大学英语专业英国文学史考试简答题.doc

English Literary Part The 17th centuryThe Period of Revolution and RestorationJohn Donne1 What are the characteristics and representatives of the English literature of the revolution period, the metaphysical period and restoration period? A. The revolution period, Puritans believed in simplicity of life and disapproved of the sonnets and the love poetry, and they influence in general tended to suppressed literary art.Representatives：John Milton，John BunyanB.The metaphysical （玄学派）period, the style became spiritual gloom.Representatives：Donne and Herbert；John MiltonCThe restoration period, the literary was often witty and clever, but on the whole immoral and cynical. Representatives：John Dryden2 In “A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning告别：莫忧伤”, why does the speaker forbid mourning when his going to pass away and leave his lover? Why and what are the two conceits （比喻）that he uses to describe their perfect love?A.Although they may leave each other, yet they love is firm and forever, and soul lovers cannot be separated by distance and death. Besides，death is natural just like earthquake.B. First conceit（like gold to airy thinness beat）, their souls are like gold, it can expand and their love still exit. Second conceit(as stiff tein com, they are like compasses are two), one moving and anther stay and wait for the companion. 3 In “Death be not proud”(死神莫骄妄), what will happen to us when we die？why does the speaker say that “death should not be proud”? When will death die?A. It will be rest and sleep flow with much pleasure when we die，and our souls will be released.B.Because it is a slave of fate, chance, kings and desperate man and death is together with poison,war,sickness and opium or charms. And these things can make us sleep like the death, and the effect is better than death. Death for people is a souls delivery, and after death people will feel free and pleased. Although people die, yet they wake eternally, and their souls are exiting forever. C.When peoples short sleep past, people wake eternally, and death no longer exist and death will die.John Milton 1 In what way is John Milton a staunch(坚定的)revolution fighter and a great poet?A.When he was in Italy, he heard the trouble sprung up in England, and he gave up his plan for travelling and went back to England. After he return to England, he opposed the monarchic party and gave all his energy to the writing of pamphlets小册子 dedicated to the peoples liberties. B.After finishing the university course，he thought he was born to be a poet.So for five years he lived at home in his fathers country house at Horton about 20 miles from London,writing poetry and studying hard,in order better to fit himself for his work.He worked for 7years upon Paradise Lost.And he also wrote Paradise Regained and Samson Agonistes.The three works made him a great poet. 2What is the theme of Paradise Lost ?What is the basic idea of Paradise Lost?Theme:？The basic idea:the exposure of reactionary forces of his time and passionate appeal for freedom.3 In Paradise Lost, why was Satan punished by God driven out of heaven and at last into hell? What did he want to do for revenge? And what was his reason? What is the allegorical meaning of the poem?A. Because Satan led the mutinous(反叛的) angels to rise against God himself but in the battle with the hosts of angels that remained true to God, they were finally defeated.B. Satan wanted to ruin Gods precious creation (man).C. So he wanted to tear Adam and Eve away from the influence of God and to make them instrumental in his struggle against Gods authority.D. God represents authority and tyranny on earth,he has strong rights to control anything .Satan represents the power of revolting against authority and desire for freedom.3 In the Sonnet On His Blindness, what is the double meaning of “talent”? What is “mine” question? And what is the answer given by patience? What is the theme of the Sonnet?A. The “talent” means :ability and a kind of currency unitB. Question is that God does not give us light, and why I will bear it?(Doth God exact day-labor,light denied?)C. Patience answers that God does not need gift, and go and climb without rest or stand and wait is also a service.(God doth not need either mans work or his own gifts;who best bear his mild yoke,they serve him best)D. Theme:If you have talents,you should make full use of it. and your pain will be diminished and you will be peaceful and calm.You can use your talent to live a meaningful life.John Banyan1 What is “allegory”? In what way is Banyan The Pilgrims Progress is allegory? What are the literal meaning and symbolic meaning of the work?A. Allegory is a tale in verse or prose in which the characters, actions or settings represent abstract ideas general truth or moral qualities, and a story that has two meanings, literal and symbolic.B. The literal meaning: Christians pilgrimage from the city of Destruction to the Holy City The symbolic meaning:religious people,people should follow Christians example.And it reflects the society and culture. 2 In the part Vanity Fair, what is the Vanity Fair? What are sold and brought at the VF? What do Christian and his companion Faithful want to buy? How are they treated as a fair? What is the meaning of this excerpt?A. Vanity fair is a name of a town and there is a fiar kept.B. Everything in vanity is can be sold and brought,such as jouses,ladns,trades,places.C. Christian and his companion want to buy “truth”D. They was mocked and taunted,and were taken and beaten by the people in the vanity.And the people in fair besmeares(玷污) them with dirt,and put them with dirt,and put them into the cage.E. “Vanity”means emptiness or worthlessness,and hence the fair is an allegory of the worldliness(俗气) and the corruption of the religious life through the attractions of the world.And Banyan described the world that lost truth and were full of selfishness and corruption.Part The Age of Enlightenment in EnglandDaniel Defoe1 What does Enlightenments Movement mean? What do you know about the English literature of the Enlightenment? The Enlightenments Movement on the whole, was an expression of struggle of the then progressive class of bourgeoisies against feudalism.Nearly all writers frequented the coffeehouses and matters discussed there became subjects of literature. And the literary leaders emphasized formality or correctness of style. The reign of classicism is Addison, Steele, and Pope, and their verse became the ambition of aspiring young authors. Beside, the modern novels became popular: realist, psychological, satirical and sentimental novels. And the revival of romanticism or pre-romanticism.2 What story does the novel Robinson Crusoe tell? What is the theme and style? Why do we say that Robinson Crusoe is the representative of the raising bourgeois?The story is about Robinson was lost in an island, and he was alone and finally survive. The theme: a mans struggle against nature for survival by self-reliance and mans determination to improve his livelihood by labor.The style: simple, direct, fact-based story and characterization and smooth, easy and colloquial language.Robinson is fighting with difficulties and does not give in, and he struggles against nature for survival. Just like the enterprising Englishman fighting the survivals of feudalism and develop the bourgeois relations. Jonathan Swift1 What kind of writer is JS?What are his major works?A. JS is a supreme master of devastating satire.( He was a posthumous (遗腹子)child, and people looked upon him as a servant, he had a bitter, unhappy early life. After he entered the strife（争斗） of party politics, he soon became a veritable（名副其实的） dictator, and he was courted and flattered, and he was arrogant. But when the Tories went out of power his position was uncertain, and the last years he was anguish and grief. )B. Major works:The tale of a Tub ,The battle of the Books, Gullivers Travels2 How many past does Gulliver travelers consist of? What satirize in the novel?Include four parts, the voyage, the Brobdingnag, the flying island and the Houyhnhnms.The story is an immortal classic of satire, a penetrating anatomy of human nature揭露人性丑恶, and a satirical description of the vices of his age.2What are the structure ,the significance and the style of it? 见笔记3 What are Gullivers experiences in Lilliput and Brobdingnag described in the selecting readings?A. In Lilliput, Gulliver is shipwrecked, and the Lilliputians bind the sleeping Gulliver hand and foot. Gulliver has to convince them, then he goes to the war but the officials conspire against him and charge him with high treason. Finally, Gulliver escapes in a boat and goes back to England.B. In Brobdingnag, people are good-natured and they treat Gulliver kindly, they look him as a plaything. And the king often interrogates Gulliver on European affairs. At last, the travelling-box takes him to the seashore, and he was picked up by a English trip. Part The Age of EnlightenmentJoseph Addison1 What is the Addisons contribution to the two papers The Tatler and The Spectator?Addison was a better writer than Steele and he made The Tatler a great success, and he also helped with the anther newspaper. Addison gave many ideas and thoughts to the two papers and made the paper become very and interesting and popular.2 What are the poems contain form and style on the two papers?The form is little and familiar essays.The style is clean, wholesome, gentle humor, courtesy and good breeding.Henry Fielding1 What are the major features of Henry Fieldings novels?Criticism of social relations, hypocrisy and lack of spirituality, and vivid positive and negative characters, besides, direct, vigorous, hilarious, coarse and realistic style.2 What good quality does Tom Jones display in chapter 20 of book4 and chapter 14 of book 12?Tom was brave and kind, when Sophia was in dangerous, Tom saved her and got hurt, but he cared about nothing but Sophias health, although he was hurt, he also thought about others not himself. And in another story, Tom was clever and friendly, he would like to help other people, even it may be put him in danger.Thomas Gray1 In the poem Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard墓畔哀歌, what are the contents of the poem?what are the poet thoughts and feelings about the dead buried in the churchyard? How does he describe grooms in the poem?A.见笔记本B.He shows his respect，praise and symapthy for the poor and the ordinary,but mocks the great ones who despise(鄙视) the poor and bring havoc（骚乱） on them.C.The author selects natural phenomena to reflect the mood and display the emotion of man借情抒景，寓情于景P250William Blake1 In the poem The Tiger, what is the Blake feeling about the tiger? What is his feeling about the Maker of tiger? What does he want to say by asking the questiondid he who made the lamb made thy? does he ask about God and about the order of nature and the social order in reality? A. To the poet, the tiger means power and strength, and it makes people scared and frightened. B. He is praising the skill and courage of the maker of the tiger.So the Marker is great.Symbolically,Blake is praising the French Revolutin and the violent revolutionary forces.C. The poet is confused, the Marker have made tiger already, why then created the lamb. The tiger id ferocious ,violent and powerful,but the lamb id peaceful,innocent and midl.But the maker create them both,which symbolizes the disordered society.There are the rich and the poor.And the poor is deprived by the rich. 2 In the poem The Chimney Sweeper, is th