英美文学选读完整版笔记.docx

1、英美文学选读完整版笔记Chapter I The Renaissance Period文艺复兴时期Definitions（定义）1.The Renaissance： The Renaissance marks a transition from the medieval to the modern world. Generally， it refers to the period between the 14th & 17th centuries. It first started in Italy， with the flowering of painting， sculpture & li

2、terature. From Italy the movement went to embrace the rest of Europe. The Renaissance， which means rebirth or revival， is actually a movement stimulated by a series of historical events， such as the re-discovery of ancient Roman & Greek culture， the new discoveries in geography & astrology， the reli

3、gious reformation & the economic expansion. The Renaissance， therefore， in essence is a historical period in which the European humanist thinkers & scholars made attempts to get rid of those old feudalist ideas in medieval Europe， to introduce new ideas that expressed the interests of the rising bou

4、rgeoisie， & to recover the purity of the early church from the corruption of the Roman Catholic Church.2. Humanism：人文主义Humanism is the essence of the Renaissance. It sprang from the endeavor to restore a medieval reverence for the ancient authors and is frequently taken as the beginning of the Renai

5、ssance on its conscious， intellectual side， for the Greek and Roman civilization was based on such a conception that man is the measure of all things. Through the new learning， humanists not only saw the arts of splendor and enlightenment， but the human values represented in the works. Renaissance h

6、umanists found in the classics a justification to exalt human nature and came to see that human beings were glorious creatures capable of individual development in the direction of perfections， and that the world they inhabited was theirs not to despise but to question， explore， and enjoy. Thus， by

7、emphasizing the dignity of human beings and the importance of the present life， they voiced their beliefs that man did not only have the right to enjoy the beauty of this life， but had the ability to perfect himself and to perform wonders. Thomas More， Christo-pher Marlowe and William Shakespeare ar

8、e the best representatives of the English humanists.3. Spenserian stanza：斯宾塞诗节Spenserian stanza was invented by Edmund Spenser. It is a stanza of nine lines， with the first eight lines in iambic pentameter & the last line in iambic hexameter， rhyming ababbcbcc.4. Metaphysical poetry：玄学诗The term meta

9、physical poetry is commonly used to name the work of the 17th century writers who wrote under the influence of John Donne. With a rebellious spirit， the metaphysical poets tried to break away from the conventional fashion of the Elizabethan love poetry. The diction is simple as compared with that of

10、 the Elizabethan or the Neoclassic periods， and echoes the words and cadences of common speech. The imagery in drawn from the actual life. The form is frequently that of an argument with the poets beloved， with God， or with himself.5. The Renaissance hero： A Renaissance hero refers to one created by

11、 Christopher Marlowe in his drama. Such a hero is always individualistic and full of ambition， facing bravely the challenge from both gods and men. He embodies Marlowes humanistic ides of human dignity and capacity. Different from the tragic hero in medieval plays， who seeks the way to heaven throug

12、h salvation and gods will， he is against conventional morality and contrives to obtain heaven on earth through his own efforts. With the endless aspiration for power， knowledge， and glory， the hero interprets the true Renaissance spirit. Both Tamburlaine and Faustus are typical in possessing such a

13、sprit（二） 该时期的重要作家Edmund Spenser-English poet，born in London， England，（ 1552- Jan 13，1599）斯宾塞代表作The Faerie Queene.A.创作意图: The principal intention is to present through a historical poem the example of a perfect gentlemanB.整体线索:The recurring appearances of Arthur serve as a unifying element for the po

14、em as a whole.C.寓意:The Redcrosse Knight in Book I stands for St. George, he also represents Holiness.D.主题:The theme is not Arms and the man,but something more romantic-Fierce wares and faithfull loves.E.作者文学地位:His exquisite melody that make him known as the poets poet.His Major Works Spensers most i

15、mportant work & masterpiece is The Faerie Queene， a great poem of its age. A complex moral， religious， & political allegory， it is also an epic that exalts Queen Elizabeth & the English nation. According to Spensers own explanation， his principal intention is to present through a historical poem the

16、 example of a perfect gentleman： to fashion a gentleman or noble person in virtuous & gentle discipline. Its principal hero is the Arthur of medieval legend. The six books of the poem illustrate the nature of particular virtues， such as， temperance & justice. Other major works of Spenser are The She

17、pheardes Calender（1579）， a poem consisting of 12 eclogues-corresponding to the 12 months of the year； Epithalamion （1595）， a poem expressing the deep personal feelings occasioned by the poets second marriage； Amoretti （1595）， a series of sonnets.3. 领会His Influence1） Main qualities of Spensers poetry

18、a perfect melodya rare sense of beautya splendid imaginationa lofty moral purity & seriousnessa dedicated idealism2） In his writing， Spenser drew on the conventions & thought of Classical， medieval， & Renaissance literature. However， he added to his fusion of these diverse elements much that was ori

19、ginal， & his works inspired many later English poets. He created a new stanza， called the Spenserian stanza， which is well suited to narrative verse. His skills in writing melodious English verse & his combination of emotion， erudition， & spiritual vision have won him the admiration of generations o

20、f English poets. It is his idealism， his love of beauty， &his exquisite melody that make him known as the poets poet.4. 应用The Faerie Queene：1） It is a long， allegorical poem. In the poem， Spenser dramatized political， religious， & moral themes by personifying them， or making them characters.2）Plot：

21、The story， which is set against a background of Arthur & medieval legend， deals with the adventures of six knights of the court of the fairy queen named Gloriana， who represents Queen Elizabeth of English. The faerie Queen was left unfinished at Spensers death. It was originally planned as a 12-book

22、 poem. But only 6 books were completed. The poem is particularly admired for the melodic beauty of its language & for its rich content of philosophical & mythological material presented in the form of vivid narratives.II. Christopher Marlowe1. 一般识记Brief IntroductionEnglish dramatist & poet，born in C

23、anterbury， England， Feb， 6，1567， died in Deptford， England， May 30， 1593. Marlowe was the first great English Dramatist. He brought to the English stage a new concept of tragedy， one in which the drama centers around the struggles of a man overwhelmed by his passions & ambitions.2. 识记His Major Works

24、His most famous tragedies are Doctor Faustus， The Jew of Malta， Tamburlaine & Edward 。 In his plays， Marlowe used blank verse， which he molded into a superb instrument for expressing intense emotions. After his development of blank verse it became the standard medium for English dramatic & epic poet

25、ry. His non-dramatic poetry includes Hero & Leander， the Passionate shepherd to His love， & a verse translation of Ovids Amores.Marlowes Doctor Faustus （about 1589）， generally considered his best play， was based on a real Dr. Faustus， who was later associated with a medieval legend of a man selling

26、his soul to the devil. The plays dominant moral is human rather than religious. It celebrates the human passion for knowledge， power & happiness； it also reveals mans frustration in realizing the high aspirations in a hostile moral order. The last scene， in which Faustus confronts his doom， brillian

27、tly renders the fear & agony of a condemned man.The Jew of Malta （about 1589） illustrates Marlowes outstanding portrayal of character. Its hero， Barabas the Jew， served as the model for Shylock in Shakespeares The Merchant of Venice. In about 1592. Marlowe wrote one of the first successful English h

28、istorical dramas， Edward 。 It is his most dramatically mature play & exhibits his mastery of characterization， stage craft & rhetoric.Tamburlaine is a play about an ambitious & pitiless Tartar conqueror in the fourteenth century who rose from a shepherd to an overpowering King. By depicting a great

29、hero with high ambition & sheer brutal force in conquering one enemy after another， Marlowe voiced the supreme desire of the man of the Renaissance for infinite power & authority.3. 领会His Achievements & InfluenceAchievements：Marlowes greatest achievement lies in that he perfected the blank verse & m

30、ade it the principal medium of English drama.His second achievement is his creation of the Renaissance hero for English drama. The theme of his works is the praise of the Renaissance spirit.His influence：A man of wide learning， Marlowe was one of the extra ordinary poets & playwrights of his time. M

31、arlowes mighty line， as Ben Jonson called his blank verse， was one of the most important contributions to the art of English literature.4. 应用Dr. FaustusThe selection of Actfrom Dr. Faustus is mainly about Faustus is showing his great ambition， that is， if he had many souls， he would give them all to

32、 the Devil so that he could control the world. In portraying Faustus， a more introspective & philosophical figure than Tamburlaine， Marlowe praises his soaring aspiration for knowledge while warning against the sin of pride since Faustuss downfall was caused by his despair in God & trust in Devil.。 William Shakespeare1. 一般识记Brief IntroductionWilliam Shakespeare was the greatest writer of plays who ever lived. His friend & fellow playwr