美国文学思考题.docx

美国文学思考题.docx

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美国文学思考题

BasicLiteraryKnowledge

I.LiteraryTerms

1.Shortstory:

Afictionalprosetaleofnospecifiedlength,buttooshorttobepublishedasavolumeonitsown.Ashortstorywillnormallyconcentrateonasingleeventwithonlyoneortwocharacters,moreeconomicallythananovel’ssustainedexplorationofsocialbackground.Theshortstoryflourishedinthemagazinesofthe19thandearly20thcenturies,especiallyintheUSA.

2.Plot:

Plotisthefirstandmostobviousqualityofastory.Plotiswhathappensinastory.Unlikelife,whichisrandomandunpredictable,thestorywillusuallybeshapedbyachainofevents,oneleadinginevitablytoanotherinalineofrisingactiontoamomentofcrisis—theclimax.

3.Nonfiction:

Itreferstoanyprosenarrativethattellsaboutthingsastheyactuallyhappenorthatpresentsfactualinformationaboutsomething.Autobiographyandbiographyareamongthemajorformsofnonfiction.Thepurposeofthiskindwritingistogiveapresumablyaccurateaccountingofaperson’slife.Essaysarealsocommonformsofnonfiction.Otherkindsofnonfictionincludethestories,editorials,andletterstotheeditorfoundinnewspapers,aswellasdiaries,journalsandtravelliterature.

4.Imagery:

Itistherepresentationinpoetryofsensoryexperiences.Itisadevicebywhichpoetsappealtooursenses.Althoughweusuallythinkwithwords,manyofourthoughtscometousaspicturesorimaginedsensationsinourminds.Suchimaginedpicturesorsensationsarecalledimages.

5.Character:

Charactersarethepersonspresentedinadramaticornarrativework.Inordertohaveafullunderstandingofacharacter’smoral,dispositionalandemotionalqualities,thereadersneedtointerpretwhattheysayandwhattheydo.

6.Surrealism:

ItisaliteraryandartmovementinfluencedbyFreudianism,dedicatedtoexpressingtheimaginationasrevealedindreams,freeoftheconsciouscontrolofreasonandconvention.Inliterature,surrealismwasconfinedalmostexclusivelytoFrance,andwasbasedontheassociationsandimplicationsofwords.Surrealismwasamajorintellectualforcebetweenthewars.

7.Theatreofabsurdity:

ItisatermusedtoidentifyabodyofplayswrittenprimarilyinFrancefromthemid-1940sthroughthe1950s.theplaysusuallyemployillogicalsituations,unconventionaldialogues,andminimalplotstoexpresstheapparentabsurdityofhumanexistence.TheleadingfiguresofthemovementareIrish-bornplaywrightSamuelBeckettandtheFrenchplaywrightEugenIonesco.

8.Deconstruction:

itisthemethodofanalyzingliteraturethatseekstouncovermultiplelayersofmeaning,includingtheauthor’sintentionsandothermeaningsthatarebasedonhowthesamelanguage,images,orideashavebeenusedbefore.TheleadingfigureistheFrenchphilosopherJacquesDerrida.

II.Fillintheblanks.

1.Americanachievementsintheshortstoryhavedemandedinternationalrespectandadmirationformorethanacenturyandahalf.ThefirstsuccessfulAmericanshortstoriescamefromWashingtonIrvingintheearly19thcentury.

2.EdgarAllanPoeisgenerallythoughtofasthetruebeginneroftheshortstoriesbecausehewasthefirstwriterwhoformulatedapoeticsoftheshortstories.

3.Inthe20thcentury,therehavebeenmanywhohavewonfameabroadaswellasintheUSfortheirshortstories:

SherwoodAnderson,HemingwayFaulkner,AnnaPorter,anddozensofothers.

4.Asyoureadfromwritertowriter,fromWashingtonIrving’s‘RipVanWinkle’toO’Connner’s‘AGoodManisHardtoFind’,youwillseethecomingofashortstoryage,growingfromanentertainingtaleintoastorywhichprobesdeepintohumansouls.

5.Modernliteraryfictionhasbeendominatedbytwoforms:

theshortstoryandthenovel.

6.WashingtonIrving,theFatherofAmericanLiterature,developedtheshortstoryasagenreinAmericanliterature.

7.AllanPoeisusuallyacknowledgedastheoriginatorofdetectivestories.Heisalsocreditedwithdevelopingmanyofthestandardfeaturesofdetectivefiction.

III.Multiplechoice

1.EdgarAllanPoewrotepoemswhicharemarvelsofbeautyandcraftsmanship,suchas____.

A.IHearAmericaSingingB.TheRaven

C.ToawaterfowlD.ThefalloftheHouseofUsher

2.ThecommonthreadthroughoutAmericanliteraturehasbeentheemphasisonthe___.

A.revolutionismB.reason

C.individualismD.rationalism

3.InAmericanliterature,the18thcenturywastheAgeoftheEnlightenment,___wasthedominantspirit.

A.humanismB.rationalism

C.revolutionD.evolution

4.Whowasconsideredthe“PoetofAmericanRevolution”?

A.MichaelWigglesworthB.EdwardTaylor

C.AnneBradstreetD.PhilipFreneau

5.ThomasJefferson’sattitude,thatis,afirmbeliefinprogress,andthepursuitofhappiness,istypicaloftheperiodwenowcall___.

A.AgeofEvolutionB.AgeofReason

C.AgeofRomanticismD.AgeofRegionalism

6.MarkTwaincreated,in_____,amasterpieceofAmericanrealismthatisalsooneofthegreatbooksofworldliterature.

A.HuckleberryFinnB.TomSawyer

C.TheManThatCorruptedHadleyburyD.TheGildedAge

7.ThepessimismanddeterministicideasofnaturalismpervadedtheworksofsuchAmericanwritersas___.

A.MarkTwainB.ScottFitzgerald

C.WaltWhitmanD.StephenCrane

8.Althoughrealismandnaturalismwereproductsofthe19thcentury,theirfinaltriumphcameinthe20thcentury,withthepopularandcriticalsuccessesofsuchwritersasEdwinArlington,WilliamCather,RobertFrost,WilliamFaulknerand_____.

A.EdgarAllanPoeB.SherwoodAnderson

C.WashingtonIrvingD.RalphEllison

9.Americanliteratureproducedonlyonefemalepoetduringthe19thcentury.Shewas___.

A.AnneBradstreetB.JaneAusten

C.EmilyDickinsonD.HarriedBeecher

10.WithHowells,JamesandMarkTwainactiveonthescene,____becamethemajortrendintheseventiesandeightiesofthe19thcentury.

A.sentimentalismB.romanticism

C.realismD.naturalism

11.Choosefromthefollowingwritersastaunchadvocateofthe19thcenturyAmericanrealism.

A.MarkTwainB.WashingtonIrving

C.StephenCraneD.JackLondon

12.Whichwriterhasnaturalisttendency?

A.FrankNorrisB.WilliamDeanHowells

C.TheodoreDreiserD.BothAandC

13.Earlyinthe20thcentury,____publishedworksthatwouldchangethenatureofAmericanpoetry.

A.EzraPoundB.T.S.Eliot

C.RobertFrostD.BothAandB

14.TheImagistwritersfollowedthreeprinciples.Theyrespectivelyaredirecttreatment,economyofexpressionand____.

A.localcolorB.irony

C.clearrhythmD.blankverse

15.____,oneoftheessaysinTheSacredWood,istheearlieststatementofT.S.Eliot’saesthetics,whichprovidedausefulinstrumentformoderncriticism.

A.‘SweenyAgonistes’B.‘TraditionandIndividualTalent’

C.‘APrimerofModernHeresy’D.‘Gerention’

16.T.SEliotusedaform,thatis,theorchestrationofrelatedthemesinsuccessivemovements,insuchworksas____.

A.TheWasteLandB.‘ARoseforEmily’

C.TheScarletLetterD.TheEgg

17.T.S.Eliot’sfirstmajorpoem（1917）____,hasbeencalledthefirstmasterpiecesofmodernisminEnglish.

A.‘TheLoveSongofJ.AlfredPrufrock’B.‘TheWasteLand’

C.‘FourQuartets’D.Prelude

18.ThethreepoetsEzraPound,T.S.Eliotand____openedthewaytomodernpoetry.

A.O.HenryB.HenryDavidThoreau

C.E.E.CummingsD.RobertFrost

19.In1954,___wasawardedtheNobelprizeforliteraturefrohis“masteryoftheartofmodernnarration”.

A.T.SEliotB.EarnestHemingway

C.JohnSteinbeckD.WilliamFaulkner

20.WilliamFaulknerisoneofthemostimportantsouthernwritersintheUnitedStates.____,AsILayDying,LightinAugust,andAbsalom,Absalom!

areworksthatambitiouscriticstendtoadmire.

A.TheSoundandtheFuryB.TheInvisibleMan

C.AGoodManisHardtoFindD.TheWrathoftheGrapes

IV.Questionsandanswers.

1.HowdoyouunderstandMarktwain’suseoflocalcolorinhiswriting?

MarkTwain’snarrativesaredistinguishedforhisuseoflocalcolor.Thismaybedefinedasthecarefulattentiontodetailsofthephysicalsceneandtothosemannerismsinspeech,dress,orbehaviorpeculiartoageographicallocality.Heinsistedthatthejobofthenativenovelistswastodepicteachofthecountry’sregionsandpeopleaccurately.OnlyinthiswaycouldthepeculiarityofAmericanexperience,thepolyglottonguesofitspeople,andthevastnessofthecontinentbecaptured.HemainlyexploitedthepossibilitiesofthelocalcolorintheMississippiregion.

2.Discusstheconceptofwastelandinrelationtotheworksofthosewritersinthe20thcenturyAmericanliterature.

‘TheWasteLand’isapoemwrittenbyT.S.Eliotonthethemeofthesterilityandchaosofth3contemporaryworld.Thismostwidelyknownexpressionofthedespairinthepostwarerahasappearedoverandoveragainintheworksofthosewritersinthe2othcenturyAmericanliterature.FaulknerexemplifiedT.S.Eliot’sconceptofmodernsocietyasawastelandisadramaticway,hecondemnedthemechanized,industrializedsocietythathasdehumanizedmanbyforcinghimtocultivatefalsevaluesanddecreasethoseessentialhumanvaluessuchascourage,fortitude,honestyandgoodness.Fitzgeraldsoughttoportrayaspiritualwastelandofthejazzage.Beneaththemasksofrelaxationandjoviality,therewasonlysterility,meaninglessandfutilityamidthegrandeurandextravagance,therewasahintofdecadenceandmoraldecay.Hemingway,theleadingspokesmanoftheLostGeneration,thoughdisillusionedinthepostwarperiod,strovetobringaboutman’s“graceunderpressure”.Hetriedtobringouttheideathanmancanbephysicallydestroyedbutneverdefeatedspiritually.

3.AnalyzeWaltWhitman’s