Part III The Literature of Romanticism 中.ppt

1、The American Romanticism (II) New England Transcendentalism,超验主义思想与美国浪漫主义文学,美国超验主义,超验：超越经验，针对波士顿的唯一神教派的冷淡古板的理性主义而提出。 人类具有本能了解或认识真理的能力，能够超过感官获取知识。 兴起时间地点：19世纪30年代，新英格兰 实质：一场思想解放运动，先表现为宗教，哲学思想中的改革，后扩展到文学创作领域.,超验主义的核心观点：,超验主义的核心观点是主张人能超越感觉和理性而直接认识真理，认为人类世界的一切都是宇宙的一个缩影“世界将其自身缩小成为一滴露水”（爱默生语）。超验主义者强调万物本质上

2、的统一，万物皆受“超灵”制约，而人类灵魂与“超灵”一致。这种对人之神圣的肯定使超验主义者蔑视外部的权威与传统，依赖自己的直接经验。超验主义观点强调人的主观能动性，有助于打破加尔文教的“人性恶”、“命定论”等教条的束缚，为热情奔放，抒发个性的浪漫主义文学奠定了思想基础。,超验主义思想内核有三个：,灵魂或圣灵 圣灵是全能的，无所不在的。 “个人” “个人”是社会中最重要的因素 ，强调个人的重要性。 自然自然万物是圣灵的体现和象征。,Transcendentalism (1): Introduction,Time (1836-1865): In 1836, a little book came ou

3、t which made a tremendous impact on the intellectual life of America. It was entitled Nature by Ralph Waldo Emerson. The New World was thrilled to hear the new voice it uttered. A whole new way of thinking began to exert its influence on the consciousness of man. Natures voice pushed American Romant

4、icism into a new phase, New England Transcendentalism, the summit of American Romanticism.,Transcendentalism (2): Background,Some New Englanders who were not quite happy about the materialistic-oriented life of their time formed themselves into an informal club, the Transcendentalist club, and met t

5、o discuss matters of interest to the life of the nation as a whole. They expressed their views, published their journal, The Dial, and made their voice heard. Transcendental club became the movements center with it magazine The Dial.（日晷）,(3) Major Features:,Placed emphasis on spirit or oversoul as t

6、he most important thing in the universe. omnipresent, omniscient 无所不知的, omnipotent 无所不能的 Stressed the importance of the individual as the most important element of society. The ideal type of man was self-reliant. Nature as symbol of the spirit or God. It was the garment of the oversoul.,(4) It was a

7、 system of thought that originated from four sources:,1) Unitarianism.唯一神论,唯一理教 It believed God as one being, rejecting the doctrine of trinity (圣父圣子圣灵)三位一体论 stressing the tolerance of difference in religious opinion, and giving each congregation (宗教团体) the free control of its own affairs and its in

8、dependent authority. It laid the foundation for the doctrines of transcendentalism. 2) Neoplatonism 柏拉图主义,神秘主义哲学 3) Idealistic philosophy德国理性哲学 4) Oriental mysticism 东方神秘主义,(5) Definition,The term Transcendentalism is derived from the Latin verb transcendere, meaning to rise above or to pass beyond

9、the limits. Transcendentalism has been defined philosophically as “the recognition in man of the capacity of knowing truth intuitively, or of attaining knowledge transcending the reach of the five senses, or of reaching the divine without the need of an intercessor (调解者)”.,(6) Significance,1) Transc

10、endental ideas inspired young people to cast off their enslavement to the past, to follow God within and to live with strenuousness (艰苦), and to regard nature as the great object lesson proving Gods presence everywhere in His creation. 2) It became an ethical guide to life for a young nation of Amer

11、ica. It preached positive life and appealed to the best side of human nature. 3) New England Transcendentalism is the summit of American Romanticism.,The Representativesof American Renaissance,The Essayists Ralph Waldo Emerson Henry David Thoreau,Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882),Major Works,Essays散

12、文集 Nature论自然(a book which declared the birth of Transcendentalism) The American Scholar论美国学者(Americans Declaration of Intellectual Independence) Divinity, The Oversoul论超灵 Self-reliance论自立 The Transcendentalist超验主义者,Philosophical ideas,firm belief in the transcendence of the Oversoul the individual i

13、s the most important of all. (the infinitude of man) Nature is emblematic (象征性, 标记的) of God, mediating between man and God,Features of his essays,Content: In his essays, Emerson put forward his philosophy of the over-soul, the importance of the individual and nature, which inspired a whole generatio

14、n of famous American authors. Style: Emersons essays often have a casual style, for most of them were derived from his journals or lectures. They are usually characterized by a series of short, declarative sentences, which are not quite logically connected but will flower out into illustrative state

15、ments of truth and thoughts.,Significance I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God. “我站在空地上，头沐浴在和煦的空气里，仰望着无垠的太空，小我的一切都消失了，我变成了一只透明的眼球；本身不复存在；我洞察一切；上帝的精气在我周身循环；我成为上帝的一部分。” 这是表明爱默生超验主义观的名言，强调人与自然界的和谐一致。这是爱默生浪漫主义思想的主体，也是论自然一文的钥匙。,Qu

16、estion 1: How do you understand the philosophical ideas in these words?,Emerson regards nature as the purest, and the most sanctifying 尊崇 moral influence on man, and advocated a direct intuition of a spiritual and immanent 无所不在的 God in nature. This is a moment of conversation when one feels complete

17、ly merged with the outside world, when one has completely sunk into nature and become one with it, when the soul has gone beyond the physical limits of the body to share the omniscience of the Oversoul. Emerson sees spirit pervading everywhere, not only in the soul of man, but behind nature, through

18、out nature.,Question 2: Tell your comprehension of it.,It is a classic piece in American Transcendental writing, for it first of all contains the most effective pun on “I” (eye) used to demonstrate fully the spirituality of human beings. It also illustrates Emersonian philosophy of each individual h

19、uman-being being part of the Universe, that is, the over-soul. It confirms the divinity of human beings.,论自然超验主义思想节选 (7)：,Nature always wears the colors of the spirit. “大自然永远带着精神的色彩” Nature is the symbol of spirit. 自然界是精神的象征物 Particular natural facts are symbols of particular spiritual facts. 他主张发挥人

20、的超验作用。在他看来,精神渗透人的心灵和自然界,物质为精神之象征。世界万物有其表状,也有其内涵。,Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862),Famous Works,A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers and Walden / Walden 瓦尔登湖1854 Civil Disobedience 论公民之不服从 It influenced people such as Mahatma Gandhi.,Walden:,The book described the authors extremely simple life

21、 when he lived near the Walden pond, and is a faithful record of his reflections when he was in solitary communion with nature (the pantheistic quality of nature) A book on self-culture and human perfectibility. Thoreau criticized the modern civilization and told people to leave the life of hurry an

22、d bustle and to sink themselves in nature. Spiritual richness is real wealth.,Impatient with the overstress on the external development of human beings, such as railroad, telegraph. Regeneration (再生) became a major thematic concern of Walden and decided the structural framework: Walden unfolds in a

23、single year, and progresses through summer and autumn to winter, and finally too a climax in the renascence (新生) of spring.,A reproduction of Thoreaus cabin with a statue of Thoreau,Background information of Walden,Thoreau did not intend to live as a hermit, for he received visitors and returned the

24、ir visits. Instead, he hoped to isolate himself from society in order to gain a more objective understanding of it. Simple living and self-sufficiency were Thoreaus other goals, and the whole project was inspired by transcendentalist philosophy, which was one of the key ideas of the American Romanti

25、c Period. As Thoreau made clear in his book, his cabin was not in wilderness but at the edge of town, not far from his family home.,Synopsis (contents),1. Economy This is the first chapter and also the longest by far. Thoreau begins by outlining his project: a two-year and two-month stay at a crude

26、cabin in the woods near Walden Pond. He does this, he says, in order to illustrate the spiritual benefits of a simplified lifestyle. He easily supplies the four necessities of life (food, shelter, clothing, and fuel). He meticulously records his expenditures and earnings, demonstrating his understan

27、ding of economy, as he builds his house and buys and grows food. For a home and freedom, he spends a mere $28.13.,Synopsis (contents),2. Where I Lived, and What I Lived For After playing with the idea of buying a farm, Thoreau describes his cabins location. Then he explains that he took up his abode

28、 (住所) at Walden Woods so as to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.,Reading Sounds Solitude Visitors The Bean-Field The Village The Pounds Baker Farm Higher Laws,Br

29、ute Neighbors House-Warming Former Inhabitants; and Winter Visitors Winter Animals The Pound in Water Spring Conclusion,Themes,Walden emphasizes the importance of self-reliance, solitude, contemplation, and closeness to nature in transcending the desperate existence that, he argues, is the lot of mo

30、st humans.,Style:,Prophetic voice. The epigraph (引语) is a good example of how he was trying to be a prophet in this book. Conversional in tone. Humor. He achieved humor in 4 waysthrough puns, satire, irony, and sarcasm. Proverbial expressions. This is a part of the colloquial style, the folk style. He use a minimum of words to put a maximum of meaning. Brief tales, fables, and allegories. Metaphors. Direc