American Literature《英美文学选读》(美国文学部分)

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自考《英美文学选读》（美）浪漫主义时期（2）

⼆。

美国浪漫主义时期的主要作家 Ⅰ。

Washington Irving（1783-l859） Irving''s position in American literature Washington Irving was one of the first American writers to earn an international reputation， and regarded as an early Romantic writer in the merican literary history and Father of the American short stories. ⼀。

⼀般识记 His life and major works Washington Irving was born in New York City in a wealthy family. From a very early age he began to read widely and write juvenile poems， essays， and plays. In l798， he conc1uded his education at private schools and entered a law office， but he loved writing more. His first successful work is A History Of New York from the Beginning Of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty，which， written under the name of Diedrich Knickerbocker， won him wide popularity after it came out in 1809. With the publication of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon， Gent. in serials between 1819 and 1820， Irving won a measure of international fame on both sides of the Atlantic. The book contains familiar essays on the Eng1ish life and Americanized versions of European folk tales like "Rip Van Winkle＂， and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." Geoffrey Crayon is a carefully contrived persona and behind Crayon stands Irving， juxtaposing the Old World and the New， and manipulating his own antiquarian interest with artistic perspectives. The major work of his later years was The Life of George Washington. ⼆。

American Literature1 美国文学

Puritan thoughts: based on Calvin. Puritanism: a branch of Protestant originated in Geneva, then came to Scotland, to England, and then to American esp. to the New England with the immigrates. Aim: purify the religious doctrines or worship ceremony, looking for a new Garden of Eden.
著名的哈佛大学（美国最早的私立大学之一，有先有哈佛，后有美利坚之说。历史上，哈佛大学的毕业生中共有六位曾当选为美国总统。
美国麻省理工学院（Massachusetts Institute of Technology，MIT） 1865年创建于波士顿，1961年迁到现在所在的坎布里奇。位于马萨诸塞州（Massachusetts）的剑桥（Cambridge）。
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American Literature
Gao Han

Table of Contents
Part ⅠThe Eearly American Literature (1620-1770) Part Ⅱ The Age of Romanticism (1770-1875) Part Ⅲ The Age of Realism and Naturalism (1875-1914) Part Ⅳ The Twentieth Century American Literature (1014-2000)
7. Puritan attitudes
Their attitudes toward work: Work itself is a good in addition to what it achieves; Time saved by efficiency or good fortune should be spent in doing further work. Their attitudes toward joy and laughter: as symptoms of sin.

自考英美文学选读(美国文学史)

PART TWO: AMERICAN LITERATUREChapter1 The Romantic Period1.主要作家及其作品：i.Washington Irving:The Sketch Book; Rip Van Winkle;The Legend of Sleepy Hollowii.Ralph Waldo Emerson:Essays; The American Scholar; Self-Reliance;The Over-Soul; The Poet; Experience; Nature iii.Nathaniel Hawthorne:Mosses from an Old Manse; The Scarlet Letter;The Snow-Image and Other Twice-Told Tales;The House of the Seven Gables;The Blithedale Romance;The Marble Fauniv.Walt Whitman:Leaves of Grass; There was a Child Went Forth;Drum Taps; Cavalry Crossing a Ford; Song of Myself;When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’dv.Herman Melville:Moby-Dick; Billy Budd; Typee; Omoo;Mardi; Redburn; White Jacket.2.清教主义Puritanism is the practices and beliefs of the Puritans. As the word itself hints，Puritans wanted to purify their religious beliefs and practices. They felt that the Church of England was too close to the Church of Rome in doctrine form of worship，and organization of authority. American Puritans，like their brothers back in England，were idealists，believing that the church should be restored to complete "purity". They accepted the doctrine of predestination，original sin and total depravity，and limited atonement through a special infusion of grace from God. But in the grim struggle for survival that followed immediately after their arrival in America，they became more and more practical，as indeed they had to be. Puritans were noted for a spirit of moral and religious earnestness that determinated their whole way of life. As a culture heritage，Puritanism did have a profound influence on the early American mind and American values. American Puritanism also had a conspicuously noticeable and an enduring influence on American literature. It had become，to some extent，so much a state of mind，so much a part of the national cultural atmosphere，rather than a set of tenets.3.超验主义Transcendentalism has been defined philosophical1y as "the recognition in man of the capacity of knowing truth intuitively，or of attaining knowledge transcendingthe reach of the senses." Emerson once proclaimed in a speech，"Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind." Other concepts that accompanied Transcendentalism inc1ude the idea that nature is ennobling and the idea that the individual is divine and，therefore，self-re1iant. The transcendentalists reacted against the cold，rigid rationalism of Unitarianism in Boston. They adhered to an idealistic system of thought based on a belief in the essential unity of all creation ，the innate goodness of man，and the supremacy of insight over logic and experience for the revelation of the deepest truths.4.象征主义5.自由诗Whitman is also radically innovative in terms of the form of his poetry. He adopted "free verse，" that is，poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme. A looser and more open-ended syntactical structure is frequently favored. Lines and sentences of different lengths are left lying side by side just as things are，undisturbed and separate. There are few compound sentences to draw objects and experiences into a system of hierarchy. Whitman was the first American to use free verse extensively. By means of "free verse，" Whitman turned the poem into an open field，an area of vital possibility where the reader can allow his own imagination to play.6.爱默生的超验主义思想及他的自然观In his essays, Emerson put forward his philosophy of the over-soul, the importance of the Individual, and Nature. Emerson rejected both the formal religion of the churches and the Deistic philosophy. Emerson and other Transcendentalists believed that there should be an emotional communication between an individual soul and the universal ―over-soul,‖ since the over-soul is an all-pervading power from which all things come from and of which all are a part. Emerson is affirmative about man’s intuitive knowledge, with which a man can trust himself to decide what is right and to act accordingly. The ideal individual should be a self-reliant man.. he means to convince people that the possibilities for man to develop and improve himself are infinite. Emerson’s nature is emblematic of the spiritual world, alive with God’s overwhelming presence; hence, it exercises a healthy and restorative influence on human mind. ―God back to nature, sink yourself back into its influence and you’ll become spiritually whole again.‖ By employing nature as a big symbol of the Spirit, or God, or the over-soul. Emerson has brought the Puritan Legacy of symbolism to its perfection. 7.《小伙子布朗》中的寓言和象征In ―Young Goodman Brown,‖ Hawthorne set out to prove that everyone possesses some evil secret. The story illustrates Hawthorne's allegorical theme of human evil. In the manner of its concern with guilt and evil，it exemplifies what Milville called the" power of blackness" in Hawthorne's work. In "Young Goodman Brown，" he sets out to prove that everyone possesses some evil secret. "Evil is thenature of mankind." Its hero，a naive young man who accepts both society in general and his fellow men as individuals worth his regard，is confronted with the vision of human evil in one terrible night，and becomes thereafter distrustful and doubtful.Allegorically，our protagonist，becomes an Everyman named Brown，a "young man" who will be aged in one night by an adventure that makes everyone in this world a fallen idol.However, The story is manipulated in such a way that we as readers feel that Hawthorne poses the question of Good and Evil in man but withholds his answer，and he does not permit himself to determine whether the events of the night of trial are real or the mere figment of a dream.8.霍桑的清教思想和他人性本恶的观点As we can see, Hawthorne’s literary world turns out to be a most disturbed, tormented and problematical one possible to imagine. This has much to do with his ―black‖ vision of life and human beings. According to Hawthorne, ―There is evil in every human heart, which may remain latent, perhaps, through the whole life; but circumstances may rouse it to activity. One source of evil that Hawthorne is concerned most is overreaching intellect, which usually refers to someone who is too proud, too sure of himself. He believed that ―the wrong doing of one generation lives into the successive ones,‖ and often wondered if he might have inherited some of their guilt. This sensibility led to his understanding of evil being at the very core of human life., which is typical of the Calvinistic belief that human beings are basically depraved and corrupted, hence, they should obey God to atone for their sins.9.麦尔维尔长篇小说《白鲸》的象征意义Moby-Dick is not merely a whaling tale or sea adventure，it is also a symbolic voyage of the mind in quest of the truth and knowledge of the universe，a spiritual exploration into man's deep reality and psychology.Like Hawthorne，Melville is a master of allegory and symbolism. He uses allegory and symbolism in Moby-Dick to present its mighty theme. Instead of putting the battle between Ahab and the big whale into simple statements，he used symbols，that is，objects or persons who represent something else. Different people on board the ship are representations of different ideas and different social and ethnic groups；facts become symbols and incidents acquire universal meanings；the Pequod is the microcosm of human society and the voyage becomes a search for truth. The white whale，Moby Dick，symbolizes nature for Melville，for it is complex，unfathomable，malignant，and beautiful as well. For the character Ahab，however，the whale represents only evil. Moby Dick is like a wall，hiding some unknown，mysterious things behind. Ahab wills the whole crew on the Pequod to join him in the pursuit of the big whale so as to pierce the wall，to root out the evil，but only to be destroyed by evil，in this case，by his own consuming desire，his madness. For the author，as well as for the reader and Ishmael，the narrator，Moby Dick is still a mystery，an ultimate mystery of the universe，inscrutable and ambivalent，and the voyage of the mind will forever remain a search，not a discovery，of the truth.10.惠特曼《草叶集》的结构(自由诗)、主题、语言特色1. The themes in Whitman's poetry：His poetry is filled with optimistic expectation and enthusiasm about new things and new epoch. Whitman believed that poetry could play a vita1 part in the process of creating a new nation. It could enab1e Americans to celebrate their release from the Old World and the colonia1 rule. And it could also help them understand their new status and to define themse1ves in the new wor1d of possibi1ities. Hence，the abundance of themes in his poetry voices freshness. He shows concern for the whole hard-working people and the burgeoning life of cities. Pursuit of love and happiness is approved of repeatedly and affectionately in his lines. Sexual 1ove，a rather taboo topic of the time，is displayed candidly as something adorable. The individual person and his desires must be respected.2.Leaves of GrassWalt Whitman is a poet with a strong sense of mission，having devoted all his life to the creation of the "single" poem，Leaves of Grass.（1）the title ：It is significant that Whitman entitled his book Leaves of Grass . He said that where there is earth，where there is water，there is grass. Grass，the most common thing with the greatest vitality，is an image of the poet himself，a symbol of the then rising American nation and an embodiment of his ideals about democracy and freedom.（a）theme：In this giant work，openness，freedom，and above all，individua1ism（the belief that the rights and freedom of individual people are most important）are all that concerned him. Whitman brings the hard-working farmers and laborers into American literature ，attack the slavery system and racial discrimination. In this book he also extols nature，democracy，labor and creation ，and sings of man's dignity and equality，and of the brightest future of mankind . Most of the poems in Leaves of Grass sing of the "en-masse" and the self as well.（b）the poet's essentia1 purposeHis aim was nothing less than to express some new poetica1 feelings and to initiate a poetic tradition in which difference shou1d be recognized. The genuine participation of a poet in a common cultural effort was，according to Whitman，to behave as a supreme individualist；however，the poet's essentia1 purpose was to identify his ego with the world，and more specifically with the democratic "en-masse" of America，which is established in the opening lines of "Song of Myself".3.Whitman's poetic style and languageTo dramatize the nature of these new poetical fee1ings，Whitman employed brand-new means in his poetry，which would first be discerned in his style and language.（1）Whitman's poetic style is marked，first of a1l，by the use of the poetic "I." Whitman becomes all those people in his poems and yet still remains "Walt Whitman"，hence a discovery of the self in the other with such an identification. Insuch a manner，Whitman invites his readers to participate in the process of sympathetic identification.（3）Whitman is conversational and casual，in the fluid，expansive，and unstructured style of talking. However，there is a strong sense of the poems being rhythmical. The reader can feel the rhythm of Whitman's thought and cadences of his feeling. Parallelism and phonetic recurrence at the beginning of the lines also contribute to the musicality of his poems.（4）Whitman's languageContrary to the rhetoric of traditional poetry，Whitman's is relatively simple and even rather crude. Most of the pictures he painted with words are honest，undistorted images of different aspects of America of the day. The particularity about these images is that they are unconventional in the way they break down the social division based on religion，gender，class，and race. One of the most often-used methods in Whitman's poems is to make colors and images fleet past the mind's eye of the reader. Another characteristic in Whitman's language is his strong tendency to use oral English. Whitman's vocabulary is amazing. He would use powerfu1，colorful，as well as rarely-used words，words of foreign origin and sometimes even wrong words.美国现实主义时期1.Mark Twain: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn;The Adventures of Tom Sawyer;The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County;Innocents Abroad; The Gilded Age2.Henry James: The American; Daisy Miller;The Europeans; The Portrait of A Lady;What Maisie Knows; The Wings of the Dove;The Ambassadors; The Golden Bowl; The Art to Fiction3.Emily Dickinson:4. Theodore Dreiser: Sister Carrie; American Tragedy1.What is Realism?In art and literature, Realism refers to an attempt to describe human behavior and surroundings or to represent figures exactly as they act or appear in life. Realism emerged as a literary movement in Europe in the 1850s. In reaction to Romanticism, realistic writers should set down their observations impartially and objectively. They insisted on accurate documentation, sociological insight, and avoidance of poetic diction and idealization. The subjects were to be taken from everyday life, preferably from lower-class life. Realism entered American literature after the Civil War. William Dean Howells, Mark Twain, and Henry James were the pioneers of realism in the U.S.1.What is Naturalism? (or American Naturalism)In literature, the term refers to the theory that literary composition should aim at a detached, scientific objectivity in the treatment of natural man. The movement is an outgrowth of 19th –century scientic thought, following in general the biological determinism of Darwin’s theory, or the economic determinism of Karl Marx. American Naturalism is a more advanced stage of realism toward the close of the 19th century. The American naturalists accepted the more negative implications of Darwin’s theory and used it to account for the behavior of those characters in literary works who were conceived as more or less complex combinations of inherited attributes, their habits conditioned by social and economic forces. And consciously or unconsciously the American naturalists followed the French novelist and theorist Emile Zola's cal l that the 1iterary artist ―must operate with characters, passions, human and social data as the chemist and the physicist work on inert bodies, as the physiologist works on living bodies.‖ They chose their subjects from the lower ranks of society and portrayed the people who were demonstrably victims of society and nature. And one of the most familiar themes in American Naturalism is the theme of human ―bestiality‖, especially as an explanation of sexual desire.Artistically, naturalistic writings are usually unpo1ished in language, lacking in academic skills and unwieldly in structure. Philosophically, the naturalists believe that the real and true is always partially hidden from the eyes of the individual, or beyond his control. Devoid of rationality and caught in a process in which he is but a part, man cannot fully understand, let alone contro1, the world he lives in; hence, he is left with no freedom of choice.In a word, naturalism is evolved from realism when the author's tone in writing becomes less serious and less sympathetic but more detached, ironic and more pessimistic. It is no more than a different philosophical approach to reality, or to human existence. Notable writers of naturalistic fiction were Frank Norris, Sherwood Anderson, and Theodore Driser.2.The distinction between Realism and NaturalismNaturalism is evolved from realism when the author's tone in writing becomes less serious and less sympathetic but more detached, ironic and more pessimistic. It is no more than a different philosophical approach to reality, or to human existence.The distinction lies, first of all, in the fact that Realism is concerned directly with what is absorbed by the senses; Naturalism, a term more properly applied to literature, attempts to apply scientific theories to art. Second, Naturalism differs from Realism in adding an amoral attitude to the objective presentation of life. Naturalistic writers, adopting Darwin’s biological determinism and Marx’s economic determinism, regard human behavior as controlled by instinct, emotion, or social and economic conditions, and reject free will. Third, Naturalism had an outlook often bleaker than that of Realism, and it added a dimension of predetermined fate that rendered human will ultimately powerless.3.What is (Social) Darwinism?Social Darwinism is a belief that societies and individual human beings compete in astruggle for existence in which natural selection results in ―struggle of the fittest.‖ Social Darwinists base their beliefs on theories of evolution developed by British naturalist Charles Darwin. Social Darwinists typically deny that they advocate a ―law of jungle.‖ But most propose arguments that justify imbalances of power between individuals, races, and nations because they consider some more fit to survive than others. The theory had produced a big impact on Naturalism.马克吐温1.Twain as a local coloristTwain is also known as a local colorist, who preferred to present social life through portraits of the local characters of his regions, including people living in that area, the landscape, and other peculiarities like the customs, dialects, costumes and so on. Consequently, the rich material of his boyhood experience on the Mississippi became the endless resources for his fiction, and the Mississippivalley and the West became his major theme. Unlike James and Howe1ls, Mark Twain wrote about the lower-class people, because they were the people he knew so we1l ancl their 1ife was the one he himself had lived. Moreover he successfully used local color and historical settings to i1lustrate and shed light on the contemporary societyAnother fact that made Twain unique is his magic power with language, his use of vernacular. His words are col1oquial, concrete and direct in effect, and his sentence structures are simp1e, even ungrammatical, which is typical of the spoken 1anguage. Mark Twain's humor is remarkable, too. It is fun to read Twain to begin with, for most of his works tend to be funny, containing some practical jokes, comic details, witty remarks, etc., and some of them are actually tall ta1es.(2) The novel’s theme, characterization of ―Huck‖ and the novel’s social significance: Theme: The novel is a vindication of what Mark Twain called ― the damned human race.‖ That is the theme of man’s inhumani ty to man---of human cruelty, hypocrisies, dishonesties, and moral corruptions. Mark Twain’s thematic contrasts between innocence and experience, nature and culture, wilderness and civilization. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is best known for Mark Twain’s wonderful characterization of ―Huck,‖ a typical American boy whom its creator described as a boy with ―a sound heart and a deformed conscience,‖ and remarkable for the raft’s journey down the Mississippi river, which Twain used both realistically and symbolically to shape his book into an organic whole.Through the eyes of Huck, the innocent and reluctant rebel, we see the pre-Civil War American society fully exposed and at the same time we are deeply impressed by Mark Twain’s thematic contrasts between i nnocence and experience, nature and culture, wilderness and civilization.黛西米勒的主题和主要人物的性格分析1.The theme of the novelDaisy Miller is one of James’s early works that dealt with the international theme, i.e.,to set against a large international background, usual1y between Europe and America, and centered on the confrontation of the two different cu1tures with two different groups of peop1e representing two different value systems: American innocence in contact and contrast with European decadence and the moral and psychological complications arising therefrom.2.Characterization of Daisy MillerIn this novel, the ―Americanness ‖in Daisy is revealed by her relatively unreserved manners. Daisy Miller, a typical young American girl who goes to Europe and affronts her destiny. The unsophisticated girl is cruelly wronged because of the confrontation between the two value systems. Miller has ever since become the American Girl in Europe, a celebrated cultural type who embodies the spirit of the New World. However, innocence, the keynote of her character, turns out to be an admiring but a dangerous quality and her defiance of social taboos in the Old World finally brings her to a disaster in the clash between two different cultures. In this novel James’s sympathy for Daisy could be easily felt when we think of a tender flower crushed by the harsh winter in Rome.3.The content of this selection: Daisy has just arrived at Switzerland with her family and meets Winterborne for the first time. Two days later Daisy goes alone with Winterborne on an excursion to an old castle, which is soon in the air among theby its narration from the point of view of the American youth Winterborne狄金森诗歌的主题结构及艺术特色The thematic concerns and the original artistic features of Dickinson's poetry: 1．Themes: Dicksinson’s poems are usually based on her own experiences, her sorrows and joys. But within her litlle lyrics Dickinson addresses those issues that concern the whole human beings, which include religion, death, immortality, love, and nature.2．Artistic features: Her poetry is unique and unconventional in its own way. 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 musica1 device to create cadence and capital letters as a means of emphasis. Most of her poems borrow the repeated four-line, rhymed stanzas of traditional Christian hymns, with two lines of four-beat meter alternating with two lines of three-beat meter. A master of imagery that makes the spiritual materialize in surprising ways, Dickinson managed manifold variations within her simple form: She used imperfect rhymes, subtle breaks of rhythm, and idiosyncratic syntax and punctuation to create fascinating word puzzles, which have produced greatly divergent interpretations over the years. Dickinson’s irregular or sometimes inverted sentence structure also confuses readers. However, her poetic idiom is noted for its laconic brevity, directness and plainness. Her poems are usually short, rarely more than twenty lines, and many of them are centered on a single image or symbo1 and focused on one subject matter. Due to her deliberate sec1usion, her poems tend to be very personal and meditative. She frequently uses personae to render the tone more familiar to the reader, and personification to vivifysome abstract ideas. Dickinson's poetry, despite its ostensible formal simplicity, is remarkable for its variety, subtlety and richness; and her limited private world has never confined the limitless power of her creativity and imagination.美国现代时期1.Ezra Pound: The Cantos; In a Station of the Metro.2.Robert Lee Frost: The Road Not Taken; Stopping by Woods on aSnowy Evening3.Eugene O’Neill: Beyond the Horizon; The Emperor Jones; The HairyApe;All God’s Chillun Got Wings; Desire under the Elms;Anna Christie; The Great God Brown; Lazarus Laughed;Strange Interlude; The Iceman Cometh;Long Day’s Journey Into Night.4. F Scott Fitzgerald: This Side of Paradise; The Beautiful andDamned;The Great Gatsby; Tender is the Night;Flappers and Philosophers; Tales of the Jazz Age;All the Sad Young Men; Taps at Reveille;Babylon Revisited.5.Ernest Hemingway: In Our Time; The Sun Also Rises;A farewell to Arms; For Whom the BellTolls;The Old Man and the Sea; Men Without Women.6.William Faulkner: The Sound and the Fury; Light in August;Absalom, Absalom; Go Down, Moses;A Rose for Emily.1）The Imagist Movement and the artistic characteristics of imagist poems：Led by the American poet Ezra Pound，Imagist Movement is a poetic movement that flourished in the U.S. and England between 1909-1917. It advances modernism in arts which concentrates on reforming the medium of poetry as opposed to Romanticism，especially Tennyson's worldliness and high-flown language in poetry. Pound endorsed three main principles as guidelines for Imagism，including direct treatment of poetic subjects，elimination of merely ornamental or superfluous words，and rhythmical composition should be composed with the phrasing of music，not a metronome. The primary Imagist objective is to avoid rhetoric and moralizing，to stick closely to the object or experience being described，and to move from explicit generalization. The leading poets are Ezra Pound，Wallace Stevens，wrence，etc.The characteristic products of the movement are more easily recognized than its theories defined；they tend to be short，composed of short lines of musical cadence rather than metrical regularity，to avoid abstraction，and to treat the imagewith a hard，clear precision rather than with overt symbolic intent. The influence of Japanese forms，tanka and haiku，is obvious in many. Most of the imagist poets wrote in free verse and they like to emply common speech. They stressed the freedom in the choice of subject matter and form.2）The Lost GenerationIt refers to，in general，the post-World WarⅠgeneration，but specifically a group of expatriate disillusioned intellectuals and artists，who experimented on new modes of thought and expression by rebelling against former ideals and values and replacing them only by despair or a cynical hedonism. The remark of Gertrude Stein，"You are all a lost generation，"addressed to Hemingway，was used as an epigraph to the latter's novel The Sun Also Rises，which brilliantly describes those expatriates who had cut themselves off from their past in America in order to create new types of writing. The generation was "lost" in the sense that its inherited values were no longer relevant in the postwar world and because of its spiritual alienation from a U.S. that seemed to its members to be hopelessly provincial，materialistic，and emotional barren. The term embraces Hemingway，F. Scott Fitzgerald，Ezra Pound，E.E.Cummings，and many other writers who made Paris the center of their literary activities in the 1920s.3）What is Expressionism？Expressionism is used to describe the works of art and literature in which the representation of reality is distorted to communicate an inner vision，transforming nature rather than imitating it. In literature it is often considered a revolt against realism and naturalism，a seeking to achieve a psychological or spiritual reality rather than to record external events.In drama，the expressionist work was characterized by a bizarre distortion of reality. writers's concern was with general truths rather than with particular situations，hence they explored in their plays the predicaments of representative symbolic types rather than of fully developed individualized characters. Emphasis was laid not on the outer world，which is merely sketched in and barely defined in place or time，but on the internal，on an individual's mental state；hence the imitation of life is replaced in Expressionist drama by the ecstatic evocation of states of mind. In America，Eugene O'Neille's Emperor Jones，The Hairy Ape，etc. are typical plays that employ Expressionism4）The concept of "wasteland" in relation to the works of those writers in the twentieth-century American literatureThe Waste Land is a poem written by T.S.Eliot on the theme of the sterility and chaos of the contemporary world. This most widely known expression of the despair of the post-War era has appeared over and again in the works of those writers in the twentieth-century American literature. Fitzgerald sought to portray a spiritual wasteland of the Jazz Age. Beneath the masks of relaxation and joviality，there was only sterility，meaninglessness and futility amid the grandeur and extravagance，。

自考《英美文学选读》(美)现代文学时期(4)-2

自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（4）-2四。

应用Selected Reading：An Excerpt from Scene VⅢ of The Hairy Ape1.The theme of the play or the tragic vision in it：The tragic sense of modern man belonging nowhere，being helpless and impotent remained as the common the me of O’Neill’s works.The Hairy Ape is a good illustration. The play concerns the problem of modern man’s identity. Yank’s sense of belonging nowhere，hence homelessness and rootlessness，is typical of the mood of isolation and alienation in the early twentieth century in the United States and the whole world as well.Yank was a stroker on a transatlantic liner. He was happy with life until the day when his brutality shocked and made faint Mildred Douglas. He was greatly insulted. Thus became gloomy，sullen and violent. He attempted to seek identity with the aristocratic class，the radical class. In the last scene of the play，rejected，Yank wandered to the zoo where he found affinity with the great ape there，only to be crushed to death. So，Yank’s j ourney in quest of self-identity finished with his death，yet with the realization that he did belong nowhere. The general feeling is one of despairingly tragic. Man is homeless and rootless，alienated from the indifferent society.2. The expressionistic techniques in the play：(1) In this expressinistic play，abstract and symbolic stage sets are used to set off against the emotional inner selves and subjective states of mind. Take O’Neill’s use of contrastive tones of remarks for example，Yank’s friendliness and excitement contrasts the ape’s anger，indifference and impatience and also contrasts his own bitterness，self-mocking and despair. So the emotional content，the subjective reactions of characters are emphasized，which symbolically represent the despairing reality.(2) externalization of human interior：O’Neill uses vision to reveal psychological reality. In this play，Yank was haunted by appearance of Mildred Douglas，which shows his pain and despair. Therefore，O’Neill does not record exter nal events as realists do. He sought to portray the way in which hidden psychological processes impinge upon outward action. He brought psychological realism，philosophical depth，and poetic symbolism into American literature.nguage：In this play O’Neill intentionally wrote the lines of Yank in dialect to show his social and economic status as an uneducated coal stoker. Many other examples could be found in this selection，for instance，“dat” for that，“yuh” for you，etc.IV. F. Scott Fitzgerald (l896-l940)一。

浅谈《英美文学选读》课程建设对学生思想综合素质的培养

浅谈《英美文学选读》课程建设对学生思想综合素质的培养【摘要】《英美文学选读》课程在当今教育中扮演着重要的角色，对学生思想综合素质的培养起着至关重要的作用。

通过对课程内容的分析，可以发现其中蕴含着丰富的文化内涵和精神价值，有助于学生开拓视野、提升审美情趣。

课程的特色和教学方法也很独特，能够激发学生的学习兴趣和参与度，培养他们的思维能力和情感态度。

在学习过程中，学生可以通过阅读经典作品来感受不同文化背景下的人生经历，提升自己的情感情操。

课程还能够培养学生的审美情趣，使他们更加热爱文学艺术，积极参与其中。

《英美文学选读》课程对学生的思想综合素质产生深远影响，未来发展的方向也更加值得期待。

通过不断完善和创新，这门课程将为学生提供更多更好的学习体验，塑造更加综合素质的优秀人才。

【关键词】英美文学选读、课程建设、学生思想综合素质、思维能力、情感态度、审美情趣、影响、发展方向、总结、教学方法、课程特色、展望未来、研究意义、背景介绍1. 引言1.1 背景介绍《英美文学选读》课程是高校中一门重要的人文课程，涵盖了英美文学的经典作品及其相关背景知识，对于学生的思想综合素质的培养具有重要意义。

背景介绍部分将从以下几个方面展开：英美文学作为世界文学的重要组成部分，具有悠久的历史和深厚的文化底蕴。

通过学习英美文学，学生能够了解西方文明的发展脉络，领略不同时期不同地域的文学风貌，拓展自己的文化视野。

随着全球化进程的加快，跨文化交流日益频繁，对于学生来说，了解和理解西方文学不仅有利于增进对外文化的理解，还有助于拓展自己的思维视野，提高国际交往能力。

1.2 研究意义《英美文学选读》课程在学生思想综合素质的培养中具有重要的研究意义。

通过学习英美文学作品，能够拓宽学生的文化视野，提升他们的人文素养。

文学作品中蕴含着丰富的思想和情感，可以激发学生的思维能力和情感体验，培养他们的审美情趣和人文关怀。

通过深入研读英美文学作品，学生不仅能够了解西方文化的精髓，还能够拓展自己的思想视野，更好地理解世界、人生和自我。

英美文学选读---美国文学部分（作家作品）

Chapter I The Romantic Period 浪漫主义时期I. Washington Irving 华盛顿。

欧文1.The Letters of Jonathan Oldstyle, Gent.《江奈生。

欧德斯黛尔先生书信集》《江奈生。

欧德斯黛尔先生书信集》2.A History of New Y ork from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty 《自古至荷兰人占领为止的纽约史》人占领为止的纽约史》3. The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.《见闻札记》《见闻札记》4."Rip V an Winkle"《瑞普。

凡。

温克尔》《瑞普。

凡。

温克尔》5."The Legend of Sleepy Hollow."《睡谷的传说》《睡谷的传说》6.Bracebridge Hall 《布雷斯桥之厅堂》《布雷斯桥之厅堂》, 7.Tales of a Traveler 《一个旅行者的故事》《一个旅行者的故事》8.The Alhambra 《艾尔哈布拉》《艾尔哈布拉》II. Ralph Waldo Emerson 拉尔夫。

华尔多。

爱默生 1.Nature 《论自然》《论自然》2.The Dial 《日咎》《日咎》《日咎》3.Essays 《散文集》《散文集》4.The American Scholar,《论美国学者》《论美国学者》《论美国学者》 5.Self-Reliance, 《论自然》《论自然》6.The Over-Soul.《论超灵》《论超灵》《论超灵》 7.Second Series 《散文续集》II. Nathaniel Hawthorne 纳撒尼尔。

霍桑1.Twice-Told Tales 《尽人皆知的故事》《尽人皆知的故事》2.Mosses from an Old Manse 《古屋青苔》《古屋青苔》3.The Snow-Image and Other Twice-Told Tales 《雪的形象及其他尽人皆知的故事》《雪的形象及其他尽人皆知的故事》4.The Scarlet Letter 《红字》《红字》《红字》 5.The House of. the Seven Gables 《有七个尖角阁的房子》《有七个尖角阁的房子》6.The Blithedale Romance 《福谷传奇》《福谷传奇》《福谷传奇》 7.The Marble Faun 《玉石雕像》《玉石雕像》《玉石雕像》 8."Y oung Goodman Brown,"《小伙子布朗》《小伙子布朗》9."The Minister's Black V eil"《牧师的黑面纱》《牧师的黑面纱》10."The Birthmark"《胎迹》《胎迹》I V . Walt Whitman 华尔特。

《英美文学选读》课程教学大纲

《英美文学选读》课程教学大纲课程编号：100187英文名：Selected Readings in British and American Literature课程类别：专业主干课前置课: 英美文学导论学分：3学分课时：54课时主讲教师：冯建文选定教材：王守仁，《英国文学选读》,高等教育出版社，2001年。

陶洁，《美国文学选读》，高等教育出版社，2001年。

课程概述：《英美文学选读》课程的教学内容是根据本课程的性质、学习目的以及英语专业高年级教学的特点确定的。

本课程主要内容包括英国和美国文学史上代表作家的简要介绍和作品选读。

结合英国和美国文学各个历史断代的主要历史背景，文学文化思潮和流派，社会政治、经济、文化等对英国和美国文学史上最具有影响、最具有代表性的作家的作品中的艺术特色、主题结构、人物刻画、语言风格和思想意义等进行深入地分析。

教学目的：《英美文学选读》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英国和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英国和美国文学源流和发展的基础之上，通过阅读具有代表性的英国和美国文学作品，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。

教学方法：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。

各章教学要求及教学要点(加星号*为重点内容)英国文学部分第一章：Early And Medieval English Literature教学要求：细读英国伟大诗人乔叟的代表作品《坎特伯雷故事集》的节选，分析其主要语言和叙事特色，解读作品中反映出的中世纪的宗教、政治、经济和市民生活等诸多方面的问题。

自考英语本科《英美文学选读》美国文学史梗概

自考英语本科《英美文学选读》美国文学史梗概一、殖民地时代和美国建国初期最早来自这片新大陆的欧洲移民主要是定居在新英格兰的清教徒和马萨诸塞的罗马天主教徒，二者虽然在教义上有很多不同之处，但他们都信奉加尔文主义：人生在世只是为了受苦受难，而他们唯一的希望是争做上帝的“选民”，死后进天国，相信“原罪”。

这时的文学作品也主要反映了这些思想，和欧洲文学一脉相承。

代表作家：考顿·马瑟，乔纳森·爱德华兹，安妮·布拉兹特里特，爱德华·泰勒。

二、18世纪独立战争胜利后，美国经济社会进入稳步发展时期这一时期是启蒙主义文学运动的时期，主要文学指导思想是“自然神论”（Deism），强调理性，认为“宇宙的运动始于上帝”；自然万物是“神的体现”，人生在世，不再是受苦受难以换取来世的新生，而是要消灭种族、性别和信仰的不平等，建立自己的“人间乐园”。

主要特点：作家多是美国独立战争的积极拥护者和参加者；文学指导思想除了自然神论之外还有“唯理主义”和“新古典主义”，18世纪末还开始萌发了“早期浪漫主义”；文学种类主要有历史、日记和政论，也有诗歌，讽刺小品和劝人向善的故事，18世纪末还产生了话剧。

启蒙运动中出现大量优秀的散文作品，并多出自开国元勋之手，如本杰明·富兰克林，托马斯·潘恩，以及托马斯·杰斐逊。

三、19世纪南北战争时期这一时期的文学先后发展了浪漫主义，现实主义和自然主义。

浪漫主义：18世纪70年代－19世纪30年代是浪漫主义发展的初期，南北战争前30年（1830－1860）为极盛时期，南北战争后10年逐渐衰微并向现实主义过度。

浪漫主义注重“想象”、“激情”和“个性解放”，认为人本质是善良的，铲除邪恶和拯救人类的手段是抛弃一切传统束缚，摧毁一切陈规陋习而回归到“自然的原始状态中去。

超验主义是其一分支，强调“天人合一”，认为上帝、人类和自然都是“超灵”的组成部分。

AmericanLiterature《英美文学选读》（美国文学部分）

AmericanLiterature《英美文学选读》（美国文学部分）American LiteratureChapter one : The romantic periodI. Emerson’s transcendentalism and his attitude toward nature:1.Transcendentalism—it is a philosophic and literary movement that flourish in New England, as a reaction against rationalism and Calvinism. It stressed intuitive understanding of god without the help of the church, and advocated independence of the mind.2. Emerson’s transcendentali sm:The over-soul—it is an all-pervading power goodness, from which all things come and of which all are a part. It is a supreme reality of mind, a spiritual unity of all beings and a religion. It is a communication between an individual soul and the universal over-soul. And he strongly believe in the divinity and infinity of man as an individual, so man can totally rely on himself.3.His toward nature:Emerson loves nature. His nature is the garment of the over-soul, symbolic and moral bound. Nature is not something purely of the matter, but alive with God’s presence. It exercise a healthy and restorative influence on human beings. Children can see nature better than adult.II. Hawthorne’s Puritanism and his black vision of man:1. Puritanism—it is the religious belief of the Puristans, who had intended to purify and simplify the religious ritual of the church of England.2. his black vision of man—by the Calvinistic concept of original sin, he believed that human being are evil natured andsinful, and this sin is ever present in human heart and will pass one generation to another.3. Young Goodman Brown—it shows that everyone has some evil secrets. The innocent and na?ve Brown is confronted with the vision of human evil in one terrible night, and then he becomes distrustful and doubtful. Brown stands for everyone ,who is born pure and has no contact with the real world ,and the prominent people of the village and church. They cover their secrets during daily lives, and under some circumstances such as the wit ch’s Sabbath, they become what they are. Even his closed wife, Faith, is no exception. So Brown is aged in that night.IV. Whitman and his Leaves of Grass :1. Theme: sing of the “en-mass”and the self / pursuit of love, happiness, and ***ual love / sometimes about politics (Drum taps)2. Whitman’s originality first in his use of the poetic form free verse (i.e. poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme),by means of which he becomes conversational and casual.3.He uses the first person pronoun “I”t o stress individualism, and oral language to acquire sympathy from the common reader.III. Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser:1. Theme: The author invented the success of Carrie and the downfall of Hurstwood out of an inevitable and natural judgment, because the fittest can survive in a competitive, amoral society according to the social Darwinism.2. The character analysis of Carrie: She follows the right direction to a pursuit of the American dream, and the circumstances and her desire for a better life direct to thesuccessful goal. But she is not contented, because with wealth and fame, she still finds herself lonely. She is a product of the society, a realization of the theory of the survival of the fittest.3. The character analysis of Hurstwood: He is a negative evidence of the theory of the survival of the fittest. Because he is still conventional and can not throw away the social morals, he is not fitted to live in New York.III. F. Scott Fitzgerald and his The Great Gatsby1. Theme: Gatsby is American Everyman. His extraordinary energy and wealth make him pursue the dream. His death in the end points at the truth about the withering of the American Dream. The spiritual and moral sterility that has resulted from the withered American Dream is fully revealed in the article. However, although he is defeated, the dream has gave Gatsby a dignity and a set of qualities. His hope and belief in the promise of future makes him the embodiment of the values of the incorruptible American Dream .2. The character analysis of Gatsby: Gatsby is great, because he is dignified and ennobled by his dream and his mythic vision of life. He has the desire to repeat the past, the desire for money, and the desire for incarnation of unutterable vision on this material earth. For Gatsby, Daisy is the soul of his dreams. He believe he can regain Daisy and romantically rebels of time. Although he has the wealth that can match with the leisured class, he does not have their manners. His tragedy lies in his possession of a naive sense and chivalry.IV. Ernest Hemingway’s artistic features:1. The Hemingway code heroes and grace under pressure:They have seen the cold world ,and for one cause, they boldly and courageously face the reality. They has an indestructiblespirit for his optimistic view of life. Whatever is the result is, the are ready to live with grace under pressure. No matter how tragic the ending is, they will never be defeated. Finally, they will be prevail because of their indestructible spirit and courage.2. The iceberg technique:Hemingway believe that a good writer does not need to reveal every detail of a character or action. The one-eighth the is presented will suggest all other meaningful dimensions of the story. Thus, Hemingway’s lang uage is symbolic and suggestive.V. The character analysis of Emily in A Rose for Emily:Emily is a symbol of old values, standing for tradition, duty and past glory. But she is also a victim to all those she cares and embrace. The source of Emily’s strang eness is from her born pride and self-esteem, the domineering behavior of her father and the betrayal of her lover. Barricaded in her house, she has frozen the past to protect her dreams. Her life is tragic because the defiance of the community, her refusal to accept the change and her extreme pride have pushed her to abnormality and insanity.。

《英美文学选读》课程教学大纲

1．主要内容英国早期的三次征服
2．基本概念和知识点罗马征服盎格鲁萨克逊征服日尔曼征服
3．问题与应用（能力要求）英国早期的三次征服对英国的影响
第二节
1．《贝奥武甫》
2．头韵诗史诗体
3．史诗《贝奥武甫》的大概内容
第三节
1. 乔叟及《坎特伯雷故事集》
（二）教学内容
第一节
1. 英国资产阶级革命
2. 君主独裁克伦威尔王室复辟光荣革命
3. 英国革命的根源
第二节
1. 英国资产阶级革命时期主要作家及其代表作
三、课程性质与教学目的
设置本课程旨在使学生对英美两国文学形成与发展的全貌有一个大概的了解；并通过阅读具有代表性的英美文学作品，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。由于本课程以作家作品为重点，因此学生要仔细阅读原作。通过阅读，努力提高语言水平，增强对英美文学原著的理解，特别是对作品中表现的社会生活和人物感情的理解，提高他们阅读文学作品的能力和鉴赏水平；并且通过讨论加强学生对文学本质的意识，提高他们的综合人文素质，增强他们对西方文学及文化的理解
（四）教学方法与手段
教师讲授、团队合作、课堂讨论
第二章文艺复兴时期英国文学
（一）目的与要求
通过本章的学习，了解文艺复兴运动和人文主义思潮产生的历史、文化背景，认识该时期文学创作的基本特征和基本主张，及其对同时代及后世英国文学乃至文化的影响；了解该时期重要作家的文学生涯、创作思想、艺术特色及其代表作品的主题结构、人物刻画、语言风格、思想意义等；同时结合注释，读懂所选作品，了解其思想内容和写作特色，培养理解和欣赏文学作品的能力。

自考英语本科《英美文学选读》梳理----美国文学

⾃考英语本科《英美⽂学选读》梳理----美国⽂学梳理----美国⽂学1.特⾊美国⽂学的历史不长，它⼏乎是和美国⾃由资本主义同时出现，较少受到封建贵族⽂化的束缚。

美国早期⼈⼝稀少，有⼤⽚未开发的⼟地，为个⼈理想的实现提供了很⼤的可能性。

美国⼈民富于民主⾃由精神，个⼈主义、个性解放的观念较为强烈，这在⽂学中有突出的反映。

美国⼜是⼀个多民族的国家，移民不断涌⼊，各⾃带来了本民族的⽂化，这决定了美国⽂学风格的多样性和庞杂性。

美国⽂学发展的过程就是不断吸取、融化各民族⽂学特点的过程。

许多美国作家来⾃社会下层，这使得美国⽂学⽣活⽓息和平民⾊彩都⽐较浓厚，总的特点是开朗、豪放。

内容庞杂与⾊彩鲜明是美国⽂学的另⼀特点。

个性⾃由与⾃我克制、清教主义与实⽤主义、激进与反动、反叛和顺从、⾼雅与庸俗积极进取与玩世不恭、明快与晦涩、犀利的讽刺与阴郁的幽默、对⼈类命运的思考和探索与对性爱的病态追求等倾向，不仅可以同时并存，⽽且形成强烈的对照。

从来没有⼀种潮流或倾向能够在⼀个时期内⼀统美国⽂学的天下。

美国作家敏感、好奇，往往是⼀个浪潮未落，另⼀浪潮⼜起。

作家们永远处在探索和试验的过程之中。

20世纪以来，许多⽂学潮流起源于美国，给世界⽂学同时带来积极的与消极的影响。

.2.美国⽂学美国⽂学的诞⽣美国第⼀位在⼩说和诗歌创作领域取得显著成就的作家是艾德加·爱伦·坡（1809－1849），他于1835年开始短篇⼩说的创作，其作品包括《红死病》、《陷坑与钟摆》、《颓败之屋》和《莫尔格街凶杀案》。

他的创作触及了前⼈很少涉及的⼼理学领域，并且将神秘、幻想等元素融⼊⼩说创作之中。

1837年，年轻的作家纳撒尼尔·霍桑(Hawthorne)（1804－1864）将他的⼀些短篇⼩说集结成册出版，名为《重讲⼀遍的故事》。

这是⼀部包含了丰富的象征主义及神秘主義元素的作品。

后来，霍桑⼜开始写作长篇的传奇⼩说、类寓⾔⼩说，他的本⼟⼩说《新英格蘭》以⼈类的内疚、荣耀和情感上的压抑为主题。

自考《英美文学选读》(美)现代文学时期(2)-1

自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（2）-1Chapter 3 The Modern Period一。

识记1.The historical and socio-cultural background of the American literature between the two World Wars：(1) The two World Wars：The twentieth century began with a strong sense of social breakdown. The two Wor1d Wars，especially the First World War (l914——l918)，became the emblem of all wars in the twentieth century，which means violence，devastation，blood and death，and made a big impact on the life of the American people and their literary writings.With all these wars the whole wor1d had undergone a dramatic social change， a transformation from order to disorder. America in this period was characterized by economic boom and material prosperity but social chaos，spiritual waste and and moral decay. Economically，with America’s participation in Wor1d War I and the technological revolution，the United States had its booming industry and material prosperity. Socially，the world was disorderly and turbulent. There was a sense of unease and restlessness underneath. Spiritually and morally，there was a decline in moral standard and the first few decades of the twentieth century was best described as a spiritual wasteland. The censor of a great civilization being destroyed or destroying itself，social breakdown，and individual powerlessness and hopelessness became part of the American experience as a result of the First World War，with resulting feelings of fear，loss，disorientation and disillusionment.(2) The impact of Marxism，Freudianism and European modern art on American modern literature：Between the mid-l9th century and the first decade of the 20th century，there had been a big flush of new theories and new ideas in both social and natural sciences，as well as in the field of art in Europe，which played an indispensable ro1e in bringing about modernism and the modernistic writings in the United States.a. Marxism and FreudianismApart from Darwinism，which was still a big influence over the writers of this period，the two thinkers whose ideas had the greatest impact on the period were the German Karl Marx and the Austrian Sigmund Freud. Marx was a sociologist who believed that the root cause of all behavior was economic，and that the leading feature of the economic life was the division of society into antagonistic classes based on a relation to the means of production. Freud propounded an idea of human beings themselves as grounded in the “unconscious” that controlled a great deal of overt behavior，and made the practice of the psychoanalysis which emphasizes the importance of the unconscious or the irrationa1 in the human psyche. William James，an American psychologist famous for his theory of “stream of consciousness，” and Carl Jung，a Swiss psychiatrist，noted for his “collective unconscious” and “archetypal symbol” as part of modern mythology. Their theories，plus Freud’s interpretation of dreams，have infused modern American literature and made it possible for most of the writers in the modern period to probe into the inner world of human reality.b. European modern art：The implications of modern European arts to modern American writings can also be strong1y felt in the American literature between the wars，even thereafter. In painting，both the French Impressionist and the German Expressionist artists avoided the representation of external realityand depicted the human rea1ity in a rather subjective point of view. This highly personal vision of the world is self-evident in the works by writers such as William Faulkner，Eug ene O’Neill，etc. Cubism，another school of modern painting popular in the early 20th century with its emphasis on the formal structure of a work of art，especially its emphasis on the multiple-perspective viewpoints，had provided the writers with more than one way to explain the reality and engaged the readers in creating order out of fragmentation as we1l. Composers like Igor Stravinsky similar1y produced music in a “modern” mode，featuring dissonance and discontinuity rather than neat formal structure and appealing total harmonies.[Nextpage](3)The expatriate movementThere was a spiritual crisis in the modern period，but a full blossoming of literary writings. The expatriate movement，also called the second American Renaissance，is the most recognizable literary movement that gave rise to the twentieth century American literature. When the First World War broke out，many young men volunteered to take part in “the war to end Wars” only to find that modern warfare was not as glorious or heroic as they thought it to be. Disillusioned and disgusted by the frivolous，greedy，and heedless way of life in America，they began to write and they wrote from their own experiences in the war. Among these young writers were the most prominent figures in American literature，especially in modern American 1iterature. They were basically expatriates who 1eft America and formed a community of writers and artists in Paris，involved with other European novelists and poets in their experimentation on new modes of thought and expression. These writers were later named by an American writer，Gertrude Stein，also an expatriate，“The Lost Generation.”2. The historical and socio-cultural background of the American literature after the World War Ⅱ：What happened immediately after the Second World War in the United States and other parts of the world exerted a tremendous influence on the mentality of Americans. It changed man’s vi ew of himself and the world as well.First of all，the dropping of an atomic bomb over Hiroshima in Japan shocked the whole world and made possible the destruction of the Western civilization. Then a mutual fear and hostility grew between the Eastern and Western courtries with the Cold War，the effect of which could be felt in the form of McCarthyism in the Unites States. Besides，the Korean War and the Vietnam War broadened the gap between the government and the people. The assassination of John F. Kennedy，and of Martin Luther King，spokesman of the American Civil Rights Movement，the resignation of Nixon because of the Water-Gate scandal，etc. intensified the terror and tossed the whole nation again into the grief and despair. The impact of these changes and upheavals on the American society is emotional. People start to question the role of science in human progress and the fear of the misuse of modern science and technology is spreading. They no longer believe in God but start to reconsider the nature of man and man’s capacity for evil. They begin to think of life as a big joke or an absurdity. The world is even more disintegrating and fragmentary and people are even more estranged and despondent.二。

自考《英美文学选读》(美)现代文学时期(3)-2

自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（3）-2Ⅱ。

Robert Lee Frost (l874-l963)一。

一般识记His life and writing：Frost is an important poet in the 20th century .He won the Pulitzer Prize four times and read poetry at the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy in 1961.He spent his early childhood in the Far West and later the family moved to New Hampshire. He went to Harvard but left in the middle because of his tuberculosis. When he was 28，he began to venture on writing.二。

识记His major works：His first b ook A Boy’s Will (1913)，whose lyrics trace a boy’s development from self-centered idealism to maturity，is marked by an intense but restrained emotion and the characteristic flavor of New Eng1and life. His second book，a volume of poems North of Boston (1914)，is described by the author as “a book of people，” which shows a brilliant insight into New England character and the background that formed it. Many of his major poems are collected in this volume，such as “Mending the Wall，” in which Frost saw man a s learning from nature the zones of his own 1imitations，and “Home Buria1，” which probes the darker corners of individual lives in a situation where man cannot accept the facts of his condition. Mountain Interval (19l6) contains such characteristic poem s as “The Road Not Taken，” “Birches”. New Hampshire (1923) that won Frost the first of four Pulitzer Prizes includes “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”，which stems from the ambiguity of the speaker’s choice between safety and the unknown. The collection West-Running Brook (1928) poses disturbing uncertainties about man’s prowess and importance. Collected Poems (l930) and A Further Range (1935) gathered Frost’s second and third Pulitzer Prizes. Both translate modern upheaval into poetic materia1 the poe t could skillfully control. Frost’s fourth Pulitzer Prize was awarded for A Witness Tree (l942) which includes “The Gift Outright，” the poem he later recited at President Kennedy’s inauguration. Frost took up a religious question most notably in “After Apple-Picking：” can a man’s best efforts ever satisfy God? A Masque of Reason (l945) and A Masque of Mercy (1947) are comic-serious dramatic narratives，in both of which biblical characters in modern settings discuss ethics and man’s re1ations to God.三。

自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（5）

V. Ernest Hemingway （l899-1961）⼀。

⼀般识记 His life and writing： Hemingway was a myth in his own time and his life was colorful. He was born in Oak Park， Illinois. Hemingway loved sports and often went hunting and fishing with his father， which provided him with writing materials. After high school， he worked as a reporter. During World War I he served as an honorable junior officer in the American Red Cross Ambulance Corps and in 1918 was severely wounded in both legs. After the war， he went to Paris as a foreign reporter. Influenced and guided by Sherwood Anderson， Stephen Crane and Gertrude Stein he became a writer and began to attract attention. Later he actively participated in the Spanish Civil War and World War II. In 1954， he was awarded the Nobe1 Prize for literature. In 196l， in ill hea1th， anxiety and deep depression， Hemingway shot himself with a hunting gun. ⼆。

自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（3）

The major writers of the Modern Period Ⅰ。

Ezra Pound （1885-1972）⼀。

⼀般识记 Ezra Pound's contribution to American literature： Pound was one of the most important poets and critics of his time and he was regarded as the father of modern American poetry. He is a leading spokesman of the "Imagist Movement"， which though short-lived， had a tremendous influence on modern poetry. ⼆。

识记 His major works： Pound composed poems， wrote criticisms and did translations. （1） His poetic works： In 1915 Pound began writing his great work， The Cantos， which spanned from 1917 to 1959 and were collected in The Cantos of Ezra Pound （1986）。

He joined a famous literary salon run by an American woman writer Gertrude Stein， and became involved in the experimentations on poetry. His other poetic works include twelve volumes of verse Collected Early Poems of Ezra Pound （1982）， and Personae （1909）， and some longer pieces such as Hugh Selwyn Mauberley （1920）。

自考《英美文学选读》(美)现代文学时期(4)-3

自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（4）-3A great number of his stories started with the basic situation in which a rising young man of the middle class is in love with the daughter of a very rich family. The young man is not attracted by the fortune in itself; he is not seeking money so much as what money can bring to him; and he loves the girl not so much as he loves what the gir1 symbolizes. Money is only a convenient and inadequate symbol for what he dreams of earning，and love merely a vehicle that can transport him to a magic world of eternal happiness. The man’s real dream，as Malcolm Cow1ey suggested，is that of achieving a new status and a new essence，of rising to a loftier place in the mysterious hierarchy of human worth.(2) Fitzgerald’s own life was a mirror of the 1920s. He was the victim of his “American Dream.” He was fascinated with material wealth on one hand by writing hard to accumulate wealth to live an extravagant life，yet was bewildered with the wealth on the other，fully aware of the underlying spiritual disorientation and moral decay. Finally in his life，alcoholism，loneliness and despair combined to ruin him. So his dream backfires him.3. Fitzgerald’s style：He is a great stylist in American literature. His style，closely re1ated to his themes，is explicit and chilly. His accurate dialogues，his careful observation of mannerism，styles，models and attitudes provide the reader with a vivid sense of reality. He fol1ows the Jamesian tradition in using the scenic method in his chapters，each one of which consists of one or more dramatic scenes，sometimes with intervening passages of narration，leaving the tedious process of transition to the readers’ imagination. He also skillfully employs the device of having events observed by a “central consciousness” to his great advantage. The accurate details，the completely original diction and metaphors，the bold impressionistic and colorful quality have all proved his consummate artistry.四。

自考《英美文学选读》（美）浪漫主义时期（4）

IV.　Walt Whitman Whitman is a giant of American letters. His Leaves of Grass has always been considered a monumental work which commands great attention because of its uniquely poetic embodiment of American democratic ideals. He is the poet of the common people and the prophet and singer of democracy. ⼀。

⼀般识记 Whitman's life He was born in 1819 into a working-c1ass family and grew up in Brook1yn， New York. Son of a carpenter， Whitman left his schooling for good at eleven， and became an office boy. Later on he changed several jobs， one of which was in the printing office of a newspaper， which would be of great he1p in his literary career. By this early age he had a1ready shown his strong love for literature， reading a great deal on his own， especially the works of Shakespeare and Milton，and developed his potential for the writing career in the future. Before he was 17 years o1d he had already had his poems printed on a paper， although these early works were not comparable to his later and mature ones. However， Whitman did not become a professional writer directly henceforth， until an opportunity came up which sent him back to New York City，where he formal1y took up journalism and indulged himself in the excitement of the fast-growing metropolis. Feeling compe1led to speak up for something new and vital he found in the air of the nation， Whitman turned to the manual work of carpentry around 1851 or 1852， as an experiment to familiarize himself with the reality and essence of the life of the nation. At the same time， he widened his reading to a new scale and made it more systematic. After enriching himself simultaneously by these two very different， approaches， Whitman was ab1e to put forward his own set of aesthetic princip1es. Leaves of Grass was just the expression of these principles. ⼆。

英美文学欣赏(第二版)课件 American Literature Unit 2 American

2.What do you think the weary, unhappy, and discouraged can learn from “ A Psalm of Life”?
英美文学欣赏（第二版）
作品欣赏
大学专业英语系列教材
《潮水涨，潮水落》全诗分为三节。第一节描绘了黄昏时分的海滨，海鸟鸣叫，游人归去，潮涨潮落的画面；第二节写夜晚时的海滩，潮水拍岸；第三节描写清晨，马嘶人叫，游人又来到海滩，潮水依然涨落的情景。
辑。他熟悉劳苦大众的生活，热爱社会下层的普通劳动者。1854 年末，他开始专事创作，《草叶集》（Leaves of Grass）于 1855 年 7 月问世，只包含 12 首诗。美国南北战争期间，他作为男护士照顾伤病员，一直在军队医院工作到
1873 年。后因身体原因，停止工作，与其兄弟一起生活，继续写作。终身未娶。
那么，让我们起来干吧，对任何命运要敢于担戴；不断地进取，不断地追求，要善于劳动，善于等待。
[1]朗费罗著,杨德豫译. 朗费罗诗选[M]. 桂林: 广西师范大学出版社, 2009.
英美文学欣赏（第二版）
大学专业英语系列教材
诗人抱着积极入世的态度，赞美生命，否定人生如梦这一古老的哀叹，认为不朽的精神才是人生崇高的境界。这就需要积极的行动，
人生是真切的！人生是实在的！它的归宿决不是荒坟；
“你本是尘土，必归于尘土”，这是指躯壳，不是指灵魂
英美文学欣赏（第二版）
大学专业英语系列教材
Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, Is our destined end or way;
But to act, that each to-morrow Find us farther than to-day.

《美国文学选读》第二版

《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- )。

自考《英美文学选读》(美)现代文学时期(2)-2

自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（2）-22) The Lost GenerationIt refers to，in general，the post-World WarⅠgeneration，but specifically a group of expatriate disillusioned intellectuals and artists，who experimented on new modes of thought and expression by rebelling against former ideals and values and replacing them only by despair or a cynical hedonism. The remark of Gertrude Stein，“You are all a lost generation，“addressed to Hemingway，was used as an epigraph to the latter’s novel The Sun Also Rises，which brilliantly describes those expatriates who had cut themselves off from their past in America in order to create new types of writing. The generation was “lost” in the sense that its inherited values were no longer relevant in the postwar world and because of its spiritual alienation from a U.S. that seemed to its members to be hopelessly provincial，materialistic，and emotional barren. The term embraces Hemingway，F. Scott Fitzgerald，Ezra Pound，E.E.Cummings，and many other writers who made Paris the center of their literary activities in the 1920s.3) What is Expressionism?Expressionism is used to describe the works of art and literature in which the representation of reality is distorted to communicate an inner vision，transforming nature rather than imitating it. In literature it is often considered a revolt against realism and naturalism，a seeking to achieve a psychological or spiritual reality rather than to record external events.In drama，the expressionist work was characterized by a bizarre distortion of reality. Expressionist writers’s concern was with general truths rather than with particular situations，hence they explored in their plays the predicaments of representative symbolic types rather than of fully developed individualized characters. Emphasis was laid not on the outer world，which is merely sketched in and barely defined in place or time，but on the internal，on an individual’s mental state; hence the imitation of life is replaced in Expressionist drama by the ecstatic evocation of states of mind. In America，Eugene O’Neille’s Emperor Jones，The Hairy Ape，etc. are typical plays that employ Expressionism.4) The concept of “wasteland” in relation to the works of those writers in the twentieth-century American literatureThe Waste Land is a poem written by T.S.Eliot on the theme of the sterility and chaos of the contemporary world. This most widely known expression of the despair of the post-War era has appeared over and again in the works of those writers in the twentieth-century American literature. Fitzgerald sought to portray a spiritual wasteland of the Jazz Age. Beneath the masks of relaxation and joviality，there was only sterility，meaninglessness and futility amid the grandeur and extravagance，there was a hint of decadence and moral decay. Hemingway，the leading spokesman of the Lost Generation，dramatized in his novels the sense of loss and despair among the post-war generation who are physically and psychologically scarred. Though disillusioned in the post-war period，h e strove to bring about man’s “grace under pressure” and tried to bring out the idea that man can be physically destroyed but never defeated spiritually. William Faulkner exemplified T.S. Eliot’s concept of modern society as a wasteland in a dramatic way. He created his own mythical kingdom that mirrored not only the decline of the Southern society but also the spiritual wasteland of the whole American society. He condemned the mechanized，industrialized society that has dehumanized man by forcing him to cultivate false values and decrease those essential human values such as courage，fortitude，honesty and goodness.2. Postwar American literature1) The Beat GenerationAlso called Beat Movement，it is an American social and literary movement originating in the 1950s. Beat Generation writings expressed profound dissatisfaction with contemporary American society and endorsed an alternative set of values. They rejected traditional forms and advocated personal release，purification，and illumination through the heightened sensory awareness.Beat poets sought to liberate poetry from academic preciosity and bring it “back to the streets.” Allen Ginsberg and other major figures of the movement，such as the novelist Jack Kerouac and Gary Snyder，advocated a kind of free，unstructured composition in which the writer put down his thoughts and feelings without plan or revision-to convey the immediacy of experience-an approach that led to the production of much undisciplined and incoherent verbiage on the part of their imitators.2) The pluralism of postwar American fiction：American fiction from 1945 onwards is a bigger story than poetry and drama.a. War fiction： A group of new writers who survived the war wrote about their traumatic experience within the military machine and on European and Pacific battlefields，among whom we have Norman Mailer and Herman Wouk.b. Southern literature：Robert Penn Warren and Flannery O’Conner are representatives of the talented Southern writers，who followed Faulkner’s footsteps in portraying the decadence and evil in the Southern society in a Gothic manner.[Nextpage]c. Jewish literature：By the 1950s a significant group of Jewish-American writers had appeared and one of them was Saul Bellow. Their works，drawing on the Jewish experience of suffering and endurance，tradition and the Jewish religion，examined subtly the dismantling of the self by an intolerable modern history. Other iportant Jewish writers include Bernard Malamud，Issac Bashevis Singer，and Philip Roth. Saul Bellow placed emphasis upon the power of intellect. The power to understand their own experience，to judge their lives rationally，to think well，is considered a high virtue. Self-teaching is at the heart of all his novels as his Jewish heroes or anti-heroes seek a rational interpretation of the world through their own experiences in it.d. Black fiction：It began to attract critical attention during this period too. The two major figures are Richard Wright and Ralph Ellison，both of whom captured the wide attention of the white readers by truthfully，openly，and shockingly describing the life of black people as they knew it from their own experience. For the first time in the history of American writings，African writers started to question their identity as a group and as an individual.e. Other important writers who were writing at the time include J.D.Salinger and John Updike. Salinger is considered to be a spokesman for the alienated youth in the post-war era and his The Catcher in the Rye (1951) is regarded as a students’ classic. Updike’s Rabbit novels examine the middle-class values and portray the troubled relationships in people’s private life and their internal decay under the stress of the modern times.f. “new fiction” or Novels of absurdity：American fiction in the 1960s and 1970s proves to be different from its predecessors in that the writers started to depart from the conventions of the novel writing and experimented with some new forms. Hence，it is referred to as “new fiction，”with Kurt Vonnegut，Joseph Heller，John Bath，and Thomas Pynchon at its forefront. Roughly speaking，these writers shared the same belief that human beings are trapped in a meaningless world and that neither God nor man can make sense of the human condition. What’s more，this absurdist vision is integrated with an absurd form，which is characterized by comic exaggerations，ironic uses of parodies，multiple realities，often two-dimensional characters，and a combination of fantastic events with realistic presentations.g. Literature of ethnic groups：More recently American literature is alive with a diversity of interests. Writers from different ethnic and multicultural backgrounds，including women writers，African-Americans，Asian-Americans，and Indian-Americans，are beginning to make their voices heard and they are writing about American experience and consciousness from quite a fresh outlook，hence，bringing vitality to the American literary imagination.3.The literary characteristics of American modern literature：1) Theme：In general terms，much serious literature written from 1912 onwards attempted to convey a vision of social breakdown and mora1 decay and t he writer’s task was to develop techniques that could represent a break with the past. Thus，the defining formal characteristics of the modernistic works are discontinuity and fragmentation.2) Technical experimentation：An awareness of the irrational and the workings of the unconscious mind are pervasive in much modernistic writing. Technically，modernism was marked by a persistent experimentalism. It rejected the traditional framework of narrative，description，and rational exposition in poetry and prose，in favor of a stream of consciousness presentation of personality，a dependence on the poetic image as the essential vehicle of aesthetic communication，and upon myth as a characteristic structural principle.Compared with earlier writings，modern American writings are notable for what they omit ——the explanations，interpretations，connections，and summaries. There are shifts in perspective，voice，and tone，but the biggest shift is from the external to the internal，from the public to the private，from the chronological to the psychic，from the objective description to the subjective projection. Modern American writers in general emphasize the concrete sensory images or details as the direct conveyer of experience. They strive for directness，compression，and vividness and are sparing of words. Modern fiction prefer suggestiveness and tend to employ the first person narration or limit the reader to the “central consciousness” or one character’s point of view. This limitation accorded with the modernistic vision that truth does not exist objectively but is the product of a personal interaction with reality. As a result，the effect of modern American writings is surprising，unsettling。