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1、Unit2 Edgar Allan Poe1) Who is the narrator? What wrong does he want to redress?It is Montresor. Fortunato has given Montresor thousands of injuries that he has to bear before he has this opportunity of taking revenge.2) What is the pretext Montresor uses to lure Fortunado to his wine cellar?He clai
2、ms that he has just got a cask of Amontilado and stores it in the wine cellar before he may find a connoisseur to testify to its authenticity.3) What happens to Fortunado in the end?The deceived Fortunado is killed because of his inability of getting out of the catacomb.4) Describe briefly how Poe c
3、haracterizes Mortresor and Fortunado as contrasts.Poe characterizes Mortresor and Fortunado as seemingly contrasting characters chiefly by presenting their identical habit in wine and their different manners towards each other, but actually he intends to show some similarly defective aspects in thei
4、r nature. The similarity in their nature is also suggested by their names as synonyms in Italian: Mortresor means “fortune” while Fortunado “treasure”. Their defective nature is highlighted when the revenger Mortresor, who is fully prepared on psychological and operating levels, throws the hardly pr
5、epared but totally deceived wrong-doer Fortunado into the deep and damp catacomb and blocks up its entrance with huge rocks.Unit 7 19th Century American Poets1. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow(1) I Shot an Arrow1. Why did the speaker lose sight of his arrow and song?The arrow flies too swiftly and too fa
6、r away to be seen by the speaker; whereas the song is naturally invisible.2. In what circumstances did he find them again?He finds them unexpectedly years later from the trunk of a tree and the heart of a friend.3. What do arrow and song stand for in this poem?The images of arrow and song here may s
7、tand for friendship.(2) A Psalm of Life1. What kind of person is the speaker of this poem?The speaker is a man of action, always optimistic and cheerful, trying to achieve as much as possible in the short span of life.2. According to the poem, how should our lives be led to overcome the fact that ea
8、ch day brings us nearer to death?We should work harder and live happier.3. Interpret the metaphor of Footprints on the sand of time (line 28).The metaphor refers to human deeds in real life.2. Walt Whitman(1)Ones Self I Sing1. What is the significance of singing about ones self?It is an exaltation o
9、f the individual spirit, which is typical of American people.2. What is the difference between physiology and physiognomy?Physiology is a science that deals with the functions and life process of human beings, whereas physiognomy refers to an art of judging character from contours of face itself or
10、the appearance of a person.3. What does Whitman mean by the term of the Modern Man?He means that a man should be free from any prejudice and pride, totally different from the traditional one, that is full of bias.(3) O Captain! My Captain!1. Why is the word Captain capitalized throughout the poem?In
11、 this poem the word “Captain” specially refers to Abraham Lincoln, president of the United States.2. What overall metaphor does the poet employ in this poem?Life is a journey.3. Why do people on the shores exult and bells ring, while the speaker remains so sad?They welcome the ship returning from it
12、s hard trip, whereas the speaker is sad because the captain fails to receive his own honor.3.Emily Dickinson(1) To Make a Prairie 1. What things are needed to make a prairie? In what sense can one really do it?Some grass and insects and small animals. People can make a prairie with their imagination
13、.2. How can revery alone create a prairie?The prairie stays in ones mind.(2) Success Is Counted Sweetest1. Why is success counted sweetest by those who neer succeed?Those who have tasted the bitterness of failure would have a keener desire for success.2. Who are the purple host?The so-called success
14、ful people in the world.3. Who is he in the last stanza?Anyone who is pursuing his success.(3) Im Nobody!1. Who are the pair of us and they in this poem?The pair of us refers to the speaker in the poem and the reader, and they refers to the public, especially those in power.2. What does an admiring
15、bog really mean? (line 28).It Implies the vain and empty common people, who are always admiring and pursuing the celebrities.3. What is the theme of this poem?The real admirable life is a secluded and common one.4. Do you want to be nobody or somebody? Explain your reasons.Different persons would have different answers to this question. Personally, I prefer to be nobody.Unit 17 20th-Century American Poets1. Ezra PoundIn A Station of the Metro1. Why does the poet call the faces of pedestrians apparition?These pedestrians are all walking in a hurry amidst the drizzling rain.2.
