《英国文学简史》完整版笔记

1、英国文学简史完整版笔记 英国文学简史完全版 A Con cise History of British Literature Chapter 1 En glish Literature of An glo-Sax on Period I. I ntroducti on I. The historical backgro und (1) Before the Germanic invasion (2) During the Germanic invasion a. immigrati on; b. Christia ni ty; c. heptarchy. d. social classes s

2、tructure: hide-hu ndred; eoldermen(lord) -tha ne - middle class (freemen) - lower class (slave or bondmen: theoW ; e. social organization: clan or tribes. f. military Orga ni zati on; g. Church function: spirit, civil service, education; h. economy: coins, trade, slavery; i. feasts and festival: Hal

3、lowee n, Easter; j. legal system. 2. The Overview of the culture (1) The mixture of pagan and Christian spirit. (2) Literature: a. Poetry: two types; b. prose: two figures. II. Beowulf. 1. A gen eral in troducti on. 2. The content. 3. The literary features. (1) the use of alliterati on (2) the use o

4、f metaphors and un derstateme nts (3) the mixture of pagan and Christian elements III. The Old En glish Prose 1. What is prose? 2. figures (1) The Venerable Bede (2) Alfred the Great Chapter 2 En glish Literature of the Late Medieval Ages l.ln troducti on 1. The Historical Backgro und. (1) The year

5、1066: Norman Con quest. (2) The social situations soon after the conquest. A. Norma n n obles and serfs; B. restorati on of the church. (3) The 11th ce ntury. A. the crusade and kni ghts. B. dominance of Fre nch and Lat in; (4) The 12th ce ntury. A. the cen tralized gover nment; B. kings and the chu

6、rch (Henry II and Thomas); (5) The 13th ce ntury. A. The lege nd of Robin Hood; B. Magna Carta (1215); C. the begi nning of the Parliame nt D. En glish and Lati n: official la nguages (the end) (6) The 14th cen tury. a. the House of Lords and the House of Commonsconflict between the Parliame nt and

7、Kin gs; b. the rise of tow ns. c. the cha nge of Church. d. the role of wome n. e. the Hun dred Years Waistarti ng. f. the developme nt of the trade: London. g. the Black Death. h. the Peasants Revo1381. i. The tran slati on of Bible by Wycliffe. (7) The 15th ce ntury. a. The Peasants Revolt (1453)

8、b. The War of Roses betwee n Lan caster and Y orks. c. the prin ti ng-press William Caxt on. d. the starting of Tudor Monarchy (1485) 2. The Overview of Literature. (1) the stories from the Celtic lands of Wales and Brittangreat myths of the Middle Ages. (2) Geoffrye of Monm outh Historia Regum Brit

9、a nni ae King Authur. (3) Wace Le Roman de Brut. (4) The roma nee. (5) the sec ond half of the 14th een tury: Lan gla nd, Gaw in poet, Chaucer. II. Sir Gawin and Green Knight. 1. A gen eral in troducti on. 2. The plot. III. William Langland. 1. Life 2. Piers the Plowma n IV. Chaucer 1. Life 2. Liter

10、ary Career: three periods (1) French period (2) Italian period (3) master period 3. The Can terbury Tales A. The Framework; B. The Gen eral Prologue; C. The Tale Proper. 4. His Con tributio n. (1) He in troduced from France the rhymed sta nza of various types. (2) He is the first great poet who wrot

11、e in the current English Ianguage. (3) The spoken English of the time consisted of several dialects, and Chaucer did much in making the dialect of London the standard for the moder n En glish speech. V. Popular Ballads. VI. Thomas Malory and En glish Prose VII. The begi nning of En glish Drama. 1. M

12、iracle Plays. Miracle play or mystery play is a form of medieval drama that came from dramatization of the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church. It developed from the 10th to the 16th cen tury, reachi ng its height in the 15th cen tury. The simple lyric character of the early texts was enlarged by t

13、he addition of dialogue and dramatic action. Eventually the performance was moved to the churchyard and the marketplace. 2. Morality Plays. A morality play is a play enforcing a moral truth or less on by means of the speech and acti on of characters which are pers oni fied abstracti ons -figures rep

14、rese nti ng vices and virtues, qualities of the huma n mi nd, or abstract con cepti ons in gen eral. 3. I nterlude. The interlude, which grew out of the morality, was intended, as its name implies, to be used more as filler than as the main part of an entertainment. As its best it was short, witty,

15、simple in plot, suited for the diversion of guests at a banquet, or for the relaxation of the audienee between the divisions of a serious play. It was esse ntially an in doors performa nee, and gen erally of an aristocratic n ature. Chapter 3 English Literature in the Renaissanee I.A Historical Back

16、ground II. The Overview of the Literature (1485-1660) Printing press readershipgrowth of middle class trade-education for laypeople-centralization of power-intellectual life-exploration-new impetus and directi on of literature. Humanism-study of the literature of classical antiquity and reformed edu

17、cati on. Literary style-modeled on the ancients. The effect of humanism-the dissemination of the cultivated, clear, and sen sible attitude of its classically educated adhere nts. 1. poetry The first tendency by Sidney and Spenser: ornate, florid, highly figured style. The second tendency by Donne: m

18、etaphysical stylecomplexity and ingenu ity. The third tendency by Joh nson: reacti onClassically pure and restrai ned style. The fourth tendency by Milt on: cen tral Christia n and Biblical traditi on. 2. Drama a. the n ative traditi on and classical examples. b. the drama stands highest in popular

19、estimation: Marlowe -Shakespeare - Jonson. 3. Prose a. tran slati on of Bible; b. More; c. Bac on. II. En glish poetry. 1. Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard (courtly makers) (1) Wyatt: in troduc ing sonn ets. (2) Howard: introducing sonnets and writing the first blank verse. 2. Sir Philip Sidneypoet

20、, critic, prose writer (1) Life: a. En glish gen tlema n; b. brillia nt and fasc in at ing pers on ality; c. courtier. (2) works a. Arcadia: pastoral roma nee; b. Astrophel and Stella ( 108 ): sonnet seque nee to Pen elope Dvereux plat onic devoti on. Petrarehan conceits and original feelings-moving

21、 to creativenesbuilding of a n arrative story; theme-love orig in ality-act of writ ing. c. Defense of Poesy: an apology for imaginative literature beginning of literary criticism. 3. Edm und Spe nser (1 ) life: Cambridge - Sidneys friend -“Areopagus” - Ireland - Westmi nster Abbey. (2) works a. The

22、 Shepherds Cale ndar: the budd ing of En glish poetry in Ren aissa nee. b. Amoretti and Epithalam ion: sonnet seque nee c. Faerie Quee n: l The general enA romantic and allegorical epic steps to virtue. l 12 books and 12 virtues: Holi ness, tempera nee, justice and courtesy. l Two-level funetion: pa

23、rt of the story and part of allegory (symbolic mea ning) l Many allusi ons to classical writers. L Themes: purita ni sm, n ati on alism, huma nism and Ren aissa nee Neoclassicism a Christia n huma ni st. (3) Spe nseria n Sta nza. III. English Prose 1. Thomas More (1) Life:“Renaissancmar” , scholar,

24、statesman, theorist, prose writ er, diplomat, patr on of arts a. lear ned Greek at Can terbury College, Oxford; b. studies law at Lincoln Inn; c. Lord Chan cellor; d. beheaded. (2) Utopia: the first En glish scie nce ficti on. Writte n in Lat in, two parts, the sec ond place of no where. A philosoph

25、ical mariner (Raphael Hythloday) tells his voyages in which he discovers a Ian d-Utopia. a. The part one is organized as dialogue with mariner depicting his philosophy. b. The part two is a description of the island kingdom where gold and silver are worn by crim in al, religious freedom is total and

26、 no one owns any thi ng. c. the n ature of the book: attack ing the chief political and social evils of his time. d. the book and the Republic: an attempt to describe the Republic in a new way, but it possesses an modern character and the resemblance is in externals. e. it played a key role in the H

27、umanist awakening of the 16th century which moved away from the Medieval otherworldliness towards Renaissance secularism. f. the Utopia (3) the sig nifica nee. a. it was the first champi on of n atio nal ideas and n ati on al la nguages; it created a national prose, equally adapted to handling scien

28、tific and artistic material. b. a elega nt Lati n scholar and the father of En glish prose: he composed works in En glish, tran slated from Lati n in to En glish biography, wrote History of Richard III. 2. Fran cis Bac on: writer, philosopher and statesma n (1) life: Cambridge - humanism in Paris -k

29、nighted - Lord Chancellor bribery - focusing on philosophy and literature. (2) philosophical ideas: advancement of scienee people: servants and interpreters of nature method: a child before nature facts and observations: experimental. (3) “Essays” : 57. a. he was a master of nu merous and varied sty

30、les. b. his method is to weigh and bala nee maters, in dicat ing the ideal course of acti on and the practical one, pointing out the adva ntages and disadva ntages of each, but leaving the reader to make the final decisions. (arguments IV. En glish Drama 1. A gen eral survey. (1) Everyma n marks the

31、 begi nning of moder n drama. (2) two in flue nces. a. the classics: classical in form and English in content; b. n ative or popular drama. (3) the Un iversity Wits. 2. Christopher Marlowe: greatest playwright before Shakespeareand most gifted of the Wits. (1) Life: first interested in classical poe

32、try then in drama. (2) Major works a. Tamburla ine; b. The Jew of Malta; c. The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus. (3) The sig nifica nee of his plays. V. William Shakespeare 1. Life (1) 1564, Stratford-o n-Avo n; (2) Grammar School; (3) Quee n visit to Castle; (4) marriage to Anne Hathaway; (5) Lo

33、ndon, the Globe Theatre: small part and proprietor; (6) the 1st Folio, Quarto; (7) Retired, son Hamlet; H. 1616. 2. Dramatic career 3. Major plays-me n-ce ntered. (1) Romeo and Juliettragic love and fate (2) The Mercha nt of Ven ice. Good over evil. An ti-Semitism. (3) He nry IV. Nati onal uni ty. F

34、alstaff. (4) Julius Caesar Republicanism vs. dictatorship. (5) Hamlet Revenge Good/evil. (6) Othello Diabolic character jealousy gap betwee n appeara nee and reality. (7) King Lear Filial in gratitude (8) Macbeth Ambiti on vs. fate. (9) Antony and Cleopatra. Passi on vs. reas on (10) The Tempest Rec

35、onciliation; reality and illusion. 3. Non-dramatic poetry (1) Venus and Adonis; The Rape of Lucrece. (2) Sonn ets: a. theme: fair, true, ki nd. b. two major parts: a handsome young man of noble birth; a lady in dark complexi on. c. the form: three quatrains and a couplet. d. the rhyme scheme: abab,

36、cdcd, efef, gg. VI. Ben Jonson 1. life: poet, dramatist, a Lat in and Greek scholar, the“ literary Songs of Ben) 2. c on tributi on: (1) the idea of hunibr”. (2) an advocate of classical drama and a forerunner of classicism in En glish literature. 3. Major plays (1) Every one in His Humor humor” ; t

37、hree un ities. (2) Volp one the Fox Chapter 4 English Literature of the 17th Century I.A Historical Backgro und II. The Overview of the Literature(1640-1688) 1. The revoluti on period (1) The metaphysical poets; (2) The Cavalier poets. (3) Milt on: the literary and philosophical heritage of the Ren

38、aissa nee merged with Protesta nt political and moral conv icti on 2. The restorati on period. (1) The restoration of Charles II ushered in a literature characterized by reas on, moderatio n, good taste, deft man ageme nt, and simplicity.(school of Ben Jonson ) (2) The ideals of impartialinvestigati

39、onand scientific experimentation promoted by the newly founded Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge(1662) were in flue ntialin the developme nt of clear and simple prose as an in strume nt of ratio nal com muni cati on. (3) The great philosophical and political treatises of the ti

40、me emphasize ratio nalism. (4) The restoration drama. (5) The Age of Dryden. III. John Milt on 1. Life: educated atvisit ing the con ti nentinvo Ived into the revoluti on persecuted writ ing epics. 2. Literary career. (1) The 1st period was up to 1641, during which time he is to be seen chiefly as a

41、 son of the humanists and Elizabethans, although his Purita nism is not abse nt. LAllegre and IL Pens eroso (1632) are his early masterpieces, in which we find Milt on a true offspr ing of the Ren aissa nee, a scholar of exquisite taste and rare culture. Next came Comus, a masque. The greatest of ea

42、rly creatio ns was Lycidas, a pastoral elegy on the death of a college mate, Edward King. (2) The seco nd period is from 1641 to 1654, whe n the Purita n was in such complete asce ndancy that he wrote almost no poetry .In 1641, he bega n a long period of pamphleteeri ng for the purita n cause. For s

43、ome 15 years, the Purita n in him alone ruled his writi ng. He sacrificed his poetic ambiti on to the call of the liberty for which Purita ns were fighti ng. (3) The third period is from 1655 to 1671, whenhumanist and Puritan have been fused into an exalted entity.This period is the greatest in his

44、literary life, epics and some famous sonn ets. The three long poemsare the fruit of the long con test withi n Milt on of Ren aissa nee traditi on and his Purita n faith. They form the greatest accomplishme nts of any En glish poet except Shakespeare. In alone, it would seem, Puritanism could not ext

45、 in guish the lover of beauty .In these works we find huma nism and Purita nism merged in magn ifice nee. 3. Major Works (1) Paradise Lost a. the plot. b. characters. c. theme: justify the ways of God to man. (2) Paradise Regained. (3) Sams on Agon istes. 4. Features of s works. (1) Milt on is one o

46、f the very few truly great En glish writers who is also a prominent figure in politics, and who is both a great poet and an importa nt prose writer. The two most essential things to be remembered about him are his Puritanism and his republica ni sm. (2) Milt on wrote many differe nt types of poetry.

47、 He is especially a great master of blank verse. He learned muchfrom Shakespeare and first used bla nk verse in non-dramatic works. (3) Milt on is a great stylist. He is famous for his grand style no ted for its dig nity and polish, which is the result of his life-lo ng classical and biblical study.

48、 (4) Milt on has always bee n admired for his sublimity of thought and majesty of expressi on. IV. John Bu nyan 1. Life: (1) puritan age; (2) poor family; (3) parliamentary army; (4) Baptist society, preacher; (5) prison, writing the book. 2. The Pilgrim Progress (1) The allegory in dream form. (2)

49、the plot. (3) the theme. V. Metaphysical Poets and Cavalier Poets. 1. Metaphysical Poets The term “ metaphysical poetry ” is com mon ly used to designate the works of the 17th century writers who wrote under the in flue nee of Joh n Donne. Pressured by the harsh, un comfortable and curious age, the

50、metaphysical poets sought to shatter myths and replace them with new philosophies, new scie nces, new words and new poetry. They tried to break away from the conven ti onal fashi on of Elizabetha n love poetry, and favoured in poetry for a more colloquial la nguage and tone, a tight ness of expressi

51、 on and the sin gle-min ded work ing out of a theme or argume nt. 2. Cavalier Poets The other group prevaili ng in this period was that of Cavalier poets. They were often courtiers whostood on the side of the king, and called themselves “sons” of Ben Jonson. The Cavalier poets wrote light poetry, po

52、lished and elega nt, amorous and gay, but ofte n superficial. Most of their verses were short songs, pretty madrigals, love fancies characterized by light ness of heart and of morals. Cavalier poems have the limpidity of the Elizabetha n lyric without its imagi native flights. They are lighter and n

53、 eater but less fresh tha n the Elizabetha ns. VI. Joh n Dryde n. 1. Life: (1) the representative of classicism in the Restoration. (2) poet, dramatist, critic, prose writer, satirist. (3) changeable in attitude. (4) Literary career four decades. (5) Poet Laureate 2. His in flue nces. (1) He establi

54、shed the heroic couplet as the fashion for satiric, didactic, and descriptive poetry. (2) He developed a direct and concise prose style. (3) He developed the art of literary criticism in his essays and in the nu merous prefaces to his poems. Chapter 5 En glish Literature of the 18th Cen tury I. I nt

55、roducti on 1. The Historical Backgro und. 2. The literary overview. (1) The Enlightenment. (2) The rise of English novels. Whenthe literary historian seeks to assign to each age its favourite form of literature, he finds no difficulty in dealing with our own time. As the Middle Ages delighted in lon

56、g roma ntic n arrative poems, the Elizabetha ns in drama, the En glishma n of the reig ns of Anne and the early Georges in didactic and satirical verse, so the public of our day is en amored of the no vel. Almost all types of literary producti on continue to appear, but whether we judge from the lis

57、ts of publishers, the statistics of public libraries, or gen eral conv ersati on, we find abundant evide nee of the eno rmous prep on dera nee of this kind of literary en tertai nment in popular favor. (3) Neo-classicism: a revival in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries of classical standards o

58、f order, balanee, and harmony in literature. John Dryden and Alexander Pope were major exp onents of the n eo-classical school. (4) Satiric literature. (5) Sen time ntalism II. Neo-classicism. (a gen eral descripti on ) 1. Alexa nder Pope (1) Life: a. Catholic family; b. ill health; c. taught himsel

59、f by readi ng and tran slat ing; d. friend of Addis on, Steele and Swift. (2) three groups of poems: e. An Essay on Criticism(manifesto of neo-classicism ); f. The Rape of Lock; g. Tran slati on of two epics. (3) His contribution: h. the heroic couplet finish,eleganee, wit, pointedness; i. satire. (

60、4) weakness: lack of imagination. 2. Addis on and Steele (1) Richard Steele: poet, playwright, essayist, publisher of n ewspaper. (2) Joseph Addis on: studies at Oxford, secretary of state, created a literary periodical“Spectator ”(with Steele, 1711) (3) Spectator Club. (4) The significanee of their