A Concise History of American Literature美国文学简史.docx

A Concise History of American Literature美国文学简史.docx

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AConciseHistoryofAmericanLiterature美国文学简史

NotesonAmericanLiterature

Chapter1ColonialPeriod

I.Background:

Puritanism

WhatarethemainitemsofPuritanThoughts?

Puritan[countable]:

A.Puritan--amemberofaProtestantreligiousgroupinthe16thand17thcenturies,whowantedtomakereligionsimpler

B.Someonewithstrictmoralviewswhothinksthatpleasureisunnecessaryandwrong;

--Theplayboyandthepuritanmadeanoddcouple,buttheycoulduseeachother.

ThePuritanworkethic

1.FeaturesofPuritanism

（1）Predestination:

Godhasdecidedeverythingbeforethingsoccur.

（2） Originalsin:

Humanbeingsareborntobeevil,andthisoriginalsincanbepasseddownfromgenerationtogeneration.

（3） Totaldepravity

（4） Limitedatonement:

Onlythe“elect”canbesaved.

2.  Influence

（1）Agroupofgoodqualities–hardwork,thrift,piety,sobriety（seriousandthoughtful）influencedAmericanliterature.

（2）Itledtotheeverlastingmyth.Allliteratureisbasedonamyth–GardenofEden.

（3）Symbolism:

theAmericanpuritan’smetaphoricalmodeofperceptionischieflyinstrumentalincallingintobeingaliterarysymbolismwhichisdistinctlyAmerican.

（4）Withregardtotheirwriting,thestyleisfresh,simpleanddirect;therhetoricisplainandhonest,notwithoutatouchofnobilityoftentraceabletothedirectinfluenceoftheBible.

Overviewoftheliterature

Here,literaturecanbesomethingusedinabroadsense,meaningwriting.In1820（40yearsaftertheAmericanRevolution）,SydneySmith,anEnglishclergyman,writerandwit,posedthequestion:

“Inthefourquartersoftheglobe,whoreadsanAmericanbook?

”

Thisseemedareasonablequestiontoask.Americahadnotyetbeguntoproduceitsowndistinctiveliterature.Also,AmericaremainedundertheculturaldominationofEnglandlongafterithadwonitspoliticalindependence.Onescholarestimated,in1820,70%ofthebooksAmericansreadwerepublishedinEngland.Bythen,twoelementsessentialtoastrongsenseofnationalidentityweremissing:

adistinctiveculturallifeandasignificantnationalliterature.

1.Typesofwriting

Diaries,histories,journals,letters,travelbooks,autobiographies/biographies,sermons

2.Writersofcolonialperiod

（1）AnneBradstreet

（2） EdwardTaylor

（3） RogerWilliams

（4） JohnWoolman

（5） ThomasPaine

（6） PhilipFreneau

JonathanEdwards

1.Life（1703—58）

2.Works

（1） TheFreedomoftheWill

（2）TheGreatDoctrineofOriginalSinDefended

（3） TheNatureofTrueVirtue

3.Ideas–pioneeroftranscendentalism

（1）Thespiritofrevivalism

（2）Regenerationofman

（3）God’spresence

（4）Puritanidealism

BenjaminFranklin

1.Life:

（1706-1790）

2.Works

（1）PoorRichard’sAlmanac

（2）Autobiography

3.Contribution

（1）HehelpedfoundthePennsylvaniaHospitalandtheAmericanPhilosophicalSociety.

（2）Hewascalled“thenewPrometheuswhohadstolenfire（electricityinthiscase）fromheaven”.

（3）Everythingseemstomeetinthisoneman–“Jackofalltrades”.HermanMelvillethusdescribedhim“masterofeachandmasteredbynone”.

Chapter2AmericanRomanticism

Section1EarlyRomanticPeriod

WhatisRomanticism?

---AnapproachfromancientGreek:

Plato

---Aliterarytrend:

18thcenturyinBritain（1798-1832）

Germanphilosopher,FriedrichvonSchlegel（1772—1829,critic,andwriter,mostprominentofthefoundersofGermanromanticism.）

I.Preview:

Characteristicsofromanticism

1. Subjectivity

（1）Feelingandemotions,findingtruth

（2） Emphasisonimagination

（3） Emphasisonindividualism–personalfreedom,noheroworship,naturalgoodnessofhumanbeings

2. Backtomedieval,esp.Medievalfolkliterature

（1） Unrestrainedbyclassicalrules

（2） fullofimagination

（3） Colloquiallanguage

（4） Freedomofimagination

（5） Genuineinfeelings:

answertheircallforclassics

3. Backtonature

Natureis“breathinglivingthing”（Rousseau）

II.AmericanRomanticism

1.Background

（1）Politicalbackgroundandeconomicdevelopment

（2）RomanticmovementinEuropeancountries

Derivative–foreigninfluence

2. Features

（1）Americanromanticismwasinessencetheexpressionof“arealnewexperienceandcontained“analienquality”forthesimplereasonthat“thespiritoftheplace”wasradicallynewandalien.

（2）ThereisAmericanPuritanismasaculturalheritagetoconsider.Americanromanticauthorstendedmoretomoralize.ManyAmericanromanticwritingsintendedtoedifymorethantheyentertained.

（3）The“newness”ofAmericansasanationisinconnectionwithAmericanRomanticism.

（4）Asalogicalresultoftheforeignandnativefactorsatwork,Americanromanticismwasbothimitativeandindependent.

WashingtonIrving

1. SeveralnamesattachedtoIrving

（1）FirstAmericanwriter

（2）Themessengersentfromthenewworldtotheoldworld

（3） FatherofAmericanliterature

2.Life

3.Works

（1）AHistoryofNewYorkfromtheBeginningoftheWorldtotheEndoftheDutchDynasty

（2）TheSketchBookofGeoffreyCrayon,Gent.（Hewonameasureofinternationalrecognitionwiththepublicationofthis.）

（3）TheHistoryoftheLifeandVoyagesofChristopherColumbus

（4）AChronicleoftheConquestofGranada

（5）TheAlhambra

4.Literarycareer:

twoparts

（1）1809-1832

A. SubjectsareeitherEnglishorEuropean

B. Conservativelovefortheantique

（2）1832-1859:

backtoUS

5. Style–beautiful

（1）Gentility,urbanity,pleasantness

（2）Avoidingmoralizing–amusingandentertaining

（3）Envelopingstoriesinanatmosphere

（4）Vividandtruecharacters

（5）Humour–smilingwhilereading

（6）Musicallanguage

JamesFenimoreCooper

1.Life

2. Works

（1）Precaution（1820,hisfirstnovel,imitatingAusten’sPrideandPrejudice）

（2）TheSpy（hissecondnovelandgreatsuccess）

（3）LeatherstockingTales（hismasterpiece,aseriesoffivenovels）

TheDeerslayer,TheLastoftheMohicans,ThePathfinder,ThePioneer,ThePrairie

3. Themes

Wildernessvs.Civilization,freedomvs.Law,ordervs.Change,aristocratvs.Democrat,naturalrightsvs.Legalrights

4.Style

（1）Highlyimaginative

（2）Goodatinventingtales

（3） Goodatlandscapedescription

（4） Conservative

（5） Characterizationwoodenandlackinginprobability

（6） Languageanduseofdialectnotauthentic

5. Literaryachievements

HecreatedamythabouttheformativeperiodoftheAmericannation.IfthehistoryoftheUnitedStatesis,inasense,theprocessoftheAmericansettlersexploringandpushingtheAmericanfrontierforeverwestward,thenCooper’sLeatherstockingTaleseffectivelyapproximatestheAmericannationalexperienceofadventureintotheWest.HeturnedthewestandfrontierasauseablepastandhehelpedtointroducewesterntraditiontoAmericanliterature.

Section2SummitofRomanticism–AmericanTranscendentalism

Transcendentalism:

Aliteraryandphilosophicalmovement,associatedwithRalphWaldoEmersonandMargaretFuller,assertingtheexistenceofanidealspiritualrealitythattranscendstheempiricalandscientificandisknowablethroughintuition.

I. Background:

foursources

1. Unitarianism

（1）FatherhoodofGod

（2） Brotherhoodofmen

（3） LeadershipofJesus

（4）Salvationbycharacter（perfectionofone’scharacter）

（5） Continuedprogressofmankind

（6）Divinityofmankind

（7） Depravityofmankind

2. RomanticIdealism

Centeroftheworldisspirit,absolutespirit（Kant）

3. Orientalmysticism

Centeroftheworldis“oversoul”

4. Puritanism

Eloquentexpressionintranscendentalism

II. Appearance

1836,“Nature”byEmerson

III. Features

1.Spirit/oversoul

2. Importanceofindividualism

3. Nature–symbolofspirit/God

Garmentoftheoversoul

4. Focusinintuition（irrationalismandsubconsciousness）

IV. Influence

1.Itservedasanethicalguidetolifeforayoungnationandbroughtabouttheideathathumancanbeperfectedbynature.Itstressedreligioustolerance,calledtothrowoffshacklesofcustomsandtraditionsandgoforwardtothedevelopmentofanewanddistinctlyAmericanculture.

2. Itadvocatedidealismthatwasgreatneededinarapidlyexpandedeconomywhereopportunityoftenbecameopportunism,andthedesireto“geton”obscuredthemoralnecessityforrisingtospiritualheight.

3.IthelpedtocreatethefirstAmericanrenaissance–oneofthemostprolificperiodsinAmericanliterature.

RalphWaldoEmerson

1.Life（1803—82）

2.Works

（1）Nature

（2）Twoessays:

TheAmericanScholar,ThePoet

3. Ideas

（1） Onemajorelementofhisphilosophyishisfirmbeliefinthetranscendenceofthe“oversoul”.

（2） Heregardsnatureasthepurest,andthemostsanctifyingmoralinfluenceonman,andadvocatesadirectintuitionofaspiritualandimmanentGodinnature.

（3）Ifmandependsuponhimself,cultivateshimselfandbringsoutthedivineinhimself,hecanhopetobecomebetterandevenperfect.ThisiswhatEmersonmeansby“theinfinitudeofman”.

（4）Everyoneshouldunderstandthathemakeshimselfbymakinghisworld,andthathemakestheworldbymakinghimself.

4. Aestheticideas

（1）Heisacompleteman,aneternalman.

（2） Truepoetryandtrueartshouldennoble.

（3） Thepoetshouldexpresshisthoughtinsymbols.

（4） Astotheme,EmersoncalleduponAmericanauthorstocelebrateAmericawhichwastohimalonepoeminitself.

5. Hisinfluence

HenryDavidThoreau

1.Life（1817—62）,

2.Works

（1）AWeekontheConcordandMerrimackRiver

（2） Walden

（3） APleaforJohnBrown（anessay）

3. Ideas

（1） HedoesnotlikethewayamaterialisticAmericawasdevelopingandisvehementlyoutspokenonthepoint.

（2）Hehatesthehumaninjusticeasrepresentedbytheslaverysystem.

（3）LikeEmerson,butmorethanhim,Thoreauseesnatureasagenuinerestorative,healthyinfluenceonman’sspiritualwell-being.