美国文学知识点

AmericanLiterature1.spoeticideas(1)ToPoe’spoetry,thefunctionofpoetryisnottosummarizeandinterpretearthlyexperience,buttocreateamoodinwhichthesoulsoarstowardssupernalbeauty.(2)Heinsiststhatpoetrymustbedisembarrassedofthatmoralsensewhichinvolvesthereaderwithhumanity.3)Poebelievesthattheelevationofexcitementofthesoulshouldbe“thepoeticprinciple”Thispoetrymustconcernitselfonlywith”supernalbeauty”.4)Poedefinespoetryas“therhythmicalcreationofbeauty”,whichemphasizestherhythmicalandmusicalelementsinpoetry.2.MajorIdeasins“”(?)Transparenteyeball:Emerson’sfamousimage,totalimmersioninnaturewithoutsacrificingthesubjectivityEmerson’sstyle:conversational,discursive,improvising,notrationalreflectionbutraptmeditation,frequentuseofmetaphor3.Whitman’sstyle.Whitman’spoeticstyleismarkedbytheuseofthepoetic“I”.Whitmanbecomesallthosepeopleinhispoems,andyetstillremains“WaltWhitman”henceadiscoveryoftheselfintheotherwithsuchidentification.(2)Headopted“freeverse”,poetrywithoutafixedbeatorregularrhymescheme.Bymeansof“freeverse”hereturnedthepoemintoanopenfield,andareaofvitalpossibilitywherethereadercanfollowhisownimaginationtoplay.(3)Theimaginationinhispoemsareunconditionalinthewaytheybreaddownthesocialdivisionbasedonreligion,gender,classandrace.(4)WhitmanisoutstandinginhisstrongtendencytouseoralEnglish.(5)Hehasanamazingvocabularyandmakesaninventiveuseoflanguage.(6)Heemploysthelineinsteadoftheconventionalfoot,asthestylisticunitanddependsonparallelismandotherreiterativedevicesforitsstructureandcadence.(7)Hepraisesself,individual,ideas,sexualitiesandequality.(8)Heholdsapanoramicviewofsocietyandhisnativespeechismusic.4.FormalfeaturesofDickinsonspoetry.(1)SheisrecognizednotonlyasagreatpoetessonherownrightbutasapoetessofconsiderableinfluenceuponAmericanpoetryofthepresentcentury.(2)Themesofherpoetryconcernreligion,lifeanddeath,loveandmarriage,immortality,andnature,etc.(3)Herpoemisnotedfordirectness,plainestwordsandbrevity,andprofundityinmeaning.(4)Herpoetrysometimessoundsfamiliar,communalandsometimesirregular.Herpoemsareusuallyshort,rarelymorethantwentylines,andmanyofthemcenteredonsymbolandfocusedononesubjectmatter.5.Thethemeandtechniquesins“TheWasteLand”.Thispoemworksthroughan“aheapofbrokenimages,thereflectionofaworldoffragments;buttheaimistoweavethesefragmentsintoaharmony.Thethemeofthepoemismodernspiritualbarrenness,thedespairanddepressionthatfollowedtheFirstWorldWar,thesterilityandturbulenceofthemodernworld,andthedeclineandbreak-downofWesternculture.Thepoemsnoticeablecharacteristicsarevariedlengthandrhythmtoharmonizewiththechangingsubjectmatter,theunrhymedlines,andlotsofborrowingsfromsomethirty-fivedifferentwriters.8.CommentonHemingwaysstyleinAFarewelltoArms.(1)HewasregardedasthemostimportantspokesmanfortheLostGeneration.(2)Hewasfamousforhisnovelsandshortstorieswritteninhisspare,laconic,terse,clear,telegraph-like,yetintenseprosewithshortsentencesandveryspecificdetails.Thisstyleishisfamous“IcebergPrinciple”thatemphasizessimplicityandeconomyofexpression.(3)Almostallhisstoriesdealwiththethemeofcourageinthefaceoftragedy.Theyrevealmansimpotenceanddespairingcouragetoasserthimselfagainstoverwhelmingodds.TheseheroesarecalledTheHemingwayCodeHero”.AFarewellArmsisanimportantnovelwrittenbyHemingway,inwhichtheauthordealswithwardirectlyandthereareobviousautobiographicalorigins.Againstthebackdropofwar,Hemingwayoffersadeep,mourningforherdeadfiancéthanshebeginsagamemeanttoseduceHenry.Herreasonfordoingsoisclear:shewantstodistanceherselffromthepainofherloss.Likewise,Henryintendstogettoasfarawayfromtalkofthewaraspossible.Thecouplesfeelingforeachotherquicklypassfromanamusementthatdistractsthemtotheveryfuelthatsustainsthem.sunderstandingofhowmeaningfulhisloveforCatherineisoutweighsanyconsiderationfortheemptinessofabstractideals.Reunitedtheyplananidylliclifetogether.FarawayfromthedecimatedItaliancountryside,eachintendstobetheothersrefuge.Iftheyaretoachievephysical,emotional,andpsychologicalhealing,theyhavefoundtheperfectplaceinthesaferemoveoftheSwissmountains.Thetragedyofthenovelrestsinthefactthattheirlove,evenwhengenuine,canneverbemorethantemporaryinthisworld.9.Analyze“DrySeptember”byWilliamFaulknerDrySeptemberwaswrittenin1931,andiswell-knownstoryofFaulkner.Thisstorytouchesuponthestrangerelationshipbetweensexandviolence,examinesthepsychologicalstateofthemaincharacters,andexposesthecrimesofracialdiscriminationwhichmakesonebristlewithanger.Thetoneofthisstorycontributesmuchtoitseffectiveness,particularlytotheimageryofinfernalheatanddrynessandtothesettingitself.FromthecharacterMissMinniethereadercouldperceivetheobviousimpactofFreudsideasonWilliamFaulkner.Inadditiontothesociologicalproblemsaddressedinthestory,Faulknercreatesauniquesettinginwhichtheweatherreflectstheattitudesofthemaincharacters.DrySeptember”isastoryinwhicheachcharacterisavictimofthesociologicalproblemsoftheday,andisalsoagreatexampleofhowthephysicalatmosphereofastorycanbeusedtomimicthatofitsrespectivecharacters.10.Commenton“StoppingbyWoodsonaSnowyEvening”byRobertFrost.(1)StoppingbyWoodsonaSnowyEveningisadeceptivelysimplepoeminwhichthespeakerliterallystopshishorseinthewintertwilighttoobservethebeautyoftheforestscene,andthenismovedtocontinuehisjourney.(2)Inthepoemthepoetseemstoshowthathewouldliketostayforeverinthebeautifulsnowywoods,butasapoet,hestillhasmanytaskstofulfillinhislifeandhehastogoahead.(4)BeforeIsleep”maybeinterpretedasbeforeIdie.”Wood”standsfornature,“Little”foranimalworld,andvillage”forhumansociety.11.ThemeandtechniqueinTheGreatGatsbybyFitzgeraldHeisgenerallyacclaimedastheliteraryspokesmanoftheJazzAge/theRoaringTwenties.Heisthemirrorandembodimentofthisexcitingageinalmosteveryway.(1)TheGreatGatsbyissmasterpieces.(2)Itisasadstoryofanidealist(Gatsby)whowasdestroyedbytheinfluenceofthewealthy,pleasure-seekingpeoplearoundhim.Thebookmirrorstheexperiencesandattitudesofthe1920s.(3)ThenovelembodiesthedisillusionmentoftheAmericanDream.(4)ThenarratorisNickCarraway,ayoungMidwesterner.Literaryterms:1.JazzAge:TheJazzAgedescribestheperiodfrom1918-1930;theyearsaftertheendofWorldWarI,continuingthroughtheRoaringTwentiesandendingwiththeriseoftheGreatDepression.ThetraditionalvaluesofthepreviousperiodsawgreatdeclinewhiletheAmericanstockmarketsoared.Theagetakesitsnamefromjazz,whichsawatremendoussurgeinpopularityamongmanysegmentsofsociety.Amongtheprominentconcernsandtrendsoftheperiodarethepublicembraceoftechnologicaldevelopments(typicallyseenasprogress)-cars,airtravelandthetelephoneaswellasnewmodernisttrendsinsocialbehavior,thearts,andculture.2.TheIcebergAnalogy:TheiceberganalogyisHemingway’sstyle.Hethinksthatgoodliterarywritingshouldbeabletomakereadersfeeltheemotionofthecharactersdirectlyandthebestwaytoproducetheeffectistosetdownexactlyeveryparticularkindoffeelingwithoutanyauthorialcomments,withoutconventionallyemotivelanguage,andwithabareminimumofadjectivesandadverbs.3.Transcendentalism(1)TranscendentalismreferstothereligiousandphilosophicaldoctrinesofRalphWaldoEmersonandothersinNewEnglandinthemiddle1800’s,whichemphasizedtheimportanceofindividualinspirationandintuition,theOver-soul,andNature.OtherconceptsthataccompaniedTranscendentalismincludetheideathatnatureisennoblingandtheideathattheindividualisdivineand,therefore,self-reliant.(2)NewEnglandTranscendentalismistheproductofacombinationofnativeAmericanPuritanismandEuropeanRomanticism.4.FreeVerse(1)FreeVersemeanstherhymedorunrhymedpoetrycomposedwithoutpayingattentiontoconventionalrulesofmeter.(2)FreeversewasoriginatedbyagroupofFrenchpoetsofthelate19thcentury.(3)Theirpurposewastofreethemselvesfromtherestrictionofformalmetricalpatternsandtorecreateinsteadthefreerhythmsofnaturalspeech.(4)WaltWhitman’sLeavesofGrassis,perhaps,themostotableexample.5.AmericanNaturalism.(1)TheAmericannaturalistsacceptedthemorenegativeinterpretationofDarwin’sevolutionarytheoryandusedittoaccountforthebehaviorofthosecharactersinliteraryworksthatwereregardedasmoreorlesscomplexcombinationofinherited