英美文学名词解释TermsinEnglishLiterature.doc

英美文学名词解释Terms in English Literature1.Allegory (寓言)A tale in verse or prose in which characters, actions, or settings represent abstract ideas or moral qualities. 寓言，讽喻：一种文学、戏剧或绘画的艺术手法，其中人物和事件代表抽象的观点、原则或支配力。2.Alliteration (头韵)Alliteration is the repetition of the same initial consonant sound within a line or a group of words.头韵：在一组词的开头或重读音节中对相同辅音或不同元音的重复。 3.Allusion (典故)A reference to a person, a place, an event, or a literary work that a writer expects the reader to recognize and respond to.典故：作者对某些读者熟悉并能够作出反映的特定人物，地点，事件，文学作品的引用。4.Analogy (类比)A comparison made between two things to show the similarities between them.类比：为了在两个事物之间找出差别而进行的比较。5. Antagonist (反面主角)The principal character in opposition to the protagonist or hero or heroine of a narrative or drama.反面主角：叙事文学或戏剧中与男女主人公或英雄相对立的主要人物。6. Antithesis (对仗)The balancing of two contrasting ideas, words, or sentences.对仗：两组相对的思想，言辞，词句的平衡。 7. Aphorism (警句)A concise, pointed statement expressing a wise or clever observation about life.警句：蕴含关于人生真理的明智的看法的精练的语句。8. Aside (旁白)A piece of dialogue intended for the audience and supposedly not heard by other actors on stage.旁白：只说给观众而认为不会让台上其他演员听到的一段对话。9.Apostrophe (呼语)The direct address of an absent or imaginary person or of a personified abstraction, especially as a digression in the course of a speech or composition.呼语：直接称呼不在场或虚构的人物或称呼拟人的事物，尤指作为演讲或作文过程中的离题话。10.Assonance (类韵)The repetition of similar vowel sounds, especially in poetry.类音，类韵：相同或相似元音的重复，尤其指在诗歌中的重复。11.Atmosphere (氛围)The prevailing mood or feeling of a literary work.12. Autobiography (自传)A persons account of his or her own life.13. Ballad (民谣)A narrative poem, often of folk origin and intended to be sung.14. Ballad Stanza (民谣诗节)A type of four-line stanza, the first and the third lines have four stressed words or syllables; the second and fourth lines have three stresses.15. Biography (传记)A detailed account of a persons life written by another person.传记：由他人篆写的关于某人生平的详细记录。16.Blank Verse (无韵体诗)Verse written in unrhymed iambic pentameter.17. Caesura (休止)A break or pause in a line of poetry.18. Canto (章)One of the principal divisions of a long poem.诗章：一首长诗的主要部分之一。19. Caricature (夸张讽刺)The use of exaggeration or distortion to make a figure appear comic or ridiculous.夸张讽刺：为了使文中的人物显得可笑而使用的夸张或扭曲人物形象的手法。20. Characterization (人物刻画)The means by which a writer reveals the personality of a character.人物刻画：作者表现作品中人物性格的方法。21. Classicism (古典主义)A movement or tendency in art, literature, or music that reflects the principles manifested in the art of ancient Greece and Rome.古典主义：一种在文学，艺术，音乐领域体现古代希腊，罗马风格的运动。 22. Climax (高潮)The point of greatest intensity, interest, or suspense in a narrative.23. Comedy (喜剧)A dramatic work that is often humorous or satirical in tone and usually contains a happy resolution of the thematic conflict.喜剧：轻松的和常有幽默感的或在调子上是讽刺的戏剧作品，常包括主题冲突的愉快解决24. Conceit (奇想)A kind of metaphor that makes a comparison between two startlingly different things. 奇想：一种在截然不同的事物之间建立起的比喻。25. Conflict (冲突)A struggle between two opposing forces or characters in a short story, novel, play, or narrative poem.冲突：故事，小说，戏剧中相对的力量和人物之间的对立。26. Connotation (外延)All the emotions and associations that a word or phrase may arouse.外延：包括单词字面意思之外的或被该词汇唤起的全部内涵的意义。27. Consonance (辅音韵)The repetition of consonants or a consonant pattern, especially at the ends of words.辅音韵：辅音或辅音模式的重复，尤指位于词尾的。28. Couplet (双韵体)A unit of verse consisting of two successive lines, usually rhyming and having the same meter and often forming a complete thought or syntactic unit.双韵体：包括两个相连的诗行的一种诗的单位，通常压韵并具有同样的格律，经常组成一个完整的意思和句法单位29. Heroic couplet (英雄双韵体)A couplet written in iambic pentameter is called a heroic couplet.英雄双韵体：五步抑扬格的双韵体称英雄双韵体。30. Denotation (内涵)The literal or dictionary meaning of a word.直接意义：一个词的字面意义或词典意义。31. Denouement (结局)The final resolution or clarification of a dramatic or narrative plot.结局：戏剧或叙事场景的最后结果。32. Diction (措辞)A writers choice and use of words in speech or writing, particularly for clarity, effectiveness, and precision.措词：讲话或书写中，出于表述清晰，言简意赅对词语的使用或选择。33. Dissonance (不协和)A harsh or disagreeable combination of sounds; discord.34. Dramatic monologue (戏剧独白)A kind of narrative poem in which one character speaks to one or more listeners whose replies are not given in the poem.35. Elegy (挽歌)A poem or song composed especially as a lament for a deceased person.挽歌，挽诗：专门为悼念某一死者所写的诗或歌.36. Emblematic Image (象征)A verbal picture of figure with a long tradition of moral or religious meaning attached to it.37. Epic (史诗)An extended narrative poem in elevated or dignified language, celebrating the feats of a legendary or traditional hero.史诗：用严肃或庄重的语言写成的叙事长诗，歌颂传奇中或历史上英雄的丰功伟绩38. Epigram (隽语)A concise, clever, often paradoxical statement, susally in the form of a poem.隽语：一个简明，机智，常常似是而非的陈述,经常以诗的形式出现39. Epigraph (引语/开场白)A motto or quotation at the beginning of a literary composition, setting forth a theme. 引语：在一部文学作品开头的引言，警句，阐明主题40. Epilogue (结语/收场白)A short addition or concluding section at the end of a literary work, often dealing with the future of its characters. Also called In this sense, also called afterword 结语：文学作品结束时简短的附加或总结性章节，常常关于作品人物的未来也作 在此意义上也可称作 afterword.41. Epiphany(顿悟)A moment of illumination, usually occurrs at or near the end of a work.顿悟:对现实真谛的顿悟或洞察,通常出现在作品的结尾.42. Epitaph(墓志铭)An inscription on a tombstone or in a short poem in memory of someone who has been dead.墓志铭：刻于墓碑上用以怀念死者的碑铭.43. Epithet (表述词语)A term used to characterize a person or thing。表述词语：用来表示某人某物特性的一个表达。44. Essay (散文)A short literary composition on a single subject, usually presenting the personal view of the author.散文：内容通常论及一个主题的短小文章，通常表达作者个人的观点45. Exemplum (说教故事)A tale, usually inserted into the text of a sermon, that illustrates a moral principle.说教故事:一种短小的体现某种道德原则的故事性文章，通常出现在布道文中。46. Fable (寓言)A brief story that is told to present a moral, or practical lesson.寓言：一种体现某种道德观念或实用价值的说教性文章。47. Farce (轻喜剧)A kind of comedy based on a ridiculous situation, often with stereotyped characters.轻喜剧: 一种以可笑的情节的为基础的喜剧，通常包含固定的角色。48. Figurative Language (象征性语言)Language that is not intended to be interpreted in a literal sense.象征性语言：不能直接用字面意义来理解的语言。49. Figure of Speech (比喻)A word or an expression that is not meant to be interpreted in literal sense.比喻：不能直接按照字面意义理解的词语或表述方法。50. Flashback(倒叙)A literary device in which an earlier event is inserted into a narrative.倒叙，闪回镜头：一种文学或电影的表现手法，往往在一段按正常时间顺序记叙的叙事中插入一件以前发生过的事情51. Foil (陪衬)A character who sets off another character by contrast.陪衬：用来反衬其他人物的人物。52. Foreshadowing (铺垫)The use of hints or clues in a narrative to suggest what will happen later.铺垫：用来预示将要发生的事情的线索或暗示。53. Free verse (自由诗体)Verses that has neither a metrical pattern or an regular pattern.自由诗体:既不具格式韵律又不具常规格律的诗体。54. hyperbole (夸张法)A figure of speech in which exaggeration is used for emphasis or effect夸张法：一种比喻，使用夸张来强调或产生某种效果。55. Iambic pentameter (五步抑扬格)A poetic line consisting of five verse feet, with each foot an iamb-that is, an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.五步抑扬格:一种诗句形式，每行诗句包含五个抑扬格音步。56. Imagery(意象)Words or phrases that create pictures, or images, in readers mind.意象：用来在读者的思维中唤起某种图示或形象的词汇。57. Incremental repetition (递进重复)The repetition of a previous line or lines, but with a slight variation each time that advances the narrative stanza by stanza. 递进重复：诗歌中对上文中一行或几行的重复，但每次重复都有一定的变化，而且每一节的重复中的叙述都有所强化。58. Inversion (倒装句)The technique of reversing, or inverting the normal word order of a sentence.倒装句：一种将句子正常的表达方法倒置的技巧。59. Invocation (开篇祷告)A call to a muse, god or spirit for inspiration at the beginning of an epic or other poem.开篇祷告：在史诗或诗歌的开篇企求神灵给予启示的文字。60. Irony (反语)A contrast between what is stated and what is really meant, or between what is expected to happen and what actually happened.反语：一种建立在字面表述和真实意义上或期待产生的结果和真实的结果之间的对比。61.Kenning (隐喻语)A figurative, usually compound expression used in place of a name or noun, especially in Old English and Old Norse poetry. for example, storm of swords is a kenning for battle. 隐喻语：尤指古英语和古斯堪的纳维亚语诗中，一种比喻性的，在表名字或名词时常用的复合表达方式，如剑的风暴 是 战争 的隐喻语 62. Lyric (抒情诗)A poem, usually a short one, that expresses a speakers personal thoughts or feelings.抒情诗：一种用来抒发作者感情或思想的短诗。63. Masque (假面剧)A dramatic entertainment, usually performed by masked players representing mythological or allegorical figures, that was popular in England in the 16th and early 17th centuries.假面剧：一种戏剧性娱乐，由代表神话或寓言中人物的佩戴面具者表演，该娱乐形式在16世纪和17世纪早期的英国很流行.64. Melodrama (情节剧)A drama that has stereotyped characters, exaggerated emotions, and a conflict that pits an all-good hero or heroine against an all-evil villain.65. Metaphor (隐喻)A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison.隐喻：一种语言表达手法，通常用指某物的词或词组来指代他物，从而暗示它们之间的相似之处.66.Metaphysical Poetry (玄学派诗歌)The poems of 17th-century English poets, whose verse is characterized by an intellectually challenging style and extended metaphors comparing very dissimilar things.玄学派诗歌：17世纪英国诗人的诗歌，这种诗歌的特点是风格极具智慧，引人深思，善用引申的暗喻来对比极其不同的事物.67. Meter (格律)A generally regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry.格律：诗歌中通常的重读音节和非重读音节的排列模式。68. Metonymy (转喻)A figure of speech in which one word or phrase is substituted for another with which it is closely associated.转喻：一种一个词或词组被另一个与之有紧密联系的词或词组替换的修辞方法.69. Mock epic (讽刺史诗)A comic literary from that treats a trivial subject in the grand, heroic style of the epic.讽刺史诗：一种用史诗的宏大风格来描写微不足道的事情的喜剧形式。70. Motif (主旨)A recurrent thematic element in an artistic or literary work.主题：艺术品或文学作品中反复体现的、揭示主题的部分。71. Motivation (动机)The reasons, either stated or implied, for a characters behavior.动机: 引发作品中人物行为的理由。72. Myth (神话)A story, often about immortals and sometimes connected with religious rituals, that is intended to give meaning to the mysteries of the world.神话：一种解释世界上的神秘现象的关于神灵或同宗教仪式有联系的故事。73. Narrative Poem (叙事诗)A poem that tells a story.叙事诗：讲述一个故事的诗歌。74. Narrator (叙述者)One who narrates or tells a story.叙述者：讲述或叙述一个故事的人。75. Naturalism (自然主义)The practice of describing precisely the actual circumstances of human life in literature, it is the extreme form of realism.自然主义：在文学中精确地描述人类现实环境的实践,现实主义的最高表现形式。76. Neoclassicism (新古典主义)A revival in literature in the late 17th and 18th centuries, characterized by a regard for the classical ideals of reason, form, and restraint styles.新古典主义：17、18世纪晚期的文学复兴，以尊重古代典型的推理形式和严谨文体为特征77. Novel (小说)A book length fictional prose narrative, having many characters and often a complex plot.小说：虚构的叙述性文章，有一定长度，较多的人物，和思想复杂的情节。78. Octave (八行诗)An eight-line poem or stanza.79. Ode (颂)A complex and often lengthy lyric poem, written in a dignified formal style on some lofty or serious subject.颂：一种复杂的，具有一定长度的诗歌，通常以高贵的风格写成，用来表述一些高尚或严肃的主题。80. Onomatopoeia (拟声)The formation or use of words by imitating the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to. 拟声：通过模仿事物或行动的声音构词的方法。81. Oxymoron (矛盾修饰法) A rhetorical figure in which combines or contradictory terms are combined, as in a deafening silence and a mournful optimist. 矛盾修饰法：一种把互相矛盾或不调和的词合在一起的修辞手法，如在震耳欲聋的沉默和悲伤的乐观 82. Paradox (似非而是) A statement that reveals a kind of truth, although it seems at first to be self-contradictory and untrue.似非而是:一种在字面上看起来自相矛盾，却体现着一定的真理的说法。83. Parallelism (并行)The use of phrases, clauses, or sentences that are similar or complementary in structure or in meaning.并行：结构或意义相近的词汇，子句，句子的并用。84.Parody (模仿诗文)A humorous imitation of a work of art for comic effect or ridicule. 模仿诗文：一种为取得喜剧或嘲讽效果，而对某一艺术作品进行的滑稽模仿。85. Pastoral (田园诗)A kind of poem, that deals in an idealized way with shepherds and rustic life.田园诗：一种用理想的手法来体现牧羊人的乡村生活的诗歌。86. Pathos (悲怅)The quality in a work of literature or art that arouses the readers feelings of pity, sorrow, or compassion for a character.悲怅：文学艺术作品的一种引发读者怜悯，同情或伤感的特质。87. Personification (拟人)A figure of speech in which inanimate objects or abstractions are endowed with human qualities or are represented as possessing human form.拟人：给无生命的东西或者抽象的东西赋予人的个性或绘以人的形象.88. Plot (情节)The plan of events or main story in a novel, narrative or drama.情节：在小说，故事,或戏剧中事件的概要或主要故事.89. Point of view (视角)A point from which an author presents a story.视角：作者阐述故事的角度。90. protagonist (主角)The main character in a drama or other literary work.主角：戏剧或其他文学作品中的主要人物.91. Psalm (赞美诗)A song or lyric poem in praise of God.赞美诗：用来颂扬上帝的诗歌或抒情诗。92. Pun (双关语)The use of a word or phrase to suggest two or more meanings at the same time.双关语：用一个词来同时表示两个内涵。93. Quatrain (四行诗)A stanza or poem of four lines.94. Realism (现实主义)The representation in art or literature of objects, actions, or social conditions as they actually are, without idealization or presentation in abstract form.现实主义：在艺术或文学中将事物，行为或社会状况按其起初情况进行的表现，而不用模糊的形式来表现或理想化95. Refrain (副句)A phrase, verse, or group of verses repeated at intervals throughout a song or poem, especially at the end of each stanza.副句，副歌：一个短语、一句诗或一组诗句在一首歌或诗中每隔一段重复一次， 尤其在每个诗节的结尾处96. Rhyme (压韵)The repetition of sounds in two or more words or phrases that appear close to each other in a poem.压韵：音在两个或两个以上的词汇或短语中的重复。97. Rhythm (格律)The arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables into a pattern.重读音节和非重读音节的固定排列模式。98. Romance (传奇故事)An imaginative literature that is set in an idealized world and that deals with heroic adventures and battles between good and devil.传奇故事：设定在想象世界中的以英雄冒险和善恶之间的斗争为题材的文学作品。99. Romanticism (浪漫主义)An artistic and intellectual movement originating in Europe in the late 18th century which emphasis on the individuals expression of emotion and imagination, departure from the attitudes and forms of classicism.浪漫主义：起源于18世纪末期欧洲的一种注重个人情感和想象力的表达的艺术和知识上的运动，它与古典主义的观点和形式相悖.100. Satire (讽刺文)A kind of writing that holds up to ridicule or contempt the weakness and wrongdoings of individuals, institutions or humanity in general.讽刺：一种讽刺个人，习俗或人性中的缺点或错误的文体。101. Scansion(韵律分析)The analysis of verse into meter patterns.韵律分析：将诗划分成音步的分析方法。102.Sestet (六行诗)A six-line poem or stanza.103. Setting (背景)The time, place, and circumstances in which a narrative, drama, or novel takes place.背景：记叙文、戏剧或小说发生的时间、地点和环境.104. Simile (明喻)A comparison made between two things through the use of a specific word of comparison.明喻：两种事物之间借助于比喻词汇进行的比较。105. Soliloquy (独白)A dramatic or literary form of discourse in which a character reveals a characters thoughts when alone or unaware of the presence of other characters.独白：一种戏剧或文学的说话形式，其中某角色在独自一人或不知道其他角色存在的情况下展示角色的思想。106. Song (歌)A short lyric poem with distinct musical qualities, normally written to be set to music.歌:一种具有典型的音乐特征的抒情诗体，通常为谱曲而作。107. Sonnet (十四行诗)A 14-line verse form usually written in iambic pentameter.十四行诗：一种由十四行组成的诗歌形式，通常以五步抑扬格为押韵形式。108. Spenserian Stanza (斯宾塞诗体)A nine line stanza with the following rhyme scheme ababbcbcc.109. Stream of consciousness (意识流)The style of writing that attempts to imitate the natural flow of a characters thoughts, feelings reflections, and mental images as the character experiences them.意识流：一种模仿作品中人物思想，思维，精神活动的自然过程的写作技巧。110.Style(风格)An