美国文学选读总结陶洁版

1、第一讲P eriods of American Literature16071775 the Colo nial P eriod17651790 the Revolutio nary Age17751865 the early n atio nal p eriod and the Roma ntic Period18651914 the Realistic Period19001914 the Naturalistic period19141939 the Modern period1939-the contemporary p eriodThe Colonial P eriodFrom th

2、e founding of the first settleme nt at Jamestow n, Virginia, to the outbreak of the America n Revolutio nHistorical backgro undThe Reformation in Europ most of the founding fathers were puritans f the America n Pu rita nism became one of the most en duri ng sha ping in flue nces what is America n Pu

3、 rita ni sm?How does it in flue nee America n literature?American P uritanismA code of values, a p hilos ophy of life , or a set of ten ets of The America n pu rita ns They were idealists believ ing that their chief bus in ess to see that man lived and thought and acted in a way which tended to the

4、glory of God. They accepted the doctri ne of p redest in atio n, origi nal sin and total dep ravity, and limited aton eme nt (or the salvatio n of a selected few) through irresistible grace of God.On the other hand, they were p ractical idealists, or doctri naire opportuni sts. They felt they were e

5、xiles un der the grace of God to establish a p aradise in the new world, yet the harsh reality forced them to build a way of life that stressed hard work, thrift, p iety, and sobriety.The influences on American literatureOptimism: Anglo-American literature, based on the Biblical myth of the Garden o

6、f Ede n, is a literary exp ressi on of the pious idealism of the P urita n bequest. Fired with a sense of missi on, they dreamed of build ing a new Ede n in America, which led to the emerge nee of America n dream in literature.Literary symbolism: Puritan metaphorical mode of perception helped to dev

7、elop literary symbolism as they saw the physical, phenomenal world was nothing but a symbol of God. Hence symbolism as a tech nique was a com mon p ractice.The literary scene in Colonial AmericanHumble origins: histories, travel accounts, diaries, letters, sermons, biographies. autobiogra phies, com

8、 monp lace books, and p oems to record their exp erie nces and exp ress their views and feeli ngs.Literature of discovery, of p urita n expansion, and of GodWilliam Bradford(1590-1657) Of P lymouth Pla ntati onJohn Smith(1580-1631) A Descri ption of New En gla ndAnne Bradstreet(1612-1672 “the Tenth

9、Muse ” )P urita n Poet :Edward Taylor (1642-1729)characteristicsFull of Symbolic meaningsUtilitaria n, po lemical, or didacticThe style: fresh, simple, and directThe rhetoric is p lain and hon est, not without a touch of no bility traceable to the direct in flue nee of the BibleThe 18th Century“ Fo

10、three gen eratio ns the p revaili ng America n character was compact in one type, the man of action who was also the man of God. Not un til the eightee nth cen tury did the rift app earit app eared in the two p hilos op hers, Jon atha n Edwards and BenjaminFran kli n who fixed the po les of our n at

11、i on al life.Jon atha n Edwards dis pl ayed theinfin ite in flexibility of the upper levels of the America n mindran klin thet yp ically Ffinite flexibility of its lower levels”Van Wyck Brooks: American s Comi ng of Age 1915American Puritanism is a two-faceted tradition of religious idealism and lev

12、el com mon sen se. Edwards rep rese nted the former asp ect, while Fran kli n the latter Two basic p atter ns of thought in America nThe in flue nee of the deism. (God as the maker of the clock) f The age of en lighte nmen t, reas on, orderthe persistent Calvinist beliefs f the “ Great Awakening ”Ed

13、wards and Fran kli n rep rese nt the p aradox of Pu rita n materialism and immateriality.Benjamin Franklin and his AutobiographyBorn in 1706 into a poor candle- maker s family- “ poor and obscure ” , little formal educatio n.Independentprin ter and p ublisher, essayist, scie ntist, orator, statesma

14、n,p hilos op her, p olitical econo mist, ambassador, p arlor man，- “ Jack of all trades ”Si nee early 1750s, p ublic career bega n. The on ly America n to sig n the four docume nts that created the US-The Declaration of Independence,the treaty of allianee with Fran ce, the treaty of p eace with En g

15、la nd, and the con stituti on.Master of each and mastered by none- the type and genius of his landHerma nMelville thus described him.The Autobiogra phythe simp le yet fasci nat ing record of a man ris ing to wealth and fame from a state of-made s first selfpo verty and obscurity, the faithful acco u

16、nt of the career of America n man.a Pu rita n docume nt, a record of self-exam in atio n and self- impro veme nt. A convincing illustrati on of the pu rita n ethic that in order to get on in the world, one has to be in dustrious, frugal, and p rude nt.An eloquent explanation of his philosophy: moder

17、ation, order, man s basically goodand free n ature, man s cap ability of impro veme nt, man s in alie nable rights.Celebrates the fulfillme nt of the America n dream through the sp irit of self-relia nee.The styleP atter n of p urita n simp licity, direct ness, and con cisi on. Plainn ess of styleHo

18、meli ness of imagerySim plicity of dictio nLucidity of the n arrativeWashington Irving (1783-1859)Born into a wealthy New York mercha nt family.First book in 1809: A History of New YorkWith the publication The Sketch Book(1819-1820), a collection of essays, tales, and sketches, he won a measure of i

19、ntern ati onal recog niti on.In 1826, sent to Sp ai n as an America n di plomatic attachefrom 1829-1832, was a secretary of the un ited states Legati on in London.Up to 1832, he was draw n to the ruins and relics of Europe and writ ing about subjects either En glish or European. He found values in t

20、he p ast and in the traditi ons of the old world. Back in America, he found a whole new spirit of nationalism in American feeli ng and letters.Irving was the first American writer of imaginative literature to gain international fame. The short story as a genre in America n literature bega n with his

21、 The Sketch Book, of which the most famous are Rip Van Win kle and The Lege nd of Slee p Hollow. It also marked the begi nning of America n Roma nticism.Irving s style1. Avoid moralizi ng as much as p ossible; wrote to amuse and en tertai n.2. Desp ite the slim pl ot, he is good at enveloping his st

22、ories in an atmos phere3. His Ian guage is fini shed and musical. The America n Goldsmith第二讲The Romantic P eriodStretches from the end of 18th cen tury through the outbreak of the civil war Historical and cultural backgro unda. the buoya nt mood of the n atio n bursti ng into new lifeb. the flourish

23、i ng roma ntic moveme nt in Euro pec. the cultural heritage: America n Pu rita nismAmerica n roma nticism was both imitative and independenta. it was in essencethe expression of a real new experienee and contained an alie n quality. It exhibited an ap athy to America n life like the westward expansi

24、ons and democracy and equality.b. in tech nique America n roma nticist loved traditi onal meters and sta nza forms, used stereot yped meta phors and sup erficial and exp licit symbolismNew England TranscendentalismThe summit of America n roma nticism,“ America n Ren aissa nee ”The transcendental clu

25、b with its journal Dial express their resentment to the materialistic-orie nted life of the time and to the cold, rigid ratio nalism of un itaria nismThe major featuresEmp hasis on sp irit, or the Oversoul, as the most imp orta nt thing in the uni verse. The oversoul was an all-p ervad ing po wer fo

26、r good ness, omnip rese nt and omnipotent, from which all things came and of which all were a p art. It existed in n ature and man alike. f a new way of look ing at the world, reacti on aga inst the Newt onian concept of the uni verse and the mecha ni zed cap italistic America.Stressed the imp orta

27、nee of in dividual which was the most imp orta nt eleme nt of society. The in dividual soul com muned with the oversoul and was therefore divi ne. The first concern of man was his perfection through self-culture, self-improvement, and self-relia nee. f a new way of look ing at man, reactio n aga ins

28、t the Calvi nism and the dehuma ni zati on of cap italismOffered a fresh p erce pti on of n ature as symbolic of the sp irit or God.Nature was, to them, not purely matter. It was alive, filled with God s overwhelipresence.lt was the garment of the Oversoul. Therefore it could exercise a healthy and

29、restorative in flue nee on the huma n mind.New En gla nd transcenden talism was the p roduct of a comb in ati on of foreig n roma ntic in flue nces and the America n Pu rita n idealism. Roma nticism on the Pu rita n soil.Ralph Waldo Emerson(1803-1882)Desce ndant of a long line of New En gla nd clerg

30、yme n.Went to Harvard, where he underwent a spiritual“ odyssey ”Calvinist belief f Unitarian minister f European RomanticismT the most eloque nt sp okesma n of New En gla nd tran sce nden talismHis Nature(1836): the mani festo of America n tran see nden talismThe Divi nity School Address (1838)The A

31、merican Scholar (1837): American s deelaration of Intelleetual IndependenceThe Rep rese ntativeMe n (1850): biogra phies of great men, reveal his ambivale nee toward aggressive ness and self-seek ingThe Con duct of Life (1860)The Transcendentalist views of EmersonThe transcendence of the“ Oversoul ”

32、 and the divinity of manThe spiritual and immanent God is operative in the soul of man, and that man is divi ne.The infin itude of the p rivate manIf man depends upon himself, cultivates himself, and brings out the divine in himself, he can hope to become better and eve n p erfect. the p ossibilitie

33、s for man to devel op and improve himself are infin ite.Man should and could be self-relia nt. Trust thyself and make thyselfThe sanctifying moral in flue nee of n ature as the symbol of sp iritThe n atural world is vitalistic and evoluti on ary. It mediates betwee n man and god, and is a wholesome

34、moral in flue nee on man.Aesthetics: roma ntic orga nic princip letrue p oetry and art should serve as a moral p urificatio n and a p assage toward orga nic unity and higher reality.Self-relianee is widely considered to be the definitive statement of Emerson sp hilos ophy of in div idualism and the

35、fin est exa mple of his p rose“ trust thyself ”Conten ts:1. The con fide nee2.The independence3.Keep personality 4.Showing no sympathy to the poorAn alysisPart I (1-6): Trust thyselfP 1:The imp orta nee of thinking for on eselfP2: “Trust thyselfP 3:The force of infancy and youthP4:The an alogy betwe

36、e n boys and the idealized in dividualP 5:The importance of an in dividual resisti ng the p ressure to conform to the exter nal normsP6:The necessity to follow one s inner voice, whatever it is. Be a nonconformistPart n (7-13): Consistency is the hobgoblin (妖怪)of little mindsP7: Society s disapprova

37、l or scornP8: The in dividual s ownDseoaeiste ncyP9: Con siste ncy drains our creativityP10: The condemn ati on of the society that dema nds con formityP11: The ultimate con siste ncyP12: A true man is the cen ter of thingsP13: Huma ns determ ine the worth of an object not vice versa第三讲Henry David T

38、horeau(1817-1862)A son of an un successful storekee per and a maker of lead pen cilsWent of Harvard because of his aspiring motherOn graduati on, helped to make pen cils, the n ran a p rivate school.Made frie nds with Emers on, used his library, and embraced his ideasIn 1845, went to build a cab in

39、on a pi ece of Emers on s prop erty on Walde n Pond, andmoved in on July 4 to live there in a very sim pie manner for a while over two years to move away from the rush and bustle of American social life which was getting more and more sadly materialistic-orie nted. There he was en tirely in com muni

40、on with nature.Back to Con cord, he wrote about his exp erie nee in“ Walde n” .During his stay in Walden, he wrote“ Civil Disobedienee ” , which, advocated passiveresista nee to unjust laws of society.His WaldenA book on self-culture and huma n p erfectibility. He has faith in the inner virtue and i

41、n ward, sp iritual grace of man. The most imp orta nt thi ng for man to do with his life is to be self-sufficie nt and strive to achieve personal sp iritual p erfecti on.Criticized moder n civilizati on which in his opinion, was degrad ing and en slav ing man.He said “ civilized man is the slave of

42、matter.” he urged man to leave the life of hurryand bustle of gett ing ahead in worldly affairs and sink on eself i n the wholesome atmos phere of n ature.The book is full of ideas expressed to jostle his neighbors out of their smug comp lace ncy. He goes on to p rescribe a pan acea for the fatal mo

43、der n craze for mon etary success: sim plicity! sim plify! Sp iritual rich ness is real wealth.A book about regeneration of a better man, reborn and reinvigorated. Structurally, summer, autu mn, death of win ter, re nasce nee of spring.Comment on ThoreauAn active tran sce nden talist. Not an esca pi

44、st or a recluse, nor the wicked an ti-social or nu Ilifier of civilizati on.One of three great American authors of 19th Century who had no contemporary readers and yet became great in the 20th cen tury.He took a more tha n usual in terest in n atural world. More tha n Emers on, he saw n ature as a g

45、enuine restorative, healthy in flue nee on man s sp irituabeing, and regardi ng it as a symbol of the sp irit.With solitary com munion with n ature, he went eve n further to illustrate the pan theistic quality of nature. His idea came close to being heathenism and nature-worship, a pan theism which

46、ten ded to destroy the tran sce ndence of God.Novels and Romances of the eraJames Fen imore Coo per (1789-1851)Natha niel Hawthorne (1804-1864)Herman Melville (1819-1891)James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851)Born into a rich Ian d-holdi ng family of New Jersey.Sent to Yale at 14 but was exp elled in his

47、junior yearSpent five years at sea. In early twen ties, in herited vast fortune.Began his career as an author by accident due to his wife challenge. He wrote thirty-odd no vels in all since the n.One of the first authors to write about the America n westward moveme nt.He created a myth about the for

48、mative period of the American nation, and was remembered as the author of the“ Leatherstocking tales ” a series of five novels aboutthe fron tier life of America n settlers.LeatherstockingtalesThe Pi oeers, the Last of the Mohica ns, the P rairie, the Pathfi nder, and The Deerslayer. Dep ited Natty

49、Bumppo or Leatherstock ing (so n amed because of his weari ng leather leggi ngs in the America n In dia n fasi on) as a pion eer, a real fron tiersma n, rep rese nting a n ati on struggli ng to be born, p rogress ing from old age to rebirth and youth. It is a history of modern civilization advancing

50、 on the receding wilderness, and of the juxta positi on of“ the works of man and the reig n of n ature.”The theme of his stories: the an tithesis betwee n n ature and civilizati on, betwee n freedom and law, the morally right and the p ractically in evitable, or leatherstock ing (ma n s old forest f

51、reedom ) and Judge Temp le (ma n as savage withawta nd order).Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)A son of a sea captain. Born on the 4th of July in Salem, Massachusetts. Some of his ancestorswere men of prominence in the Puritan Theocracy of 17th-century New En gla nd.He was intensely aware of the misde

52、eds of his Puritan ancestors, which led to his un dersta nding of evil being at the core of huma n life.In 1821 Hawthorne went to Bowdoi n College.From 1825 to 1837, he lived in solitude and seclusi on.In 1837, p ublished his Twice-Told Tales, a collectio n of short tales.1841, he lived for a few mo

53、n ths at Brook Farm, and married Sop hia P eabody. Worked in the Custom house in Bost on and Salem1853, Hawthorne college friend Franklin Pierce, appointed Hawthorne a United States con sul in En gla nd.1864, he died, a few years after retur ning to America.His worksTwo collect ions of short stories

54、:Twice-told Tales故事新编Mosses from an Old Manse ?古宅青苔？Roma nee:The Scarlet Letter ?红字？masterpiece,which established him as the leadi ng America n n ative no velist of the 19th cen turyThe House of the Seven Gables七个尖角阁的房子The Blithedale Roma nee福谷传奇The Marble Faun大理石雕像Short stories:You ng Goodman Brow

55、n小伙子古德曼 ？布朗The Mi nisters Black Veil教长的黑面纱The Birthmark胎记His point of view(1) Evil is at the core of huma n life.Hawthorne sense of sin and evil in life,“ black ” vision of life and human is haunted.Evil exists in the huma n heart, huma n heart is the source of evil. Every one p ossesses some evil s

56、ecret. Evil is man birthmark, a most disturbed and tormented one. He rejects the transcenden talist op timism and looks more dee ply and more hon estly into life, finding much sufferi ng and con flict in it.(2) Whenever there is sin, there is punishment. Sin or evil can be passed from gen erati on t

57、o gen erati on.(3) Evil educates.Achieveme nt is“ un der the impact of and by en gageme nt with evilMan is better for the crime which brings about the fall.(4) He has disgust in scienee. One source of evil is overweening intellect. His in tellectual characters are villai ns, dreadful and cold-bloode

58、d. the tension betwee n the head and the heart con stitutes one of the eleme nts in his roma ncesAesthetic ideas(1) He took a great in terest in history and an tiquity.To him these furnish the soil on which his mind grows to fruitio n (fulfill). Trying“toconnect a bygone time with the very Present” , he makes the dream strange things looklike truth.(2) He was convin ced that roma nee was the bes