美国文学整理.doc

Chapter I The Colonial Period And 17th Century Literature of PuritanismI. History Backgroundn Early settlement in America, the early settlersn Puritans and puritanismn Features of American puritanism n Struggles between the American Indians and the settlers, the fall of the American Indian tribesn Puritanism exerted great influence in the intellectual and economic life of the settlersn Conflicts and battles between the European colonistsPuritans and puritanismn Puritans was the name given in the 16th century to the more extreme Protestants within the Church of England who thought the English Reformation had not gone far enough in reforming the doctrines and structure of the church. They wanted to purify their national church by eliminating every shred of Catholic influence. In the 17th century many Puritans emigrated to the New World, where they sought to found a holy Commonwealth in New England. Puritanism remained the dominant cultural force in that area into the 19th century.Puritans believed that human beings were predestined by God before they were born. Some were Gods chosen people (Gods elect) while others were predestined to be damned to hell. The success of ones work or the prosperity in his calling(vocation) given by God was the sign of being Gods elect. Therefore, everyone must work hard, spend little and invest for more business. Working hard and living a moral life were their ethics. They regarded Bible to be the authority of their doctrine. To be able to read the Bible and understand Gods will, education was essential for Puritans. They strictly punished drunks, adulterers, violators of the Sabbath（安息日）and other religious believers different from themselves. The American values such as individualism, hard work, and respect of education owe very much to the Puritan beliefsn Puritanism is the practices and beliefs of the Puritans. The Puritans were originally members of a division of the Protestant Church . As the word itself hints, Puritans wanted to purify their religious beliefs and practices. They accepted the doctrine of predestination, original sin and total depravity, and limited atonement through a special infusion of grace from God. II. The development of literaturen Early American writings: diaries, travel books, collections of letters, journals, histories, poetry, biographies, autobiographies and prose; John Smiths writing n Featurs fo the early Ameriocan literature: religious subject and imitation of English literary traditionsIII. Important writers or writings in the colonial period1. William Bradfordn Of Plimoth Plantation, written in Hebrew, published till 1856, recods of the Puritan pilgrimsn The first ten chapters: the history of the Puritans beford 1620;n The “Second Book” :the puritans history in Plymouth from 1620 until 16472. The Bay Psalm Bookthe first book written in English and printed in America (1640), translated from Hebrew by approximately thirty clergymen including Richard Mather, John Eliot and Thomas Weld; the success of the book lies in its religious content and skillful translation 3. Anne Bradstreet the first noteworthy Americann 1)The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America (1650) 美洲最近出现的第十位缪斯n 2) Feature of her poems: p11 n 3) Read and appreciate her poem “To My Dear and Loving Husband”献给我亲爱的丈夫n It is a passionate love poem, lyrical, lovely, human and simple. Bradstreet is very clear in her message in stating that she and her husband are very much in love and content with that love. It is also free of any religious dogma. For this reason, it may be considered to have the most heretical elements of any of her poems.n - the last two lines form couplet:n “当我们活在世上，让我们爱情长存，/当我们不再活着，让我们因此永生。”4. Roger Williams symbolized the American ideals of liberty of conscience and toleration of racial and religious differences; his major works are in defence of religious freedom and social justice5. Edward Taylor the most gifted of the Puritan poets; resembling the metaphysical poets in England6. Cotton Mather a number of his writings have been considered a valuablem source for knowledge of the history and the people of colonial New EnglandThe Period of EnlightenmentI.The background of American literature in the 18th century II. The literature of the Age of reason III. Writers and Interpretation of their representative worksI.The background of American literature in the 18th centuryThe War of Independence 1775-1783 - 18th-century American is an age of Enlightenment, of reason and order - Deismv The Enlightment Movement was a progressive intellectual movement through Europe in the 18thc. The Enlighteners believed that the social problems couldnt be solved by church doctrine or God, so they strongly advocated education, self-government and freedom for the masses of people. In other words, they believed in the power of reason. They began to reconsider the relations between man and Nature and God, believing that man could assume greater control of Nature without offending the majesty of Godvv Deism is the theistic belief that a supreme God exists and created the physical universe, but shall not intervene in its normal operation. Deists typically reject most supernatural events (prophecy, miracles) and tend to assert that God does not intervene with the affairs of human life and the natural laws of the universe. Deists believe that Gods greatest gift to humanity is not religion, but the ability to reason.Two features constituted the core of deism:The rejection of revealed religionThe belief that reason, not faith, leads us to certain basic religious truthsv Critical elements of deist thought included:1) Rejection of all religions based on books that claim to contain the revealed word of God. 2) Rejection of reports of miracles, prophecies and religious mysteries. 3) Rejection of the Genesis account of creation and the doctrine of original sin, along with all similar beliefs. 4) Rejection of Judaism, Christianity, Islam and other religious beliefsv Constructive elements of deist thought included:1) God gave men reason. 2) God exists, created and governs the universe. 3) God wants human beings to behave morally. 4) Human beings have souls that survive death; that is, there is an afterlife. The Development of Literature in the Age of Resonv An obvious transition from Puritanism to the Enlightmentv Utilitarian tendency a principal feature in American literaturev Prose makes up a prominent part of 18thc American literaturev Neoclassical taste was found in poetryv Other literary gneres: early dramas, novels (gothic, sentimental and satirical) Benjamin Franklin “master of each and mastered by nonethe type and genius of his land.” - Herman Melville-the symbol of America in the Age of Enlightenment, the embodiment of the national man and the American Dream -his works: Poor Richards Almanac The Autobiographyfamous sayings, mottos or maxims from his Poor Richards AlmanacLost time is never found again;- A penny saved is a penny earned;- God help them that help themselves;- Fish and visitors stink in three days;- Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise Philip Freneauv 1） Honors & significancev “Father of American Poetry”; “Father of American Revolution”v A transitional figure between neoclassicism and romanticismv Some of his themes and images anticipated the works of such 19th century American Romantic writers as Emerson, Poe and Longfellow.2) Major Works a) The British Prison Ship 1781 英国囚船 b) To the Memory of the Brave Americans 1781 纪念美国勇士 c) The Wild Honey Suckle 1786 野金银花d) The Indian Burying Ground 1788 印第安人埋葬之地 “ThewildhoneysuckleisPhilipFreneausmostwidely readnatureallyricwiththethemeoftransience.thecentralimageisanativewildflower,whichmakesadrasticdifferencefromeliteflowerimagestypicaloftraditionenglishpoems.Thepoemshowedstrongfeelingsforthenaturalbeauty,whichwasthecharacteristicofromanticpoets.Inthispoemthepoetexpressedakeenawarenessofthelovelinessandtransienceofnature.Henotonlymeditatedonmortalitybutalsocelebratednature.itimpliesthatlifeanddeathareinevitablelawofnature, v Thepoemwaswritteninregular6-linetetrameterstanzas,rhyming:ababcc.Thestructureofthepoemisregular,soithastheneoclassicqualityofproportionandbalance.v Thearrangementofstressedandunstressedsyllablessuggeststhetransienceofthelifeoftheflowerandthepoetsemotionalchange.thepoemisfullofsensuousimagessuchas fairflowervisualimage,comelygrowkinastheticimageandhoneyedblossomsolfactoryimage.alltheimagesmakeusfeelpityforthebeautifulflowerwhichhasonlyashortlife. v Obviouslythepoetissentimental,deisticoptimist.Thelinethesapaceisbutanhour containsahyperbolestressingandtransienceoflife. v Thetoneofthepoemisbothsentimentalandoptimistic. The English Transcendentalism And The Romantic AgeI.History The background II. American Romanticism III. Writers and works of American Romanticism II. American Romanticism (1) The Romantic period of American literaturefrom the end of the 18th century to the outbreak of the Civil War; beginning with the publication of Irvings The Sketch Book and ending with Whitmans Leaves of Grasses. This period is also called American Renaissance.(2) The summit of American romanticism New England Transcendentalism New England Transcendentalism(1) Concept (2) Sorces(3) Reaction(4) The features of Transcendentalism (5) Transcendental club & the Transcendentalist journal- The DialConceptTranscendentalism, essentially, is a form of idealism. It was a philosophical, literary, social, and theological movement that flourished in New England from about 1836 to 1860, which absorbed some ideological concerns of American Puritanism and European Romanticism, with its focus on the intuitive knowledge of human beings to grasp the absolute in the universe and the divinity of man.Sorcesa. From Plato came the idealism; b. From Immanuel Kant came the notion of the native spontaneity of the human mind; c.From Puritanism came the ethical seriousness and that an individual could receive divine light immediately and directly;. d. German and English Romanticism provided some inspiration towards the search for some deeper truth.e. Its mystical aspects were partly influenced by Indian and Chinese religious teachings,such as philosophy of Confucius and Mencius.Reaction Reaction against New England Calvinism Reaction against eighteenth-century rationalism Reaction against Lockean empiricism The features of Transcendentalism(1) It placed emphasis on spirit, or the Oversoul, as the most important thing in the universe. (a new way of looking at the world)(2) It stressed the importance of individual and believed that the individual was the most important element in society and that the ideal kind of individual was self-reliant and unselfish. (a new way of looking at man)(3)It offered a fresh perception of nature as symbolic of the Spirit of God. Nature was the garment of the Oversoul. (Nature was not purely matter. It was alive, filled with Gods overwhelming presence “The Universe is composed of Nature and the Soul.” “Spirit is present everywhere.” The individual soul communed with the Oversoul and was therefore divine.)(4) It held that commerce was degrading and that a life spent in business was a wasted life. Humanity could be much better off if people paid less attention to the material world in which they lived. III. Writers and works of American Romanticism Washington Irving James Fenimore Cooper Ralph Waldo Emerson William Cullen Bryant Edgar Allan Poe Nathaniel Hawthorne Harriet Beecher Stowe Walt Whitman Emily Dickinson Washington Irving -the first American writer of imaginative literature to gain international fame;- the father of American short stories;- the “American Goldsmith” for his literary craftsmanship- his works:A History of New YorkThe Sketch Book (Rip Van Winkle The Legend of Sleepy Hollow) James Fenimore Cooper (1) Works: Leatherstocking Tales The Pioneer /The Last of The Mohicans /The Prairie The Pathfinder / The Deerslayer (2)Contributions of CooperA.The first successful American historical romance in the vein of Sir Walter Scott (The Spy, 1821).B. The first sea novel (The Pilot, 1824).C. The first and only five-volume epic romance to carry its mythic hero - Natty Bumppo - from youth to old ageEdgar Allan Poe (1) Works:Ligeia/ The Fall of the House of Usher / William Wilson; The Raven / To Helen /Israfel / Annabel LeeThe Philosophy of Composition / The Poetic Principles(2)Major Themes A. Love - usually of a mourning man for his deceased beloved.B. Beauty - of a young woman either dying or dead.C. Death - a source of horror.(3) Major theories of poetry(4) Read To Helen and The RavenMajor Theories of Poetry 1)The chief aim of poetry is beauty, namely to produce a feeling of beauty in the reader. Beauty aims at “an elevating excitement of the soul”, and “beauty of whatever kind, in its supreme development, invariably excites the sensitive soul to tears.” Thus melancholy is the most legitimate of all the poetic tones.” Poe concludes that “the death of a beautiful woman is , unquestionably, the most poetical topic in the world.” In his poetry, the loss of a beautiful and loved woman is his recurrent theme. 2) In Poes view, poems should be short enough to be read in one sitting, otherwise the unity of effect would be dissipated. 3) Poe attached his importance and interest to the sound of the poetry. He constantly experimented with ways to make it musical, and defined poetry as “the rhythmic creation of beauty”. In his poetry he often chose his words for the quality of their sound.Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882) (1) Major works: - Nature, the manifesto or the Bible of New England Transcendentalism- The American Scholar, Americas Declaration of Intellectual Independence(2) Emersons fundamental ideas of Nature: He regards nature as the purest, and the most sanctifying moral influence on man, and advocates a direct intuition of a spiritual and immanent God in nature.(3)Appreciate some excerpts from NatureStanding 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.Now this is a moment of “conversion” when one feels completely merged with the outside world, when one has completely sank 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. William Cullen Bryant (174-1878) the American Wordsworth; an influencial critic1. Major works: 1)Poems (included “Thanatopsis”, “To a Waterfowl”, “the Yellow Violet”); The Fountain; The White-Footed Deer; The Food of Years; Library of Poetry and Song (the first great critical anthology); translations of Homers Iliad and Odyssey2. Themes: mainly focusing on nature, religion, and concern for humanitarian reforms and national maorlity3. Poetic featuresAs a poet, he did not like the old neoclassical style. He believed that the new poetry should not copy the forms and ideas of the ancient classics. It should break away with the old patterns and help the reader understand the world through his emotions. For Bryant, nature is the symbol of Gods transcendent beauty and awful power, and thus nature influences man for good.4. Appreciate “To a Waterfowl”给水鸟露水正在降下,天空眩丽地燃烧,随着白昼的最后脚步,你穿过深邃的玫瑰色晚霞远去,到哪里 寻求你孤独的路? 猎鸟人的眼睛徒然望着远远的你,身影模模糊糊地贴着 深红色的天幕飘飘而去。莫非你是在寻找芦苇湖畔的沼泽地或水面宽阔的河滩,或那波涛翻滚、 浪花飞溅的海岸? 神灵佑护着你,引导你沿着无路可循的海岸飞翔,在空漠、无际的天空孤身浪游, 却不迷失方向。你奋翮飞行一整天,在空气稀薄寒冷的高空,在九霄云端,尽管疲惫不堪而黑夜将临, 委身大地你却不愿。 千辛万苦就要到头,很快你就要找到夏天的家,美美睡上一觉,你就要在伙伴中唧唧啼鸣,芦苇弯下腰, 遮住你隐蔽的巢。你已去矣,天空的深渊吞噬了你的身影,而你给我的启示意味隽永,深深地留在我的心底, 不会很快消逝。 神灵引导着你飞过无垠的苍穹,从一个地方到另一个地方,漫漫人生之路我得独自行走,他也会为我 指出正确方向。Appreciation (赏析) 此诗分为两部分,前一部分写意,后一部分说理,以鸟寄情,以鸟言志,诗总的运动方向与水鸟的去向和人生的去向一致,诗人注视着这只“神灵佑护着你”“神灵引导着你”、的水鸟, 感觉到也有一种力量在为自己的人生导航, 并相信自己能安全到达最后的避风港。此诗对大自然的道德启示渲染得特别成功,表现了诗人对上帝毫不动摇的信仰和“路漫漫兮其修远兮,吾将上下而求索”的悲壮情怀。Nathaniel Hawthorne1. Influence of puritan heritage -Salem and his puritan family background - Strong sense of sin and evil in life - Belief in determination2. Major works: 1) Collection of short stories: Twice Told Tales (1837), Mosses from an Old Manse (1846) 2) Novels: The Scarlet Letter (1850), The House of the Seven Gables (1851), The Blithedale Romance (1852), The Marble Faun (1860)3. Major themes in Hawthornes fictions1) Alienation a character is in a state of isolation because of self-cause, or social cause, or a combination of both; 2) Initiation involves the attempts of an alienated character to get rid of his isolated condition; 3) Problem of Guilt a characters sense of guilt forced by the puritanical heritage 4. Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter1) Different meanings of the scarlet letter “A”: In this novel, the scarlet letter A chan