美国文学选读试题

1、美国文学史及作品选读 模拟试题一 I. Multiple Choice (115=15)1. C_was the first colony in American history. A. Massachusetts B. New Jersey C. Virginia D.Georgia 2. _B_ was the only good American author before the Revolutionary War. One of his fellow Americans said, “His shadow lies heavier than any other mans on thi

2、s young nation.”A. John Smith B. Benjamin Franklin C. Thomas Jefferson D.Thomas Paine 3. Romantics put emphasis on the following EXCEPT _A_. A. common sense B. imagination C. intuition D. individualism4. The Raven was written in 1844 by _B_ A. Philip Freneau B. Edgar Allan PoeC. Henry Wadsworth Long

3、fellow D. Emily Dickinson5. The ship _C_ carried about one hundred Pilgrims and took 66 days to beat its way across the Atlantic. In December of 1620, it put the Pilgrims ashore at Plymouth, Massachusetts.A. Sunflower B. Armada C. Mayflower D. Titanic6. Melvilles novel _D_ is a tremendous chronicle

4、of a whaling voyage in pursuit of a seemingly supernatural white whale. A. Typee B. Omoo C. White Jacket D. Moby Dick7. As a philosophical and literary movement, _D_ flourished in New England from the 1830s to the Civil War. A.Modernism B.Rationalism C.Sentimentalism D.Transcendentalism 8. The theme

5、 of original sin is fully reflected in _A_. A. The Scarlet Letter B. Sister Carrie C. The Great Gatsby D. The Old Man and Sea 9. In all his novels Theodore Dreiser sets himself to project the _B_ American values. For example, in Sister Carrie, there is not one character whose status is not determine

6、d economically. A. Puritan B. materialistic C. psychological D. religious10. Realism was a reaction against_B_ or a move away from the bias towards romance and self-creating fictions, and paved the way to Modernism. A. Rationalism B. Romanticism C. Neoclassicism D. Enlightenment11. _C_ was a poet in

7、 American modern period who was deeply influence by eastern culture. A. T. S Eliot B. Robert Frost C. Ezra Pound D. Walt Whitman12. Which of the following statements about Emily Dickinson is NOT true?D A. After 1862 she became a total recluse, not leaving her house nor seeingclose friends. B. She on

8、ce felt a deep affection for Charles Wadsworth, a married aged minister, but it proved to be a frustrated love affair for Dickinson. C. She wrote about death, immortality, nature, success and failure. D. During her lifetime, all her poems are published.13. The realistic period is referred to as “the

9、 Gilded Age” by _A_.A. Mark Twain B. Henry James C. Emily Dickinson D. Theodore Dreiser14. Which of the following works is NOT by Ernest Hemingway?CA. The Old Man and Sea B. A Farewell to Arms C. Sound and Fury D. For Whom the Bell Tolls15. Which one is NOT the characteristic of modernism?D A. Moder

10、nism in literature is characterized by experimentation, anti-realism, individualism and a stress on the cerebral rather than emotive aspects. B. Modernism is greatly influenced by the two world wars. C. The work of Marx, and Freud, had mounted an assault against orthodox religious faith that lasted

11、into the twentieth century. D. Modernists believe that human nature is kind.II. Match the Column A with Column B (110=10) Column A Column B( c ) 1. Dimmesdale a. Robert Frost ( e) 2. Ahab b. Mark Twain ( i ) 3. Drouet c. The Scarlet Letter ( a ) 4. Pulitzer Prizer d. Thomas Jefferson ( h ) 5. Reclus

12、ive poet e. Moby Dick (b ) 6. humorist and satirist f. Ernest Heminway ( d) 7. The Decalration of Indepenence g. Henry David Thoreau ( g ) 8. transcendentalist h. Emily Dickinson ( j) 9. The Great Gatsby i. Sister Carrie ( f ) 10. The Lost Generation j. F. Scott Fitzgerald III. Define the following

13、words within one phrase(25=10)1. free verse 2. Ralph Waldo Emerson 3. Mark Twain4. Benjamin Franklin 5. Ezra Pound IV. Simple questions (54=20)1. What are Puritan thoughts?2. What is Transcedentalism and list some representative figures? 3. Explain the symbolic meanings of “A” in The Scarlet Letter.

14、 4. Illustrate the three principles of Imagist Poetry.V. Interpreting the following texts (45)Text 1 When a girl leaves her home at eighteen, she does one of two things. Either she falls into saving hands and becomes better, or she rapidly assumes the cosmopolitan standard of virtue and becomes wors

15、e. Of an intermediate balance, under the circumstances, there is no possibility. The city has its cunning wiles, no less than the infinitely smaller and more human tempter. There are large forces which allure with all the soulfulness of expression possible in the most cultured human. The gleam of a

16、thousand lights is often as effective as the persuasive light in a wooing and fascinating eye. Half the undoing of the unsophisticated and natural mind is accomplished by forces wholly superhuman. A blare of sound, a roar of life, a vast array of human hives, appeal to the astonished senses in equiv

17、ocal terms. Without a counsellor at hand to whisper cautious interpretations, what falsehoods may not these things breathe into the unguarded ear! Unrecognised for what they are, their beauty, like music, too often relaxes, then weakens, then perverts the simpler human perceptions. Questions1. Pleas

18、e use one phrase to summarize the above paragraph (2)2. What are the two possibilities for a girl of eighteen leaving her home?(2)3. Please find out the figures of speech (2)4. What are the attractive forces mentioned in a big city? (4)5. How are naturalist views are reflected in this paragraph? Ill

19、ustrate your points with examples (5)Text 2Because I could not stop for Death He kindly stopped for me -The Carriage held but just Ourselves -And Immortality.We slowly drove - He knew no hasteAnd I had put awayMy labor and my leisure too, For His Civility We passed the School, where Children stroveA

20、t Recess - in the Ring -We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain -We passed the Setting Sun Since then - tis Centuries - and yetFeels shorter than the DayI first surmised the Horses HeadsWere toward Eternity Questions:1. Identify the poet and the title of this poem? (2)2. Explain the underlined words (4

21、)3. What are the implications of “the School”, “the fields of Gazing Grain”, “the Setting Sun”? (3)4. How do you understand “Since then - tis Centuries - and yet / Feels shorter than the Day” ? (3)5. What are the speakers opinions about death? (3)Text 3Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,And sorry I

22、 could not travel bothAnd be one traveler, long I stoodAnd looked down one as far as I couldTo where it bent in the undergrowth.Then took the other, as just as fair,And having perhaps the better claim,Because it was grassy and wanted wear;Though as for that the passing thereHad worn them really abou

23、t the same.And both that morning equally layIn leaves no step had trodden black.Oh, I kept the first for another day!Yet knowing how way leads on to way,I doubted if I should ever come back.I shall be telling this with a sighSomewhere ages and ages hence:Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-I took th

24、e one less traveled by,And that has made all the difference. Questions:1. Please examine the poetic form (rhyme and meter) (2)2. Describe the similarities and differences of these two roads. Which one does the speaker take? (3)3. How do you understand the word “sigh”? (4) 4. What might the two roads

25、 stand for in the speakers mind? (4)5. What is the theme of this poem? (2)参考答案I. Multiple Choice (115=15) 1. _C_ 2._B_ 3._A_ 4._B_ 5._C_ 6._D_ 7._D_ 8._A_ 9._B_ 10._B_ 11._C_ 12._D_ 13._A_ 14._C _ 15._D_II. Match the Column A with Column B (110=10)1.( c ) 2.( e ) 3.( i ) 4.( a ) 5.( h )6.( b ) 7.( d

26、 ) 8.( g ) 9.(j ) 10.( f ) III. Define the following words within one phrase (25=10) (Any related information can be given marks)1. poetry without a fived beat or regular rhyme scheme, produced by Walt Whitman2. is the representative of transcedentalists, who believes in individualism and self-relia

27、nce and brings transcendentalism to New England3is a humorist and satirist, who uses broad humor and biting social satire4is one of Thoreaus masterpieces, which is the result of the authors two years of living near Walden lake.5. is regarded as the classical poem of imagist poetry by Ezra Pound, con

28、veying the theme of the speakers sudden pleasure of finding some beautiful faces in the subwayIV. Simple Questions (54=20) (Answers should be to the points. 1 score for time, 2 scores for features and 1 score for representative figures when defining theliterary terms)a) Puritan thoughts: to make pur

29、e their religious beliefs and practices, to restore simplicity, to live a hard and disciplined life and oppose pleasure and arts. b) Transcendentalism is the climax of American Romanticism. First, the Transcendentalist placed emphasis on spirit, or the oversoul, as the mostimportant thing in the uni

30、verse.Secondly, Transcendentalists stressed the importance of the individual. Thirdly, the Transcendentalists offered a fresh perception of nature as symbolic of the spirit. 3. a. The letters meaning shifts as time passes. Originally intended to mark Hester as an adulterer, the “A” eventually comes

31、to stand for “Able” or“Angel”.b. Besides Hester, Dimmesdale also ironed the letter A on his body, which provoked his self-consciousness and showed his repent for what he did. c. Pearl, their baby, wore a green letter a in a piece of seaweed while playing on the beach. This green letter A symbolizes

32、vitality or new life, and also suggests her inheritance from her mother.4. a. direct treatment of the “thing”（no fuss, frill, or ornament）, b. exclusion of superfluous words（precision and economy of expression）, c. the rhythm of the musical phrase rather than the sequence of a metronome（free verse f

33、orm and music）. V. Interpreting the following texts (45)Text 11. The attraction of big city (2)2. One is to fall into the saving hands and becomes better; secondly, she may admit themoral value of big city and becomes worse. (2)3. Simile, metaphor and synecdoche (2)4. The gleam of lights, a blare of

34、 sound, a roar of life, and a vast array of human hives (4)5. Naturalist attempted to achieve extreme objectivity and frankness, presenting characters of low social and economic classes who were dominated by their environment and heredity. In this novel, the major female character Carrie Meeber is deeply influenced by the present environment and heredity, which leads to the result of her dynamic character.(5) (the features of naturalism 3 scores, examples 2 scores) Text 21. Emily Dickinson and “Because I Could not Stop for Death”(2)2. He: death; civility: politeness; Recess: break Surmised: