美国文学考试必备知识点文档格式.docx

美国文学考试必备知识点文档格式.docx

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6.EmilyDickinson

7.II.Realistperiod

8.MarkTwain

9.SherwoodAnderson

10.StephenCrane

11.TheodoreDreiser

12.III.Modernperiod

13.F.S.Fitzgerald

14.ErnestHemingway

15.WilliamFaulkner

1.Transcendentalism

TranscendentalismreferstothereligiousandphilosophicaldoctrinesofRalphWaldoEmersonandothersinNewEnglandinthemiddle1800’s,whichemphasizedtheimportanceofindividualinspirationandintuition,theOversoul,andNature.OtherconceptsthataccompaniedTranscendentalismincludetheideathatnatureisennoblingandtheideathattheindividualisdivineand,therefore,self-reliant.NewEnglandTranscendentalismistheproductofacombinationofnativeAmericanPuritanismandEuropeanRomanticism.

2.Naturalism

Naturalism,amoredeliberatekindofrealism,usuallyinvolvesaviewofhumanbeingsaspassivevictimsofnaturalforcesandsocialenvironment.Asaliterarymovement,naturalismwasinitiatedinFranceanditcametobeledbyZola,whoclaimedat“scientific”statusforhisstudiesofimpoverishedcharactersmiserablysubjectedtohunger,sexualobsession,andhereditarydefects.Naturalfictionaspiredtoasociologicalobjectivity,offeringdetailedandfullyresearchedinvestigationsintounexploredcornersofmodernsociety.ThemostsignificantworkofnaturalisminEnglishbeingDreiser’sSisterCarrie.

3.AmericanDream

TheAmericanDreamisthefaithheldbymanypeopleintheUnitedStatesofAmericathatthroughhardwork,courageanddeterminationonecanachieveabetterlifeforoneself,usuallythroughfinancialprosperity.ThesewerevaluesheldbymanyearlyEuropeansettlers,andhavebeenpassedontosubsequentgenerations.

4.TheLostGeneration

ThetermLostGenerationwascoinedbyGertrudeSteintorefertoagroupofAmericanLiterarynotableswholivedinParisfromthetimeperiodwhichsawtheendofWorldWarItothebeginningoftheGreatDepression.SignificantmembersincludedErnestHemingway,F.ScottFitzgerald,EzraPound,SherwoodAnderson,T.S.Eliot,andGertrudeSteinherself.Hemingwaylikelypopularizedtheterm,quotingStein（“Youareallalostgeneration”）asepigraphtohisnovelTheSunAlsoRises.Moregenerally,thetermisbeingusedfortheyoungadultsofEuropeandAmericaduringWorldWarI.Theywere“lost”becauseafterthewarmanyofthemweredisillusionedwiththeworldingeneralandunwillingtomoreintoasettledlife

5.Modernism

Modernwritingismarkedbyastrongandconsciousbreakwithtraditionalformsandtechniquesofexpression;

itbelievesthatwecreatetheworldintheactofperceivingit.Modernismimplieshistoricaldiscontinuity,asenseofalienation,ofloss,andofdespair.Itelevatestheindividualandhisinnerbeingoversocialmanandpreferstheunconscioustotheself-conscious.

6.Romanticism

.

7.Puritanism

TheprinciplesandpracticesofpuritanswerepopularlyknownasPuritanism.PuritanismacceptedthedoctrinesofCalvinism:

thesovereigntyofGod;

thesupremeauthorityoftheBible;

theirresistibilityofGod’swillformanineveryactoflifefromcradletograve.ThesedoctrinesledthePuritanstoexaminetheirsoulstofindwhethertheywereoftheelectandtosearchtheBibletodetermineGod’swill.

8.HemingwayHeroes/CodeHero

“HemingwayHeroes”refertosomeprotagonistsinHemingway’sworks.Suchaherousuallyisanaveragemanofdecidedlymasculinetastes,sensitiveandintelligent.Andusuallyheisamanofactionandofafewwords.Heissuchanindividualist,aloneevenwhenwithotherpeople,somewhatanoutsider,keepingemotionsundercontrol,stoicandself-disciplinedinadreadfulplacewhereonecannotgethappiness.TheHemingwayheroesstandforawholegeneration.Inaworldwhichisessentiallychaoticandmeaningless,aHemingwayherofightsasolitarystruggleagainstaforcehedoesnotevenunderstand.Theawarenessthatitmustendindefeat,nomatterhowhardhestrives,engendersasenseofdespair.ButHemingwayheroespossessakindof“despairingcourage”asBertrandRussellterms.Itisthiscouragethatenablesamantobehavelikeaman,toasserthisdignityinfaceofadversity.SurelyHemingwayheroesdiffer,onefromanother,intheirviewoftheworld.ThedifferencewhichcomesgraduallyinviewisanindextothesubtlechangewhichHemingway’soutlookhadundergone.

Expressionism

ExpressionismreferstoamovementinGermanyearlyinthe20thcentury,inwhichanumberofpainterssoughttoavoidtherepresentationofexternalrealityand,instead,toprojectahighlypersonalorsubjectivevisionoftheworld.Themainprincipleinvolvedisthatexpressiondeterminesform,andthereforeimagery,punctuation,syntax,andsoforth.Inbrief,anyoftheformalrulesandelementsofwritingcanbebentordisjointedtosuitthepurpose.Theatrically,expressionismwasareactionagainstrealisminthatittendstoshowinnerpsychologicalrealities.O’Neill’splaysaresomeofthebestexamples.

TheImagistMovement（Imagism）

LedbyEzraPoundandflourishedfrom1909to1917,themovementadvancedmodernisminartswhichconcentratedonreformingthemediumofpoetryasopposedtoRomanticism,especiallyTennyson'

swordinessandhigh-flownlanguageinpoetry.ThethreeprinciplesfollowedbytheImagistswere:

（1）"

Directtreatment"

（2）"

EconomyofExpression"

（3）"

Rhythm"

symbolism

SymbolismoriginatesinFranceinthemiddle19thcentury.ThepoetrycollectionTheFlowersofEvilbytheFrenchpoetCharlesBaudelaireisarepresentativeworkofthisgenre.Symbolismtriestoexpressthedreamymysteriousinnerworldofthewriter.

Stream-of-consciousness

Stream-of-consciousnessbeginsinthe1920’sinBritain.Itisapsychologicaltermindicating“thefluxofconsciousandsubconsciousthoughtsandimpressionsmovinginthemindatanygiventimeindependentlyoftheperson’swill”.Inlate19thcentury,theliterarydeviceof“interiormonologue”wasoriginatedinFranceasanapplicationofmodernpsychologicalknowledgetoliterarycreation.Inthe20thcentury,undertheinfluenceofFreud’stheoryofpsychologicalanalysis,anumberofwritersadoptedthe“streamofconsciousness”methodofnovelwriting.Thestrikingfeatureofthesenovelistsistheirgivingprecedencetothedepictionofthecharacters’mentalandemotionalreactionstoexternalevents,ratherthantheeventsthemselves.（tobecontinued）

Freeverse:

aformofpoetrywithoutrhyme,meter,regularlinelength,andregularstanzaicstructure.Itdependsonnaturalspeechforrhythm.RobertFrostcompareditto“playingtenniswiththenetdown.”Thoughmuchsimplerandlessrestrictivethanconventionalpoetryandblankverse,freeversedoesnomean“formlessness.”T.S.Eliotoncesaidthat“noverseisfreeforthemanwhowantstodoagoodjob.”Thoughitsoriginisunknown,itwasattemptedbysuchearlypoetsasSurrey,Milton,Blake,andMacpherson.ItwasWhitmanwhodidthegreatestcontributiontothedevelopmentandpopularityoffreeverse.Whitmanfavoredthesimplicityandfreedomofexpression.Accordingtohim,“Theartofart,thegloryofexpressionandthesunshineoflightoflettersissimplicity.Notingisbetterthansimplicity.”

Jazzage:

JazzisaformofdancemusicthatisderivedfromearlyAfro-Americanfolkmusic,ragtime,andNegroblues.Itismarkedwithexcitingrhythm,pronouncedsyncopation,andconstantimprovisation.Themusicalinstrumentsusedaremainlydrums,trumpets,andsaxophones.MajorcomposersofJazzmusicincludeIrvinBerlinandW.C.Handy.ThetermJazzAgewasspecificallyemployedbyFitzgeraldtodenotethe1920s,whichwascharacterizedbythelossoftraditionalmoralstandards,indulgenceinromanticyearnings,andgreatsocialexcitement.AccordingtoMalcolmCowley,theJazzAgewas“alegendofglitter,ofrecklessness,andoftalentinsuchprofusionthatitwassownbroadcastlikewildoats.”F.ScottFitzgerald’sTalesoftheJazzAge,likeMarkTwain’sTheGildedAge,wasanepoch-makingwork.

Blackhumor:

atermfrequentlyusedinmodernliterarycriticism.Itissometimescalled‘blackcomedy’or‘tragicfarce.’Itishumororlaughterresultingfromgreatpain,despair,horrorandtheabsurdityofhumanexistence.Blackhumorisacommonqualityofmodernanti-novelsandanti-dramas.ExamplesareFranzKafka’sstorieslike“Metamorphosis”,“TheCastle”and“TheTrial”,JosephHeller’snovelCatch-22andAlbee’sTheZooStory.OtherwriterswhodidmuchcontributiontothepopularityofblackhumorwereBeckett,Camus,Ionesco,Vonnegut,Pynchonandsoon.

Autobiography:

astoryawriterwritesabouthisorherownlifeexperiences.Itisnarratedfromthefirst-personpointofview.ThetermwasprobablyfirstusedbySouthey.ButthefirstimportantautobiographywasConfessionswrittenbyAugustineofHippo.OtherexamplesincludeFranklin’sAutobiography,Adams’sTheEducationofHenryAdams,JohnStuartMill’sAutobiography,Carlyle’sReminiscences,HenryDavidThoreau’sWalden,andsoon.

SurpriseEnding:

Alsocalled“O.Henryending,”itisacompletelyunexpectedturnorrevelationofeventsattheconclusionofastoryorplay.Anexampleis“TheNecklace”byGuydeMaupassant.AnotherinstanceisO.Henry’sstory“TheGiftoftheMagi.”

Blankverse:

poetrythatdoesnotrhymebuthasiambicpentameterlines.ThoughnotoriginatedinEnglandorAmerica,ithasbeenthemostimportantandmostwidelyusedEnglishverseform.BlankverseispopularbecauseitisclosesttotherhythmofdailyEnglishspeech.ThusmostEnglishpoemswhicharedramatic,reflectiveor