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1、EnglishandAmericanLiteratureForEnglishMajors2015AutumnFocusnBrief introduction to literary history (literary background and features)nBasic literary terms (common knowledge) nMain figures and their worksnSelected readings and moviesnAnalysis and comment makingAdvicento follow your own instincts, to
2、use your own reason, to come to your own conclusions.nnot to fetter that independence which is the most important quality that a reader can possess.nThe spirit of freedom - to enjoy freedom, we have to control ourselves.nWhere are we to begin? nHow are we to bring order into this chaos and so get th
3、e deepest and widest pleasure from what we read?nbooks -fiction, biography, poetrynwhat books can give us?nTry to become him, be his fellow-worker. nIf you open your mind as widely as possible, then signs and hints from the twist and turn of the first sentences, will bring you into the presence of a
4、 human being unlike any other.n Soon you will find that your author is giving you, or attempting to give you, something far more definite.nReading is a longer and more complicated process than seeing.n Perhaps the quickest way to understand the elements of a novelist is to write; to make your own ex
5、periment with the dangers and difficulties of words.nBut when you attempt to reconstruct it in words, you will find that it breaks into a thousand conflicting impressions. nSome must be subdued; others emphasized; in the process you will lose, probably, all grasp upon the emotion itself.nThen turn f
6、rom your blurred and littered pages to the opening pages of some great novelist一Defoe, Jane Austen, Hardy.nNow you will be better able to appreciate their mastery. It is not merely that we are in the presence of a different person一Defoe, Jane Austen, or Thomas Hardy一but that we are living in a diffe
7、rent world.nTo read a novel is a difficult and complex art. You must be capable not only of great fineness of perception, but of great boldness of imagination if you are going to make use of all that the novelist一the great artist gives you. nBiographies and autobiographies- lives of great men, of me
8、n long dead and forgotten, we read them, but read them in a different way, with a different aim.nSo merely by going from friend to friend, from garden to garden, from house to house, we have passed from one end of English literature to another and wake to find ourselves here again in the present.nTh
9、e impact of poetry is so hard and direct that for the moment there is no other sensation except that of the poem itself. What profound depths we visit then一how sudden and complete is our immersion! There is nothing here to catch hold of; nothing to stay us in our flight.nConclusion-The first process
10、, to receive impressions with the utmost understanding, is only half the process of reading; the second part of reading, to judge, to compare.nTo continue reading, to have read widely enough and with enough understanding to make such comparisons alive and illuminating一that is difficult.nEven our jud
11、gments are wrong, still our taste, the nerve of sensation that sends shocks through us, is our chief illuminant; we learn through feeling. But as time goes on perhaps we can train our taste, thus, with our taste to guide us. So love reading! n.Benefits from reading literatureBenefitsfromreadingliter
12、aturen文学“调动了”我们很多最为复杂的感觉官能-我们对语言、人物、社会制度、政治、历史、道德的微妙知识；我们理解类比、类似、对比、重要的重复、省略、讽刺、双关语、甚至暗号的能力。 -Robert Alter, The Pleasure of Reading in an Ideological Age, (1996)n在阅读文学时，我们也学习了那些远离我们自己、但还不至于无法辨识的文化、时代和感受的价值观和经历。并且我们在文学创作的虚构世界中生活，从而间接地获得经验。 -Kendall L. Walton, Mimesis as Make Believe: On the Foundatio
13、ns of the Representational Arts (1990)n文学可以扩展我们的感情和智识视野，具有引导同情理解的作用。n文学会帮助我们变成我们自己。（尼采）n文学帮助我们理解自己的生活，帮助我们找到自己的身份。n通过文学阅读，还可以获得美学享受。n文学可以起到治疗作用（Poetry as a healer-mending the troubled mind），而更为常见的是起到安慰作用。RequirementsforthiscoursenKnowing brief literary historynSelected readingsnClassroom activities
14、-group discussion, role-play, presentationnPaper-writingnFinal examination nBe an active reader: read, think and write sth. on an author or work you are interested in most.nHistory, philosophy, psychology, aesthetics and other disciplines to help learn literatureEnglish LiteraturePartIOldandMiddleEn
15、glishPeriodsPartIIEnglishRenaissancePartIIIThe17thCenturyPartIVThe18thCenturyPartVTheRomanticPeriodPartVIVictorianAgePartVII 20thCentury PartIOldandMiddleEnglishPeriods(450-1066-1485)I. Old English Period and BeowulfA.HistoricalBackgroundpThe British Civilization - one of the oldest in the world -14
16、00-1800 BCpBritain, the biggest island of the British Isles, originally inhabited by primitive Celtic tribes known as Britons.pThe Britons came over in 5th c. BC, gave its name: “Britain”-“the land of the Britons”.pThe Celts left behind a rich oral tradition of myths and legends.pAbout 55 BC, Roman
17、Soldiers of Julius Caesar came and transplanted their civilization.pIn the 5th c. Anglo-Saxons invaded, drove the Celts and developed their own language and culturepOldEnglish-is also known as Anglo-Saxon English, mainly used during the period of Anglo-Saxon Conquest.pthe place became England, or An
18、gle-land- “the land of the Angles”B.LiteraryFeaturespFor 2 c, pagan poetry and pagan spirit remained dominated, essentially a body of heroic poetry.pWith the arrival of St. Augustine in 597 AD and the subsequent spread of Christian influence and classical learning, Anglo-Saxon began to be converted
19、to Christianity. The Religious poetry chiefly based on Biblical stories.pIn the 2nd half of the 7th c, Caedmon became the first known poet (religious poet) in English literary history.pAbout 8th c, Cynewulf of Northumbria , the first poet ever to sign his compositions, e.g. The Legend of St. Elena,
20、Christ.pBeowulf, the first English epic poem still intact as a whole piece today, was composed in Old English.pIn the 9th c., King Alfred the Great defeated a new wave of invasion from Scandinavia and brought peace, security and prosperity to his kingdom, encouraged cultural growth and decided liter
21、ature to be written in Old English.pEnglish poets rarely used end rhyme, but regularly used a system of alliteration. pTo achieve variety, a kind of metaphor called the kenning, was frequently used, a compound , a compound of two terms used in place of a common wordof two terms used in place of a co
22、mmon word. The sun, for example, could be referred to as “world-candle”; the ocean as “sea-monsters home”p The kenning could provide a fresh appeal to the imagination of the audience.pThe Old English poetry- religious group and secular group. pReligious group mainly on biblical themes.pSecular group
23、 includes the national epic poem and lyrical poems. C.Anglo-SaxonEpicPoemBeowulfpBeowulf belongs to the category of oral, epic in that it was composed to be recited and only written down much later, around the year 1000.pThe story takes place in Scandinavia in 6th c, and there is no mention of Engla
24、nd at all. The hero comes from Sweden, and performs his deeds in Denmark.pBasically a two-part narrativeBeowulfs fight with the sea-monsters Grendel and his mother in the first part (I.1-1798), and his killing a fiery dragon and his death in the second (II. 1799-3182). nBeo-bee; wulf-wolf. The anima
25、l that associates with honey must be a bear. And bear is famous with its strength, especially the strength of grip, of mighty hug. And this strength of grip suggests the way of Beowulfs fighting with Grendel. The reader can find from the poem a bear-like quality in Beowulf.The Artistic Features of B
26、eowulfBeowulf represents the highest achievement of the old English.pExtensiveuseofalliteration-certain accented words in a line begin with the same consonant sound. alliterationnThe fair breeze blew, the white foam flew,nThe furrow followed free,nWe were the first that ever burstnInto that silent s
27、ea.n欢快的微风吹拂，n白色的泡沫漂浮；n丝丝细波自由而起，n我们最先跳进了那安静的海水里nThe origin of epic is the oral poetic tradition in preliterate societies. In these traditions, poetry is transmitted to the audience from performer to performer by purely oral means.nTheuseof“kennings” - a poetic compound, made up of two or more nouns s
28、tanding for another noun. e.g. “the rough sea” “whales road”; “the smooth sea”- “swans way” ; “sunthe worlds great candle”; “bodythe bone house”. The name Beowulf itself is a kenning, “bee-wolf”-”bear”nUnderstatements-often regarded as a characteristic of the English language. e.g. “not troublesome”
29、 for “welcome”, “need not praise” for “a right to condemn” Epic:DefinitionandCharacteristicsnEpic is a long verse narrative on a serious subject, told in a formal and elevated style, and centered on a heroic or quasi-divine figure whose actions depend on the fate of a tribe, a nation, or the human r
30、ace.nIliad and Odyssey of the ancient Greece, Beowulfof the old English, Paradise Lost by John MiltonnThespecificcharacteristicsofanepic- The hero is of imposing stature, of national or international importance, and of great historical or legendary significance.- The setting is vast, covering many n
31、ations, the world or the universe.- The action consists of deeds of great valour or requiring superhuman courage.- Supernaturalforces-gods, angels, demons-interest themselves in the action.- A style of sustainedelevation is used.- The poet retains a measure of objectivity, and the use of the epic si
32、mile and repetition is common.Filmadaptations-Beowulfn译名：名：贝奥武夫奥武夫n导演：演：罗伯特伯特泽米吉斯米吉斯RobertZemeckisn主演：安吉莉娜主演：安吉莉娜朱莉朱莉AngelinaJolie雷雷温斯温斯顿RayWinstone安安东尼尼霍普金斯霍普金斯AnthonyHopkins布莱丹布莱丹格里森格里森BrendanGleesonn国家国家/地区：美国地区：美国n类型：奇幻型：奇幻/冒冒险/剧情情n发行公司：行公司：华纳兄弟影片公司兄弟影片公司n上映日期：上映日期：2007年年11月月14日（美国）日（美国）Whataret
33、hethemesofBeowulf? II. Middle English Period (1066-1485) A. Historical BackgroundpIn 1066, the conquest of England by the French-speaking Norman. Also marked the beginning of the Middle English period.pThe Normans brought the French language, customs and culture. While English language survived and
34、enriched by absorbing French words.pThe Establishment of the Feudal SystempThe 1381 Peasant UprisingpThe War of the Roses (1455-1485)pThe Hundred Years War (1337-1453)The Peasants Revolt of 1381 is mentioned in the Tales.pRobin Hood, a collection of 15th-century medieval balladsabout Robin Hood, the
35、 hero of the poor, and the enemy of the rich and the powerful.pJohn Wycliffe (1320-1384), Oxford scholar. His translation of theBible from the Latin Vulgate Version into Middle English, has far-reaching influence upon the evolution of the English language.pWilliamLangland (1332-end of 14th c), a ref
36、ormer, Piers Plowman.TheMiddleEnglishnThe Middle English is the name given to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery English, a form of London-based English began to become widespread.II.Literary Featur
37、espThe growth of the Arthurianlegend, one of the vitalizing sources of inspiration for English writers.pSir Gawain and theGreen Knight.(the author was the contemporary of Chaucer), one important story in the Arthurian legend has been refined in detail. 4-part work of 2530 lines in 101 sections. Shar
38、ing quite a few basic features with Old English poems like Beowulf, e.g. line structure and alliteration.III. Geoffrey Chaucer (1340-1400)nThe first most significant poet in English literary history to write in ME and ranks with Shakespeare as the most popular and most widely read of all poets today
39、, exerting great influences on writers of later generations not only in England but also across the world. He lived an eventful life.nFull wise is he that can himselven knowe. - Geoffrey Chaucer pBorn into a wealthy wine merchants family in London in 1340. And received a very solid education, widely
40、 read and learned.pLanguage-speaking-French, Latin, and Italian.pIn the early teens, served as a page in the royal household.pAt the age of 19, served with the English army in France, where was captured and later ransomed by the king.pHis marriage with one of the queens maids brought him money as we
41、ll as royal favor.pHaving been a diplomat (to Spain, France, and Italy) at different phased of his life, and served as controller of customs, a justice of the peace, and knight of the shire for Kent.nDied in 1400 and buried in Westminster Abbey in London. Around his burial spot has grown up the famo
42、us PoetsCorner.n This colorful experience with life and people paved the way for his writing career. His masterpiece is The Canterbury Tales, a collection of 24-odd stories.His literary careerna.Frenchperiod(1360-1372)influenced by French literature Translated “ Romance of the rose” 玫瑰传奇nb.Italianpe
43、riod(1372-1385)adapted Italian literature Troilus and Cressida 特洛伊勒斯和克丽西达 Created “the legend of Good Women” 好妇 人的故事nc.Englishperiod(1386-1400)“ The Canterbury Tales” 坎特伯雷故事集nMessenger of humanism -influenced by Renaissance in Italy (e.g. Boccaccio), he affirmed mans right to pursue earthly happines
44、s; praised mans energy, intellect, quick wit and love of life; he exposed and satirized the social vices, including religious abuses.nRealistic writer -it is Chaucer alone who, for the first time in English literature, presented a comprehensive realistic picture of the English society of his time an
45、d created a whole gallery of vivid characters from all walks of life in his masterpiece. n“Father” of English Poetry -introduced from France the rhymed stanzas of various types to England poetry to replace the Old English alliterative verse.nMaster of the English Language -the first great poet who w
46、rote in the current English. His poetry was an important factor in establishing English as the literary language of the country. -Chaucers English was the London dialect, and he did much in making it the foundation for modern English speech. -For the Renaissance, he was the English Homer, many of Sh
47、akespeares plays show thorough assimilation of Chaucers comic spirit.TheCanterburyTalesnChaucers most celebrated work, composed btw 1387-1400 in 17000 lines of prose and verse of various metres.nThe Tales is a collection of stories told by a group of 29 pilgrims on a pilgrimage from Southwark to Can
48、terbury to visit the shrine of St. Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral, where the famous St. Thomas Becket was assassinated.IV.Background information of The Canterbury TalesnThethree“estates”( social divisions) In feudal times, medieval society made up of three categories of peoples, or “estates”:
49、 (male estates, defined by how one makes a living )n the nobility (those that fought)n the clergy (those that prayed)n the peasantry (those who produced the food which supported those who fought and prayed)nfemale estatesvirgins, wives and widows nToward the end of the later middle ages, the rigid d
50、ivision of society begins to break down. nThe late 14th cthe time of Chaucerwitnesses the rise of a new urban middle class made up of merchants and tradesmen. nThere is also new sub-division of the clergy: intellectuals who are trained in scholarship and writer, but who will not end up with a career
51、 within the church as monks or priests. The seven deadly sinsIn Christian tradition, those sins which have the most serious impact on spiritual development have been classified as “deadly sins.”nAvarice (greed)贪婪, involves the desire for material or monetary gain.nGluttony (traditionallyeating too m
52、uch, but broader connotationincludes trying to consume more of anything than you actually need, food included)饕餮(Toti)，传说中的一种凶恶贪食的野兽nLechery (lust)淫欲, more popular deadly sins, involves the desire to experience physical, sensual pleasures.nEnvy 嫉妒nWrath ( anger )暴怒nSloth ( apathy, indifference)懒惰nPr
53、ide (vanity )傲慢An introduction to The Canterbury Tales Canterbury Tales is more than just a collection of stories. It is a pageant of 14th century life. The pilgrims span the whole range of the unofficial middle class. Groups represented are: pUpper class (Knight, Squire, Church people) pLearned pro
54、fessions (Physician, Man of Law)pLanded gentry (next below nobility, 绅士，上等人)pMedieval manor（采邑，领地） people (Miller磨房主, Reeve庄园管家)pMerchantile class (Shipman, Merchant)pGuildsmen （协会，会馆成员）(Haberdasher出售缝纫用的小商品店主, Dyer, etc.)pLaborer (Plowman)nCanterbury CathedralnFragment Tales nFragment I(A) General
55、Prologue, Knight, Miller, Reeve, Cook nFragment II(B1) Man of Law nFragment III(D) Wife, Friar, Summoner nFragment IV(E) Clerk, Merchant nFragment V(F) Squire, Franklin nFragment VI(C) Physician, Pardoner nFragment VII(B2) Shipman, Prioress, Sir Thopas, Melibee, Monk, Nuns Priest nFragment VIII(G) S
56、econd Nun, Canons Yeoman nFragment IX(H) Manciple nFragment X(I) Parson nA woodcut from William Caxtons second edition of the Canterbury Tales printed in 1483.StructurenCanterbury Tales fallsintothesame category as many other works of its day asacollectionofstoriesorganizedintoaframenarrativeorframe
57、tale.nChaucers Tales differed from other stories in this genre chiefly in its intense variation. Most story collections focused on a theme, usually a religious one.nTheideaofapilgrimage appears to have been ausefuldevice to get such a diverse collection of people together forliterarypurposes, and wa
58、s also unprecedented. nIntroducing acompetitionamong the tales encourages the reader to compare the tales in all their variety, and allows Chaucer to showcase the breadth of his skill in different genres and literary forms.nWhile the structure of the Tales is largely linear, with one story following
59、 another, it is also much more than that.n IntheGeneralPrologue, Chaucer describes, not the tales to be told, but the peoplewhowilltellthem, making it clear that structure will depend on the characters rather than a general theme or moral. n General themes and points of view arise as tales are told
60、which are responded to by other characters in their own tales.nThese people act their parts in a way that reveals their private lives and habits, their moods and dispositions, their good and bad qualities.nCharacter is revealed in their portraits, their tales, and their behaviors and remarks along t
61、he way. nThe pilgrims are further characterized through their tales, the teller-tale relationship, and through the head links and end links.nAsagroup,thetalesarewovenintotheframeworkofthepilgrimagetotheshrineofSt.Thomas,atCanterbury,withChaucerthepilgrimreportingthetalesheheardfromhisvariousfellowpi
62、lgrims.nLastly, Chaucer does not pay much attention to the progress of the trip, to the time passing as the pilgrims travel, or specific locations along the way to Canterbury. Hiswritingofthestoryseemsfocusedprimarilyonthestoriesbeingtold,andnotonthepilgrimageitself.V.Selectedreading-nThe General Pr
63、ologue nThe General Prologue is at the beginning of the poem, serving as an introductory sketch of the character and background of each pilgrim, and providing a framework for the diverse stories. General Prologuen the greatest portrait gallery in English literature. n a series of sketches differing
64、widely in length and method, and blending the individual and the typical in varying degrees.n present a vivid collection of character sketchesnbring together a great variety of people and narrative materials to unite the diversity of the talesnRanging in status from a Knight to a humble Plowman, the
65、 pilgrims are a microcosm of 14th-century English society.nThese 24 tales represent nearly every variety of medieval stories, legends, fables, fairy tales, sermons, and courtly romances. nThe special genius of Chaucers work, however, lies in the dramatic interaction between the tales and the framing
66、 story.The Canterbury Tales The General Prologue (Modern English Version)nWhen in April the sweet showers fallAnd pierce the drought of March to the root, and allThe veins are bathed in liquor of such powerAs brings about the engendering of the flower,When also Zephyrus with his sweet breathExhales
67、an air in every grove and heathUpon the tender shoots , and the young sunHis half-course in the sign of the Ram has run,nAnd the small fowl are making melodyThat sleep away the night with open eye(So nature pricks them and their heart engages)Then people long to go on pilgrimagesAnd palmers long to
68、seek the stranger strandsOf far-off saints, hallowed in sundry lands,And specially, from every shires endOf England, down to Canterbury they wendTo seek the holy blissful martyr, quickTo give his help to them when they were sick,nIt happened in that season that one dayIn Southwark , at The Tabard, a
69、s I layReady to go on pilgrimages and startFor Canterbury, most devout at heart,At night there came into that hostelrySome nine and twenty in a companyOf sundry folk happening then to fallIn fellowship, and they were pilgrims allnThat towards Canterbury meant to ride,The rooms and stables of the inn
70、 were wide;They made us easy, all was of the best,And, briefly, when the sun had gone to rest,Id spoken to them all upon the tripAnd was soon one with them in fellowship,Pledged to rise early and to take the wayTo Canterbury, as you heard me say.nBut none the less, while I have time and space,Before
71、 my story takes a further pace,It seems a reasonable thing to sayWhat their condition was, the full arrayOf each of them, as it appeared to me,According to profession and degree,And what apparel they were riding in;And at a Knight I therefore will begin.VI. Major ThemesnCorruptionofthechurchnAsymbol
72、icjourneynIdealsofconductnEstatessatire-Corruption of the churchnBy the late 14th c, the Catholic Church, which governed England, Ireland, and the entire continent of Europe, had become extremely wealthy. The cathedrals were incredibly expensive to build.nIn a century of disease, plague, famine, and
73、 scarce labor, the sight of a church ornamented with unusual gold seemed unfair to some people, and thus the Churchs preaching against greed suddenly seemed hypocritical.-A symbolic journeyninterpreted as a book about the way or life of man in the world. n represents human life as a one way journey
74、on earth, to the heavenly city of Jerusalem, through the device of the pilgrimage. nThe pilgrimage is thus not merely a physical journey to an actual place but also a metaphor or symbol of an inner journey of the soul towards God. nThus the journey from one city to another may be seen as the journey
75、 from the worldly city to the city of God. -Ideals of conductnThe Canterbury Tales also uphold the highest ideals of conducttruth and honor in duty, constancy, faith and patience in times of adversity, purity and saintliness in love.-Estates satirenIn a sense, Chaucer uses the General Prologue to ma
76、ke a broad commentary on the estates as a whole, and then uses the individual tales to make more specific, targeted attacks on the components of the estates that he finds so detestable. ChaucerscontributionstoEnglishLiteratureandLanguagena. the founder of realismnb. founder of English literary langu
77、agen(Chaucers English: London dialect)nc. Father of English poetry : heroic couplet (The heroic couplet is an iambic pentameter having the lines rhyming in pairs.nthe first occupant of the Poets Corner网站网站VII. TermspCoupleta pair of successive lines that rhyme (aa, bb, cc, dd)pHeroiccouplet-is a tra
78、ditional form for English poetry, commonly used for epic and narrative poetry; it refers to a sequence of rhyming pairs of iambic pentameter lines.pIambicpentameter means a line consisting of five iambic feet, and one foot comprises of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.pRomancea
79、 popular literary form in the medieval period. It uses narrative verse or prose to sing knightly adventures or other heroic deeds. The hero is usually the knight, who sets out on a journey to accomplish some missions. There is often a liberal use of the improbable, sometimes even supernatural, thing
80、s in romance. Romantic love is an important part of the plot in romance. Characterization is standardized. The structure is loose and episodic. The language is simple and straightforward. The importance of romance itself can be seen as a means of showing medieval aristocratic men and women in relati
81、on to their idealized view of the world. It reflects a chivalric age.nBallad a short narrative poem in rhythmic verse, often sung by minstrels to the accompaniment of music of the exploits of warriors, the adventures of lovers, mysteries of fairyland, and various humorous incidents.KeywordsnOld EnglishnMiddle EnglishnEpicnRomancenAlliterationnKenningnUnderstatementnHeroic coupletnBallad
