美国文学选读部分习题答案归纳

1、Unit2 Edgar Allan Poe1) Who is the narrator? What wrong does he want to redress?It is Montresor. Fortunato has given Montresor thousands of injuries that he has to bear before he has this opportunity of taking revenge.2) What is the pretext Montresor uses to lure Fortunado to his wine cellar?He clai

2、ms that he has just got a cask of Amontilado and stores it in the wine cellar before he may find a connoisseur to testify to its authenticity.3) What happens to Fortunado in the end?The deceived Fortunado is killed because of his inability of getting out of the catacomb.4) Describe briefly how Poe c

3、haracterizes Mortresor and Fortunado as contrasts.Poe characterizes Mortresor and Fortunado as seemingly contrasting characters chiefly by presenting their identical habit in wine and their different manners towards each other, but actually he intends to show some similarly defective aspects in thei

4、r nature. The similarity in their nature is also suggested by their names as synonyms in Italian: Mortresor means “fortune” while Fortunado “treasure”. Their defective nature is highlighted when the revenger Mortresor, who is fully prepared on psychological and operating levels, throws the hardly pr

5、epared but totally deceived wrong-doer Fortunado into the deep and damp catacomb and blocks up its entrance with huge rocks.Lecture 4 Nathaniel HawthorneQuestions :1.Why is the prison the setting of Chapter 1 ? No matter how optimistic the founders of new colonies may be, they are quick to establish

6、 a prison and a cemetery in their “Utopia,” for they know that misbehavior, evil, and death are unavoidable. This belief fits into the larger Puritan doctrine, which puts heavy emphasis on the idea of original sinthe notion that all people are born sinners because of the initial transgressions of Ad

7、am and Eve in the Garden of Eden. he is therefore using the prison building to represent the crime and the punishment which are aspect of civilized lifeWhat is the implication of the description of the roses?The rosebush symbolizes the ability of nature to endure and outlast mans activities. The nar

8、rator suggests that roses offer a reminder of Natures kindness to the condemned; for his tale, he says, it will provide either a “sweet moral blossom” or else some relief in the face of unrelenting sorrow and gloom.2.Describe the appearance of Hester Prynne and the attitude of the people towards her

9、.The second paragraph on page 30.The crowd in front of the jail is a mixture of men and women, all maintaining severe looks of disapproval. Several of the women begin to discuss Hester Prynne, and they soon vow that Hester would not have received such a light sentence for her crime if they had been

10、the judges. One woman, the ugliest of the group, goes so far as to advocate death for Hester. 3.What has happened to Hester? As a young woman, Hester married an elderly scholar, Chillingworth, who sent her ahead to America to live. While waiting for him, she had an affair with a Puritan minister nam

11、ed Dimmesdale, after which she gave birth to Pearl. The scarlet letter is her punishment for her sin and her secrecy. Why does she make the embroidery of the letter A so elaborate?It seems to declare that she is proud, rather than ashamed, of her sin. In reality, however, Hester simply accepts the “

12、sin” and its symbol as part of herself, just as she accepts her child. And although she can hardly believe her present “realities,” she takes them as they are rather than resisting them or trying to atone for them.How does this tell us about her character?Throughout The Scarlet Letter Hester is port

13、rayed as an intelligent, capable. It is the extraordinary circumstances shaping her that make her such an important figure.Unit 5 Herman Melville1. What are the stories Ismael tells about Moby Dick?Ishmael compares the legend of Moby Dick to his experience of the whale. He notes that sperm whale att

14、acks have increased recently and that superstitious sailors have come to regard these attacks as having an intelligent, even supernatural origin. In particular, wild rumors about Moby Dick circulate among whalemen, suggesting that he can be in more than one place at the same time and that he is immo

15、rtal. Ishmael remarks that even the wildest of rumors usually contains some truth. Whales, for instance, have been known to travel with remarkable speed from the Atlantic to the Pacific; thus, it is possible for a whale to be caught in the Pacific with the harpoons of a Greenland ship in it.Moby Dic

16、k, who has defied capture numerous times, exhibits an “intelligent malignity”（狠毒） in his attacks on men2. Why does Ahab react so violently against the white whale?First, he lost one of his legs because of the white whale.Second,He considers Moby Dick the embodiment of evil in the world, and he pursu

17、es the White Whale，because he believes it his inescapable fate to destroy this evil.Ishmael suggests that Ahab is “crazy”and call him “a raving lunatic.” Do you agree with him? Why or why not?Ishmael describes Ahab as mad in his narration, and it does indeed seem mad to try to fight the forces of na

18、ture or God. 3. What narrative features can you find in the selected chapter?In the selected charpter, Melville employed the technique of multiple view of his narrative to portray Moby Dick to achieve the effect of ambiguity and let readers judge the meaning.Lecture 6 Herman Melville1.Where indeed d

19、id Thoreau live, both at a physical level and at a spiritual level?He lived in a cabin on Walden Pond, which belonged to Emersons property.2.Had Thoreau ever bought a farm? Why did he enjoy the act of buying?No, he hadnt. He avoided purchasing a farm because it would inevitably tie him down financia

20、lly and complicate his life. Thoreau didnt see the acquisition of wealth as the goal for human existence, he saw the goal of life to be an exploration of the mind and of the magnificent world around us. He regarded the places as an existence free of obligations and full of leisure.3.Is it significan

21、t that Thoreau mentioned the Fourth of July as the day on which he began to stay in the woods? Why?Yes, it is.Because The Fourth of July is known as Independence Day,the birthday ot the United States.Here Thoreau uses the day to express his beginning ofregeneration at Walden.It also means a symbol o

22、f his conquest of being. 4.How could you answer the question Thoreau asked at the end of this selection?Unit 7 19th Century American Poets1. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow(1) I Shot an Arrow1. Why did the speaker lose sight of his arrow and song?The arrow flies too swiftly and too far away to be seen by

23、 the speaker; whereas the song is naturally invisible.2. In what circumstances did he find them again?He finds them unexpectedly years later from the trunk of a tree and the heart of a friend.3. What do arrow and song stand for in this poem?The images of arrow and song here may stand for friendship.

24、(2) A Psalm of Life1. What kind of person is the speaker of this poem?The speaker is a man of action, always optimistic and cheerful, trying to achieve as much as possible in the short span of life.2. According to the poem, how should our lives be led to overcome the fact that each day brings us nea

25、rer to death?We should work harder and live happier.3. Interpret the metaphor of Footprints on the sand of time (line 28).The metaphor refers to human deeds in real life.2. Walt Whitman(1)Ones Self I Sing1. What is the significance of singing about ones self?It is an exaltation of the individual spi

26、rit, which is typical of American people.2. What is the difference between physiology and physiognomy?Physiology is a science that deals with the functions and life process of human beings, whereas physiognomy refers to an art of judging character from contours of face itself or the appearance of a

27、person.3. What does Whitman mean by the term of the Modern Man?He means that a man should be free from any prejudice and pride, totally different from the traditional one, that is full of bias.(3) O Captain! My Captain!1. Why is the word Captain capitalized throughout the poem?In this poem the word

28、“Captain” specially refers to Abraham Lincoln, president of the United States.2. What overall metaphor does the poet employ in this poem?Life is a journey.3. Why do people on the shores exult and bells ring, while the speaker remains so sad?They welcome the ship returning from its hard trip, whereas

29、 the speaker is sad because the captain fails to receive his own honor.3.Emily Dickinson(1) To Make a Prairie 1. What things are needed to make a prairie? In what sense can one really do it?Some grass and insects and small animals. People can make a prairie with their imagination.2. How can revery a

30、lone create a prairie?The prairie stays in ones mind.(2) Success Is Counted Sweetest1. Why is success counted sweetest by those who neer succeed?Those who have tasted the bitterness of failure would have a keener desire for success.2. Who are the purple host?The so-called successful people in the wo

31、rld.3. Who is he in the last stanza?Anyone who is pursuing his success.(3) Im Nobody!1. Who are the pair of us and they in this poem?The pair of us refers to the speaker in the poem and the reader, and they refers to the public, especially those in power.2. What does an admiring bog really mean? (li

32、ne 28).It Implies the vain and empty common people, who are always admiring and pursuing the celebrities.3. What is the theme of this poem?The real admirable life is a secluded and common one.4. Do you want to be nobody or somebody? Explain your reasons.Different persons would have different answers

33、 to this question. Personally, I prefer to be nobody.Unit 17 20th-Century American Poets1. Ezra PoundIn A Station of the Metro1. Why does the poet call the faces of pedestrians apparition?These pedestrians are all walking in a hurry amidst the drizzling rain.2. What do petals and bough stand for?Pet

34、als refer to the faces while the bough stands for the floating crowd.2. Wallace StevensAnecdote of the Jar1. What does the jar in poem symbolize? Why does the speaker place it on top of a hill?The jar here symbolizes a certain perspective on looking at this world. If the perspective of the viewing i

35、s creative and unique, it will change the conventional order of the old world. When a new perspective comes out, it will certainly hold attention from the rest.2. The jar is round and of a port in air, meaning that it has a stately importance. What effect does it have on surroundings when placed on

36、the ground?Maybe the round jar assumes the air of a domineering figure, which helps to form a certain order out of the disordered surrounding.3. How did the wilderness of Tennessee characterized? What words or phrases does the poet use to describe it?Tennessee seems to a place full of life and energ

37、y. “Slovenly,” “sprawl” and “wild” are some of the words used to describe the place. (See Anecdote of the Jar )4.Robert Frost(1)Fire and Ice1. What are the symbolic meanings of fire in this poem?Fire symbolizes natural disaster, human passion, as well as war.2. Why does the speaker say that ice is a

38、lso great for destruction? Explain what ice stands for here.Ice, oppose to fire, is also a dreadful natural disaster in this world, and ice is always related to indifference, coldness, hatred, and the other negative sentiments of human beings.3. What is your opinion about fire and ice? Which one is

39、more destructive?Both fire and ice can destroy this beautiful world if they are beyond control of human beings. Therefore we should be open-minded and reduce our prejudice and pride so as to keep this world in peace. (2)Stopping By Woods On a Snowy Evening1. In your opinion, what was the reason that made the speaker stop by the woods on a snowy evening?The poet was deeply attracted by the natural beauty of the scene at that very moment.2. Why did the horse give the harness bell a shake?The horse grew impatient by stopping in the middle of t