美国文学(本科)试题6.doc

美国文学（本科）试题6I. Complete each of the following statements with proper words or phrases: (20%, 1 point for each)1. In 1817, the stately poem called “Thanatopsis” introduced the best poet, _, to appear in America up to that time.2. James Fennimore Cooper launched two kinds of immensely popular stories: the sea adventure and _.3. Ralph Emerson was recognized throughout his life as the leader of _ movement, yet he never applied the term to himself or to his beliefs and ideas.4. Herman Melvilles novel _ is a tremendous chronicle of a whaling voyage in pursuit of a seemingly supernatural white whale.5. In the early 19th century, Washington Irving wrote _ which became the first work by an American writer to win financial success on both sides of the Atlantic.6. In 1845, Henry David Thoreau began a two-year residence at _ Pond.7. After his death, _ became the only American to be honored with a bust in the Poets Corner of Westminster Abbey.8. The American Romantic period stretches from the end of the 18th century through the outburst of the _.9. The arbiter of 19th century literary realism in America was _.10. The poetic style Walt Whitman devised is now called _, which is poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme.11. _ is considered the founder of psychological realism. He believed that reality lies in the impressions made by life on the spectator.12. _ is the novel into which Jack London put most of himself.13. O. Henrys _ is a very moving story of a young couple who sell their best possessions in order to get money for a Christmas present for each other.14. _ was the leader of a new movement in poetry which he called the “Imagist” movement.15. In 1925, F. Scott Fitzgerald completed his best novel _. It is the story of an idealist who was destroyed by the influence of the wealthy, pleasure-seeking people around him.16. Ernest Hemingways stature as a writer was confirmed with the publication of his novel _ in 1929. The novel portrayed a farewell both to war and to love.17. _ was the foremost novelist of the American Depression of the 1930s.18. William Faulkner considered _ to be “the first truly American writer”.19. As a genre, naturalism emphasized heredity and _ as important deterministic forces shaping individualized characters that were presented in special and detailed circumstances.20. A series of sixteen pamphlets by Thomas Paine was entitled _.II. Each of the following statements below is followed by four alternative answers or completions. Choose the one that is the best in each case: (30%, 1 point for each)1. Moby Dick was dedicated to _.A. Ralph Emerson B. Nathaniel HawthorneC. Henry Thoreau D. Henry Longfellow2. _ was Mark Twains masterpiece from which, as Hemingway noted, “all modern American literature comes.”A. The Adventures of Tom SawyerB. The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnC. Life on the MississippiD. The Gilded Age3. _ usually was regarded as the first American writer.A. Emily Bradford B. Ann BradstreetC. Emily Dickinson D. John Smith4. Benjamin Franklin was the epitome of the _.A. American Enlightenment B. Sugar ActC. Chartist movement D. Romanticist5. Thomas Jeffersons attitude, that is, a firm belief in progress, and the pursuit of happiness, is typical of the period we now call _.A. Age of Evolution B. Age of ReasonC. Age of Romanticism D. Age of Regionalism6. As a literary and philosophical movement, _ flourished in New England from the 1830s to the Civil War.A. modernism B. rationalismC. sentimentalism D. transcendentalism7. _ is NOT written by Ralph Waldo Emerson.A. The American Scholar B. Self-RelianceC. The Divinity School Address D. Civil Disobedience8. There is a good reason to state that New England Transcendentalism was actually _ on the Puritan soil.A. Romanticism B. SymbolismC. Mysticism D. Rationalism9. American literature produced only one female poet during the 19th century. This was _.A. Anne Bradstreet B. Jane Austen C. Emily Dickinson D. Harriet Beecher10. Which of the following statements about O. Henry is NOT right?A. He wrote about the poor people.B. The ends of his stories are always surprising.C. Many of his stories contain a great deal of slang and colloquial expressions.D. The plots are usually clumsy.11. The main theme of _s The Art of Fiction reveals his literary credo that representation of life should be the main object of the novel.A. Henry James B. William Howells C. Mark Twain D. O. Henry12. Which of the following does NOT have a naturalist tendency?A. Stephan Crane B. Frank NorrisC. Jack London D. Walt Whitman13. For Melville, as well as for the reader and _, the narrator, Moby Dick is still a mystery, an ultimately mystery of the universe.A. Stubb B. Ishmael C. Ahab D. Starbuck14. Which of the following is NOT optimistic about human nature?A. Ralph Emerson B. Walt Whitman C. Nathaniel Hawthorne D. Henry Thoreau15. Emily Dickinson wrote many of her 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 peace16. Of the following American writers, _ had won the Nobel Prize for Literature.A. Mark Twain B. Ernest Hemingway C. Henry James D. F. S. Fitzgerald17. In 1862, President Lincoln exclaimed: “So you are the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war!” The book refers to _.A. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn B. BelovedB. Pride and Prejudice D. Uncle Toms Cabin18. The works of _ reveals the misery of the migrant workers because of the American Depression.A. F. S. Fitzgerald B. John Steinbeck C. Ernest Hemingway D. William Howells19. In Leaves of Grass, _ is all that concerned Whitman.A. individualism B. freedom C. democracy D. all the above20. It is not surprising to find in _s fiction a world of jungle, where “kill or to be killed” was the law.A. Mark Twain B. Emily Dickinson C. Theodore Dreiser D. Henry James 21. During the period after the Civil War, the American society entered in what Mark Twain referred to as _.A. the Golden Age B. the Modern Age C. the Gilded Age D. the Puritan Age22. “The Custom-House” is an introductory note to _. A. Moby-Dick B. The Scarlet Letter C. The Marble Faun D. The Blithedale Romance23. When we say that a poor young man from the West tried to make his fortune in the East but was disillusioned in the quest of an idealized dream, we are probably discussing _s thematic concern in his fiction writing. A. Henry James B. F. Scott Fitzgerald C. Ernest Hemingway D. William Faulkner24. American writers after World War I self-consciously acknowledged that they were (a) “_”, devoid of faith and alienated from the Western civilization. A. Lost Generation B. Beat Generation C. Sons of Liberty D. Angry Young Men25. Which one of the following statements is NOT true of William Faulkner?A. He is master of stream-of-consciousness narrative. B. His writing is often complex and difficult to understand. C. He often depicts slum life in New York and Chicago. D. He represents a new group of Southern writers26. The setting of the novel The Scarlet Letter is in _.A. England during World War I B. Paris during the French RevolutionC. Puritan America D. America after the Revolutionary War 27. Which statement is NOT true of the American naturalist?A. They ventured the forbidden subjects such as sex, death, and violence.B. They stressed the possible triumph of human will.C. They wrote in a daring, open, and direct manner.D. They see human beings no more than a physical object.28. _ is often acclaimed as the literary spokesman of the Jazz Age.A. Ernest Hemingway B. F. Scott FitzgeraldC. William Faulkner D. John Steinbeck29. _, one of Americas greatest playwrights, won the Nobel Prize in 1936, the first American playwright to receive the honor. Some of his most famous works include The Hairy Ape, Long Days Journey into Night.A. Arthur Miller B. Tennessee WilliamsC. Bernard Malamud D. Eugene ONeill30. Edgar Allan Poe occupies an important position in American literature as a poet and a _.A. short story writer B. novelistC. dramatist D. translatorIII. Read the poems carefully and answer the questions that follow. Put your answers on the Answer Sheet: (20%, 10 points for each poem)1. Because I could not stop for Death Because I could not stop for Death He kindly stopped for me The Carriage held but just Ourselves And 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 Ring We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain We passed the Setting Sun Or rather He passed Us The Dews drew quivering and Chill For only Gossamer, my Gown My Tippet only Tulle We paused before a House that seemedA Swelling of the Ground The Roof was scarcely visible The Cornice in the Ground Since then tis Centuries and yetFeels shorter than the DayI first surmised the Horses HeadsWere toward Eternity Questions:1.1 Who wrote this poem? (1%)1.2 What is the poet or the speaker in the poem watching and recording? (1%)1.3 What is death compared to in the poem? (1%)1.4 What is depicted in the 3rd stanza? How is it related to the whole poem? (2%)1.5 What is depicted in the 4th stanza? (1%)1.6 What does the poet or the speaker in the poem think of eternity? (2%)1.7 What is the attitude of the poet or the speaker in the poem towards death? (2%)2. Annabel LeeIt was many and many a year ago,In a kingdom by the sea,That 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.I was a child and she was a child,In this kingdom by the sea;But we loved with a love that was more than love -I and my Annabel Lee -With a love that the wingd seraphs in HeavenCoveted her and me.And this was the reason that, long ago,In this kingdom by the sea,A wind blew out of a cloud, chillingMy beautiful Annabel Lee;So that her high-born kinsmen cameAnd bore her away from me,To shut her up in a sepulcher,In this kingdom by the sea.The angels, not half so happy in Heaven,Went envying her and me -Yes! - that was the reason (as all men know,In this kingdom by the sea)That the wind came out of the cloud by night,Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.But our love it was stronger by far than the loveOf those who were older than we -Of many far wiser than we -And neither the angels in Heaven above,Nor the demons down under the sea,Can ever dissever my soul from the soulOf the beautiful Annabel Lee: -For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreamsOf the beautiful Annabel Lee;And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyesOf the beautiful Annabel Lee: -And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the sideOf my darling - my darling - my life and my bride,In her sepulcher there by the sea -In her tomb by the sounding sea.Questions:2.1 Who wrote this poem? (1%)2.2 What is the theme of the poem? (2%)2.3 What is the mood of the poem? (1%)2.4 How does the poem coincide with Poes poetics or theory of poetry writing? (3%)2.5 What makes you think the poem reads like a fairy tale? (3%)IV. Answer the following questions, and put your answers on the Answer Sheet: (30%, 15 points for each)1. What is local color fiction? List at least 5 of the best known writers of local color.2. Instead of having her punished for her life of sin, Dreiser let Caroline Meeber in Sister Carrier become successful. Can you tell why?20072008学年度第二期 美国文学史及作品选读考试A卷 参 考 答 案 命题人： 王琪、丁华良I: Complete each of the following statements with proper words or phrases. (20%, 1 point for each)1. Bryant 2. frontier saga 3. transcendentalist 4. Moby Dick 5. Sketch Book6. Walden 7. Longfellow 8. Civil War 9. Howells 10. free verse11. Henry James 12. Martin Eden 13. The Gift of Magi 14. Pound 15. The Great Gatsby 16. A Farewell to Arms 17. Steinbeck 18. Mark Twain 19. Environment 20. American CrisisII: Each of the following statements below is followed by four alternative answers or completions. Choose the one that is the best in each case. (30%, 1 point for each)1 - 5: B B D A B 6 - 10: D D A C D 11 -15: A D B C D 16 - 20: B D B D C 21 - 25: C B B A C 26 - 30: C B B D A III. Read the poems and answer the questions that follow. (20%)Poem 11.1 Who wrote this poem? (1%)Emily Dickinson.1.2 What is the poet or the speaker in the poem watching and recording? (1%)Apparently the woman tells the story of how she is busily going about her day when a polite gentleman by the name of Death arrives in his carriage to take her out for a ride, but, in reality, the speaker is watching and recording her own funeral.1.3 What is death compared to in the poem? (1%)Death is compared to a polite gentleman or polite wooer. 1.4 What is depicted in the 3rd stanza? How is it related to the whole poem? (2%)Death takes the woman on a leisurely ride to the grave and beyond, passing playing children, wheat fields, and the setting sun, which indicate the three periods of a day, morning, noon and evening and symbolize the three stages of human life childhood, middle age and old age.1.5 What is depicted in the 4th stanza? (1%)In this stanza, the speaker describes her dead body and what is wearing. She feels cold because it is evening now and dew drops are forming and she is not wearing much, but more probably it is because she is dead and blood circulation in her body has stopped. 1.6 What does the poet or the speaker in the poem think of eternity? (2%)The speaker is not quite sure whether there will be eternity after death since she just surmises that “the Horses Heads / were toward Eternity ”.1.7 What is the attitude of the poet or the speaker in the poem towards death? (2%)The woman describes their journey with the casual ease one might use to recount a typical Sunday drive. She treats death light-heartedly for she believes that death is a necessary step towards eternity or immortality.Poem 22.1 Who wrote this poem? (1%)Edgar Allan Poe.2.2 What is the theme of the poem? (2%)In the poem, Poe examines a theme which he examines in many of his works: the death of a beautiful woman. It is a poem written in memory of his deceased young wife Virginia Clemm.2.3 What is the mood of the poem? (1%)The poem is permeated with melancholy. 2.4 How does the poem coincide with Poes poetics or theory of poetry writing? (3%)The poem coincides with Poes poetics. It is readable at one sitting. In the poem, Poe examines a theme which he examines in many of his works: the death of a beautiful woman, which, according to him, is “unquestionably, the most poetical topic in the world.” The poem is permeated with melancholy as he believes “melancholy is the most legitimate of all the poetic tones.” And it is rhythmic.2.5 What makes you think the poem reads like a fairy tale? (3%)The poem has got the elements of a fairy tale. 1) It has the beginning of a fairy tale (1st stanza). 2) The couples love originated from their childhood. 3) Annabel Lee died because the angels envied the couples great love and, with a cold wind, they killed Annabel Lee, who w