilgrims(朝圣者) &the Puritans. 3）1608，写了封信“A true Relation of Such O ccurance&Accidents of Note as Hath Happen ed in Virginia Since the1st planting of That c olony” 4）1612，第二本书“A map of Virginia:with a Description of the Country” 5）他一共出版了八本书，公司破产以后做了向导，he sought a post as guide to the pilgrims. 1624，“General History of Virginia”讲述How the Indian princess Pocahonats Saved him. 6）他早期记录和反映的思想慢慢演变成了美国历史的基本思想，这种思想推动了美国边疆的西移。7）早期英格兰文学主要关于theological(神学), moral(道德),historical and political.
The Puritans in New England embraced hards hips,together with the discipline of a harsh church.They had toughness,purpose and cha racter,they grappled strongly with challenges they set themselves.他们的基本价值观：hard w ork,thrift,piety and sobriety.（也是美国作品的主导思想） William Bradford&John Withrop 1）William Bradford：“The History of Plymouth Plantation”（从1630年写起，关于一群清教徒从英国出发到Amsterdam最后到新大陆的过程）Cotton Mather评价：“a common blessing and father to them all.” 2）John Withrop：“The History of New England”（1630，登上Arbella号去Massachusetts并keep a journal and to the rest of his life.1826年出版）3）Puritans -Puritans wanted to make pure their religious beliefs and practices.The Puritan was Would-be purifier. -Looked upon themselves as a choosen peol
仅作参考，最主要还是要自己消化，整理 Chapter 1 Colonial Period 1. Puritanism: American puritans accepted the doctrine of predestination, original sin and total depravity, and limited atonement through a special infusion of grace from God. 2. Influence (1) A group of good qualities – hard work, thrift, piety, sobriety (serious and thoughtful) influenced American literature. (2) It led to the everlasting myth. All literature is based on a myth – garden of Eden. (3) Symbolism: the American puritan’s metaphorical mode of perception was chi efly instrumental in calling into being a literary symbolism which is distinctly American. (4) With regard to their writing, the style is fresh, simple and direct; the rhetoric is plain and honest, not without a touch of nobility often traceable to the direct influence of the Bible. II. Overview of the literature 1. types of writing diaries, histories, journals, letters, travel books, autobiographies/biographies, sermons 2. writers of colonial period (1) Anne Bradstreet (2) Edward Taylor III. Benjamin Franklin 1. life 2. works (1) Poor Richard’s Almanac (2) Autobiography 3. contribution (1) He helped found the Pennsylvania Hospital and the American Philosophical Society. (2) He was called “the new Prometheus who had stolen fire (electricity in this case) from heaven”. (3) Everything seems to meet in this one man –“Jack of all trades”. Herman Melville thus described him “master of each and mastered by none”. Chapter 2 American Romanticism Section 1 Early Romantic Period I. American Romanticism 1. Background (1) Political background and economic development (2) Romantic movement in European countries Derivative – foreign influence 2. features (1) American romanticism was in essence the expression of “a real new experience and contained “an alien quality” for the simple reason that “the spirit of the place” was radically new and alien. (2) There is American Puritanism as a cultural heritage to consider. American romantic authors tended more to moralize. Many American romantic writings intended to edify more than they entertained. (3) The “newness” of Americans as a nation is in connection with Am erican Romanticism. (4) As a logical result of the foreign and native factors at work, American romanticism was both imitative and independent. II. Washington Irving: Father of American Literature 1. several names attached to Irving (1) first American writer (2) the messenger sent from the new world to the old world (3) father of American literature 2. life 3. works (1) A History of New York from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty (2) The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. (He won a measure of international recognition with the publication of this.) (3) The History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus (4) A Chronicle of the Conquest of Granada (5) The Alhambra 4. Literary career: two parts (1) 1809~1832
1.Captain John Smith became the first American writer. 2.The puritans looked upon themselves as a chosen people. is an annual collection of proverbs written by Benjamin Franklin. 4.Thomas Paine’s famous pamphlet Common Sense boldly advocated a “Declaration for Independence”. 5.Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence with John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston.
has been called the “Father of American Poetry”. 7.In Washington I rving’s appeared the first modern short stories and the first great American juvenile literature. 8.Cooper’s enduring fame rests on his William Cullen Bryant’s wok. is considered “father of American detective stories and American gothic stories”. 10.Emerson believed above all in
Part I The Literature of Colonial America I．Historical Introduction The colonial period stretched roughly from the settlement of America in the early 17th century through the end of the 18th. The first permanent settlement in America was established by English in 1607. ( A group of people was sent by the English King James I to hunt for gold. They arrived at Virginia in 1607. They named the James River and build the James town.) II．The pre-revolutionary writing in the colonies was essentially of two kinds: 1) Practical matter-of-fact accounts of farming, hunting, travel, etc. designed to inform people "at home" what life was like in the new world, and, often, to induce their immigration 2) Highly theoretical, generally polemical, discussions of religious questions. III．The First American Writer The first writings that we call American were the narratives and journals of these settlements. They wrote about their voyage to the new land, their lives in the new land, their dealings with Indians. Captain John Smith is the first American writer. A True Relation of such Occurrences and Accidents of Note as Hath Happened in Virginia Since the First Planting of That Colony (1608) A Map of Virginia: A Description of the Country (1612) General History of Virgini a (1624): the Indian princess Pocahontas Captain John Smith was one of the first early 17th-century British settlers in North America. He was one of the founders of the colony of Jamestown, Virginia. His writings about North America became the source of information about the New World for later settlers. One of the things he wrote about that has become an American legend was his capture by the Indians and his rescue by the famous Indian Princess, Pocahontas. IV．Early New England Literature William Bradford and John Winthrop John Cotton and Roger Williams Anne Bradstreet and Edward Taylor V．Puritan Thoughts 1. The origin of puritan In the mediaeval Europe, there was widespread religious revolution. In the 16th Century, the English King Henry VIII (At that time, the Catholics were not allowed to divorce unless they have the Pope's permission. Henry VIII wanted to divorce his wife because she couldn't bear him a son. But the Pope didn't allow him to divorce, so he) broke away from the Roman Catholic Church & established the Church of
Captain John Smith (first American writer). Anne Bradstreet；The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America （colonists living） Edward Taylor(the best puritan poet) John Cotton ”the Patriarch of New England” teacher spiritual leader Benjamin Franklin The Autobiography Poor Richard’s Almanack Thomas Jefferson： Political Career Thoughts The Declaration of Independence we hold truth to be self-evidence Philip Freneau“Father of American Poetry” The Wild Honey Suckle American Romanticism optimism and hope Nationalism Washington Irving“Father of American Literature short story”The first “Pure Writer” A History of New York The Sketch Book marked the beginning of American Romanticism! “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”Rip Van Winkle James Fenimore Cooper Father of American sea and frontier novels Leather stocking Tales The Last of the Mohicans The Pioneers The Prairie The Pathfinder The Deerslayer Edgar Allan Poe father of detective story and horror fiction Tales of the Grotesque and the Arabesque “MS. Found in a Bottle” “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” “The Fall of the House of Usher”“The Masque of the Red Death”“The
Washington Irving Bracebridge Hall 布雷斯布里奇田庄 (1822) The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Tales of a Traveller 旅客谈 (1824) Christopher Columbus (1828) c. writing characteristics (1) humorous: the function of his writing is to amuse, to entertain instead of teaching or instruction (2) vivid and true character portrayal (3) finished (refined) and musical language, thus regarded as “the Amn. Goldsmith ” d. analysis on The Legend of Sleepy Hollow(选自the sketch book 见闻札记 ) 1. the story:setting,character, plot 2. theme:conflicts and praise conflict betw. Ichabod and Brom conflict betw. the village and the outside world James Fenimore Cooper The Spy (1821): a historical novel The Pilot (1824): a sea novel Leatherstocking Tales 皮裹腿故事集(1823-1841): frontier novels The Last Mohicans (1826) (Colonial War betw. Britain and France) e. writing features: strong points: we can see a variety of incidents and tensions, complicated plot and structure and a beautiful description of nature. Weak points: characterization is weak. There is unsatisfactory description of characters (esp. female). He is not free from syntactical awkwardness, heavy-handed attempt at humor. “Where Irving excels Cooper is weak.” Dialect is not authentic. Edgar Allan Poe The Fall of the House Usher Feature: i. brevity (15 pages) ii. Single effect iii. originality in theme To Helen It was inspired by the beauty of the mother of a schoolmate of Poe in Richmond, Virginia. The poem is famous for a number of things: 1. its rhyme scheme: ababb 2. its varied line lengths 3. its metaphor of a travel on the sea 4. its oft-quoted lines: "To the glory that was Greece,/And the grandeur that was Rome." theme: praise the ideal love and beauty and ancient Greek and Roman civilizations The Raven 乌鸦 theme: the lament over the death of a beautiful woman tone: melancholy Transcendentalism (essayists, poets, novelists) Their journal is “The Dial ” . Definition: Transcendentalism is idealism. (Emerson) b. features (1) stress on Oversoul, that is spirit. (2) stress the importance of individual. (3) fresh conception of nature. c. significance (1) inspired a whole generation of writers such as Whitman, Melville and Dickinson. (2) dresses man ’s subjective initiative as opposed to materialism. (3) liberated people from Calvin ’s original sin d. limitation (1) shallow: cut off from real life or reality; initiated by the rich, they were limited in a certain circle. So, in some degree, they have been cut off from social life and can ’t understand the sufferings of the common people. (2) inward contradiction: gain knowledge by intuition, shows its idealistic aspect. R.W. Emerson (Ralph Waldo) Nature (1836): the Bible of New England transcendentalism The American Scholar (1837): "America's Declaration of Intellectual The Divinity School Address 神学院致辞 (1838) Essays (1841/1847) Representative Men (1850) English Traits (1856)
美国文学史及选读试题 I. Multiple Choice 10’ 1. Who is different from others according to the division of writing period? A. Washington Irving B.William Cullen Bryant C. Captain John Smith D. James Fenimore Cooper 2. The American Romantic Period lasted roughly from ____ to ____. A. 1798-1832 B. 1810-1860 C. 1860-1864 D. 1776-1783 3. How many syllables are there in this first line of Raven? (“Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,”) A. 11 B. 12 C. 13 D. 16 4. What dominated the Puritan phase of American writing? A. theology B. literature C. esthetics D. revolution 5. At the initial period of the spread of ideas of the Enlightenment was largely due to ____. A. typography B. journalism C. revolution D. the development of paper-making industry 6. Who has been called the “Father of American Literature”? A. Walt Scott B. Geoffrey Chaucer
1、The Colonial Period（1607-1765） American Puritanism ( in the early 17th century through the end of the 18th) 北美第一位女诗人Anne Bradstreet(宗教气息，夫妻恩爱) Edward Taylor 都受英国玄学派影响（metaphysical） 2、The Enlightenment and Revolution Period Benjamin Franklin:Poor Richard's Almanac The Autobiography---“美国梦”的根源 3、American Romanticism（end of 18th to the civil war） American writers emphasis upon the imaginative and emotional qualities of literature. 早期浪漫主义Washington Irving father of American Literature
History And Anthology of American Literature （6） 附：作者及作品 一、殖民主义时期The Literature of Colonial America 1．船长约翰·史密斯Captain John Smith 《自殖民地第一次在弗吉尼亚垦荒以来发生的各种事件的真实介绍》 “A True Relation of Such Occurrences and Accidents of Note as Hath Happened in Virginia Since the First Planting of That Colony” 《弗吉尼亚地图，附：一个乡村的描述》 “A Map of Virginia: with a Description of the Country” 《弗吉尼亚通史》“General History of Virginia” 2．威廉·布拉德福德William Bradford 《普利茅斯开发历史》“The History of Plymouth Plantation”3．约翰·温思罗普John Winthrop 《新英格兰历史》“The History of New England” 4．罗杰·威廉姆斯Roger Williams 《开启美国语言的钥匙》”A Key into the Language of America” 或叫《美洲新英格兰部分土著居民语言指南》 Or “A Help to the Language of the Natives in That Part of America Called New England ” 5．安妮·布莱德斯特Anne Bradstreet 《在美洲诞生的第十个谬斯》 ”The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America” 二、理性和革命时期文学The Literature of Reason and Revolution 1。本杰明·富兰克林Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) ※《自传》“ The Autobiography ” 《穷人理查德的年鉴》“Poor Richard’s Almanac” 2。托马斯·佩因Thomas Paine (1737-1809) ※《美国危机》“The American Crisis” 《收税官的案子》“The Case of the Officers of the Excise”《常识》“Common Sense” 《人权》“Rights of Man” 《理性的时代》“The Age of Reason” 《土地公平》“Agrarian Justice” 3。托马斯·杰弗逊Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) ※《独立宣言》“The Declaration of I ndependence” 4。菲利浦·弗瑞诺Philip Freneau (1752-1832) ※《野忍冬花》“The Wild Honey Suckle” ※《印第安人的坟地》“The Indian Burying Ground” ※《致凯提·迪德》“To a Caty-Did” 《想象的力量》“The Power of Fancy” 《夜屋》“The House of Night” 《英国囚船》“The British Prison Ship” 《战争后期弗瑞诺主要诗歌集》 “The Poems of Philip Freneau Written Chiefly During the Late War” 《札记》“Miscellaneous Works” 三、浪漫主义文学The Literature of Romanticism 1。华盛顿·欧文Washington Irving (1783-1859) ※《作者自叙》“The Author’s Account of Himself” ※《睡谷传奇》“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” 《见闻札记》“Sketch Book” 《乔纳森·欧尔德斯泰尔》“Jonathan Oldstyle” 《纽约外史》“A History of New York” 《布雷斯布里奇庄园》“Bracebridge Hall” 《旅行者故事》“Tales of Traveller” 《查理二世》或《快乐君主》“Charles the Second” Or “The Merry Monarch” 《克里斯托弗·哥伦布生平及航海历史》 “A History of the Life and V oyages of Christopher Columbus” 《格拉纳达征服编年史》”A Chronicle of the Conquest of Grandada” 《哥伦布同伴航海及发现》 ”V oyages and Discoveries of the Companions of Columbus” 《阿尔罕布拉》“Alhambra” 《西班牙征服传说》“Legends of the Conquest of Spain” 《草原游记》“A Tour on the Prairies” 《阿斯托里亚》“Astoria” 《博纳维尔船长历险记》“The Adventures of Captain Bonneville” 《奥立弗·戈尔德史密斯》”Life of Oliver Goldsmith” 《乔治·华盛顿传》“Life of George Washington” 2．詹姆斯·芬尼莫·库珀James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) ※《最后的莫希干人》“The Last of the Mohicans” 《间谍》“The Spy” 《领航者》“The Pilot” 《美国海军》“U.S. Navy” 《皮袜子故事集》“Leather Stocking Tales” 包括《杀鹿者》、《探路人》”The Deerslayer”, ”The Pathfinder” 《最后的莫希干人》“The Last of the Mohicans” 《拓荒者》、《大草原》“The Pioneers”, “The Praire” 3。威廉·卡伦·布莱恩特William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878) ※《死之思考》“Thanatopsis” ※《致水鸟》“To a Waterfowl” 4。埃德加·阿伦·坡Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) ※《给海伦》“To Helen” ※《乌鸦》“The Raven” ※《安娜贝尔·李》“Annabel Lee” ※《鄂榭府崩溃记》“The Fall of the House of Usher” 《金瓶子城的方德先生》“Ms. Found in a Bottle” 《述异集》“Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque” 5。拉尔夫·沃尔多·爱默生Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) ※《论自然》“Nature” ※《论自助》“Self-Reliance” 《美国学者》“The American Scholar” 《神学院致辞》“The Divinity School Address” 《随笔集》“Essays” 《代表》“Representative Men” 《英国人》“English Traits” 《诗集》“Poems” 6。亨利·戴维·梭罗Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) ※《沃尔登我生活的地方我为何生活》 1