美国文学问答题作业 (5th Week )
美国文学史问答题
1.What was the Harlem Renaissance or New Renaissance? Howimportant is social protest expressed in “Harlem”?The Harlem Renaissance was the development of the Harlem neighborhood in New York City as a black cultural mecca in the early 20th Century and the subsequent social and artistic explosion that resulted. Lasting roughly from the 1910s through the mid-1930s, the period is considered a golden age in African American culture, manifesting in literature, music, stage performance and art.In the early 1920s, many African American writers, painters, photographers, musicians congregated in New York City, started magazines, published anthologies, and promoted the creativity of the “New Negro”. They came from farms and plantations, villages, towns and cities across the United States. Their work transformed Harlem, an African American neighborhood in New York, into an intellectual and cultural center for African Americans.2. What is Great Awakening in American history? What are the reasons for this Great Awakening and what are the outcomes?Definition:The Great Awakening took place during the 1730’s-1740’s in colonial America, which was a movement rooted in spiritual growth, bringing a national identity to Colonial America. Certain Christians began to disassociate themselves with the established/institutional approach toworship. People began to go to large gatherings to worship and pray. Reasons:1.People felt that religion was dry, dull and distant.2.Preachers felt that people needed to be concerned with inner emotionsas opposed to outward religious behavior.3.People in the New England area could now read and interpret theBible for themselves (individualism rather than institutionalism). Outcomes:1.Birth of deep religious convictions in the colonies.2.Colonists could be bold when confronting religious authority, andbreak away if they were not meeting expectations.3.Just as with religion, political power did not reside with EnglishMonarchs, but with colonists’ self-governance.pared to British or European Romanticism, what are the particular characteristics of American Romanticism?(1)Nationalism goes hand in with romanticism(2)American romanticism did not have the political radicalism as seen inEuropean romanticists(3)The romantic celebration of natural beauty was inspired in part by adesire to establish an original relationship with the “new” landscape (4)Even though there was desire to be less European, the United States asa young country could not be quite free of a sense of inferiority or“colonial complex” in fac e of Europe4.What is the general philosophy of Transcendentalism?5.What is “manifest destiny”? What are the influence of this movementon American culture and American literature?Manifest Destiny, a phrase coined in 1845 by Louis O’Sullivan in U.S. history, the supposed inevitability of the continued territorial expansion of the boundaries of the United States westward to the Pacific and beyond, which is used to justify the forced removal of Native Americans and other groups from their homes.The rapid expansion of the United States intensified the issue of slavery as new states were added to the Union, leading to the outbreak of the Civil War. It has enlivened American literature from its Puritan roots, to the haunted Gothic world of early 19th century and mid-century romance. What’s more, it also encouraged the impulse towards self-definition, hence nationalism.6.Mark Twain coined the phrase the “Gilded Age”. What are some of thesocial and cultural phenomena that characterized the Gilded Age？(1)The Civil War, which not only destroyed the innocence prevalentearlier in the 19th century, but also change the map of the USA.(2)The Westward movement, a steady influx of immigrants, andnewly discovered mineral deposits in the west.(3)The development of rail road and communication network(4)The corruption in policy(5)Social Darwinism that survival of the fittest to sociology andpolitics(6)The spread of industrialism led to a series of significant changes,factory owners and managers came to see machines as being more valuable than workers.7.What are the four types of fictional works by Mark Twain? Howimportant is Mark Twain to American literature and American culture?8.What is Naturalism? What are major tenets of Naturalism?In philosophy, naturalism is the "idea or belief that only natural (as opposed to supernatural or spiritual) laws and forces operate in the world."Naturalism is a literary movement that emphasizes observation and the scientific method in the fictional portrayal of reality. The novel would be an experiment where the author could discover and analyze the forces, or scientific laws, that influenced behavior, and these included emotion, heredity, and environment. Novelists writing in the naturalist mode include Émile Zola (its founder), Thomas Hardy, Theodore Dreiser, Stephen Crane, and Frank Norris.Major tanets:•Writer must examine people and society objectively and, like a scientist, draw conclusions from what is observed.•Reality: the inescapable working out of natural forces•Destiny is decided by heredity and environment, physical drives, and economic circumstances.•Tended to be pessimistic.•Direct opposite of Romanticism and Transcendentalism, which saw nature as holy or mystical•Despite their underlying powerlessness, characters generally conduct themselves with strength and dignity in the face of adversity, thereby affirming the significance of their existence.9.What are the themes of Modernist Literature？Collectivism versus individualism; Disillusionment; Violence and alienation; Decadence and decay; Loss and despair; Breakdown of social norms and cultural sureties; Race and gender relations; The American Dream10.What was the Harlem Renaissance or New Negro Renaissance? Howis the social protest expressed in “Harlem”?The Harlem Renaissance was a flowering of African American social thought which was expressed through Paintings Music Dance Theater Literature. Centered in the Harlem district of New York City, the NewNegro Movement (as it was called at the time) had a major influence across the Unites States and even the world.Important Quotes:1.Yellow wall paper Charlotte Perkins GilmanThe Yellow Wall-paper” (1892) is a psychological and suspenseful tale of isolation and insanity based largely on Gilman’s own experience with the “rest cure”, which was told from the point of view of a nameless female protagonist who undergoes the rest cure, in an ancestral home.John is a doctor who administrates the “rest cure” by renting “a colonial mansion”for their stay in summer, combining the authority society allows a man.The belief that women were a sexual and social subclass was the theme norm dominating American home and social life. Society allowed only the man to make major public and private decision, which can explain why that “……”Important quotes:6. Yellow wall paperBy Charlotte Perkins Gilman那是月亮，月亮和太阳一样，到处都在发光。
美国文学简答题（自己整理归纳的）
美国文学简答题（自己整理归纳的）1. American TranscendentalismNew England Transcendentalism was, in essence, romantic idealism on Puritan soil. It was a system of thought that originated from three sources. First William Ellery Channing (1780---1842) was an American Unitarian clergyman. His Unitarianism represented a thoughtful revolt against orthodox Puritanism. Unitarianism believed God as one being, rejecting the doctrine of trinity, stressing the tolerance of difference in religious opinion, and giving each congregation the free control of its own affairs and its independent authority. It laid the foundation for the central doctrines of transcendentalism. Secondly, the idealistic philosophy from France and Germany exerted enormous impact on American intellectuals. Thirdly, oriental mysticism as revealed in Hindu and Chinese classics reached America in English translations. As a result, New England Transcendentalism blended native American tradition with foreign influences.2. American Realism Realism is the theory of writing in which familiar aspects of contemporary life and everyday scenes are represented in a straightforward or matter-of-fact manner. This is the theory that authors try to use and guide them in their writing. It stresses truthful treatment of material. It is anti-romantic, anti-sentimental, and without abstract interest in nature, death, etc. Mark Twain laughed at people who were caught up in the world of illusions, who were not mature enough to see real situations. This is one example of the truthful treatment of material.3. American RomanticismRomanticism was a rebellion against the objectivity ofrationalism. It was a movement of conscious rebellion against being too objective. The romantic spirit was one of subjectivity of inward feelings that one could trust one?s subjective responses. Romantics placed a high premium upon the creative function of imagination, and saw art as a formulation of intuitive and imaginative perceptions that tend to speak a nobler truth than that of fact.4. Why are naturalists inevitably pessimistic in their view?Please discuss the above question in relation to the basic principles of literary naturalism.A. They accept the negative implication of Darwin?s theory of evolution, and believethat society is a "jungle" where survival struggles go on.B. They believe that man?s instinct, the environment and other social and economicforces play an overwhelming role and man?s fate is "determined" by such forces beyond his control.5. Some of Hemingway?s heroes are regarded as the Hemingway code heroes. Whatever the differences in experience and age，they all have something incommon Which Hemingway V alues．What are the characteristics of the Hemingway Code hero?6. What are the major features of New England Transcendentalism?7. What are the simil arities and differences between Whitman and Dickinson’s poetry?1) Dickinson?s poems are usually based on her own experiences, her sorrows and joys. But within her little lyrics Dickinson addresses those issues that concern the whole human beings, which include religion, death, immortality,love, and nature. (theme) 2) Her masterpiece -----"I heard a Fly buzz---when I died", she looked at death from the point of view of both the living and the dying. She even imagined her own death, the loss of her own body, and the journey of her soul to the unknown.3) The style of Dickinson:A: A particular stress pattern: dash“-------”B: Capital letters as a means of emphasis;C: Language: brief, direct, and plain;D: Poem: short, always on single image or symbol (e.g. "I like to see it lap the miles"---------describe a train in the personification of the literary device)E: Her poems tend to be personal and meditative (e.g. “Because I could not stop for Death”).8. Reality reflected in realistic writingsRealism came a s a reaction against …the lie? of romanticism and sentimentalism. The battle between …idealists? and …realists? provided the major issue of American literary history after the Civil war (1861-1865). Literature began to pay less attention to general ideas and more to the immediate facts of life. As a way of writing, realism has been applied in almost every literature throughout history. But as a literary movement, realism is a period concept and it refers to the approach of realist fiction occurred at the latter part of the 19th century.In part, the rise of realism came as a protest against the falseness and sentimentality seen in romantic literature. The realists were determined to create a new kind of literature that was completely and totally realistic.Major Features1Realism is the theory of writing in which familiar aspects ofcontemporary life and everyday scenes are represented in a straightforward or matter-of-fact manner.This is the theory that authors try to use in their writing. It stresses truthful treatment of material. It is anti-romantic, anti-sentimental, and without abstract interest in nature, death, etc.2In realist fiction characters from all social levels are examined in depth. The realist writers hold on to characters and keep examining how these people relate to each other.3Open ending is also a good example of the truthful treatment of material.4Realism focuses on commonness of the lives of the common people who are customarily ignored by the arts. Realists are interested in commonplace, the everyday, the average, the trivial, and the representative.5Realism emphasizes objectivity and offers an objective rather than an idealistic view of human nature and human experience. The realist writers are detached observers of life. They are like scientists, making an investigation.Realism presents moral visions. The author has a purpose for presenting an objective account of real life in order to express his moral sense. Realists are ethical writers, interested in the problems of the individual conscience in conflict with social institutions. Many of their works show the American businessman in the conflict over whether he should accept a bribe, give a bribe, participate in unfair business practices, etc. Generally, these writers show how the individual conscience wins when he opposes social conventions and social practices and they are always interested in focusing on the dilemma. This indicates their disbelief in romantic individualism.10. The difference between Realism and NaturalismThe literary naturalists have a major difference from the realists. The naturalists also describe real life, the way things really are. They do not escape into a world of imagination, but they dismiss the realists as far too …genteel?. The naturalists look at a different spot to find real life. They do not look at the average, but at the violent, sensational, sordid, unpleasant and ugly aspects of life. Instead of going to a middle-class neighborhood and write about middle-class life, the naturalists would go to the slums and write about the life of poverty and crime. This fits their theory that they have adopted by applying Darwinian techniques to the behavior of human. They think that the true reality is not found in the smiling aspects of middle-class life. The true reality is found when forces of Nature are most dominant in stopping human desires, in keeping humans from accomplishing their dreams. They write about war, about prostitution, about criminals which form the aspects of life that are not too pleasant to consider.What distinguishes realist from naturalist texts is restraint, not action itself. After all, naturalist characters act out of a similar set of motives and desires, and they differ from their realist counterparts only in being unable to resist the conditions that press upon them.Realists present their character as a unified self, subjectively whole and self-consistent, but naturalists see this self as no more than an illusion. Characters in naturalist texts are portrayed as more or less combinations of innate traits and socialized habits.11. The influence of TranscendentalismTranscendentalism can be best understood as a late and localized manifestation of romantic movement in literature and philosophy. The triumph of intuition over five senses, theelevation of the individual over society, the critical attitude toward formalized religion, the rejection of any kind of restraint or bondage to custom, the new and thrilling delight in nature --- all these were characteristics of transcendentalism.As formulated by Emerson, transcendentalism became a loud and clear call to action, urging young people to cast off their enslavement to the past, to follow God within, and to live every moment of life with great effort, to regard nature as the great objective lesson proving God?s presence everywhere in His creation.Transcendentalism was also an ethical and moral guide to life for a young nation of America. It preached the positive life and appealed to the best side of human nature. Therefore, it stressed the tolerance of difference in religious opinion and the free control of its own affairs by each congregation, and called to throw off shackles of custom and tradition, and to go forward to the development of a new and distinctlyAmerican culture.Transcendentalism is important to American literature at least for two reasons: 1)It is represented by two major writers of the country, Emerson and Thoreau. Theybecame movers and shakers whose writings have had more and more impact with the passage of time.A new group of writers under the influence of Emerson and Thoreau began to apply transcendental ideas in their works. Hawthorne, Melville, Lowell, Dickinson, and Whitman were all exponents of transcendentalism in one way or another. They created one of the most prolific periods in the history of American literature.12. Why are naturalists inevitably pessimistic in their view?Please discuss the above question in relation to the basic principles of literary naturalism.A. They accept the negative imp lication of Darwin?s theory of evolution, and believe that society is a "jungle" where survival struggles go on.B. They believe that man?s instinct, the environment and other social and economic forces play an overwhelming role and man?s fate is "determin ed" by such forces beyond his control.。
美国文学练习问答题
Questions For American LiteratureWeek 1. Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)1. Is Franklin a man of religiousprinciples? Why does he stop attending public service?2. Explain 13 virtues Franklinchooses for his moral improvement.3. What is Franklin’s attitudetowards moral perfection?4. What are significance of themoralistic self- discipline, according to Franklin?5. What virtues does Franklinthink he has never achieved?6. Comment on the Criticism that some authors made on Franklin, such as Hawthorn, Lawrence. (History p.53-54)Week 2: Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)1.What does “whim”mean in the“Self-reliance”? and why doesEmerson call consistency“foolish”?2.What is an acrostic orAlexandrian stanza characterlike, according to theSelf-relaince?3.Explain “to talk of reliance is apoor external way of speaking.Speak rather of that which relies, because it works and is.”andthe context that gives rise tothis statement in theSelf-reliance.4.What are Emerson’s commentson Jesus Christ in “The DivinitySchool Address”? Pleasecompare it with Thomas Paine’sin The Age of Reason.Week Three：Henry David Thoreau (1817--1862)1.What is the analogy betweenthat striped snake lying on thebottom of the pond and the manin the early spring? How is astray goose like the spirit of thefog?2.What is Thoreau’s understandingof the beauty of an architecture?And what does he think of thearchitectural ornaments? Inwhat cases will a “carpenter”be a “coffin-maker”?3.Why does Thoreau say “Thosethings for which the most moneyis demanded are never thethings which the student mostwants”? What is your commenton Thoreau’s idea of higher education?4.Is Thoreau a quietist or a hermitin the woods of Walden? Why or why not?Week four: Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864):1.What did the boy, at nightfall,hear when he was playing with the scattered fragments of marble? And how did he respond?2.What does author compare thekiln with?3.What question struck EthanBrand’s mind on that p ortentous night 18 years ago? Did he find the answer to it after 18-year-wandering in the world?What is it?4.What kind of person is EthanBrand in his youth hood? What causes his transformation? What is the end of his life?5.How does the old dog’s pursuitof his tail parallel Ethan Brand’s search for the Unpardonable Sin?6.What is your understanding ofthe little boy Joe? What virtues does he stand for?Week Five: Herman Melville (1819-1891)1.How did Ahab respond whenMoby-Dick appear before him in the last day of the chasing Moby-Dick? And how did he respond in the last two days before ? Do you think Ahab’s attitudes towards Moby-Dick undergo any changes? Why?2.What are the Fedallah’sprophecy about Ahab’s death?Does it come true? And how? I 3.Who is the only survivor of thePequod? And how?4.What are the symbolic meaningsof Moby-Dick and Captain Ahab?And also the symbolic meaning of the death of the bird of heaven at the end of the novel?5.How do you understand theending sentence: “and the great shroud of the sea rolled on as it rolled five thousand years ago.”?Week 6 Walt Whitman （1819-1892）1.What does Whitman’s “self”refer to? Why is Whitman’s “myself”different from the narrow egotism?2.Why does Whitman call his life’swork Leaves of Grass? What does “a leaf of grass’’ mean to you?T o Whitman?3.What is the ending of Song ofMyself? And how will you respond to Whitman’s invitation?Week 7 Emily Dickinson （1830-1886）1.Dickinson is well-known for herpoetic meditations on dying anddeath. What is so moving and touching in her death meditations? Do you think the speak fears of death? Discuss your understanding with the help of her poems.2.What images does the poetessintroduce in the “Hope”, and how do they work as the metaphors of the idea ---HOPE?3.How does the triumphing humanspirit permeate through Dickinson’s poetry of human suffering? Illustrate your ideas with her specific poems.Week 8 Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) 1.How many times is the word“nevermore”repeated? And what inquiries that “I”raised incites the raven to respond to with “Nevermore’?2.Besides “nevermore”, what is(are) the other word or words that you find highly repeated?Why?3.How do Poe’s poems and storiescorrespond to the literary principals he raised in his “Poetic Principles”and “The Philosophy of Composition”?Discuss with Poe’s poems andstories as example.。
《美国文学》题库及答案
《美国⽂学》题库及答案《美国⽂学》题库及答案I.Multiple Choice1. American literature is only more than ____ years old.A. 500B.400C. 200D.1002. The Puritan values did no include______.A. wastefulnessB. thriftC. pietyD. hard work3. The 18th century was the age of the Enlightenment.______was the dominant spirit.A. HumanismB. RationalismC. RomanticismD. Realism4. Franklin was the epitome of the______.A. American EnlightenmentB. Sugar ActC. Charlist movementD. Romanticism5. _____was the most leading spirit of the Transcendentalism.A. FranklinB. HawthorneC. PaineD. Emerson6. “Moby Dick was written by_____A. Mark TwainB. ThoreauC. MelvilleD. Whitman7. “The Scarlet Letter” is characterized by its______.C. PlatonismD. classicism8. “Huckleberry Finn is the masterpiece of________.A. Henry JamesB. Jack LondonC. Mark TwainD. Stephen Crane9. Choose the novel written by Henry JamesA. The Golden BowlB. The Portrait of a LadyC. Sister CarrieD. Daisy Miller10. Early in the 20th century, _____ published works that would change the nature of American poetry.A. Ezra PoundB. T.S. EliotC. Robert FrostD. both A and B11._____ is the founder of “Imagist” movement.A. Ezra PoundB. HemingwayC. Robert FrostD. Steinbeck12. Mark Twain’s works are characterized by_____A. NaturalismB. TranscendentalismC. Local ColorismD. Imagism13. ________ is said to be the father of American poetryA. T.S. EliotB. E.D. RobinsonC. Philip FreneauD. Dreiser14. Hawthorne is regarded as a _______.C. realistD. romanticist15. ______ represents the most leading spirit of American Transcendentalism.A. EmersonB. FranklinC. Mark TwainD. Whitman16.“The Art of Fiction” was written by_____A. LongfellowB. Henry JamesC. FitzgeraldD. Faulkner17. Imagination plays the most important part in________.A. realismB. romanticismC. naturalismD. classicism18. ______ is considered to be the masterpiece of John Steinbeck.A. Mending WallB. Dry SeptemberC. A Farewell to ArmsD. The Grapes of Wrath19. Uncle Tom in the novel “Uncle Tom’s Cabin was a(n)______A. Negro slaveB. salesmanC. industrialistD. officer20. Mark Twain’s works are characterized by______A. NaturalismB. TranscendentalismC. Local ColorismD. Imagism21. “The Great Gatsby” is the masterpiece of_____C. DickinsonD. Hemingway22. The United States of America was founded in______.A. 1776B. 1876C. 1789D.168923. The ancestors of American Indians were______A. AsiansB. AfricansC. EuropeansD. Australians24. “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” was written by______.A. H.B. Stowe B. John SteinbeckC. HawthorneD. Mark Twain25. ______ does not belong to the lost generation.A. DreiserB. T.S. EliotC. FaulknerD. Hemingway26. ______ was well known for his story “Rip Van Winkle.”A. BryantB. Washington IrvingC. Allan PoeD. Philip Freneau27. “Farewell to Arms” is the master pieced produced by______A. FaulknerB. DreiserC. HemingwayD. Longfellow28. It was ______ who wrote the formal declaration of independence.A. Thomas JeffersonB. Benjamin FranklinC. WashingtonD. Washington Irving29. _____has been exerting a great and enduring influence upon world literature, especially that of France and European symbolism.A. FranklinB. BradstreetC. Edgar Allan PoeD. Philip Freneau30. The masterpiece of Hawthorne is _________.A. The Scarlet LetterB. Sister CarrieC. Richard CoryD. A Psalm of Life31. Engene O’Neill is a _______.A. novelistB. poetC. puritanD. dramatist32.Hemingway’s style of writing is characterized by______.A. high-sounding wordsB. simple dictionC. complicated sentencesD. mix metaphor33. T.S. Eliot is not only a poet but also a ______.A. criticB. statesmanC. churchmanD. novelists34. “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” was written by_____.A. T.S. EliotB. O’NeillC. Stephen CraneD. Saul Bellow35. “The Grape of Wrath” is one of the remarkable novels of_____.A. the Civil WarB. DepressionC. SuppressionD. Aggression36. Theodore Dreiser showed the_____ tendency in his novels.A. PuritanismB. classicismC. romanticismD. naturalism37. Ralph Waldo Emerson was the leading figure of________.A. TranscendentalismB. RomanticismC. RationalismD. Naturalism38. “The Sound and the Fury” was the masterpiece of ______A. Robert Lee FrostB. T.S. EliotC. FaulknerD. Steinbeck39. Emily Dickinson is an American________.A. dramatistB. novelistC. female poetD. male poet40. “Th Emily Dickinson is an American ark Twain’s______A. materialismB. classicismC. socialismD. colorism41. “The Portrait of a Lady” is one of best novels of_________.A. Henry JamesB. John SteinbeckC. William FaulknerD. Walt Whitman42. What Whitman is famous for his_________.A. “Leaves of Grass”B. “Mending Wall”C. “Richard Cory”D. “The Burial of the Dead”43. “Catch-22” is the masterpiece of______A. Saul BellowB. Joseph HellerC. DreiserD. Fitzgerald44. The English settlement in America began in_________A.1507B.1607C.1707D.180745. The first World War broke out in______.A.1614B.1714C.1814D.191446. The jazz age refers to the decade ofA.1950’sB.1980’sC.1920’sD.1820’s47. Franklin was a _____.A. PuritanB. romanticistC. classicistD. imagist48. “Rip Van Winkle” was written by_______.A. FreneauB. Allan PoeC. Washington IrvingD. Thomas Jefferson49.“The Scarlet Letter” is the masterpiece of______.C. BradstreetD. Allan Poe50.It was______who wrote “The Age of Reason”A. WashingtonB. JeffersonC. Benjamin FranklinD. Thomas Paine51.“Song of Myself” is a ______written by Whitman.A. novelB. poemC. dramaD. essay52.Tom in Beecher Stowe’s novel “Uncle Tom’s Cabin is a _____.A. Negro slaveB. American IndianC. School masterD. industrialist53. Mark Twain belongs to the literary school of_____.A. transcendentalismB. realismC. romanticismD. naturalism54._______is a famous American female poet.A. Allan PoeB. FreneauC. Emily DickinsonD. Robinson55. “The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn” is the masterpiece of_____.A. Mark TwainB. Henry JamesC. Stephen CraneD. Robert Lee Frost56. It was____ who wrote the poem “The Road Not Taken.”C. Robert Lee FrostD. T.S.EliotⅡ Define the literary terms briefly in English1. American Transcendentalism2. Romanticism3. The Puritans4. Realism5. Enlightenment6. Transcendentalism7. EnlightenmentIII Explain the following quotations in your own words.1. Success is counted sweetest By those who ne’er succeed.2. Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by And that has made all the difference.3. Let us, then, be up and doing, With heart for any fate;Still achieving, still pursuing, Learn to labor and to wait.4. And he was always quietly arrayed, And he was always human when he talked.5. Tell me not, in mournful numbers, Life is but an empty dream!_____6. To comprehend a nectar Requires sorest need.7. But still he fluttered pulses when he said,“Good morning”, and he glittered when he walked.8. something there is that doesn’t love a wall,He says again, “Good fences make good neighbors.”9. Fair flower, that dost so comely grow, Hid in this silent, dull retreat10. But to act, that each tomorrow Find us farther than today11. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep. Ⅳ Answer the following questions in English1. Why is American literature important for you?2. What is the theme of “The Waste Land”?3. Whose novel (or which novel) do you enjoy most?Why?4. What is the style of Hemingway’s novel?5. What is the significance of American literature?6. Do you like American literature? Why?7. What is the real theme in “Sister Carrie”?8. What is the central subject and primary significance of Hawthorne’s major works?9. Which American writer do you like best? Why?10. What is the theme of “Catch-22”?11. What are the features of Emily Dickinson’s poems?12. Why should we learn American literature?13. Which poem do you enjoy most? Why?《美国⽂学》作业参考答案I.Multiple Choice1.C2.A3.B4.A5.D6.C7.A8.C9.B 10.D11.A 12.C 13.C 14.D 15.A 16.B 17.B 18.D 19.A 20.C21.B 22.C 23.A 24.D 25.A 26.B 27.C 28.A 29.C 30.A31.D 32.B 33.A 34.B 35.B 36.D 37.A 38.C 39.C 40.D41.A 42.A 43.B 44.B 45.D 46.C 47.A 48.B 49. A 50.D51.B 52.A 53.B 54.C 55. A 56. CII.Define the literary terms briefly in English1.American transcendentalism was a philosophical dissent from Unitarianism. Transcendentalists rejected the materialistic psychology in favor of the idealism of Kant who asserted that intuition could surpass reason as a guide to the truth. To transcendentalists, spirit is inherent and pervading and is the only reality in the universe in which nature stood as a symbol of Spirit. Transcendentalismemphasized the divinity of man, the significance and right of the individual, and the possibility of the self-perfection of the individual.2. Romanticism is characterized by the pursuit of freedom, emphasis of individualism, a reliance upon the good of nature and “natural” man, and an abiding faith in the boundless resources of the human spirit and imagination.3.The Puritans were members of the church of England who at first wished to reform or “Purify its doctrines. They kept in common with all advocates o f strict Christian orthodox, insisting on man’s original sin and depravity.4. Realism is a literary school. The American realist William Dean Howells refered to the method of realistic literary creation as “nothing more and nothing less than the truthful treatment of material. The realists tended to be highly selective in their choice of material, focusing upon what seemed real to their largely middle-class readers.5. Enlightenment in America was a progressive “intellectual movement which contributed to free the Americans from the limitation of Puritanism which had been prevailing in American society, and stimulate them to strive for the establishment of their independent and democratic nation. The enlighteners were confident in the proqress by education and appealed to Reason.6．American transcendentalism was a political dissent from Unitarianism. Transcendentalists rejected the materialistic psychology in favour of the idealism of kant who asserted that intuition could surpass reason as a guide to the truth. To transcendentalists, spirit is inherent and pervading and is the only reality in the universe in which nature stood as a symbol of Spirit. Transcendentalists emphasized the divinity of man, the significance and right of the individual, and the possibility of the self-perfection of the individual.7. Enlightenment in America was a progressive intellectual movement which contributed to free the Americans fromthe limitations of Purtanism which had been prevailing in American society, and stimulate them to strive for their independent and democratic nation. The enlighteners were confident in the proqress of education and appealed to reason.III Explain the following quotations in your own words.1. Those who have never succeeded before will enjoy the sweetness o success most.2. In my life and literary creation, I did not follow others’ footsteps (or footprints). SometimesI chose a different way. That was the reason why I was unique and different from them both in life and poetic writing.3. Let us rise up and take actionTo meet any challenge in our life.We should learn to work and to be patientAnd persevere in pursuing our goalTill we reap the fruit of achievement one after another.4. He always dressed himself properly and elegantly And he showed his kindness and considerateness when talked with others.5. Don’t tell me in sad voice that life is nothing but an meaningless and empty dream.6. Only when you feel thirstiest and bitterest, can you really understand and enjoy the holy sweet drink.7. He stirred the pulses of the persons he was greeting with “Good morning”. While he was walking, his manners appeared to be so brilliant and attractive that he drow much public attention.8. Wall, as a barrier for communication or mutual understanding, is not good at all. Sometimes, it is necessary to remove the wall.Wall, as a boundary or limitation or border, is needed sometimes, so that good relations can be kept among different strata of people, or different countries.Wall is a paradox, which is both good and bad in haman life9.The honeysuckle qrows so agreeably and beautifully.However the beautiful flower hid its beauty in the quiet and lonely place.10.We had better take action every day, not remain idle and inactive so that we can make progress each day.11.I have a lot of obligations and duties to fulfill, so there is still a long way for me to go beforeI can relax or leave this world.Ⅳ Answer the following questions in English1. Key points:① the significance of American literature in the world literature ② the manifestation of American life and culture③the requirement of improving English2. The theme of the poem is modern spiritual barrenness, the despair and depression that followed the first world war, the sterility and turbulence of the modern world, and the decline and breakdown of Western culture.3. The answer depends on individual student’s inclination.4. His style of writing is characterized by short and terse sentences, simple diction filled with emotion, vivid colloquialisms, and particularly the simplicity of his laconic statements.5. Key points: ① its place in the world literature② the manifestation of American life and culture③ the requirement of professional knowledge and skills as English majon.6. The answer is flexible. It de pends on an individual Student’s inclination.7. The real theme in Sister Carrie is the purposelessness of life. While looking at individuals with warm, human sympathy, he also sees the disorder and cruelty of life in general.8. The central subject of Haw thorne’s major works was the human soul. His exploration of the soul resulted from his skeptical attitude toward the social reality that was characterized by a rapid change in almost all aspects of social life, and from his ambition to probe into the nature of man. The primary significance of his major works dwells in the interect and the consistend vitality of his criticism of life.9. The answer is flexible, depending on students’ inclination, logic and language skills.10. Its real theme is to expose the dehumanization of all contemporary institutions, the absurd and corrupt bureancracy and the alienation of individuals existing in a systemized chaotic condition, such as war.punctuation and capitalization. Her mode of expression is characterized by clear-cut and delicately original imagery, precise diction, and fragmentary and enigmatic metrical pattern.12. Key points: ①the significance of American literature in the world literature ② the manifestation of American life and culture ③ the requirement of improving English.13. The answer is flexible and depends on student’s inclination.。
美国文学课程考试题库
美国文学课程考试题库一、选择题（每题2分，共20分）1. 以下哪部作品是纳撒尼尔·霍桑的代表作？A. 《红字》B. 《白鲸》C. 《了不起的盖茨比》D. 《老人与海》2. 马克·吐温的《汤姆·索亚历险记》发表于哪一年？A. 1869年B. 1876年C. 1884年D. 1893年3. 爱德加·爱伦·坡被誉为什么？A. 现代侦探小说之父B. 现代科幻小说之父C. 现代恐怖小说之父D. 现代奇幻小说之父4. 以下哪位作家是“垮掉的一代”的代表人物？A. 欧内斯特·海明威B. 杰克·凯鲁亚克C. 威廉·福克纳D. 约翰·斯坦贝克5. 以下哪部作品是海明威的代表作？A. 《太阳照常升起》B. 《永别了，武器》C. 《老人与海》D. 所有选项都是6. 弗朗西斯·斯科特·菲茨杰拉德的《了不起的盖茨比》反映了哪个时代的社会风貌？A. 维多利亚时代B. 爵士时代C. 工业革命时期D. 冷战时期7. 以下哪部作品是威廉·福克纳的代表作？A. 《喧哗与骚动》B. 《我弥留之际》C. 《押沙龙，押沙龙！》D. 所有选项都是8. 以下哪位作家是“黑人文艺复兴”运动的代表人物？A. 理查德·赖特B. 詹姆斯·鲍德温C. 托尼·莫里森D. 所有选项都是9. 托尼·莫里森的《宠儿》是哪一年获得普利策奖的？A. 1987年B. 1988年C. 1989年D. 1990年10. 以下哪部作品是“现代主义”文学的代表作？A. 《荒原》B. 《尤利西斯》C. 《追忆似水年华》D. 所有选项都是二、填空题（每空2分，共20分）11. 《红字》中的女主角名叫________。
12. 《白鲸》中的船长名叫________。
13. 《了不起的盖茨比》中，盖茨比的豪宅位于________。
（完整版）美国文学题库（选择题网上合集）范文
（完整版）美国文学题库（选择题网上合集）范文1. For Melville, as well as for the reader and _________, the narrator, Moby Dick is still a mystery, an ultimate mystery of the universe.A. AhabB. IshmaelC. StubbD. Starbuck2. Naturalism is evolved from re alism when the author’s tone in writing becomes less serious and less sympathetic but more ironic and more_____________.A. rationalB. humorousC. optimisticD. pessimistic3. Dreiser’s Trilogy of Desire includes th ree novels. They are The Financier, The Titan and_____ .A. The GeniusB. The TycoonC. The StoicD. The Giant4. The impact of Darwin’s evolutionary theory on the American thought and the influence of the nineteenth-century French literature on the American men of letters gave rise to yet another school of realism: American___________ .A. local colorismB. vernacularismC. modernismD. naturalism5. Robert Frost combined traditional verse forms -the sonnet, rhyming couplets, blank verse -with a clear American local speech rhythm, the speech of _______farmers with its idiosyncratic diction and syntax.A. SouthernB. WesternC. New HampshireD. New England6. As an autobiographical play, O’Neill’s ___________(1956) has gained its status asa world classic and simultaneously marks the climax of his literary career and the coming of age of American drama.A. The Iceman ComethB. Long Day’s Journey Into NightC. The Hairy ApeD. Desire Under the Elms7. Apart from the dislocation of time and the modern stream-of-consciousness, the other narrative techniques Faulkner used to construct his stories include_________, symbolism and mythological and biblical allusions.A. impressionismB. expressionismC. multiple points of viewD. first person point of view8. Stylistically, Henry James’ fiction is characterized by____________.A. short, clear sentencesB. abundance of local imagesC. ordinary American speechD. highly refined language9. One of the characteristics that have made Mark Twain a major literary figure in the 19th century America is his use of____________ .A. vernacularB. interior monologueC. point of viewD. photographic description10. It is on his____________ that Washington Irving’s fame mainly rested.A. childhood recollectionsB. sketches about his European toursC. early poetryD. tales about America11. At the middle of 19th century, America witnessed a cultural flowering which is called “____________________”.A. the English RenaissanceB. the Second RenaissanceC. the American RenaissanceD. the Salem Renaissance12. As a philosophical and literary movement, the main issues involved in the debate of Transcendentalism are generally concerning ____________________.A. nature, man and the universeB. the relationship between man and womanC. the development of Romanticism in American literatureD. the cold, rigid rationalism of Unitarianism13. About the novel The Scarlet Letter, which of the following statements is NOT right?A. It’s very hard to say that it is a love story or a st ory of sin.B. It’s a highly symbolic story and the author is a master ofsymbolism.C. It’s mainly about the moral, emotional and psychological effects of the sinupon the main characters and the people in general.D. In it the letter A takes the same symbolic meaning throughout the novel.14. The great sea adventure story Moby-Dick is usually considered____________.A. a symbolic voyage of the mind in quest of the truth and knowledge of the universe.B. an adventurous exploration into man’s relationship w ith natureC. a simple whaling tale or sea adventureD. a symbolic voyage of the mind in quest of the artistic truth and beauty15. In his poems, Walt Whitman is innovative in the terms of the form of his poetry, which is called “____________________.”A. free verseB. blank verseC. alliterationD. end rhyming16. After the Civil War America was transformed from ______ to _________.A. an agrarian community …an industrialized and commercialized societyB. an agrarian community …a society of freedom and equ alityC. a poor and backward society …an industrialized and commercialized societyD. an industrialized and commercialized society …a highly developed society17. Which of the following is said of the American naturalism?A. They preferred to have their own region and people at the forefront of the stories.B. Their characteristic setting is usually an isolated town.C. Humans should be united because they had to adapt themselves to changing harshenvironment.D. Their characters were conceived more or less complex combinations of inheritedattributes, their habits conditioned by social and economic forces.18. Which of the following is not right about Mark Twain’s style of language?A. His sentence structures are long, ungrammatical and difficult to read.B. His words are colloquial, concrete and direct in effect.C. His humor is remarkable and characterized by puns, straight-faced exaggeration，repetition and anti-climax.D. His style of language had exerted rather deep influence on the contemporary writers.19. The impact of Darwin’s evolutionary theory on the American thought and the influence of the 19th century French literature on the American men of letters gave rise to another school of realism: American ______.A. RomanticismB. TranscendentalismC. RealismD. Naturalism20. Which of the following is not written by Henry James?A. The Portrait of A Lady and The Europeans.B. The Wings of the Dove and The Ambassadors.C. What Maisie Knows and The Bostonians.D.The Genius and The Gilded Age.21. More than five hundred poems Dickinson wrote are about nature, in which hergeneral Skepticism about the relationship between ______ is well-expressed.A. man and manB. men and womenC. man and natureD. men and God22. Which of the following is right about Emil y Dickinson’s poems about nature?A. In them, she expressed her general affirmation about the relationship betweenman and nature.B. Some of them showed her disbelief that there existed a mythical bondbetween man and nature.C. Her poems reflected her feeling that nature is restorative to human beings.D. Many of them showed her feeling of nature’s inscrutability and indifference tothe life and interests of human beings.23. As a great innovator in American literature, Walt Whitman wrote his poetry in anunconventional style which is now called free verse, that is _________.A. lyrical poetry with chanting refrainsB. poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme schemeC. poetry without rhymes at the end of the lines but with a fixed beatD. poetry in an irregular metric form and expressing noble feelings24. In the first part of the 20th century，apart from Darwinism, there were two thinkers-______，whose ideas had the greatest impact on the period.A. the German Karl Marx and the Austrian Sigmund FreudB. the German Karl Marx and the American Sigmund FreudC. the Swiss Carl Jung and the American William JamesD. the Austrian Karl Marx and the German Sigmund Freud25. Which of the following can be said about Eugene O’Neill plays?A. Most of his plays are concerned about the root, the truth of human desires andhuman frustrations.B. His tragic view of life is reflected in many of his works.C. His plays are concerned about the relationship between man and nature aswell as man and woman.D. Both A and B.26. Most of O’Neill’s plays are concerned about the following except______.A. success and failure in man’s literary careerB. life and death, illusion and disillusion, dream and realityC. alienation and communication, self and society, desire and frustrationD. the basic issues of human existence and predicament27. Which of the following can be said about a typicalmodern literary work?A. It is a record of sequence and coherence of the history and the world.B. It is a juxtaposition of the past and present, of the history and the memory.C. It is a book of integrity drawn from diverse areas of experience.D. Its perspective is shifted from the internal to the external, from the private to the public.28. As to the great American poet Ezra Pound, which of the following is not right?A. His language is usually oblique yet marvelously compressed and his poetry isdense with personal, literary, and historical allusions.B. His artistic talents are on full display in the history of the Imagist Movement.C. From his analysis of the Chinese ideogram Pound learned to anchor his poeticlanguage in concrete, perceptual reality, and to organize images into largerpatterns through juxtaposition.D.For he was politically controversial and notorious for what he did in thewartime, his literary achievement and influence are somewhat reduced.29. In his poetry, Robert Frost made the colloquial ______ speech into a poetic expression.A. EnglandB. New EnglandC. PlymouthD. Boston30. Which of the following statements is right about Robert Frost’s poetry?A. He combined traditional verse forms with the difficult and highly ornamental language.B. He combined traditional verse forms with the pastoral language of the Southern area.C. He combined traditional verse forms with a simple spoken language-the speech ofNew England farmers.D. He combined traditional verse forms with the experimental.31. Which of the following statements can be said about the works of Scott Fitzgerald,a spokesman of the “Roaring 20s”?A. Many of them portrayed the hollowness of the American worship of riches and theunending American dream of fulfillment.B. They are symbolic of the psychological journey of the modern man and hishelplessness in the modern world.C. They show the primitive struggle of individuals in the context of irresistible natural forces.D. They penetrate into the problems of the human heart in conflict with itself.32. Which of the following is not written by Ernest Hemingway, one of the best-known American authors of the 20th century?A. The Sun Also Rises.B. The Old Man and the Sea.C. Mosses From the Old Manse.D. The Green Hills of Africa.33. Which of the following statements is right about the novel A Farewell to Arms?A. The author favored the idea of nature as an expression of either god’s designor his beneficence.B. The author attempted to write the epitaph to a decade and to the wholegeneration in the 1930s.C.The author emphasizes his belief that man is trapped both physically andmentally and suggests that man is doomed to be entrapped.D. It tells a story about the tragic love affair of a wounded American soldier withan Italian nurse.34. Which of the following is depicted as the mythical county in William Faulkner’s novels?A. Cambridge.B. Oxford.C. Mississippi.D. Yoknapatawpha.35. To Faulkner, the primary duty of a writer was to explore and represent the infinite possibilities inherent in human life. Therefore a writer should ______.A. observe with no judgment whatsoever.B. reduce authorial intrusion to the lowest minimum.C. observe at a great distance and sometimes participate in the events.D. both A and B.36. Which of the following is right about American fiction from 1945 onwards?A. A group of new writers who survived the war wrote about their ideals withinthe artistic field.B. There appeared a significant group of Jewish-American writers whose workswere set against the Jewish experience and tradition.C. Black fiction began to attract critical attention during the 1950s.D. American fiction in the 1950s and 1960s proves to be a harvest which derivedfrom its predecessors.37. Which of the following is not a work of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s?A. The House of the Seven Gables.B. The Blithedale Romance.C. The Marble Faun.D.White Jacket.38. In Ha wthorne’s novels and short stories, intellectuals usually appear as ______________.A. commentatorsB. observersC. villainsD. saviors39. Besides sketches, tales and essays, Washington Irving also published a book on ______, which is also considered an important part of his creative writing.A. poetic theoryB. French artC. history of New YorkD. life of George Washington40. In Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, there are detailed descriptions of big parties. The purpose of such descriptions is so show _______.A. emptiness of lifeB. the corruption of the upper classC. contrast of the rich and the poorD. the happy days of the Jazz Age41. In American literature, escaping from the society and returning to nature is a common subject. The following titles are all related, in one way or another, to the subject except _________.A. Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnB. Dreiser’s Si ster CarrieC. Copper’s Leather-Stocking TalesD. Thoreau’s Walden42. Which of the following novels can be regarded as typically belonging to theschool of literary modernism?A. The Sound and the FuryB. Uncle Tom’s Cabin.C. Daisy Miller.D. The Gilded Age.43. Emily Dickinson wrote many short poems on various aspects of life. Which of the following is not a usual subject of her poetic expression?A. Religion.B. Life and death.C. Love and marriage.D. War and peace.44. In 1837, Ralph Waldo Emerson made a speech entitled _______ at Harvard, which was hailed by Oliver Wendell Holmes as "Our intellectual Declaration of Independence."A. "Nature"B. "Self-Reliance"C. "Divinity School Address"D. "The American Scholar"45. Which of the following statements about writers in 1920s is true?A. Mark Twain published his last and most important novel.B. F. Scott Fitzgerald received the Nobel Prize.C. Freudian psychology influenced many modern writers.D. Most writers were politically radical.46. In American literature the first important writer who earned an international fameon both sides of the Atlantic Ocean is_______________.A. Washington IrvingB. Ralph Waldo EmersonC. Nathaniel HawthorneD. Walt Whitman47. The American novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne is known for his“black vision．”TheTerm “black vision” refers to______________.A. Hawthorne's observation that every man faces a black WallB. Hawthorne's belief that all men are by nature evilC. that Hawthorne employed a dream vision to tell his storyD. that Puritans of Hawthorne's time usually wore black clothes48. Theodore Dreiser was once criticized for his____________ in Style，but as a true artist his strength just lies in that his style isvery serious and well calculated to achieve the thematic ends he sought.A. crudenessB. eleganceC. concisenessD. subtlety49. Almost all Faulkner’s heroes turned out to be t ragic because_____________.A. all enjoyed living in the declining American SouthB. none of them was conditioned by the civilization and Social institutionsC. most of them were prisoners of the pastD. none were successful in their attempt to explain the inexplicable50. Yank, the protagonist of Eugene O’Neill’s play The Hairy Ape,talked to the gorilla and set it free because____.A. he was mad，mistaking a beast for a humanB. he was told by the white young lady that he was like a beast and he wanted tosee how closely he resembled the gorillaC. he was caged with the gorilla after he insulted an aristocratic strollerD. he could feel the kinship only with the beast51. In__________, Robert Frost compares life to a journey, and he is doubtful whether he will regret his choice or not when he is old, because the choice has made all the difference.A. “After Apple-Picking”B. “The Road NOt Taken”C. “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”D. “Fire and Ice”52. Though Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson were romantic poets in theme and technique, they differ from each other in a variety of ways. For one thing, whereas Whitman likes to keep his eye on human Society at large, Dickinson often addresses such issues as_______, immortality, religion, love and nature.A. progressB. freedomC. beautyD. death53. The Romantic writers would focus on all the following issues EXCEPT the_______in the American literary history．A. individual feelingB. survival of the fittestC. strong imaginationD. return to nature54. Generally speaking，all those writers with a naturalistic approach to human realitytend to be_____________.A. transcendentalistsB. optimistsC. pessimistsD. idealists55. With Howells, James, and Mark Twain active on the literary scene, ______becamethe major trend in American literature in the seventies and eighties of the 19th century．A. SentimentalismB. RomanticismC. RealismD. Naturalism56. American writers after World War I self-consciously acknowledged that they were(a)“_______,” devoid of faith and alienated from the Western civilization．A. Lost GenerationB. Beat GenerationC. Sons of LibertyD. Angry Young Men57. Hester Prynne, Dimmesdale, Chillingworth and Pearl are most likely Characters in_______.A. The House of the Seven GablesB. The Scarlet LetterC. The Portrait of a LadyD. The pioneers58. In his realistic fiction, Henry James's primary concern is to present the_________.A. inner life of human beingsB. American Civil War and its effectsC. life on the Mississippi RiverD. Calvinistic view of original Sin59. Which of the following statements about E. Grierson, the protagonist in Faulkner'sStory “A Rose for Emily,” is NOT true?A. She has a distorted personality.B. She is physically deformed and paralyzed.C. She is the symbol of the old values of the South.D. She is the victim of the past glory.60. Which of the following is NOT the virtue that Franklinenumerated in his The Autobiography?A. TemperanceB. Humanity (Humility)C. FrugalityD. Immoderation61. American Romanticism stretches from the end of the ________ century through the outbreak of ______.A. 18th, the Civil WarB. 18th, the War of IndependenceC. 19th, WWID. 19th, WWII62. _________ be lieves that the chief aim of literary creation is beauty, and “the death of a beautiful woman is, unquestionably, the most poetical topic in the world.”A. Walt Whitman B. Edgar Allen PoeC. Anne BradstreetD. Ralph Waldo Emerson63. In Emily Dickinson’s Because I Could Not Stop fo r Death, ______________.A. death is personified as a devilB. death is described as the tragic end of a person’s lifeC. death is a stage of life and it leads people to the Heaven of immortalityD. death is described as a beautiful girl who couldn’t find her final destination64. Which is generally regarded as the manifesto and the Bible of American Transcendentalism?A. Thoreau’s WaldenB.Emerson’s NatureC. Poe’s Poetic PrincipleD. Thoreau’s Nature65. Henry David Thoreau’s work, ________, has always be en regarded as amasterpiece of the New England Transcendental Movement.A. WaldenB. The PioneersC. NatureD. "Song of Myself"66. ‘Leaves of Grass’ commands great attention because of its uniquely poeticembodiment of________, which are written in the founding documents of both the Revolutionary War and the American Civil War.A. the democratic idealsB. the romantic idealsC. the self-reliance spiritsD. the religious ideals67. ________is the author of the work “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”.A. Washington IrvingB. James JoyceC. Walt WhitmanD. William Butler Yeats68. After "The Adventure of Tom Sawyer", Twain gives a literary independence to Tom’s buddy Huck in a book called_________, and the book from which "all modern American literature comes".A. Life on the Mississippi RiverB. The Gilded AgeC. Adventures of Huckleberry FinnD. The Sun Also Rises69. The greatest work written by Theodore Dreiser is__________.A. Sister CarrieB. An American TragedyC. The FinancierD. The Titan70. We can perhaps summarize that Walt Whitman’s poems are characterized by all the following features except that they are _______________.A. conversational and crudeB. lyrical and well-structuredC. simple and rather crudeD. free-flowing71. Who exerts the single most important influence on literary naturalism, of which Theodore Dreiser and Jack London are among the best representative writers?A. FreudB. Darwin.C. W.D. Howells. D. Emerson72. Mark Twain, one of the greatest 19th century American writers, is well known for his ____.A. international themeB. waste-land imageryC. local colorD. symbolism73. At the beginning of Faulkner’s A Rose For Emily, there isa detailed description of Emily’s old house. The purpose of such description is to imply that the person living in it ____________.A. is a wealth ladyB. has good tasteC. is a prisoner of the pastD. is a conservative aristocrat74. Most of Herman Melville’s novels are based on sea voyages and sea adventures. Which of the following is not the case?A. Typee.B. Moby-Dick.C. Omoo.D. The Confidence-Man75. In Henry James’ Daisy Miller, the author tries to portray the young woman as an embodiment of _______________.A. the force of conventionB. the free spirit of the New WorldC. the decline of aristocracyD. the corruption of the newly rich76. "Two roads diverged in a yellow woodAnd sorry I could not travel both ..."In the above two lines of Robert Frost’s The Road Not T aken, the poet, by implication, was referring to _______.A. a travel experienceB. a marriage decisionC. a middle-age crisisD. one’s course of life77. The Transcendentalists believe that, first, nature is ennobling, and second, the individual is ____________.A. insignificantB. vicious by natureC. divineD. forward-looking78. The Publication of ______established Emerson as the most eloquent spokesman of New England Transcendentalism.A. NatureB. Self-RelianceC. The American ScholarD. The Over-Soul79. In Robert Frost’s famous poem "Stopping by Woods ona Snowy Evening", thereare four lines like these: “The woods are lovely, dark and deep, / But I have promises to keep, / And miles to go before I sleep,/ And miles to go before I sleep”. The second sleep refers to______.A. dieB. calm downC. fall into sleepD. stop walking。
美国文学试题及答案
美国文学试题及答案一、单项选择题（每题2分，共20分）1. 马克·吐温的代表作是以下哪一部？A. 《了不起的盖茨比》B. 《哈克贝利·芬历险记》C. 《白鲸》D. 《老人与海》答案：B2. 爱伦·坡的《乌鸦》属于什么文学流派？A. 浪漫主义B. 现实主义C. 哥特式D. 现代主义答案：C3. 《飘》的作者是谁？A. 弗吉尼亚·伍尔夫B. 玛格丽特·米切尔C. 简·奥斯汀D. 乔治·艾略特答案：B4. 以下哪部作品不是亨利·詹姆斯的作品？A. 《贵妇人的画像》B. 《使节》C. 《简·爱》D. 《贵妇人的画像》答案：C5. 以下哪部作品是威廉·福克纳的代表作？A. 《了不起的盖茨比》B. 《喧哗与骚动》C. 《老人与海》D. 《白鲸》答案：B二、填空题（每题2分，共10分）1. 《汤姆叔叔的小屋》的作者是________。
答案：哈丽叶特·比彻·斯托2. 《红字》的作者是________。
答案：纳撒尼尔·霍桑3. 《草叶集》的作者是________。
答案：沃尔特·惠特曼4. 《愤怒的葡萄》的作者是________。
答案：约翰·斯坦贝克5. 《太阳照样升起》的作者是________。
答案：欧内斯特·海明威三、简答题（每题5分，共20分）1. 简述《白鲸》中主人公艾哈布船长的形象。
答案：艾哈布船长是《白鲸》中的主人公，他是一个对捕鲸有着极端执着的船长，他的复仇心理和对白鲸的执念几乎占据了他整个人生。
他的形象代表了人类对自然的挑战和对未知的恐惧。
2. 描述《了不起的盖茨比》中盖茨比的美国梦。
答案：《了不起的盖茨比》中的盖茨比代表了20世纪20年代的美国梦，他通过自己的努力从贫穷中崛起，追求财富和社会地位，但最终因为追求一个无法实现的爱情和对过去的执着而走向悲剧。
美国文学练习1(附选择题答案).doc
美国文学练习1I.Multiple choice・ Please choose the best answer among the four items. (10x V= 10，)B 1> In American literature, the 18th century was the age of Enlightenment. ______________was the dominant.A. humanismB. rationalismC. romanticismD. evolutionB 2、The short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow^^ is taken from Irving^ work named___________ .A. The Leatherstocking TalesB. The Sketch BookC. The AutobiographyD. The History of New YorkA 3、Which of the following is not the characteristic of American Romanticism?A. RationalismB. inner selfC. personal feelingsD. individualismC 4、The short story "Rip Van Winkle" reveals the _________ a ttitude of its author.A. optimisticB. pessimisticC. conservativeD. ironicB 5、Transcendentalist doctrines found their greatest literary advocates in ___________ andThoreau.A. JeffersonB. EmersonC. FreneauD. Mark TwainA 6、Which is regarded as the "Declaration of Intellectual Independence^^?A. The American ScholarB. English TraitsC. OversoulD. Self-relianceD 7、_______ is the father of American Literature.A. Benjamin FranklinB. Philip FreneauC. PaineD. Washington IrvingB 8、_______ was the most leading spirit of the Transcendental Club.A. ThoreauB. EmersonC. HawthorneD. WhitmanC 9、Most of the poems in Whitman's Leaves of Grass sing of the mass^^ and the__ as well.A. natureB. self-relianceC. selfD. lifeC 10、For Melville, as well as for the reader and _________ ，the narrator, Moby Dick isstill a mystery, an ultimate mystery of the universe.A. AhabB. StubbC. IshmaelD. StarbuckC 11、The poem is written in free verse in 52 cantos with the theme of the universality andequality in value of all people and all things.a.Cantosb. The Ravenc. Song of Myselfd. ChicagoB 12、The novel is about how a group of people on a whaling ship kill a great whale butthemselves are killed by the whale, with the conflict between man and his fate.a.The Octopusb. Moby-Dickc. The Rise of Silas Laphamd. Leaves of GrassB 13、An English ship brought 102 people from Plymouth, England on September 16, 1620and arrived in the present Provincetown harbor on November 21 in the same year. This ship was named ____________________________ .a. The Pilgrimsb. Mayflowerc. Americad. TitanicB. the Modem PeriodD. the Realisticas .A. the Naturalist Period C. the Romantic PeriodC 14> __________ was the greatest woman poet in American literature and she wrote about 1,700 short lyric poems in her life time.a. Pearl S. Buckb. Harriet Bicher Stowec. Emily Dickensond. Walter WhitmanD 15、. ____________ is father of the detective story and of psychoanalytic criticism.a. Washington Irvingb. Ralph Waldo Emersonc. Walt Whitmand. Edgar Allan PoeB 16、In American literature, the eighteen century was the age of the Enlightenment.was the dominant spirit.A. HumanismB. RationalismC. RevolutionD. EvolutionA 17、 ------- Which statement about Franklin is not true?A. He instructed his countrymen as a printer.B. He was a scientist.C. He was a master of diplomacy.D. He was a Puritan.A 18、Who is regarded as the first American prose epic. A. Nature B. The Scarlet Letter C. Walden D. Moby-DickA 19、The Romanic Period of American literature started with the publication of WashingtonIrving's ----------------------------- a nd ended with Whiteman's Leaves of Grass.A. The Sketch BookB. Tales of a TravelerC. The AlhambraD. A history of New YorkC 20、The period before the American Civil War is generally referred toII. True or false choices: 1. Franklin's autobiography, published after his death, has become one of the classics of thegenre.2. The Scarlet Letter, published in 1850, is an American novel written by Nathaniel3. Hawthorne and is generally considered to be his representative work.4. Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist, philosopher, poet, and leader of theImagist movement in the early 19th century.5. —The Fall of the House of Usher is one of Poe's poems.6. In The Scarlet Letter, Pear is Hester 9s illegitimate daughter.7. The famous poem 一A Psalm of Life was written by Edgar Allen Poe.8. —The Raven is a short story written by Edgar Allen Poe.9. In Moby Dick, the voyage symbolizes a search for truth.Ill Simple questions1、 What are Puritan thoughts?2、 What is Transcendentalism and list some representative figures?3、 American Renaissance4、 Explain the symbolic meanings of "A" in The Scarlet Letter.5、 How does E. A. Poe anticipate the 20th century literatureIV・ Interpreting the following textText IBecause I could not stop for Death —He kindly stopped for meThe Carriage held but just OurselvesAnd Immortality.We slowly drove He knew no hasteAnd I had put awayMy labor and my leisure too,For His Civility —We passed the School, where Children stroveAt Recess in the RingWe passed the Fields of Gazing Grain ・・We passed the Setting Sun —Since then ・・ *tis Centuries ・・ and yetFeels shorter than the DayI first surmised the Horses1 2 3 4 5 6 HeadsWere toward Eternity —Questions:1 Identify the poet and the title of this poem? （2，）2 Explain the underlined words （4，）3 What are the implications of "the School", "the fields of Gazing Grain"，he Setting Sun”？（3‘）4 How do you understand “Since then 'tis Centuries and yet / Feels5 shorter than the Day" ? （3‘）6 What are the speaker's opinions about death? （3‘）Text IIOnce upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weakry,Over many a quint and curious volume of forgotten lore,While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,As of some one rapping, rapping at my chamber door."Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door --------------Only this, and nothing more."Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December, And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor. Eagerly I wished the morrow;—— vainly I had tried to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow —— sorrow for the lost Lenore—— For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name LenoreNameless here for evermore.And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain Thrilled me 一filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before; So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating, "1 Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door 一Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door ; 一This it is and nothing more."n Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!" I shrieked, upstarting ・ "Get thee back into the tempest and the Night!s plutonian shore! Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken! Leave my loneliness unbroken! -quit the bust above my door!Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!Quoth the raven, "Nevermore."And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon that is dreaming,And the lamp-light o' er him streaming throve his shadow on the floor;And my soul from out chat shadow that lies floating on the floorShall be lifted・nevemiore!7.Identify the poet and the title of this poem?8.Explain the images "the raven^^ and "the chamber door".9.Why did the author used a non-human creature to utter the word?10.Try to explain the theme of the poem.。
5.25全部美国美国文学部分练习(带客观题答案)
美国文学部分大作业Exercises for Chapter One of American Literature(第一章)1. 选择题1. Which of the following statements is NOT a famous concept of Transcendentalism?[A]Nature is ennobling[B] The individual is divine and self-reliant.[C] Man is capable of knowing truth by intuition[D] Man is corrupted in nature.2. Which of the following works began to make Irving internationally known?[A] The Sketch Book[B] A History of New York to the End of the Dutch Dynasty[C] Bracebridge Hall[D] Tales of Traveler3. Which of the following is NOT true concerning Irving?[A] He is the father of the American short stories.[B] He is the American Goldsmith.[C] He is the first American writer[D] He is the first writer to declare the independence of American literature.4. The Scarlet Letter by Hawthorne is mainly concerned with ___________.:[A] the corruption of the society[B] the consequence of sin and guilt[C] the wrong doing of one generation that lives in,, successive ones[D] "overreaching intellect"5. Rip Van Winkle has taken from ________.[A] Spanish stories [B] A German Legend[C] English tales [D] Italian folktales6. "But it would have been worth any statesman's money to have heard the profound discussions that sometimes took place, when by chance an old newspaper fell into their hands, from some passing traveler. " What is the rhetorical device used in this sentence?[A] Hyperbole. [B] Metaphor. [C] Irony. [D] Paradox.7. Which of the following statements about Emerson is NOT true?[A] He was generally known as an essayist.[B] He was the chief spokesman of Transcendentalism.[C] He practiced the theory by living a simple life.[D] For him, nature is symbolic.8. For Emerson, nature could symbolize the following except ________.[A] God [B] Spirit [C] Oversoul [D] the whole universe9. What is Hawthorne's attitude toward Puritanism?[Al Negative. [B] Affirmative. [C] Indifferent. [D] Mixed.10. One typical feature of Irving's writing is _________.[A] always preaching [B] his best classic style[C] short and difficult to [D] symbolic11. " I celebrate myself, and sing myself,And what I assume you shall assume,For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you. "Who could have written these lines?[A] Edgar Allen Poe. [B] Walt Whitman.[C] Ralph Waldo Emerson. [D] Henry David Thoreau.12. Which of the following is NOT true with Transcendentalism?[A] It inherited much from American Puritanism and European realism.[B] It focused on the intuitive knowledge.[C] Nature is its unofficial manifesto.[D] It is related in some way with the German idealism.13. What kind of narrative point of view is adopted in Moby Dick?[A] The first person.[B] The second person.[C] The third person limited.[D] The third person omniscient.14. Which of the following has influenced Melville's: EXCEPT ________.[A] Shakespearean tragic vision [B] Emersonian Transcendentalism [C] Hawthorne's black vision of life [D] Irving's writing15. Which of the following writers is NOT optimistic about human nature?[A] Ralph Waldo Emerson. [B] Nathaniel Hawthorne[C] Walt Whitman. [D] Henry David Thoreau16. Which of the following cannot poetry?[A] Elegant and gentle.[B] Simple and open.[C] Unconventional. [D] Colloquial.17. When Emerson states in the introduction to his Nature:"Our age is retrospective. " Which of the following is closest to its understanding?[A] We are conservative.[B] We see this world through our ancestors' eyes.[C] We usually look back upon the good old days.[D] We write a lot of books about the past.18. Which of the following novels does not represent the theme return to nature?[A] Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.[B] Thoreau's Walden .[C] Cooper's Leather-Stocking Tales.[D] Melville's Moby Dick .19. Which of the following is NOT a typical feature of the American Romantic writings?[A] Expression of the artist's imaginations, emotions, impressions, or beliefs.[B] Emphasis on rules of order, reason, logic, restrained emotion, good taste and decorum.[C] Love for the remote, supernatural, mysterious, exotic and illogical quality of things.[D] To see nature as a source of mental cleanness and spiritual understanding.20. The statement that a man's journey to the dark forest and his encounter with the devil are symbolic of man's life journey from innocence to knowledge, from good to evil may well sum up one of the major themes of ________.[A] Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"[B] Edgar Allen Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher"[C] Hawthorne's "Y oung Goodman Brown"[D] O. Henry's "The Cop and the Anthem"21. Here is a short passage from a story: "He recognized on the sign, however, the ruby face of King George, under which he had smoked so many a peaceful pipe, …and underneath was painted in large characters, GENERAL WASHINGTON. " The story must be ________.[A] Cooper's "Leather-stocking Tales"[B] Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown"[C] Irving's "Rip Van Winkle"[D] Hemingway's "Indian Camp"22. "The universe is composed of Nature and the soul . . present everywhere. " This is the voice of the book _______ which pushed American Romanticism into a new phase of New England Transcendentalism.[A] Walden by Thoreau [B] The Scarlet Lette r by Hawthorne[C] Moby Dick by Melville [D] Nature by Emerson23. In Whitman's giant work, Leaves of Grass, and, above all, ________.are all that concerned him.[A] individualism [B] divine love[C] sympathy [D] the power of blackness24. Which of the following is NOT a typical feature of Hawthorn "Y oung Goodman Brown"?[A] Allegory. [B] Ambiguity.[C] Interior monologue. [D] Symbolism.25. In Irving's "Rip Van Winkle" all the drastic changes lapsed 20 years displeased Rip EXCEPT that ________.[A] he has got his neck out of the yoke of matrimony[B] the country has finally got its independence from the yoke of the British colonial rule[C] there comes now the scramble for powers between parties.[D] past glories and a tranquil life of the small village are gone.B. 阅读理解题(Reading comprehension)1. "In like manner, nature is already, in its forms and describing its own design. Let us interrogate apparition, that shines so peacefully around us. Let to what end is nature?"Questions :A. Identify the work and the author.B. What is "the great apparition"?C. What is the writing style?2.... Had Goodman Brown fallen asleep in the forest, and only dreamed a wild dream of witch-meeting?Be it so, if you will. But, alas! It was a dream of evil omen for young Goodman Brown. A stern, a sad, a darkly meditative, a distrustful, if not a desperate man, did he become; from the night of that fearful dream. "Questions:A. Identity the work and the author.B. What is the general idea of this passage?C. Did the author tell for sure whether it was only a dream or not?3. "I loafe and invite my soul,I learn and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass. "Questions:A. Identify the poem and the poet.B. What is the meaning of the phrase "a spear of summer grass" ?C. What is the implied meaning of the two lines?4. "Now small fowls flew screaming over the yet yawning gulf; a sullen white surf beat against its steep sides; then all collapsed, and the great shroud of the sea rolled on as it rolled 5, 000 years ago.Questions:A. Identify the work and the author.B. What is the basic tone of this passage?C. What is the meaning of the underlined part?5. "God knows, ... I'm not myself-I'm somebody else-. . . I'm changed, and I can't tell what's my name, or who I am.Questions:A. Identify the work and the author.B. The speaker says he is changed. Do you think changed, or the social environment changed?C. What idea does the quoted sentence express?6. "Standing on the bare ground, -my head bathed by the blith air and uplifted into infinite space, -all mean egotism vanish I become a transparent eyeball. I am nothing. I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am pa or particle of God. "Questions:A. Identify the work and the author.B. What does the word "blithe" mean here?C. What idea does the quoted passage express?B. Reading comprehension1. A. Ralph Waldo Emerson: Nature.B. The great apparition here refers to nature, which is silent and contains truth.C. The sentences are short and compact but rich in meaning. The last two imperative sentences render the passage a speech-like tone.2. A. Nathaniel Hawthorne: Y oung Goodman Brown.B. Maybe the terrible experience was only a dream that Goodman Brown made when he slept in the forest. It is all right if you think that way. But after that Brown became sad and distrustful man.C. The author did not allow himself to decide whether the events of that night happened in a dream or in reality. The ambiguity is central to understand the theme of the story. This kind of writing is typical of Hawthorne, who tends to put everything ambiguous in his work and leave readers in doubts.3. A. Walt Whitman: Song of Myself.B. A spear of summer grass just means a leaf of grass, because grass leaf looks like a spear. The author emphasizes summer grass, because grass grows well in summer. So it stands for life and power. It is also the symbol of the poet's feeling of experience while wandering.C. The two lines show the relationship between the soul and body, which is passively invited to meet and finally gets unified with the former.4. A. Herman Melville: Moby-Dick.B. The basic tone is sad and mournful. The screaming birds, the sullen surf and the shroud of sea all constitute a gloomy and depressed picture.C. The sea was like a great shroud because many people had died in it. However the sea remained unmoved, rolling indifferently as ever. Melville suggests here that the silent immensity of the sea, unchanged by five thousand years, bespeaks the impossibility of man's attempt to force his will upon the universe and attain the ungraspable phantom of life.5. A. Washington Irving: "Rip V an Winkle".B. The social environment is changed.C. When Rip is back home after a period of 20 years, he finds that everything has been changed.All those old values are gone, and he can hardly feel at home in a changed society. One of the functions that Rip serves in the story is to provide a measuring stick for change. It is through him that Irving drives home the theme that a desire for change, improvement, and progress could subvert a stable society.6. A. Ralph Waldo Emerson: Nature.B. Cheerful and having no worries.C. It is a classic piece in American Transcendental writings. For it first of all contains the most effective pun on "I" (eye) used to demonstrate fully the spirituality of human beings.C. 回答题(Questions and answers)1. Nature is a philosophic work, in which Emerson gives an explicit discussion on his idea of the Oversoul. What is your understanding of Emersonian " Oversoul " and its relationship with "a transparent eyeball"?2. One of the most distinctive features of Hawthorne's writing is his art of ambiguity. Exemplify it with his story, "Y oung Goodman Brown".3. Like Hawthorne, Melville is fond of symbolism in his writings. The white whale, Moby-Dick, is the most important symbol in the novel. What symbolic meaning does Moby Dick stand for?4. Whitman is one of the most important figures in American poetic history. He has carried on a sort of experiment on the form of poetry by choosing free verse as his medium of expression. What are the characteristics of Whitman's free verse?5. Literary critics have seen Rip V an Winkle as a symbol of several aspects of America. What are the aspects that the story and its hero symbolize?D. 论述题(Topic discussion)1 . Melville's Moby Dick is more than a great whale story that reflects the American whale industry in 19th century; it is capable of multiple interpretations. Discuss the themes you can find in the fiction.2. In his whole life, Hawthorne is preoccupied with sin and evil in man; and in almost every novel he wrote, Hawthorne discussed sin and evil. Then what makes Hawthorne obsessed with all this sin and evil?Exercises for Chapter One of American Literature(第二章)A．多项选择(Multiple choice questions)1: Who is generally considered to be the one “w ith but a deformed conscience" in Mark Twain's works ？[A] Tom Sawyer.[B] Huckleberry Finn.[C] Hank Morgan. [D] Widow Douglas2. Which of the follow ing is Twain's language?[A] V ernacular.[B] Colloquial.[C] Elegant. [D] Humorous.3. Which of the follow ing writers is famous for his "international theme"?[A] Henry James. [B] William James.[C] Mark Twain. [D] Theodore Dreise4. Winterbourne is used as a narrator of the events in Henry James __________.[A ] Daisy Miller[B] The American[C] The Turn of the Screw[D] The Wing of the Dove5.Which of the following statements about Emily Dickinson is true?[A] Since she scarcely goes out of her house, she pays little attention to the outsideworld.[B] She prefers to explore the inner life of herself rather that the social one.[C] She is strongly influenced by Calvinism and has a firm: belief in after-life.[D] She is not interested in love because she herself never gets married.6. Which of the follow ing does NOT belong to Theodore Dreiser's Trilogy of Desire? "[A] The Financier'.[B] The American[C] The Titan. [D] The Stoic.7. Which' of the follow ing is a correct match between the writer¬ and his work? , .[A] Mark Twain: The Financier[B] Theodore Dreiser: Daisy Miller[C] Henry James; The Turn of the Screw[D] Emily Dickinson: The Wing of the Dove8. " Her Message is committed/To hands I can not see---" The above two lines are taken from________.[A] Whitman's: "Song of Myself"[B] Dickinson's "This is my letter to the World"[C] Pound's: "A Pact"[D] Frost's: "The Road Not Taken"9. Theodore Dreiser gives his novel the title of "An American Tragedy" mostlybecause__________.[A] he tries to give an ironical meaning to the story.[B] he attempts-,to reproduce an authentic trial fictionally[C] it is the typical thing that can happen to an American in the pursuit of riches[D] he is surprised that such tragedy should happen in America.10.Isabel, the heroine in The Portrait of a Lady, returns to her unhappy home in Rome at the end of the novel because__________.[A] she is still naive and immature[B] she wants to be responsible to her husband[C] she- wants to be responsible to her own choice[D] she has nowhere else to go11.. Which of the following statements is NOT true?[A] Mark Twain became doubtful about the' idea of develop¬ment and skeptical of the goodness of human nature in his later years.[B] Henry James; who never: criticizes his fellowmen, is the spokesman for the wealthy and leisured c lass in America.[C] From Emily Dickinson's poetry, one can hardly find any traces of political movement in the society of her time.[D] To Theodore Dreiser, communism is a likely means improving the social organizationof man. , :12. During the period after the Civil War, the American soc iety entered in what Mark Twain, referred to as __________.[A] the Golden Age [B] the Puritan Age[C] the Gilded Age [D] the Modern Age13. Local colorism is a unique variation, of American literary realism, the representatives of which does NOT inc lude __________.[A] Sarah Orne Jewett [B] Bret Harte[C] Hamlin Garland [D] Stephen Crane ,14. "I was letting on to give up sin, but away. inside of me; I was holding on to the biggest oneof all. " The sentence, which taken from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is written: in a(n) __________ tone.[A] ironic, [B] regretful[C] sincere [D] delightful15. Henry James' idea of realism differs from that of the realist writers because his emphasisis on man's__________.[A] language [B] inner world[C] surroundings[D] real actions16. As a naturalist writer, Theodore Dreiser was greatly influenced by __________.[A] Mark Twain [B] Charles Darwin[C] Henry James[DI Ralph Wa1do Emerson17. However, innocence, the keynote of Daisy Miller's character, turns out to be an admiringbut a dangerous quality and her __________ of social taboos in the Old World finally brings her to a disaster in the clash between two different cultures.[A] admiration [B] sympathy,[C] disgusting [D] defiance18. Which of the following statements about Em ily Dickinson's verse is true?[A] It exposes the evils of the society.[B] It paves the way for the follow ing generation of free verse poets;.[C] It shares the same poetic conventions with Walt Whitman.[D] It exhibits a sensitiveness to the symbolic implic ations of her experience oflove, death, and immortality.19. Compared w ith the writings of Mark Twain's, Henry James's fiction is noted for their__________.[A] frontier vernacular[B] rich colloquialism[C] refined elegant language [D] vulgarly descriptive words20. By the end of Sister Carrie, Dreiser writes; "It was forever to be the pursuit of thatradiance of delight which tints the distant hilltops of the world. " Dreiser implies that__________.[A] there is a bright future lying ahead[B] one can never fulfill one's desire[C] one should 'always :have forward looking[D] happiness is found in the end21. Emily Dickinson wrote many short' poems .an various' aspects of life. Which of thefollowing is NOT a usual subject of her poetic expression? .[A] Religion and immortality [B] Life and death.[C] War and peace. [D] Nature and society22. In Daisy Miller, James chose the Castle of Chillon as the setting of the story clearlybecause of its status-as a shrine to ___________, consecrated by Byron in his assoc iationwith Daisy whose American habits of free social intercourse runs up the elaborately regulated code of manners in Europe.[A] integrity [B] freedom[C] constancy . [D] autocracy23. The sentence "only the fittest can survive in a completive amoral society" may beregarded as an appropriate summary of _________.[A] Jack London's Martin Eden [B] `Hemingway's For Whom. the bell Tolls[C] Drsiser's Sister Carrie[D] Melville’s Moby Dick24. Here is a passage from, a novel: "The man gave him a last push and closed the door. As hedid so, Hurstwood slipped and fell in the snow: It hurt him, and some vague sense of shame returned. He began to cry and swear -foolishly. " The novel must be_________.[A] Dreiser's Sister Carrie[B] Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath[C] London's Martin Eden[D] Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer25. Here are a few lines from a poem: " With Blue-uncertain stumbling Buzz─/Betweenthe light ─and me─/And the Windows failed─and then/I could not see .to see─." The poem must be _______.[A] Emily Dickenson's “I Heard a Fly buzz-when I died─"[B] Edgar Allen Poe's "Annabel Lee"[C] Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself" .[D] Robert Frost's. "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"B.阅读理解题(Reading comprehension)1. “I studied a minute, sort of holding my breath, and then says to myself: `All right, then;: I'llgo, to hell' -,─and tore it up."Questions:A. Identify the novel and the writer.B. Why do "I" dec ide to go to hell?C. How do you understand this decision of going to hell?2. "Tell All the Truth, but Tell it Slant. "Questions:A. Identify the poet.B. What special feature can you draw from the form-of this line?C. What idea does this statement convey?3. "And neigh like boanerges─Then─prompter than a StarStop─doc ile and omnipotentAt its own stable door, ─(Emily Dickinson: “I like to see it lag the:Miles”)Questions:A. What is being described *in, this, poem?B. What rhetoric devices are used in this stanza?C. What is the poet's attitude toward this object being described?4. "In your rocking-chair, by your window dreaming, shall you long, alone. In yourrocking-chair, by your, window, shall y dream such hap piness as you may never feel.”(Theodore Dreiser: Sister Carrie)Questions:A. Who does "you" in the quotation refer to?B. What mood; do you think, was the narrator in, judging from this quotation?C. What idea can you draw from the "rocking-chair"?5 . "'Terrible-! ' said, that little lady, joining her, “ I hope it snows enough to go sleigh riding.“ “ Oh, dear,”said Carrie, w ith whom the sufferings of Father Goriot were still keen.“That's all you think of. Aren't you sorry for the people who haven’t anything tonight?"”(Theodore Dreiser: Sister Carrie )Questions:1.A. What does snow mean to the little lady?B. What kind of mood, do you think, was Carrie in, judo from the above dialogue?C. What idea does the quoted passage express?B. Reading comprehension1. A. Mark Twain: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.B. Because he knows that to help a slave get away from his owner is against the law, and ifhe does something against the law he w ill be damned in hell. But he has made up his mind to help Jim fight for freedom, so he dec ides to go to hell.C. In order to help Jim, Huck even gets ready to go to hell--the most terrible scene he canimagine. It shows that he is not going down on the moral scale, but just on the contrary, he is moving upward.2. A. Emily Dickinson.B. The poet uses capital letters in the middle and at the end of the line, which is against theusual rule. By this way, she emphasizes what she thinks important.C. It might be the poet's dec laration on poetry writing. She thinks that truth should berevealed gradually so that people might understand it step by step. Otherwise, a direct explanation of truth might make people puzzled and doubtful, just as the sudden lightning might make one blind. Her poems are sometimes difficult to understand, which might be attributed to her telling the truth slant.3. A. Train.B. Simile, metaphor, personification, and onomatopoeia. (Any two of them. )C. She is delighted to see the train and is very proud of this human invention.4. A. Carrie Meeber.B. He is in a sad and melancholy mood because he sees that Carrie is always alone andlonely in her longing and she w ill always dream of the happiness which she can never feel.C. The "rocking-chair" is a symbol standing for fate. It is like a cradle that makes one feelpeaceful. It is also like a tide that ever goes on with life, the destiny of which is uncertain.At the end of the novel, Carrie sits in the rocking-chair, which implies that her future is still uncertain and hard to foresee.5. A. It means a lot of fun and enjoyment.B. She was in a kind of gloomy and sad mood.C. It presents a sharp contrast of the feelings between the two ladies towards snow. Whilethe little lady only thought about her own amusement, Carrie expressed her great concern towards the suffering poor. So the dialogue reveals that Carrie has not lost her sympathy for the poor completely.C. 回答题(Questions and answers)1. "Poor Winterbourne was amused, perplexed-above all he' a charmed. He has never yetheard a young girl express herself just this fashion; ... Certainly she was very charming, but how extraordinarily communicative and how tremendously easy(Daisy Miller by Henry James)Question: What kind of narrative point of view is employed 114 What does this quotation reveal of the character of the young (Daisy Miller)?2. "Since then─ 'tis Centuries─:.and yet Feels shorter than the DayI first surmised the Horse s 's Heads Were toward Eternity─"("Because I could not stop for Death-" by Emily Dickinson.Question: What kind of meaning, can you get from the first two lines in the above q uotation?What is Dickinson's understanding of death?3. Mark Twain and Henry James are both; considered to be great realistic writers. What are thedifferences ,between ;them in the aspects of theme and language?4; What literary group does Theodore Dreiser belong t©? What are the characteristics of this group? Name two more American representatives that belong to this group.5. "The only thing I don't like, she proceeded, is, the. society. "(Daisy Miller by Henry James)Question: What kind of soc iety does Daisy not like? Why?D论述题(T opic discussions)1. Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn:. can be interpreted in many, ways and, has-won its :lasting, place in the American canon. Discuss the image ©f Huck Finn,and the social significance bf this character.2. Henry James is regarded as an -international messenger who bridges the New-America w iththe Old Europe: His characters are inevitably encountered with cultural conflicts. Take -Daisy Miller as an example to analyze the two characters; Daisy Miller and Winterbourne and the cultural conflicts they undergo.综合美国文学第三章综合练习(Exe rcise s)A. 多项选择(Multi ple choice que stions)1. “The w oods are lov e ly, dark a nd dee p, But I have prom is es to keep,And m iles to go befor e I slee p, And m iles to go bef ore I sle ep. ”The abov e four lin es are tak en from_______.[A] Frost's "Stopp ing b y Woods on a Snow y Ev en ing"[B] D ic k inson's "I h eard a F ly bu zz-w hen I d ied-"[C] Frost's "After App le-P ic k in g"[D] Dic k inson's “Bec ause I c ould not stop for De ath”2. In w riting th e poem “Th e Riv er-Merc hant's Wif e: A Lett er”Pound took its mater ia l from the anc ie nt _______ poetry:[A] Frenc h[B] Ita lian[C] Ch ines e[D] Japanese3. In "Aft er App le-Pic k in g", Robert Frost w rote: "For I have too muc h/Ofapp le-p ic k in g: I am overt ir ed/Of th e grea t harvest I myse lf d esir ed. " From these lines w e c an c onc lude that th e speak er is ________.[A] happy about th e harvest[B] w earing out th e freshness of app le-p ic k ing[C] still d esir ed of app le-p ic k ing w hen see in g the harv est[D] ind iffer ent of w hat onc e desir ed4. In The Emperor Jones an d The Ha iry Ape, O'Ne ill ado pted ______ to p ortraythe he lp less situat ion of human b e ings in a host ile un iverse.[A] ex pressio n ist tec hn iques[B] surrea list ic appro ac h[C] romant ic approac h[D] dramat ic mono logu es5. In " peta ls on a w et, blac k bough", the f igure of spe ec h used here is______.[A] met aphor[B] hy perbo le[C] pun[D] sim ile6. "My litt le horse must th ink it qu eer/To stop w itho ut a farm house n ear."The abov e tw o lines are t aken from Frost’s "Stopp ing by Woo ds on a Snow y Eve n ing", a be aut ifu lly struc tured po em w hic h fo llow s______.[A] iam b ic tetramet er[B] ia mb ic pentam eter[C] troc haic tetram eter[D] troc haic penta met er。
美国文学试题及答案
美国文学试题及答案美国文学试题：1. 请描述美国文学的起源和发展过程。
2. 简要介绍美国文学中的几位重要作家及其代表作品。
3. 分析美国文学对社会和文化的影响。
4. 探讨美国文学在世界文学中的地位和影响力。
5. 比较美国文学与其他国家文学的异同之处。
6. 讨论美国文学中的主题和风格变化。
7. 探究美国文学与历史事件的关联。
美国文学答案：1. 美国文学的起源可以追溯到17世纪，当时美洲殖民地的英国移民开始写作并记录他们在新大陆的生活。
这些作品以宗教、开拓和探索为题材，如《普利茅斯的劝导师》(1620)等。
美国文学的发展经历了启蒙时代、浪漫主义运动、现实主义时期等阶段，并逐渐形成了独特的美国文学风格。
2. 以下是几位重要的美国作家及其代表作品：- 马克·吐温：《哈克贝里·费恩历险记》、《汤姆·索亚历险记》 - 菲利普·罗斯：《美国牧歌》、《喧哗与骚动》- 艾米丽·狄金森：《狄金森诗选》- 弗朗西斯·斯科特·菲茨杰拉德：《了不起的盖茨比》- 威廉·福克纳：《喧哗与骚动》、《把狗放了吧》3. 美国文学对社会和文化具有重要影响。
例如，哈莱姆复兴时期的作家们为非洲裔美国人争取了平等的机会，并反映了种族和身份认同的问题。
此外，20世纪美国现实主义文学通过揭示社会问题和不公正现象，推动了社会改革运动。
美国文学也塑造了美国人的国家意识和身份认同。
4. 美国文学在世界文学中占据重要地位，被广泛翻译和阅读。
美国作家的作品对世界文学发展产生了巨大影响，例如海明威、福克纳、杰克·伦敦等作家的作品具有全球影响力。
美国文学代表了美国独特的价值观和文化传统，吸引着世界各地读者的关注。
5. 美国文学与其他国家文学相比具有明显的不同。
美国文学更加关注个人主义、自由和追求幸福的主题。
与欧洲文学相比，美国文学较少涉及庄重的古典主题，更倾向于写实和现实主义的描写方式。
(完整word版)大四美国文学期末考试题型及例题.docx
大四美国文学期末考型及例大四美国文学期末考型及例：1./60 分（ 40 道，20 个）2.名解10 分（5 个）3.段配10 分（5 个）4.答20 分（10/2）1．史： Father / poetess⋯2.名作家： Hemingway, Faulkner, Poe, Hawthorne, Emerson3．作品： The Wasteland/Moby Dick/Scarlet Letter1.a)（ 40 个， 40 分）1.At the age of reason and revolution, Americans were influenced by theEuropean movement called the ________.A. Chartist MovementB. Romanticist MovementC. Enlightenment MovementD. Modernist Movement2.Which is NOT connected to Benjamin Franklin? ________A.He was born in a poor family.B.He was a pious puritan.C.He was phrased as“Jack of all trades”.D.He was a master of diplomacy.3.Ernest Hemingway is noted for the following EXCEPT ________.A.Lost GenerationB.Iceberg theoryC.American DreamD.Code Heroes4.Which character is NOT from The Scarlet Letter? ________A.Hester PrynneB.Roger ChillingworthC.Captain AhabD.Pearl5.Jack London’s semi-biographical novel ________well presents thedisillusionment of American Dream.A.The American TragedyB.The Call of the WildC.Martin EdenD.The Grapes of Wrathb)判断（ 20 个， 20 分）1.Poe’smasterpiece“To Helen”is written to memorize his deceased wife.(F)2.The tone of “Annabel Lee”is optimistic and hopeful. (F)3.Mark Twain's novel Jumping Frog was an artistic failure, but it gave its name tothe America of the postbellum period which it attempts to satirize.(F)4.Sister Carrie ended up in tragedy because she could not control her fate(F).大四美国文学期末考试题型及例题2.名词解释题（5个，10分）1. It refers to t he religious beliefs held by the Puritans, who had intended to“ purif or simplify the religious ritual of the Church of England. They believed in the originalsin and the harsh Day of Doom, although some good people --- the chosen peopleor “ the Elect--- may” be saved. Puritanism)(2.A literary doctrine that called for “ realityand truth ”in the depiction of ordinarylife ．It had originated in France and was very popular in 19th century.Realism)(3.选段配对题（5个，10分）1.Fair flower, that dost so comely grow,Hid in this silent, dull retreat,Untouched thy honeyed blossoms blow,Unseen thy little branches greet:No roving foot shall crush thee here,No busy hand provoke a tear.The Wild Honey Suckle (Philip Freneau)2.During the whole of a dull, dark and soundless day in the autumn of the year,when the cloud hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, onhorseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country; and at length found myself,as the shades of evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher. Iknow not how it was—but, with the first glimpse of the building, a sense ofinsufferable gloom pervaded my spirit.The Fall of the House of Usher(Edgar Allan Poe)4.问答题（ 10/2， 20 分）1. Transcendentalism(a) Transcendentalism (p56){1}As a moral philosophy, it exalted feeling over reason, individual expression overthe restraints of law and custom. & believed in the transcendence ofthe“oversoul ” {2}A literary movement flourishing in New England from the1830s to the Civil war. It stresses intuitive understanding of God, without the helpof the church and advocated independence of the mind. The representative writersare Emerson and Thoreau.{b} The significance of TranscendentalismTranscendentalism exerted a dominating notion onto the major wirers of the Romanticperiod and its essence has been permanently absorbed into the main stream ofAmerican thought. As a moral philosophy, Transcendentaliststook their ideas from theromantic literature of Europe, from neo-Platonism, from German idealistic philosophyand from the revelations of Oriental mysticism. They spoke for cultural rejuvenation andagainst the materialism of American society. They believed in the transcendence ofthe“Oversoul”, an all-pervading power for goodness from which all things come andof which all things are a part. As a philosophical and literarymovement, Transcendentalism flourished in New England from the 1830’s to the Civil War. Its doctrines found their greatest literary advocated in Emerson, who believed that man was a part of absolute good, and in Thoreau who beheld divinityin the “unspotted innocence”of nature. It was a powerful expression of the intellectual mood of the age, and the ideas it represented have remained a strong influence on great American writers from the days of Nathaniel Hawthorne and Walt Whitman to the present.2. “The Road Not Taken”Symbolic meanings of The Road Not Taken:In this poem, the author uses two roads in the woods to symbolize the choices inthe real life. The author suggests us not being afraid to take a chance, not following the crowd and trying new things. Individualism is highlighted in the poem because the speaker chooses to go his own way, taking the“road less traveled”.Caution is also taken before deciding to take the“road less traveled”, for the speaker takes time to consider the other road.Commitment is symbolized in the poem because the speaker does not havesecond thoughts after making his decision.The last symbolized theme is accepting a challenge. It may be that the road the speaker chooses is less traveled because it represents trials or perils. Such challenges seem to appeal to the speaker.The Road Not TakenThis poem, as many of Frost ’ sbeginspoems,with the observation of nature, as if the poet is a traveler sightseeing in nature. By the end, all the simple words condense into a serious proposition: When anyone in life is confronted with making a choice, in order to possess something worthwhile, he has to give up something which seems as lovely and valuable as the chosen one. Then, whatever follows, he must accept the consequence of his choice for it is not possible for him to return to the beginning and have another chance to choose differently. Frost is asserting that nature is fair and honest to everyone. Thus all the varieties of human destiny result from each person spontaneous capability of making choices.Form : The poem is very regularly structured with 4 classic 5-line stanzas, withthe rhyme scheme “ abaab” and in conversational rhythm.3. The Great GatsbyThe Great Gatsby the parody (戏仿 )of American dreamThematically ，the novel is a parody of the American dream as represented by Gatsby’s pursuit for wealth and love ．(1)American Dream(derived the Puritanism) is a popular belief that people can achieve success，whether it is wealth，fame or love through honest hard working ina new world of liberty ，equality，chances and promises． (e.g. Franklin, Obama )(2) It is true that Gatsby had a huge wealth，but it was built up through illegal means —bootlegging. Daisy was the embodiment of love for Gatsby，but the Daisy in Gatsby s’illusion was not the Daisy in reality —— a mindless and spiritless woman only with a beautiful appearance，who retreated to her boring but secure way of life rather than accept the responsibility at the moment of crisis．(3)Like Franklin ， Gatsby also made a time table and a list of“do’s anddon'ts”． But unfortunately he did not know that the time had changed．(4)Therefore, G’s dream is tarnished by his material possessions, much like America is now with the obsession with wealth. In any case, Gatsby would have failed to his idealistic dream inevitably, namely disillusion of American dream.Together with Martin Eden, it well presents the disillusionment of American Dream. Main ideas :Nick Caraway, the narrator decided to leave his family in the Midwest to study bond business in New York．He took a small house at West Egg of Long Island and became a neighbor of Jay Gatsby，a mysterious man of great wealth．He resumed acquaintance with Tom Buchanan and his wife Daisy at a dinner party in their home． There he also met Jordan Baker，an attractive but arrogant young lady．He soon learned that their marriage was not happy and Tom has a mistress，Myrtle ， wife of George Wilson ，a garage owner in the Valley of Ashes．A few days later he was invited to Gatsby’s party. From Gatsby and later from Jordan, Nick learned of the love affair between Daisy and Gatsby before she married Tom．Gatsby then made a request of Nick：to bring Daisy to tea and meet Gatsby． At the reunion Gatsby changed from nervousness to excitement and from excitement to a remote fantasy． At a party Gatsby gave to the Buchanans，Nick and Jordan，Gatsby and Tom had a fierce quarrel over Daisy and Daisy sided with both men in turns．Then Daisy and Gatsby left in Gatsbys car while’ the others followed in Tom’s． On the way Gatsby’s car knocked Myrtle dead and ran away ， but he later told Nick that Daisy was driving at the time of the accident．Myrtle ，thinking Tom was in the car，ran toward it and was hit．Meanwhile Mr ．Wilson traced Gatsby’s car and found Gatsby's house． A few hours later both of them were found dead．Apparently Wilson shot Gatsby and then himself． Although Nick tried to make Gatsby’s funeral respectable，none of his friends came．Only Gatsby’s father appeared，still thinking that his son was a great man． On another occasion Nick met Tom and Daisy and was reluctant to shake hands with them．He already knew that it was Tom who made Wilson believe that Myrtle was Gatsby s’ lover and was run over by Gatsby． Soon Nick went back to his people in the MiddleWest．。
(完整word版)美国文学考试题
一选择题（20个共20分）1.James Fenimore Cooper作品The Leatherstocking Tales, 《皮袜子故事集》2.Philip FreneauThe wild Honey Suckle《野忍冬花》3.Edgar Allan PoeTo Helen4.Henry David ThoreauWalden《瓦尔登湖》5.American Romanticism 浪漫主义Period: from the end of the 18th century to the outbreak of the civil warIt started with the publication of Washington Irving’s The Sketch Book and ended with Whitman’s Leaves of Grass6.Nathaniel HawthorneThe Scarlet Letter 《红字》7.美国内战（南北战争）时间1861.4.12—1865.4.98.Westward Movement 西进运动，开始于18世纪末，终于19世纪末20世纪初。
9.Henry JamesThe Portrait of a Lady 《一个女人的画像》10.Ralph Waldo EmersonNature 《论自然》11.John SmithFirst American writer12.Herman MelvilleMoby-Dick 《大白鲸》二连线题（作者和作品10分）1.Benjamin FranklinThe Autobiography2.O.HenryThe Cop and the Anthem 《警察与赞美诗》3.Jack LondonThe Sea Wolf 《海狼》三名词解释2个（以下四选二，共10分）1.American DreamThe freedom allowing all American people to pursue their goals in life through hard work and free choice.(1分) It often refers to the opportunity for immigrants to achieve greater material prosperity than was possible in their countries of origin.(2分)The founding Fathers used the phrase, “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” to encompass all that is available in American . It’s the opportunity to make individual choices without therestrictions of class, race or religion. (2分)2.American Puritanism 美国清教主义A religious movement in the late 16th century，It sent an offshoot(分支) in the third and fourth decades of the 17th century to the northern English colonies in the New World，It laid the foundation for the religious, intellectual and social order of the New World。
(完整word版)美国文学考试题
选择题（20个共20分）1. James Fenimore Cooper作品The Leatherstocking Tale皮袜子故事集》2. Philip FreneauThe wild Honey SuC野忍冬花》3. Edgar Allan PoeTo Helen4. Henry David ThoreauWalde l瓦尔登湖》5. America n Roma nticiSmi 主义Period: from the end of the 18th century to the outbreak of the civil warIt started with the publication of WasIrhvii ng toTnh'eSsketch Baonodkended with WhitmLeaanves of'Grsass6. Nathaniel HawthorneThe Scarlet Lette红字》7. 美国内战（南北战争）时间1861.4.—121865.4.98. Westward Movement运动，开始于18世纪末，终于19世纪末20世纪初。
9. Henry JamesThe Portrait of a L l d一个女人的画像》10. Ralph Waldo EmersonNature《论自然》11. John SmithFirst American writer12. Herman MelvilleMoby-Dic《k 大白鲸》二连线题（作者和作品10分）1. Benjamin FranklinThe Autobiography2. O.HenryThe Cop and the Antr i m察与赞美诗》3. Jack LondonThe Sea W《侮狼》三名词解释2 个（以下四选二，共10分）1. American DreamThe freedom allowi ng all America n people to pursue their goals in life through分ia rd work and free It often refers to the opportunity for immigrants to achieve greater material prosperity than was pos coun tries of orig3h）T2ie founding Fathers used thlsf^hlrlaeEty, and the pursuit of”opp in ess encompaaslsl thatis availabline AmericanIt. 'thesopportuntitoymakeindividucahl oicews ithouttherestrictio ns of class, race or 分)gio n. (22. American Purita美国清教主义A religious moveme nt in the late 16thseeitarTyoffshb支t() in the third and fourth decades ofthe 17th century to the northern English colonies iInt ltahied Nth e wfoWunodrladtion for the religious, intellectual the church was corrupted and had tooonTrnbeitaaRurita n: tak ing religi on as the mostand social order of the NewPWndds wan ted to purify the church to its original state, b importa nt thi ng; living for glorifying God.3. American Roman浪漫主义(1) The Romanticism Period stretches from th thc e netunrdyotfo1th8e outbreak of the Civil War. It is aperiod of the great flowering of American literature. It started with thetopnuIbrvlicinagtion o'fWs ashing The Sketch Book and ended with WhitmGarnass . ' s Leaves of(2) It was rebellion against the objectivity of rationalism.4. American Literaturemainly refers to literature produced in American English by people living in the U.S.. It also include produced in other countries by American expatriates and in other languages by minorities in the co as American Indian literature and the Jewish literature.四赏析题1-2诗的赏析两首诗二选一答题标准：标出韵脚5分，中文译文15分共20分。
美国文学试卷+答题纸+答案
2012-2013学年 第二学期 《美国文学》期末考试试卷（A 卷）专业：英语 年级：2010级 考试方式：闭卷 学分：2 考试时间：110分钟I ．Multiple Choices (每小题 1分，共20分)Directions: Select from the four choices of each item the one thatbest answers the question.1. Naturalism is evolved from realism when the author’s tone in writing becomes less serious and less sympathetic but more ironic and more_____________. A . rational B . humorous C. optimisticD . pessimistic2. Which of the following is not written by Ernest Hemingway, one of the best-known American authors of the 20th century? A. The Sun Also Rises B. The Old Man and the Sea C. Mosses from the Old ManseD. Hills Like White Elephant3. The Romantic writers would focus on all the following issues Except the __________ in the American history. A. individual feeling B. survival of the fittest C. strong imaginationD. return to nature4. Almost all Faulkner ’s heroes turned out to be tragic because__________. A. all enjoyed living in the declining American South.B. none of them was conditioned by the civilization and Social institutions.C. most of them were prisoners of the past.D. none were successful in their attempt to explain the inexplicable.5. As an autobiograp hical play, O’Neill’s ________ (1955) has gained its status as a world classic and simultaneously marks the climax of his literary career and the coming of age of American drama._.A. The Iceman ComethB. Long Day’s Journey into NightC. Beyond the HorizonD. Bound East for Cardiff6. Which of the following statements is right about Robert Frost’s poetry?A. He combined traditional verse forms with the difficult and highly ornamental language.B. He combined traditional verse forms with the pastoral language of the Southern area.C. He combined traditional verse forms with a simple spoken language, the speech of New England farmers.D. He combined traditional verse forms with the experimental.7. Edgar Allen Poe was characterized by his __________.A. psycho-analysisB. novels set in the WestC. free verseD. political pamphlets8. Which of the following is depicted as the mythical county in William Faulkner’s novels?A. CambridgeB. OxfordC. MississippiD. Yoknapatawpha9. ____________ was the first great American writer to write for pleasure rather than utility. He is considered to be founder of American literature by some critics.A. James Fenimore CooperB. Washington IrvingC. Ezra PoundD. Mark Twain10. We can perhaps summarize that Walt Whitman’s poems are characterized by all the following features except that they are _______________.A. lyrical and well-structuredB. conversational and crudeC. simple and rather crudeD. free-flowing11. The Grapes of Wrath by Steinbeck reveals the miserable lives of __________ .A. factory workersB. sailorsC. landless farm laborersD. veterans12. Among the American realistic writers, _________ focused his attention on the rising middle class and the way they lived.A. Herman MelvilleB. Henry JamesC. Mark TwainD. William Dean Howells13. Which of the following is a representative novel of naturalism by an American writer? 2A. Innocents AbroadB. McTeagueC. Daisy MillerD. The Grapes of Wrath14. The first symbol of self-made American man is _________.A. Benjamin FranklinB. Washington IrvingC. George WashingtonD. Mark Twain15. The Imagist writers followed three principles. They respectively are direct treatment, economy of expression and ________.A. local colorB. ironyC. clear rhythmD. blank verse16. Robert Frost is famous for his lyric poems. Which of the following lyric poems wasnot written by Robert Frost?A. “The Raven”B. “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”C. “After Apple-picking”D. “The Road Not Taken”17. “The lost generation”refers to the writers who relocated to Paris in the post WWⅠyears to reject to values of American materialism. All the following but ________are involved in this group.A. F. S. FitzgeraldB. Ernest HemingwayC. Theodore DreiserD. John Dos Passos18. The first settlers who became the founding fathers of the American nation were quite a few of them _________.A. AnglicansB. CatholicsC. NormansD. Puritans19. Which one of the following statements is applicable to the understanding of Transcendentalism?A. It is strongly influenced by social Darwinism.B. Belief in individualism, independence of mind, and self-reliance.C. Man has no free-will.D. It holds that determinism governs everything.20. In __________, Captain Ahab is obsessed with the revenge on a whale which shearedoff his leg on a previous voyage, and his crazy chasing of it eventually brings death to allon board the whaler except Ishmael, who survives to tell the tale.《美国文学》A卷第3页共18页4A. TypeeB. White JacketC. Moby DickD. Billy BuddII ．Explain the Following Literary Terms Briefly (每小题7分，共14分)Directions : Please write down the answers on the Answer Sheet.21. Local Colorism 22. Stream of ConsciousnessIII ．Identification of Fragments (每小题7分，共21分)Directions : Please give the name of the author and the title of the literary work from which it is taken and then briefly comment on itin English. Please write down the answers on the Answer Sheet.23. “‘That ’s right.’ He said; ‘I ’m no good now. I was all right. I had money. I ’m going to quit this,’ and, with death in his heart, he started down toward the Bowery. People had turned on the gas before and died; why shouldn ’t he? He remembered a lodging house where there were little, close rooms, with gas-jet in them, almost pre-arranged, he thought, for what he wanted to do, which rented for fifteen cents. Then he remembered that he had no fifteen cents.”24. “All day Buck brooded by the pool or roamed restlessly above the camp. Death, as a cessation of movement, as a passing out and away from the lives of the living, he knew, and he knew John Thornton was dead. It left a great void in him, somewhat akin to hunger, but a void which ached and ached, and which food could not fill.25. “Her skeleton was small and spare; perhaps that was why that would have been merely plumpness in another was obesity in her. She looked bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water, and of that pallid hue.IV . Short Essay Questions (每小题10分，共 30 分)Directions : Please write down the answers on the Answer Sheet.《美国文学》A 卷 第5页 共18页26. The relationship between man and nature is a recurrent theme, perhaps one of the most important themes, in American literature. Write a short essay on it by contrasting tow or three American literary works, or two or three American literary movements, to tell what you know about their different views of nature. 27. Please make a comment on Eugene O ’Neil.28. Please briefly comment on Theodore Dreiser ’s novel Sister Carrie.V ．Appreciating a Literary Work (计 15 分)Directions:In this part, you are required to write a commentary paper in no less than 100 words. Please write it on the AnswerSheet .A Clean, Well-Lighted PlaceErnest HemingwayIt was very late and everyone had left the cafe except an old man who sat in the shadow the leaves of the tree made against the electric light. In the day time the street was dusty, but at night the dew settled the dust and the old man liked to sit late because he was deaf and now at night it was quiet and he felt the difference. The two waiters inside the cafe knew that the old man was a little drunk, and while he was a good client they knew that if he became too drunk he would leave without paying, so they kept watch on him."Last week he tried to commit suicide," one waiter said. "Why?""He was in despair." "What about?" "Nothing.""How do you know it was nothing?" "He has plenty of money."They sat together at a table that was close against the wall near the door of the cafe and looked at the terrace where the tables were all empty except where the old man sat in the shadow of the leaves of the tree that moved slightly in the wind. A girl and a soldier went by in the street. The street light shone on the brass number on his collar. The girl wore no head covering and hurried beside him."The guard will pick him up," one waiter said. "What does it matter if he gets what he's after?""He had better get off the street now. The guard will get him. They went by five minutes ago."The old man sitting in the shadow rapped on his saucer with his glass. The youngerwaiter went over to him."What do you want?"The old man looked at him. "Another brandy," he said."You'll be drunk," the waiter said. The old man looked at him. The waiter went away."He'll stay all night," he said to his colleague. "I'm sleepy now. I never get into bed before three o'clock. He should have killed himself last week."The waiter took the brandy bottle and another saucer from the counter inside the cafe and marched out to the old man's table. He put down the saucer and poured the glass full of brandy."You should have killed yourself last week," he said to the deaf man. The old man motioned with his finger. "A little more," he said. The waiter poured on into the glass so that the brandy slopped over and ran down the stem into the top saucer of the pile. "Thank you," the old man said. The waiter took the bottle back inside the cafe. He sat down at the table with his colleague again."He's drunk now," he said."He's drunk every night.""What did he want to kill himself for?""How should I know.""How did he do it?""He hung himself with a rope.""Who cut him down?""His niece.""Why did they do it?""Fear for his soul.""How much money has he got?" "He's got plenty.""He must be eighty years old.""Anyway I should say he was eighty.""I wish he would go home. I never get to bed before three o'clock. What kind of hour is that to go to bed?""He stays up because he likes it.""He's lonely. I'm not lonely. I have a wife waiting in bed for me.""He had a wife once too.""A wife would be no good to him now.""You can't tell. He might be better with a wife.""His niece looks after him. You said she cut him down.""I know." "I wouldn't want to be that old. An old man is a nasty thing.""Not always. This old man is clean. He drinks without spilling. Even now, drunk. Look at him.""I don't want to look at him. I wish he would go home. He has no regard for those 6《美国文学》A 卷 第7页 共18页who must work."The old man looked from his glass across the square, then over at the waiters."Another brandy," he said, pointing to his glass. The waiter who was in a hurry came over."Finished," he said, speaking with that omission of syntax stupid people employ when talking to drunken people or foreigners. "No more tonight. Close now.""Another," said the old man."No. Finished." The waiter wiped the edge of the table with a towel and shook his head.The old man stood up, slowly counted the saucers, took a leather coin purse from his pocket and paid for the drinks, leaving half a peseta(西班牙货币单位) tip. The waiter watched him go down the street, a very old man walking unsteadily but with dignity."Why didn't you let him stay and drink?" the unhurried waiter asked. They were putting up the shutters. "It is not half-past two.""I want to go home to bed." "What is an hour?""More to me than to him." "An hour is the same.""You talk like an old man yourself. He can buy a bottle and drink at home." "It's not the same.""No, it is not," agreed the waiter with a wife. He did not wish to be unjust. He was only in a hurry."And you? You have no fear of going home before your usual hour?" "Are you trying to insult me?""No, hombre （老兄）, only to make a joke.""No," the waiter who was in a hurry said, rising from pulling down the metal shutters. "I have confidence. I am all confidence.""You have youth, confidence, and a job," the older waiter said. "You have everything.""And what do you lack?" "Everything but work.""You have everything I have.""No. I have never had confidence and I am not young." "Come on. Stop talking nonsense and lock up.""I am of those who like to stay late at the cafe," the older waiter said."With all those who do not want to go to bed. With all those who need a light for the night.""I want to go home and into bed.""We are of two different kinds," the older waiter said. He was now dressed to go home. "It is not only a question of youth and confidence although those things are very beautiful. Each night I am reluctant to close up because there may be some one who needs the cafe.""Hombre, there are bodegas open all night long.""You do not understand. This is a clean and pleasant cafe. It is well lighted. The light is very good and also, now, there are shadows of the leaves.""Good night," said the younger waiter."Good night," the other said. Turning off the electric light he continued the conversation with himself, It was the light of course but it is necessary that the place be clean and pleasant. You do not want music. Certainly you do not want music. Nor can you stand before a bar with dignity although that is all that is provided for these hours. What did he fear? It was not a fear or dread, It was a nothing that he knew too well. It was all a nothing and a man was a nothing too. It was only that and light was all it needed and a certain cleanness and order. Some lived in it and never felt it but he knew it all was nada （没有，虚无）y（所以）pues（既然，那么）nada y nada y pues nada. Our nada who art in nada, nada be thy name thy kingdom nada thy will be nada in nada as it is in nada. Give us this nada our daily nada and nada us our nada as we nada our nadas and nada us not into nada but deliver us from nada; pues nada. Hail nothing full of nothing, nothing is with thee. （这是一段模仿祷告词，其中的名词和动词都被虚无所取代，表明一切事物和行为都是虚无。
美国文学考试题及答案
美国文学考试题及答案一、选择题（每题2分，共20分）1. 马克·吐温的代表作《汤姆·索亚历险记》中，汤姆·索亚的好友是谁？A. 哈克贝利·费恩B. 艾米·劳伦斯C. 乔·哈珀D. 贝基·撒切尔答案：A2. 《了不起的盖茨比》的作者是哪位美国作家？A. 海明威B. 福克纳C. 菲茨杰拉德D. 爱伦·坡答案：C3. 以下哪位作家被誉为“美国现代小说之父”？A. 亨利·詹姆斯B. 威廉·福克纳C. 约翰·斯坦贝克D. 杰克·伦敦答案：A4. 《白鲸》中的主人公亚哈船长是为了追逐哪头鲸鱼而最终丧命？A. 莫比·迪克B. 蓝鲸C. 灰鲸D. 虎鲸答案：A5. 《红字》中的女主角海斯特·白兰因何罪名被判刑？A. 偷窃B. 谋杀C. 通奸D. 叛国答案：C6. 《老人与海》中的老渔夫圣地亚哥在海上与哪种动物搏斗？A. 鲨鱼B. 鲸鱼C. 鳄鱼D. 马林鱼答案：D7. 《麦田里的守望者》的主人公霍尔顿·考尔菲尔德最想成为哪种人？A. 律师B. 医生C. 教师D. 麦田里的守望者答案：D8. 《飘》的主人公斯嘉丽·奥哈拉是哪个美国南方家族的成员？A. 威尔克斯家族B. 汉密尔顿家族C. 奥哈拉家族D. 巴特勒家族答案：C9. 《愤怒的葡萄》中，约德一家是因为什么原因离开俄克拉荷马州的？A. 寻找工作B. 逃避战乱C. 追求自由D. 家庭纷争答案：A10. 《看不见的人》的主人公在小说中代表了哪个群体？A. 黑人B. 移民C. 工人阶级D. 残疾人答案：A二、填空题（每题2分，共20分）1. 《瓦尔登湖》的作者是______。
答案：亨利·戴维·梭罗2. 《草叶集》是______的代表作之一。
答案：沃尔特·惠特曼3. 《美国悲剧》的作者是______。
美国文学作品问答题
美国文学作品问答题Part III. The Literature of RomanticismPassage 4Once upon a midnight dreary, while i pondered, weak and weary,Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door."Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door—Only this, and nothing more. "Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.Eagerly I wished the morrow; —vainly I had tried to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow-sorrow for the lost.1. Who is the writer of these lines?2. What is the title of this poem from which the selection is selected?3. Recognize the sound devices in the following lines. LI ________ L4 ________L7________ L10________4. Describe the mood of this poem.Answers:1. Edgar Allan Poe2. The Raven3. LI—Alliteration, L4—Onomatopoeia, L7—Internal rhyme, L10—Assonance4. A sense of melancholy over the death of a belovedbeautiful young woman pervades the whole poem, the portrayal of a young man grieving for his lost Leno-re, his grief turned to madness under the steady one-word repetition of the talking bird.Passage 5Lo! in you brilliant window-nicheHow statue-like I see thee stand,The agate lamp within thy hand!Ah, Psyche, from the regions whichAre Holy-Land!1. This is the last stanza of a poem To Helen. Who wrote this poem T o Heleni2. With whom is Helen associated in Line 4 of the present stanza?3. Who is Psyche?Answers1. Edgar Allan Poe2. Psyche3. Psyche is the goddess of the soul in Greek mythology.To go into solitude, a man needs to retire as much from his chamber as from society. I am not solitary whilst I read and write, though nobody is with me. But if a man would be alone, let him look at the stars. The rays that come from those heavenly worlds, will separate between him and vulgar things. One might think the atmosphere was made transparent with this design, to give man, in the heavenly bodies, the perpetual presence of the sublime. Seen in the streets of cities, how great they are! If the stars should appear one night in a thousand years, how would men believe and adore; and preserve for many generations the remembrance of the city of God which had been shown! But every night comeout these preachers of beauty, and light the universe with their admonishing smile.Questions:1. This paragraph is taken from a famous essay. What is the name of the essay?2. Who is the author?3. What does the author say would happen if the stars appeared one night in a thousand years?4. Give a peculiar term to cover the author's belief.Answers:1. Nature2. Ralph Waldo Emerson3. Then, the men cannot believe and adore the God, cannot preserve there membrance of the city of God which had been shown.4. TranscendentalismPassage 7Standing on the bare ground—my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space—all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eyeball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God.Questions:1. Which work is this selection taken from?2. How do you understand the philosophical ideas in these words?Answers:1. Nature2. Ralph Waldo Emerson regards nature as the purest, and the most sanctifying moral influence on man, and advocated adirect intuition of a spiritual and immanent God in nature. In this connection, Emerson' s emotional experiences are exemplary in more ways than one.3. Now this is a moment of "conversion" when one feels completely merged with the outside world, when one has completely sunk into nature and become one with it, and when the soul has gone beyond the physical limits of the body to share the omniscience of the Oversoul. In a word, the soul has completely transcended the limits of individuality and become part of the Oversoul. Emerson sees spirit pervading everywhere, not only in the soul of man, but behind nature, throughout nature.I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience, and be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion. For most men, it appears to me, are in a strange uncertainty about it, whether it is of the devil or of God.1. This passage is taken from a famous work entitled _________ .2. The author of the work is____________ .3. List by yourself at least five reasons that the author gives for going to live in the woods.Answers:1. Walden2. Henry David Thoreau3. Find the answer from the passage.Passage 10Tell me not, in mournful numbers. Life is but an empty dream!For the soul is dead that slumbers, And things are not what they seem. Life is real-life is earnest—And the grave is not its goal. Dust thou art, to dust retumest, Was not spoken of the soul.1. Who is the writer of these lines?2. What is the title of the whole poem from which the two stanzas are taken?3. Summarize the poet’s advice on living.Answers:1. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow2. A Psalm of Ufe3. His optimism which has characterized much of his poetry, also endeared many critics to him. He seemed to have persevered despite tragedy. In his poem, The Psalm of Life, he writes: Life is real! Life is earnest! And the grave is not its goal. This is the cry of the heart, "rallying from depression" , ready to affirm life, to regroup from losses, to push on despite momentary defeat.Forth into the sunshine which, falling on all alike, seemed, to her sick and morbid heart, as if meant for no other purpose than to reveal the scarlet letter on her breast. Perhaps there was a more real torture in her first unattended footsteps from the threshold of the prison, than even in the procession and spectacle that have been described, where she was made the common infamy, at which all mankind was summoned to point its finger. Then, she was supported by an unnatural tension of thenerves, and by all the combative energy of her character, which enabled her to convert the scene into a kind of lurid triumph.1. Which novel is this selection taken from?2. What is the name of the novelist?3. What are the symbolic meanings of the scarlet letter on Hester's breast?Answers:1. The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne2. adultery, able, angelPassage 12It was not very long after speaking the Goney that another homeward-bound whaleman, the Town-Ho, was encountered. She was manned almost wholly by Polynesians. In the short game that ensued she gave us strong news of Moby Dick. To some the general interest in the White Whale was now wildly heightened by a circumstance of the T own-Ho's story, which seemed obscurely to involve with the whale a certain wondrous, inverted visitation of one of those so called judgments of God which at times are said to overtake some men. This latter circumstance, with its own particular accompaniments, forming what may be called the secret part of the tragedy about to be narrated, never reached the ears of Captain Ahab or his mates. For that secret part of the story was unknown to the captain of the Town-Ho himself. It was the private property of three confederate white seamen of that ship, one of whom, it seems, communicated it to Tashtego with Romish injunctions ofsecrecy, but the following night Tashtego rambled in his sleep, and revealed so much of it in that way, that when he was wakened he could not well withhold the rest. Nevertheless, so potent an influence did this thing have on those seamen in the Pequod who came to the fullknowledge of it, and by such a strange delicacy, to call it so, were they governed in this matter, that they kept the secret among themselves so that it never transpired abaft the Pequod' s main-mast . Interweaving in its proper place this darker thread with the story as publicly narrated on the ship, the whole of this strange affair I now proceed to put on lasting record.1. From which novel is this paragraph taken?2. What is the name of the novelist?3. Who is Ahab?4. What is Pequod?5. What is the theme of the novel?Answers:1. Moby Dick2. Herman Melville3. The captain of the whaling ship4. The name of the whaling ship5. The rebellious struggle of Captain Ahab against the overwhelming, mysterious vastness of the universe and its awesome sometimes merciless forces.Part IV. The Literature of RealismPassage 1I celebrate myself, and sing myself,And what I assume you shall assume,For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.I loafe and invite my soul,I learn and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.1. These are the first two stanzas in the first section of a long poem entitled2. The name of the poet is___________ .3. Who is the poet celebrating? Whom do lines 2 ~ 3 also include in the celebration?4. What is the verse, structure?5. Take the fifth line as a hint, can you write out the name of the poet’s completed collections of poems? Answers:1. Song of Myself2. Walt Whitman3. The poet is celebrating himself, his own life. Lines 2-3 also include "you”, the readers and their lives in the celebration.4. free verse5. Leaves of GrassPassage 2Because I could not stop for Death—He kindly stopped for me—The Carriage held but just Ourselves—Questions:1. Who is the writer of these lines?2. In which category would you place this poem?A. narrativeB. dramaticC. lyric3. Emily Dickinson is noted for her use of_____________ to achieve special effects.A. perfect rhymeB. exact rhymeC. slant rhymeAnswers:1. Emily Dickinson2. C3. CPassage 3It is impossible to conceive of a human creature more wholly desolate and forlorn than Eliza, when she turned her footsteps from Uncle Tom’s cabin.Questions:1. This is taken from a famous novel. What is the name of the novel?2. What is the name of the writer?3. Who is Uncle Tom?Answers:1. Uncle Tom' s Cabin2. Harriet Beecher Stowe3. He is the main character in the novel, a suffering slave, a victim of slavery.Tom Sawyer stepped forward with conceited confidence and soared into the unquenchable and indestructible "Give me liberty or give me death" speech, with fine fury and frantic gesticulation, and broke down in the middle of it. A ghastly stage fright seized him, his legs quaked under him, and he was like to choke. True, he had the manifest sympathy of the house------ but he had the house’s silence, too, which was even worse than its sympathy. The master frowned, and this completed the disaster. Tom struggled awhile and then retired, defeated.1. Which novel is this passage taken from?2. Who is the author?Answers:1. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer2. Mark TwainPassage 5I took the sack of corn meal and took it to where the canoewas hid, and shoved t, he vines and branches apart and put it in; then I done the same with the side of bacon; then the whisky-jug.I took all the coffee and suga, r there was, and all the ammunition;I took the wadding; I took the bucket and gourd; took a dipper and a tin cup, and my old saw and two blankets, and the skillet and the coffee-pot. I took fish-lines and matches and other things—everything that was worth a cent. I cleaned out the place.I wanted an ax, but there wasn't any, only the one out at the woodpile, and 1 knew why I was going to leave that. I fetched out the gun, and now I was done.Questions:1. Which novel is this passage taken from?2. Analyze the language style of this passage.Answers1. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn2. The words used here are, except perhaps "ammunition" which is etymologically French, mostly Anglo-Saxon in origin, and are short, concrete and direct in effect. Sentence structures are most of them simple or compound, with a series of "thens" and "ands" and semi-colons serving as connectives. The repetition of the word "took" and the stringing together of things leave the impression that Mark Twain depended solely on the concrete object and action for the body and move ment of his prose. And what is more, there is an ungrammatical element which gives the final finish to his style. The whole book does approximate the actual speech habit of an uneducated boy from the American South of the mid-nineteenth century.On his bench in Madison Square, Soapy moved uneasily. When wild geese honk high of nights, and when women without sealskin coats grow kind to their husbands, and when Soapymoves uneasily on his bench in the park, you may know that winter is near at hand.Questions:1. This passage is taken from a short story entitled____________ .2. The author's name is William Sidney Porter. What is his pen name?Answers:1. Vie Cop and the Anthem2. O. HenryPassage 9When a girl leaves her home at eighteen, she does one of two things. Either she falls into saving hands and becomes better, or she rapidly assumes the cosmopolitan standard of virtue and becomes worse. Of an intermediate balance, under the circumstances, there is no possibility. The city has its cunning wiles, no less than the infinitely smaller and more human tempter. There are large forces which allure with all the soulfulness of expression possible in the most cultured human. The gleam of a thousand lights is often as effective as the persuasive light in a wooing and fascinating eye. Half the undoing of the unsophisticated and natural mind is accomplished by forces wholly superhuman. A blare of sound, a roar of life, a vast array of human hives, appeal to the astonished senses in equivocal terms. Without a counsellor at hand to whisper cautious interpretations, what falsehoods may not these things breathe into the unguarded ear! Unrecognised for what they are, their beauty, like music, too often relaxes, then weakens then perverts the simpler human perceptions.1. From which novel is this paragraph taken?2. Who is the author of this novel?3. How do you understand "the cosmopolitan standard of virtue"?4. Is there any naturalist tendency in this passage?Answers:1. Sister Carrie2. Theodore Dreiser3. "The cosmopolitan standard of virtue" is something that makes a person become low in virtue and value and become worse.Part V. Twentieth Century Literature (I) Before WWIIPassage 1:In a Station of the MetroThe apparition of these faces in the crowd;Petals on a wet, black bough.Questions:1. Who is the author of this short poem?2. What two images are juxtaposed, or placed next to each other in this poem?3. How do you appreciate this poem?Answers:1. Ezra Pound2. The writer uses the image of "petals" on another image, that is, "wet, black bough".3. In In a Station of the Metro Pound attempts to produce the emotion he felt when he walked down into a Paris subway station and suddenly saw a number of faces in the dim light. To capture the emotion, Pound uses the image of petals on a wet, black bough. The image is not decoration; It is central to the poem's mean? ing. In fact, it is the poem's meaning.Passage 2:And he was rich—yes, richer than a king—And admirably schooled in every grace:In fine, we thought that he was everything To make us wish that we were in his place. So on we worked, and waited for the light,And went without the meat, and cursed the bread; And Richard Cory, one calm summer night, Went home and put a bullet through his head.Questions:1. What is the title of the poem?2. Who wrote this poem?3. How are the "we" of the poem different from Richard Cory?4. Do you think the use of the adjective "calm" in the next-to-hist line is an example of verbal irony? What is verbal irony?5. There is an element of dark humor in the mistaken ideas that the townspeople have of Richard Cory, do you think so?Answers:1. Richard Cory2. Edwin Arlington Robinson3. The "we" in the poem refers to the poor townspeople who live a hard life and admire the rich. But Richard Cory is the rich person who is admired by the poor, and appears to be calm and smart, but with a heart of suicidal despairing.4. Yes, it is an example of verbal irony. Verbal irony occurs when words that appear to be saying one thing are really saying something quite different.The woods are lovely, dark and deep.But I have promises to keep,And miles to go before I sleep,And miles to go before 1 sleep.1. Who wrote this poem?2. What is the title of this poem?3. What kind of feeling does this stanza show?4 What do you think of this poem?Answers:1. Robert Frost2. "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"3. It shows a kind of sad, sentimental but also strong and responsible feeling.4. It is one of the most quietly moving of Frost' s lyrics. On the surface, it seems to be simple, descriptive verses, records of close observation, graphic and homely pictures. It uses the simplest terms and commonest words. But it is deeply meditative, adding far-reaching meanings to the homely music. It uses its superb craftsmanship to come to a climax of responsibility: the promises to be kept, the obligation to be fulfilled. Few poems have said so much in so little.Passage 4:Hog Butcher for the World,Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,Player with Railroads and the Nation's Freight Handler;Stormy, husky, brawling,City of the Big Shoulders:1. These lines are talking about a big American city which is also the title of the poem. What is it?2. Who wrote this poem?3. What is the city called in the first line?Answers:1. Chicago2. Carl Sandburg3. Hog butcher for the worldLet us go then, you and I,When the evening is spread out against the sky Like a pati ent etherized upon a table;Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets, he muttering retreatsOf restless nights in one-night cheap hotels And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells Streets that follow like a tedious argument Of insidious intentTo lead you to an overwhelming question... Oh, do not ask, "What is it?"Let us go and make our visit. In the room the women come and goTalking of Michelangelo.1. This is the first 14 lines of a famous poem "The love Song of J. Alfred Pnifrock. “What is the name of the poet wrote it?2. What image is created in this passage?3. Do you think Prufrock is a tragic figure? Why?4. Is this poem a dramatic monologue? Why?Answers:1. Thomas Stearns Eliot2. a patient etherized upon a table3. He is a tragic figure. The plight of this hesitant, inhabited man, an aging dreamer trapped in decayed, shabby-genteel surroundings, aware of beauty and faced with sordidness, mirrors the plight of the sensitive in the presence of the dull.4. Yes, it is a dramatic monologue. He is a character created by Eliot, and he speaks directly to us. He tells us his thoughts in leaps and bounds, jumping from one image to another, just as ahuman mind does.Passage 8:The Burial of the DeadApril is the cruellest month, breeding Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing Memory and desire stirring Duil roots with spring rain. Winter kept us warm, covering Earth in forgetful snow, feeding A little life with dried tubers.1. This is the first seven lines of a masterpiece poem. What is the name of this masterpiece?2. Who is the author of this masterpiece?3. What theme can you get from these lines?Answers:1. The Waste Land2. Thomas Stearns Eliot3. The theme of the poem is modern spiritual barrenness, the despair and de?pression that followed the First World War, the sterility and turbulence of the mod?ern world, and the decline and breakdown of Western culture.They were careless people, Tom and Daisy—They smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together and let other people clean up the mess they had made. . .1. Which novel is this passage taken from?2. Who is the writer of this novel?3. What is the author' s attitude toward such persons as Tom and Daisy?Answers:1. The Great Gatsby2. F. Scott Fitzgerald3. The author criticized them as selfish, hypocritical persons.Passage 10:Poor, poor dear Cat. And this was the price you paid for sleeping together. This was the end of the trap. This was what people got for loving each other. Thank God for gas, anyway. What must it have been like before there were anaesthetics? Once it started, they were in the mill-race. Catherine had a good time in the time of pregnancy. It wasn't bad. She was hardly ever sick. She was not awfully uncomfortable until toward the last. So now they got her in the end. You never got away with anything. Get away hell! It would have been the same if we had been married fifty times. And what if she should die? She won't die. People don't die in childbirth nowadays. That was what all husbands thought. Yes, but what if she should die? She won' t die, She' s just having a bad time. Afterward we’d say what a bad time and Catherine would say it wasn't really so bad. But what if she should die?1. Which novel is this passage taken from?2. Who is the writer of this novel from which the passage is selected?3. What do you think of the language style?Answers:1. A Farewell to Arms2. Ernest Hemingway3. Hemingway manages to choose words concrete, specific, more commonly found, more casual and conversational. He employs these kinds of words often in a syntax of short, simple sentences, which are orderly and patterned and sometimes ungrammatical.The migrant people, scuttling for work, scrabbling to live,looked always for pleasure, dug for pleasure, manufactured pleasure, and they were hungry for amusement. Sometimes amusement lay in speech, and they climbed up their lives with jokes. And it came about in the camps along the road, on the ditch banks beside the streams, under the sycamores, that the story-teller grew into being, so that the people gathered in the low firelight to hear the gifted ones.1. Which novel is this passage taken from?2. Who is the writer of this novel?Answers:1. The Grapes of Wrath2. John SteinbeckPassage 12:When Miss Emily Grierson died, our whole town went to her funeral; the men through a sort of respectful affectation for a fallen monument, the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house, which no one save an old manservant—a combined gardener and cook—had seen in at least ten years.1. Which book is this paragraph taken from?2. Who is the writer of this book?V. Analyze Hie main works.1. Analysis of Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken.2. The story summary and the analysis of Chapter 3 of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.3. Analysis of John Steinbeck's the Grapes of Wrath.4. Analysis of William Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury.Answers:1. A Rose for Emily2. William Faulkner。
美国文学练习题
美国文学练习题1Part One Fill in the blanks with the correct information1.The first permanent English settlement in North America was established at _________,Virginia in the year of _____.2._________________ was the first American writer.3.The Mayflower voyage was taken in the year of _____.4.With _____________ begins the history of religious toleration in America, and with him, too,the history of the separation of church and state.5.The best of the Puritan poets was ______________.6.The most interesting works of New England Puritan literature were ___________.7.The Declaration of Independence was signed on _____________ (month/date/year).8.The writers held vitally important places in the movement for American independence.Without the writings of ______________, there might have been no army for Washington to lead; without the writings of ________________, France might never have aided the cause. 9.The writings of ___________________ show the Enlightenment spirit in America at its bestand most optimistic.10.___________________ has been respected as “the father of the Yankees”.11.The most historically important pamphlet in American history is __________________. Itsclear thinking and exciting language quickly united American feelings against England.12.The most important document in the political history of the United States is ______________________________________, which is also a fine work of literature.13.The United States achieved its independence in ______(year).14.__________________ has been called the Father of American Poetry.15.__________________was the first American to earn his living through literature.16.__________________ was the first American novels, who made the American conscious ofhis past, and made the European conscious of America.17.______________________became known in Europe as “the American Walter Scott”.18.The national anthem of the U.S.A. is ______________________, written by Francis ScottKey.19.The five novels that comprise the Leatherstocking Tales are:(1)______________________________________(2)______________________________________(3)______________________________________(4)______________________________________(5)______________________________________20.__________________________was responsible for bringing Transcendentalism to NewEngland. In 1836, he published __________, the clearest statement of Transcendentalist ideas._______________________ was his truest disciple, the man who put into practice many of his theories and who, in 1854, wrote his world-famous __________, about his stay in the pond side hut.21.________________ is the pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, and ________________is the pen-name of William Sidney Porter.22.______________________ created the first theory for American realism, and the greatest ofAmerica’s realists were ___________________ and __________________.23.__________________ was the first American naturalist whose greatest novel is _____________________________________.24.______________________ was America’s greatest naturalist’s writer, whose greatest and mostsuccessful novel is _____________________________________.25. Soapy is the hero in ______________’s short story The Cop and the Anthem.26. Carrie Meeber is the heroine in _________________’s novel entitled ________________.27. Hester Prynne and the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale are the two main characters in __________________’s novel______________________.28. President Lincoln once said “so you’re the little woman who made the book that made thegreat war.”Here “the little woman”is ________________________________, and “the book” is _______________________________.29. ______________ in the 1860s was the first American writer of local color to achieve widepopularity.30. Mark Twain’s greatest novel is ________________________________________________.31. ______________________was the most famous of the Muckrakers, and his greatest novel is________________.32. ______________ was the leader of the “Imagist” school of poetry in America.33. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece is _______________________.34. The title of Ernest Hemingway’s famous novel For Whom the Bell Tolls comes from _________________’s Meditations.35. The Sound and the Fury is one of __________________’s “modernist” masterpieces.36. _________________ was the most joyful poet of the Lost Generation. In the poetry we can seethe clear influence of the Cubist painters.37. ________________ was the foremost novelist of the American Depression of the 1930s,whose masterpiece was ____________________________, a novel about the great “dust bowl” disaster in Oklahoma.38. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Senator ____________________ led America on a “witchhunt” against “Communist” intellectuals, writers and Hollywood figures.39. Joseph Heller’s novel ______________ introduces the “black humor” literature in America.40. _____________________ made American drama develop into a form of literature in America.41. Arthur Miller’s best-known play is ________________________________________.Part Two Supply the sources of the following citations.(1)... though the flame of liberty may sometimes cease to shine, the coal can never ex pire…From The American Crisis by ___________________(2) We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and pursuit of Happiness. –That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. –That whether any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it isthe Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.From _________________________________________ (3) Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: --This dearness only that gives everything its value.From ______________________ by ____________________(4) A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines… To be great is to be misunderstood.From ___________________________’s Self Reliance(5) It was many and many years ago,In a kingdom by the seaThat a maiden there lived whom you may knowBy the name of ANNABEL LEE;And this maiden she lived with no other thoughtThan to love and be loved by me.From _____________________’s Annabel Lee (6) There is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance that limitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion.From Ralph Waldo Emerson’s ______________________(7) Up sluggard, and waste not life; in the grave will be sleeping enough.From ___________________’s Poor Richard’s Almanac(8) The woods are lovely, dark and deep,But I have promises to keep,And miles to go before I sleep,And miles to go before I sleep.From ________________’s Stoppong by Woods on a Snowy Evening(9) The apparition of these faces in the crowd;Petals on a wet, black bough.From ________________’s In a Station of the MetroPart Three Match the writers in Column A with their works in Column B.Column A (writers) Column B (works)Nathaniel Hawthorne Sketch BookHenry James WaldenWashington Irving The Scarlet LetterJack London Moby-DickTheodore Dreiser Leaves of GrassHarriet Beecher Stowe Uncle Tom’s CabinWalt Whitman The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Henry David Thoreau The Portrait of A LadyHerman Melville Martin EdenMark Twain An American TragedyErnest Hemingway The Road Not TakenTheodore Dreiser Desire Under the ElmsRobert Frost The Old Man and the SeaEugene O’Neill The TitanPart Four Answer the following questions1.What are the beliefs and ideas of the Puritans in Colonial America?2.What are the beliefs and ideas of the Founding Fathers of America?3.Why did Mark Twain define the period of the Civil War as a “Gilded Age”?4.What is “Naturalism” in literary creation?5.What is the “Lost Generation”? Who were the most important writers of the lost generation?美国文学练习题2Part One For each sentence there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that best completes the sentence.1.The first permanent English settlement in North America was established at Jamestown,_____, in 1607.A. VermontB. MassachusettsC. VirginiaD. California2. The Mayflower voyage was taken in ________.A. 1607B. 1620C. 1775D. 17893. The first American writer was ______.A. John WinthropB. William BradfordC. Anne BradstreetD. Captain John Smith4. With _____ begins the history of religious toleration in America, and with him, too, the history of the separation of church and state.A. Roger WilliamsB. Edward TaylorC. Anne HutchinsonD. Benjamin Franklin5. The best of the Puritan poets was _____.A. William BradfordB. John WinthropC. Anne BradstreetD. Edward Taylor6. The most interesting works of New England Puritan literature were _____.A. novelsB. romancesC. historiesD. poetry7. Anne Bradstreeet’s poems made such a stir in England that she became known as the “___”sprung up in America.A. Ninth MuseB. Tenth MuseC. Best MuseD. First Muse8. Thomas Paine wrote the following EXCEPT ____.A. Common SenseB. AutobiographyC. The Rights of ManD. The American Crisis9. ____ has been respected as “the father of the Yankees”.A. Benjamin FranklinB. Thomas JeffersonC. Thomas PaineD. George Washington10. The Declaration of Independence was signed on ____.A. July 4, 1776B. July 4, 1775C. July 14, 1776D. July 14, 178311. The most historically important pamphlet in American history is ____, its clear thinking andexciting language quickly united American feelings against England.A. Common SenseB. The Declaration of IndependenceC. The Rights of ManD. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow12. The most important document in the political history of the United States is ___, which is alsoa fine work of literature.A. The American CrisisB. The Declaration of IndependenceC. The Rights of ManD. Common Sense13. The writings of ___ show the Enlightenment spirit in America at its best and most optimistic.A. Washington IrvingB. Thomas JeffersonC. Thomas PaineD. Benjamin Franklin14. The United States achieved its independence in ___.A. 1776B. 1783C. 1789D. 185315. ___ has been called the “Father of American Poetry”.A. Edgar Allan Poe A. Walt Whitman C. Philip Freneau D. William Cullen Bryant16. ___ was the first American novelist, who made the American conscious of his past, and madethe European conscious of America.A. James Fenimore CooperB. Washington IrvingC. Herman MelvilleD. William Cullen Byrant17. ___ became known in Europe as “the American Walter Scott”.A. James Fenimore CooperB. Washington IrvingC. Herman MelvilleD. Nathaniel Hawthorne18. ___ was responsible for bringing Transcendentalism to New England.A. Henry David ThoreauB. Ralph Waldo EmersonC. Herman MelvilleD. Nathaniel Hawthorne19. ___ was the first American naturalist.A. Theodore DreiserB. Stephen CraneC. Hamlin GarlandD. Nathaniel Hawthorne20. ___ was America’s greatest naturalist writer.A. Theodore DreiserB. Stephen CraneC. Hamlin GarlandD. Jack London21. ___ created the first theory for American realism.A. Henry JamesB. William JamesC. William Dean HowellsD. Mark Twain22. The greatest of America’s realists were ___.A. Henry James and Mark TwainB. Jack London and John SteinbeckC. O. Henry and Theodore DreiserD. F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway23. ___ in the 1860s was the first American writer of local color to achieve wide popularity.A. Herman MelvilleB. Washington IrvingC. James Fenimore CooperD. Bret Harte24. ___ was the most famous of the Muckrackers.A. Ida TarbellB. O. HenryC. Upton SinclairD. Lincoln Steffens25. ___ was the foremost novelist of the American Depression of the 1930s, whose masterpiece was a novel about the great “dust bowl” disaster in Oklahoma.A. Theodore DreiserB. Upton SinclairC. Thomas WolfeD. John Steinbeck26. The Sound and the Fury is one of ___’s “modernist” masterpieces.A. John SteinbeckB. William FaulknerC. E. E. CummingsD. Ezra Pound27. ___ was the leader of the “Imagist” school of poetry in America.A. Ezra PoundB. Robert FrostC. T. S. EliotD. Wallace Stevens28. ___ was the most joyful poet of the Lost Generation. In his poetry we can see the clear influence of the Cubist painters.A. Carl SandburyB. Robert FrostC. E. E. CummingsD. Wallace Stevens29. ___ made American drama develop into a form of literature.A. Arthur MillerB. Tennessee WilliamsC. Walt WhitmanD. Eugene O’Neill30. ___ was considered the founder of psychological realism in America. His realism is known as “stream-of-consciousness” literature.Part Two Fill the blanks with the correct information1.The national anthem of the U.S.A. is __________________________, written by FrancisScott Key.2.The title of Ernest Hemingway’s famous novel For Whom the Bell Tolls comes from _______________’s Meditations.3.The writers held vitally important places in the movement for American independence.Without the writings of ___________________, there might have been no army for Washington to lead; without the writings of _____________________, France might never have aided the cause.4.The five novels that comprise the leatherstocking Takes are :(1)______________________________________(2)______________________________________(3)______________________________________(4)______________________________________(5)______________________________________5.In 1836, Ralph Waldo Emerson published __________, the clearest statement ofTranscendentalist ideas. _________________ was his truest disciple, the man who put into practice many of his theories and who, in 1854, wrote his world famous ___________, about his stay in the pond side hut.6.__________________ is the pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, and __________ isthe pen-name of William Sidney Porter.7.President Lincoln once said, “so you’re the little woman who made the book that made thegreat war.” Here “the little woman” is ________________________, and “the book” is _____ ______________________.8.In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Senator _________________ led America on a “witchhunt” against “Communist intellectuals, writers and Hollywood figures.9.Joseph Heller’s novel _________ introduced the “black humor” literature in America.10.Soapy is the hero in O. Henry’s short story ___________________________________.11.Carrie Meeber is the heroine in ___________________ ’s novel entitled ________________.12.Hester Prynne and the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale are the two main characters in _________________________’s novel ________________________.13.Stephen Crane’s greatest novel is ____________________________________.14.Theodore Dreiser’s greatest and most successful novel is ____________________________.15.Mark Twain’s greatest novel is ___________________________________________.16.Herman Melville’s masterpiece is _____________________.17.Upton Sinclair’s greatest novel is _________________.18.F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece is ________________________.19.Arthur Miller’s best-known play is _________________________________.20.The Sketch Book was written by _________________.21.The Grapes of Wrath was written by ____________________.22.Leaves of Grass was written by _____________________.23.The Portrait of A Lady was written by ______________________.24.Martin Eden was written by ___________________.25.The Road Not Taken was written by __________________.26.A Psalm of Life: What the Heart of the Young Man Said to the Psalmist was written by_____________________.27.Desire Under the Elms was written by _________________.28.A Streetcar Named Desire was written by ________________________.29.The Titan was written by _____________________.Part Three Tell the story (in around 500 words) of ONE of the following novels1.The Scarlet Letter2.The Adventures of Tom Sawyer3.Martin Eden4.Sister Carrie5.The Great Gatsby6. A Farewell to Arms。
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美国文学问答题作业
Week 1 (2014.2.17——2.24)
1.Why did Franklin write his autobiography? P. 8
2.What made Franklin decide to leave the brother to whom he had been apprenticed?
P. 8
3.How do you comment on the puritanism and consumerism in American culture against the background of globalization?
4.Free Q&A. (questions raised and answered by the students themselves on the basis of their reading and understanding of Franklin and his Autobiography )
Week 2 (2014.2.24——3.2)
1. According to Emerson, what do most people believe to be virtue?And what is real virtue?(p.24)
2. What is Emerson’s attitude on “consistency” and the agreement of one’s actions? Do you agree with him? Why? (p.24)
3. What is your comment on one of the wide-spread guiding principles held by Chinese universities that university students should adapt themselves to the society?
4. Free Q&A. (questions raised and answered by the students themselves on the basis of their reading and understanding of Emerson and his works .)
Week 3 (2014.3.3—3.9)
1.Where indeed did Thoreau live, both at a physical level and at a spiritual level?
2.Why did Thoreau enjoy the act of buying the farm but give up buying it at the last
moment?
3.How do you explain the fact that Thoreau loved living in Walden but decided to
leave it in two years?
4.Free Q&A. (questions raised and answered by the students themselves on the
basis of their reading and understanding of Emerson and his works .) Week 4 （2014. 3.10-3.16）
1.Describe the appearance of Hester Prynne and the attitudes of the people towards
her throughout the whole novel.
2.Is The Scarlet Letter a novel about adultery? Give your reasons.
3.What is your comment on Hawthorne’s moral vision supported by his negative
capability?
4.Free Q&A. (questions raised and answered by the students themselves on the
basis of their reading and understanding of Emerson and his works .)
Week 5（2014. 3.17-3.23）
1.Find some biblical allusions in Moby-Dick and interpret their significance.
2.Why does Ahab react so violently against the white whale? Ishmael suggests that
Ahab is “crazy” and calls him “a raving lunatic.” Do you agree with him? Why or why not?
3.Why was Melville so fascinated with Hawthorne and vise versa?
4.Free Q&A. (questions raised and answered by the students themselves on the
basis of their reading and understanding of Emerson and his works .)。