第一篇:《英國文學》讀后感
Puritanism Features: 1.Predestination: God decided everything before things occurred.2.Original sin: Human beings were born to be evil, and this original sin can be passed down from generation to generation.3.Total depravity4.Limited atonement: Only the “elect” can be saved.Influence1.A group of good qualities – hard work, thrift, piety, sobriety(serious and thoughtful)influenced American literature.2.It led to the everlasting myth.All literature is based on a myth – garden of Eden.3.Symbolism: the American puritan’s metaphorical mode of perception was chiefly instrumental in calling into being a literary symbolism which is distinctly American.4.With regard to their writing, the style is fresh, simple and direct;the rhetoric is plain and honest, not without a touch of nobility often traceable to the direct influence of the Bible.General features of Romanticism
A.Stressing emotion rather than reasonB.Stressing freedom and individuality
C.Idealism rather than materialismD.Writing about nature, medieval legends and with supernatural elements
Features of American Romanticism
A.Imitative
B.Independent
a.peculiar American experience(landscape, pioneering to the West, Indian civilization, new nation's democracy and dreams)
b.Puritan heritage(more moralizing, edifying more than mere entertainment)(careful about love and sex.example: Scarlet Letter)
“Father of American literature”“Father of the American short story”
The first American writher of imaginative literature to gain international fame.The short story as a genre in American literature began with Irving’s The Sketch Book.The Sketch Book also marked the beginning of American Romanticism.超越主義features:
A.Emphasis on Spirit(Oversoul)(超靈)against “world is made of matter”;against “neglecting of spiritual life in capitalist world”
B.Emphasis on individualsOld Puritan views: self-reliance and self-improvement Through communication with Oversoul, human being can be divine.against “total depravity” in Old Puritan doctrinesagainst dehumanization of capitalist world
C.Taking nature as the symbol of the Spirit(Oversoul)
encouraging people to find goodness and beauty from nature
against materialism in the society and the actions which broke the harmony between human and nature only for profits
D.Brotherhood of man(equal and liberty)interested in social reforms;endeavor to create an ideal society;against “everything for money” in the capitalist world
Significance:A.influenced a large group of writersB.summit of American RomanticismC.marked the independence of American literature
Emerson’s aesthetics brought about a revolution in American literature in general and in American poetry in particular.It marked the birth of true American poetry and true American poets.Robert Frost Features
(1)His poems mostly wrote about nature(influence from Wordsworth and Emerson)and New England landscape.(2)Deceptively simple style(reason for popular)(3)Symbolism(show his poems’ deep meaning)(4)He was likely to choose traditional forms for his poem, but the themes of his poems are mostly modern.(In his poems, traditional elements and modern elements mingle together.)
In Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening, Frost uses the kind of familiar New England details that constitute his poetry for more than descriptive purposes.He shapes them into a meditation on the tension we sometimes feel between life’s responsibilities and the “lovely, dark, and deep” attraction that death offers.When the speaker’s horse “gives his harness bells a shake”, we are reminded that we are confronting a universal theme as well as a quiet moment of natural beauty.Emily Dickinson Features
A.Strong influence of Puritanism on her thought(pessimism and tragic tone of her poems)
B.Care about death and immortality(1/3 of all her poems talked about these two themes.)
C.exploring human’s inner world(psychology description in her poems)
D.severe economy of expressionE.original imagesF.direct and plain language G.great influence on the Imagist Movement in the 20th century
The poem is discussing death, a very gloomy subject, but it is done with a rather light tone.The tone is light just because the author does not take death as a catastrophe;instead, she treats the angel of death as a very polite gentleman, as a long-missing guest, giving up her work and leisure, putting on her fine silky dresses, she accompanies death in the same carriage to eternity.All the beauty of this work lies in the poetess’ open-minded attitude towards death.Edgar Allan Poe 詩的特點:father of modern short story,father of detective story
father of psychoanalytic criticisma.Gothic elements(terror and romance)
b.deep analysis of human psychology(He noticed subconscious of human mind nearly one hundred year before Freud.)(He was also the first American author who took neurotic characters as main characters in his stories.)c.precursor of detective stories(e.g.“The Murders in the Rue Morgue”)and science stories
The aim of poem writing is beauty;the most beautiful thing described by a poem is the death of a beautiful woman;the desirable tone of a poem is melancholy;
Whiteman featuresA.He extols the ideals of and and celebrates the B.employing “free verse” as the form of his poems with two characteristics: parallelism;phonetic recurrence(P92-P93)What is the difference between free verse and blank verse?(blank verse has no rhyme, but it should be iambic pentameter)C.frankness of the commonplace and the ugly sides in human lifeD.direct, plain and even vulgar languageE.“untold latencies”(his poetry suggests rather than tell)F.great influence on the 20th century American poets
The Jazz Age
Specifically the 1920s, when young men and women indulge in a whirl of frenetic social excitement or dissipation fostered by the collapse of moral standards during and following World War I.The term was established by Fitzgerald in his Tales of the Jazz Age(1922)
The Great Gatsby Symbolism
Gatsby: the country’s historyDaisy: seemingly beautiful American Dream
Tom: commercialization which brought the country only moral depravityNick: hope of the countryMore: The green light on Daisy’s dock, the eyes of Doctor T.J.Ekleburg, the valley of ashes, Gatsby’s parties, East Egg, West Egg.Theme: disillusionment of American Dream in the materialized America
The decline of the American dream, the spirit of the 1920s, the difference between social classes, the role of symbols in the human conception of meaning, the role of the past in the dreams of the future.
第二篇:英國文學傲慢與偏見讀后感
Pride and Prejudice
There is no doubt that pride and prejudice is one of Jane’ masterpieces.It tells the story of Mr.and Mrs.Bennet, and their five young, unmarried daughters.The plot revolves mainly around Elizabeth and her troublesome romance with the wealthy but arrogant Mr.Darcy.Also, this novel introduces other “love and marriage” stories to us.Thus, we know that it focuses on the theme of “love and marriage”.There are five different kinds of marriages.First one is the marriage between Mr.and Mrs.Bennet.Mr.Bennet married Mrs.Bennet because of her appearance.So he had all the time to regret his mistakes and could not stop mocking his wife.Second one is the marriage between Mr.Collins and Charlotte.Their marriage is based on economics rather than on love or appearance.So we can learn that their marriage can be called as a material trade.Third one can be described as the worst one in the novel.Lydia and Wickham’s marriage was based on appearances, good looks, and youthful vivacity.Once all these disappeared, the once strong relationship will slowly fade away.Then the love story between Jane and Bingley, they fall in love at the first sight.However, due to their personalities, they miss each other at first.Luckily, with the help of Elizabeth and Mr.Darcy, they eliminated the misunderstanding and expressed their love to each other.Their marriage is better than the preceding three ones.Finally,the marriage between Elizabeth and Mr.Darcy.Mr.Darcy represents the pride, while the prejudice is represented by Elizabeth’s attitude to Mr.Darcy.At first, Mr.Darcy was so proud that he looked upon Elizabeth’s family.And Elizabeth has some prejudice on him.Mr.Darcy’s persistence and his change for love make Elizabeth accept him at last.I think it is the perfect love in the novel because the marriage is based on both true love and material.From this novel, I learnt that if “love and marriage” is only based on money or social status, it would be unhappy, but it is also stupid without considering all of these.Both true love and material should be considered if we want to establish a home.
第三篇:英國文學練習題
英國文學選讀練習
1.English Romanticism is generally said to have begun with_____in 1798.A.the publication of Lyrical BalladsB.the death of Sir Scott
C.the birth of William WordsworthD the passage of the first Reform Bill in the Parliament
2.The Romantic Period is first of all an age of_____.A.NovelB.poetryC.dramaD.prose
3.Romanticism does not emphasize_____.A.the special qualities of each individual’s mindB.the inner world of the human spirit
C.IndividualityD.the features that men have in common
4._____ is not a Romantic poet.A.William BlakeB.Sir ScottC.P.B.ShelleyD.Lord Byron
5._____ is a Romantic novelist but is impressed with neo-classic strains.A.Walter ScottB.Mary ShelleyC.Jane AustenD.Ann Radcliff
6._____ is not characteristic of William Blake’s writing.A.plain and direct languageB.compression of meaningC.supernatural qualityD.symbolism
7.Wordsworth published Lyrical Ballads in 1789 with _____.A.ByronB.ColeridgeC.ShelleyD.Keats
8.Wordsworth thinks that _____ is the only subject of literary interest.A.the life of rising bourgeoisieB.aristocratic lifeC.the life of the royal familyD.common life
9.Don Juan is the masterpiece of_____.A.Lord Byron’sB.P.B.Shelley’sC.John Keats’sD.Samuel Coleridge’s
10._____ is not a novel written by Jane Austen.A.Jane EyreB.Sense and SensibilityC.Pride and PrejudiceD.Emma
II.Decide whether the following statements are true or false and write your answers in the brackets.(T)1.The Romantic period is also a great age of prose.(T)2.Romantics also tend to be nationalistic, defending their own literary heritage against the advocates of classical rules.(F)3.Coleridge has been rewarded as Poet Laureate.(F)4.Keats is one of the “Lake Poets.”
(F)5.Jane Austen is a typical Romantic writer.III.Name the author of each of the following literary work.1.“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”-----Coleridge
2.Songs of Innocence-----Blake
3“Ode to a Nightingale”-----Keats
4.“A Song: Men of England”-----Shelley
5.The Prelude-----Wordsworth
IV.Define the literary terms listed below
1.Romanticism: Romanticism is a movement that flourished in literature, philosophy, music and art in western culture during most of the nineteenth century, beginning as a revolt against classicism.There have been many varieties of Romanticism in many different times and places.The leading features of Romantic movements are Wordsworth, Shelley, etc.2.Ode:Ode is a complex and often lengthy lyric poem, written in a dignified formal style on some lofty or serious subject.Odes are often written for a special occasion, to honour a person or a season or to commemorate an event.V.For each of the quotations listed below please give the name of the author and the title of the literary work from which it is taken and then briefly interpret it.1….Be through my lips to unawakened Earth.The trumpet of a prophecy!O, Wind,If winter comes, can Spring be far behind?
2.For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,And dances with the daffodils.V.1.It is taken from Shelley’s Ode to the West Wind.In this poem, Shelley eulogizes the powerful west wind and expresses his eagerness to enjoy the boundless freedom from the reality.In these last lines, the poet shows his optimistic spirit for the future.2.It is taken from Wordsworth’s “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud.” The poet thinks that it is a bliss to recollect the beauty of nature in his mind while he is in solitude.He expresses his strong affecting for nature in the poem.1.The Renaissance is actually a movement stimulated by a series of historical events, which one of the following is not such an event?
A.The rediscovery of ancient Rome and Greek culture.B.England's domestic rest.C.New discovery in geography and astrology.D.The religious reformation and the economic expansion.2.Which of the following is regarded as the most successful religious allegory in the English language.A.The Pilgrim's ProgressB.Grace Abounding to the Chief of SinnersC.The Life and Death of Mr.BadmanD.The Holy War
3.It isalone who, for the first time in English literature, presented to us a comprehensive realistic picture of the English society of his time and created a whole gallery of vivid characters from all walks of life.A.Geoffrey Chaucer B.Martin Luther C.William Langland D.John Gower
4.All of the following four exceptare the most eminent dramatists in the Renaissance England.A.Francis Bacon B.Christopher Marlowe C.William Shakespeare D.Ben Jonson
5.It is generally regarded that Keats's most important and mature poems are in the form of.A.elegy B.ode C.epic D.sonnet
6.Daniel Defoe's novels mainly focus on.A.the struggle of the unfortunate for mere existenceB.the struggle of the shipwrecked persons for security
C.the struggle of the pirates for wealthD.the desire of the criminals for property
7.In Beowulf,fought against the monster Grendel and a five breathing dragon.A.the Anglo-Saxons B.Beowulf C.the Scandinavian D.the Winter Dragon
8.Francis Bacon is best known for hiswhich greatly influenced the development of this literary form.A.essays B.poems C.works D plays
9.Most of Thomas Hardy's novels are set in Wessex.A.a crude region in EnglandB.a fictional primitive regionC.a remote rural areaD.Hardy's hometown
10.We can perhaps describe the west wind in Shelley's poem “Ode to the West Wind” with all the following terms except.A.swift B.proud C.tamed D.wild
11.“Blindness”, “partiality”, “prejudice”, and “absurdity” in the novel “Pride and Prejudice” are most likely the characteristics of.A.Elizabeth B.Darcy C.Mr.Bennet D.Mrs.Bennet
12.The modern English novel came into being in.A.the middle of the 17th centuryB.the 17th centuryC.the late 18th centuryD.the middle of the 18th century
13.Who is not the major figure of modernist movement?
A.Eliot B.Joyce C.Charles Dickens D.Pound
14.Who is considered to be the best known English dramatist since Shakespeare?
A.Oscar Wilde B.John Galsworthy C.W.B.Yeats D.George Bernard Shaw
15.Of the following poets, which is not regarded as “Lake Poets”?
A.Samuel Taylor Coleridge B.Robert Southy C.William Words worth D.William Shakespeare
16.In the first part of Gulliver's Travels, Gulliver told his experience in.A.Lilliput B.Brobdingnag C.Houyhnhnm D.England
17.Which of the following cannot describe “Byronic hero”?
A.proud B.mysterious C.noble origin D progressive
18.In the history of literature, Romanticism is generally regarded as.A.the thought that designates a literary and philosophical theory which tends to see the individual as the very center of all life and all
experience.B.the thought that designates man as a social animal
C.the orientation that emphasizes those features which men have in common
D.the modes of thinking
19.The term “metaphysical poetry” is commonly used to name the work of the 17th century writers who wrote under the influence of.A.John Milton B.John Donne C.John Keats D.John Bunyan
20.“The Vanity Fair” is a well-known part in.A.The Pilgrim's Progress B.Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners
C.The Life and Death of Mr.Badman D.The Holy War
21.In Oliver Twist, Charles criticizes.A.money worshipping tendencyB.dehumanizing of workhouse systemC.hypocrisy of the upper societyD.distortion of human heart
22.Which of the following plays by Shakespeare is history play?
A.Otharo B.The Merry Wives of Windsor C.Henry IV D.King Lear
23.Who is regarded as a “worshipper of nature”.A.John Keats B.William Blake C.William Wordsworth D.Jane Austen
24.Which of the following writing is not the work by Charles Dickens?
A.A Tale of Two Cities B.Hard Times C.Oliver Twist D.Sons and Lovers
25.The 18th century England is known as thein the history.A.Romanticism B.Classicism C.Renaissance D.Enlightenment
26.Romance, which uses narrative verse or prose to tell stories of ___ adventures or other heroic deeds, is a popular literary form in the medieval period.A.ChristianB.knightlyC.GreekD.Primitive
27.The Romantic writers would focus on all the following issues EXCEPT the ___.A.individual feelingsB.idea of survival of the fittestC.strong imaginationD.return to nature
28.Generally , the Renaissance refers to the period between the 14th and mid-17th centuries, its essence is.A.scienceB.philosophyC.artsD.humanism
29.In the field of literature, the Enlightenment Movement brought about a revival of interest in the old classical works.This tendency is known as.A.ClassicismB.NeoclassicismC.RomanticismD.pre-Romanticism
30.Paradise Lost is actually a story taken from
A.the RenaissanceB.the Old TestamentC.Greek MythologyD.the New Testament
Complete each of the following statements with a proper word or a phrase according to the textbook.(20×1 points)
1.In “The Canterbury Tales”, Chaucer employed theheroic couplet with true ease and charm for the first time in the history of English literature.2.Christopher Marlowe is the most gifted of the “University Wits ”.3.The term “ metaphysical poetry” is commonly used to name the work of the 17th“If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?”, which might appear rhetorical, but is more probably intended to indicate Shelley's own uncertainty.It is important to note that Shelley did not advocate the willing application of force and revolution.Clearly the poet hoped that radical social change, or a rebirth of personal inspiration, could be accomplished without violence.His comments in his notebook are useful to help us to read this final line: “the spring rebels not against winter but it succeeds it-the dawn rebels not against night but it disperses it.” The unanswered question in this poem is whether or not the same cyclical inevitability will apply to social and political change as it does to the changes within Nature.
第四篇:英國文學概論
一、中世紀文學
古英語文學 英格蘭島的早期居民凱爾特人和其他部族,沒有留下書面文學作品。5世紀時,原住北歐的三個日耳曼部落——盎格魯、撒克遜和朱特——侵入英國,他們的史詩《貝奧武甫》傳了下來。詩中的英雄貝奧武甫殺巨魔、斗毒龍,并在征服這些自然界惡勢力的過程中為民捐軀。它的背景和情節是北歐的,但摻有基督教成分,顯示出史詩曾幾經修改,已非原貌。按照保存在一部10世紀的手抄本里的版本來看,詩的結構完整,寫法生動,所用的頭韻、重讀字和代稱體現了古英語詩歌的特色。
6世紀末,基督教傳入英國,出現了宗教文學。僧侶們用拉丁文寫書,其中比德所著的《英國人民宗教史》(731年完成)既有難得的史實,又有富于哲理的傳說,受到推崇,并譯成了英文。
此后,丹麥人入侵,不少寺院毀于兵火,學術凋零。9世紀末,韋塞克斯國王阿爾弗雷德大力抗丹,同時著手振興學術,請了一批學者將拉丁文著作譯為英文,并鼓勵編寫《盎格魯—撒克遜編年史》,這是用英國當地語言寫史的開始。
中古英語文學 1066年諾曼人入侵,帶來了歐洲大陸的封建制度,也帶來了一批說法語的貴族。古英語受到了統治階層語言的影響,本身也在起著變化,12世紀后發展為中古英語。文學上也出現了新風尚,盛行用韻文寫的騎士傳奇,它們歌頌對領主的忠和對高貴婦人的愛,其中藝術性高的有《高文爵士與綠衣騎士》。它用頭韻體詩寫成,內容是古代亞瑟王屬下一個“圓桌騎士”的奇遇。
14世紀后半葉,中古英語文學達到了高峰。這時期的重要詩人喬叟的創作歷程,從早期對法國和意大利作品的仿效,進到后來英國本色的寫實,表明了英國文學的自信。他的杰作《坎特伯雷故事集》用優美、活潑的韻文,描寫了一群去坎特伯雷朝圣的人的神態言談;他們來自不同階層和行業,各人所講的故事或雅或俗,揭示了多方面的社會現實。同時,還有教會小職員蘭格倫寫的頭韻體長詩《農夫皮爾斯》(一譯《農夫彼得之夢》),用夢幻的形式和寓意的象征,寫出了1381年農民暴動前后的農村現實,筆鋒常帶嚴峻的是非之感。同樣宣泄下層人民情緒的還有民間歌謠,它們往往是在長時間的口頭流傳之后才寫定的,其中最初見于15世紀抄本的羅賓漢歌謠,描繪了一群農民劫富濟貧、打擊教會僧侶和執法吏的事跡,傳誦至今。
二、文藝復興時期文學
16世紀,由于新航路發現后海外貿易發達,英國國力逐漸充實,民族主義高漲,1588年一舉擊敗大陸強國西班牙派來入侵的“無敵艦隊”。文化上也出現了一個活動頻繁、佳作競出的文藝復興局面。
一如在14世紀的意大利,文藝復興在英國是以重新發現希臘、羅馬的古典文化開始的。大學里恢復了古希臘語的教學,接著出現了規模宏大的翻譯活動,眾多的學者、作家將古代希臘、羅馬和近代意、法等國的學術和文學名著譯成了早期近代英語。哲學家、教育家、歷史家、政治家、宗教人士紛紛從事著述,用不同方式表達了人文主義思想,其中有托馬斯·莫爾用拉丁文寫的《烏托邦》(1516)。這部作品借一個旅行者談海外見聞的方式,描繪了一個沒有私有制和宗教壓迫而崇尚學術的理想社會,而對為了能多產羊毛而大規模圈地、迫使貧苦農民流離失所的“羊吃人”的現實英國作了有力的譴責。
詩歌創作空前活躍,大批詩集出版,開一時風氣的重要詩選也陸續問世,其中《雜集》(1557)發表了華埃特和薩里兩人對于意大利十四行詩的仿作,使這一詩體在英國生根。到了90年代,錫德尼等著名詩人都出版了十四行詩集,雖然仍以歌頌愛情為主,卻能突破舊格局而注入新內容。比十四行更重要的還有其他詩體,或抒情,或敘事,或諷刺,或探討哲理,都有出色的代表作家,而成就最大的則數斯賓塞。他的主要作品《仙后》(1590~1596)規模宏大,內容豐富,利用中古騎士傳奇的體裁,以寓言為主要手法,在精神上卻反對天主教而歌頌作為英國民族象征的伊麗莎白女王,傳達了正在興起的清教主義的嚴峻的道德觀,并且出之以優美而多變的韻文,使得斯賓塞不僅獨步當時詩壇,而且成為后世講究詩藝的作家所仰慕的“詩人的詩人”。
詩歌的成就還包括無韻體詩在劇本里的成功運用。詩同劇的結合產生了這一時期文學最驕傲的成果:詩劇。從16世紀80年代起,詩劇作者們擺脫了中古神秘劇、奇跡劇、道德劇的宗教色彩和粗糙技巧,建立了一種生氣勃勃的新戲劇,敏銳、強烈地表達了時代精神,在藝術上作了多方面的大膽創新。第一個成功地使無韻體詩變成戲劇媒介的是馬洛。他用“壯麗的詩句”寫壯麗的人物,如《帖木兒》(1590)中的中亞大帝國的創立者和《浮士德博士的悲劇》(1604)中的追求無限知識的德國博士,同時又在《愛德華二世》(1594)里將一個國王的遭遇寫成了英國第一個歷史劇。馬洛早死,但是詩劇繼續成長,經過基德、格林、查普曼、德克、米德爾頓、馬斯頓、海伍德等人的創作實踐,題材擴大,技巧更趨成熟,至莎士比亞而集大成。
莎士比亞是演員和劇作家,一生寫了37部劇本。他博采眾長而又自有創造,在歷史劇、喜劇、悲劇、傳奇劇各方面都寫出了杰作。他的9個歷史劇包括了從約翰王到亨利五世(亦即從13世紀初到15世紀末)之間連續300年的英國歷史,場面之大實屬空前,而作者也寫得波瀾壯闊,反封建、反內戰,熱情地歌頌了民族國家的形成。他的喜劇活潑多趣,有濃厚的生活氣息,其中《仲夏夜之夢》(1596)和《皆大歡喜》(1600)又充滿浪漫詩情,令人神馳;《威尼斯商人》(1597)用生動的法庭對抗的場景提出了海外貿易和猶太人放高利貸等經濟問題;而結構完整、語言鋒利則又數揭露清教徒虛偽的《第十二夜》(1601)。他寫悲劇的天才首先見于《羅密歐與朱麗葉》(1595),這個歌頌自由戀愛的劇本象朝露一樣新鮮,而一對純真青年的死又對封建門第的殘酷作了有力的控訴,為后來的西歐乃至世界的文學藝術提供了又一個有長遠吸引力的主題。1600年以后,他的思想更深刻,技巧也更老練,創作了一系列卓越的悲劇,其中《哈姆雷特》(1601)寫一個年輕的人文主義者面對邪惡勢力,在懷疑、猶豫之后終于為“重整乾坤”而獻出生命;《奧瑟羅》(1604)寫一個威尼斯的黑人大將雖然武功蓋世,卻仍然受到邪惡勢力的捉弄,以至親手殺了無辜的愛妻;《李爾王》(1606)寫一個國王在老年做了極不合情理的事,因此也受到極不合情理的對待,終于流落在民間,而在這過程中反而悟到了真理;《麥克白》(1606)則深入探索了野心的毀滅性,在充滿迷信和恐怖的氣氛里,作者卻讓他筆下的罪人不時剖析內心,沉思和反省給了這個悲劇以更大的深度。這一時期的作品標志著莎士比亞達到了他的戲劇藝術的頂點。以后他轉入傳奇劇的寫作,以寬恕和解為主題,其中《暴風雨》(1611)仍是有魅力的佳作。
在莎士比亞創作的末期,詩劇仍然繁榮,不僅有鮑蒙特與弗萊徹等人在寫傳奇劇,還出現了莎士比亞所未曾嘗試的社會諷刺劇,其代表作家是瓊森。他的最好的劇作是《狐貍》(1606年上演)和《煉金術士》(1610年上演),它們把17世紀初年倫敦社會上的騙子、方士、食客、蕩婦、清教徒之流暴露得淋漓盡致,詩句也典麗有力。但瓊森后來為了投合宮廷所好而去寫假面劇。同時舞臺上出現了韋伯斯特、特納等人寫的兇殺劇,他們以絕好的詩才而渲染色情和恐怖,詩劇的敗象已現。等到福特、修萊等人的劇本上演,不僅內容猥瑣,韻文也虛浮,深為在政治上日益強大、信仰清教主義的資產階級所不喜,他們所控制的國會于1642年通過法令,封閉了所有戲院。從16世紀興起的英國詩劇,在經歷了60年的光輝燦爛的成長過程之后,至此乃告衰竭
文藝復興文學中還有豐富多采的散文作品。16世紀的英語雖然稍嫌蕪雜,卻十分富于表達力,敘事、狀物、寫景、辯難,無所不能,因此出現了各種風格的散文,繁麗工整如黎里的《尤佛伊斯》(1579~1580),明白曉暢如納什的《不幸的旅人》(1594),綿密雅潔如胡克的《論教會政策的法則》(1594~1597),簡約雋永如培根的《隨筆》(1597~1625)。上述黎里與納什二書也是原始形態的小說。此外還有德洛尼寫小城鎮手工業者的三本書,特別是寫鞋匠的《高貴的行業》(1600),在細節的敘述上已接近后來的現實主義小說。正是由于這時英語表達力強,所以在大規模的翻譯活動中也產生了許多優秀的譯作,如諾斯所譯的普盧塔克的《希臘羅馬名人比較列傳》(1579)和弗洛里奧所譯的蒙田的《隨筆集》(1603)。它們都是莎士比亞參考過的書。17世紀初最重要的譯作則是1611年由國王詹姆斯一世下令出版的英文《圣經》。它是47位學者集體翻譯的成果,吸收了以前英文譯本的優點,用詞純樸而富于形象,韻律也饒聲調之美,對后來的英語產生了重大而持久的影響。以上思想、學術、詩、詩劇、散文、翻譯等方面的活動成就卓越,尤以詩劇為最,使這一時期文學成為歐洲以至世界文學的高峰之一。
三、17世紀文學16、17世紀之交,英國國內政治經濟的矛盾加深,人心動蕩,反映于文學的,除了上述詩劇的衰敗,還有在散文作品中圍繞政治與宗教問題的論爭文章的急劇增多,在詩歌中出現了以多恩為代表的玄學派詩和一些稱為騎士派的貴族青年所寫的愛情詩,前者用新奇的形象和節奏寫懷疑與信念交替的復雜心情,顯示出當時科學大進展沖擊傳統文化的影響;后者則表達了一種末世情調。17世紀40年代,革命終于爆發。人民經過公開審判,處決了國王查理一世,并在打了一場激烈的內戰之后建立了以克倫威爾為首的資產階級政權。在文學上,革命主要表現于兩個方面:一是有大量的傳單和小冊子印行,各種集團特別是屬于革命陣營左翼的平均派和掘地派通過它們來發表政見,其中李爾本、溫斯坦利等人寫得犀利有力;二是出現了一個革命的大詩人——彌爾頓。
彌爾頓對于革命的貢獻,首先在于他的政論文。從1641年起,他擱下了早以優美著稱的詩筆,而用英文和拉丁文寫了許多政論小冊子,為英國人民處死國王的革命行動辯護,也發表他的進步主張,如《論離婚》(1643)和《論出版自由》(1644)。他的文章雖然句式繁復,卻有雄奇之美,在英國散文中自成一格。
1660年革命遭受了重大挫折,王政復辟。這時彌爾頓已經雙目失明,受著政治迫害,但他痛定思痛,把自己的一腔孤憤寫進了他一生最后的三大作品。首先是《失樂園》(1667)。這首以人類祖先失去樂園的圣經故事為主題的史詩表達了作者的清教主義,而在對于撒旦的描寫中則又傾注著他的革命思想,正是那些歌頌叛逆者的響亮詩行構成了詩中最動人的篇章。繼之而來的《復樂園》(1671)敘述耶穌拒絕撒旦誘惑的節操,雖見平淡,仍多佳句。同時出版的《力士參孫》是英文中最出色的希臘式古典悲劇,結構嚴謹而人物突出。作者寫參孫雙目失明,身陷囹圄,而仍力抗強暴,終于與敵人同歸于盡。這當中有彌爾頓對自己不平凡的一生的回顧,熾熱的情感溢出詩行,表示他依然壯懷激烈,不變革命初衷。在藝術上彌爾頓力求完美,以希臘、羅馬的古典文學為典范,然又不失英國本色,在他的筆下無韻詩更具有莊嚴燦爛之美,表現了“雄偉的風格”。
王政復辟以后,文學風氣為之一變,盛行嘲笑清教徒的諷刺詩,法國式的“英雄悲劇”和反映浮華、輕佻的貴族生活的“風尚喜劇”。這類喜劇中也有意存諷刺的,如康格里夫的《如此世道》(1700)。這時文壇上的領袖人物是德萊頓,他有多方面的才能,主要成就在政治諷刺詩和文論。也有作家反對當時的社會風尚,如來自下層人民的班揚,他的《天路歷程》(1678)用樸素而生動的文字和寓言的形式敘述了虔誠教徒在一個充滿罪惡的世界里的經歷,對居住在“名利場”的上層人物作了嚴峻的譴責。這里有清教主義的回響,而作品的卓越的敘事能力又使它成為近代小說的前驅。
還有兩類散文作品,帶來了新氣象。一類是科學文章。1660年成立的皇家學會要求會員用“工匠、鄉下人、商人的語言”,盡力把一切事物表達得“象數學那樣樸實無華”。另一類是哲學著作,先有霍布斯,后有洛克,都用清楚、有力的文字發表了他們的經驗主義哲學和政治思想,特別是洛克的影響深遠的社會契約論成了近代資產階級民主政治的理論基礎。求實的文風和民主思想都是資產階級所歡迎的;國王雖復位,實權還在他們手里。1688年,他們把另一個不得人心的國王趕下了臺,從此政權被商人和地主的聯盟所牢牢掌握,文學也進入一個新的發展時期。
四、18世紀文學
18世紀前半葉,英國社會安定,文學上崇尚新古典主義,其代表者是詩人蒲柏。他運用英雄偶句體極為純熟,擅長寫諷刺詩,但以發泄私怨居多。表現出啟蒙主義精神的主要是散文作家,他們推進了散文藝術,還開拓了兩個文學新領域,即期刊隨筆和現實主義小說。
期刊文學是應廣大讀者的要求而興起。斯梯爾與艾迪生兩人有首創之功。前者創辦《閑談者》報(1709~1711),后者繼出《旁觀者》報(1711~1712),將街談巷議和俱樂部里的風趣幽默寫上了期刊。艾迪生的文筆尤見典雅。后來笛福、斯威夫特、菲爾丁、約翰遜、哥爾德斯密斯等名家都曾主編期刊或為期刊撰稿,可見此風之盛。由于他們的努力,英國式的隨筆得到進一步的提高,題材更廣泛,文筆也更靈活。
更具英國特色而又對歐洲大陸產生重大影響的則是散文小說。笛福的《魯濱孫飄流記》(1719)、《摩爾·弗蘭德斯》(1722)等書把水手和女仆當做英雄人物來介紹,細節寫得十分逼真,雖然書的結構松散,作者卻有娓娓動聽的說故事的本領,使讀者始終保持興趣。他的文字口語化,善于繪聲繪形,而又迅捷有力。這些特點,加上笛福對英國城鄉諸色人等的深刻了解,使他奠定了英國現實主義小說的基礎。斯威夫特的《格利佛游記》(1726)是以諷刺朝政、表現人類的丑惡為目的的寓言,然而作為故事,也是十分引人入勝。他把現實細節放在十分奇特的幻想的情景之中,而幻想也是正在發展中的英國小說所需要的。世紀中葉,理查遜用書信體小說細致地描寫遭遇不幸的少女的內心,以《克拉麗莎》(1747~1748)等大部頭小說感動了一整代英國和西歐的讀者,法國啟蒙思想家狄德羅稱之為偉大創造力的表現。但在菲爾丁的眼里,理查遜只是市儈哲學的代表,于是他起而用仿作去諷刺之,其結果卻掌握了寫小說的藝術,于是有了他自己的創作,其中最受稱道的是《棄嬰托姆·瓊斯的故事》(1749),它的人物、風景、場面都是典型的英國式的。作者歌頌真誠、熱心、忠實而又不受傳統束縛的青年男女,全書有一種爽朗、清新的空氣,而又結構完整,把現實主義小說推進到了一個新的水平。當時及稍后還有斯摩萊特、哥爾德斯密斯、斯特恩等人的小說,或擴充了題材,或實驗了新寫法,都有建樹,因此雖然世紀末出現了渲染神秘恐怖的“哥特小說”,但是現實主義已經成為英國小說中的主流,繼續向前發展。
菲爾丁的作品《棄嬰托姆·瓊斯的故事》插圖
出色的散文還見于其他文學品種。約翰遜的《詩人傳》(1779~1781)是傳記和文論的卓越結合,鮑斯韋爾的《約翰遜傳》(1791)開辟了傳記文學的新境界,伯克的《論美洲的賦稅》(1774)展示了政治講演術的力量,吉本的《羅馬帝國衰亡史》(1776~1788)更以其深刻的啟蒙主義思想和典麗的文筆成為全歐欽仰的史學杰作。
然而散文之勢雖盛,詩歌并未沉寂,不僅有世紀初的蒲柏和湯姆遜在創作,就是一些散文名家,如斯威夫特、約翰遜和哥爾德斯密斯,也善于寫詩。等到世紀后半葉,感傷主義抬頭,詩歌也復振,出現了揚格的《夜思》(1742~1745)和格雷的《墓園挽歌》(1750)等佳作,反映了英國許多人在產業革命加緊進行中所感到的痛苦和彷徨。珀西編的《英詩輯古》(1765)引起了對古民歌的愛好,于是仿作者有之,偽造者有之,形成一種對中世紀神往的風氣。這時從經濟不甚發達的蘇格蘭傳來了農民詩人彭斯的聲音,他既是舊民歌的整理者,又是新詩篇的創造者,而吟唱的內容則是愛情和自由、平等、博愛的新思想。后者正是法國啟蒙思想的結晶,在80年代之末導致了法國大革命。對這次革命的迎或拒,同情或反對,使英國散文作家發生了嚴重的分裂,但大多數詩人卻在革命初起的“黎明”時刻對人類的未來充滿了希望。在這樣的氣氛中產生了浪漫主義詩歌。
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堪薩斯大學中古時期研究索引:書目篇(U.Kansas Index of Medieval Studies)...val/bibliographies/
藏書狂:網絡圖書館(Bibliomania: The Network Library)
英國語文書目年鑒(ABELL: The Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature信息網上文學研究資源 信息網上作者書目(Author Webliography)英語服務器(The English Server)奇姆(Kim)
★英美詩歌網站
電子詩文中心出版品書目(Electronic Poetry Center / Biblioteca: A Project Extendi莎孚與費恩(Sappo and Phaon)
英詩1780-1910(British Poetry, 1780-1910)
網際網絡上詩文檔案(Internet Poetry Archive)
電子詩文中心(Electronic Poetry Center)
★綜合線上英國語文與文學書目(Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literaturgopher://rsl.ox.ac.uk/11/lib-corn/hunter
巴比特計畫(The Bartleby Project)http:///
早稻田大學文學﹑電子書﹑期刊收集站(Rice University Collection of Literature ,Elgopher://chico.rice.edu/11/Subject/LitBooks
古登堡電子文本全球網絡本頁(Gutenberg Etext World Wide Web Home Page)
學生課外閱讀書單 英國文學推薦書目:
Jane Austen: Pride and Prejudice 《傲慢與偏見》
Elizabeth Bowen: The Death of the Heart 《心死》,Look at All Those Roses 《瞧瞧這些玫瑰》
Charlotte Bronte: Jane Eyre 《簡·愛》
Emily Bronte: Wuthering Height 《呼嘯山莊》
S.Byatt: Possession 《占有》
Lewis Carroll: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland 《愛麗絲漫游奇景記》
Angela Carter: The Company of Wolves 《與狼共舞》
Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express 《東方快車上的謀殺案》 Ivy Compton-Burnett: A Family and a Fortune《家庭和財富》
Joseph Conrad: Heart of Darkness《黑暗的中心》
Lord Jim 《吉姆爺》
Daniel Defoe: Robinson Crusoe 《魯賓遜漂流記》
Charles Dickens: David Copperfield 《大衛·科波菲爾》
Sir Arthur C.Ddyle: Adventure of Sherlock Holmes《福爾摩斯歷險記》
Margaret Drabble: The Waterfall 《瀑布》
The Ice Age 《冰期》
Daphne Du Maurier: Rebecca 《蝴蝶夢》
E.M.Forster: Where the Angels Fear to Tread《天使們望而卻步的地方》
A Passage to India 《印度之行》
John Fowles: The French Lieutenant's Woman 《法國中尉的女人》
John Galsworthy: The Man of Property 《有產業的人》
William Golding: Lord of the Flies 《蠅王》
Thomas Hardy: Tess of the D'Urbervilles《德伯家的苔絲》,Jude the Obscure 《無名的裘德》
Aldous Huxley: After Many a Summer Dies the Swan 《多少個夏天之后》
Fairy Godmother 《天使教母》
Henry James: Daisy Miller 《黛西·密勒》
James Joyce: A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man 《一個青年藝術家的畫像》 Araby 《阿拉比》
Charles Lamb: Tales from Shakespeare《莎士比亞故事選》
D.H.Lawrence: Sons and Lovers 《兒子與情人》
John Le Carred: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
Doris Lessing: The Grass Is Singing 《草兒在歌唱》
David Lodge: Nice Work 《好工作》
W.Somerset Maugham: The Moon and Sixpence 《月亮與六便士》,Of Human Bondage 《人性的枷鎖》
Iris Murddoch: The Black Prince《黑王子》,the Sea, the Sea 《大海啊,大海》
George Orwell: Nineteen Eighty-four 《一九八四》
Salman Rushdie: Midnight Children.《午夜的孩子》
Sir Walter Scott: Ivanhoe 《艾凡赫》
Muriel Spark: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie 《瓊·布羅迪小姐的黃金時代》 Robert Louis Stevenson: Treasure Island 《金銀島》
Johathan Swift: Gulliver's Travels 《格里弗游記》
William M.Thackeray: Vanity Fair 《名利場》
Evelyn Waugh: A Handful of Dust 《一撮灰塵》
Mr.Loveday’s Little Outing 《洛弗戴先生一次短暫的外出》
H.G.Wells: The Invisible Man 《看不見的人》 Oscar Wilde: The Picture of Dorian Gray 《道林·格雷的畫像》
Virginia Woolf: Mrs.Dalloway 《達羅威夫人》
To the Lighthouse 《到燈塔去》
George Eliot: Middlemarch, a Study of Provincial Life 《米德爾馬契——外省生活
研究》,Adam Bede 《亞當·貝德》, Silas Marner 《織工馬南》
The Mill on the Floss 《弗洛斯河上的磨坊》
J.M.Coetzee.Foe 《仇敵》
Jean Rhys.Wide Sargasso Sea 《藻海無邊》
Oliver Goldsmith.The Vicar of Wakefield 《威克菲爾德牧師》
George Bernard Shaw.Mrs.Warren’s Profession 《華倫夫人的職業》
William Morris.News from Nowhere 《烏有鄉消息》
Samuel Butler.The Way of All Flesh 《眾生之道》
Isabella Augusta Gregory.Spreading the News《道聽途說》
The Rising of the Moon《月亮上升的時候》
Enoch Arnord Bennett.The Old Wives’ Tale 《老婦譚》
Saki.Beast and Super-Beast 《野獸與超級野獸》
John Millington Synge.Riders to the Sea 《騎馬下海的人們》
Bertrand Russell.Satan in the Suburbs 《撒旦在郊區》
John Masefield.The Widow in the Bye Street 《小街的寡婦》
Giles Lytton Strachey.Queen Victoria 《維多利亞女王》
Sean O’Casey.I Knocked at the Door 《我敲門》
Katherine Mansfield.The Garden Party 《園會》John Boynton Priestley.The Good Companions 《好伙伴》
Thomas Stearns Eliot.The Love Song of J.Alfred Prufrock 《阿爾弗雷德·普魯夫洛
克的情歌》
Ivor Armstrong Richards.How to Read a Page: A Course in Efficient Reading with an
Introduction to a Hundred Great Words 《如何讀一頁書》
Leslie Poles Hartley.The Go-Between 《信使》
Victor Sawdon Pritchett.Midnight Oil 《挑燈夜讀》
Frank O’Conner.Private Property 《私有財產》 Christopher Isherwood.Sally Bowles 《薩利·鮑爾斯》
Graham Greene.The Heart of the Matter 《問題的核心》
The Human Factor 《人性的因素》
Charles Percy Snow.The Conscience of the Rich 《富人的良心》
Peter Courtney Quennell.Four Portraits 《四幅畫像:關于十八世紀的研究》 Angus Wilson.Anglo-Saxon Attitude 《盎格魯·撒克遜態度》
Richard Hoggard.Speaking to Each Other 《交談》
Kingsley Amis.Lucky Jim 《幸運的吉姆》
John Wain.Hurry on Down 《大學后的漂泊》
Brian Wilson Aldiss.Outside 《外界》
Alan Sillitoe.The loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner
獨》
John Osborne.Look Back in Anger 《憤怒的回顧》
Arnold Wesker.Chicken Soup with Barley 《大麥雞湯》
《一位長跑運動員的孤