英美文学题库

1 Chapter I An Introduction to Old and Medieval English Literature from which ling ring penance Of such misery doth she cut me off 1 Identify the title of the works and author 2 Explain from which cut me off 3 What happened to him which caused the words 4 参考答案 The lines are from The Merchant of Venice William Shakespeare P48 2 This sentence means she Lady Fortune 命运女神 is more kind to him because she is taking away both his wealth and life 3 The speaker is Antonio it s said that his ship have all been lost and he is penniless and will have to pay the pound of flesh Because Shylock has made a strange bond that requires Antonio to pay him a pound of flesh if he can t repay him the money that he borrowed for his friend in due time P38 2 Read not to contract and confuse not to believe and take for granted nor to find talk and discourse but to weigh and consider 1 Identify the work and author 2 What idea does the passage express 参考答案 1 The sentence comes from Of Studies written by Francis Bacon P61 2 The Sentence talks about the proper way to read When you read don t be puzzled by the content of the book don t take it for granted don t quote too much from the book before accepting its idea you d better think about its shortcomings and consider it from all sides 3 Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow st Nor shall death brag thou wander st in his shade When in eternal lines to time thou grow st So long as men can breathe or eyes can see So long lives this and this gives life to thee 1 Where does the poem comes from Who wrote it What does eternal lines mean Interpret it briefly 参考答案 1 The poem is Shall I Compare thee to a Summer s Day by Shakespeare P38 2 Eternal lines means the lines of the poem and other sonnets P38 3 It means you will not lose your beauty and death will not threaten you with darkness either As long as man can live in the world they will see your beauty in my lines of my poem which has given you eternal life Or A nice summer s day is usually transient but the beauty in poetry can last for ever P37 4 All is no lost the unconquerable will And study of revenge immortal hate And courage never to submit or yield And what is else not to be overcome Irreconcilable to our grand Foe 1 Please identify the poem and the poet 2 Interpret all is not lost 5 3 What does the whole passage mean 参考答案 1 It is taken from John Milton s Paradise Lost P74 2 all is not lost is the word from Satan Satan and other angels rebel against God but they are driven from Heaven into hell In the fire of the hell Satan is determined to fight back just like what he says not all is lost the unconquerable will the deep hatred and the courage to fight till death still remain P71 3 This passage shows Satan s will not to submit 服从 and the desire to long for freedom to beg God for mercy and worship his power is more shameful and disgraceful than the downfall P71 5 If he be not apt to beat over matters let him study the lawyer s cases So every defect of the mind may have a special receipt Questions 3 What does beat over matters mean 4 What does receipt refer to 5 From which essay does the above sentences come what is the essay mainly about 参考答案 1 It means make through examinations of things P63 2 Receipt refers to cure prescription P63 3 The sentences are from Of Studies Francis Bacon It is the most popular of bacon s essays It analyzes what studies chiefly serve for the different ways adopted by different people to pursue studies and how studies exert influence over human character P60 61 6 What is great Mephistophilis to passionate For being deprived of the joys of heaven Learn thou of Faustus manly fortitude And scorn those joys thou never shalt possess Say he will spare him Four and twenty years Letting him live in all voluptuousness Having thee ever to attend on me Questions 1 Identify the passage and author 2 Say he surrenders up to him his soul who will surrender his soul What for 3 Who are thee What will he do 参考答案 1 The passage comes from Dr Faustus written by Christopher Marlowe P25 26 2 Dr Faustus will surrender his soul to devil Because he was a great scholar who has a strong desire to get knowledge in vain finally he made a bond to sell his soul to Devil in return for 24 years of life in which he may get anything he desires P22 3 The thee refers to Mephistophilis the Devil s servant He helped Dr Faustus to do anything he wants P22 7 Busy old fool unruly sun Why does thou thus Through windows and through curtains call on us Questions 6 Identify the work and author 6 7 What idea does the passage express 参考答案 1 The passage comes from The Sun Rising written by John Donne P66 2 The speaker questions the sun s authority and speaks condescendingly placing the sun in the status of a subordinate In the lover s kingdom the sun has no right to dictate the time of day or the passing of seasons His presence in their bedchamber is an intrusion on their privacy III Questions and answers 1 How do you know about Renaissance Give a summery about English literature in the period 参考答案 1 The Renaissance refers to the period between 14th mid 17th century It first started in Italy 2 The Renaissance means rebirth or revival the discovery of ancient Roman and Greek culture 3 In essence The Renaissance is a historical period in which the European humanist thinkers and scholars tried to get rid of the old feudalist ideas in medieval Europe to introduce new ideas that expressed the interests of the rising bourgeoisie middle class and to recover the purity of the early church from the corruption of Roman Catholic church 4 Humanism is the essence of Renaissance Man is the measure of all things The humanism exalted praised human nature and emphasized the dignity of human beings and the present life They thought man had the right to enjoy the beauty of life and had the ability to perfect himself and made wonders which got ready for the appearance of the great Elizabethan writers in Britain Poetry and drama were the most outstanding literary forms 5 Shakespeare Marlowe and Francis Bacon etc were the remarkable representatives of the English Renaissance 可参考课本 P7 12 2 Please give a brief analysis of Hamlet s To be or not to be soliloquy 独白 参考答案 To be or not to be is a philosophical exploration of life and death The soliloquy condemned the hypocrisy and treachery and general corruption of the world and revealed the character of Hamlet so speculative questioning contemplative and melancholy gloomy It was not because he was not able to take action to revenge but because of his hesitative hesitant character when the chance for action came it seemed defeat It can be interpreted as Hamlet bears the heavy burden of the duty to revenge his father s death he is forced to live in the suspense of facts and fiction language and action He considers that it would be better to commit suicide but being scared of what might happen to him in the afterlife So he put off the thing because of the sin He considers the plan carefully only to find reason for not carrying it out The soliloquy conveys the sense of world weariness 厌世 P33 34 3 What common features do the characters share in Marlow s works No more than 150 words 参考答案 The creation of The Renaissance hero is one of Marlow s contributions 7 1 Such a hero is always individualistic and full of ambition facing bravely the challenge from god and men They had human dignity and capacity trying to get heaven highest ideas on the earth by their own efforts 2 For example Tamburlaine is a character written by Marlowe By depicting a great hero with high ambition and sheer brutal forc4e in conquering Marlowe voiced the supreme desire of man for infinite limitless power and authority In Dr Faustus Marlowe celebrated the human passion for knowledge power and happiness 3 Tamburlaine and Dr Faustus are typical in owning such Renaissance spirit Tamburlaine being a cruel conquer found happiness in conquering other kingdom Only death could defeat him While Dr Faustus a more introspective and philosophical figure had high spirit for knowledge but he had sin for having despair in God and trust in Devil P20 22 4 What are the main themes of Shakespeare s plays 参考答案 Shakespeare s plays are divided into 3 types comedies tragedies and historical plays 1 His historical plays are with the theme national unity under a might and just sovereign ruler is necessary 2 In his romantic comedies he takes an optimistic attitude toward love friendship and youth 3 In his tragedies Shakespeare always portrays some noble heroes who faces the injustice of life and is caught in a difficult situation and whose fate is closely connected with the fate of his nation Each hero has his weakness of nature We also see the conflict between the individual and the evil force in the society And his major characters are always individuals representing certain types 5 Please comment on the character of Satan in Paradise Lost 参考答案 Satan is a rebellious 叛逆的 figure against God in literature defeated he and his rebel angels were cast into hell However Satan refused to accept his failure swearing that all was not lost and that he would revenge for his downfall The freedom of the will is the keystone of Satan s character which was the important spirit of the rising middle class While he tempted Adam and Eve which proved his evilness 6 What are the characteristics of the Humanism 参考答案 1 Humanism is the essence of Renaissance 2 Humanists see that human beings were glorious creatures capable of individual development in the direction of perfection and that the world they inhabited was theirs not to despise 轻视 but to question explore and enjoy 3 They also believe that man did not only have the right to enjoy the beauty of this life but had the ability to perfect himself and to perform wonders 创造奇迹 P8 Chapter 2 The Neoclassical Period I Choose the right answer 1 brings Henry Fielding the name of the Prose Homer 8 A The Pilgrim s Progress B Tom Jones C Robison Crusoe D Colonel Jack Answer B P122 2 Alexander Pope worked painstakingly on his poems and finally brought to its last perfection Dryden had successfully used in his plays A the heroic couplet B the free verse C the blank verse D the Spenserian stanza Answer A P92 3 Of all the 18th century novelists was the first to set out both in theory and practice to write specially a comic epic in prose A Henry Fielding B Daniel Defoe C Jonathan Swift D John Bunyan Answer A P120 4 is the most successful religious allegory in the English language A Genesis A B The Holy War C The Pilgrims progress D Exodus Answer C P85 5 In which of the following works can you find the proper names Lilliput Brobdingnag Houyhnhnm and Yahoo A The Pilgrim s ProgressB The Faririe Queene C Gulliver s travels D The School of Scandel Answer C P108 6 As shades more sweetly recommend the light So modest plainness sets off sprightly wit For works may have more wit than does em good As bodies perish through excess of blood In the above lines Pope tries to sat that A more wit will make better poetry B plainness is more important than wit in poetry C too much wit will destroy good poetry D plainness will make wit dull Answer C P93 94 7 The Rape of the Lock by Alexander Pope is written in the form of a mock which describes the triviality of high society in a grand style A epic B elegy C sonnet D ode Answer A P92 8 Which of the following is NOT a typical feature of Samuel Johnson s language style A His sentences are long and well structured B His sentences are interwoven with parallel words C He tends to use informal and colloquial words D His sentences are complicated but his thoughts are clearly expressed Answer C P132 9 The boast of heraldry the pomp of power And all that beauty all that wealth e er gave Awaits alike the inevitable hour In the above quoted passage Thomas Gray intends to say that great family power beauty and wealth A will never make people lead to the same destination paths of glory 9 B will inevitably make people realize their glorious dreams C are the very best things to lead people to their glories D will never prevent people from reaching their final destination grave Answer D P154 10 has been regarded by some as Father of the English novel for his contribution to the establishment of the form of the modern novel A John Bunyan B Henry Fielding C Daniel Defoe D Johnathan Swift Answer B P121 11 was very much concerned with the theme of the vanity of human wishes and tried to awaken men to this folly and hoped to cure them of it through his writing A Samuel Johnson B Jonathan Swift C Richard Brinsley Sheridan D Thomas Gray Answer A P132 12 was the only important dramatist of the 18th century in his plays morality is the constant theme A Alexander Pope B Richard Brinsley Sheridan C Samuel Johnson D George Bernard Shaw Answer B P136 13 As the representative of the Enlightenment Pope was one of the first to introduce to England A Rationalism B Criticism C Romanticism D Realism Answer A P91 14 The Rivals and are generally regarded as important links between the masterpiece of Shakespeare and those of Bernard Shaw A The School for Scandal B The Duenna C Widower s Houses D The Doctor s Dilemma Answer A P137 15 is a sharp satire on the moral degeneracy 道德沦丧 of the aristocratic bourgeois society in the 18th century England A The Rivals B Gulliver s Travels C Toms Jones D The School for Scandal Answer D P138 16 The poem Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard by Thomas Gray is regarded as the most representative work of A The Metaphysical School B The Graveyard School C The Gothic School D The Romantic School Answer B P152 17 written in heroic couplet by Pope is considered manifesto of English Neoclassicism A An Essay of Dramatic Poetry B An Essay on Criticism C The Advancing of learning D An Essay on Freedom Answer B P93 18 is a typical feature of Swift s writings A Elegant style B Causal narration C Bitter satire D Complicated sentence structure Answer C P107 19 In the following writings by Henry Fielding which brings him the name of the Prose Homer A The Coffee House Politician B The Tragedy of Tragedies C The History of Tom Jones A Foundling D The History of Amelia Answer C P120 10 20 Hold See whether it is or not before you go to the door I have a particular message for you if it should be my brother The two sentences are found in A The School for Scandal B The Rivals C The Critic D The Scheming Lieutenant Answer A P139 21 In terms of Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard which is wrong A The author employs metaphor in this poem B The author excessively expresses his personal melancholy C Here he reveals his sympathy for the poor and the unknown D He mocks the great ones who despise the poor and bring havoc on them Answer B P152 153 22 The Houyhnhnms depicted by Jonathan Swift in Gulliver s Travels are A horses that are endowed with reason B pigmies that are endowed with admirable qualities C giants that are superior in wisdom D Hairy wild low and despicable creatures who resemble human beings not only in appearance but also in some other ways Answer A P108 II Read the quoted part and answer the questions 1 Words are like leaves and where they most abound Much fruit of sense beneath is rarely found False eloquence like the prismatic glass Its gaudy colors spreads on every place The face of Nature we no more survey All glares alike without distinction gay Questions 1 Identify the author and the passage 2 Name the devices used in the passage with examples 3 Explain Words found 4 What is the mainly implied idea of the passage 参考答案 1 The passage is from Pope s An Essay on Criticism P94 2 In the passage the author used Simile the device e g Words are like leaves and false eloquence like the prismatic glass etc 3 The sentence means Where When too many words are used they seldom express much sense 4 The passage implies authors shouldn t stress too much the artificial use of Conceit or the external beauty of language they should pay special attention to True Wit which is best set in the plain style just as too many leaves will cover the fruits too gaudy showy glass will hide the face the Nature too 11 false and eloquent language will hide the Wit in the articles 2 Let not Ambition mock their useful toil Their homely joys and destiny obscure Nor Grandeur hear with a disdainful smile The short and simple annals of the poor The boast of heraldry the pomp of power And all that beauty all that wealth e er gave Awaits alike the inevitable hour The paths of glory lead but to the grave Questions 1 Identify the author and the works 2 What does the inevitable hour 3 Explain the first stanza 4 What does the whole passage imply 参考答案 1 This is Thomas Gray s Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard 托马斯 格雷的 写在教堂墓地的挽歌 P154 2 The inevitable hour means time of death P156 3 The first stanza means The men with ambition and high position shouldn t laugh at the ordinary people for their simple life and hard work 4 In the passage the poet reflects on the death no matter how poor or wealthy or how important and humble every is equal before death the author gives much sympathy to the poor and unknown P153 III Questions and answers 1 Please analyze the Neoclassical period and the characters of the literature 参考答案 1 The Neoclassical period is about 1660 1798 also known as the Age of Enlightenment or the age of Reason 2 Its background was a It was an age full of conflicts and difference of values b It was an age of fast development for English to become the first powerful capitalist country in the world c It was an age of economic development in which bourgeois middle class grew rapidly 3 In essence the Neoclassical Period was a progressive intellectual movement 4 The Enlighteners believed in self restraint self reliance and hard work They celebrated reason rationality equality and science They advocated universal education which could make people rational and prefect they believed 5 In literature The Enlightenment Movement brought about a revival of