英国文学2——精选推荐

英国⽂学2

Part One Anglo-Saxon Literature（⼤约450- 1066）Anglo-Saxon literature, that is, the Old English literature，is almost

exclusively a verse（韵⽂）literature in oral form. It could be passed down by word of mouth from generation to generation.

Its creators for the most part are unknown. It was only given a written form long after its composition. There were two groups

of English poetry in Anglo-Saxon period. The first group was the pagan (⾮宗教的)poetry represented by Beowulf [bew?lf]

（《贝奥武甫》它被认为是英国的民族史诗。《贝奥武甫》讲述主⼈公贝奥武甫斩妖除魔，与⽕龙搏⽃的故事，具有神话⾊

彩。）课下⽹上欣赏电影“Beowulf” （⼥主⾓：安吉丽娜·朱莉）或《贝奥武夫与怪兽格兰戴尔》。

The second was the religious poetry represented by the works of Caedmon （凯德蒙，公元7世纪盎格鲁-撒克逊基督教诗

⼈）and Cynewulf [K]（基涅武甫，盎格鲁-撒克逊诗⼈，⽣活在公元9世纪，其古英语诗稿于10世纪被发现，有《埃琳娜》、

《使徒的命运》、《基督升天》和《朱莉安娜》等）.In the 8th century, Anglo-Saxon prose appeared.（《尚书》的出现标志

着中国散⽂的形成。⾮成于⼀⼈之⼿，后由孔⼦编订，成于春秋末战国初,战国时期开始于公元前475年）The famous prosewriters of the period were Venerable Bede（⽐德，英国历史学家和神学家, the most important of his works is The

Ecclesiastical History of the English People《英国基督教会史》.）and Alfred the Great( he is the king of Wessex Kingdom.

The most important of his works is The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles《盎格鲁撒克逊编年史》.

Part Two Medieval English Literature (1066—1485)

Medieval English literature can be divided into three parts, the first is Anglo-Norman literature, in 1066, the Duke of

Normandy William the Great led the Norman army to invade England. After the conquest, the feudal system was established

in English society. The body of customs and ideals known as chivalry(骑⼠精神表现为对个⼈⼈格的爱护和尊重；为被压迫者

和被迫者牺牲全部⼒量乃⾄⽣命的慷慨勇敢精神；把⼥⼦作为爱和美在尘世上的代表及作为和谐，和平与安慰的光辉之神⽽加

以理想化的崇拜等等，) was introduced by the Normans into England. The knightly code（道德尊则）, the romantic interestin women, tenderness and reverence paid to Virgin Mary（圣母玛丽亚）were reflected in the Literature.

The Normans began to write histories or chronicles. Most of the books were written in Latin or French. The romance(传奇⽂

学) was the main form of literature in the Middle Ages. It was a long composition, sometimes in verse, sometimes in prose,describing the life and adventures of a noble hero. The romance prospered for about 300 years (1200-1500). It was written for

the noble class, so it had nothing to do with the common people. The second part is English Literature in Age of Chaucer(乔

叟). Chaucer lived in the 14th century.

Geoffrey Chaucer, th e last one, was the greatest of them. He was a scholar, traveler, a business man, courtier（朝⾂）, who

shared in all the stirring life of his age

and reflected it in his works. He was the representative writer of the century.The

third part is English literature in the fifteenth century.The fifteenth

century was a period of general unrest. The continuous wars（百年战争和玫瑰战争）greatly affected the development of

literature. Yet in this barren age, popular literature became very prosperous. There were ballads, lyrics, popular dramas and

so on.

So the fifteenth century became the especial spring tide of English ballads. T here was only one important writer whose

name is Thomas Malory 托马斯·|马洛礼, he wrote an important work called Le Morte D’Arthur（《亚瑟王之死》亚瑟王及其圆

桌骑⼠的传说）. The book is very important in English

literature. Its Arthurian materials have a strong influence on literature of later centuries.(这些传说包括了各种不同类型的故

事，贯穿这些故事的主题也是各种多样，从爱情的忠贞、宗教的奥秘，到帝国的兴衰，这些都是各个时期西⽅作家所追求和探

索的主题)

Part Three

English Literature in the Renaissance Period(1516-1660)

T he Renaissance had its origin in north Italy in the fourteenth century, and spread northward to other European countries —

to France, to Germany, to the Low countries（低地国家荷兰、⽐利时卢森堡Holand, Belgium Luxemburg）, and lastly to

England.It revived the study of Roman and Greek classics and marked the beginning of bourgeois revolution.

English Renaissance (1516-1660) is usually divided into three periods. In the second period, Queen Elizabeth ruled the

country. For this reason it is also called Elizabethan Period. William Shakespeare, the greatest playwright of England, lived

in the Elizabethan Period, so in the history of English literature, this period is

often referred to as the Age of William Shakespeare.English literature in the Renaissance Period is usually regarded as thehighlight in the history of English literature. The greatest and most distinctive achievement of Elizabethan literature is the

drama.

Thus a group of excellent dramatists appeared. They are John Lyly, Thomas Kyd, George Peele, Robert Greene, Christopher

Marlow, William Shakespeare and Ben Johnson. Next to the drama is the lyrical poetry. Queen Elizabeth was a poet.

England then became “a nest of singing birds”. The famous poets of that period were Thomas Wyatt, Henry Howard, Philip