美国文学(本科)试题2.doc

美国文学（本科）试题2得分I. Fill in the following blanks and put your answers on the Answer Sheet. (15%, 1 point for each)1. _ was a founding figure of American poetry, whose innovation first of all lies in his use of the free verse, poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme.2. The publication of Nature established _ as the most eloquent spokesman of New England Transcendentalism. 3. Hard work, thrift, _ and sobriety were the Puritan values that dominated much of the earliest American writing.4. _ is considered to be the founder of psychological realism, who believed that reality lies in the impressions made by life on the spectator.5. Martin Eden is the novel into which _ put most of himself.6. The publication of _ written by T. S. Eliot helped to establish a modern tradition of literature rich with learning and allusive thought.7. “The apparition of these faces in the crowd; Petals on a wet, black bough.” This is the shortest poem written by _.8. With the publication of The Sun Also Rises, _ became the spokesman for what Gertrude Stein had called “a Lost Generation”.9. “The Custom House” is an introductory note to the novel _. 10. Among the works attacking the “American Dream”, _by Fitzgerald is a powerful piece.11. Emily Dickinson wrote 1775 poems, but only _ of which had appeared during her life time.12. _, the tragic hero of Moby Dick, burning with a baleful fire, becomes evil himself in his thirst to destroy evil.13. As a poet, _ heralded American literary independence: his close observation of nature distinguished his treatment of indigenous wild life and other native American subjects, e. g: The Wild Honey Suckle.14. The publication of Washington Irvings _, a collection of essays, sketches and tales, marks the beginning of American romanticism.15. “The Cop and the Anthem” is a short story written by _.得分II. Each of the following statements is followed by four alternative answers. Choose the one that would best complete the statement. Put your answers on the Answer Sheet. (30%, 1 point for each)1. In Leaves of Grass, _ is all that concerned Whitman.A. individualism B. freedom C. democracy D. all the above2. _ is the narrator of Moby Dick.A. Ahab B. Ishmael C. Flask D. Queequeg3. In 1837, Ralph Emerson made a speech entitled _ at Harvard, which was hailed by Oliver Wendell Holmes as “Our Intellectual Declaration of Independence.”A. Declaration of Independence B. Self-RelianceC. Divinity School Address D. The American Scholar 4. The Transcendentalists believe that, first, nature is ennobling; and second, the individual is _.A. vicious by nature B. insignificant C. forward-looking D. divine5. In Hawthornes novels and short stories, intellectuals usually appear as _.A. saviors B. villains C. commentators D. observers6. In American literature, escaping from the society and returning to nature is a common subject. The following titles are all related, in one way or another, to the subject except _.A. Dreisers Sister CarrierB. Mark Twains The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnC. Coopers Leather-Stocking TalesD. Thoreaus Walden7. “I celebrate myself, and sing myself,And what I assume you shall assume,For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.”Who could have written these lines? _.A. Edgar Allan Poe B. Ralph Emerson C. Walt Whitman D. Henry Thoreau8. Which of the following is Not optimistic about human nature?A. Ralph Emerson B. Walt Whitman C. Nathaniel Hawthorne D. Henry Thoreau9. Which of the following statements about The Scarlet Letter is Not true? _.A. It explores mans never-ending search for the satisfaction of materialistic desires.B. It relates the conflicts between the society and the individual.C. It presents a psychological analysis of the inward tensions of the characters.D. It is about the effect of sin on the people involved and the society as a whole.10. Washington Irving was best known for his famous short stories such as _.A. Rip Van Winkle and Moby DickB. Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy HollowC. Young Goodman Brown and Moby DickD. The Fall of the House of Usher and Rip Van Winkle11. 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 peace12. Mark Twain wrote most of his literary works with a _ language.A. grand B. pompous C. vernacular D. simple13. The period ranging from 1865 to 1914 has been referred to as _.A. the Age of Romanticism B. the Age of RealismC. the Age of Modernism D. the Age of Colonialism14. _ is called by Hemingway the one from which “all modern American literature comes.” A. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer B. Life on the MississippiC. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn D. The Gilded Age15. 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. Mark Twain B. Henry James C. Theodore Dreiser D. William Dean Howells16. 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 17. According to Hawthorne, the scarlet Letter “A” which originally stands for “_”, finally obtains the meaning of “able” or “angel” through Hesters efforts. A. arrogance B. adultery C. agony D. accomplishment18. 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 Age19. Robert Frost is generally considered to be a regional poet in the sense that his subject matters mainly focus on the landscape and people in _.A. New York B. the West C. New England D. Mid West20. William Faulkners works mainly concern the American _.A. New England B. South C. Mid West D. West21. In 1954, _ was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature for his “mastery of the art of modern narration.”A. T. S. Eliot B. Ernest Hemingway C. John Steinbeck D. William Faulkner22. “In a Station of the Metro” is regarded by critics as a classic specimen of _.A. the imagist poetry B. the absurd poetry C. the romantic poetry D. the transcendental poetry23. Fitzgeralds fictional world is the best embodiment of the spirit of _.A. the Renaissance Period B. the Neoclassical PeriodC. the Jazz Age D. the Romantic Period24. _ usually was regarded as the first American writer.A. William Bradford B. Anne BradstreetC. Emily Dickinson D. Captain John Smith25. The works of _ reveal the misery of the migrant workers because of the American Depression.A. F. S. Fitzgerald B. John Steinbeck C. Ernest Hemingway D. William Howells26. _ is NOT a fictional character in The Scarlet Letter. A. Pearl B. Arthur Dimmesdale C. Roger Chillingworth D. Santiago27. At 87, _ read his poetry at the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy.A. Edwin Robinson B. Wallace Stevens C. Carl Sandburg D. Robert Frost 28. “Lets portray man and woman in a way that we meet them in our real life.” This may be a principle for the characterization of _.A. romanticism B. realism C. naturalism D. modernism29. In 1862, President Lincoln exclaimed: “So you are the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war!” Who is this woman referred to? _.A. Mrs. Stowe B. Emily DickinsonC. George Eliot D. Jane Austen30. All his novels reveal that, as time went on, Mark Twain became increasingly _.A. optimistic B. pessimistic C. confident D. contented得分III. Explain the following and put your answers on the Answer Sheet. (15%, 5 points for each)1. New England literary renaissance2. “My Lost Youth” (by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)3. William Dean Howells得分IV. Read the poems carefully and answer the questions that follow. Put your answers on the Answer Sheet. (20%, 10 points for each poem)1. I Sit and Look OutI sit and look out upon all the sorrows of the world, and upon alloppression and shame;I hear secret convulsive sobs from young men, at anguish withthemselves, remorseful after deeds done;I see in low life, the mother misused by her children, dying,neglected, gaunt, desperate;I see the wife misused by her husband see the treacherous seducerof young women;I mark the ranklings of jealousy and unrequited love attempted to behid,I see these sights on the earth;I see the workings of battle, pestilence, tyranny I see martyrs andprisoners;I observe a famine at sea I observe the sailors casting lots who shall be killd to preserve the lives of the rest;I observe the slights and degradations cast by arrogant persons uponlaborers, the poor, and upon negroes, and the like;All these all the meanness and agony without, end, I sitting, lookout upon,See, hear, and am silent.Questions:1.1 Who wrote this poem? (1%)1.2 What kind of poetical style is employed in the poem? (1%)1.3 What is the function of the line “All these all the meanness and agony without, end, I sitting, look out upon”? (2%)1.4 What is the theme of the poem? (3%)1.5 Why is the poem entitled “I Sit and Look Out” instead of “I Walk Around and See”, and the like? (3%)2. I heard a Fly buzz when I died I heard a Fly buzz when I died The Stillness in the RoomWas like the Stillness in th