Tennessee Williams
专八2003-2015年人文知识真题及答案
2003年英语专八人文知识真题31. is not a nationally observed holiday of America.[A] Christmas [B] Easter Sunday [C] Thanksgiving Day [D] Independence Day32. The university of Dublin was not founded until .[A] the 19th century [B] the 18th century [C] the 17th century [D] the 16th century33. The introduced old-age pensions in New Zealand in 1898.[A] Labor Party [B] Democratic Party [C] Liberal Party [D] Conservative Party34. Irish culture experienced a golden age from to .[A] the eighth century, the eleventh century [B] the seventh century, the ninth century[C] the sixth century, the eighth century [D] the fifth century, the seventh century35. Which of the following writings is not the work by Charles Dickens?[A] A Tale of Two Cities [B] Hard Times[C] Oliver Twist [D] Sons and Lovers36. is a dramatist who holds the central position in American drama the modernistic period.[A] Sinclair Lewis [B] Eugene O'Neill [C] Arthur Miller [D] Tennessee Williams37. is often acclaimed literary spokesman of the Jazz Age.[A] Ernest Hemingway [B] F. Scott Fitzgerald [C] William Faulkner [D] Ezra Pound38. is a relationship in which a word of a certain class determines the form of others in terms of certain categories.[A] Concord [B] Immediate constituent[C] Syntagmatic relations [D] Government39. studies the sound systems in a certain language.[A] Phonetics [B] Phonology [C] Semantics [D] Pragmatics40. A linguistic situation in which two standard languages are used either by an individual or by a group of speakers is called .[A] situational dialect [B] slang [C] linguistic taboo [D] bilingualism2004年英语专八人文知识真题31. The following are products imported by Australia from China EXCEPT .[A] food [B] textiles [C] steel products [D] electronics32. Scots regard as the most important festival in a year.[A] Near Year's Day [B] Christmas Day [C] New Year's Eve [D] Easter33. The republican movement has been gathering momentum in Australia since became Prime Minister in 1992.[A] John Howard [B] Bob Hawke [C] Malcolm Fraser [D] Paul Keating34. was known for his famous speech "I have a dream".[A] John F. Kennedy [B] Martin Luther King, Jr[C] Abraham Lincoln [D] Thomas Jefferson35. Of all the 18th century novelists, ______ was the first to set out, both in theory and practice, to write specifically a "comic epic in prose", and the first to give the modern novel its structure and style.[A] Daniel Defoe [B] Samuel Johnson[C] Oliver Goldsmith [D] Henry Feilding36. Mark Twain, one of the greatest 19th century American writers, is well known for his .[A] international theme [B] waste-land imagery[C] local color [D] symbolism37. Hemingway's writing style, together with his theme and the hero, is greatly and permanently influenced by his experiences .[A] in his childhood [B] in the war [C] in America [D] in Africa38. English consonants can be classified into stops, fricatives, nasals, etc. in terms of .[A] manner of articulation [B] openness of mouth[C] place of articulation [D] voicing39. Which of the following words can correct two clauses in a coordinate sentence?[A] Through. [B] When. [C] But. [D] If.40. is the smallest unit of language in terms of relationship between expression and content.[A] Word [B] Morpheme [C] Allomorph [D] Root2005年英语专八人文知识真题31. is the capital of Canada.[A] Vancouver [B] Ottawa [C] Montreal [D] York32. U.S. presidents normally serve a (n) term.[A] two-year [B] four-year [C] six-year [D] eight-year33. Which of the following cities is NOT located in the Northeast, U.S.?[A] Huston. [B] Boston. [C]Baltimore. [D] Philadelphia.34. is the state church in England.[A] The Roman Catholic Church [B] The Baptist Church[C] The Protestant Church [D] The Church of England35. The novel Emma is written by .[A] Mary Shelley [B] Charlotte Brontë [C] Elizabeth C. Gaskell [D] Jane Austen36. Which of the following is NOT a romantic poet?[A] William Wordsworth. [B] George Elliot.[C] George C. Byron. [D] Percy B. Shelley.37. William Sidney Porter, known as O. Henry, is most famous for .[A] his poems [B] his plays [C] his short stories [D] his novels38. Syntax is the study of .[A] language functions [B] sentence structures [C] textual organization [D] word formation39. Which of the following is NOT a distinctive feature of human language?[A] Arbitrariness. [B] Productivity.[C] Cultural transmission. [D] Finiteness.40. The speech act theory was first put forward by .[A] John Searle [B] John Austin [C] Noam Chomsky [D] M.A.K. Halliday参考答案：BBADA BCBDB2006年英语专八人文知识真题31. The President during the American Civil War was .[A] Andrew Jackson [B] Abraham Lincoln [C] Thomas Jefferson [D] George Washington32. The capital of New Zealand is .[A] Christchurch [B] Auckland [C] Wellington [D] Hamilton33. Who were the natives of Australia before the arrival of the British settlers?[A] The Aborigines. [B] The Maori. [C] The Indians. [D] The Eskimos.34. The Prime Minister in Britain is head of .[A] the Shadow Cabinet [B] the Parliament [C] the Opposition [D] the Cabinet35. Which of the following writers is a poet of the 20th century?[A] T. S. Eliot. [B] D.H. Lawrence. [C] Theodore Dreiser. [D] James Joyce.36. The novel For Whom the Bell Tolls is written by .[A] Scott Fitzgerald [B] William Faulkner [C] Eugene O'Neill [D] Ernest Hemingway37. is defined as an expression of human emotion which is condensed into fourteen lines.[A] Free verse [B] Sonnet [C] Ode [D] Epigram38. What essentially distinguishes semantics and pragmatics is the notion of .[A] reference [B] meaning [C] antonymy [D] context39. The words "kid, child, offspring" are examples of .[A] dialectal synonyms [B] stylistic synonyms[C] emotive synonyms [D] collocational synonyms40. The distinction between parole and langue was made by .[A] Halliday [B] Chomsky [C] Bloomfield [D] Saussure参考答案BCADA DBDBD2007年英语专八人文知识真题31. The majority of the current population in the UK are decedents of all the following tribes respectively EXCEPT .[A] the Anglos [B] the Celts [C] the Jutes [D] the Saxons32. The Head of State of Canada is represented by .[A] the Monarch [B] the President [C] the Prime Minister [D] the Governor-general33. The Declaration of Independence was written by .[A] Thomas Jefferson [B] George Washington[C] Alexander Hamilton [D] James Madison34. The original inhabitants of Australia were .[A] the Red Indians [B] the Eskimos [C] the Aborigines [D] the Maoris35. Which of the following novels was written by Emily Brontë?[A] Oliver Twist. [B] Middlemarch. [C] Jane Eyre. [D] Wuthering Heights.36. William Butler Yeats was a(n) poet and playwright.[A] American [B] Canadian [C] Irish [D] Australian37. Death of a Salesman was written by .[A] Arthur Miller [B] Ernest Hemingway[C] Ralph Ellis on [D] James Baldwin38. refers to the study of the internal structure of words and the rules of word formation.[A] Phonology[B] Morphology[C] Semantics[D] Sociolinguistics39. The distinctive features of a speech variety may be all the following EXCEPT .[A] lexical[B] syntactic[C] phonological [D] psycholinguistic40. The word "tail" once referred to "the tail of a horse", but now it is used to mean "the tail of any animal." This is an example of .[A] widening of meaning [B] narrowing of meaning[C] meaning shift [D] loss of meaning参考答案CDACD CABDA2008年英语专八人文知识真题31. The largest city in Canada is .A. VancouverB. MontrealC. TorontoD. Ottawa32. According to the United States Constitution, the legislative power is invested in .A. the Federal GovernmentB. the Supreme CourtC. the CabinetD. the Conress33. Which of the following is the oldest sport in the United States?A. Baseball.B. Tennis.C. Basketball.D. American football.34. The head of the executive branch in New Zealand is .A. the PresidentB. the Governor-GeneralC. the British monarchD. the Prime Minister35. The Caterbury Tales, a collection of stories told by a group of pilgrims on their way to Canterbury, is an important poetic work by .A. Willian LanglandB. GeoffreyC. William ShakespeareD. Alfred Tennyson36. Who wrote The American?A. Herman Melville.B. Nathaniel Hawthorne.C. Henry James.D. Theodore Dreiser.37. All of the following are well-know female writers in 20th-century Britain EXCEPT .A. George EliotB. Iris Jean MurdochC. Doris LessingD. Muriel Spark38. Which of the following is NOT a design feature of human language?A. Arbitrariness.B. Displacement.C. Duality.D.Diachronicity.39. What type of sentence is "Mark likes fiction, but Tim is interested in poetry"?A simple sentence. B. A coordinate sentence. C. A complex sentence. D. None of the above.40. The phenomenon that words having different meanings have the same form is called .A. hyponymyB. synonymyC. PolysemyD.homonymy参考答案BCADBBDACD2009年英语专八人文知识真题31. The Head of State of New Zealand is .[A] the governor-general [B] the Prime Minister[C] the high commissioner [D] the monarch of the United Kingdom.32. The capital of Scotland is .[A] Glasgow [B] Edinburgh [C] Manchester [D] London33. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence and later became the U.S. President?[A] Thomas Jefferson. [B] George Washington. [C] Thomas Paine. [D] John Adams.34. Which of the following cities is located on the eastern coast of Australia?[A] Perth. [B] Adelaide. [C] Sydney. [D] Melbourne.35. Ode to the West Wind was written by .[A] William Blake [B] William Wordsworth[C] Samuel Taylor Coleridge [D] Percy B. Shelley36. Who among the following is a poet of free verse?[A] Ralph Waldo Emerson. [B] Walt Whitman.[C] Herman Melville. [D] Theodore Dreiser.37. The novel Sons and Lovers was written by .[A] Thomas Hardy [B] John Galsworthy [C] D.H. Lawrence [D] James Joyce38. The study of the mental processes of language comprehension and production is .[A] corpus linguistics [B] sociolinguistics[C] theoretical linguistics [D] psycholinguistics39. A special language variety that mixes languages and is used by speakers of different languages for purposes of trading is called .[A] dialect [B] idiolect [C] pidgin [D] register40. When a speaker expresses his intention of speaking, such as asking someone to open the window, he is performing .[A] an illocutionary act [B] a perlocutionary act [C] a locutionary act [D] none of the above答案31、D the monarch of the United Kingdom 32、B Edinburgh. 33、AThomas Jefferson. 34、C Sydney 35、D Percy B. Shelley36、B Walt Whitman. 37、C D.H. Lawrence. 38、D psycholinguistics.39、C pidgin. 40、A an illocutionary act.2010年英语专八人文知识真题31. Which of the following is INCORRECT?A. the British Constitution includes the Magna Carta of 1215B. the British Constitution includes Parliamentary actsC. the British Constitution includes decisions made by courts of law答案D：The British Constitution includes one single written constitution32. The first city ever founded in Canada isA. QuebecB. VancouverC. TorontoD. Montreal答案A：Quebec33. When did the Australian Federation officially come into being?A. B. 1788C. 1900D. 1901答案D：190134. The Emancipation Proclamation to end the plantation slavery in the south of US was issued byA. Abraham LincolnB. Thomas PaineC. George WashingtonD. Thomas Jefferson答案A：Abraham Lincoln35.Who was best known for the technique of dramatic monologue in his poems?A. Will BlakeB. W.B.YeatsC. Robert BrowningD. William Wordsworth答案C：Robert Browning36. The Financier was written byA. Mark TwainB. Henry JamesC.答案D：Theodore Dreiser37. In literature a story in verse or prose with a double meaning is defined asA. allegoryB. sonnetC. blank verseD. rhyme答案A：Allegory38.____ refers to the learning and development of a languageA. language acquisitionB. language comprehensionC. language productionD. language introduction答案A：language acquisition39. The word “motel”comes from “motor –hotel”. This is an example of “…”in morphology.A. backformationB. conversionC. blendingD. acronym答案C：blendingnguage is tool of communication, the symbol “highway closed”servesA. B.C. a performative function D. a persuasive function答案B：informative function2011年英语专八人文知识真题31. The northernmost part of Great Britain is _______.A. Northern IrelandB. WalesC. EnglandD. ScotlandTIP：选D。
Tennessee Williams 田纳西·威廉姆斯
Blanche's beauty fades with age so too do these vestiges of that civilization gone with the wind. Blanche attempts to stay back in the past but it is impossible, impossible and Stella only survives by mixing her Dubois blood with the common stock of the Kowalski's; the old South can only live on in a diluted, bastardized form.
Cruelty
• The only unforgivable crime, according to Blanche, is deliberate cruelty. This sin is Stanley's specialty. His final assault against Blanche is a merciless attack against an already-beaten foe. Blanche, on the other hand, is dishonest but she never lies out of malice. Her cruelty is unintentional; often, she lies in a vain or misguided effort to please. Throughout the play, we see the full range of cruelty, from Blanche's wellwell-intentioned deceits to Stella self-deceiving selftreachery to Stanley's deliberate and unchecked malice. In Williams' plays, there are many ways to hurt someone. And some are worse than others.
谈田纳西·威廉斯的同性恋及暴力情结
谈田纳西·威廉斯的同性恋及暴力情结作者：刘少萍， 方军， LIU Shao-ping， FANG Jun作者单位：嘉兴学院外国语学院,浙江,嘉兴,314001刊名：嘉兴学院学报英文刊名：JOURNAL OF JIAXING UNIVERSITY年，卷(期)：2009,21(1)1.梅绍武西园拾锦--英美作家论 19992.Ganz,Arthur A Desperate Morality 19873.Williams,Tennessee Suddenly Last Summer.In Tennessee Williams:Plays 1957-1980 20004.Fritscher John Some Attitudes and A Posture:Religious Metaphor and Ritual in Tennessee Williams' Query of the American God 1970(13)5.Adler,Thomas T The Search for God in the Plays of Tennessee Williams 19776.Haley,Darryl Erwin the Preface of "Certain Moral Values":A Rhetoric of Outcasts in the Plays of Tennessee Williams 20057.任生名西方现代悲剧论稿 19988.Williams,Tennessee The Glass Menagerie 19709.Williams,Tennessee A Streetcar Named Desire,in Tennessee Williams:Plays 1937-1955 200010.Williams,Tennessee Sweet Bird of Youth.In Tennessee Williams:Plays 1957-1980 200011.Nelson,Benjamin Tennessee Williams:His Life and Work 196112.白先勇白先勇经典作品 200413.Williams,Tennessee Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in Tennessee Williams:Plays 1937-1955 200014.Williams,Tennessee The Night of the Iguana 200015.Fritscher,John Love and Death in Tennessee Williams 196716.Williams,Tennessee The Angel of the Odd 1962(09)17.Williams,Tennessee Period of Adjustment 19601.贾洪波.刘东杰田纳西·威廉斯的迷茫--《热铅皮屋顶上的猫》创作动机与背景评析[期刊论文]-北方论丛2003(4)2.李莉.LI Li罗丝:田纳西·威廉斯永远的缪斯——评罗丝的形象嬗变[期刊论文]-盐城师范学院学报（人文社会科学版）2008,28(3)3.刘琛绝望还是信心?--重析田纳西·威廉斯戏剧的主题[期刊论文]-学习与探索2005(4)4.韩曦.HAN Xi一群自我放逐的另类与逃亡者--田纳西·威廉斯戏剧中的男性群像[期刊论文]-南京师大学报（社会科学版）2006(3)5.章渡白先勇与田纳西·威廉斯[期刊论文]-世界华文文学论坛2004(2)6.崔慧娴田纳西·威廉斯：一个还是两个[学位论文]20087.韩曦.Han-Xi探究扭曲的人性隐秘与异化情感--田纳西·威廉斯剧作的主题意旨及其成因[期刊论文]-首都师范大学学报（社会科学版）2005(4)8.李尚宏.LI Shang-hong田纳西·威廉斯的"二重身"——重读《夏与烟》[期刊论文]-安徽师范大学学报（人文。
从模糊语言学角度看_欲望号街车_中的人物对话
2008年7月内蒙古民族大学学报(社会科学版)J uly.2008第34卷 第4期 Journal of Inner Mongolia University for Nationalities(S ocial Sciences) Vol.34No.4从模糊语言学角度看《欲望号街车》中的人物对话Ξ邢晓宇,段满福(内蒙古大学外国语学院,内蒙古呼和浩特010021) 〔摘 要〕戏剧中人物对话的含义往往超越话语本身的意义,本文运用模糊语言学中的动态语用模糊理论,从话语层面、语篇层面以及语用模糊与语境的互动关系角度,对《欲望号街车》中的一些人物对话进行分析,以期揭示戏剧文本的深层含义以及语用模糊对于戏剧对话文本分析的潜力。
〔关键词〕模糊语言学;语用模糊;语境〔中图分类号〕H31412 〔文献标识码〕A 〔文章编号〕1671-0215(2008)04-0039-04 一、引言模糊语言学(Fuzzy Linguistics)是介于自然科学和社会科学之间的新兴的边缘学科。
模糊性是语言的根本属性,而语言的精确性是相对的。
1965年美国加利福尼亚大学电机工程系教授、控制论专家札德(L. A.Zadeh)在《信息和控制》杂志发表的《模糊集》,最早提出了模糊理论。
这一理论被语言学家应用于对语言的研究,就出现了模糊语言学。
模糊语言学以模糊集合理论为基础,对语言的模糊性进行定量和定性研究。
国内最早系统研究模糊语言学始于上世纪70年代末。
伍铁平(1979;1980)发表的《模糊语言学初探》和《模糊学再探》具有开创性意义。
伍教授于1999年出版了《模糊语言学》一书,标志着国内对模糊语言学的研究进入了较为系统的阶段,也为不少学者所青睐。
近几年,模糊语言学的研究可谓如火如荼,如吴世雄、陈维振(2001)对模糊语言学在中国的发展历程进行了分析,并有针对性地对该学科今后的新方向进行了展望;朱小美、张明(2005)对20世纪后期国外有关模糊语言学的主要研究作了简要回顾,指出模糊语言学应用于自然语言、形式语言、认知语言以及语用方面是其主要特点;胡春生、马利红(2005)从语义、语音、语法和语用几方面对模糊语言学的基本理论框架的建构进行了阐释。
詹娜杰姆逊
詹娜杰姆逊詹娜杰姆逊是一位著名的美国女演员和喜剧表演者。
她以其幽默、活力和惊人的表演技巧而著名，被誉为现代喜剧界的女王。
本文将从詹娜的个人生平、职业成就和影响力等方面对她进行介绍。
詹娜·杰姆逊于1970年出生在美国的宾夕法尼亚州。
她在一个有着四个孩子的家庭中长大，父母都是普通的蓝领工人。
从小起，詹娜就展现出对表演的强烈兴趣，她经常模仿电视节目中的角色，给家人和朋友带来欢乐。
这个小小的爱好最终演变成了她的一生事业的起点。
在进入演艺圈之前，詹娜杰姆逊在匹兹堡大学攻读了戏剧专业。
在大学期间，她积极参与校园剧团的演出，并在各种大小舞台上展示自己的才能。
毕业后，她决定搬到洛杉矶追逐她的梦想。
初到洛杉矶时，詹娜并没有一帆风顺，她经历了许多拒绝和失败。
然而，她并没有放弃，而是坚持努力，并逐渐在喜剧俱乐部中获得了认可。
1997年，詹娜杰姆逊开始在著名的电视节目《周六夜现场》中亮相。
她的表演风格独特，幽默搞笑，迅速赢得了观众们的喜爱。
她创造了很多经典角色，如粗鲁的外星人人塔里、热辣的舞女翠茜等。
她的表演才华使她迅速崭露头角，并成为周六夜现场的当红明星。
逐渐，她的名字成为了家喻户晓的代名词，在喜剧界获得了巨大的成功。
除了在电视节目中的成功外，詹娜杰姆逊还出演了多部电影，并且在其中大放异彩。
1999年，她主演的电影《罪恶之城》赢得了影评人和观众们的赞誉。
此后，她出演了多部喜剧电影，如《火字星》和《老娘舅大闹华尔街》。
她的表演风格逐渐被人们所认可，并奠定了她在电影界的地位。
詹娜杰姆逊的成功并不仅仅是她在喜剧领域的成就，她也是一位非常积极的社会活动家。
她长期以来都积极支持幸福的家庭基金会，该基金会为家庭提供社会支持和资源。
此外，她还参与了多项慈善活动，包括为儿童医院筹集资金，以及为残疾人士争取平等权益等。
詹娜以她的名气和影响力来推动各种社会问题的解决，她用她的力量来帮助那些需要帮助的人们，让她成为了一个充满人道主义精神的偶像。
田纳西威廉斯
姐姐罗丝的病是田纳西最大的梦魇，他一直 生活在恐惧中，害怕自己和姐姐一样患上精神分 裂症，害怕自己也被迫做脑叶切除手术；他的压 抑和他的欲望全然体现在他的作品中，曾经的过 分压抑也是造成他后来放浪生活的主因。
自由斗争
在五十年代初期，《时代》周刊的一位保 守派文艺评论家因不满威廉斯对“背德者”深带 同情的透彻刻划，指责他的戏剧为“充满恶臭的 沼泽”，并挑明了威廉斯的同性恋身份。威廉斯 的同性恋身份虽然在演艺圈内众所周知，但他在 公开场合对此既不承认，也不否认。
电影《欲望号街车》 导演艾利亚·卡赞指出： “生命的一切是他的戏 剧，而他戏剧里的一切 就是他的生命。”
巨星陨落
如今，当你看到美国百老汇不断上演的一幕 幕威廉姆斯炙手可热的经典剧作时，当你注 意到热闹非凡的剧幕中出现威廉姆斯这个名 字时，有如他创作的最后一部作品《有阴有 晴》的主人公一样，在那个一九八三年的平 凡日子里，在美国的一家旅馆中，人们发现 了一个被药瓶盖塞住窒息僵毙的人，他用他 的才华为自己的人生编写了最后一幕并完结 了一生，这就是人生如戏，让我们永远铭记 的田纳西.威廉姆斯。
七十年代初期，同性恋权益运动在美国蓬勃 兴起，一些朋友要求威廉斯站出来，为自己的族 群仗言。威廉斯欣然响应，成为美国最大的同性 恋组织“人权运动”的创始人之一。 同性恋权益运动的发展也使威廉斯在描写同性恋 时，开始显示出积极的基调。
英文歌We-are-the-world-歌曲
演唱人员
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Tennessee_williams
The Glass Menagerie
Characters in his plays are often seen as representations of his family members. The “mad heroine” theme that appeared in many of his plays seemed clearly influenced by the life of Williams‟ sister Rose, who spent most of her life in mental hospitals. Laura Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie was understood to be modeled on Rose. Amanda Wingfield was generally seen to represent Williams‟ mother. Tom Wingfield was understood to represent Williams himself.
A Streetcar Named Desire
The play deals with a culture clash between two Blanche DuBois, a fading relic of the Old South, and Stanley Kowalski, a rising member of the industrial, urban working class.
Illusion versus reality
A recurring theme that can be found in A Streetcar Named Desire is the reflection of the decayed agrarian South and a thriving, industrialized new America. Blanche is penniless and homeless; Stanley, the descendant of Polish immigrants and proud to be working class, is powerful and confident. There is constant conflict between reality and fantasy, actual and ideal. Blanche "I don't want realism, I want magic." a paper lampshade with which she covers the harsh white light bulb in the living room; her deceptive recounting of her last years in Belle Reve; the misleading letters she presumes to write to Shep Huntleigh; alcohol; costumes to create a faç ade to hide behind, concealing her secrets and attempting to reach her former glory.
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Illusion versus reality
Cruelty
Loneliness Desire
(1) Illusion versus Fantasy
•Blanche dwells in illusion; fantasy is her primary means of self-defense, both against outside threats and against her own demons. •Fantasy has a liberating magic that protects her from the tragedies she has had to endure.
Born in Columbus, Mississippi , on March 26, 1911 – Died in New York, on February 25, 1983(1911-1983)
2. Family
An archetype of the ‘Southern belle’(南方淑女）, whose social aspirations tilted toward snobbery （ 势利）and whose behavior could be Mother neurotic（神经质的） and hysterical.
Two important men in his life
4.Personal Life
Kip Kiernan(1918-1944)
(1) A young Canadian dancer (2) Meeting in the summer of 1940 (3) Left him and got marriage with a woman (4) Died at 26 (5) Tennessee Williams was distraught after his marriage and death Frank Phillip Merlo(1922-1963) (1) An occasional actor of Sicilian heritage(西西里血统） who had served in the U.S. Navy in World War II (2) Meeting in the fall of 1948 (3) Their romantic relationship lasted 14 years (4) Ended with infidelities and drug abuse on both sides (5) Merlo was diagnosed with lung cancer (6)Williams returned to take care of him until his death
Representative works
Ⅲ. A Streetcar Named Desire
• Blanche Dubois
•
Stanley Kowalski
1.Characters
Blanche Dubois
Neurotic central character who lives in a fantasy world of Old South chivalry but cannot control carnal desires
Background Information
5.Death
(1) in the years following Merlo's death Williams was plunged into a period of nearly catatonic depression（紧张性忧郁症）. (2) increasing drug use resulting in several hospitalizations and commitments to mental health facilities. (3) On February 25, 1983, Williams was found dead in his suite at the Elysee Hotel in New York at age 71. (4) he choked to death on the cap from a bottle of eyedrops . (5) further indicating that his use of drugs and alcohol may have contributed to his death by suppressing his gag reflex(咽反射).
Background Information
4.Personal Life After some early attempts at heterosexual relationships, by the late 1930s Williams had accepted his homosexuality.
Rejection of rigid genre distinctions, emphasizing parody, irony and playfulness
II. Wting Styles
2. T H E M E S 3. S T Y L E S (1)Many of his plays are autobiographical, including homosexuality, mental instability and alcoholism. (2) He wrote about sensitive, poetic misfits who escape from reality into a world of illusion/art. (3) He propounded the feminizing of American culture
Traveling shoe salesman A heavy drinker A man prone to use his fists
Father
Sister Rose (1909–1996)
Shy, sensitive and fragile , suffer from mental illness after 20 yrs old, Rose inspired a host of characters in his fiction.
II. Wting Styles
1.The American post-modernism(1945-2000) Follows most of the same ideas as modernism with some exceptions
Favors fragmentation and discontinuity
A Streetcar Named Desire(Pulitzer Prize) The Glass Menagerie 1939 American Blues 1947 1955 1945 Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (another Pulitzer Prize)
1911
1940 Battle of Angels 1983
2.Setting
A shabby apartment building in the working-class district of New Orleans in the 1940’s,shortly after the Second World War.
3.Plot
Plot
Blanche DuBois married a man she adored, and pursued a career as an English teacher. But her life fell apart when she discovered that her husband was having a homosexual affair. Disgraced, he killed himself. Blanche sought comfort in the arms of other men, many men. After she had relations with one of her students, authorities learned of the encounter and fired her. Meanwhile, relatives died and she could not keep up the family home. Eventually, Blanche arrives in New Orleans to stay with her sister and her crude, outspoken husband. Blanche dwells in illusion, but Stanley rapes Blanche. This brutal act marks the completion of her mental deterioration, pushing her over the edge from sanity to madness.
Tennessee Williams
by Susan Lucy
CONTENTS
Background Information
Writing Styles
A Streetcar Named Desire Cat on a Hot Tin mation
1.Brief Introduction
Thomas Lanier Williams III, Around 1939, he adopted "Tennessee Williams" as his professional name.
Three greatest American playwrights in the 20 century: Arthur Miller, Eugene O’Neill, Tennessee Williams.