自考英语本科英美文学选读4Victorianperiod

1、Chapter 4 The Victorian Period一 学习目的和要求通过本章的学习，对19世纪维多利亚时代英国的政治，经济，历史，文化背景，对维多利亚时代的诗歌，散文，小说在创作思想上的进步和创作技巧上的改革，以及对该时代主要作家的生平，观点，创作旨意，艺术品特点及其代表作的主题，结构，语言，人物刻画等都有一个全面的了解。 并通过作品选读加深体会感受，增强对作品的理解和鉴赏能力。二 考核要求（一） 维多利亚时期概述 1 识记:（1）维多利亚时期的界定（2）社会政治，经济，文化背景。 2 领会:（1）维多利亚时期的文学特点 （2）批判现实主义小说对后世文学的影响。 3 应用：宪章运动，

2、功利主义，批判现实主义，戏剧独自等名词的解释（二） 该时期的重要作家 1 一般识记：重要作家的生平与创作生涯 2 识记: 重要作品及主要内容 3 领会：重要作家的创作思想，艺术特色及其代表作品的主题思想，人物塑造，语言风格，社会意义等。 4 应用:（1）狄更斯和萨克雷作品的批判现实主义思想及各自的创作手法，艺术特色。（2）小说简爱，呼啸山庄的主题思想与人物塑造。（3）我逝去的公爵夫?quot;中的戏剧独白。（4）乔泊艾略特和哈代小说中环境，氛围描述与人物内世界的展示。A. Introduction to the Victorian Period1. 识记(1) Definition: the

3、Victorian PeriodChronologically the Victorian period roughly coincides with the reign of Queen Victoria who ruled over England from 1836 to 1901. The period has been generally regarded as one of the most glorious in the English history.(2) Political, Economical & Cultural Background The early years

4、of the Victorian England was a time of rapid economic development as well as serious social problems. After the Reform Bill of 1832 passed the political power from the decaying aristocrats into the hands of the middle-class industrial capitalists, the Industrial Revolution soon geared up. Towards th

5、e mid-century, England had reached its highest point of development as a world power. And yet beneath the great prosperity & richness, there existed widespread poverty & wretchedness among the working class. The worsening living & working conditions, the mass unemployment & the new Poor Law of 1834

6、with its workhouse system finally gave rise to the Chartist Movement (1836-1848). During the next twenty years, England settled down to a time of prosperity & relative stability. The middle-class life of the time was characterized by prosperity, respectability & material progress.But the last three

7、decades of the century witnessed the decline of the British Empire & the decay of the Victorian values. Ideologically, the Victorians experienced fundamental changes. The rapid development of science & technology, new inventions & discoveries in geology, astronomy, biology & anthropology drastically

8、 shook peoples religious convictions. Darwins The Origin of Species (1859) & The Descent of Man (1871) shook the theoretical basis of the traditional faith. On the other hand, Utilitarianism was widely accepted & practiced. Almost everything was put to the test by the criterion of utility, that is,

9、the extent to which it could promote the material happiness.2. 领会 (1) Features of the Victorian Literature Victorian literature, as a product of its age, naturally took on its quality of magnitude & diversity. It was many-sided & complex, & reflected both romantically & realistically the great chang

10、es that were going on in peoples life & thought. Great writers & great works abounded. (2) Features of Victorian novelsIn this period, the novel became the most widely read & the most vital & challenging expression of progressive thought. While sticking to the principle of faithful representation of

11、 the 18th-century realist novel, novelists in this period carried their duty forward to the criticism of the society & the defense of the mass. Although writing from different points of view & with different techniques, they shared one thing in common, that is, they were all concerned about the fate

12、 of the common people. They were angry at the inhuman social institutions, the decaying social morality as represented by the money-worship & Utilitarianism & the widespread misery, poverty & injustice. Their truthful depiction of peoples life & bitter & strong criticism of the society had done much

13、 in awakening the public consciousness to the social problems & in the actual improvement of the society.Victorian literature, in general, truthfully represents the reality & spirit of the age. The high-spirited vitality, the down-to-earth earnestness, the good-natured humor & unbounded imagination

14、are all unprecedented. In almost every genre it paved the way for the coming century, where its spirits, values & experiments are to witness their bumper harvest. 3. 应用 Definitions of several terms1) The Chartist Movement (1836-1848)The English workers got themselves organized in big cities & brough

15、t forth the Peoples charter, in which they demanded basic rights & better living & working conditions. They, for three times, made appeals to the government, with hundreds of thousands of peoples signatures. The movement swept over most of the cities in the country. Although the movement declined to

16、 an end in 1848, it did bring some improvement to the welfare of the working class. This was the first mass movement of the English working class & the early sign of the awakening of the poor, oppressed people.2) Utilitarianism Almost everything was put to the test by the criterion of utility, that

17、is, the extent to which it could promote the material happiness. This theory held a special appeal to the middle-class industrialists, whose greed drove them to exploiting workers to the utmost & brought greater suffering & poverty to the working mass.3) Critical RealismThe Victorian Age is an age o

18、f realism rather than of romanticism-a realism which strives to tell the whole truth showing moral & physical diseases as they are. To be true to life becomes the first requirement for literary writing. As the mirror of truth, literature has come very close to daily life, reflecting its practical pr

19、oblems & interests & is used as a powerful instrument of human progress.4) Dramatic MonologueBy dramatic monologue, it is meant that a poet chooses a dramatic moment or a crisis, in which his characters are made to talk about their lives, & about their minds & hearts. In listening to those one-sided

20、 talks, readers can form their own opinions & judgments about the speakers personality & about what has really happened. Robert Browning brought this poetic form to its maturity & perfection & his My Last Duchess is one of the best-known dramatic monologues. Charles Dickens1 一般识记 His Life & Literary

21、 CareerCharles Dickens (1812-1870) was born at Portsmouth. His father, a poor clerk in the Navy Pay office, was put into the Marsalsea Prison for debt when young Charles was only 12 years old. The son had to give up schooling to work in an underground cellar at a shoe-blacking factory - a position h

22、e considered most humiliating. We find the bitter experiences of that suffering child reflected in many of Dickenss novels. In 1827, Charles entered a lawyers office, & two years later he became a Parliamentary reporter for newspapers. From 1833 Dickens began to write occasional sketches of London l

23、ife, which were later collected & published under the title Sketches by Boz (1836). Soon The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club (1836-1837) appeared in monthly installments. And since then, his life became one of endless hard work. In his later years, he gave himself to public readings of his wo

24、rks, which brought plaudits & comfort but also exhausted him. In 1870, this man of great heart & vitality died of overwork, leaving his last novel unfinished.2. 识记His Major WorksUpon his death, Dickens left to the world a rich legacy of 15 novels & a number of short stories. They offer a most comple

25、te & realistic picture of English society of his age & remain the highest achievement in the 19th-century English novel. In nearly all his novels, behind the gloomy pictures of oppression & poverty, behind the loud humor & buffoonery, is his gentleness, his genial mirth, & his simple faith in mankin

26、d. The following is a list of his novels & other collections in three periods: (1) Period of youthful optimist Sketches by Boz (1836); The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club (1836-1837); Oliver Twist (1837-1838); Nicholas Nickleby (1838-1839); The Old Curiosity Shop (1840-1841); Barnaby Rudge(18

27、41)(2) Period of excitement & irritation American Notes (1842); Martin Chuzzlewit (1843-1845); A Christmas Carol (1843); Dombey & Son (1846-1848); David Copperfield (1849-1850)(3) Period of steadily intensifying pessimism Bleak House (1852-1853); Hard Times (1854); Little Dorrit (1855-1857); A Tale

28、of Two Cities (1859); Great Expectations (1860-1861); Our Mutual Friend (1864-1865); Edwin Drood (unfinished)(1870)3. 领会 Distinct Features of His Novels (1) Character Sketches & ExaggerationIn his novels are found about 19 hundred figures, some of whom are really such typical characters under typica

29、l circumstances, that they become proverbial or representative of a whole group of similar persons.As a master of characterization, Dickens was skillful in drawing vivid caricatural sketches by exaggerating some peculiarities, & in giving them exactly the actions & words that fit them: that is, righ

30、t words & right actions for the right person.(2) Broad Humor & Penetrating Satire Dickens is well known as a humorist as well as a satirist. He sometimes employs humor to enliven a scene or lighten a character by making it (him or her) eccentric, whimsical, or laughable. Sometimes he uses satire to

31、ridicule human follies or vices, with the purpose of laughing them out of existence or bring about reform.(3) Complicated & Fascinating PlotDickens seems to love complicated novel constructions with minor plots beside the major one, or two parallel major plots within one novel. He is also skillful a

32、t creating suspense & mystery to make the story fascinating.(4) The Power of ExposureAs the greatest representative of English critical realism, Dickens made his novel the instrument of morality & justice. Each of his novels reveals a specific social problem.4. 领会 His Literary Creation & Literary Ac

33、hievements Charles Dickens is one of the greatest critical realistic writers of the Victorian Age. It is his serious intention to expose & criticize in his works all the poverty, injustice, hypocrisy & corruptness he saw all around him. In his works, Dickens sets a full map & a large-scale criticism

34、 of the 19th-century England, particularly London. A combination of optimism about people & realism about society is obvious in these works. His representative works in the early period include Oliver Twist, David Copperfield & so on. His later works show a highly conscious modern artist. The settin

35、gs are more complicated; the stories are better structured. Most novels of this period present a sharper criticism of social evils & morals of the Victorian England, for example, Bleak House, Hard Times, Great Expectations & so on. The early optimism could no more be found.Charles Dickens is a maste

36、r story-teller. His language could, in a way, be compared with Shakespeares. His humor & wit seem inexhaustible. Character-portrayal is the most outstanding feature of his works. His characterizations of child (Oliver Twist, etc.), some grotesque people (Fagin, etc.) & some comical people (Mr. Micaw

37、ber, etc.) are superb. Dickens also employs exaggeration in his works. Dickenss works are also characterized by a mixture of humor & pathos.5. 应用 Selected Reading An Excerpt from Chapter III of Oliver Twist The novel is famous for its vivid descriptions of the workhouse & life of the underworld in t

38、he 19th-century London. The authors intimate knowledge of people of the lowest order & of the city itself apparently comes from his journalistic years. Here the novel also presents Oliver Twist as Dickenss first child hero & Fagin the first grotesque figure.This section, Chapter III of the novel, is

39、 a detailed account of how he is punished for that impious & profane offence of asking for more & how he is to be sold. At three pound ten, to Mr. Gamfield, the notorious chimneysweeper. Though we can afford a smile now & then, we feel more the pitiable state of the orphan boy & the cruelty & hypocr

40、isy of the workhouse board.II. The Bronte Sisters1. 一般识记 Their lives & literary Career Charlotte Bronte (1816-1855), Emily Bronte (1818-1848), & their gifted sister Anne Bronte (1820-1849), came from a large family of Irish origin. Their father was a clergyman at Haworth, Yorkshire. When they were y

41、oung, the Bronte sisters were sent to a school for clergymens daughters. The oldest two died there due to the poor & unhealthy conditions. This experience inspired the later portrayal of Lowood School in the novel Jane Eyre (1847). After the death of the elder sisters, Charlotte & Emily were brought

42、 home to be educated by their father. For some time, they worked in a boarding school & were subsequently governesses in rich families.Charlotte & her two younger sisters had a great fondness for literature. In 1845 appeared a volume of poetry entitled Poems by Carrer, Ellis & Acton Bell (the pseudo

43、nyms of Charlotte, Emily & Anne), but received little attention. Then the three sisters turned to novel writing. Charlottes first novel The Professor was rejected by the publisher. But her second one, Jane Eyre, won immediate success when it appeared in 1847. In the same year, Emilys single & unique

44、 work Wuthering Heights & Annes Agnes Grey were also published. Soon they were followed by Annes The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848).After the death of Emily & Anne, Charlotte continued writing. Her next important novel Shirley, a work about the industrial troubles between the mill-owners & machine-b

45、reakers in Yorkshire in 1811-1812 came out in 1849. Another novel Villette appeared in 1853. This is her most autobiographical work, largely based on her experience in Brussels. In 1854, charlotte married her fathers curate. She died a few months later in pregnancy. The Professor, her first written

46、work, was published posthumously in 1857.2. 识记 Charlottes Literary CreationCharlotte Brontes works are all about the struggle of an individual towards self-realization, about some lonely & neglected young women with a fierce longing for love, & understanding & a full, happy life. All her heroines hi

47、ghest joy comes from some sacrifice of self or some human weakness overcome. Besides, she is a writer of realism combined with romanticism. On the one hand, she presents a vivid realistic picture of the English society by exposing the cruelty, hypocrisy & other evils of the upper classes & by showin

48、g the misery & suffering of the poor. Her works are famous for the depiction of the life of the middle-class workingwomen, particularly governesses. On the other hand, her writings are marked throughout by intensity of vision & of passion. By writing from an individual point of view, by creating cha

49、racters who are possessed of strong feelings, fiery passions & some extraordinary personalities, by using some elements of horror, mystery & prophesy, she is able to recreate life in a very romantic way. The vividness of her subjective narration, the intensely achieved characterization, especially t

50、hose heroines who are totally contrary to the public expectations & the most truthful presentation of the economical, moral, social life of the time -all this earns her works a never dying popularity.3. 应用 Selected Readings Excerpt One: from Chapter XXIII of Jane Eyre by charlotte Bronte The work is

51、 one of the most popular & important novels of the Victorian age. It is noted for its sharp criticism of the existing society, e.g. the religious hypocrisy of charity institutions, the social discrimination & the false social convention as concerning love & marriage. At the same time, it is an inten

52、se moral fable. Jane, like Mr. Rochester, has to undergo a series of physical & moral tests to grow up & achieve her final happiness. The success of the novel is also due to its introduction to the English novel the first governess heroine. Jane Eyre is a completely new woman image. She represents t

53、hose middle-class workingwomen who are struggling for recognition of their rights & equality as a human being. The vivid description of her intense feelings & her thought & inner conflicts brings her to the heart of the audience.Jane Eyres character:Jane Eyre, an orphan child with a fiery spirit & a

54、 longing to love & be loved, a poor, plain, little governess who dares to love her master, a man superior to her in many ways, & even is brave enough to declare to the man her love for him, cuts a completely new woman image. In this novel Charlotte characterizes Jane Eyre as a naive, kind-hearted, n

55、oble-minded woman who pursues a genuine kind of love. Jane Eyre represents those middle-class workingwomen who are struggling for recognition of their basic rights & equality as a human being. The vivid description of her intense feelings & her thought & inner conflicts brings her to the heart of th

56、e audience.The selected part is taken from Chapter XXIII, not long after Jane is back from her aunts funeral. Jane finds herself hopelessly in love with Mr. Rochester but she is aware that her love is out of the question. So, when forced to confront Mr. Rochester, she desperately & openly declared h

57、er equality with him & her love for him. The passion described here is intense & genuine. Excerpt Two: from Chapter XV of Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte1) Emilys subject matter As far as Emilys literary creation is concerned, she is, first of all, a poet Her 193 poems, mostly devoted to the matte

58、r of nature with its mysterious workings & its unaccountable influence upon peoples life, are works of strange sublimity & beauty. They are ample proof for the poetic genius of this young, reclusive woman. But, to the common readers, she is better known today as the author of that most fascinating n

59、ovel, Wuthering Heights.2) The theme of the novel The novel is a riddle which means different things to different people. From the social point of view, it is a story about a poor man abused, betrayed & distorted by his social betters because he is a poor nobody. As a love story, this is one of the

60、most moving: the passion between Heathcliff & Catherine proves the most intense, the most beautiful & at the same time the most horrible passion ever to be found possible in human beings.3) The structure of the novelThe novel has a unique structure: the story is told through independent narrators un