英国文学上复习.docx

1、英国文学上复习Chapter I The Anglo-Saxon Period (450-1066)1. The Anglo-Saxon settlement in England (in the 4th and 5th centuries )- Small kingdoms were combined into a united kingdom called England ；the three tribes(Angles, Saxon and Jutes) mixed into a whole people called English and the three dialect grew

2、 into a single language called Anglo-Saxon-Old English.- The Anglo-Saxon period witnessed a transition from tribal society to feudalism. 2. “Beowulf” - the national epic of the Anglo-Saxon and English people.- a long poem of about 3,000 lines; a folk legend brought to England by the Anglo-Saxons and

3、 passed from mouth to mouth for hundreds of years before it was written down in the 10th century.3. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle- an important history book as well as a piece of literary work (under the guidance of King Alfred)Chapter II The Norman Period (1066-1350)1. The Norman conquest under Duke Wi

4、lliam in 1066- The Norman Conquest marks the establishment of feudalism in England2. Middle English- The English language was greatly enriched by the Norman conquests and a large number of French words were absorbed.3. The Black Death(1348-1349)4. The Romance - the most prevalent kind of literature

5、in feudal England- a long composition, sometimes in verse, sometimes in prose, describing the life and adventures of knights.- the content of romance :love, chivalry and religion- there are many cycles of Arthurian romances, among which “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is most famous and still kept

6、 reading.5. “Piers Plowman”- a long alliterative poem by William Langland - the story takes the form of an allegory, but it gives a realistic picture of 14th century England.- a bitter and incise satire directing at the social vices of the time.Chapter III The Age of Chaucer (1350- 1400)1. The Hundr

7、ed Years War (1337-1453)- a series of wars fought between the English kings and the French kings for the French throne 2. The peasant uprising of 1381- the direct result of exploitation and oppression of the peasants by the feudal lords.3. Geoffrey Chaucer (1340-1400)- “the father of English poetry”

8、 (by John Dryden) and the founder of English realistic literature: the greatest literate before Shakespeare - important works:The Romaunt of the Rose, Troilus and Criseyde and The Canterbury TalesOthers: The House of Fame, The Book of the Duchess4. About “The Canterbury Tales”- Chaucers masterpiece

9、and one of the monumental works in English literature- a vivid and comprehensive picture of Chaucers time- written in heroic couplet； humor and satire Chapter IV The Fifteenth Century (1400-1550)1. The War of the Roses (1455-1485)- a series of civil wars fought between two great families for the Eng

10、lish throne2. Popular Ballads- one of the main stream of English literature in the 15th century: folk literature - ballad meter: 4-line stanzas -“Robin Hood Ballads”, dealing with the famous outlaw Robin Hood and his menChapter V The English Renaissance (1550-1642)1. Historical background- The reign

11、 of Queen Elizabeth: a period of peace and prosperity- The defeat of Spanish fleet “Armada”(1588)- The enclosure movement: bringing about the development in industry- The Authorized Version of Bible or the King James Bible (Under the auspices of James I. 1611)- The Renaissance and Humanism2. Thomas

12、More (1478- 1535)- the greatest of the English humanists: the author of “Utopia”, a ideal state: “liberty, Fraternity and Equality”; written in the form of a conversation between More and a returned voyager: the existence of private property is pointed out as the source of all social evils and injus

13、tices.3. The Flowering of poetry1) Sir Thomas Wyatt and Earl of Surrey- Both of them introduced sonnet form Italy to England, one of the most popular verse forms for the next half century. Surrey, also wrote in his translation of Virgils “Aeneid”, the first English blank verse, the form of poetry to

14、 be masterly handled by Shakespeare and Milton.2) Sir Philip Sidney- Well-known as a poet and critic of poetry: Astrophel and Stella - a collection of love sonnets: Apology for Poetry - one of the earliest English literary essays.3) Edmund Spenser - “the Poets poet”- He had an exceptional command of

15、 language, of verbal music, of giving poetry an exalted and dream-like feeling.- important works:The Shepherds Calendar , Amoetti (a series of 88 sonnets printed with “Epitalamion”)“Faerie Queene” (dedicated to Queen Elizabeth: Spensers masterpiece written in a special verse form which has since bee

16、n called the Spenserian Stanza)4) Michael Drayton- a versatile poet; best known for his beautiful sonnet “Since theres no help, come let us kiss and part”5) William Shakespeare- two narrative poems: Venus and Andonis , The Rape of Lucrece- a sequece of 154 sonnets (rhyming scheme: abab cdcd efef gg)

17、6) George Chapman: famous for his translation of Homer4. The Flowering of Drama: the highest glory of the English Renaissance 1) The early form of drama: miracle play, morality play, interlude and the classical drama2) The university wits: a dramatic circle ; the immediate predecessors of Shakespear

18、e; furnished the Elizabethan stage with a large part of its repertoire 3) Thomas Kyd- His The Spanish Tragedy, a tragedy of blood and revenge, anticipated Shakespeares “Hamlet”4) Christopher Marlowe: the most gifted of “the university wits”- important works: Tamburlaine , The Jew of Malta and Doctor

19、 Fanstus- These plays show, in various ways, the spirit of the rising bourgeoisie, its insatiable appetite for power, money an knowledge.- His masterpiece is Doctor Faustus , in which Dr. Faustus sells his soul to the devil (Mephistopheles) in return for the promise of eternal life.- It is Marlowe w

20、ho first made blank verse the principle instrument of English drama. He was also famous for his “mighty line”5) Robert Greene: one of the university wits; famous for his attack on Shakespeare as “an up-start crow beautiful with our feathers”6) William Shakespeare (1564-1616)- Plays in chronological

21、order: (see History Book PP.67-68)-important works and their major characters: Henry VII and Henry V (History): Prince Henry, Sir John Falstaff“Romeo and Juliet” (Romantic Tragedy): Romeo, Juliet“Julius Caesar ”(Historical Tragedy): Caesar, Brutus, AntonyThe great comedies:The Merchants of Venice :

22、Portia, Bassanio, Antonio, ShylockAs you like it : Rosalind , Orlando, Celia, Oliver, Jacques Twelfth Night : Viola, Oliva, Malvolio, Sir TobyMuch Ado About Nothing : Beatrice, Benedick, Malaprop, DogberryThe Great tragedies:Othello: Othello, Desdemona, IageKing Lear: king Lear, Corelia, Goneril, Re

23、gainMacbeth: Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Banquo, MacduffHamlet: prince Hamlet, Claudius, Ophelia, PoloniusThe tragic-comedies or romances:The Tempest: Prospero, MirandaCymbelineThe Winters TaleShakespeares character portrayal, plot construction, mastery of language as well as his humanist ideasChapter VI

24、 The Seventeenth Century (1603-1688)1. Historical background1) The outburst of the English Revolution(1642)2) Charles I was beheaded in 1649 and England became a commonwealth 3) The split within the revolutionary camp and the restoration.4) The Glorious Revolution (1688) and England has become a cou

25、ntry of constitutional monarchy2. Francis Bacon (1561-1626)- the first great English prose writer; his essays began the long tradition of the English essay in the history of English literature; “the real progenitor of English materialism and experimental sciences of modern times in general” (by Marx

26、)- Bacons 58 essays were published in 1625. They are the authors reflections and comments, mostly on rather abstract subjects, such as “Of Truth” , “Of Friendship”, and “of Riches”. They are known for their conciseness and brevity, simplicity and forcefulness, practicality and versatility.3. Metaphy

27、sical Poets1) The main themes are love, death and religion; characterized by mysticism in content and fantasticality in form. The chief representative of this school was John Donne.2) John Donne (1572-1631)- His best-known poetry may be divided into two parts - love poetry and religion poetry. His S

28、ongs and Sonnets are arguments about love: the tone is direct, passionate; the discussion sophisticated. He had a great influence on modern poets such as T.S. Eliot and W.B.Yeats.3) George Herbert : the saint of the metaphysical school The lyrics in The Temple use unusual imagery to express his reli

29、gions experience4) Andrew Marvell: famous for his lyric “To his Coy Mistress” 4. The Cavalier Poets:- They were lyrical poets, and dealt chiefly with the theme of love and the theme of “Carpe diem”; marked by courtliness, urbanity and polish. The chief representative was Ben Jonson.5. Ben Jonson (15

30、72-1637)1) the best-known contemporary and successor of Shakespeare; a dramatist, a poet laureate and a critic; famous for his comedies of Humor; the representative of the cavalier poets; the author of the beautiful lyric “ To Celia” starting with “Drink to me with thine eyes”2) His important works:

31、“Every Man in His Humor” , “ The Alchemist” and “Volpone”- his masterpiece3) He was an advocate of classic drama and took a firm stand for the “three unities ”.6. Robert Herrick- a follower of Ben Jonson, famous for his lyric “To the Virgins” starting with “Gather ye rose buds while ye may”7. John Milton (1608-1674)1) the greatest of all English epic poets; a master of blank verse; a stylist famous for grand style; the greatest English revolutionary poet and pamphleteer (The revolutionary enthusiasm of the bourgeois revolution and the bitter hatred for the tyrant is best shown