英国文学史名词解释

Elizabeth is a beautiful young lady in the Bennets.

She is intelligent, contrasting her empty-headed, snobbish and vulgar mothe.r.

She is a woman of distinct character. She is not passive, but pursues her true love bravely .She turns down the marriage proposal of the servile Mr. Collins＇s and seeking her happiness with Darcy , the one she possesses true affection for.

She is also courageous. When Darcy＇s aunt lady de Bourgh comes to force her into a promise of never consenting to marry Darcy , she boldly challenges her authority ,contempt and arrogance .

On the whole, Elizabeth is a typical image of the good, attractive lady in the 19th century.

What is Epic?

Epic is an extended narrative poem in elevated or dignified language, like Homers Iliad and Odyssey. It usually celebrates the feats of one or more legendary or traditional heroes. The action is simple but magnificent. Today, some long narrative works, like novels that reveal an age and its people, are also called epic.

What is Heroic Couplet?

Heroic couplet is a rhyming couplet of iambic pentameter, often containing a complete thought. There is a fairly heavy pause at the end of the first line and a still heavier one at the end of the second.. Commonly there is a parallel or an antithesis within a line, or between the two lines .It is called heroic because in England,especially in the eighteenth century , it was much used for heroic (epic) poems .

How to define the term Humanism?

Humanism is a system of beliefs upheld by writers and artists of the Renaissance period in their fighting against medieval asceticism. It states that man is godly, that man is able to find truth, goodness and beauty, and that man is in control of the present life rather than being controlled by God. Briefly, humanism puts man at the center of their beliefs and takes man to be the measure of every thing while the former asceticism puts God at the center of their beliefs and takes personal salvation to be the most important thing on the earth for man.

What is Critical Realism?

Critical Realism is the main trend of the literary thoughts in the 19th century. It reveals the corrupting influence of the rule of cash upon human nature. Critical realists first and foremost set themselves the task of criticizing capitalist society from a democratic viewpoint of bourgeoisie reality. As far as the literary form or “genre”is concerned , the major contribution made by the 19th century critical realists lies in their perfection of the novels. Like the realists of the 18th century ,the 19th century critical realists made use of the form of novel for full and detailed representations so social and political events , and of the fate of individuals and of whole social classes.