英国文学简史——18世纪文学共80页文档
英国文学简史
英国文学简史笔记一．早中世纪文学：Early and Medieval English Literature（约5世纪-1485) The ancestor: Celts(凯尔特人）.Life style: Primitive life(原始生活）.Language: Celtic（凯尔特语）(Britons 大不列颠语).最早的英国史：1. Roman Conquest. (55BC--410AD)---Julius Caesar.2. Anglo-Saxon Conquest. (450--1066)---Anglos, Saxons, Jutes(朱特人).3. Norman Conquest. (1066--1350).中期英国史：1.Romance(罗曼史): love, chivalry(骑士精神), religion;2.3 major themes: (1).Matter of France;(2).Matter of Greece and Rome;(3).Matter of Britain.nguage: 3 language.文学作品：1.Geoffrey Chaucer (杰弗里。
乔叟):Chaucer's works:(1) . The Canterbury Tales( 坎特伯雷故事集);(2). The Wife of Bath (巴斯夫人）；(3). Romance of the Rose (玫瑰传奇);(4).The House of the Fame (声誉殿堂);(5).The Parliament of Fowls (百鸟会议);(6).Troilus and Cressie (特洛伊斯和克莱西德）.Chaucer's contribution to the English language:(1). The " father of English poetry";(2). He introducer from France and Italy the rhymed (押韵的)stanzas of various types, especially the rhymed couplet of 5 accents in iambic meter ( heroic couplet) (抑扬格、五音步诗), instead of the Old English alliterative( 头韵的) verse;(3). For the first time in English literature, he presented to us a comprehensive realistic picture( 现实主义）of the English society of life in his masterpiece " The Canterbury Tales( 坎特伯雷故事集)";(4). He was the first English poet who wrote in English, thus establishing English as the literature language;(5), He did much in making the London dialect(方言) the foundation for modern English language.Chaucer's social significance:(1). Influenced by the early Italian Renaissance, Chaucer affirmed man's right to pursue earthly happiness and opposed asceticism, praised man's energy, intellect, and love of life;(2). Meanwhile, he also exposed and satirized the social evils, esp.,the religious abuses.2.The Song of Beowulf (贝奥武甫，a hero）3.The English Ballads (大众民谣): a story told in song.; in various Englishand Scottish dialects.---- Robin Hood (罗宾汉), who is strong, brave, clever, tender-hearted and affectionate(深情的).二、文艺复兴时期文学: The English Renaissance（15世纪后期-17世纪初）文艺复兴时期形成的思想体系被称为人文主义.几个过渡时期：1. The Hundred Year's War: 1337--1453;2. The wars of the Rose(玫瑰战争/蔷薇战争): 源于两个皇族所选的家微。
英国文学简史分类
英国文学简史分类一、古英国文学古英国文学是指公元5世纪至公元11世纪之间的英国文学作品。
这一时期的文学作品主要以英国盎格鲁人和撒克逊人的口头传承方式流传下来。
最早的古英国文学作品是口头传承的史诗，如《贝奥武夫》和《西德里克史诗》。
这些作品描绘了英雄壮举和神话传说，展现了古英国人的价值观和文化背景。
二、中世纪文学中世纪文学是指公元11世纪至15世纪之间的英国文学作品。
这一时期的文学作品受到基督教和法国文学的影响，主题涉及爱情、骑士精神和宗教信仰等。
最著名的中世纪文学作品是《亚瑟王传奇》，它描绘了亚瑟王和圆桌骑士的故事，体现了骑士精神和中世纪的价值观。
此外，还有一些宗教戏剧，如《诗篇》和《谢弗尔诗篇》等，用于教育和传播基督教信仰。
三、文艺复兴文学文艺复兴文学是指16世纪至17世纪初期的英国文学作品。
这一时期的文学作品受到古希腊罗马文化的影响，主题多样化，包括诗歌、戏剧、散文等。
著名的文艺复兴文学作品包括莎士比亚的戏剧作品，如《哈姆雷特》和《罗密欧与朱丽叶》，以及约翰·米尔顿的史诗《失乐园》等。
这些作品在文学史上具有重要地位，对后世的文学创作产生了深远影响。
四、启蒙时代文学启蒙时代文学是指18世纪的英国文学作品。
这一时期的文学作品反映了对理性、科学和人权的追求。
著名的启蒙时代作家包括约翰·洛克、伊莱扎·海伍德和亚当·斯密等。
他们的作品涉及政治、哲学和经济等领域，对当时社会产生了重要影响。
其中，洛克的《人类理解论》被认为是启蒙运动的经典之作。
五、浪漫主义文学浪漫主义文学是指19世纪初期的英国文学作品。
这一时期的文学作品强调个人情感、自然景观和想象力。
著名的浪漫主义作家包括威廉·华兹华斯、塞缪尔·泰勒·柯勒律治和乔治·戈登·拜伦等。
他们的作品描绘了自然的壮丽和人类的内心世界，对后世文学产生了深远影响。
其中，华兹华斯的《抒情诗集》被誉为浪漫主义诗歌的代表作品。
英国文学——18世纪概述
启蒙时期文学（17世纪后期—18世纪中期）1688年的“光荣革命”推翻复辟王朝，确定了君主立宪制，建立起资产阶级和新贵族领导的政权，英国从此进入一个相对安定的发展时期。
18世纪初，新古典主义成为时尚。
新古典主义推崇理性，强调明晰、对称、节制、优雅，追求艺术形式的完美与和谐。
亚历山大·蒲柏（Alexander Pope, 1688-1744）是新古典主义诗歌的代表，他模仿罗马诗人，诗风精巧隽俏，内容以说教与讽刺为主，形式多用英雄双韵体，但缺乏深厚感情。
18世纪英国散文出现繁荣，散文风格基本建立在新古典主义美学原则之上。
理查德·斯梯尔（Richard Steele, 1672-1729）与约瑟夫·艾迪生（Joseph Addison, 1672-1719）创办《闲谈者》（Tatler）与《观察者》（Spectator）刊物，发表了许多以当时社会风俗、日常生活、文学趣味等为题材的文章，他们清新秀雅、轻捷流畅的文体成为后人模仿的典范。
乔纳森·斯威夫特（Jonathan Swift, 1667-1745）是英国文学史上最伟大的讽刺散文作家，他的文风纯朴平易而有力。
斯威夫特的杰作《格列佛游记》（Gulliver's Travels）是一部极具魅力的儿童故事，同时包含着深刻的思想内容。
作者通过对小人国、大人国、飞岛国、慧马国等虚构国度的描写，以理性为尺度，极其尖锐地讽刺和抨击了英国社会各领域的黑暗和罪恶。
塞缪尔·约翰逊（Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784）是18世纪英国人文主义文学批评的巨擘，《莎士比亚戏剧集序言》（The Preface to Shakespeare）和《诗人传》（Livesof the Poets）是他对文学批评作出的突出贡献。
他从常识出发，在某些方面突破了新古典主义的框框，不乏真知灼见。
约翰逊的散文风格自成一家，集拉丁散文的典雅、气势与英语散文的雄健、朴素于一体。
英国文学简史
英国文学简史古英语时期(Old English Period)时间：450-1600背景：盎格鲁撒克逊人（Anglo-Saxon）入侵英国作品种类：史诗(epic)代表作家：不详代表作品：贝奥武夫（Beowulf）中世纪英语时期(Middle English Period)时间：1066-1500背景：诺曼人(Normans)征服英国作品种类：传奇(Romans)代表作家:不详代表作品：高文爵士和绿骑士（Sir Gawain and the Green Knight）文艺复兴时期(The Renaissance)时间：1500-1660背景：新航路开辟，伊丽莎白一世登基，自然科学技术的发展。
作品种类：戏剧（drama），诗歌（poetry）代表作家：莎士比亚（William Shakespeare）代表作品：哈姆雷特（Hamlet）17世纪时期(The 17th Century)时间：1603-1688背景：资产阶级革命与复辟时期作品种类：散文（essay），史诗（epic），寓言故事（allegory），诗歌（poetry）代表作家：弥尔顿（John Milton）代表作品：失乐园(paradise lost)新古典主义时期(The Neoclassical Period)时间：1660-1785背景：启蒙运动作品种类：散文（essay），小说（novel），诗歌（poetry）代表作家：亚历山大.蒲泊(Alexander Pope)代表作品：An Essay on Man浪漫主义时期(The Romantic Period)时间：1798-1832背景：法国大革命，工业革命作品种类：诗歌（poetry）代表作家：雪莱(Percy Bysshe Shelley)代表作品：西风颂（Ode to the West Wind）维多利亚时期(The Victorian Period)时间：1832-1900背景：维多利亚女王统治时期，资本主义经济发展，自然科学的发展作品种类：小说（novel）代表作家：狄更斯（Charles Dickens）代表作品：远大前程（Great Expectations）现代主义时期(The Modern Period)时间：1914-1965背景：第二次世界大战，人们对西方文明的危机感作品种类：诗歌（poetry），小说（poetry）代表作家：艾略特（T.S Eliot）代表作品：荒原（The Waste Land）The Middle English PeriodGeoffrey ChaucerSpecial featuresThe first most significant poet in English literary history to write in Middle English.Help perfect English language as as a literary medium.A first rate story-teller. Reading him can be an immensely enlightening and educational experience.Points of viewEnormous sense of humor.Loyalty to reality. A master of realism.Infinite sense of humanity.Major WorksCanterbury TalesA collection of 20-odd stories.Similar with Boccacio’s Decameron.Including 20 complete stories and 4 fragments---already an amazing number.People come from virtually all walks of life. A picture of 14-century English life.Place women on an equal footing with men.(“The Wife of Bath’s Tale” What is that women desire most?)Prominence: The holy orders and the middle classThomas MoreSpecial featuresThe wisest and noblest person that lived then.Privy councilor to the king.Beheaded by the king because of he did not go along with the king’s divorce.Points of viewMore was first and foremost a humanist at heart.Major WorksUtopiaLook forward to the future of man.Offer an ideal which has inspired generations of serious social thinkers. An imaginary country where democracy replaces tyranny, commonwealth replaces private property.Its strict adherence to conformity, simplicity and monotony is totally incompatible with human nature, and curbs individual rights and freedom.Its slavery system goes against individual dignity and self-worth.The utopian society is clearly male-dominated.RenaissanceSpenserSpecial featuresOne of the most important English poets.Milton calls him his “poetic father”Points of viewDetermined to revive Chaucer’s poetic legacy and reinvent English poetry.Conformed to morality and Christian dogmas.Major WorksThe Faerie QueenA grand epic poem“The only long poem that a lover of poetry can sincerely wish longer”Picturesque, rhyme, theme, plot.William ShakespeareSpecial featuresMost popular and most widely respected writer in all English literature. Careful rumination over human condition andsupreme understanding of human nature.His poets drew great attention for their grace in form, depth in thought, and vivacity in tone.His dramatic works:Early period:histories and comediesMiddle period:tragicLate period:Romances&serenityPoints of viewHis universe is a veritable microcosm of the human world, where all types of people exist.He has the common life of the common run of mankind in mind in his literary creations.His cosmos is highly moral with a sense of certitude and justice.He sees reflection of life as legitimate job of a playwright.Major WorksBlack comedyIndividual worthA faithful record of the mood and tenor of the timesFrancis BaconSpecial featuresHis inductive method of reasoning and learning; he valued experience and observation.His prose is fresh, vigorous, powerful, and aphoristic so that he was able to dominate English prose for decades.Bacon’s essays was the first of its kind to appear in English literature. Major WorksHuman nature, political concerns and socio-economic ideas.John MiltonSpecial featuresThe third greatest English poet after Chaucer and Shakespeare.The greatest to come out of the 17th century.His experience with the telescope helped him visualize haven, earth and hell.Major WorksParadise Lost made its author the greatest modern epic poet in English literary history.About biblical story of creation.Samson Agonistes was patterned on Greek tragedies.The character of Samson offers an obvious outlet of self-expression for the poet who resembled the biblical hero in more than one way. Lycidas has certainly proved to be a frame of reference for the writing of the genre of pastoral elegies.John BunyanSpecial features“No one can please God more than I do.”He was known as “Bishop Bunyan”.His prose has a striking modern ring. It has paved the way for the rise of the modern English novel.He became a great force in the history of English prose without ever desiring it.Major WorksThe Pilgrim’s Progress is an allegory.A medieval miracle play with vivid and lively personifications of virtues and vices and all the human qualities in between.The Classic AgeThomas GraySpecial featuresA poet of transition form the neoclassic to the Romantic period.A forerunner of the Romantic movement both in subjects and simple language.Gray is famous for his letter writing.Oliver GoldsmithSpecial featuresGoldsmith is prone to a kind of idealizing and sentimentality that is always easy for modern people to comprehend.Points of viewGoldsmith’s poem was written in the fashionable heroic couplet of the time.The author’s sentiments of grief and nostalgia are genuine and convincing.Major WorksShe stoops to conquerAs a satire on the artificial and pretentious behavior of the day, the play exalts the quality of t ruth and honest feeling.The salutary influence the play exercised on the 18th century is considerable.Goldsmith’s dialogues are vivacious and immensely humorous, and the whole performance impressed the audience with its vitality and joyful mood.The Vicar of WakefieldHis wit, humor, his craft of planning ballads and tales within tales, and his philosophical depth, which all make for the fascination it holds for its readers, modern as well as ancient.William BlakeSpecial featuresAn important landmark in between two literary periods, pointing directly to that of Romanticism.His poets: his social events and his mysticism.He is noted or his originality both in theme and form.Points of view“Without contrast and contraries, there is no progression.”Blake was basically a visionary. His fight was a “mental” fight, one that he hoped would restore England to spiritual and social health.Major WorksBy far his most powerful and the most permanent are Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience.Jonathan SwiftSpecial featuresThe literary king of his day. He wrote a lot of powerful satirical essays and books.His lucid and terse prose has contributed not a little toward the development of the best English prose tradition.Points of viewHis satires on human institutions and social ills were all meant tohelp improve the lot of man.Major WorksGulliver’s TravelsGulliver is a man observant to all the 18th century values, while Swift was, on the other hand, a man intensely critical of his time.The author is different from the narrator, and the author would like people to think twice about what Gulliver disapprove of. Gulliver is part of the author’s satire.Daniel DefoeSpecial featuresA firm supporter of the Glorious Revolution.Points of viewHis views on the novel focus on its realism and aesthetic.“Any story failing to deal with the human experience is pure fiction and a lie.”His protagonists are common people with real common names and speak as “I”, telling their own stories in the first-person narrative.As a moralist, he wrote with the conviction that his works wouldbe educational and help people behave.Major WorksRobinson CrusoeA middle class book, offering justifications for the class’forthcoming rise to pre-dominance in national life.A typical show of Puritan individualism.(self-reliance andhard-working)The creation of the world and and self-identity.An ordinary humankind’s self-made success.。
18世纪英国文学
二《汤姆·琼斯》 汤姆·琼斯》
1.
内容简介
以主人公的活动为线索,用第三人称叙述的传纪体小说。中心 故事是写主人公汤姆·琼斯的坎坷命运和曲折遭遇,他自幼遭到 遗弃与虐待,在成长过程中又不断受到小人布立非的暗算,最后 又遭恩主兼养父奥尔华绥误解,被逐出家门,同时又与恋人索菲 亚离散。这一对恋人分别后历尽各种磨难与诱惑,最后苦尽甘来, 汤姆的身世之谜大白（与布立非是同母异父兄弟，也是奥尔华 绥的外甥）,重获奥尔华绥恩宠，并与索菲亚结成眷属。
“编者相信，这部自述是事实的忠实的记录， 其中绝无虚构之处” 其中绝无虚构之处” —《鲁滨逊漂流记》第一卷 序言 鲁滨逊漂流记》 — “ 这个故事，虽然是寓言性，同时又是历 史的。它是一种绝无仅有的生活苦难和一 种无与伦比的生存方式的精妙再现……” 种无与伦比的生存方式的精妙再现……” —《鲁滨逊漂流记》第三卷 序 鲁滨逊漂流记》 言
⑤
典型性
现实主义创作方法要求除了细节真实外, 现实主义创作方法要求除了细节真实外,还要 真实地再现典型环境中的典型人物,在小说《 真实地再现典型环境中的典型人物,在小说《汤 姆·琼斯》中,菲尔丁运用对比手法成功塑造了同 琼斯》 一类型而不同特点的一系列典型人物
身份的焦虑
英国学者威廉· 英国学者威廉·布洛姆在总结有关身份问题的最近 研究成果时简要概括到: 研究成果时简要概括到:“身份确认对任何个人来 说,都是一个内在的、无意识的行为要求，个人努 力设法确认身份以获得心理安全感, 力设法确认身份以获得心理安全感,也努力设法维 持、保护和巩固身份以维护和加强这种心理安全 感,后者对于个性稳定与心灵健康来说,有至关重要 后者对于个性稳定与心灵健康来说, 的作用。从婴儿期到成年以至老年, 的作用。从婴儿期到成年以至老年,身份确认这一 行为要求一直发挥着作用“ 行为要求一直发挥着作用“。而一个人的身份包 括诸多层面,根据荷兰学者吉尔特· 括诸多层面,根据荷兰学者吉尔特·霍夫斯塔德有关 文化身份的论述, 文化身份的论述,一个人始终同时属于以下不同层 面或身份标志:如国家层面、地域/种族/信仰/ 面或身份标志:如国家层面、地域/种族/信仰/语言 层面、性别层面、代的层面、阶级或身世层面、 组织或职业层面等等。
英国文学简史 4新古典主义(18世纪)
The Neoclassical Period （18th century）Definitions of literary terms英语081班汪志超51011080951) The Enlightenment MovementThe 18th-century England is known as the Age of Enlightenment or the Age of Reason.The Enlightenment Movement was a progressive intellectual movement which flourished in France & swept through the whole Western Europe at the time. The movement was a furtherance of the Renaissance of the 15th & 16th centuries. Its purpose was to enlighten the whole world with the light of modem philosophical & artistic ideas. The enlighteners celebrated reason or rationality, equality & science. They called for a reference to order, reason & rules & advocated universal education. Famous among the great enlighteners in England were those great writers like John Dryden, Alexander pope & so on.2) NeoclassicismIn England, neoclassicism is initiated by John Dryden, culminated in Alexander Pope and continued by Samuel Johnson. It was a reaction against the fire of passions that blazed in the later Renaissance. It found its literary artistic model in the classical literature of ancient Greek and Latin authors, such as Homer, Virgil, Horace. The neoclassicists have their artistic ideas: order, logic, symmetry, restraint, accuracy, good taste, good sense, decorum and so on. In drama, they follow the Three Unities closely.1Richard Steele(1672-1729) and Joseph Addison(1672-1719)The Tatler ; The Spectator (the earliest periodicals)2Samuel Johnson（1709-1784）Samuel Johnson, commonly called Dr. Johnson, was one of the greatest figures of 18th-century English literature. He was the last great neoclassicist enlightener in the late 18th century. He had a hand in all the different branches of literary activities. He was a poet, dramatist, prose romancer, biographer, essayist, critic, lexicographer & publicist.His major works :poems: "London", & "The vanity of Human Wishes"a romance: The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia ;a tragedy: Irenehundreds of essays in the two periodicals :The Rambler & The Idler;English dictionary :A Dictionary of the English Language传记文学双星：Life of Johnson by James Boswell,The Life of Charlotte Bronte by Elizabeth Cleghon Gaskell3Alexander pope（1688-1744）poetPope is one of the fore-most satirists in world literature as well as a great poet. Pope's mock-heroic poem The Rape of the Lock is one of the finest examples of English comic verse. As a representative of the Enlightenment, Pope was one of the first to introduce rationalism to England. He was the greatest poet of his time.His major works1). The Rape of the LockA delightful burlesque of epic poetry, it ridicules the manners of the English nobility. The poem isbased on an actual incident in which a young nobleman stole a lock of a lady's hair.2) An Essay on CriticismHis first important work, An Essay on Criticism was a long didactic poem in heroic couplets. In this work, he reflected the neo-classical spirit of the times by advocating good taste, common sense & the adherence to classical rules in writing & criticism. The whole poem is written in a plain style, hardly containing any imagery or eloquence &therefore makes easy reading.3）The DunciadGenerally considered Pope's best satiric work, The Dunciad goes deep in meaning & works at many levels. Its satire is directed at Dullness in general, & in the course of it all the literary men of the age. Poets mainly who had made Pope's enemies, are held up to ridicule. But the poem is not confined to personal attack. Dullness as reflected in the corruptness of government, social morals, education & even religion, is expertly exposed & satirized.The Realistic Novel:The mid-century was, however, predominated by a newly rising literary form, the modern English novel, which, contrary to the traditional romance of aristocrats, gives a realistic presentation of life of the common English people. This-the most significant phenomenon in the history of the development of English literature in the eighteenth century - is a natural product of the Industrial Revolution & a symbol of the growing importance & strength of the English of the growing importance & strength of the English middle class, Among the pioneers were Daniel Defoe ,Samuel Richardson, Henry Fielding, Laurence Sterne, Tobias George Smollett, & Oliver Goldsmith.1Daniel Defoe(1660-1731)He acquired a pure naked English—smooth, easy, almost colloquial. Yet never coarse. He loved short, crisp, plain sentences. There is nothing artificial in his language; it is really common English.作品：1）Pamphlet: The Trueborn Englishman—A Satire.(It contained a caustic exposure of the aristocracy and the tyranny of the church.)2)Novels:Robinson Crusoe(The character of Robinson Crusoe is representative of the English bourgeoisie atthe earlier stage of its development.); Captain Singleton; Moll Flanders; Colonel Jacque2Jonathan Swift (1667-1745)He is an Irish. Swift is one of the greatest masters of English prose. His language is simple, clear and vigorous. He said, “Proper words in proper places, makes the true definition of a style.” Swift is a master of satirist, and his irony is deadly. But his satire is masked by an outward gravity, and an apparent calmness conceals his bitter irony. This makes his satire all the more powerful, as shown in his Modest Proposal.作品：1）Two stories: A Tale of a Tub; The Battle of the Books(The two stories made him well-known as a satirist.)2) Novel:Gulliver’s Travels3) Pamphlets :The Drapier’s Letters; A Modest Proposal(Swift’s pamphlets in Ireland form avery important part of his works.)3Samuel Richardson(1689-1761)His main achievement as a novelist lies in his technique to show characters as personalities. Psychological analysis.作品：Pamela (The story is a told in a series of letters from the heroine, Pamela Andrews.书信体小说);Clarissa; Sir Charles Grandison.Pamela was a new thing in three ways:Firstly, it discarded the “improbable and marvellous”accomplishment of the former heroic romances, and pictured the life and love of ordinary people.Secondly, its intension was to afford not merely entertainment but also moral instruction. Thirdly, it described not only the sayings and doings of the characters but also their secret thoughts and feelings. It was, in fact, the first English psycho-analytical novel.4Henry Fielding(1707-1754)1)简介：As a novelist, Fielding is very great. He is the founder of the English realistic novel and sets up the theory of realism in literary.“Nature herself,” i.e., the exact observation and study of real life, was the basis of Fielding’s work. Byron, in a famous phrase, called Fielding “the prose Homer of Human Nature”. Fielding established once for all the form of the modern novel. His importance in the history of the novel is unique. He has been rightly call the “father of the English novel”.2）作品：Novels:①Joseph Andrews ②Jonathan Wild ③Tom Jones(流浪汉小说) ④AmeliaPicaresque Novel(流浪汉小说)is a popular sub-genre of prose fiction, which is usually satirical and depict in realistic and humorous details the adventures of a roguish hero of low social class, who lives by his or her wits in a corrupt society. The characteristic of it is loosely linked episodes, intrigue fights and adventures. The style of this novel originated in Spain and flourished in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries, and continued to influence modern literature. In England, Tobias Smollett’s works, Daniel Defoe’s “Moll Flanders”, Fielding’s “Tom Jones”, and Charles Dickens’“Pickwick Papers” are considered to be picaresque novels. In modern America, Sawl Bellow’s “Adventure of Augie March”, Jack Kerouac’s “Dharma Bums” can be called picaresque novels. The Chinese “Journey to the Wrest” is considered to has considerable elements of picaresque.3）Some Features of Fielding’s Novels①Fielding’s method of Relating a Story: told directly by the author.②Satire in Fielding’s Novels. Satire sounds everywhere in Fielding’s works.③Fielding believed in the educational function of the novel.④Style. Fielding is a master of style. His style is easy, unlaboured and familiar, but extremely vivid and vigorous.5Tobias Smollett(1721-1771)He is a Scottish. He belonged to the realistic school.作品：Roderick Random, Peregrine Pickle, Humphry Clinker, History of England.6Laurence Sterne(1713-1768)He is a novelist of the sentimentalist school. He was born in Ireland.A Sentimental Journey.The drama of the 18th century was extensive, but very little of it has permanent or acting value. Only two men, Goldsmith and Sheridan, produced works which are of high literary quality and which are still remain their interest upon the stage.1Oliver Goldsmith(1730-1774)Goldsmith was a poet, novelist, dramatist and essayist, all combined in one person. He was born in Ireland.Comedies: The Good-Natured Man, She Stoops to Conquer2、Richard Brinsley Sheridan(1751-1816)was, like Goldsmith, an Irishman. His literary fame rests almost exclusively uponhis dramas. His dramas are sufficient to maintain his reputation as one of the most brilliant of English writers of Comedy.戏剧作品：①The Rivals, ②The School for Scandal（It gives a brilliant portrayal and a biting satire ofIn the first half of the 18 century, Pope was the leader of English poetry and the heroic couplet the fashion of poetry. But the middle of the century, however, sentimentalism gradually made its appearance.The appearance and development of sentimentalist poetry marks the midway in the transition from classicism to its opposite, Romanticism, in English poetry.Sentimentalism : It is a literary current started in the middle of 18th century. It is a part of the Pre-Romantic trend as reaction against the cold, logic rationalism that dominated people’s life and writing since the last decade of the 17th century. It appeared to sentiment as a means of achieving happiness and social justice. They believed that the effective emotions were the evidence of kindness and goodness. A ready sympathy and an inward pain for the misery of others became part of accepted social morality and ethics. Their words reveal a purely emotional approach to life on the part of the narrator. They formed the contrast of rationally composed novel. The most outstanding figure of this school was Laurence Stern who composed “Tristram Shandy”and “Sentimental Journey through France to Italy”. Samuel Richardson’s work also belong to this school because he used a lot of psychological analysis. Oliver Goldsmith’s work, especially “The Vicar of Wakefield”is of this time. Thomas Gray, a member of Graveyard school is a member of sentimental school, because Graveyard School is part of Sentimental School.1Laurence Sterne(1713-1768)He is a novelist of the sentimentalist school. He was born in Ireland.作品：Tristram Shandy, A Sentimental Journey.2Thomas Gray(1716-1771):作品：Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard. （This is a poem full of the gentle melancholy which marks all early romantic poetry.）Graveyard School: is a term applied to the 18th century poets who wrote melancholy, reflective works, often set in graveyard, on the theme of human morality. The dominant imageries are graveyard, death and darkness. They are part of Sentimental School in the 18th century literature. Thomas Gray’s “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” was the best known example for the time.Elegy: It is an ancient form of writing. Its tradition can be traced back to Greek. It is a kind of war song, the song that eulogizes the warring spirit, especially to celebrate the victory of the war and to lament upon the dead. Later, thiswriting is used for lamentation over one’s loss, one’s complaint, one’s unhappiness or things like that. In France, people sometimes use elegy for love lyric.3Oliver Goldsmith(1730-1774)Goldsmith was a poet, novelist, dramatist and essayist, all combined in one person. He was born in Ireland.作品：⑴Poems:①The Traveller is based on Goldsmith’s personal observation during his European wanderings. He came to the conclusion that human happiness depends less on political institution than onour own minds.②The Deserted Village is Goldsmith’s best poem. It contains some charmingdescriptions of village life. He marks the depopulation in the countryside owing to the inroads ofmonopolizing riches.⑵Novel: The Vicar of Wakefield. His novel appeals to human sentiment as a means of achieving happinessand social justice. That is why he is acknowledged to be one of the representatives of English sentimentalism.⑶Comedies: The Good-Natured Man, She Stoops to Conquer⑷Essays: The Citizen of the World.Goldsmith’s place as one of the greatest English essayists is mainlyIn the latter half of the 18century, a new literary monument arose in Europe, called the Romantic Revival. In England, this movement showed itself in the trend of Pre-Romanticism in poetry, which was ushered by Percy, Macpherson and Chatterton, and represented by Blake and Burns,the two greatest romantic poets of the 18th century.Pre-Romanticism:It rose as a reaction against enlightenment and neoclassicism, especially against reasons advocated by them. It originated by conservative groups men of letters and rose in the latter half of 18th century. The representatives are Thomas Gray, William Blake and Robert Burns.1William Blake(1757-1827)①The earliest of the major English Romantic poets.②Like Shelley, Blake strongly criticized the capitalists' cruel exploitation, saying that the "dark satanic mills left menunemployed, killed children & forced prostitution."③From childhood, Blake had a strongly visual mind; whatever he imagined, he also saw. As an imaginative poet, hepresents his view in visual images instead of abstract terms. " I know that This world is a world of IMAGINATION & Vision," & that "The Nature of my work is visionary or imaginative."④Blake writes his poems in plain & direct language.works：①The Songs of Innocence is a lovely volume of poems, presenting a happy & innocent world,though not without its evils & sufferings.②The Songs of Experience paints a different world, a world of misery, poverty, disease, war &repression with a melancholy tone.③Marriage of Heaven & Hell marks his entry into maturity.④The Book of Urizen, The Book of Los，The Four Zoas，Milton2、Robert Burns(1759-1796)He is the greatest of Scottish poets. He devoted all his free time to collecting, editing, restoring and imitating traditional Scottish songs, or writing verses of his own to traditional tunes.works：①Burns is remembered mainly for his songs written in the Scottish dialect on a variety of subjects.②Numerous are Burns’ songs of love and friendship. A Red, Red Rose③Bruce at Bannockburn is a typical song of patriotism.⑤The Tree of Liberty and A Revolutionary Lyric are the poems on the theme of revolution.⑥The Toadeater is a piece of bitter satire.⑦The Jolly Beggars is characterized by humour and lightheartedness.。
English literature V-18世纪英国文学
British Empire
Mongol Empire
Eurasia on the eve of the Mongol invasions, c. 1200.
Historical Background
❖ The "Glorious Revolution" of 1688 ended in a compromise between the aristocracy and bourgeoisie. England became a constitutional monarchy and power passed from the King to the Parliament and the cabinet ministers.
sustained growth.
Industrial Revolution
❖ The application of steam power to the industrial processes of printing supported a massive expansion of newspaper and popular book publishing, which reinforced rising literacy and demands for mass political participation.
❖ During the Industrial Revolution an intellectual and artistic hostility towards the new industrialization developed. This was known as the Romantic movement.
❖ The movement stressed the importance of "nature" in art and language, in contrast to "monstrous" machines and factories.
十八世纪英国文学简介
The Restoration Literature (1660-1700)
The Age of Dryden
Chief Characters of This Age
• English literature of this period was influenced by that of France where classicism was prevailing. There was a great variety in literary forms with John Dryden as the dominant figure.
French Philosophers Montesquieu & Voltaire
Rousseau, Didero & Kant
Thomas Paine & William Godwin
Edmund Burke & Edward Gibbon
The Enlightenment Movement
All for Love
ANTONY: How I loved. Witness, ye days and nights, and all ye hours, That danced away with down upon your feet, As all your business were to count my passion! One day passed by, and nothing saw but love; Another came, and still 'twas only love:
John Dryden (1631-1700)
• Heroic play: The Conquest of Grenada • Blank verse tragedy: All for Love • Prose: An Essay of Dramatic Poesy • Poetry: