《英国文学名词解释》由会员分享，可在线阅读，更多相关《英国文学名词解释（41页珍藏版）》请在金锄头文库上搜索。
1、英国文学整理之静候佳音TermsPart 1: Early and Medieval English LiteratureAnglo-SaxonThe term Anglo-Saxon is used by some historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Britain beginning in the early 5th century and the period from their creation of the English nation u
2、p to the Norman Conquest. The Anglo-Saxon era denotes the period of English history between about 550 and 1066.The term is also used for the language, now known as Old English, that was spoken and written by the Anglo-Saxons and their descendants in England (and part of southeastern Scotland) betwee
3、n at least the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century.Old English period (the Anglo-Saxon period)The Old English period, extended from the invasion of Celtic England by Germanic tribes in the first half of the 5th century to the conquest of England in 1066 by the Norman French. Only after they had
4、 been converted to Christianity in the 7th century did the Anglo-Saxons, whose earlier literature had been oral, begin to develop a written literature. Chronicle(编年史)Generally a chronicle is a historical account of facts and events ranged in chronological order, as in a time line. Typically, equal w
5、eight is given for historically important events and local events, the purpose being the recording of events that occurred, seen from the perspective of the chronicler. The most important English chronicles are the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, started under the patronage of King Alfred in the 9th century
6、and continued until the 12th century.Gleeman (吟游诗人)A gleeman was a wandering minstrel, bard, or other poet common in medieval Europe but extinct today. They were a lower class than jesters or jongleurs, because they did not have steady work, but roamed about making their living instead.kenning (隐喻表达
7、法) In old English poetry, it is an elaborate phrase that describes persons, things, and events in a metaphorical and indirect way.It in the form of a compound that employs figurative language in place of a more concrete single-word noun. The term kenning has been applied by modern scholars to simila
8、r figures of speech in other languages too, especially Old English.Alliteration (头韵) It is the repetition of a speech sound in a sequence of nearby words. The term is usually applied only to consonants, and only when the recurrent sound begins a word or a stressed syllable within a word. Alliteratio
9、n has developed largely through poetry, in which it more narrowly refers to the repetition of a consonant in any syllables that, according to the poems meter, are stressedOld alliterative verse In old alliterative verse, each line contained three alliterative words, two of which were placed in the f
10、irst half, and the third in the second half. Piers the Plowman is one of its representatives.Epic (史诗)It is originally an oral narrative poem, majestic both in theme and style. Epics deal with legendary or historical events of national or universal significance, involving actions of broad sweep or g
11、randeur. They also deal with the exploits of a single individual, thereby giving unity to the composition.Great epics include The Odyssey by Homer. Beowulf Beowulf is the conventional title of an Old English heroic epic poem, which is commonly regarded as the greatest national epic of the Anglo-Saxo
12、n literature.The epic describes the exploits of a Scandinavian hero, Beowulf, in fighting against the monster Grendel, his revengeful mother, and a fire-breathing dragon in his declining years. He killed the dragon at the cost of his life. Beowulf is shown not only as glorious hero but also as a pro
13、tector of the people. Middle English period It is the four and half centuries after the Norman Conquest in 1066.It undergone radical changes in the language, life, and culture of England.About 1500, when the standard literary language had been recognizably “modern English”, that is, similar to the l
14、anguage we speak and write today. Anglo-Norman period The span from 1100 to 1350 is sometimes discriminated as the Anglo-Norman period, because the non-Latin literature of that time was mainly in Anglo-Norman. This language is the French dialect spoken by the invaders who had established themselves
15、as the ruling class of England, and who shared a literary culture with French-speaking areas of mainland Europe.Romance (罗曼史/骑士文学)It is the most prevailing kind of literature in medieval England, which is any imagination literature that is set in an idealized world and deals with heroic adventures a
16、nd battles between good characters and villains or monsters.Originally, the term referred to a medieval tale dealing with the loves and adventures of kings, queens, knights and ladies, and including unlikely or supernatural happenings.John Keatss The Even of St.Agnes is one of the greatest metrical romances ever written.Courtly love (宫廷式恋爱/典雅爱情)Courtly love was a medieva
