美国文学大纲讲义.docx

美国文学大纲讲义.docx

《美国文学大纲讲义.docx》由会员分享，可在线阅读，更多相关《美国文学大纲讲义.docx（17页珍藏版）》请在冰豆网上搜索。

美国文学大纲讲义

☉LiteratureofColonialAmerica（17th.C.）

☉NativeAmericanLiterature

☉Traditional---oral;sacredstories,folktales,andsongsaspartoftheritualsofannualfestivals,tribaltraditions,andnarrativeaccountsofgodsandheroes;metricpattern

☉Astoryofcreation

☉LiteratureofColonialSettlements

☉Background

☉NeitherAmericannorreallyliterature---byimmigrantsfromEngland;travelaccountsandreligiouswritings;

☉Fewliteraryworks---fourmainreasons

☉Colonization

☉Spanishconquest:

16th.C.---18th.C.

☉Englishconquest:

majorityofthe17th.C.immigrant;1607,Jamestown,Virginia;1620,Plymouth,theausterePilgrims;1630,MassachusettsBay,Puritans---NewEnglandcolonies

☉Puritanism

☉Doctrines:

predestination,originalsin,totaldepravity（sobrietyandthrifty,hardworking）,limitedatonementfromGod’sgrace,education

☉ Literatureofearlysettlements

☉Acityonthemountain,anewGardenofEden

☉Types:

histories,travelaccounts,biographies,diaries,letters,autobiographies,sermons,poems

☉Works:

☉Histories,travelaccounts:

FrancisHigginson---NewEngland’sPlantation;JohnSmith---AMapofVirginiaandaDescriptionoftheCountry;WilliamBradford---OfPlimmothPlantation

☉Poetry:

AnneBradstreet---TheTenthMuseLatelySprungupinAmerica,domesticandreligioustopics

☉EdwardTaylor---metaphysical,ThePoemsofEdwardTaylor

☉Characteristics

☉Puritanwritings:

utilitarian,polemical,didactic,symbolic,plain,useful

☉

☉Literatureofthe18thC

☉Background

☉1）prominentgenre:

theproseofthegreatphilosopher-statesmen

☉2）EmbodiedPuritannaïveidealismandcrudematerialism:

Calvinistbeliefsanddeism

☉3）JonathanEdward:

senseoftruereligiousfeeling

☉BenjaminFranklin

☉1）PoorRichard’sAlmanac（1732-1785）:

practicalwisdom,collectingproverbsofdifferentcountriesandturningthemintoAmericanEnglish

☉2）Autobiography（1771-1790）:

familyhistoryandeffortstolearnvirtue

☉3）Style:

clear,plain,formal,butinformalinmaterialorganization

☉ThomasPaine

☉1）BorninEngland,sidedwithAmerica

☉2）Politicalpamphlets:

CommonSense（1776）,TheRightsofMan（1791-1792）,TheAgeofReason

☉3）Radicalandrevolutionarybothinpoliticsandinreligion

☉PhilipFreneau

☉ThefirstAmerican-bornpoet,literarynationalism,patriotism

☉“PoetoftheAmericanRevolution”

☉“TheRisingGloryofAmerica”（1772）withHughHenryBrackenridge

☉“TheBritishPrisonShip”（1781）

☉Romanticpoet:

“ThewildHoneySuckle”

☉

☉EarlyRomantics（1810-1830）

☉Overview

☉Background:

☉AmericawontheWarofIndependence;optimism,developmentofdemocracy,nationalism,rapidgrowthofeconomy;greatimmigration,thewestwardexpansion;theimpactofEuropeanliteraryromanticism:

youngAmericanstraveledtoEurope---Irving

☉TheIndustrialRevolution（around1760）andtheFrenchRevolution（1789-1799）

☉Theterm“Romantic”wasgivenbytheGermanCriticFriedrichSchlegelatthebeginningofthe19thc.

☉ClashesbetweenNeoclassicismandRomanticism:

thelatterstressedonindividualandimagination

☉Characteristics:

☉1.Againstobjectiverationalism:

subjective,intuitive,imaginative

☉Headthinkingandheartfeeling;findingtruththroughfeelingorthroughscientificinvestigation

☉2.Rethinkingtherelationshipbetweenmanandnature

☉Nature:

anexemplarandsourceofphysicalbeauty,amanifestationofspirit,arevelationoftruth

☉God:

immanent,infinite

☉3.Individualism

☉Individual:

thecenteroflifeandart

☉Emphasisonpersonalfreedom

☉Nohero-worship

☉4.Interestininnerlife,thepast,thegrotesque,andvariety

☉DistinctfeaturesofAm.romanticism

☉Tomoralize,toedifyratherthantoentertain

☉NewAmericanexperiencesalientoEuropeanculture:

☉Theexoticlandscape,thewestwardexpansion,themythofaNewEden,thePuritanheritage

☉NewEnglandpoets

☉Alsocalled“FiresidePoets”or“SchoolRoomPoets”

☉Conventional,influenceofVictoriapoetry,thegenteel19thcculture,morality,traditionalmeters,stanzaforms,stereotypedmetaphorsandsuperficialsymbolism,refinedlanguage

☉WilliamCullenBryant,JamesRussellLowell,HenryWadsworthLongfellow（lateromanticism）

☉HenryWadsworthLongfellow

☉Life:

awell-to-dofamily;graduatedfromBowdoinCollege;travelledinEurope;aprofessoratBowdoin;secondtraveltoEurope;aprofessoratHarvard

☉Anthology:

ThePoetsandPoetryofEurope

☉Themostfamouspoetofhistime,withpoeticreputationdeclininginthe20thc.

☉ThefirstAmericantowritenarrativepoems:

Evangeline（1847）,TheSongofHiawatha（1855）,etc.“ApsalmofLife”

☉WroteAmericansubjects,butalwaysinEuropeanstyles;musicalandpowerful,highlyspiritual,didactic

☉WilliamCullenBryant（1794-1878）

☉Life:

☉ThefirstromanticpoetborninAmerica:

Cummington,Massachusetts;

☉practicedlaw,editorofTheNewYorkReviewandAthenaeumMagazine,NewYorkEveningPost;

☉interestedinpoliticalandsocialreforms

☉Foursubjects:

☉thebeautyandharmonyofnatureasasourceofsolace,joyandescape---“TheYellowViolet”,“ToaWaterfowl”

☉thedignityofhumanity;

☉thesacrednessofhumanfreedom;

☉thepowerandbeneficenceofGod;religion,influenceoftheEnglish“graveyardschool”---“Thanatopsis”

☉“Thanatopsis”:

☉aturningpointfromadmirationofdeathtohymnfornature;treatsdeathasapartofnature,thedestinyofusall,andthegreatequalizer

☉Collections:

TheFountain,TheWhite-FootedDeer,AforestHymn,TheFloodofYears;translatingIliadandOdyssey

☉JamesFenimoreCooper

☉Life:

BurlingtonNewJersy;NewYork;YaleCollege;sailor,amidshipmanintheNavy;Europeanstay

☉Themes:

wildernessvs.civilization,freedomvs.law,ordervs.change,aristocratvs.democrat;naturalrightsvs.legalrights

☉conservative:

westwardexpansionandchange---negative

☉Threekindsofnovels:

☉Therevolutionarypast-TheSpy;

☉theseanovels-ThePilot;

☉TheAmericanFrontier（thefatherofpioneeringtales）-TheLeather-stockingtales:

ThePioneers,ThelastofMohicans,ThePrairie,ThePathfinder,theDeerslayer

☉NattyBumppo:

theheroinTheLeatherstockingTales

☉1）asymbolofAmericandesireforunitywithnature;therelationshipbetweennatureandcivilization;standingforinnocenceandpurity;

☉2）theessentialAmericansoul（D.H.Lawrence）,thestereotypeofAmericanhero:

isolated,selfless,stoic,enduring,individual,

☉Conventionsinwriting:

thebraveandfaultlesshero,theloyalIndiancompanion,physicaldanger,atestforskill,andthehairbreadthrescue

☉WashingtonIrving

☉Life:

sonofaNewYorkmerchant（afanofGorgeWashington）,traveledtomanycountriesinEurope,influencedbytheEuropeanromanticism:

Europe1819-1820;England1815,tookliteratureasaprofession

☉Literaryachievement:

thefirstAmericanauthortoachieveinternationaldistinction

☉MorningChronicle,signedJonathanOldstyle

☉Salmagundi:

asatiricalmagazine

☉AHistoryofNewYork（1809）,signed“DiedrichKnickerbocker”:

arollickingburlesqueofacurrentserioushistoryoftheearlyDutchsettlers

☉TheSketchBook（1819-1820）:

wonhiminternationalreputation---“RipVanWinkle”,“TheLegendofSleepyHollow”:

nostalgia,conservatism

☉Otherworks:

worksbasedonhisexperiencesinSpain;thebiographyofGeorgeWashington

☉Style:

graceful,refined,fluent,humorous,anddignified,sentimentalism;thethemeofchangeandmutability

☉PositioninAmericanliterature:

☉ThecentralfigureofAm.Earlyromanticism

☉ThefirstgreatAm.belletrist,writingforpleasure

☉ThefirstAm.professionalwriter

☉ThefirstAm.Writertowininternationalrecognition

☉ThewriterofthefirstAm.modernshortstoriesandjuvenileliterature,essays

☉ReflectionoftheBritishandEuropeanromanticism

☉Highromanticism（1830-1865）

☉NewEnglandTranscendentalism（超验主义）orAmericanRenaissance（1836-1855）：

☉Growthanddevelopment:

thefirstAm.Intellectualmovement;thepublicationofNature（1836）,theTranscendentalclub（1836）,TheDial（1840-1844）

☉Twocommunitarianexperiments:

GeorgeRipley,theBrookFarm（1841-1847）,Boston,emphasisoncooperationwithoutcompetition;BronsonAlcott,Fruitlands（1843）,Harvard,

☉sources:

☉1）WilliamElleryChanning,Unitarianism（唯一神教派）,arevoltagainstorthodoxpuritanism,thetoleranceofdifference,freecontrol

☉2）theidealisticphilosophyfromFranceandGermany

☉3）orientalmysticismrevealedinHinduandChinesephilosophy

☉Majorconcepts:

☉Definition:

toriseabove,orpassbeyondthelimits;acquiringknowledgetranscendingthereachoffivesenses,intuitively,reachingthedivinewithoutanintercessor

☉1）intuition:

atthecoreoftranscendentalism,theinnerlightwithin;thingstruer,transcendingtheeverydayexperiencesofsensationandreflection

☉2）Spirit:

transcendingmatter;stressingessencebehindappearance

☉3）Nature:

symbolofspiritandGod’spresence,god’senlightenmenttowardshumanbeings;pantheism（泛神论）;stressingunityofnatureandhumanity

☉4）Individualism:

self-reliant,unselfish,capableofselfspiritualperfection;moraldevelopment,dignityofindividual

☉5）Oversoul（超灵）:

all-pervadingunitaryspiritualpowerofgoodness,omnipresentandomnipotent,fromwhichallthingscameandofwhicheveryonewasapart（influenceofChineseTaoism）;replacementofGodingeneralsense;asingleessenceleadingtouniversalbrotherhoodofhumanity,resolutionofsocialproblems

☉6）Commerceandmaterial:

degrading,wastinglife

☉Significance:

☉1）manifestationofromanticism

☉2）anethicalguidetolife,stimulatingthedevelopmentofdemocracy

☉3）stimulatingthedevelopmentofAm.Literature

☉Weakness:

☉Notsystematic,borrowing,lackof