美国文学名词解释.docx

美国文学名词解释.docx

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美国文学名词解释

美国文学名词解释

AmericanDream:

Americandreammeansthebeliefthateveryonecansucceedaslongashe/sheworkshardenough.Itusuallyimpliesasuccessfulandsatisfyinglife.ItusuallyframedintermsofAmericancapitalism（资本主义）,itsassociatedpurportedmeritocracy,（知识界精华）andthefreedomsguaranteedbytheU.S.BillofRights.

AmericanPuritanism清教主义:

Puritanismisthepracticesandbeliefsofthepuritans.ThePuritanswereoriginallymembersofadivisionoftheprotestantchurchwhowantedtopurifytheirreligiousbeliefsandpractices.Theyacceptedthedoctrinesofpredestination,originalsinandtotaldepravity,andlimitedatonementthroughaspecialinfusionofgracefromGod.Americanliteratureinthe17thcenturymostlyconsistedofPuritanliterature.PuritanismhadanenduringinfluenceonAmericanliterature.Ithadbecome,tosomeextent,somuchastateofmind,somuchapartofnationalculturalatmosphere,ratherthanasetoftenets.

Transcendentalism超验主义:

Transcendentalismwasagroupofnewideasinliterature,religion,cultureandphilosophythatemergedinNewEnglandintheearlytomiddle19thcentury.TranscendentalistsspokeforculturalrejuvenationandagainstthematerialismofAmericansociety.Itplacedemphasisonspirit,ortheOversoul,asthemostimportantthingintheworld.ItstressedtheimportanceofindividualandofferedafreshperceptionnatureadsymbolicofthespiritofGod.ProminenttranscendentalistsincludedRalphWaldoEmersonandHenryDavidThorough.

AmericanNaturalism自然主义:

Americannaturalismwasanewandharsherrealism.Thenaturalistsattempttoachieveextremeobjectivityandfrankness,presentingcharactersoflowsocialandeconomicclasseswhoweredeterminedbyenvironmentandheredity.Itemphasizedthattheworldwasamoral,themenandwomenhadnofreewill,thatliveswerecontrolledbyheredityandenvironment,thatthedestinyofhumanitywasmiseryinlifeandoblivionindeath.ThepessimismanddeterministicideasnaturalismpervadedtheworksofsuchAmericanwritersasStephenCraneandTheodoreDreiser.

AmericanNaturalism（美国自然主义文学）：

TheAmericannaturalistsacceptedthemorenegativeinterpretationofDarwin’sevolutionarytheoryandusedittoaccountforthebehaviorofthosecharactersinliteraryworkswhowereregardedasmoreorlesscomplexcombinationsofinheritedattributes,theirhabitsconditionedbysocialandeconomicforces.2）naturalismisevolvedfromrealismwhentheauthor’stoneinwritingbecomeslessseriousandlesssympatheticbutmoreironicandmorepessimistic.Itisnomorethanagloomyphilosophicalapproachtoreality,ortohumanexistence.3>Dreiserisaleadingfigureofhisschool.

TheGildedAge镀金时代:

theGildedAgereferstotheeraofrapideconomicandpopulationgrowthintheUnitedStatesduringthepost-CivilWarandpost-Reconstructionerasofthelate19thcentury.Theterm"GildedAge"wascoinedbyMarkTwainandCharlesDudleyWarnerintheir1873book,TheGildedAge:

ATaleofToday.TheGildedAgeismostfamousforthecreationofamodernindustrialeconomy.TheendoftheGildedAgecoincidedwiththePanicof1893,adeepdepression.Thedepressionlasteduntil1897andmarkedamajorpoliticalrealignmentintheelectionof1896.AfterthatcametheProgressiveEra.

TheLostGeneration:

TheLostGenerationisagroupofexpatriateAmericanwritersresidingprimarilyinParisduringthe1920sand1930s.ThegroupwasgivenitsnamebytheAmericanwriterGertrudeStein,whoused“alostgeneration”torefertoexpatriateAmericansbitterabouttheirWorldWarIexperiencesanddisillusionedwithAmericansociety.HemingwaylaterusedthephraseasanepigraphforhisnovelTheSunAlsoRises.ItconsistedofmanyinfluentialAmericanwriters,includingErnestHemingway,F.ScottFitzgerald,WilliamCarlosWilliamsandArchibaldMacLeish.

TheLostGeneration（迷惘的一代）：

ThelostgenerationisatermfirstusedbySteintodescribethepost-warIgenerationofAmericanwriters:

menandwomenhauntedbyasenseofbetrayalandemptinessbroughtaboutbythedestructivenessofthewar.2>fullofyouthfulidealism,theseindividualssoughtthemeaningoflife,drankexcessively,hadloveaffairsandcreatedsomeofthefinestAmericanliteraturetodate.3>thethreebest-knownrepresentativesoflostgenerationareF.ScottFitzgerald,HemingwayandJohndosPassos.

Tragedy:

ingeneral,aliteraryworkinwhichtheprotagonistmeetsanunhappyordisastrousend.Unlikecomedy,tragedydepictstheactionsofacentralcharacterwhoisusuallydignifiedorheroic.Throughaseriesofevents,thistragicheroisbroughttoafinaldownfall.Thecausesofthetragichero’sdownfallvary.Intraditionaldramas,thecausecanbefate,aflawincharacteroranerrorinjudgment.Inmoderndramas,wherethetragicheroisoftenanordinaryindividual,thecausesrangefrommoralorpsychologicalweaknesstotheevilsofsociety.

Catch-22第22条军规:

Catch-22isageneralcritiqueofbureaucraticoperationandreasoning.Resultingfromitsspecificuseinthebook,thephrase"Catch-22"iscommonidiomaticusagemeaning"ano-winsituation"or"adoublebind"ofanytype.ThetermwasoriginallyfromJosephHeller’santinovelCatch-22.

BeatGeneration垮掉的一代:

groupofAmericanwritersofthe1950swhosewritingexpressedprofounddissatisfactionwithcontemporaryAmericansocietyandendorsedanalternativesetofvalues.Thetermsometimesisusedtorefertothosewhoembracedtheideasofthesewriters.TheBeatGeneration'sbest-knownfigureswerewritersAllenGinsbergandJackKerouac.

TheBeatGeneration（垮掉的一代）:

ThemembersofTheBeatGenerationwerenewbohemianlibertines.Whoengagedinaspontaneous,sometimesmessy,creativity.2>TheBeatwritersproducedabodyofwrittenworkcontroversialbothforitsadvocacyofnon-conformityandforitsnon-conformingstyle.3>themajorbeatwritingsareAllenGinsberg’showl.HowlbecamethemanifestoofTheBeatGeneration.

PsychologicalRealism心理现实主义:

itistherealisticwritingthatprobesdeeplyintothecomplexitiesofcharacters’thoughtsandmotivations.Itplacesmorethantheusualamountofemphasisoninteriorcharacterizationandonthemotives,andinternalactionwhichspringsfromanddevelopsexternalaction.InPsychologicalRealism,characterandcharacterizationaremorethanusuallyimportant.HenryJamesisconsideredagreatmasterofpsychologicalrealism.

FreeVerse自由诗体:

freeverseispoetrythathasanirregularrhythmandlinelengthandthatattemptstoavoidanypredeterminedversestructure,instead,itusesthecadencesofnaturalspeech.Whileitalternatesstressedandunstressedsyllablesasstricterverseformdo,freeversedosesoinalooserway.WaltWhitman’spoetryisanexampleoffreeverse.

ConfessionalPoetry自白诗:

itisatypeofmodernpoetryinwhichpoetsspeakwithopennessandfranknessabouttheirownlives,suchasinpoemsaboutillness,sexualityanddespondence.RobertLowell,SylviaPlathandAllenGinsbergandTheodoreRoethkearethemostimportantAmericanpoets.

Imagism意象派:

The1920ssawavigorousliteraryactivityinAmerica.InpoetrythereappearedastrongreactionagainstVictorianpoetry.Imagistsplacedprimaryrelianceontheuseofprecise,sharpimagesasameansofpoeticexpressionandstressedprecisioninthechoiceofwords,freedominthechoiceofsubjectmatterandform,andtheuseofcolloquiallanguage.Mostoftheimagistpoetswroteinfreeverse,usingsuchdevicesasassonanceandalliterationratherthanformalmetricalschemestogivestructuretotheirpoetry.ThemovementwhichhadtheseasitsaimsisknowninliteraryhistoryasImagism.ItsprimemoverwasEzraPound.

Imagism（意象主义）：

ImagismcameintobeinginBritainandU.Saround1910asareactiontothetraditionalEnglishpoetrytoexpressthesenseoffragmentationanddislocation.2>theimagists,withEzraPoundleadingtheway,holdthatthemosteffectivemeanstoexpressthesemomentaryimpressionsisthroughtheuseofonedominantimage.3>imagismischaracterizedbythefollowingthreepoeticprinciples:

A.directtreatmentofsubjectmatter;B.economyofexpression;C.asregardsrhythm,tocomposeinthesequenceofthemusicalphrase,notinthesequenceofmetronome.4>pound’sInaStationoftheMetroisawell-knowninagistpoem.

BlackHumor:

theuseofmorbidandtheabsurdfordarklycomicpurposesinmodernfictionanddrama.Thetermrefersasmuchtothetoneofangerandbitternessasitdoestothegrotesqueandmorbidsituations,whichoftendealwithsuffering,anxiety,anddeath.BlackhumorisasubstantialelementintheAnti-novelandtheTheatreofAbsurd.JosephHeller'sCatch-22isanalmostarchetypalexample.

Irony:

acontrastoranincongruitybetweenwhatisstatedandwhatisreallymeant,orbetweenwhatisexpectedtohappenandwhatactuallyhappensindramaandliterature.Therearetypesofirony:

verbalirony,dramaticironyandironyofsituation.Ironyofsituationtypicallytakestheformofadiscrepancybetweenappearanceandreality,orbetweenwhatacharacterexpectsandwhatactuallyhappens.Bothverbalandironyofsituationsharethesuggestionofaconcealedtruthconflictingwithsurfaceappearances.

Allusion:

Areferencetoaperson,aplace,anevent,oraliteraryworkthatawriterexpectsthereadertorecognizeandrespondto.Anallusionmaybedrawnfromhistory,geography,literature,orreligion.

Satire讽刺:

Akindofwritingthatholdsuptoridiculeorcontempttheweaknessesandwrongdoingsofindividuals,groups,institutions,orhumanityingeneral.Theaimofsatiristsistosetamoralstandardforsociety,andtheyattempttopersuadethereadertoseetheirpointofviewthroughtheforceoflaughter.

Symbol