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《美国文学选读》第二版Selected Reading in American Literature内容简介：《美国文学选读》第二版(Selected Reading in American Literature)是高等院校英语专业教材，也可供师范校、教育学院、广播电视大学及社会上英语自学者学习使用。
本书以20世纪美国重要作家的作品为主，同时收有l8、19世纪的经典作家的作品，在体裁上兼顾小说、诗歌、戏剧与散文。
本书的序言简要介绍美国文学发展的历史、各阶段重要的文学流派及代表性作家与作品。
文部分共26个单元，每单元包括“作者简介”、“赏析”、“选文”、“注释”和“问题”等五个方面。
如果选文为长篇作的选段，每一单元后面还附有该作家的一些箴言名句。
目录：Unit 1Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)The Autobiography (Excerpt)Unit 2Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)The Cask of AmontilladoUnit 3Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)Self-Reliance (Excerpt)Unit 4Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)The Scarlet Letter-- Chapter 2Unit 5Herman Melville (1819-1891)Moby Dick -- Chapter 41Unit 6Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) Walden -- Chapter 2 (Excerpt)Unit 719th-Century American PoetsHenry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807- 1882) Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)Walt Whitman (1819-1892)Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)Unit 8Mark Twain (1835-1910)The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County Unit 9Henry James (1843-1916)The Jolly CornerUnit 10 Stephen Crane (1871-1900)The Open BoatUnit 11 Willa Cather (1873-1947)Miss JewettUnit 12 Sherwood Anderson (1876-1941)The Triumph of the EggUnit 13 Katherine Anne Porter (1890-1980)The Jilting of Granny Weatherall 143Unit 14 F.Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940)The Great Gatsby -- Chapter 9Unit 15 William Faulkner (1897-1962)Barn BurningUnit 16 Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961)A Clean, Well-Lighted PlaceUnit 1720th-Century American Poets (I)Ezra Pound (1885-1972)Wallace Stevens (1879-1955)William Carlos Williams (1883-1963)Robert Frost (1874-1963)Langston Hughes (1902-1967)Archibald MacLeish (1892-1982)Unit 18Eugene Glastone O'Neill (1888-1953) Desire Under the Elms -- Scene IVUnit 19 Elwyn Brooks White (1899-1985)Once More to the LakeUnit 20Tennessee Williams (1911-1983)A Streetcar Named DesireUnit 21Ralph Waldo Ellison (1914-1994) Invisible Man -- ChapterUnit 2220th-Century American Poets (II)Robert Lowell (1917-1977) Elizabeth Bishop (1911-1979) ……Unit 23Arthur Miller(1915- ) Unit 24Saul Bellow(1915-2005) Unit 25 Joseph Heller(1923-1999) Unit 26 Toni Morrison(1931- )。
美国文学选读知识点整理1．Benjamin Franklin(1706~1790)Poor Richard’s AlmanacThe Autobiography2．Edgar Allan Poe(1809~1849)Tamerlane and Other PoemsMurders in the Rue MorguePoemsThe Purloined LetterThe Raven and other PoemsThe Gold BugTales of the Grotesque and ArabesqueThe Philosophy of CompositionTalesThe Poetic PrincipleThe Fall of the House of UsesAl AraafThe Red Masque of the Red Death LigeiaThe Black CatThe Cask of AmontilladoAnnabel LeeSonnet--To ScienceTo Helen3．Ralph Waldo Emerson(1803~1882） Nature Self-RelianceThe American ScholarThe Divinity School AddressEssays:First SeriesEssays：Second SeriesRepresentative menEnglish TraitsThe Conduct of LifePoemsMay-Day and Other PiecesNathaniel Hawthorne(1804~1864)FanshaweTwice-told TalesMosses from an Old ManseScarlet LetterThe House of the Seven GablesThe Blithedale RomanceThe Marble Faun4．Herman Melville(1819~1891)TypeeOmooMardiRedburnWhite JacketMoby DickThe Confidence ManBattle PiecesClarelTimoleonBilly Budd5．Henry David Thoreau(1817~1862)On the Duty of Civil DisobedienceA Week on the Concord and Merrimack RiverWalden6．Henry Wadsworth Longfellow(1807~11882) V oices ofthe NightBallads and Other PoemsEvangelineThe Song of HiawathaI shot an ArrowA Psalm of Life7．Walt Whitman(1819~1892)Leaves of GrassOne’s Self I SingO Captain!My Captain8．Emily Dickinson(1830~1886)To Make a PrairieSuccess Is Counted SweetestI’m Nobody!9．Mark Twain (1835~1910)The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras CountryThe Innocents AbroadThe Gilded AgeThe Adventures of Tom SawyerLife on the MississippiThe Adventures of Hucklebeerry finnA Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court The Tragedy of Pudd’nhead WilsonThe Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg10．Henry James(1843~1916)A Passionate PilgrimRoderick HudsonThe Novels and Tales of Henry JamesThe AmericanDaisy MillerThe Portrait of a LadyThe BostoniansThe Princess of CasamassimaThe Spoils of PoyntonThe Turn of the ScrewThe Awkward AgeThe Wings of the DoveThe AmbassadorsThe Golden BowlThe Art of FictionThe American SceneThe Jolly Corner11．Stephen Crane(1871~1900)Maggie:A Girl of the StreetsThe Red Badge of CourageThe Open BoatThe Bride Comes to Y ellow SkyThe Blue Hotel12．Willa Cather(1873~1947)Miss Jewett13．Sherwood Anderson（176~1941）Windy McPherson’s SonWinesburg,OhioMarching MenPoor WhiteThe triumph of the Egg and Other StoriesHorses and MenMany MarriagesDark LaughterBeyond DesireDeath in the Woods and Other Stories14．Katherine Anne Porter（1890~1980）The Flowering JudasPale Horse,Pale RiderThe Leaning TowerThe Old OrderOld MortalityA Ship of FoolsThe Jilting of Granny Weatherall15．F.Scott Fitzgerald（1896~1940）This Side of ParadiseThe Beautiful and the DamnedFlappers and PhilosophersTales of the Jazz AgeThe Great GatsbyTender is the NightThe Crack-Up16．William Faulkner(1897~1962)The Marble FaunSoldier’s PayThe Sound and the FuryMosquitoesAs I Lay DyingLight in AugustAbsalom,AbsalomThe HamletSartorisThe T ownThe MansionBarn Burning17．Ernest Hemingway(1899~1961)In Our TimeThe Sun Also RisesA Farewell to ArmsFor Whom the Bell TollsThe Old Man and the SeaA Clean,Well-Lighted Place18．Ezra Pound(1885~1972)ExultationsPersonaeCathayCantosDes ImagistesIn a Station of the Metro19．Wallace Stevens(1879~1955)The Necessary AngelAnecdote of the Jar20．William Carlos Williams(1883~1963) Collected Later PoemsCollected Early PoemsPatersonThe Red WheelbarrowSpring and All21．Robert Frost(1874~1963)A Boy’s WillNorth of BostonNew HamphshireCollected PoemsA Further RangeA Witness TreeFire and IceStopping by Woods on a Snowy EveningThe Road Not Taken22．Langston Hughes(1902~1967)The Weary BluesFine Clothes to the JewThe Dream Keeper and Other PoemsShakespeare in HarlemDreamsMe and the MuleBorder Line23．Archibald MacLeish(1892~1982)The Happy MarriageThe Poet of EarthConquistadorCollected PoemsJ.B.Ars Poetica24．Eugene Glastone O’Neill(1888~1953) Bound East for CardiffIn The ZoneThe Long V oyage HomeThe Moon of the CaribeesEmperor JonesThe Hairy ApeThe Great God BrownStrange InterludeDesire Under the ElmsMourning Becomes ElectraThe Iceman ComethA Touch of the PoetLong Day’s Journey Into NightThe Moon for the MisbegottenHughieMore Stately Mansions25．Eiwyn Brooks White(1899~1985) Talk of the TownIs Sex NecessaryElements of StyleStuart LittleCharlotte’s WebQuo V adimus or The Case for the Bicycle One Man’s MeatThe Points of My CompassLetters of E.B,whiteEssays of E.B,whitePoems and Sketches of E.B.White Writings from The New Y orkerOnce More to the Lake 26．Tennessee Williams(1911~1983) The Glass MenagerieA Streetcar Named DesireCat On a Hot Tin RoofSummer and SmokeThe Rose TattooCamino RealOrpheus DescendingSuddenly Last SummerThe Sweet Bird of Y outhThe Night of the Lguana27．Ralph Waldo Ellison(1914~1994) Invisible ManShadow and ActGoing to the Territory28．Robert Lowell(1917~1977)Lord Weary’s CastleLife StudiesThe DolphinSkunk Hour29．Elizabeth Bishop(1911~1979)North and SouthCollected PoemsGeography IIIIn the Waiting Room30．Theodore Roethke(1908~1963）The Waking PoemsThe Collected PoemsOn the Poet and His Craft：Selected Prose 31．Allen Ginsberg（1926~1997）HowlA Supermarket in California32．Sylvia Plath（1932~1963）The ColossusArielWinter TreesThe Bell JarLetters HomePoint Shirley33．Robert Hayden （1913~1980）Frederick Douglass34．Robert Bly（1926~）The Light Around the BodyThe SixtiesDriving Through Minnesota During the Hanoi Bombing 35．Maya Angelou（1928~）Still I Rise36．Arthur Miller（1915~2005） All My SonseDeath of a SalesmanThe CrucibleA View from the BridgeAfter the FallThe Archbishop’s CellingThe Misfits37．Saul Bellow（1915~2005） Dangling manThe VictimThe Adventures of Augie MarchHenderson the Rain KingHerzogSeize the DayMr.Sammler’s PlanetHumbolt’s GiftThe Dean’s DecemberMore Die of HeartbreakThe TheftThe ActualRavelsteinMosby’s Memories and Other StoriesThe Last AnalysisLooking for Mr.Green38．Joseph Heller（1923~1999） We Bombed in New HavenSomething HappenedGood as GoldGod KnowsCatch-2239．Toni Morrison（1931~）The Bluest EyeSulaSong of SolomonTar BabyBelovedJazzParadiseLoveA MercyRecitatif40．Louise Erdrich（1954~）Love MedicineThe Beet QueenTracksThe Crown of ColumbusThe Bingo PalaceTales of Burning LoveThe Antelope WifeThe Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse The Master Butchers Singing ClubFour SoulsThe Painted DrumThe Plague of DovesShadow TagLulu’s Boys。
Answer key for Lesson 10V.CABDCVI.1.Richard Atkinson investigated the problems by personally reading the manuals and sampletests to review and assess the verbal and mathematical questions. Besides, he visited schools to find students’ responses to SAT exams.2.After the investigation, he proposed that SAT I should be scrapped. His proposal has caused ahuge stir on campuses nationwide and rekindled long-standing arguments about the test.3.The College Board argues that SAT measures the sort of higher-order math andliterary-reasoning skills that students need to succeed in college and later in life and that the test correlates well with freshman-year college grades.4.They have adopted college admission systems based in part on class is automatically admittedto state universities.5.Their worry is that it is only a matter of time before there is pressure to scrap subject-areatests and getting rid of the SAT is the first step in a wretched direction.6.SAT I refers to the tests on higher-order math and literary-reasoning skills. Many critics thinkthe questions are confusing and verbal analogies too obscure. SAT II refers to the subject-specific achievement tests which measure knowledge in such areas as writing, math, physics, history and foreign language.7.The test debate will not die down anytime soon.Answer key for Lesson 11V.B C B A DVI.1.The insurance company has refused Lorraine Hiskey’s medical bill, because the companyclaimed that her treatment was “experimental”.2.Politicians have focused attention on the 35 million Americans who have no health coverage.3.The kind of medical care deemed experimental, unproven, unnecessery or to inappropriate isdenied coverage。
第21单元拉尔夫•华尔多•埃利森21.1复习笔记I.Introduction to author（作者简介）1.Life（生平）Ralph Waldo Ellison(1914-1994)was born in Oklahoma City.From his birth, Ellison’s parents knew he was bound for prosperity.His father even named him for the great writer Ralph Waldo Emerson in an effort to ensure such success.Mrs. Ellison,a maid,would bring home books,magazines,and record albums that had been discarded in the homes she cleaned.Ellison revered and admired the musicians of his area.At Douglas High School,Ellison followed his inclination toward music.From there,he went to Tuskegee Institute on a scholarship and dreamed of writing a symphony.After there was a mix-up with his scholarship, Ellison chose to go north in order to save money for tuition.Arriving in New York, Ellison found it difficult to find work and even harder to find work as a musician. The result was a succession of odd jobs at Harlem’s YMCA with a psychiatrist.There Ellison acted as a file clerk and a receptionist,and held various other jobs around town.During this time,Ellison met the writer Richard Wright, who encouraged him to be a writer rather than a musician.From this point on, Ellison followed a life of writing in which he earned many awards.拉尔夫·华尔多·埃利森(1914—1994)出生在俄克拉荷马市。
1、Benjamin Franklin（1706-1790）本杰明·富兰克林He is the representative of the Enlightenment in America in 18th century. Humanist, statesman, writer, scientist, inventor.The Autobiography《自传》♂简析：The book is about the course of Franklin's struggle for success. It tells us the importance of being diligent. The book had a great influence on American people,and changed the destinies of many youth.It is the first America successful biographical work（传记文学）, has an important position in the history of American Literaturel.Poor Richard’s Almanac 《格言历书》♂简析：A collection of maxims （格言），or proverbs, on the value of work and savings for success.2、Edgar Allan Poe(1809-1849) 埃德加·爱伦·坡 Novelist,poet,critic.Good at writing Gothic（哥特式）and detective fiction.Father of western detective stories and psychoanalytic criticism.（扩展：文学理论建树不容忽视，影响深远。
英美文学选读自考题模拟21(总分100, 做题时间90分钟)Ⅰ.Multiple ChoiceSelect from the four choices of each item the one that best answers the question or completes the statement. Mark your choice by blackening the corresponding letter A, B, C or D on the answer sheet.1.______ is a master satirist. His satire is usually masked by an outward gravity and an apparent earnestness which renders his satire all the more powerful.SSS_SINGLE_SELA Jonathan SwiftB Daniel DefoeC Henry FieldingD Thomas Gray分值: 1答案:A[解析] 本题主要考查的知识点为斯威夫特的文学地位。
斯威夫特是讽刺作品大师，他的讽刺笔触极具力度。
2.In the Romantic Age, ______ is a great critic on Shakespeare, Elizabethan drama, and English poetry.SSS_SINGLE_SELA ByronB Jane AustenC William HazlittD William Blake分值: 1答案:C[解析] 本题主要考查的知识点为英国浪漫主义时期伟大的评论家。
在英国文学的浪漫主义时期，威廉·赫兹利特是专门评论莎士比亚、伊丽莎白戏剧及英国诗歌的伟大评论家。
3.Robert Browning who created the verse novel by adopting the novelistic presentation of characters, was among the famous ______ poet.SSS_SINGLE_SELA neoclassicalB realisticC experimentalD victorian分值: 1答案:C4.Which of the following is NOT a typical feature of Modernism?SSS_SINGLE_SELA To elevate the individual and inner being over the social being.B To put the stress on traditional values.C To portray the distorted and alienated relationships between man and his environment.D To advocate a conscious break with the past.分值: 1答案:B[解析] 本题主要考查的知识点为现代主义的典型特征。
《美国文学选读》课程教学大纲课程名称：美国文学选读课程类别：专业选修课适用专业：英语考核方式：考查总学时、学分：32学时,2 学分其中实验学时：0 学时一、课程教学目的《美国文学选读》是英语语言文学专业本科四年级学生的选修课程，是为培养理解和鉴赏美国文学原著的能力而设置的一门专业理论课程。
设置本课程旨在使学生在掌握美国文学源流和发展的基础之上，通过阅读具有代表性的美国文学作品，理解作品的内容，学会分析作品的艺术特色并努力掌握正确评价文学作品的标准和方法，增强对作品中表现的社会生活和人物感情的理解，提高语言基本功和阅读文学作品的能力和鉴赏水平。
二、课程教学要求本课程要求学生了解美国文学各个时期的代表性人物和其代表性作品。
熟悉构成不同文学体裁的基本要素,基本把握不同作家,不同流派的风格和文体特点。
对所学篇章的思想内容,文化内涵有较为深入的了解；能够识别作品中运用的各种文学修饰手段。
在主要提高阅读能力的同时,争取口头表达能力也有较大提高,特别是能用明白,准确的英语就熟悉和感兴趣的主题表达自己的观点和意见。
三、先修课程综合英语，英语阅读，英语国家概况四、课程教学重、难点1.教学重点：美国殖民地时期、理性与革命时期和浪漫主义时期的历史背景，文学流派，主要思想、主要作家作品及文学表现手法。
2.教学难点：美国殖民地时期、理性与革命时期和浪漫主义时期文学产生的历史、文化背景，文学创造的基本特征，基本主张，及其对同时代和后期美国文学的影响。
主要作家的文学创作生涯，人生观及价值观及其代表作品的主题思想、人物刻画、语言风格。
五、课程教学方法与教学手段课堂讲授和研讨相结合，教师布置学生课前对作家生平和历史背景进行研究，并向学生提供参考书目和相关网站；课堂上进行重点阅读和分析；组织课堂讨论，鼓励新视角和新思维；并通过影视、多媒体等手段辅助教学，在期中和期末布置学期论文和考查来检验教学效果。
六、课程教学内容第1章：Introduction（2课时）1．教学内容美国文学自殖民时期至第二次世界大战之后的发展纲要及作家网络。
英美文学选读要点总结精心整理3美国浪漫主义时期I). Washington Irving华盛顿.欧文11. He is regarded as Father of the American short stories.他是美国浪漫主义文学代表作家之一,美国短篇小说之父。
12. With the publication of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Irving won a measure of international fame on both sides of the Atlantic.1819年至1820年，欧文出版了《见闻札记》，该书为欧文获得了欧美两大洲的文学荣誉。
13. A History of New York---He parodies or imitates Homer.《纽约史》在多方面模仿了荷马。
14. Like the two famous personae he created, Diedrich Knickerbocker and Geoffrey Crayon, Irving remained a conservative and always exalted a disappearing past.他所创造的两个人物Diedrich Knickerbocker和Geoffrey Crayon和他一样，都停留在对过去的事情的津津乐道上。
15. We hear rather than read, for there is musicality in almost every line of his prose. We seldom learn a moral lesson because he wants us amused and relaxed.他的作品行文优美流畅，犹如音乐。
他的作品寓教于乐，给人以轻松安逸之感，如入梦境。
名词解释1. American RomanticismThe Romantic Period stretches from the end of the 18th century to the outbreak of the Civil War. I t is a period of the great flowering of American literature.浪漫主义两大主题：爱和大自然的力量The social and cultural background of Romanticism：The young Republic was flourishing into a politically, economically and culturally independent co untry.The Romantic writings revealed unique characteristics of their own in their works and they grew o n the native lands.The desire for an escape from society and a return to nature became a permanent convention of A merican literature.The American Puritanism as a caultural heritage exerted great influences over American moral val ues.Romantics frequently shared certain general characteristics: moral enthusiasm, faith invalue of ind ividualism and intuitive perception, and a presumption that the natural world was a source of good ness and man’s societies as a source of corruption1. American Transcendentalism ---Ralph Waldo Emerson 拉尔夫·华尔多·爱默生—Self-RelianceAs a philosophical and literary movement, American Transcendentalism (also known as “America n Renaissance”) flourshed in New England from the 1830s to the Civil War. It is the high tide of American romanticism and its doctrines found their greatest literary advocates in Emerson and Th oreau. Transcendentalists spoke for the cultural rejuvenation and against the materialism of Ameri can society.The major features of Transcendentalism:① The Transcendentalists placed emphasis on spirit, or the Oversoul, as the most important thing i n the universe. 思想超灵宇宙② The Transcendentalists stressed the importance of the individual. To them, the individual is the most important element of Society. 个体+社会③ The Transcendentalists offered a fresh perception of nature as symbolic of the Spirit or God. Na ture was not purely matter. It was alive, filled with God’s overwhelming presence.自然+上帝Transcendentalism(超验主义)---美国文学史p902.自由体----Walt WhitmanFree Verse---without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme.Free Verse(自由体诗歌)1>Free verse means the rhymed or unrhymed poetry composed without paying attention to conven tional rules of meter.2> free verse was originated by a group of French poets of the late 19th century.3>their purpose was to free themselves from the restrictions of formal metrical patterns and to recr eate instead the free rhythms of natural speech.4>Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass is, perhaps, the most notable example.3. Local colorism---Mark TwainTwain preferred to have his own region and people at the forefront of his stories. This particular c oncern about the local character of a region came about as “local colorism” a unique variation of American literary realism.1) Generally speaking, the writings of local colorists are concerned with the life of asmall, well-defined region or province. The characteristic setting is the isolated smalltown.2) Local colorists were consciously nostalgic historians of a vanishing way of life, recorders of a p resent that faded before their eyes. Yet for all their sentimentality, they dedicated themselves to mi nutely accurate descriptions of the life of their regions, theyworked from personal experience to record the facts of a local environment and suggested that the native life was shaped by the curious conditions of the local.3) major local colorists is Mark Twain.2. What is Local Colorism?Post-Civil War America was large and diverse(various enough to sense its own local difference. Regional voices had emerged from newly settled territories in the South and to the west of the Appalachan. Local colorism is a unique variation of the American literary realism. Generally, the works by local colorists are concerned with the life of a small, well-defined region. This kind of fiction depicts the characters from a specified setting or of an era, which are marked by its customs, dialects, landscape, or other peculiarities that have escaped standardizing cultural influence.4.Psychological Realism 心理现实主义 --- Henry JamesIt is the realistic writing that probes deeply into the complexities of characters’ thoughts and motiv ations. And Henry James is considered the founder of psychological realism. He believed that reali ty lies in the impressions made by life on the spectator, and not in any facts of which the spectator is unaware. Such realism is therefore merely the obligation that the artist assumes to represent life as he sees it.5. What is the Lost Generation?The Lost Generation refers to the disillusioned(awaken) intellectuals and artists of the years following the First World War, who rebelled against former ideals and values but could replace them only by despair of a cynical bedonism. The remark of Gertrude Stein, “You are a lost generation,” addressed to Hemingway, was used as a preface to the latter’s novel The Sun also Rises, which brilliantly describes those expatriates(yimin) who had cut themselves off from their past in America in order to create new types of writing.American DreamIn the United States’ Declaration of Independence, our founding fathers:held certaintruths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed bytheir Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, Liberty andthe Pursuit of Happiness.6.Iceberg Principle (Theory):冰山法则 --- Ernest HemingwayThe dignity of movement of the iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it being abovewater.Typical of this "iceberg" analogy is Hemingway's style, which he had been trying hard to get. Acc ording to Hemingway, good literary writing should be able to make readers feel the emotion of the characters directly and the best way to produce the effect isto set down exactly every particular kind of feeling without any authorial comments,without conventionally emotive language, and with a bare minimum of adjectives and adverbs. Seemingly simple and natural, Hemingway's style is actually polished and tightly controlled, but h ighly suggestive and connotative. While rendering vividly the outward physical events and sensati ons Hemingway expresses the meaning of the story and conveys the complex emotions of his char acters with a considerable range and astonishing intensity of feeling.8.What is “stream-of-consciousness”?Stream of consciousness is a term coined by William James to describe the flow of thoughts of the waking mind. Now it is widely used in a literary context to describe the unspoken thoughts and feelings of the characters, without resorting to objective description or conventional dialogue. It was adapted and developed by Joyce, V. Woolf, and others. The ability to represent the flux of a character’s thought, impressions, emotions, or reminiscences, often without logical sequence or syntax, marked a revolution in the form of novel at that time.8. What are the thematic concerns and the artistic characteristics of Emily Dickinson’s po etry? Emily Dickinson is America’s best-known female poet. Her poetry covers the issues vital to humanity, which include religion, death, immortality, love, and nature. Her poems have no titles, hence are always quoted by their first lines. In her poetry, there is a particular stress pattern, in which dashes are used as a musical device to create cadence and capital letters as a means of emphasis. A master of imagery that makes the spiritual materialize in surprising ways, Dickinson managed manifold variations within her simple form. Due to her deliberate seclusion, her poems tend to be very personal and meditative. Dickinson’s poetry, despite its ostensible obvious formal simplicity, is remarkable for its variety, subtlety and richness; and her limited private world have never confined the limitless power of her creativity and imagination.11. What are the stylistic features of Hemingway’s novels?Hemingway’s novels are mainly concerned with “tough” people, known for theHemingway hero of athletic prowess (weili) and masculinity (male) and unyielding (never give up) heroism, whose essential courage and honesty are implicitly (implied) contrasted with the brutality of civilized society. He deals with a limited range of chatacters in quite similar circumstance and measures them against an unvarying code, known as “grace under pressure”, which is actually an attitude towards life that Hemingway had been trying to demonstrate in his works. In the general situation of his novels, life is but a losing battle; however, it is also a struggle man can demonstrate in such a way that loss becomes dignity; man can be physically destroyed but never defeated spiritually.Hemingway once said, “The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it being above water.” Typical of this “iceberg” analogy is Hemingway’s style: Hemingway’s economical writing style often seems simple, but his method is calculated. In his writing, Hemingway provided detached descriptions of action, using simple nouns and verbs to capture scenes precisely. By doing so he avoided describing his character’s emotions and thoughts directly. Hemingway was deeply concerned with authenticity in writing. Besides, Hemingway develops thestyle of colloquialism initiatied by Mark Twain. The accents and mannerisms (special habit) of human speech are well presented, and the use of short, simple words and sentences has an effect of clearness, terseness and great care.12. What is the theme and the major character in F.S. Fitzgerald’s Th e Great Gatsby? Considered as Fitzgerald’s finest work, The Great Gatsby, written in crisp, concise prose and told by Nick Carraway, a satiric yet sympathetic narrator, it is the story of Jay Gatsby, a young American from the Midwest. Gatsby becomes a bootlegger in order to attain the wealth and lavish way of life he feels are necessary to win the love of Daisy, a married, upper-class woman who had once rejected him. The story ends tragically with Gatsby’s destruction. The book deals with the bankruptcy of the protagonists’ personal dreams due to the clashes between their romantic vision of life and the sordid reality. The hero of the novel, Gatsby, is the last of romantic heroes, whose energy and sense of commitment takes him in search of his person grail. Gatsby’s failure magnifies to a great extent the end of the American dream. The protagonist’s pursuit of his dream only proves to be nothing but an illusion. Nevertheless, the affirmation of hope and expectation is self-asserted in the characters.13. Wh at is Robert Frost’s nature poem?Robert Frost, American poet, known for his verse concerning New England life. He learned the familiar conventions of nature poetry from his predecessors, and made the colloquial New England speech into a poetic expression.A poem so conceived thus becomes a symbol or metaphor, a careful, loving exploration of reality. Images or symbols in his poems are drawn from the simple country life. However, profound ideas are delivered under the disguise of the plain language and the simple form, for what Frost did is to take symbols from the limited human world and the pastoral landscape to refer to the great world beyond the rustic scene. These thematic concerns include the terror and tragedy in nature, as well as its beauty, and the loneliness and poverty of the isolated human being. In short, the nature poems demonstrate Frost’s love of life and his belief in a serenity that comes from the common experience.Ps.The Colonial Period and the Revolution PeriodAmerican PuritanismAnne BradstreetEdward TaylorPhilip FreneauBenjamin Franklin。
