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亨利·菲尔丁小说《弃儿汤姆·琼斯史》的创作理念与艺术特色作者：张威来源：《名作欣赏·评论版》 2018年第7期摘要：18世纪英国启蒙主义小说家、戏剧家亨利·菲尔丁的代表作《弃儿汤姆·琼斯史》深刻诠释了他的社会观和人性观。
菲尔丁以独特的全视角第三人称叙事展开故事，采用幽默、讽刺的现实主义手法刻画“真实的人性”,以主人公汤姆的身世之谜和他与苏菲亚曲折的爱情抗争经历为主线，描绘社会生活百态，赞扬劳动人民的纯朴善良，抨击封建观念和上流社会的伪善庸俗，并希冀通过文学作品的教化功能提升人们的道德水平，以达到社会和谐。
寓教于乐、寓庄于谐，启迪心智、发人深思。
《弃儿汤姆·琼斯史》的写作技巧和表现手法完美体现了菲尔丁的文学创作理念。
关键词：启蒙主义社会观人性观全视角叙事现实主义手法《弃儿汤姆·琼斯史》是18世纪英国小说家、戏剧家亨利·菲尔丁最具影响力的杰作，是他对“散文滑稽史诗”这种新的小说创作风格的大胆尝试。
亨利·菲尔丁是18世纪英国启蒙运动的代表人物之一，是英国第一个用完整的小说理论来指导创作实践的作家，被历史小说家沃尔特·司各特称为“英国小说之父”。
他的这部“滑稽史诗”，以篇幅宏大、结构严谨、布局精巧、写实生动闻名于世，被誉为“英国小说的鼻祖”。
一、《弃儿汤姆·琼斯史》的情节梗概小说《弃儿汤姆·琼斯史》洋洋洒洒18卷，分为乡间生活、路上见闻及伦敦奇遇三个部分，每个部分6卷。
小说第一部分以偏僻的外省乡间为背景，以两个乡绅奥尔华绥和魏斯顿的家庭生活为中心展开故事：乡绅奥尔华绥是个善良富有、受人尊敬的长者，妻子早逝，他的妹妹伯里琪和他同住在一起。
有一天，他去伦敦办事归来，发现自己家中有一个弃婴，乡绅奥尔华绥便把他收为养子，取名汤姆·琼斯。
汤姆为人坦诚、慷慨正直、活泼开朗、孝顺养父，但冲动鲁莽、随性不羁。
英国文学7个时期英国文学发端于中世纪，经历了古英语、中古英语、文艺复兴、17世纪、18世纪、19世纪、20世纪文学7个时期，取得了举世瞩目的成就。
古英语文学英国在10世纪以前属于古英语时期，早期的凯尔特等部族及5世纪入侵的盎格鲁初都没有留下书面文学。
6世纪末到7世纪末，由于肯特国王阿瑟尔伯特皈依基督教，该教僧侣开始以拉丁文著书写诗，其中以比德所著《英国人民宗教史》最有历史和文学价值。
9世纪，威塞克斯国王阿尔弗雷德为振兴文化，组织人力将各种拉丁文著作译成英语，并倡导以英语撰写《盎格鲁-撒克逊编年史》，其中包括有关盎格鲁-撒克逊和朱特人的英雄史诗《贝奥武甫》和《朱迪斯》，以及一些抒情诗、方言诗、谜语和宗教诗、宗教记述文、布道词。
中古英语文学11世纪，随着诺曼人入侵，古英语渐渐演化为中古英语，文学上开始流行模仿法国的韵文体骑士传奇，其中以《高文骑士与绿衣骑士》最有艺术价值。
14世纪后半叶是中古英语发展的高峰，出现了似受古英语诗影响的口头韵体诗，最有名的长诗《农夫彼尔斯的幻想》，一般认为是教会人员朗兰德所写，以中世纪梦幻故事的形式探讨人间善恶，讽刺社会丑行，表达对贫苦农民的深切同情。
此时期国王查理第二当政，宫廷开始用盎格鲁-诺曼法语，王室贵族兴起赞助文人之风。
英国文学史上出现的第一位大诗人乔叟以其诗体短篇小说集《坎特伯雷故事集》和其他长短诗集成为英国文学的重要奠基人。
15世纪，有民间歌谣抄本流传至今，最有名的是关于绿林好汉罗宾汉的传说；马洛礼的散文小说《亚瑟王之死》为英国小说的雏形。
文艺复兴时期文学16世纪中叶至17世纪初主要是伊丽莎白女王时代，英国开始文艺复兴运动。
学者纷纷翻译意大利和法国学术、文学名著并自行著述，以托马斯·莫尔（1477～1535)的《乌托邦》最有价值。
英国文艺复兴文学最突出的是诗歌和戏剧。
西德尼(1554～1586)的十四行诗、斯宾塞的《仙后》都是诗歌方面的代表作。
在剧本中运用重韵体诗的文体，促使诗歌和戏剧两方面都达到空前的成就。
十八世纪英国文学的分类十八世纪是英国文学的黄金时期，这一时期涌现出了许多杰出的作家和作品。
这些作品被广泛地分为几类，如小说、诗歌、戏剧等。
以下是对十八世纪英国文学的分类的探究。
一、小说在十八世纪，小说成为了最为流行的文学形式。
小说包含了丰富的内容和不同的风格。
其中，浪漫小说和现实主义小说是最为流行的两种类型。
浪漫小说通常描写一些奇异的事件和情节，其中最著名的作品是简·奥斯汀的《傲慢与偏见》和《理智与情感》。
这些小说通常描写了一个女性主角的故事，她在不同的环境中经历了各种各样的情感和爱情。
现实主义小说则更加注重现实生活中的事件和情节，其中最著名的作品是丹尼尔·笛福的《鲁滨逊漂流记》。
这些小说通常描写了一个男性主角的故事，他在不同的环境中经历了各种各样的挑战和困境。
二、诗歌十八世纪的诗歌涵盖了许多不同的流派，包括浪漫主义、启蒙主义和古典主义。
其中最著名的作品是威廉·华兹华斯的《悼念诗》和约翰·基茨的《抒情诗集》。
浪漫主义诗歌通常描写一些浪漫和情感的主题，如爱情、自然和宗教。
这些诗歌通常使用比喻和象征来表达作者的情感和思想。
启蒙主义诗歌则更加注重理性和科学的主题，如自然、人类和社会。
这些诗歌通常使用清晰和明确的语言来表达作者的观点和思想。
古典主义诗歌则更加注重传统和历史的主题，如希腊和罗马神话。
这些诗歌通常使用优美和华丽的语言来表达作者的情感和思想。
三、戏剧十八世纪的戏剧涵盖了许多不同的类型，包括喜剧、悲剧和历史剧。
其中最著名的作品是威廉·莎士比亚的《哈姆雷特》和奥利弗·戈德史密斯的《船长》。
喜剧通常描写一些轻松和幽默的主题，如爱情和友谊。
这些戏剧通常使用滑稽和夸张的手法来吸引观众的注意力。
悲剧则更加注重人性的悲剧和悲惨的结局，如爱情和家庭。
这些戏剧通常使用严肃和深刻的手法来表达作者的情感和思想。
历史剧则更加注重历史和政治的主题，如战争和国家。
英国文学的发展及其代表作品引言英国文学是世界文学中一个极其重要的组成部分，具有悠久而辉煌的历史。
本文将探讨英国文学的发展历程，并介绍一些代表性的英国文学作品。
古代英国文学1.安格鲁-撒克逊时期（5世纪至11世纪）•凯尔特传统和民间故事•赫鲁晓斯史诗《贝奥武夫》2.中世纪文学（11世纪至15世纪）•亚瑟王传说（如马拉里《亚瑟王与圆桌骑士》）•杰弗里·乔叟的《坎特伯雷故事集》文艺复兴时期1.伊丽莎白时代（16世纪末至17世纪初）•威廉·莎士比亚的戏剧作品（如《哈姆雷特》、《罗密欧与朱丽叶》）•约翰·密尔顿的史诗作品《失乐园》2.马洛里时代（17世纪中期至18世纪初）•约翰·邓恩的诗集《鸟》•亚历山大·蒲柏的散文作品浪漫主义和维多利亚时代1.浪漫主义（18世纪末至19世纪初）•威廉·华兹华斯和塞缪尔·泰勒·柯勒律治的诗歌作品•简·奥斯汀的小说《傲慢与偏见》2.维多利亚时代（19世纪中期至20世纪初）•查尔斯·狄更斯的小说作品（如《雾都孤儿》、《双城记》）•奥斯卡·王尔德的戏剧作品（如《道林·格雷的画像》）现代英国文学1.20世纪早期•维吉尼亚·伍尔夫的小说《到灯塔去》•T.S.艾略特的诗歌集《荒原》2.当代文学•伊恩·麦克尤恩的小说作品（如《失落之城》、《英国病人》）•玛格丽特·阿特伍德的小说作品（如《使女的故事》）结论英国文学在各个时期都有着令人惊叹的成就，塑造了世界文学的重要角色。
从古代传统到现代创新，英国文学将继续为我们带来无尽的享受和启发。
注：以上只是一些代表性的英国文学作品，因篇幅限制未能详尽涵盖全部作品。
The Neoclassical Period （18th century）Definitions of literary terms英语081班汪志超51011080951) The Enlightenment MovementThe 18th-century England is known as the Age of Enlightenment or the Age of Reason.The Enlightenment Movement was a progressive intellectual movement which flourished in France & swept through the whole Western Europe at the time. The movement was a furtherance of the Renaissance of the 15th & 16th centuries. Its purpose was to enlighten the whole world with the light of modem philosophical & artistic ideas. The enlighteners celebrated reason or rationality, equality & science. They called for a reference to order, reason & rules & advocated universal education. Famous among the great enlighteners in England were those great writers like John Dryden, Alexander pope & so on.2) NeoclassicismIn England, neoclassicism is initiated by John Dryden, culminated in Alexander Pope and continued by Samuel Johnson. It was a reaction against the fire of passions that blazed in the later Renaissance. It found its literary artistic model in the classical literature of ancient Greek and Latin authors, such as Homer, Virgil, Horace. The neoclassicists have their artistic ideas: order, logic, symmetry, restraint, accuracy, good taste, good sense, decorum and so on. In drama, they follow the Three Unities closely.1Richard Steele(1672-1729) and Joseph Addison(1672-1719)The Tatler ; The Spectator (the earliest periodicals)2Samuel Johnson（1709-1784）Samuel Johnson, commonly called Dr. Johnson, was one of the greatest figures of 18th-century English literature. He was the last great neoclassicist enlightener in the late 18th century. He had a hand in all the different branches of literary activities. He was a poet, dramatist, prose romancer, biographer, essayist, critic, lexicographer & publicist.His major works :poems: "London", & "The vanity of Human Wishes"a romance: The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia ;a tragedy: Irenehundreds of essays in the two periodicals :The Rambler & The Idler;English dictionary :A Dictionary of the English Language传记文学双星：Life of Johnson by James Boswell,The Life of Charlotte Bronte by Elizabeth Cleghon Gaskell3Alexander pope（1688-1744）poetPope is one of the fore-most satirists in world literature as well as a great poet. Pope's mock-heroic poem The Rape of the Lock is one of the finest examples of English comic verse. As a representative of the Enlightenment, Pope was one of the first to introduce rationalism to England. He was the greatest poet of his time.His major works1). The Rape of the LockA delightful burlesque of epic poetry, it ridicules the manners of the English nobility. The poem isbased on an actual incident in which a young nobleman stole a lock of a lady's hair.2) An Essay on CriticismHis first important work, An Essay on Criticism was a long didactic poem in heroic couplets. In this work, he reflected the neo-classical spirit of the times by advocating good taste, common sense & the adherence to classical rules in writing & criticism. The whole poem is written in a plain style, hardly containing any imagery or eloquence &therefore makes easy reading.3）The DunciadGenerally considered Pope's best satiric work, The Dunciad goes deep in meaning & works at many levels. Its satire is directed at Dullness in general, & in the course of it all the literary men of the age. Poets mainly who had made Pope's enemies, are held up to ridicule. But the poem is not confined to personal attack. Dullness as reflected in the corruptness of government, social morals, education & even religion, is expertly exposed & satirized.The Realistic Novel:The mid-century was, however, predominated by a newly rising literary form, the modern English novel, which, contrary to the traditional romance of aristocrats, gives a realistic presentation of life of the common English people. This-the most significant phenomenon in the history of the development of English literature in the eighteenth century - is a natural product of the Industrial Revolution & a symbol of the growing importance & strength of the English of the growing importance & strength of the English middle class, Among the pioneers were Daniel Defoe ,Samuel Richardson, Henry Fielding, Laurence Sterne, Tobias George Smollett, & Oliver Goldsmith.1Daniel Defoe(1660-1731)He acquired a pure naked English—smooth, easy, almost colloquial. Yet never coarse. He loved short, crisp, plain sentences. There is nothing artificial in his language; it is really common English.作品：1）Pamphlet: The Trueborn Englishman—A Satire.(It contained a caustic exposure of the aristocracy and the tyranny of the church.)2)Novels:Robinson Crusoe(The character of Robinson Crusoe is representative of the English bourgeoisie atthe earlier stage of its development.); Captain Singleton; Moll Flanders; Colonel Jacque2Jonathan Swift (1667-1745)He is an Irish. Swift is one of the greatest masters of English prose. His language is simple, clear and vigorous. He said, “Proper words in proper places, makes the true definition of a style.” Swift is a master of satirist, and his irony is deadly. But his satire is masked by an outward gravity, and an apparent calmness conceals his bitter irony. This makes his satire all the more powerful, as shown in his Modest Proposal.作品：1）Two stories: A Tale of a Tub; The Battle of the Books(The two stories made him well-known as a satirist.)2) Novel:Gulliver’s Travels3) Pamphlets :The Drapier’s Letters; A Modest Proposal(Swift’s pamphlets in Ireland form avery important part of his works.)3Samuel Richardson(1689-1761)His main achievement as a novelist lies in his technique to show characters as personalities. Psychological analysis.作品：Pamela (The story is a told in a series of letters from the heroine, Pamela Andrews.书信体小说);Clarissa; Sir Charles Grandison.Pamela was a new thing in three ways:Firstly, it discarded the “improbable and marvellous”accomplishment of the former heroic romances, and pictured the life and love of ordinary people.Secondly, its intension was to afford not merely entertainment but also moral instruction. Thirdly, it described not only the sayings and doings of the characters but also their secret thoughts and feelings. It was, in fact, the first English psycho-analytical novel.4Henry Fielding(1707-1754)1)简介：As a novelist, Fielding is very great. He is the founder of the English realistic novel and sets up the theory of realism in literary.“Nature herself,” i.e., the exact observation and study of real life, was the basis of Fielding’s work. Byron, in a famous phrase, called Fielding “the prose Homer of Human Nature”. Fielding established once for all the form of the modern novel. His importance in the history of the novel is unique. He has been rightly call the “father of the English novel”.2）作品：Novels:①Joseph Andrews ②Jonathan Wild ③Tom Jones(流浪汉小说) ④AmeliaPicaresque Novel(流浪汉小说)is a popular sub-genre of prose fiction, which is usually satirical and depict in realistic and humorous details the adventures of a roguish hero of low social class, who lives by his or her wits in a corrupt society. The characteristic of it is loosely linked episodes, intrigue fights and adventures. The style of this novel originated in Spain and flourished in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries, and continued to influence modern literature. In England, Tobias Smollett’s works, Daniel Defoe’s “Moll Flanders”, Fielding’s “Tom Jones”, and Charles Dickens’“Pickwick Papers” are considered to be picaresque novels. In modern America, Sawl Bellow’s “Adventure of Augie March”, Jack Kerouac’s “Dharma Bums” can be called picaresque novels. The Chinese “Journey to the Wrest” is considered to has considerable elements of picaresque.3）Some Features of Fielding’s Novels①Fielding’s method of Relating a Story: told directly by the author.②Satire in Fielding’s Novels. Satire sounds everywhere in Fielding’s works.③Fielding believed in the educational function of the novel.④Style. Fielding is a master of style. His style is easy, unlaboured and familiar, but extremely vivid and vigorous.5Tobias Smollett(1721-1771)He is a Scottish. He belonged to the realistic school.作品：Roderick Random, Peregrine Pickle, Humphry Clinker, History of England.6Laurence Sterne(1713-1768)He is a novelist of the sentimentalist school. He was born in Ireland.A Sentimental Journey.The drama of the 18th century was extensive, but very little of it has permanent or acting value. Only two men, Goldsmith and Sheridan, produced works which are of high literary quality and which are still remain their interest upon the stage.1Oliver Goldsmith(1730-1774)Goldsmith was a poet, novelist, dramatist and essayist, all combined in one person. He was born in Ireland.Comedies: The Good-Natured Man, She Stoops to Conquer2、Richard Brinsley Sheridan(1751-1816)was, like Goldsmith, an Irishman. His literary fame rests almost exclusively uponhis dramas. His dramas are sufficient to maintain his reputation as one of the most brilliant of English writers of Comedy.戏剧作品：①The Rivals, ②The School for Scandal（It gives a brilliant portrayal and a biting satire ofIn the first half of the 18 century, Pope was the leader of English poetry and the heroic couplet the fashion of poetry. But the middle of the century, however, sentimentalism gradually made its appearance.The appearance and development of sentimentalist poetry marks the midway in the transition from classicism to its opposite, Romanticism, in English poetry.Sentimentalism : It is a literary current started in the middle of 18th century. It is a part of the Pre-Romantic trend as reaction against the cold, logic rationalism that dominated people’s life and writing since the last decade of the 17th century. It appeared to sentiment as a means of achieving happiness and social justice. They believed that the effective emotions were the evidence of kindness and goodness. A ready sympathy and an inward pain for the misery of others became part of accepted social morality and ethics. Their words reveal a purely emotional approach to life on the part of the narrator. They formed the contrast of rationally composed novel. The most outstanding figure of this school was Laurence Stern who composed “Tristram Shandy”and “Sentimental Journey through France to Italy”. Samuel Richardson’s work also belong to this school because he used a lot of psychological analysis. Oliver Goldsmith’s work, especially “The Vicar of Wakefield”is of this time. Thomas Gray, a member of Graveyard school is a member of sentimental school, because Graveyard School is part of Sentimental School.1Laurence Sterne(1713-1768)He is a novelist of the sentimentalist school. He was born in Ireland.作品：Tristram Shandy, A Sentimental Journey.2Thomas Gray(1716-1771):作品：Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard. （This is a poem full of the gentle melancholy which marks all early romantic poetry.）Graveyard School: is a term applied to the 18th century poets who wrote melancholy, reflective works, often set in graveyard, on the theme of human morality. The dominant imageries are graveyard, death and darkness. They are part of Sentimental School in the 18th century literature. Thomas Gray’s “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” was the best known example for the time.Elegy: It is an ancient form of writing. Its tradition can be traced back to Greek. It is a kind of war song, the song that eulogizes the warring spirit, especially to celebrate the victory of the war and to lament upon the dead. Later, thiswriting is used for lamentation over one’s loss, one’s complaint, one’s unhappiness or things like that. In France, people sometimes use elegy for love lyric.3Oliver Goldsmith(1730-1774)Goldsmith was a poet, novelist, dramatist and essayist, all combined in one person. He was born in Ireland.作品：⑴Poems:①The Traveller is based on Goldsmith’s personal observation during his European wanderings. He came to the conclusion that human happiness depends less on political institution than onour own minds.②The Deserted Village is Goldsmith’s best poem. It contains some charmingdescriptions of village life. He marks the depopulation in the countryside owing to the inroads ofmonopolizing riches.⑵Novel: The Vicar of Wakefield. His novel appeals to human sentiment as a means of achieving happinessand social justice. That is why he is acknowledged to be one of the representatives of English sentimentalism.⑶Comedies: The Good-Natured Man, She Stoops to Conquer⑷Essays: The Citizen of the World.Goldsmith’s place as one of the greatest English essayists is mainlyIn the latter half of the 18century, a new literary monument arose in Europe, called the Romantic Revival. In England, this movement showed itself in the trend of Pre-Romanticism in poetry, which was ushered by Percy, Macpherson and Chatterton, and represented by Blake and Burns,the two greatest romantic poets of the 18th century.Pre-Romanticism:It rose as a reaction against enlightenment and neoclassicism, especially against reasons advocated by them. It originated by conservative groups men of letters and rose in the latter half of 18th century. The representatives are Thomas Gray, William Blake and Robert Burns.1William Blake(1757-1827)①The earliest of the major English Romantic poets.②Like Shelley, Blake strongly criticized the capitalists' cruel exploitation, saying that the "dark satanic mills left menunemployed, killed children & forced prostitution."③From childhood, Blake had a strongly visual mind; whatever he imagined, he also saw. As an imaginative poet, hepresents his view in visual images instead of abstract terms. " I know that This world is a world of IMAGINATION & Vision," & that "The Nature of my work is visionary or imaginative."④Blake writes his poems in plain & direct language.works：①The Songs of Innocence is a lovely volume of poems, presenting a happy & innocent world,though not without its evils & sufferings.②The Songs of Experience paints a different world, a world of misery, poverty, disease, war &repression with a melancholy tone.③Marriage of Heaven & Hell marks his entry into maturity.④The Book of Urizen, The Book of Los，The Four Zoas，Milton2、Robert Burns(1759-1796)He is the greatest of Scottish poets. He devoted all his free time to collecting, editing, restoring and imitating traditional Scottish songs, or writing verses of his own to traditional tunes.works：①Burns is remembered mainly for his songs written in the Scottish dialect on a variety of subjects.②Numerous are Burns’ songs of love and friendship. A Red, Red Rose③Bruce at Bannockburn is a typical song of patriotism.⑤The Tree of Liberty and A Revolutionary Lyric are the poems on the theme of revolution.⑥The Toadeater is a piece of bitter satire.⑦The Jolly Beggars is characterized by humour and lightheartedness.。
18世纪英国文学分类
1. 小说：其中包括著名的作品如《傲慢与偏见》、《苔丝》、《艾玛》等。
2. 诗歌：其中最有代表性的诗人是威廉·华兹华斯和塞缪尔·泰勒·柯勒律治。
3. 散文：主要包括评论文章、哲学、政治和宗教论著等。
4. 戏剧：其中代表作品有奥斯丁的《诺桑觉寺》、谢里登的《学校奶油》。
5. 游记：以詹姆斯·库克的《太平洋航行日记》最为著名。
6. 儿童文学：其中代表作品有路易萨·梅·阿尔科特的《小公主》和爱丽丝·福尔曼的《爱丽丝漫游奇境记》。
7. 教科书：由于普及教育的需要，18世纪英国出现了一批教科书，包括语法、词典、百科全书等。
十八世纪末的美国革命标志着英国的第一帝国瓦解和新的日不落帝国的产生，英国的殖民发展目标向东方发展，澳大利亚和新西兰被开发，印度的扩张一方面因七年战争而加大，另一方面由于美国的独立，东方也成为了新的货物输出重心。
由此英国的殖民主义面向了全世界范围。
由于七年战争和拿破仑战争在海上的成功，以及美国独立后对于海洋权利的妥协，使得英国最终成为了长达200年的海上霸主。
而正如以后的海权论所认为的'rules the waves, rules the world.‘帝国开始进入全盛时期。
在国内，工业革命在无形而有序的进行着，工场的工业化使得英国的生产力大为提高，中产阶级和相应的文化相对快速的发展。
新的工业化城市不断发展，但没有受到良好的管制，以至于产生了大量城市化的恶果，而这解决的方式也是在后来才不断的得出。
政治方面，由于新旧贵族和商业资本主义的相互斗争，使得英国的宪政（没有实质的宪法）不断改革，在接连不断的相互对抗的法案中，双方势力产生了相应的均衡，而实质的结果需到威灵顿议会改革案改变贿选造成的不利。
另一方面，由于福音派和克拉彭联盟的不断坚持，议会在1833年最终敲定废奴法案。
THE RESTORA TION AND EIGHTEENTHCENTURY ENGLISH LITERA TURE（1660～1789）1642年，英国资产阶级革命后的20年里，英国政局动荡，战火连绵不断。
以克伦威尔（Oliver Cromwell,1599～1658）为代表的资产阶级极权统治未能平息统治阶层内部及统治阶级与劳动人民之间的矛盾。
克伦威尔斯后，斯图亚特王朝卷土重来，查理二世（Charles Ⅱ,1630～1685）于1660年登上王位，这就是“王政复辟”（The Restoration,1660～1688）。
这个时期天灾人祸接踵而来：大批共和派人士被屠杀，1665年的瘟疫和1666年的大火使伦敦变成一片废墟。
1688年英国爆发了“光荣革命”（The Glorious Revolution），以阻止国王实行君主专制统治。
英国小说发展的历史轨迹在人类文学的大花园中，似乎有一共同现象：小说作为一种散文形式的叙事文学品种，总是晚于诗歌与戏剧而产生，并且是在吸取了诗歌与戏剧养料的基础上生长发育起来的，但后来则青出于蓝而胜于蓝，其影响远远超过了前两者，成为各时代文学气候的主宰者。
英国的小说也是如此。
在英国的诗歌与戏剧已经硕果盈枝的文艺复兴时期，小说仅是“小荷才露尖尖角”。
英国小说是伴随着英国近代史的步伐走过来的，或者说是伴随着英国社会的现代化步伐走过来的，是现代化的历史产物。
一、发生雏形期文艺复兴至17世纪，是英国小说的发端期，是小说这种文学样式的雏形阶段，也可以说是韵文叙事文学向散文叙事文学转型的时期。
英雄史诗和骑士叙事诗（骑士传奇）与雏形期小说的血缘关系最近。
中世纪盎格鲁.撒克逊人（the Anglo--Saxons）的英雄史诗《背奥武甫》（Beowulf）和关于亚瑟王圆桌骑士的骑士叙事诗，在传奇故事的叙述中表达着人的现实思想、情感与愿望，其中的故事性与现实性及叙事技巧对英国小说的产生起着最直接的催化作用。
文艺复兴初期杰弗里.乔叟（Geoffrey Chaucer,1340--1400)的《坎特伯雷故事》（The Canterbury Tales,1362--1400)以诗歌的形式叙述现实中的人的故事，展示现实的生活画面，塑造生活中的人物形象，表达诗人个人的生活体验。
这比英雄史诗与骑士传奇更接近了小说，更具有真实感。
它可以说是一部诗体的长篇小说。
这里，诗与小说仅仅只是韵文与散文之间的一步之隔。
在英国文学史上，完成诗与小说、韵文与散文这一历史转换的是16世纪文艺复兴时期“大学才子派”作家约翰.黎里（John Lyly,1554?--1606）、菲利普.锡德尼（Philip Sidney,1554--1586）、罗伯特.格林（RobertGreene,1558--1592）、托马斯.纳什尔(Thomas Nashe,1567--1601)等。
