wifeofbath
第二章：中世纪英语文学
If the epic reflects a heroic age, the romance reflects a chivalric one. Most of the English romances deal with three major themes: a) “the Matter of Britain” — about the Arthurian legend b) “the Matter of France” — about stories concerning Charlemagne and his knights c) “the Matter of Rome” —about tales of antiquity, from the Trojan war to the feats of Alexander the Great
By the end of 14th century, when Normans and English intermingled, English was once more the dominant speech in the country. But by then the English language had already been totally different from Old English, for in the three centuries after 1066 the language had undergone gradual but radical and extensive changes, as not only were borrowed in the course of time thousands of words from French and through French from Latin and also Greek, but many old inflectional forms of native English words had been dropped and formal grammar of the past had become considerably simplified. e.g. Words from Latin: angel/ monk/ pope/ candle English: calf swine (old use or lit, pig) sheep build ask wet French: veal pork mutton construct inquire humid The English language in this transitional stage from Old English to modern English, through some four centuries (from 12th to 15th) of development and change, has generally been known as Middle English.
Literature Questions
Selective Reading of English LiteratureReading QuestionsWeek 2-3 Geoffrey Chaucer “The General Prologue” to The Canterbury Tales Reading: pp.29-48 (There will be five quizzes to check your reading.)Close reading: pp.33-40 (Till the line—―That’s why he sang so merrily and loud.‖) General questions:1.How many elements are included in the general prologue of the Canterbury tales?2.What is the role of the Host? How are the tales chained together by Chaucer? Doyou think it is reasonable? What problem is there in the design?3.Who are the characters that are depicted in detail in the excerpt? Do you thinkChaucer’s characters are well chosen or chosen at random?Questions about the opening lines:4.In the first ten lines four major images are used to describe April. What are they?How are they unified?Questions about the Prioress:5.By his humorous description of the prioress’ smiling, oath, her Romantic nameand her way of singing, what does Chaucer suggest?6.Do you like the prioress’ good manners? Why or why not?7.In what ways is the prioress’ behavior of keeping dogs improper?8.Is there any problem in the way the prioress wears her veil?9.What does ―a golden brooch‖ suggest? Why do you think the prioress wears abrooch inscribed with ―Amor vincit omnia‖?Questions about the wife of Bath:10.Why does Chaucer say that the Wife of Bath is ―a worthy woman‖?11.Chaucer calls our attention to the finely woven kerchiefs of the wife of Bath, herhat as broad as a shied, together with her fine socks and shoes. What’s the point?12.How is her appearance related to her character?13. Does her wide traveling suggest anything?14. What does Chaucer’s attitude seem to be towards the fact that she had five husbands?15.What is probably her real intention of all the religious journeys? What is yourevidence?16.How do you like the Wife of Bath?Questions about the pardoner and summoner:ment on Chaucer’s satire in the portray ing of the pardoner and the summoner.How and why?Class discussion topics:18. What is Chaucer’s attitude towards women?19. What was the role of church in Chaucer’s time? How did people generally see those working for church?20. Please comment on the style of the prologue of the Canterbury Tales.Week 3-4 William Shakespeare “Sonnet 18” and “Sonnet 29”, The Merchant of VeniceReading: pp.66-67, 93-97, ―Sonnet 18‖ and ―Sonnet 29‖ pp.98-101,The Merchant of Venice pp.108-132Questions:1.How do you understand renaissance?2.What is a sonnet?3.What is the primary conceit of Sonnet 18?4.In line 6 of Sonnet 18, are the two ―fairs‖ ide ntical or different? How do youunderstand this line?5.How do you understand the last two lines in Sonnet 18? Was Shakespeareboasting?6.In the middle ages, men were regarded as trivial and sinful. How does Sonnet 18argue against the belief?7.What was the po et’s situation described in Sonnet 29? What changes everything?8.How do you understand Shylock’s statement ―it is my humour‖ (p.111)? Iscruelty his humour?ment on Bassanio’s ―wife sacrificing‖ statement. (pp.120-121)ment on Portia’s statement on ―mercy‖. (pp.116-117) Do you think theChristians in the play are men of mercy?11.Where is the climax of the play?ment on Antonio and Shylock in The Merchant of Venice.What isShakespeare’s attitude? Yours?Week 5 Francis Bacon“Of Studies”,“Of Great Place”―Of Great Place‖1.What kind of person is a man in great place compared to?2.Why is it a strange desire to seek power?3.How does one rise to a high position?4.How about the regress from the position?5.Could a man in great place feel happy?6.Does a man in great place usually know himself? Why or why not?7.What’s the best condition in terms of doing evil? And what’s the second best?8.What’s the relationship between good thoughts and good deeds?9.How should one follow examples? Good examples, bad examples. Ancient and contemporary.10.How should one act in front of a person inferior in place?11.Explain in your own words the four vices of authority—delay, corruption, roughness and facility and how to avoid the four vices respectively.12.How should one behave when they rise to great place? How should one handle the problems such as factions, predecessors, and colleagues?13.In conversations, is it proper for one to be sensitive to or always remembering his place?―Of Studies‖14.Why is ―Of Studies‖ impressive?15.Read the essay carefully and point out the rhetoric devices employed. Considerhow the devices help to make his writing effective.16.How would you understand the statement ― To spend much time in studies issloth‖? What is the philosophical or logic proposition in it?Week 6 Metaphysical Poets & Cavalier PoetsRead John Donne ―Song‖, ―the Canonization‖, ―A Valediction: Forbidden Mourning‖, and Ben Johnson ―Song to Celia‖1. What is a metaphysical conceit?2. Why is John Donne regarded ―modern‖?3. How do you understand Donne’s concept of love in his poems?4. What is ―Carpe diem‖?Why is ―Song to Celia‖ a poem with a carpe diem theme? Week 7-8 John Milton Paradise LostGeneral questions:1. Life of John Milton2. What is ―epic‖? What are the characteristics of the genre?3. Re ad the story of Adam and Eve’s fall in the Bible. (See supplementary readingmaterial in class email box)4. Paradise Lost consists12 books:Books 1-4: Satan’s unsuccessful attempt to seduce EveBooks 5-8: Adam and Eve warned by Raphael about the danger from SatanBooks 9-12: Adam and Eve’s fallFrom Book 1 our text is excerpted. According to what you read, how does Satan react to the failed attempt?5.How do you describe the tone of Paradise Lost ?6.Examine one of his soliloquies and identify the character traits and poetictechniques that make him seem appealing or forgivable.Class Discussion Questions: (please think the following questions over after reading and before the discussion)7.How does Milton understand Christianity? Does he want to redefine Christianityor replace the Bible by Paradise Lost?8.How do you describe God in Paradise Lost? Was Milton attacking God? Howdoes Milton ―justify the ways of God to man‖9.Satan is the most well-developed character in Paradise Lost. Is he a sympatheticcharacter? Why is Satan made heroic?10.In terms of revolution that Milton was involved in, what is Paradise Lost symbolicmeaning?11.The first words of Paradise Lost state the poem’s main theme. Milton narrates thestory of Adam and Eve’s disobedience, explains how and w hy it happens, and places the story within the larger context of Satan’s rebellion and Jesus’ resurrection. In essence, Paradise Lost presents two moral paths that one can take after disobedience separately represented by Satan and Adam and Eve. Can you find out the two moral paths implied by Milton?Week 9 Thomas Gray “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard”1.What is an elegy?2.How is ―Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard‖ different from previous elegiesin terms of whom an elegy mourns?3.What is ―the graveyard school‖?4.In the first three stanzas, the poet employs a number of images to set the tone forthe whole piece. Could you classify the images? And how are they worked to achieve that effect?5.In stanzas 4-7, many daily laboring scenes and living scenes are depicted. Whatconclusion do they lead us to?6.In stanzas 8-11, what conclusion does Gray aim to arrive at by mentioning thenoble, the powerful, the beautiful, and the wealthy in his contemplation about the death of the unknown?7.What is ―momento mori‖? Can you find the theme in the elegy? Where?8.In stanzas 12-23, what are the potentials of the country fellows for Gray? Whatmetaphors are used to state that their talents are hidden? And to what great persons are they compared?9.The poet appears on the scene in stanzas 24-29. And how does this part reaffirmthe argument that life is transitory and short? Which side does he stand on –the great or the humble?10.What information could you get about the poet from the epigraph? How does thepoet bridge between death and religion in the closing lines?Further Discussion:11.How do you understand death? Why do we live if we have to die? Is human life atragedy?Week 10-12 Romantic PoetryRead all the Romantic poems in the course book and read closely the following ones: *Wordsworth ―I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud‖*Coleridge ―The Rime of the Ancient Mariner‖*Byron Don Juan*Shelley ―Ode to the West Wind‖*Keats ―To Autumn‖Prepare for the following questions:1.What is Romanticism?2.The Lake Poets3.How does Wordsworth understand nature?4.What’s the relation between man and nature described in Wordsworth’s poem ―IWandered Lonely as a Cloud‖ ?5.What graphic word-pictures does Coleridge’s ―The Rime of the Ancient Mariner‖depict? What style?6.What is an ode? Qualities of ode.7.What are the three major images that help to intensify the power of the west windin the first three stanzas respectively?8.How does Shelley perceive the relation between Spring, Autumn and Winter?9.―Wild spirit, which are moving everywhere; Destroyer and Preserver; hear, oh,hear!‖ What would the west wind destroy and preserve?10.Which is often regarded as ―the most serene poem in the English language‖ ?11.Is there melancholy in Keats’ ―To Autumn‖? What is Keats’ autumn like?12.How musical element help to achieve the effect of Keats’ autumn?13.In this poem, autumn is personified. What personality is indicated? What doesdescriptive detail in each of the three stanzas contribute to the definition of that personality? How is this personality related to the mood of the poem—and the theme?14.What are the paradoxical qualities of autumn? What images reveal the contrastingqualities of the season?15.Why, as a matter of fact, do swallows gather in the skies? What meaning does thishave for the poem?16.The poem has been admired for its precise and suggestive diction. Locate wordsand phrases which seem to justify the admiration.Further discussion:Tet states that ―nature may provide a stimulus, but it is the poetic consciousness itself that must give voice to nature and articulate its meanings‖. Then the season of autumn stimulates different feelings and ideas in Shelley and Keats. Human understanding that everything in our lives is transitive and that nothing is forever. Compare Shelley’s autumn with Keats’ autumn.Week 13-14 18th Century Novel1.Describe 18th century British social and historical circumstances.2.Why did the novel rise in the 18th- century Britain?pare 18th century Britain with today’s China.4.What are the most striking features of the genre novel?5.What is a picaresque novel, an epistolary novel and a Gothic novel?6.Have you ever read any 18th century British novels from cover to cover? (Checkthe following list of major 18th century novels). Comment on at least one of the novel(s) you have read.Week 15-16 Victorian AgeReading Assignment:Bronte Sisters pp.195-198, Charlotte Bronte Jane Eyre, William Thackeray V anity Fair, Emily Bronte Wuthering Heights pp.199-221, Thomas Hardy Tess pp.231-241Reading Questions:1.What is realism?2.What is bildungsroman? Is Jane Eyre a bildungsroman?3.Who are Jane, Helen, Rochester, and Bertha Mason? Briefly introduce thecharacters.4.What are generally believed to be typical Victorian values?5.Why is the novel entitled Vanity Fair?6.How could Becky and Crawley live well on nothing a year in Paris?7.What have you learned about Becky Sharp’s personality from the excerpt?8.Is Becky a feminist figure? Why or why not?9.How does Catherine’s love for Heathcliff compromise with Victorian values?Does love exist in vacuum?10.How does nature echo the protagonist’s emotions?11.In what sense is Wuthering Heights gothic?12.What do you think of Heathcliff’s love and revenge?13.Is Tess a pure woman? In what values?14.What is fatalism? And how does it set the tones of Tess and Jude?15.How do landscapes work in Hardy’s novels?Week 17 Modern and Contemporary PeriodJames Joyce Ulysses, Samuel Becket Waiting for Godot, William Golding Lord of the Flies1.What is the modern movement and what is modernism?2.How important is psychoanalysis to modernism?3.What is ―stream of consciousness‖?4.What is imagism?5.How is postmodernism different from modernism?6.Why is Ulysses modern? What new techniques are adopted and what themesexplored?7.What is the theme of Waiting for Godot?8.How do you understand Lord of the Flies as a multilayered allegory?。
The_Canterbury_Tales剖析.
Tale • The Canon's Yeoman‘s Prologue
and Tale • The Manciple's Prologue and Tale • The Parson's Prologue and Tale • Chaucer's Retraction
信徒来自全国东西南北，
• 田野复苏吐出芳草绿绿；
众人结伴奔向坎特伯雷，
• 碧蓝的天空腾起一轮红日， 去朝谢医病救世的恩主，
• 青春的太阳洒下万道金辉。 以缅怀大恩大德的圣徒。
• 小鸟的歌喉多么清脆优美，
• 迷人的夏夜怎好安然入睡——
• 那是个初夏方临的日子， • 我到泰巴旅店投宿歇息； • 怀着一颗虔诚的赤子心， • 我准备翌日出发去朝圣。 • 黄昏前后华灯初上时分， • 旅店院里涌入很多客人； • 二十九人来自各行各业， • 不期而遇都到旅店过夜。
Geoffrey Chaucer (1340-1400)
Position in British literature
1) “father of English poetry” and one of the greatest narrative poets of England. 2) Forerunner of humanism. 3) The first realistic writer. 4) Master of the English language.
Pilgrims on their way to Canterbury
• 夏雨给大地带来了喜悦，
美丽的自然撩拨万物的心弦，
• 送走了土壤干裂的三月，
The Age of Chaucer英国文学史 乔叟时代
The winner will receive a supper paid for by all.
List of 30 Pilgrims
▪ Narrator – line 20 ▪ Knight – line 43 ▪ Squire – line 81 ▪ Yeoman – line 103 ▪ Prioress (+ 3) – line 122 ▪ Monk – line 169 ▪ Friar – line 212 ▪ Merchant – line 280 ▪ Oxford Cleric – line 295 ▪ Serjeant at Law – line 319 ▪ Franklin – line 341 ▪ Guildsmen – (Haberdasher,
The Black Death (1348-1349) brought the end of the Middle Ages.
Fleas on rats carried the bubonic plague
which killed thousands of people.
in Europe.
The Middle Ages
lived and wrote around 1385 A.D. planned many more tales, but did not complete the
proposed 120 tales before his death wrote about all classes in The Canterbury Tales to give
the wife of bath prologue解析
the wife of bath prologue解析《坎特伯雷故事集》中的《巴斯夫人的故事》可以说是其中最富有争议性的一个故事。
而在这个故事之前，还有一个关于巴斯夫人自己的故事。
所以，这篇文章先来解析一下《巴斯夫人的前言》。
被誉为《坎特伯雷故事集》中最有个性的女性形象，坎特伯雷故事集中的"巴斯夫人"不仅性格十分鲜明，而且充满着感性和理性的思考。
"巴斯夫人"是一个典型的中世纪女性，充分体现了那个时代女性思想和社会地位的缺失。
但"巴斯夫人"不仅是对中世纪女性思想的反抗，她还代表着十四世纪英国下层人民对高等阶层思想和整个英国教会的反感。
巴斯夫人主张同源同宗，希望婚姻是平等的交流，所以她倡导的性爱是一种金钱交易，她自认为是一位有资历的性爱宝典。
巴斯夫人的言辞非常地尖锐，给整个教会上下造成了很大的震动，使她成为教会的公敌。
作为一个自信且强有力的女性，她受到了当时社会和教会的压迫。
但是她不妥协自己的信念，继续用自己的话语跟世界交流。
首先，巴斯夫人的前缀是直接回应其他故事人的故事。
她自己并没有一个完整的故事要讲，而是采用了一种旁白的方式，通过回忆自己的生活经历，来回应其他人对于婚姻的定义。
她强调，生活经验就是最好的教师。
并且，她还反驳了坎特伯雷故事中一位骑士的言辞。
骑士提出妇女需要尊重，但他却并不坚信，直到他亲身经历爱情后意识到女性的尊严。
而巴斯夫人认为这个论点是错误的，女性是应该被尊重的，无论是否经历了爱情。
其次，巴斯夫人出生于富裕的贵族家庭，婚姻生活十分之丰富多彩，先后结过五次婚。
她很自豪地说，她让婚姻成为了自己的事业。
她清楚她们之间的差异，即使爱情对于婚姻来说也是非常重要的，但恶劣的婚姻会让女性痛苦一生。
由此，巴斯夫人强调了女性应该拥有自主权，在寻求真正的爱情时拥有权利选择自己的伴侣。
最后，巴斯夫人还突出了她的汉语调夫，这是故事中最具有特色的一个点。
wife of bath 原文和赏析
wife of bath 原文和赏析Wife of Bath (The Canterbury Tales)The Canterbury Tales OverviewThe story in which the Wife of Bath originates from the the Canterbury Tales. This story was written by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. Chaucer wrote many works in his life time, one of the most popular is the Canterbury Tales. The Canterbury Tales is attributed to the wide spread use of Middle English during its time of publication. Chaucer wrote this story as a satirical play on class stereotypes. In his work he addresses some of the hard hitting facts about how each class lived during his time. He was a popular writer then and now[1].The Wife of Bath OverviewThis is an illustration from the Thomas Becket page showing his murder.This is a picture of the Wife of Bath on her journey. This image was sourced from a website translating the Canterbury Tales to Italian.The Wife of Bath is one of the twenty-seven characters in the Canterbury Tales. The Wife of Bath as well as the other characters are on a journey to the shrine of the martyr Saint Thomas Becket inCanterbury[2]. In this work she is to tell two stories on the way to the shrine and two on the way back[2] as a part of the contest that the Narrator is holding during a group of people going on their pilgrimage. The winner of this contest will receive a meal courtesy of the rest of the pilgrims when they return from the shrine.The Wife of Bath describes herself as a professional wife. Her actual occupation though is a seamstress. She has been married five times as well as had many different affairs. She is a very religious woman taking pride in her faith as well as the fact that she is only to be married within the church. The Wife of Bath tells about herself as someone who like to be married as well as takes pleasure in expensive items, arguing, and talking[2]. She is educated in the sense of common sense and well traveled making her very experienced in love and life. She has been on three pilgrimages in her life before the one that she takes in the Canterbury Tales.Story Summary Brief OverviewThis knight found a beautiful young maiden and was overcome by her beauty and forces himself upon her. Seeing this horrible crime is a sentenced to death by beheading. The queen asks the king to spare the man if he can, in one year, find out what a woman truly wants.According to Wife of Bath she came across this man and said that women want to be revered and in charge She tells the story of Midas as proof how he had "ass's ears" and his wife wanted to tell someone so badly about this secret. The knight takes this tale and tells the queen that women want control and she spares his life.In this tale the Wife of Bath tells the tale of how there was an ugly old hag who was turned into a pretty and desired woman if the men treat them well.CharacteristicsChaucer wrote the Canterbury Tales keeping in mind the common stereotypes for each class. The rich wear expensive clothing with coloration. Colors were a rare occurrence due to the fact that dye had to be handmade and or imported[2]. The poor were not as well dressed and most times had rundown clothing[3].DescriptionThe Wife of Bath is not her actual name. Chaucer in the Canterbury Tales names his characters after their occupation rather than giving them actual names such as the Plowman and the Knight. Bath is not heractual husband's name though in her case, Bath is the name of a river in a very rich part of England thus illustrating right off the bat that she comes from wealth. She is very worldly and presents herself as one that loves sex and speaking. She does have a gap in her very front teeth and cannot hear out of one ear. She is described as having a large bottom and is very pink in the face. Another illustration of her wealth is her clothing. It is red which means that it comes from imported dies that were handmade from crushed beetles. Wife of Bath has a very dominating personality and boasts of her control over her past husbands. She is also described as surpassing well known overseas clothing workers speaking to her skills at her job[4].ClassThis image depicts the approximate structure of class within the Victorian Era. This is sourced from an English education website.This story was written during the Middle Ages (14th century) by Chaucer. social classes were very clear and distinctive. Figuring out which character is associated to a social class within the feudalism system is the task. There are four groups that makes the entire Feudalism system. The wealthiest class with the most respect is royalty,which is followed by the noble. Both royalty and noble had a few things in common, one being clothes made from fine materials with bright colors. Next there would be the tradesmen and merchants, then the peasants.One of the supposed reasons that Chaucer wrote the Canterbury Tales is because he was illustrating the need for social change. For the first time there was literature written for the general people and not just the upper class. During this period too there was also another emerging class known as the middle class. This would change the social dynamic of early England. One of the main reasons for the popularity of the Canterbury Tales is due to the fact that it does illustrate the stereotype social constructs that existed and shine them in a more true-to-life light along with the fact that this work was able to bring Middle English language and structure to lower classes unlike any other.A Woman's RolePeople in the respective categories were expected to remain within their class and any slight change from one class to another was considered to be a serious offence. In all these categories, the role of the women remained unchanged. They were supposed to live a highly restrictive life with their life centered around their husband and subsequently theirchildren."[6] This means that the Wife of Bath was a very revolutionary character for women. She had her own opinions as well as thoughts. From the fact that she was able to punch her husband in the face without fear shows that she was a very powerful woman.In this way the Wife of Bath was very contradictory to the standards that were held during his time. Higher class women were to "... [spend] most of their time attending tea parties and balls and the remaining time they would spend in knitting and horseback riding. Women had several attendants to look after them. They were expected to be highly educated. Their main job was to effectively instruct the servants on what is to be done and to groom younger girls of the same class (nobility) to become women."[6] Few women were self employed at this time as well.The Wife of Bath did indeed take up to being a wife but she did not do so in the normal fashion. She was promiscuous, unafraid to bring to light what she had done in the past. She was also very bold in everything she did, her character biography even said that she enjoyed arguing as one of her past times, something uncharacteristic of women in that time. Wife of Bath also worked for herself unlike many upper class women who did not work and took pride in the fact.Chaucer is a master at both showing stereotypes for each gender as well as creating a total juxtapose of their characteristics.A Day in the LifeA day in the life of a "normal" upper class Victorian woman would entail tending to the house and often times simply mingling with others of the same class was all that was done. Since the Victorian Era was extremely class based[7] the classes did not intermingle. The main focus of the women in this time was their family.For Wife of Bath, her main focus in the story was her own pleasure taken in life, this is characteristic of the upper class since they did live a life of luxury. Wife of bath did have a family life mainly with her husband(s). Most of her time would have most likely been spent either engaging in intimate relations or traveling based upon her stories and character biography.SymbolismSymbolism is a very important aspect of every story. It adds extra depth and underlying meaning to objects and phrasing. Chaucer favors symbolism in his work of the Canterbury T ales. He uses his symbolismto show irony in his characters.Wife of Bath SymbolismWife of Bath in and of herself is a symbol for the upper class with her outward appearance but is very different in her acts. That is Chaucer's way of showing the inconstant outward portrayal and actions of people. Wife of Bath's personality was a symbolical challenge of what the average woman was making her a symbol for change as well as a symbol for the current flaws. She was a tool for Chaucer to illustrate female sovereignty.[8] Her first story shows this. Her second story she shows that she, even at her old age, is still desirable through means of symbolism if them men treat her well.Wife of Bath also portrays herself as a very religious zealot but her actions show the dysfunction with the church's belief that, if you repent, you will be forgiven. She continues her "unholy" actions without repercussions after repenting making no change to her unjust actions much like many of the members of the church at this time. This is Chaucer's way of showing the problems within the church and the corruption.Chaucer also uses the company on the pilgrimage as a way to show thatcompany is important.Middle EnglishMiddle English was used around the years 1150 to 1500. This was one of the many stepping stones that English transitioned through to end up as what we know as modern English today. During this time Middle English did not have a central structure due to fact that different methods of obtaining knowledge on such a language were varied on their teachings and applications.[9]Language implications of ChaucerChaucer has one very large, significant role in Middle English. He is known as the "Father of English Poetry" due to the fact that he wrote for the common people. His popularity helped revolutionize the standardization of Middle English. Rather than before when literature was only written for the wealthy, Chaucer wrote his works for everyone. That is why he is known as a revolutionary in the English culture.赏析：一个骑士因为做了一件坏事，亚瑟王要处死他。
ThewifeofBath
Senior Honors English-A Survey of English Literature-2013-2014Beowulf (excerpt)Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer—General Prologue, “The Pardoner’s Prologue and Tale” and “The Wife of Bath’s Prologue and Tale.”Macbeth by William ShakespeareOthello by William ShakespeareA Tale of Two Cities by Charles DickensVarious poems and short stories by English authors.*One independent work of literary merit written by an English author must be read independently by the student. The student will write a research paper on this independent piece. The topic for the paper will be one that the student creates with the approval of the instructor; therefore, the student should not only read the work, but read several on-line articles about the work. Two on line articles are required to be brought into class prior to the start of the research process.Some Readings and Topic Ideas for Senior Honors Independently Read Literary Work for the Research Paper follow:1.Chaucer’s “Knight’s Tale” and the elements o f a medieval romance.2.Chaucer’s “Nun’s Priest’s Tale” and the elements of a beast fable.3.Chaucer’s “Miller’s Tale” and the elements of a fabliau.4.Spenser’s Faerie Queene Book I and the use of allegory.5.Shakespeare’s“King Lear” as a double tragedy (Lear and Gloucester) about there being nojustice in the world.6.John Donne as a Metaphysical poet “The Flea,” “The Sun Rising.”7.Andrew Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress” as a carpe diem poem of seduction.8.Pope’s “The Rape of the Lock” as a mock epic.9.Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” as juvenilia satire and the model for the structure of anargumentative essay.10.Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe as a travel, adventure novel based on the rise of capitalism,written for the middle class (Bourgeois epic).11.Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman and her argument that women arenot genetically inferior to men, but that they are made inferior by being denied education.12.William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Experience (“The Tyger” and “The Lamb”) as moralcontraries Does the achievement of goodness require experience? Also examine his moralsymbols in “The Sick Rose.”13.Two romantic revolutionaries: William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. How theirLyrical Ballads took poetry in a new direction: eliminated inflated diction, and returned poetryto a primal, natural state(“Daffodils” and” I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud”: by Wordsworth and how they combine solitude with God in nature) or (Coleridge’s “The Rhyme of the An cientMariner” as a narrative on the condition of man in an incomprehensible natural universe and how he combines theology, philosophy, and travel in his poem).14.Analysis of Keats’ “La Belle Dame sans Merci.” Themes of death and beauty and love as self-destructive and how the poem reflects his tuberculosis.15.Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein as gothic horror.16.Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and the theme of marriage and the decisions associated withmarriage—how to make the right choice and what happens when on e doesn’t make the right choice.17.Charles Dickens’s Oliver Twist shows Dickens as a social critic and the political context of the1834 Poor Law Reform.18.Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights as a romantic narrative influenced by the wild, harshlandscape of the Yorkshire region and developing characters of deep psychological complexity.19.Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, a bildungsroman novel which uses its title character’sintelligence, morality, and spirit to navigate a world dominated by men and how it contains elements of feminist thinking.20.Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess,” a dramatic monologue that says that art is moreimportant than love narrated by a sociopath.21.Thomas Hardy’s novels (Tess of the d’Urbervilles, The Return of the Native, or Jude the Obscure)explore the demise of prosperity brought on by the removal of trade protections favoring the British farmer and the increasing urbanization of England.22.Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles reflects Doyle’s training as a man ofscience featuring the technique of observation which is in line with the scientific spirit of the late 19th, and early 20th centuries. Even Darwin launched his theory based on the observation of birds in the Galapagos Islands. Doyle as the master technician of the detective novel genre. 23.HG. Wells pioneered the genre of science fiction. His fertile scientific imagination can be seen inThe Time Machine where he creates a grotesque Garden of Eden where man has evolved into two bipolar species: the ultra civilized and the brawny( class system),and The Island of Dr.Moreau which focuses on how evolution can be harnessed and controlled.24.Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness as an attack on colonization. Man witnessing the mindlessextraction of natural resources while inhumanely exploiting the native workers in the Congo under the guise of “civilizing” a primitive culture.25.George Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion as a comment on language and the class system inEngland.26.Henry James’s novel The Turn of the Screw is a horror story that is ambiguous because of thenarrator’s involvement in the action. James believed that what created a worthwhile novel was less what the novelist depicted than how he or she depicted it.27.George Orwells’ novel 1984 as a dystopian novel about the future oppression of newtechnologies.28.C.S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is an allegory of the life and death of Christ.。
Geoffrey_Chaucer_(杰弗里·乔叟)(1)
6.The Tales
The famous ones are the story of : 1) the wife of Bath（巴斯夫人）, 2) the Knight（骑士）, 3) the Pardoner（卖赎罪卷者）, 4) the Nun’s Priest（尼姑的教士）, 5) the Prologue（序诗）.
5.The Outline and the Prologue
Outline of the Story
Tabard (泰巴客店) 29 (30) pilgrims, to Canterbury 24 stories written All major types of medieval literature
• The skill---it contains practically all the major types of medieval literature--romances of Knights and ladies, folk tales, moral and merry; Fable etc. some are exalted or full of fun, others plain and tiresome,（平淡无味） still others coarse and vulgar.(粗陋俚俗）he raised the language to a higher literary level by writing in it with polish and ease.(文笔精练 优美，流畅自然)
III. The Canterbury Tales
1. It has 24 stories. 2.It is the description of the pilgrims （朝圣者 ）who tell stories. 3. It is about the life of ordinary people. 4. It gives vivid characters, with humor and satire.
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wifeofbathScene oneOn the way of pilgrimage, Mrs. Bath, a tall and strong woman, with ruddy complexion, wearing a big hat. She is quiet well-off, travelling all around the world, married to 5 five husband but now they are all dead.“I am so well-deserved to be an expert in a relationship; I’ve been with five different men!” Ms Bath brags. Now I will tell you guys a story about the relationship between husband and wife.A long time ago when king Arthur ruled the land, there was a great knight who lived all the pleasures of life. But one day, a lady of the court told the king that the knight had attacked her. Arthur was very angry and said that the knight must die.Scene twoL: My lord. Some rumors go that knight commit a serious crime. He attacked a lady of the court. He insults our chivalry. I hope my lord can make a fair judgment and punish him.K: Well, I wonder. Solder! Send him here to me! I want to interrogate him personally.B: My lord.K: You attacked a lady of the court, didn’t you.B: Yes, my lord. But I can explain.K: How dare you! You insult our chivalry. You must die.Everybody: CUT OFF HIS HEAD.Q:oh ,please,my lord.the knight is such a great person.he has been loyal and faithful to this country.and he deserves a second chance for the mistake he made this time. Please give him to me ,and I will find a proper way to deal with him,and I promisehe will never make the same mistake again.King: well my dear queen rules.Scene threeQ:I have the power to let you live or die, you will live only if you can answer one questionB: My majesty. Thank you for giving me this precious opportunity. Could I know what the question it is?Q: What is it that women most desire?B: Oh! Ask you pardon my majesty. It’s too difficult. As you know women always have a lot of desires. We don’t know how to please them, because we don’t know what they most desire.Q: if you can’t tell me at this moment ,you may go away for a year and a day to find the answer. But if you return without the answer ,remember this :the axe is sharp!B: I have no choice but to find the answer.Scene fourThe knight travelled through the whole country, from coast to coast, looking for the answer. He knocked on every door. “What is it that women most desire?” he asked. But he could not find two people who agreed.B: Oh! GOD! It’s too late to regret my sin. If I hadn’t committed that crime, I wouldn’t have been punished. There is a bar. I think I should have a cup of beer, and clear up the answers.B:Please give me a glass of beer.L: Hi! Buddy! You look so upset. What’s up?B: Don’ mention that. I’m looking for the answer to “what is it that women most desire.” If I can’t find the answer, I will die.L: Oh….Let’s see…..I think w omen want to be rich, so that they can buy lots of jewelry andclothes. As they like to compare with each other, they are easy to be jealous. Money can gratify women’s vanity. Yes, women desire money most.B: En…you may be right, but this is not the best a nswer. Anyway, thank you.L: welcome.L and Q: fruitL: Hey young boy. What’s eating you? I think an apple can make you better.B: Well, I did have some trouble. I will buy your apple if you can answer my question.L: Say that see. Maybe I know the answer.B: what is it that women most desire??L: Well. As a woman, I want a good reputation. You know, I am not young. I needn’t beautiful clothes or much money. I just hope everyone can respect me.Q: No! No! Women want pleasure of course. We want to be spoilt and flattered. I am going to a party and I am sure I can enjoy myself. Will you join us? Mr.knight.?B: Thank you for your invitation, my lady. I would like to, but I have to go no my journey. Also thank you for your answer, madam. I will buy some apple to keep my promise.L: Here you are. I hope my answer will help you.在中世纪，巴斯妇的婚姻观念算是前卫的，在当时她算是领潮者。
她有过五次婚姻，当然她是在结束前段婚姻的基础上重新结婚的，而且每次都是出于她自愿的。
在当时的禁欲时代，特别是社会要求女性禁欲的时代，她受到社会舆论的压力；但是她全然不顾，义无反顾地追求自己想要的生活。
作者在书里面对巴斯妇的观念是持反对态度的，因为作者生活在那个时代，而且是个男性。
在当时的社会，女性的地位很低，而且像中国封建社会的女性一样要遵守“三从四德”。
Bath’s view of marriage is very advancing during the middle age of England. She is sort of fashion leader at that time. She has five marriages and all based on her own free will, of course each marriage begins after the former one ends. In that period of Abstinence, especially for women, Bath, although under deep pressure of public voices, persistently searching for a kind of life she wants and has always been so courageous. However, the author does not support Bath’s view of marriage , for in that social background , women are in a very low position and are supposed to do whatever their husband ask them to do.。