现代大学英语精读6第二版Unit2教师用书.docx

现代大学英语精读6第二版Unit2教师用书.docx

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现代大学英语精读6第二版Unit2教师用书

Unit2

ARoseforEmily

WilliamFaulkner

AdditionalBackgroundInformationonWilliamFaulkner

WilliamFaulknerwasbornandbroughtupintheAmericanSouthandlivedthereforalmostallhislife.OnNovember14,1888,thelocalnewspaperinJackson,Mississippireportedanewsstory:

“AterribletragedywasenactedatRipleyonTuesdayafternoonoflastweek—thewidelyandwell-knownCol.W.C.Falknerbeingthevictim.”Col.FalknerhadrunfortheMississippilegislatureandhadbeenelected.Butbeforehetookofficehewasshotdeadbyhisrival.Col.Falknerhadbeenalocalheroandalegendaryfigure.HewasapioneerinMississippi,organizedaregimenttofightfortheSouthintheCivilWar,practicedlawafterreturningfromthebattlefields,boughtalargeplantation,builtthefirstrailroadinhishometown,andwroteanovel,whichbecameanationalbest-seller.This“widelyandwell-known”Col.W.C.FalknerwasWilliamFaulkner’sgreat-grandfather.

OnSeptember25,1897,Faulknerwasborninthisdistinguishedfamily.HespenthisyouthinOxford,asmalltowninMississippi.AlthoughtheoldcolonelhaddiedbeforeFaulknercameintothisworld,theboygrewuplisteningtoallsortsofstoriesabouthisgreat-grandfatherandotherpeopleinhishometown.ThestoriesthathisNegronannytoldhimandthegossipheheardfromthetownspeoplerestingandchattinginthesmalldowntownsquareprovidedFaulknerwithanoraltraditionofstorytellingasanimportantpartofhiseducation.

DuringWorldWarIFaulknerservedintheRoyalCanadianAirForce.Afterthearmisticein1918hereturnedtoOxford,andforsometimeheledhislifeinaratherlistlessway.HeattendedtheUniversityofMississippibutlefttheuniversitywithinayear;hetriedhishandatpoetrybutwithoutmuchsuccess;hewentnorthtotheculturalmetropolitancityofNewYork,butwasdrivenbackhomesoonbyloneliness.Hebecameapostmaster,butafterthreeyearsatmost,heresignedfromthispost.Allthistime,Faulknerhadbeenreading,first,whateverinterestedhim,and,later,thegreatpoetsandnovelists.InNewYork,FaulknermetSherwoodAnderson,afamouswriter,andthenwhenhetraveledtoNewOrleansin1925,hegainedentryintothisartisticcenterthroughAnderson.InspiredbyAnderson,Faulknerbegantowritenovels.

Faulknerwrote19novelsandnearlyahundredshortstories.Thesettingof15novelsandthemajorityoftheshortfictionistheAmericanSouth.InhisthirdbookSartoris（1929）,hecreatedthefictionalYoknapatawphaCounty.Inthesameyear,hepublishedTheSoundandtheFury（1929）,oneofhismasterpieces.ThisnovelowesmuchtoJamesJoyceandthestreamofconsciousnesstechnique.InanothermajorworkAsILayDying（1930）,Faulknerrelatesaterrifyingcomicstorytoaritualizedburialjourney.Inthisnovelheexperimentswithmultiple-point-of-viewnarration.LightinAugust（1932）isalsooneofFaulkner’smajornovels.ThehighpointofFaulkner’sdevelopmentisthebrilliantAbsalom,Absalom!

（1936）.HisothermajorworksincludeTheUnvanquished,TheWildPalms,TheHamlet,TheTown,TheMansion,GoDownMoses,AFable,etc.

AsthesettingofmostofhisworksistheAmericanSouth,Faulknerisregardedasaregionalwriter.Buttheword“regional”ismisleadingbecauseFaulknerdealswithsomeofthemajoruniversalthemesinliteraturesoprofoundlythathisworkisreadandrecognizednationallyandinternationally.Asfaraswritingtechniquesareconcerned,Faulknerisamongthegreatexperimentalistsofthe20thcenturynovel.Hiseffectiveuseofstreamofconsciousness,multiplepointsofview,symbolismandimagery,placeshimamongtherankofoutstandingmodernwritersalongwithJamesJoyceandVirginiaWoolf.In1950,FaulknerwontheNobelPrizeforLiterature.

TheThemesandWritingTechniquesof“ARoseforEmily”

Although“ARoseforEmily”isoneofhismostfrequentlyanthologizedshortstoriesandiswidelyusedintheAmericanclassroom,Chinesestudentsmayfinditdifficulttounderstandandappreciate.SomeofthemmaythinkitisabizarrestoryaboutanoldeccentricladyinanAmericanSoutherntown.It’struethatthesettingofthestoryistheAmericanSouth.Yet,thethemeofthestoryisuniversal,transcendingtheboundariesoftimeandspace.Likemanyotherworksofgreatliterature,thisshortstorytellsaboutlove,death,honor,pride,change,andloss.

In“ARoseforEmily”wecanseehowtheauthortellsthegoodstoryskillfully;howhecreatestherequisiteatmospherefortellingthestory;howhemaintainsthesuspenseandunfoldstheconflictbitbybit;andhowhedigsdeepintothesocialworldofhischaracters.Thisstoryisarichandmodern20th-centuryliterarytext.ThosewhoarenotveryfamiliarwithmodernAmericanliteraturemaythereforeencounterobstaclesinreadingthisstory:

vaguereferences,ambiguities,symbolism,imagery,experimentalpointofview,jumbledtimesequences,avoidanceofcleartransitions,withholdingofvitalinformation,etc.Byexploitingthose“tricks,”Faulknerhopestoinvitereaderstoparticipateintheprocessofseekingthetruthsoftheinnerlifeofthecharactersinthestory.Oncewedo,wewillsurelyenjoyreadingthestory.It’slikeworkingatapuzzle:

themorepartswestarttofigureout,themoreinterestingthepuzzlewillbecome.

The1950NobelPrizepresentationspeechcalledFaulknerasthe“unrivaledmasterofalllivingBritishandAmericannovelists.”Heisregardedasa“deeppsychologist.”“ARoseforEmily”livesuptothathighpraise.

ImplicitChronology（approximate）

Thenarrationof“ARoseforEmily”doesnotfollowanormalchronologicalorder.Instead,itshiftsintimefrequentlyandgivesoutbitsofinformationaboutthemaincharacter,MissEmily,insuchawaythatthereaderhastopiecethemtogetherbyhimself/herself.Thefollowingimplicitchronologyhasbeenworkedoutonthebasisoftheinformationfromthetext.

ca.1855:

MissEmilywasborntotherichestfamilyofslave-ownersinthetown.

1861:

TheAmericanCivilWarbrokeout;ConfederatetroopsfromthetownwerecommandedbyCol.Sartoris.

1865:

TheAmericanCivilWarended.

1870s:

Mr.Grierson,MissEmily’sfather,hadthefamilyhousebuiltintheGothicrevivalstyle.

ca.1886:

Mr.Griersondied;MissEmily’sinheritancewasonlythehouse;shewasoverthirty.

ca.1887:

HomerBarron,Northernconstructionforeman,arrived;heandMissEmilystartedcourting.

ca.1888:

HomerBarroncouldbeseennomore;thesmellinthehousewasnoticed.

1894:

TheYoungColonelSartoris,asmayorofthetown,exemptedMissEmilyfromtaxesforlife.

ca.1919:

TheYoungColoneldied.

ca.1927-1928:

ThetaxdelegationvisitedMissEmily.

ca.1929-1930:

MissEmilydiedattheageof74.

Notes:

“ca.”isshortforcirca,meaning“about”usedbeforeanapproximatedateorfigure.WemustrememberthatFaulknerisnotalwaysaccurateabouttheexacttimeofacertainevent.Thepurposeofworkingoutthischronologyistogivestudentsaroughideaofthetimeframeinwhichthestorytookplace.

StructureoftheText

PartI（Paras.1-14）

ThispartbeginswiththedeathofMissEmily,thedaughterofaneminentSouthernfamilyandindicateswhoEmilywas.

WhenMissEmilydied,allthepeopleinthetownwenttoherfuneral.（Para.1）

MissEmilylivedinabigoldhouseononeofthebeststreetsofthetown.（Para.2）

WhenMissEmilywasalive,theoldergenerationtreatedherasatradition,aduty,acareandasortofhereditaryobligation.Themayorremittedhertaxes.（Para.3）

Whenanewgenerationcamealong,itsmemberswantedhertopaytaxeslikeeveryoneelse.Adeputationvisitedher,butshefirmlydismissedthem.（Paras.4-14）

PartII（Paras.15-28）

Inthispart,thereisatimeshifttothirtyyearsbeforethevisitofthedeputation.

TherewasabadsmellfromMissEmily’shouse.Thatwastwoyearsafterherfather’sdeathandashorttimeafterhersweetheartdisappeared.（Para.15）

Theneighborscomplainedaboutthebadsmell,butthetownauthoritiesdidn’twanttoembarrassMissEmilybytellingherstraightforwardly.（Paras.16-23）

So,onenight,fourmensecretivelycrossedMissEmily’slawnandsprinkledlime,andsoonafterthatthesmellwasgone.（Para.24）

ThetownspeoplefeltsorryforMissEmilybecauseherfatherwassoproudthathedroveallhersuitorsaway,andwhenhedied,heleftheralmostnothingapartfromthehouse.（Paras.25-26）

Thedayafterherfather’sdeath,peoplecametooffertheircondolences,butMissEmilyrefusedtolettheminthehouse,tellingthemthatherfatherwasnotdead.（Paras.27-28）

PartIII（Paras.29-42）

ItdescribeshowaconstructionforemannamedHomerBarron,aYankee,courtedMissEmilyandhowshebehavedafterhersweetheartdisappeared.

BecauseMissEmilywascourtingadaylaborer,aNortherner,peoplebegantopityher.（Paras.29-33）

OnedayMissEmilywenttothedrugstoreandboughtpoison.Whenaskedwhatitwasfor,sherefusedtoanswer.（Paras.34-42）

PartIV（Paras.43-53）

ThispartdescribesinmoredetailhowEmilyandHomerBarronwereseentogetherandwhathappenedtoEmilyafterhisdisappearance.

WhenpeoplesawEmilyandHomerBarrontogetherwithoutanysignsoftheirgettingmarried,theythoughtshewasprovidingabadexampletotheyoungandaskedEmily’srelativestopersuadehertogetmarried.Theywererelievedtoseethattherewerepreparationsforamarriage.（Paras.43-45）

HomerBarronwentawayandcameback,andwasadmittedintothehouseoneevening.Thatwaswhenhewaslastseen.（Para.46）

MissEmilydidnotappearonthestreetsforalongtime.Shegrewolderandher