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Ⅲ。 Eugene O'Neill （1888-1953） Eugene O'Neill is unquestionably America's greatest playwright. He won the Pulitzer Prize four times and was the only dramatist ever to win a Nobel Prize （1936）。 He is widely acclaimed "founder of the American drama." 一。 一般识记 His life and writing career： O'Neill was born in New York on October 16， 1888 into a theatrical family. He grew up in New London， Connecticut， and spent his early years with his parents on theatrica1 road tours. He received university education for one year and later traveled all over the world. He avidly read up on dramatic literature， and cultivated an interest in play writing. In 1914， he attended Professor George Pierce Baker's drama workshop at Harvard， where his career as a dramatist began. Since then， O'Neill had been wholly dedicated to the mission as a dramatist. 二。 识记 His major plays： During all his career as a dramatist， O'Neill wrote and pub- lished about forty-nine plays altogether of various lengths. He wrote some one-act melodramatic plays at first， including Bound East for Cardiff （1916）， which describes the dying sailor Yank and his dream about the security and peace which could never exist. O'Neill's first full-length play， Beyond the Horizon， made a great hit and won him the first Pulitzer Prize. Its theme is the choice between life and death， the interaction of subjective and objective factors， and this theme is dramatized more explicitly in The Straw （1921） and Anna Christie （1921）。 Anna Christie is more of a success because it deploys the developing complexity of O'Neill's personal vision， showing us that life is a closed circle of possibi1ities from which it is impossible to escape. Between 1920 and 1924 came his prominent achievements in symbolic expressionism： The Emperor Jones （1920）， The Hairy Ape （1922）， All God's chillun Got Wings （1924）， and Desire Under the Elms （1924）。 These plays are daring forays into race relations， class conflicts， sexual bondage， social critiques， and American tragedies on the Greek model. What is more， the expressionistic techniques are used in these plays to highlight the theatrical effect of the rupture between the two sides of an individual human being， the private and the public. Built on the success of these expressionistic experimentations， O'Neill reached out to extend his mastery of the stage and worked up to the summit of his career. He concerned himself with some non——realistic forms to contain his tragic vision in a number of his plays， such as The Great God Brown （l926）， which fuses symbolism， poetry， and the affirmation of a pagan idea1ism to show how materialistic civilization denies the life——giving impulses and destroys the genuine artist， and Lazarus Laughed （1927）， which makes full use of the Bible， Greek choruses， Elizabethan tirades， expressionist masks， populous crowd scenes， and orchestrate laughter. With the winning of the third Pulitzer Prize for Strange Interlude （l928）， O'Neill consolidated his experience of two decades of playwriting and paved the way to the honor of the Nobel Prize in 1936. Late in his life， he produced the best and greatest plays of the modern American theater. The Iceman Cometh （l946） proves to be a masterpiece in the way it is a complex， ironic， deeply moving exploration of human existence， written out of a profound insight into human nature and constructed with tremendous skill and logic. Long Day's Journey Into Night （1956） can be read autobiographically. However， like most great works of literature， the play reaches beyond its immediate subject， dedicated not only to the life of the American family， but also "to the life of Man， to Life itself." As a product of hard-won art， Long Day's Journey Into Night has gained its status as a world classic and simultaneously marks the climax of O'Neill's literary career and the coming of age of American drama. 三。 领会 1.Themes： O'Neill is always remembered for his tragic view of life and most of his plays deal with the basic issues of human existence and predicament： life and death， illusion and disillusion， alienation and communication， dream and reality， self and society， desire and frustration， etc. His characters in the plays are described as seeking meaning and purpose in their lives in different ways， some through love， some through religion， others through revenge， but all meet disappointment and despair. As a playwright， O'Neill himself was constantly wrestling with these issues and struggling with the perplexity about the truth of life. He was searching for an answer both psychologically and artistically， and his dramatic thought fol1owed a tragic pattern running through all his plays， from a celebration and exaltation of "pipe dreams，" the romantic dream so to speak， to the doubt about the reality of the dream or the inevitability of the defeat. So， his final dramas became" transcendental，" in the way that the dramatization of man's effort in finding the secret of life results in a reconciliation with the tragic impossibility. 2.O'Neill's experimentations in dramatic art： O'Neill's inventiveness seemingly knew no limits. He was constantly experimenting with new styles and forms for his plays. （1） He introduced the realistic or even the naturalistic aspect of life into the American theater. He borrowed freely grom the best traditions of European dramas， be it Greek tragedies， or the realism of Ibsen， or the expressionism of Stringberg， and fused them into the organic of his own. In those expressionistic plays， abstract and symbolic stage sets are used to set off against the emotional inner selves and subjective states of mind； lighting and music are employed to convey the changes of mood. （2） He borrowed freely from modern literary techniques such as the stream-of -consciousness device with the help of which he managed to reveal the emotional and psychological complexities of modern man. He made use of setting and state property to help in his dramatic representation （3） As to his language， O'Neill frequently wrote the lines in dialect， or spelled words in ways which indicate a particular accent or manner of speech. This， sometimes， makes his plays difficult to read， but when they are spoken aloud， the sense becomes clear and the meaning is amplified by the accent. O'Neill's ceaseless experimentation enriched American drama and influenced later playwrights. 3.Expressionism： It is used to describe the works of art and literature in which the representation of reality is distorted to communicate an inner vision， transforming nature rather than imitating it. In literature it is often considered a revolt against realism and naturalism， a seeking to achieve a psychological or spiritual reality rather than to record external events. In drama， the expressionist work was characterized by a bizarre distortion of reality. Expressionist writers's concern was with general truths rather than with particular situations， hence they explored in their plays the predicaments of representative symbolic types rather than of fully developed individualized characters. Emphasis was laid on the internal， on an individual's mental state-the emotional content， the subjective reactions of characters， and symbolic or abstract representations of reality； hence the imitation of life is replaced in Expressionist drama by the ecstatic evocation of states of mind. In America， Eugene O'Neille's Emperor Jones， The Hairy Ape， etc. are typical plays that employ Expressionism to highlight the theatrical effect of the rupture between the two sides of an individual human being， the private and the public. The movement， though short-lived， gave impetus to a free form of writing and of theatrical production. 四。应用Selected Reading： An Excerpt from Scene VⅢ of The Hairy Ape 1.The theme of the play or the tragic vision in it： The tragic sense of modern man belonging nowhere， being helpless and impotent remained as the common theme of O'Neill's works. The Hairy Ape is a good illustration. The play concerns the problem of modern man's identity. Yank's sense of belonging nowhere， hence homelessness and rootlessness， is typical of the mood of isolation and alienation in the early twentieth century in the United States and the whole world as well. Yank was a stroker on a transatlantic liner. He was happy with life until the day when his brutality shocked and made faint Mildred Douglas. He was greatly insulted. Thus became gloomy， sullen and violent. He attempted to seek identity with the aristocratic class， the radical class. In the last scene of the play， rejected， Yank wandered to the zoo where he found affinity with the great ape there， only to be crushed to death. So， Yank's journey in quest of self-identity finished with his death， yet with the realization that he did belong nowhere. The general feeling is one of despairingly tragic. Man is homeless and rootless， alienated from the indifferent society. 2. The expressionistic techniques in the play： （1） In this expressinistic play， abstract and symbolic stage sets are used to set off against the emotional inner selves and subjective states of mind. Take O'Neill's use of contrastive tones of remarks for example， Yank's friendliness and excitement contrasts the ape's anger， indifference and impatience and also contrasts his own bitterness， self-mocking and despair. So the emotional content， the subjective reactions of characters are emphasized， which symbolically represent the despairing reality. （2） externalization of human interior： O'Neill uses vision to reveal psychological reality. In this play， Yank was haunted by appearance of Mildred Douglas， which shows his pain and despair. Therefore， O'Neill does not record external events as realists do. He sought to portray the way in which hidden psychological processes impinge upon outward action. He brought psychological realism， philosophical depth， and poetic symbolism into American literature. 3.Language： In this play O'Neill intentionally wrote the lines of Yank in dialect to show his social and economic status as an uneducated coal stoker. Many other examples could be found in this selection， for instance， "dat" for that， "yuh" for you， etc. IV. F. Scott Fitzgerald （l896-l940） 一。 一般识记 His life and writing： Francis Scott Fitzgerald was a most representative figure of the 1920s， who was mirror of the exciting age in almost every way. An active participant of his age， he never failed to remain detached and foresee the failure and tragedy of the "Dollar Decade." Thus he is often acc1aimed literary spokesman of the Jazz Age. F. Scott Fitzgerald was born in St. Paul， Minnesota on September 24， l896. In his childhood， he admired his gentleman1y father who retained his upper-class manners but was always a little sensitive to the poor Irish beginnings on his mother's side. He had an expensive education in private schools at Princeton. But due to illness and neglect of academic study， he left the university in 1917 without graduation. He married Zelda Sayre， who exerted a strong influence on his literary career and his personal life. Zelda has been regarded as the prototype of a series of rich， beautiful women who figure so prominently in his fiction. The young couple frequently went abroad and lived extravagantly a luxurious life. To keep earning enough money， Fitzgerald wrote short stories and novels at a rapid speed. The l930s brought relentless decline for Fitzgerald with a series of misfortunes： his reputation declined， his wealth fell， his health failed， and what's more， Ze1da had suffered from some serious mental breakdowns which confined her in a sanitarium for the rest of her life. A1coholism， loneliness and despair combined to ruin Fitzgerald. He died in 1940 of a heart attack. 二。 识记 His major works： His novels and short stories chronicled changing social attitudes during the 1920s， a period dubbed "The Jazz Age". His first novel This Side of Paradise won for him wealth and fame. His second novel， The Beautiful and Damned increased his popularity， which also portrays the emotiona1 and spiritual collapse of a wealthy young man during an unstable marriage. The coup1e in the novel were undoubtedly modeled after Fitzgerald himself and Zelda. His masterpiece The Great Gatsby （1925） made him one of the greatest American novelists. Afterwards， Fitzgerald wrote one more important novel Tender is the Night （l934）， in which he traces the decline of a young American psychiatrist whose marriage to a beautiful and wealthy patient drains his personal energies and corrodes his professional career. His last novel The Last Tycoon remains unfinished. Fitzgerald also wrote short stories of great popularity. His short story collections include Flappers and Philosophers （l92l）， Tales of the Jazz Age （1922）， All the Sad Young Man （l926） and Taps at Reveille （1935）。 One of his best short stories is "Babylon Revisited，" which depicts an American's return to Paris in the 1930s and his regretful rea1ization that the past is beyond his reach， since he can neither alter it nor make any amends. 三。 领会 1. Fitzgerald and the Jazz Age： （1） The Jazz Age： It refers to the 1920s， a time marked by frivolity， carelessness， hedonism and excitement in the life of the flaming youth. Fitzgerald is largely responsible for the term and many of his literary works portray it. The Jazz Age is brought vividly to life in The Great Gatsby. （2） Most critics have agreed that Fitzgerald is both an insider and an outsider of the Jazz Age with a double vision of fascination and aloofness. He lived in his great moments and joined the big party in the l920s， partaking of the wealth， frivolity， temptations of the time， whi1e reproducing the drama of the age by standing aloof and keeping a cold eye on the performance of his contemporaries. He drank and did crazy things after he got drunk， whereas staying sober enough to see the corruptive nature of the society and the vanity fair that everyone， including himself， was infatuated with. This doubleness or irony is one of the distinguishing marks as a writer and helps Fitzgerald to present a panorama of the Jazz Age with a deep insight. （3） Fitzgerald's fictional world is the best embodiment of the spirit of the Jazz Age， in which he shows a particular interest in the upper——class society， especially the upper-class young people. Young men and women in the 1920s had a sense of reckless confidence not only about money but about 1ife in genera1. Since they grew up with the notion that the world would improve without their help， they felt excused from seeking the common good. Plunging into their persona1 adventures， engaging themselves in casual sex and heavy drinking， they took risks that did not impress them as being risks， and they spent money extravagant1y and enjoyed themselves to their hearts' content. But beneath their masks of relaxation and joviality there was only sterility， meaninglessness and futi1ity， and amid the grandeur and extravagance a spiritual waste1and and a hint of decadence and moral decay. This undeniable juxtaposition of appearance with reality， of the pretense of gaiety with the tension underneath， is easily recognizable in Fitzgerald's novels and stories. 2. Fitzgerald and the American Dream： （1） Fitzgerald's fictions often deal with the bankruptcy of the American Dream， which is high1ighted by the disillusionment of the protagonists' personal dreams due to the clashes between their romantic vision of life and the sordid reality. American Dream is a popular belief that people can achieve success， whether it is wealth， fame or love through honest hard working in a new world of liberty， equality， chances and promises. Yet in the 1920s， the American Dream was bankrupt in the sense that the wealthy people were spiritually disorientated and morally corrupted. The fact that the rich people turned to be more indifferent and careless brought forth the disillusionment of American Dream. A great number of his stories started with the basic situation in which a rising young man of the middle class is in love with the daughter of a very rich family. The young man is not attracted by the fortune in itself； he is not seeking money so much as what money can bring to him； and he loves the girl not so much as he loves what the gir1 symbolizes. Money is only a convenient and inadequate symbol for what he dreams of earning， and love merely a vehicle that can transport him to a magic world of eternal happiness. The man's real dream， as Malcolm Cow1ey suggested， is that of achieving a new status and a new essence， of rising to a loftier place in the mysterious hierarchy of human worth. （2） Fitzgerald's own life was a mirror of the 1920s. He was the victim of his "American Dream." He was fascinated with material wealth on one hand by writing hard to accumulate wealth to live an extravagant life， yet was bewildered with the wealth on the other， fully aware of the underlying spiritual disorientation and moral decay. Finally in his life， alcoholism， loneliness and despair combined to ruin him. So his dream backfires him. 3. Fitzgerald's style： He is a great stylist in American literature. His style， closely re1ated to his themes， is explicit and chilly. His accurate dialogues， his careful observation of mannerism， styles， models and attitudes provide the reader with a vivid sense of reality. He fol1ows the Jamesian tradition in using the scenic method in his chapters， each one of which consists of one or more dramatic scenes， sometimes with intervening passages of narration， leaving the tedious process of transition to the readers' imagination. He also skillfully employs the device of having events observed by a "central consciousness" to his great advantage. The accurate details， the completely original diction and metaphors， the bold impressionistic and colorful quality have all proved his consummate artistry. 四。应用Selected Reading： An Excerpt from Chapter IlI of The Great Gatsby （1） The theme of the novel： The Great Gatsby， by summarizing the experiences and attitudes of the glamorous and wild 1920s， deals with the bankruptcy of the American Dream， which is high1ighted by the disillusionment of the protagonist's personal dream due to the clashes between his romantic vision of life and the relentless reality. American Dream is a popular belief that people can achieve success， whether it is wealth， fame or love through honest hard working in a new world of liberty， equality， chances and promises. Yet in the 1920s， the American Dream was bankrupt in the sense that the wealthy people were spiritually disorientated and morally corrupted. The fact that the rich people turned to be more indifferent and careless brought forth the disillusionment of American Dream. The story of The Great Gatsby is a good illustration. At the beginning of the story， Gatsby， a poor young man from the Midwest， is in love with but rejected by an upper-class woman， Daisy. He later attains the wealth by bootlegging and other criminal activities. Yet his fascination with and pursuit of money is but the means of recapturing the past and regaining his lost love. And for him， Daisy is the representation of a kind of idealized happiness. So Gatsby's real dream is that of achieving a new status and a new essence， of rising to a loftier place in the mysterious hierarchy of human worth. That is why Daisy Buchanan seems so charming to Gatsby and that is why Gatsby has directed his who1e life to winning back her love. Yet his dream ended up with Daisy's indifference and carelessness. Under this thematic design， the novel displays some modern motifs like the Waste-land theme as symbolized by the Valley of Ashes and boredom as reflected in Daisy and Tom. （2） Chapter Ⅲ of the novel， a vivid description of one of Gatsby's fabulous parties， presents a vivid atmosphere of paradox. Gatsby's party， characteristic of the roaring twenties in the U.S. evokes both the romance and the sadness of the Jazz Age. On the surface， the party is crowded， yet empty of warmth or friendship， with people coming to the party eagerly but appearing indifferent and contemptuous of their host. Gatsby himself as the host is a paradox —— exceedingly courteous but keeps himself detached from the noisy and confusing crowd， because he， though fascinated with the wealth， was fully aware of the corruptive nature of the society and the vanity fair. The charm and sweetness of the youth is spoiled by triviality and tawdriness； The splendid house and garden is purchased not for enjoyment but for impression. There is every sign of merriment， with guests eating， drinking， laughing， moving about and dancing， but people get dead drunk， break down in tears or quarrel over trivialities. So beneath the wealthy people's masks of relaxation and joviality there was only sterility， meaninglessness and futi1ity， and amid the grandeur and extravagance a spiritual waste1and and a hint of decadence and moral decay. This undeniable juxtaposition of appearance with reality， of the pretense of gaiety with the tension underneath， is easily recognizable in Fitzgerald's novels and stories. Chapter 5 The Modern Period Ⅰ。学习目的和要求 通过本章的学习，了解20世纪批判现实主义文学和现代主义文学产生的历史、文化背景。认识该时期文学创作的基本特征、基本主张，及其对现当代英国文学乃至文化的影响；了解该时期重要作家的文学创作思想、艺术特色及其代表作品的主题结构、人物刻画、语言风格、思想意义等；同时结合注释，读懂所选作品，了解其思想内容和写作特色，培养理解和欣赏文学作品的能力。 Ⅱ。本章重点及难点 1. 英国现代文学的特征 2. 主要作家的创作思想、艺术特色及其代表作品的主题结构、人物刻画和语言风格 3. 名词解释：现代主义 4. 应用：选读作品的主题结构、艺术特色、人物刻画和语言风格，如 （1）叶芝和艾略特诗歌（所选作品）的主题、意象分析 （2）小说《儿子与情人》的主题和主要人物的性格分析 （3）意识流小说的主要特色分析 （4）萧伯纳戏剧的特点与社会意义分析 Ⅲ。考核知识点和考核要求 （一）现代时期概述 1.识记： A. 20世纪英国社会的政治、经济、文化背景 B.英国20世纪批判现实主义文学 C.现代主义文学的兴起与衰落 2.领会： A. 现代主义文学创作的基本主张 B.英国现代主义文学思潮 （1）诗歌 （2）小说 （3）戏剧 3.应用： A.名词解释：现代主义 B.英国现代主义文学的特点 C.现代主义文学对当代文学的影响 （二）现代时期的主要作家 A.萧伯纳 1.一般：萧伯纳的生平与文学生涯。 2.识记： A.萧伯纳的政治改革思想和文学创作主张 B.萧伯纳的戏剧创作 （1）早期主要作品：《鳏夫的房产》、《华伦夫人的职业》、《康蒂坦》、《凯撒和克莉奥佩特拉》 （2）中期作品：《人与超人》、《巴巴拉少校》、《皮格马利翁》 （3）晚期作品：《伤心之家》、《回到麦修色拉》、《圣女贞德》、《苹果车》 3.领会： A.萧伯纳戏剧的特点与社会意义 B.萧伯纳的戏剧对20世纪英国文学的影响 4.应用： A.《华伦夫人的职业》的故事梗概、情节结构、人物塑造、语言风格、思想意义 B.选读：所选作品的主要内容、人物塑造、语言特点、艺术手法等 B.约翰。高尔斯华绥 1.一般识记：高尔斯华绥的生平与文学生涯 2.识记： 高尔斯华绥的文学创作 （1）戏剧：《银盒》、《正义》、《斗争》 （2）小说：《福赛特世家》（《有产业的人》、《骑虎》、《出租》）、《现代喜剧》 3.领会： A.高尔斯华绥的创作思想 B.高尔斯华绥批判现实主义小说的主要特点及社会意义 4.应用： 选读：所选作品的主要内容、人物性格。语言特点、叙述手法等 C、威廉。勃特勒。叶芝 1.一般：叶芝的生平及文学生涯 2.识记：叶芝诗歌的代表作品 （1）早期诗歌：《茵尼斯弗利岛》、《梦见仙境的人》、《玫瑰》 （2）中期诗歌：《新的纪元》、《1916年的复活节》 （3）晚期诗歌：《驶向拜占廷》、《丽达及天鹅》、《在学童们中间》 3.领会： A.叶芝的诗歌创作思想 B.叶芝诗歌的特点及思想意义 C.叶芝诗歌的艺术成就 D.叶芝的诗歌对当代英国文学的影响 E.叶芝的戏剧创作 4.应用：选读：、所选作品的主题思想、语言风格、艺术特色等 D、T.S.艾略特 1.一般识记：艾略特的生平及创作生涯 2.识记： 艾略特的主要诗歌作品 （1）《普鲁弗洛克的情歌》 （2）《荒原》 （3）《灰星期三》 （4）《四个四重奏》 3.领会： A.艾略特的文学理论与文艺批评观 B.艾略特诗歌的艺术特色及社会意义 C.艾略特的戏剧 D. 文略特的艺术成就 E.艾略特的文学创作及文艺批评思想对现当代英国文学的影响 4.应用： A.《荒原》主题、结构、神话、象征、语言特色及社会意义 B.选读：所选作品的主题结构、思想内容、语言特点、艺术手法等 E.戴维。赫伯特。劳伦斯 1.一般识记：劳伦斯的生平及文学生涯 2.识记： 劳伦斯的主要小说 （1）《儿子与情人》 （2）《虹》 （3）《恋爱中的女人》 3.领会： A. 劳伦斯的创作思想 B. 劳伦斯小说的主要艺术特色及社会意义 . C. 劳伦斯的小说对现当代英国文学的影响 4.应用： A.《儿子与情人》的故事梗概、情节结构、人物塑造、语言风格、思想意义 B.选读：所选作品的主要内容、人物性格、语言特点、艺术手法等 F.詹姆斯。乔伊斯 1.一般识记：乔伊斯的生平与创作生涯 2.识记：乔伊斯的主要作品简介 （1）《都柏林人》 （2）《青年艺术家的肖像》 （3）《尤利西斯》 3.领会： A. 乔伊斯的文学创作主张与思想 B. 乔伊斯小说的主要艺术特色及思想意义 C.乔伊斯的艺术成就 D.乔伊斯的作品对现当代世界文学的影响 4.应用： A. 意识流小说的主要特色分析 B. 选读：所选作品的主题思想、人物塑造、语言特色、艺术手法等 Chapter 5 The Modern Period 一。识记： 1. The social， ideological background of the modern English literature： （1） The influences of the two World Wars on English literature： Modernism rose out of skepticism and disillusion of capitalism. The First World War and the Second World War had greatly influenced the English literature. The catastrophic First World War tremendously weakened the British Empire and brought about great sufferings to its people as well. Its appalling shock severely destroyed people's faith in the Victorian values； The postwar economic dislocation and spiritual disillusion produced a profound impact upon the British people， who came to see the prevalent wretchedness in capitalism. The Second World War marked the last stage of the disintegration of the British Empire. Britain suffered heavy losses in the war： thousands of people were killed； the economy was ruined； and almost all its former colonies were lost. People were in economic， cultural， and belief crisises. （2） Ideologically， the rise of the irrational philosophy and new science greatly incited modern writers to make new explorations on human natures and human relationships. （a） In the mid-19th century， Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels put forward the theory of scientific socialism， which not only provided a guiding principle for the working people， but also inspired them to make dauntless fights for their own emancipation. （b） Darwin's theory of evolution exerted a strong influence upon the people， causing many to lose their religious faith. The social Darwinism， under the cover of "survival of the fittest，" vehemently advocated colonialism or jingoism. （c） Einstein's theory of relativity provided entirely new ideas for the concepts of time and space. （d） Freud's analytical psychology drastically altered our conception of human nature. （e） Arthur Schopenhauer， a pessimistic philosopher started a rebellion against rationalism， stressing the importance of will and intuition. （f） Having inherited the basic principles from Schopenhauer， Friedrich Nietzsche went further against rationalism by advocating the doctrines of power and superman and by completely rejecting the Christian morality. （g） Based on the major ideas of his predecessors， Henry Bergson established his irrational philosophy which put the emphasis on creation， intuition， irrationality and unconsciousness. All these irrationalist philosophers exerted immense influence upon the major modernist writers in Britain. So， after the First World War， all kinds of literary trends of modernism appeared： symbolism， expressionism， surrealism， cubism， futurism， Dadaism， imagism and stream of consciousness. Towards the 1920s， these trends converged into a mighty torrent of modernist movement， which swept across the whole Europe and America. After the Second World War， a variety of modernism， or post-modernism， like existentialist literature， theater of the absurd， new novels and black humor， rose with the spur of the existentialist idea that "the world was absurd， and the human life was an agony." 2. The development of English poetry in the 20th century： The 20th century has witnessed a great achievement in English poetry. In the early years of this century， Thomas Hardy and the war poets of the younger generation were important realistic poets. Hardy expressed his strong sympathies for the suffering poor and his bitter disgusts at the social evils in his poetry as in his novels. The soldiers-poets of World War I revealed the appalling brutality of the war in a most realistic way. The early poems of Pound and Eliot and Yeats's matured poetry marked the rise of "modern poetry，" which was， in some sense， a revolution against the conventional ideas and forms of the Victorian poetry. The modernist poets fought against the romantic fuzziness and self-indulged emotionalism， advocating new ideas in poetry- writing such as to use the language of common speech， to create new rhythms as the expression of a new mood， to allow absolute freedom in choosing subjects， and to use hard， clear and precise images in poems. The 1930s witnessed great economic depressions， mass unemployment， and the rise of the Nazis. Facing such a severe situation， most of the young intellects started to turn to the left. And therefore the period was known as "the red thirties." A group of young poets during this period expressed in their poetry a radical political enthusiasm and a strong protest against fascism. With the coming of the 1950s， there was a return of realistic poetry again. By advocating reason， moral discipline， and traditional forms， a new generation of poets started "The Movement，" which explicitly rejected the modernist influence. There was no significant poetic movement in the 1960s. A multiplicity of choices opened to both the poet and the reader. Poets gradually moved into more individual styles. 3. Realism in the 20th century English literature： The realistic novels in the early 20th century were the continuation of the Victorian tradition， yet its exposing and criticizing power against capitalist evils had been somewhat weakened both in width and depth. The outstanding realistic novelists of this period were John Galsworthy， H. G. Wells， and Arnold Eennett. The three trilogies of Galsworthy's Forsyte novels are masterpieces of critical realism in the early 20th century， which revealed the corrupted capitalist world. In his novels of social satire， H. G. Wells made realistic studies of the aspirations and frustrations of the "Little Man；" whereas Bennett presented a vivid picture of the English life in the industrial Midlands in his best novels. Realism was， to a certain extent， eclipsed by the rapid rise of modernism in the 1920s. But with the strong swing of leftism in the 1930s， novelists began to turn their attention to the urgent social problems. They also enriched the traditional ways of creation by adopting some of the modernist techniques. However， the realistic novels of this period were more or less touched by a pessimistic mood， preoccupied with the theme of man's loneliness， and shaped in different forms： social satires by Aldous Huxley and George Orwell comic satires on the English upper class by Evelyn Waugh； and Catholic novels by Graham Greene. Another important group of young novelists and playwrights with lower-middle-class or working-class background in the mid-1950s and early 1960s known as "The Angry Young Man." They demonstrated a particular disillusion over the depressing situation in Britain and launched a bitter protest against the outmoded social and political values in their society. Kingsley Amis， John Wain， John Braine and Alan Sillitoe were the major novelists in this group. They portrayed unadorned working-class life in their novels with great freshness and vigor of the working-class language. Amis was the first to start the attack on middle-class privileges and power in his novel Lucky Jim （1954）。 The term "The Angry Young Man" came to be widely Having been merged and interpenetrated with modernism in the past several decades， the realistic novel of the 1960s and 1970s appeared in a new face with a richer， more vigorous and more diversified style. 二。领会： 1.Modern English poetry： It is， in some sense， a revolution against the conventional ideas and forms of the Victorian poetry. The modernist poets fought against the romantic fuzziness and self-indulged emotionalism， advocating new ideas in poetry- writing such as to use the language of common speech， to create new rhythms as the expression of a new mood， to allow absolute freedom in choosing subjects， and to use hard， clear and precise images in poems. 2. Modern English novels： The first three decades of 20th century were golden years of the modernist novel. In stimulating the technical innovations of novel creation， the theory of the Freudian and Jungian psycho-analysis played a particularly important role. With the notion that multiple levels of consciousness existed simultaneously in the human mind， that one's present was the sum of his past， present and future， and that the whole truth about human beings existed in the unique， isolated， and private world of each individual， writers like Dorothy Richardson， James Joyce and Virginia Woolf concentrated all their efforts on digging into the human consciousness. They had created unprecedented stream-of-consciousness novels such as Pilgrimage by Richardson， Ulysses （1922） by Joyce， and Mrs. Dalloway （1925） by Woolf. One of the remarkable features of their writings was their continuous experimentation on new and sophisticated techniques in novel writing， which made tremendous impacts on the creation of both realistic and modernist novels in this century. James Joyce is the most outstanding stream-of-consciousness novelist； in Ulysses， his encyclopedia-like masterpiece， Joyce presents a fantastic picture of the disjointed， illogical， illusory， and mental- emotional life of Leopold Bloom， who becomes the symbol of everyman in the post-World-War-ⅠEurope. In the works of E. M. Forster and D. H. Lawrence， old traditions are still there， but their subject matter about human relationships and their symbolic or psychological presentations of the novel are entirely modern. Forster's masterpiece， A Passage to India （1924）， is a novel of decidedly symbolist aspirations， in which the author set up， within a realistic story， a fable of moral significance that implies a highly mystical， symbolic view of life， death， human relationship， and the relationship of man with the infinite universe. D. H. Lawrence is regarded as revolutionary as Joyce in novel writing； but unlike Joyce， he was not concerned with technical innovations； his interest lay in the tracing of the psychological development of his characters and in his energetic criticism of the dehumanizing effect of the capitalist industrialization on human nature. He believed that life impulse was the primacy of man's instinct， and that any conscious repression of such an impulse would cause distortion or perversion of the individual's personality. In his best novels like The Rainbow （1915） and Women in Love （1920）， Lawrence made a bold psychological exploration of various human relationships， especially those between men and women， with a great frankness Lawrence claimed that the alienation of the human relationships and the perversion of human nature in the modern society were caused by the desires for power and money， by the shams and frauds of middle-class life， and， above all， by the whole capitalist mechanical civilization， which turned men into inhuman machines. After the Second World War， modernism had another upsurge with the rise of existentialism which was reflected mainly in drama. 3. The development of 20th century English drama： The most celebrated dramatists in the last decade of the 19th century were Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw， who， in a sense， pioneered the modern drama， though they did not make so many innovations in techniques and forms as modernist poets or novelists. Wilde expressed a satirical and bitter attitude towards the upper-class people by revealing their corruption， their snobbery， and their hypocrisy in his plays， especially in his masterpiece， The Importance-of Being Earnest （1895）。 Shaw is is considered to be the best-known English dramatist since Shakespeare whose works are examples of the plays inspired by social criticism. John Galsworthy carried on this tradition of social criticism in his plays. By dramatizing social and ethical problems， Galsworthy made considerable achievements in his plays such as The Silver Box （1906） and Strife （1910）， in which Galsworthy presents not only realistic pictures of social injustice， but also the workers' heroic struggles against their employers. W. B. Yeats， a prominent poet of the 20th century， was the leader of the Irish National Theater Movement. He was a verse playwright who desired to restore lyrical drama to popularity. With the heroic portrayal of spiritual truth as his main concern， Yeats wrote a number of verse plays， introducing Irish myths and folk legends； but the plot in his plays was seldom very dramatic. The 1930s witnessed a revival of poetic drama in England. One of the early experimenters was T. S. Eliot who regarded drama as the best medium of poetry. Eliot wrote several verse plays and made a considerable success. Murder in the Cathedral （1935）， with its purely dramatic power， remains the most popular of his verse plays， in spite of its primarily religious purpose. After Eliot， Christopher Fry gained considerable successes in poetic drama. His exuberant though poetically commonplace verse drama. The Lady's Not For Burning （1948）， attracted delighted audience. The English dramatic revolution， which came in the 1950s under various European and American influences， developed in two directions： the working-class drama and the Theater of Absurd. The working-class drama was started by a group of young writers from the lower-middle class， or working class， who presented a new type of plays which expressed a mood of restlessness， anger and frustration， a spirit of rebelliousness， and a strong emotional protest against the existing social institutions. John Osborne's play， Look Back in Anger （1956）， in a fresh， unadorned working-class language， angrily， violently and unrelentingly condemned the contemporary social evils. With an entirely new sense of reality， Osborne brought vitality to the English theater and became known as the first "Angry Young Man." The most original playwright of the Theater of Absurd is Samuel Beckett， who wrote about human beings living a meaningless life in an alien， decaying world. His first play Waiting for Godot （1955） is regarded as the most famous and influential play of the Theater of Absurd. The major writers of the Modern Period Ⅰ。Ezra Pound （1885-1972） 一。 一般识记 Ezra Pound's contribution to American literature： Pound was one of the most important poets and critics of his time and he was regarded as the father of modern American poetry. He is a leading spokesman of the "Imagist Movement"， which though short-lived， had a tremendous influence on modern poetry. 二。 识记 His major works： Pound composed poems， wrote criticisms and did translations. （1） His poetic works： In 1915 Pound began writing his great work， The Cantos， which spanned from 1917 to 1959 and were collected in The Cantos of Ezra Pound （1986）。 He joined a famous literary salon run by an American woman writer Gertrude Stein， and became involved in the experimentations on poetry. His other poetic works include twelve volumes of verse Collected Early Poems of Ezra Pound （1982）， and Personae （1909）， and some longer pieces such as Hugh Selwyn Mauberley （1920）。 （2） His critical essays： Make It New （l934）， Literary Essays （l954）， The ABC of Reading （1934） and Polite Essays （l937）， etc. These essays best reflect Pound's appraisals of literary traditions and of modern writing. （3） His translations： The Translations of Ezra Pound （1953）， Confucius （1969）， and Shih-Ching （1954） These translations have not only cast light on Pound's affinity to the Chinese and his strenuous effort in the study of Oriental literature， but also offered us a clue to the understanding of his poetry and literary theory. From the analysis of the Chinese ideogram Pound learned to anchor his poetic language in concrete， perceptual reality， and to organize images into larger patterns through juxtoposition. 三。 领会 1. Ezra Pound's poetic subjects or themes： （1） His earlier poetry is saturated with the familiar poetic subjects that characterize the 19th century Romanticism： songs in praise of a lady， songs concerning the poet's craft， love and friendship， death， the transience of beauty and the permanence of art， and some other subjects that Pound could call his own： the pain of exile， metamorphosis， the delightful psychic experience， the ecstatic moment， etc. （2） Later he is more concerned about the problems of the modern culture： the contemporary cultural decay and the possible sources of cultural renewal as well. In The Cantos， Pound traces the rise and fall of eastern and western empires， the moral and social chaos of the modern world， especially the corruption of America after the heroic time of Jefferson. From the perception of these things， stems the poet's search for order， which involves a search for the principles on which the poet's craft is based. 2. His artistic achievment： （1） He is the leader of the Imagist Movement： Led by the American poet Ezra Pound， Imagist Movement is a poetic movement that flourished in the U.S. and England between 1909-1917. It advances modernism in arts which concentrated on reforming the medium of poetry as opposed to Romanticism， especially Tennyson's wordiness and high-flown language in poetry. Pound endorsed three main principles as guidelines for Imagism， including direct treatment of poetic subjects， elimination of merely ornamental or superfluous words， and rhythmical composition in the sequence of the musical phrase rather than in the sequence of a metronome. The primary Imagist objective is to avoid rhetoric and moralizing， to stick closely to the object or experience being described， and to move from explicit generalization. The leading poets are Ezra Pound， Wallace Stevens， D.H.Lawrence， etc. Pound's famous one-image poem "In a Station of the Metro" would serve as a typical example of the Imagist ideas. （2） His use of myth and personae： Pound argued that the poet cannot relate a delightful psychic experience by speaking out directly in the first person： he must "screen himself" and speak indirectly through as impersonal and objective story， which is usually a myth or a piece of the earlier literature， or a "mask，" that is a persona. In this way， Pound could sustain a dialogue between past and present succesfully. （persona： It is an invented person； a character in drama or fiction. Persona， a Latin word meaning "mask ，" is used in Jungian psychology to refer to one's "public personality"-the facade or mask presented to the world but not representative of inner feelings and emotions. In literary criticism， persona is sometimes used to refer to a person figuring in， for example， a poem， someone who may or may not represent the author himself. ） （3） His language： His lines are usually oblique yet marvelously compressed. His poetry is dense with personal， literary， and historical allusions， but at the expense of syntax and summary statements. 四。应用：Selected Readings： 1. In a Station of the Metro （1） Theme： This poem is an observation of the poet of the human faces seen in a Paris subway station or a description of a moment of sudden emotion at seeing beautiful faces in a Metro in Paris. He sees the faces， turned variously toward light and darkness， like flower petals which are half absorbed by， half resisting， the wet， dark texture of a bough. （2） The one image in this poem： This poem is probably the most famous of all imagist poems. In two lines it combines a sharp visual image or two juxtoposed images （意象叠加） "Petals on a wet， black bough" with an implied meaning. The faces in the dim light of the Metro suggest both the impersonality and haste of city life and the greater transience of human life itself. The word "apparition" is a well-chosen one which has a two-fold meaning： Firstly， it means a visible appearance of something real. Secondly， it builds an image of a ghostly sight， a delusive and unexpected appearance. （3） Pound uses the fewest possible words to convey an accurate image， which is the principle of the Imagist poetry. This poem looks to be a modern adoption of the haiku form of Japanese poetry which adapts the 3-line， 17 syllable and where the title is an intergral part of the whole. The poem succeeds largely because of its internal rhymes： station/apparition； Metro/petals/wet； crowd/bough. Its form was determined by the experience that inspired it， involving organically rather than being chosen arbitrarily. 2. The River-Merchant's Wife： A Letter （1） Theme： It is an adaptation from the Chinese Li Po （701-762） named Rihaku in Japanese， which， by means of vivid images and shifting tones， describes the silky shy tenderness of the young wife writing to her absent husband the river-merchant. The history of her feelings for her husband develops as the following： her bashfulness when she was a young girl， her spiritual affinity with him during the phase of their marriage， the material nature of her love at the time of his departure as well as her longing for his return when she grows old. （2） use of images and allusion： In this poem Pound uses images such as "hair" "grown moss" "falling leaves" to suggest the passing years and growing age. Besides， Pound employs an allusion to "a story of a woman waiting for her husband on a hill." In Pound's version， the line emphasizes the otherworldly nature of her love during her marriage. 3. A Pact This poem is about Pound's evaluation on Whitman. Pound started to find some agreement between "Whitmanesque" free verse， which he had attacked for its carelessness in composition， and the "verse libre" of the Imagists who showed more concern for formal values. In the poem Pound affirmed Whitman's contribution in the experiment on the form and content of American poetry and expressed his eagerness to communicate with Whitman…… Ⅱ。 Robert Lee Frost （l874-l963） 一。 一般识记 His life and writing： Frost is an important poet in the 20th century .He won the Pulitzer Prize four times and read poetry at the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy in 1961. He spent his early childhood in the Far West and later the family moved to New Hampshire. He went to Harvard but left in the middle because of his tuberculosis. When he was 28， he began to venture on writing. 二。 识记 His major works： His first book A Boy's Will （1913）， whose lyrics trace a boy's development from self-centered idealism to maturity， is marked by an intense but restrained emotion and the characteristic flavor of New Eng1and life. His second book， a volume of poems North of Boston （1914）， is described by the author as "a book of people，" which shows a brilliant insight into New England character and the background that formed it. Many of his major poems are collected in this volume， such as "Mending the Wall，" in which Frost saw man as learning from nature the zones of his own 1imitations， and "Home Buria1，" which probes the darker corners of individual lives in a situation where man cannot accept the facts of his condition. Mountain Interval （19l6） contains such characteristic poems as "The Road Not Taken，" "Birches". New Hampshire （1923） that won Frost the first of four Pulitzer Prizes includes "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"， which stems from the ambiguity of the speaker's choice between safety and the unknown. The collection West-Running Brook （1928） poses disturbing uncertainties about man's prowess and importance. Collected Poems （l930） and A Further Range （1935） gathered Frost's second and third Pulitzer Prizes. Both translate modern upheaval into poetic materia1 the poet could skillfully control. Frost's fourth Pulitzer Prize was awarded for A Witness Tree （l942） which includes "The Gift Outright，" the poem he later recited at President Kennedy's inauguration. Frost took up a religious question most notably in "After Apple-Picking：" can a man's best efforts ever satisfy God？ A Masque of Reason （l945） and A Masque of Mercy （1947） are comic-serious dramatic narratives， in both of which biblical characters in modern settings discuss ethics and man's re1ations to God. 三。 领会 1. His thematic concerns： （1） Generally Frost is considered a regional poet whose subject matters mainly focus on the landscape and people in New England. These thematic concerns include the terror and tragedy in nature， as well as its beauty， and the 1oneliness and poverty of the isolated human being. But first and foremost Frost is concerned with his love of life and his belief in a serenity that only came from working usefully， which he practiced himself throughout his life. （2） Frost wrote many poems that investigate the basic themes of man's life： the individual's relationships to himself， to his fellow-man， to world， and to his God. Profound meanings are hidden underneath the plain language and simple form. His poetry， by using nature as a storehouse of analogy and symbol， often probes mysteries of darkness and irrationality in the bleak and chaotic landscapes of an indifferent universe when men stand alone， unaided and perplexed. 2. His nature poems： Robert Frost is mainly known for his poems concerning New England life. He learned from the tradition， especially the familiar conventions of nature poetry and of classical pastoral poetry， and made the colloquial New England speech into a poetic expression. A poem so conceived thus becomes a symbo1 or metaphor， a careful， loving exploration of reality， in Frost's version， "a momentary stay against confusion." Many of his poems are fragrant with natural quality. Images and metaphors in his poems are drawn from the rural world， the simple country 1ife and the pastoral 1andscape. However， profound ideas are delivered under the disguise of the p1ain language and the simple form， for what Frost did is to take symbols from the limited human world and the pastoral landscape to refer to the great world beyond the rustic scene. These thematic concerns include the terror and tragedy in nature， as well as its beauty， and the 1oneliness and poverty of the isolated human being. But first and foremost Frost is concerned with his love of life and his belief in a serenity that only came from working usefully， which he practiced himself throughout his life. 3. Frost's style in language： By using simple spoken language and conversational rhythms， Frost achieved an effortless grace in his style. He combined traditiona1 verse forms —— the sonnet， rhyming coup1ets， blank verse with a clear American local speech rhythm， the speech of New England farmers with its idiosyncratic diction and syntax. In verse form he was assorted； he wrote in both the metrical forms and the free verse， and sometimes he wrote in a form that borrows freely from the merits of both， in a form that might be called semi-free or semi-conventional. 四。 应用 Selected Readings： l. After Apple-Picking This poem is so vivid a memory of experience on the farm in which the end of labor leaves the speaker with a sense of completion and fulfilment yet finds him blocked from success by winter's approach and physical weariness. On the one hand， Frost expressed his love of life and his belief in a serenity that only came from working usefully. On the other hand， the poet was concerned with individual's relationships to himself， to his fellow-man， to world， and to his God. He took up a religious question： can a man's best efforts ever satisfy God？ Besides this is a typical lyric poem describing the pastoral landscape in New England. Symbols and images from the pastoral landscape to refer to the great world beyond the rustic scene. The language of this poem is characterized by simple spoken language and conversational rhythms， the combination of traditiona1 verse forms —— the sonnet， rhyming coup1ets， blank verse with the speech of New England farmers with its idiosyncratic diction and syntax. Frost wrote in both the metrical forms and the free verse， in a form that might be called semi-free or semi-conventional. 2. The Road Not Taken （1） The theme： This poem seems to be about the poet， walking in the woods in autumn， hesitating for a long time and wondering which road he should take since they are both pretty. In reality， this is a meditative poem symbolically written. It concerns the important decisions which one must take in the course of life， when one must give up one desirable thing in order to possess another. Then， whatever the outcome， one must accept the consequences of one's choice for it is not possible to go back and have another chance to choose differently. In the poem， he followed the one which was not frequently travelled by. Symbolically， he chose to follow an unusual， solitary life； perhaps he was speaking of his choice to become a poet rather than some common profession. But he always remembered the road which he might have taken， and which would have given him a different kind of life. （2） Language： This poem is written in classic five-line stanzas， with the rhyme scheme a-b-a-a-b and conversational rhythm. The poet uses "the road " to symbolize life's journey. 3. Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening （1） The theme： This is a deceptively simple poem in which the speaker literally stops his horse in the winter twilight to observe the beauty of the forest scene， and then is moved to continue his journey. Philosophically and symbolically， it stems from the ambiguity of the speaker's choice between safety and the unknown. （2） This poem suggests deep thought about death and about life. The strange attraction of death to man is symbolized by the dark woods silently filled up with the coldness of snow. Frost frequently uses the technique of symbolism in his poetry. Some critics think that the "village" stands for the human world， "woods" for nature， "horse" for the animal world， and "promises" for obligations. The poem represents a moment of relaxation from the burdensome journey of life， an almost aesthetic enjoyment and appreciation of natural beauty which is wholesome and restorative against the chaotic existence of modern man. （3） The last stanza shows a kind of sad， sentimental but also strong and responsible feeling. The attraction of the beauty of the nature makes the speaker stop in the journey. He finally turns away from it， with a certain weariness and yet with quiet determination， to face the needs of life. This stresses the central conflict of the poem between man's enjoyment of nature's beauty and his responsibility in society. This shows a man's despairing courage to seek out the meaning of life. In the last stanza， the three adjectives "lovely" "dark" "deep" reinforce one another. Not only do they represent beauty and terror of nature symbolized by the dark woods， but they also reveal the speaker's love for nature and human isolation from it. Besides， the word "sleep" here means "die" symbolically.自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（4）的介绍就聊到这里吧，感谢你花时间阅读本站内容，更多关于自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（4）、自考《英美文学选读》（美）现代文学时期（4）的信息别忘了在本站进行查找喔。
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