完整word版英国文学史及选读知识要点I.docx

1、完整word版英国文学史及选读知识要点IPart I The Anglo-Saxon Period(449-1066)I Background 449 the Teutons ( the Jutes, the Anglos, the Saxons)II LiteratureThe literature of this period falls into two divisionspagan and ChristianTwo Anglo-saxon Christian poets:Caedmon （凯德蒙，公元7世纪盎各鲁萨克逊基督教诗人）who lived in the latter half

2、 of the 7th century and who wrote a poetic Paraphrase of the Bible.Cynewulf （基涅武甫,盎各鲁萨克逊诗人，生活在公元9世纪，其古英语诗稿于10世纪被发现，有埃琳娜,使徒们的命运，基督升天和朱莉安娜）, the author of poems on religious subjects III The Song of Beowulf( Beowulf, 公元7-8世纪之交开始流传于民间的同名史诗中的主人公，曾与水怪，火龙搏斗)Status: Englands national epicWritten at the beg

3、inning of the tenth centuryComposed much earlierLength:3182The whole song is essentially pagan in spirit and matter. Features : alliteration; metaphors; understatementSubject matter Part II The Anglo-Norman Period (10661350)I historical background: The Norman Conquest II. The LiteratureThe literatur

4、e which they brought to England is remarkable for its bright, romantic tales of love and adventure.III. Romance1. Romance was the prevailing form of literature in feudal England.2. Definition and features(理解)IV. Sir Gawain and the Green Knighta late-14th century middle-English outlining an adventure

5、 of Sir Gawain, a knight of King Arthurs Round Table.It was a verse romance of 2530 lines, considered as the best of Arthurian romances.Part III Geoffrey Chaucer(1340?-1400)I Major worksThe Romaunt of the Rose玫瑰传奇 is a translation from a French poem.His masterpiece: The Canterbury TalesII Contributi

6、ons1. Chaucerthe forerunner of Renaissance 2. Chaucer a master of realism3 Chaucer“father of English poetry”In contradistinction to the alliterative verse of the Anglo-Saxon poetry, Chaucer chose the metrical form which laid the foundation of the English tonic-syllabic verse. He introduced from Fran

7、ce the rhymed couplet (two successive lines of verse equal in length and with thyme) of iambic pentameter which is to be called later the heroic coupletIII the Canterbury tales1. statusThe Canterbury Tales is Chaucers masterpiece and one of the monumental works in English literature2. It contains (1

8、) a general prologue (over 800 lines) (2) 24 tales (3) separate prologues and “the links that accompany some of the tales” Part IV The RenaissanceI.The RenaissanceFeatures A thirsting curiosity for the classical literature. The keen interest in the activities of humanity. Essence: humanismII. The 16

9、th century EnglandIII. The Renaissance Literature in England Figures1/ Thomas More (1478-1535, 托马斯莫尔) the Forerunner of utopian socialism Utopia乌托邦 (1516)2/ France Bacon (1561-1626,弗朗西斯培根）-the scientist, philosopher and essayist 3/ Thomas Wyatt (1503?-1542, 托玛斯维亚特）-a poet, the first to introduce the

10、 sonnet into English literature4/. Edmund Spenser (1552-1599,埃德蒙斯宾塞)，a great poetThe Faerie Queene 仙后（1590） 5/ Christopher Marlowe(1564-1593)the greatest pioneer of English dramaContributions:He reformed the genre of drama in England and perfected the language and verse of dramatic works.He made bla

11、nk verse the principal vehicle of expression in drama6/ Prose writersJohn Lily(1553-1606，约翰黎利) Eupheus （尤弗伊斯）gives the term of euphuismThomas Loge (1558-1625，托马斯洛奇)Thomas Deloney (1543-1600,托马斯德罗尼）Thomas Nashe（1567-1601，托马斯纳西）William Shakespeare (1564-1616)I. status: the greatest of all English auth

12、ors; one of those rare geniuses of mankind; landmark in the history of world culture; one of the first founders of realism; a masterhand at realistic portrayal of human characters and relationsthe greatest dramatist in human history and the supreme poet of the English languagehe wrote poems and play

13、sII worksPoems sonnets: 154 2 narrative poems Venus and Adonis 维纳斯和阿多尼斯The Rape of Lucrece 鲁克莉斯受辱记2 plays(38) tragedies Romeo and Juliet4 great tragedies (Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth )comediesMid- Summer Nights DreamhistoriesIII.Selected reading 1Hamlet2Sonnet 18Francis Bacon (1561-1626)I ti

14、tle： Philosopher, scientist (the inventor of scientific method); Statesman Jurist(法学家）; essayistII. works Bacons works may be divided into three classes:a. the philosophical works: Advancement of Learning (1605, in English) Novum Organum (1620, in Latin) De Augmentis (1623, in latin)b. the literary

15、works: Essays( 1597,1612, 1625)c. the professional works: Maxism of the Law Reading on the Statute of Uses 用益权法Part V The 17th Century The period of Revolution and RestorationI. Social Background1. The 17th century was one of the most tempestuous动荡的 periods in English history. 2.In 1642, the civil w

16、ar (English revolution/ Puritan revolution) broke out between Charles I and the parliament. 3. The restoration (1660)4.The glorious revolution(1688)II. Puritan and PuritanismIII. Literature of the 17th century1.The revolution periodGeneral Characteristics 1The Revolution Period was one of confusion

17、in literature due to the breaking up of the old ideals. The Puritans believed in simplicity of life. They disapproved of the sonnets and the love poetry written in the previous period.2The Puritan influence in general tended to suppress literary art. Yet this hard, stern sect produced a great poet,

18、John Milton, and a great prose writer, John Bunyan.3 Literature in the Puritan Age expressed sadness. Even its brightest hours were followed by gloom and pessimism.4John Milton, whose work would glorify any age and people, and in his work the indomitable（不屈服的）revolutionary spirit found its noblest e

19、xpression. For this reason, this period is also called Age of Milton5The main literary form of the period was poetry. Besides Milton, there were two other groups of poets, the Metaphysical Poets and the Cavalier Poets.2. Literature of the Restorationgeneral characteristics a sudden breaking away fro

20、m old standards Restoration literature is deeply influenced by French classical taste. It is a period of French influence. rimed couplets-blank verse The unities A more regular construction The presentations of types rather than individuals restoration comedies Restoration created a literature of it

21、s own that was often witty and clever, but on the whole immoral and cynical. The most popular genre was that of comedy whose chief aim was to entertain the licentious aristocrats. The comedies are coarse in language and their view of the relations between men and women is immoral and dishonest. John

22、 Dryden (1631-1670) critic, poet, and playwright the most distinguished literary figure of the time (一)John Donne (1573-1631)I The founder of the Metaphysical School and very influential upon modern writersa preacher famous for his magnificent sermons at his time III Major WorksEarly works: Songs an

23、d Sonnets( written before 1600, 55 love poems) The Flea 跳蚤 Song: Go and Catch a Falling Star Womans Constancy 女人的忠贞 A Valediction : of Weeping别离辞：哭泣 A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning别离辞：节哀late works: Religious poems and sermons(二) John Milton(1608-1674)I status A great puritan poet his work would g

24、lorify any age or people, and in him the indomitable puritan spirit finds the noblest expression.II Miltons WorksThree literary periods: early period: poems written in Cambridge and at Horton middle-aged period: prose pamphletsAreopagitica (Speech for the Liberty of Unlicensed Printing,1644 )Eikonok

25、lastes ( Image Breaker, 1649)Defense for the English People (1650) the period of his old age :great poems Paradise Lost (1658-1664) Paradise Regained (1671) Samson Agonistes (1671)III Paradise Lost status: the only great epic since Beowulfone of the greatest poems of the English language Theme The t

26、heme is “ the fall of man,” i.e. mans disobedience and the loss of paradise , with its cause Satan .(三) John Bunyan 16281688 I statusHe received spiritual independence from the Reformation the chief Puritan writer of prose He gave us the only great allegory The Pilgrims ProgressII The Pilgrims Progr

27、ess (1678) It is about Christians journey from his hometown “the city of Destruction” to the “Celestial City”, and his experiences and adventures on his journey. It depicts the pilgrimage of a human soul in search of Salvation. It was written in the form of allegory and dream. Christians journey in

28、10 stages (scenes) Slough of DespondThe House of InterpreterThe Hill of DifficultyHouse BeautifulValley of HumiliationThe valley of the Shadow of DeathVanity FairDoubting CastleThe Delectable MountainsCelestial Cityvanity fairVanity Fair is one of the most remarkable passages of The Pilgrims Progres

29、s“Vanity” means “emptiness” or “worthless”, hencethe fair is an allegory of worldliness & the corruption of the religious life through the attractions of the worldthe great critical realist of the 19th century, W. M. Thackeray, employed “Vanity Fair” as the title for his masterpiece that gives a com

30、prehensive satirical picture of the aristocratic bourgeois society of 19th century EnglandPart VI The 18th century The Age of Enlightenment in England（the age of reason)I. Historical backgroundThe Enlightenment Version 1: p 165-166 II. Literature1. Neoclassicismwriters John Dryden(1631-1700) Alexand

31、er Pope(1660-1744) 散文论批评An Essay on Criticism 讽刺史诗夺发记The Rape of the Lock Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) 英文大词典A Dictionary of the English Language2. Essays Joseph Addison (1672-1719) Richard Steele (1667-1745)The TatlerThe Spectator3.modern English novel Writers Daniel Defoe (1661-1731) Robinson Crusoe Henry Fielding (1707-1754) The History of Tom Jones, A FoundlingT. G. Smollet (1721-1771) satirical novelsSamuel Richardson (1