sentimentalism-140

有谁读过英文的英国文学简史么，急急急！

冰心女士在《小说月报》的第12卷第4号上，发表了一篇叫做《超人》的短篇小说。发表的当时，我也觉得这标题新颖得很，便也怀着一肚子好奇心，把它翻看了一下。我记得那时候的感想，第一，觉得有点被那个标题骗了似的，第二，我总觉得这里面穿了几个大孔，作者本人似乎始终没有把它看出。近来又在《小说月报》的第13卷第9号上，看见了署名剑三的一篇批评的文字，又在第12卷第11号的《小说月报》里，也寻出了潘垂统君的评论，好像都说冰心女士的这篇作品，是她整个思想的最高的表现，所以我又把那篇小说翻出来看了。可是我第二次把它看完了的时候，我仍觉得一年多以前的感想，依然没有多大的变化，很顽固地主张自己，虽然中间夹着了两篇还不能说是文艺批评的文字。�。

这小说为什么要叫做《超人》，虽然冬芬君的附注上说：“如果有不哭的啊，他不是‘超人’”，我却至今还是不懂，但这是作者的自由。作者对于“超人”这个词，或许有特别的见。

解，不过我们要知道作者在这篇作品里面，实在没有告诉我们什么是超人，并且她也无须告。

诉；所以若有人说何彬就是作者意中的超人的表现，说这样才是超人，那样不是超人，那就。

不仅是武断，而且要被作者暗笑了。(题目与本文，本来没有关系，不过许多的人，每每把它们误解了，我才顺便说及。)�。

就上面的两节看起来，倒像我是在做批评的批评了。批评家的观察与表现对不对，本也可以将对象去批评，不过我的目的，是在这里想把冰心女士的《超人》评论一下——像其余的批评家一样，把话说得谦恭一点，那么，我是想在这里把我一个人关于《超人》的意见说说。�。

冰心女士的作品，我看得不多，但是我仅由她的小说，可以看出她的诗人的天分很高，艺术家的手腕很足。就是她这篇小说，都比那些诗翁的大作，还要多有几分诗意。她那丰富的想象力与真挚的心情，都很可爱，精细的描写，与伶俐的笔致，也都把女性的特长发挥得出。但《超人》这篇小说，我却不敢说是成功的作品，我现在取纯正的态度，把我的意见写出来，供大家的参考。�。

凡有一种文艺我们能取为批评的对象的，是：�。

观察

艺术(Art)�。

表现。

文艺的 � 。

思想。

效能(Effect） �。

情绪。

效能与艺术虽然不是可以独立分离的，然为文艺批评时，却不妨分别出来研究。�。

《超人》这篇小说的宗旨，有人说作者的意思，是想表示由否定(Verneinung)达到肯定(Bejahung)的一种经过，就是：�。

否定 肯定�

这种经过，本可以由种种的路途达到，《超人》指示我们可以达到的方法，却是什么呢?有人说是爱的实现，那么，这种经过是：�。

否定 爱的实现 肯定�。

假使我们把《超人》依这种形式分解出来的时候，我们就会觉得各部分的表现工夫还没有做到，作者的观察不仅没有深入，反有被客观的现象蒙蔽了的样子。�。

譬如写何彬的否定的时候，作者的描写只是一些客观的可见的现象，主观的心的现象，少有提起。这确是表现上的一个缺陷。并且开首第一句就说：“何彬是一个冷心肠的青年”，

后面又说他面色冷然，好像作者真的想把何彬写到极端否定的样子，这是很不对的。近代人。

的精神上的痛苦，不在于把一切都否定了，而在于只是怀疑与苦闷，什么也不能肯定。否定。

是负号的肯定，近代人若能真的否定起来，倒也可以减少多少痛苦，可是近代人之不能否定，正犹如他之不能肯定。真的，近代人只是怀疑，只是苦闷，苦的是既不能肯定，也不能否定。何彬对程姥姥所说的话，很显出了他的怀疑，只是不甚深刻，也没有把他内在的苦闷写出来，看去时只越发增加了他的冷度。我在这地方觉得作者的观察不深，不出客观的现象以外，反被客观的现象瞒过了。并且由极端的否定转入肯定，不是经过一种媒介(Medium)所能办到的。这样的由这边转到那边，必先有他的可能性(Possibility)，就是要先到一个可以左可以右的一个零点(Zero Point)，这样的零点，就是近代人的不能肯定，也不能否定的怀疑与苦闷的状态。由零点进而肯定，不可不有一种媒介，由否定达到零点，也不可不有另一种媒介，所以把否定到肯定的全经过写出来的时候，就是：�。

否定 媒介甲 零点 媒介乙 肯定�。

换一句话说明出来的时候，就是由否定达到肯定，不可不先由媒介甲的作用由否定离开，达到可左可右的零点，然后再由媒介乙的作用，离开零点，直达肯定。所以像《超人》那样把主人公写到极端否定，不仅理论上说不过来，还使结构上生了一层缺陷。凡我们对于一个现象，不应当只就他的表面观察，应当把藏在表面下深处的实在看出来，才能够不为客观的现象所蒙蔽了。何彬这样的人，就《超人》的后半看起来，确是易于感动人的，他的泪珠好像不时充满了他的双眼。若像《超人》这样写出来，那就不过是一个神经质的感伤主义者(Sen。

timentalist)了。所以《超人》若真是想表现达到肯定的经过，就还当把怀疑与苦闷的热与。

力写出来，不要把他们看脱了，更不要说那些冷心肠的话。《小说月报》上的一个批评家很称赞这个冷字，说“是作者苦心用力写的，十分伤心，包含着许多眼泪，读完这篇东西，细。

想这个冷字而不哭，那真是全没心肝的人”。这种旧式的、不讲道理的、狂热的批评，不仅于文艺批评没有丝毫的益处，反易使人把文艺批评误解了。为文艺批评的人，应当还要冷静一点，应当还要严肃一点，应当深就全体的效能与艺术观察——用冷静严肃的态度观察，也用冷静严肃的态度表现出来才好。�。

又如写爱的实现的时候，用了一场梦境，这自然是很经济的写法；但这场梦境偏插在“至人无梦”以后，这确是自己无故把“三夜的往事”筑起来了的效能，削成强弩之末了。那梦境前的“睡下的时候，他觉得热极了”，虽然即刻用“累了两天了，起居上自然有些反常”之类的女性特有的逻辑(Logic)来注解，却也掩不了勉强的痕迹。禄儿的那封信，有人说是太不近现实，本来我们现在的社会程度太低，他们表现自己的能力太薄弱，原不仅一个无知识的禄儿是这个样子，就是我们现在的上流阶级以及知识阶级，我们都不能在他们的言论中，

表现我们所要表现的思想与情绪，不过关于这一点，我却不仅不说作者不好，因为时常感觉。

同样的苦处，我反不禁要表示同情于作者。我想可以在这里警告我们的青年作家，不要再想。

在现在的一般人的言论里面，织入高深的思想，我们暂时不能不丢了这条路，我们以后只能。

在干燥浅薄的言行的全部之中，取曲径把我们的思想徐徐地暗示。既要顾及实情，又要不堕。

入浅近的自然派的描写，除此之外恐怕也没有他法，这固然是很难的事情，不过我想也并不。

是不可能的事。�

最后作者写何彬肯定的时候，我觉得热有余而力实不足。本来最初写得那般冰冷，接着又勉强安排了一回梦境，又使禄儿写了一封很勉强的信，这全体的效能已经是很勉强的了；而作者写何彬肯定的时候，又只用了他一封感伤的(Sentimental)信，与满面的泪痕，他的举止，却仍没有摆脱最初的灰色与冷度；我们由他的肯定，丝毫都看不出肯定的动力的效果，所以这全经过倒像微风偶过，在水面上吹起了一层涟漪，不久又仍归寂静了。真的肯定应当在本人的一生中，涌起永难消灭的一回激荡，而以余力深深地给一种不可磨灭的印象于读者的心里。关于这地方，冰心是疏忽了一点的了。有人说看了何彬的信，就觉得非哭不可，但这是这封信的感伤(Sentimentalism)的成功，不能扯到全体的效能上去。小说家最大的努力，

应当注意在小说全部的戏剧的效能(Dramatic effect)，批评家也应当持冷静的态度，在这。

些地方注意，不要学那些旧戏迷的喝彩。旧戏迷不解艺术，也不讲效能，唱得又高又久，舞得又奇又怪的，便不惜高声的喝彩；至于这些歌舞对于全剧的艺术与效能有什么关系，他们是不管的，真的艺术作品，决不靠哪一部分的完善；艺术作品的完善，也在他的各个，也在他的全体(as a whole)。这全体应当是多样的统一，一部分的出风头，弄得不好，便会把统一破坏。《超人》的这封信，能使人不禁哭起来，实是它意外的成绩，然而专就这封信说，我都觉得热有余而力不足。�。

以上所言，是依许多批评家的评论，把《超人》作为描写一个人自否定达到肯定之经过的作品，再把它剖解考究所得。究竟冰心女士作这短篇时，她自己的意思如何，我们无从详悉；所以这样批评，究竟有什么意思，完全是一个未知数。不过我们由一篇作品，也不是决不能看出作者作那篇东西时的意思，我们多少是可以看得出的。我们所看出的作者的意思，与作者自己当时的意思是不是一样，能不能一致，是在批评家的观察力的大小，与作者自己的意识明显的程度；有时批评家竟能看出作者自己还没有觉到的地方，也是有的。冰心女士作《超人》这篇小说时的意思，许多的人都由事件的进行与结果，说她是想描写一个人由否定达到肯定的经过；然而这种观察的方法，难免偏于印象，难免不使旧的远的印象为新的近。

的印象所蒙蔽了，所以我想最好还是用一种归纳的方法。�。

当我们把《超人》仔细读过一遍的时候，奔涛一般起伏的诸印象之中，超群出类的共有三个：第一，没有爱的(孤独的)生活；第二，过去的追忆；第三，爱的实现(Realization)。它们的关系是：�。

没有爱的生活 过去的追忆 爱的实现�。

就是从没有爱的(孤独的)生活，由过去的追忆，达到爱的实现的一种经过。我在这里提出过。

去的追忆，或者有人不赞成，然而我敢说《超人》的最重要的内容就在这里。我想作者当时。

的意思，也不外是想描写我们与过去的关系——永远相牵，永无终止的关系。我不想在这里。

说及我们一个人怎样忘不了自己的过去，怎样眷念，怎样渴望；然而我们一生的历史，很无情地一页页翻过来了，永无回复的可能性，事愈不能，我们越想，只在我们这种想念之中，我们回复了多少过去了的我们。寻着了多少过去了的悲哀与欢喜——都一样地要求我们感激的!当我们表现出这种陶醉的感激的时候，谁能不被激起狂热的共鸣?《超人》得力的地方，就在这里。�。

然而就我所新提出的经过看起来，《超人》的艺术，也仍不免有我前面说过的几层缺点。她写没有爱的生活，也只就客观的现象描写，也错在把何彬写到了极端的否定；她写过去的追忆，也很安插得勉强；她写爱的实现，也是热有余而力不足。并且作者似乎没有把爱的真谛看出。真的纯洁的爱，在授而不在受，在与(to give)而不在取(to take)。爱好比黄昏时分的飞鸟，是要寻出可以栖息的一枝的，不得其所，是不能安息的，然而何彬是何等的无气力，何等的冰冷!�。

此外还有最后的，或者真与作者的本意一致的一种观察。何彬在信中说：“你深夜的呻吟，使我想起了许多的往事，头一件就是我的母亲”，“她带了你的爱来感动我”。就这些地方看起来，似乎作者的意思，不过是想描写一个没有爱的人，如何想起了慈母的爱情的一种经过。如果作者的意思真是这般的，那就未免更琐碎了。�。

我写这一篇东西，丝毫没有把《超人》故意说坏的成见，不过想把我的意见写出来，供大家参考。有许多的话一定有人不赞成，也有许多的话，说得不十分彻底。冰心女士的诗人的天分是很高的，我在前头说过，不须再说了。不过她的作品，不论诗与小说，都有一个共通的大缺点，就是她的作品，都有几分被抽象的记述胀坏了的模样。一个作品的戏剧的效能，

不能靠抽象的记述，动作(Action)是顶要紧的，最好是把抽象的记述投映(Project)在动作。

里。我们的旧小说多被动作(实事)胀坏了，然而被抽象的记述胀坏，也是过犹不及。这许是。

冰心偏重想象而不重观察的结果，我在这里顺便谈谈，也许不无益处。��。

1922年11月30日�。

(原载《创造季刊》第1卷第4期)。

英美文学名词解释()

英文的笔记行吗？

A Concise History of British Literature。

Chapter 1 English Literature of Anglo-Saxon Period。

I. Introduction。

1. The historical background。

(1) Before the Germanic invasion。

(2) During the Germanic invasion。

a. immigration; 。

b. Christianity; 。

c. heptarchy.

d. social classes structure: hide-hundred; eoldermen (lord) – thane - middle class (freemen) - lower class (slave or bondmen: theow); 。

e. social organization: clan or tribes. 。

f. military Organization; 。

g. Church function: spirit, civil service, education; 。

h. economy: coins, trade, slavery; 。

i. feasts and festival: Halloween, Easter; j. legal system.。

2. The Overview of the culture。

(1) The mixture of pagan and Christian spirit.。

(2) Literature: a. poetry: two types; b. prose: two figures.。

II. Beowulf.

1. A general introduction.。

2. The content.。

3. The literary features.。

(1) the use of alliteration。

(2) the use of metaphors and understatements。

(3) the mixture of pagan and Christian elements。

III. The Old English Prose。

1. What is prose?。

2. figures

(1) The Venerable Bede。

(2) Alfred the Great。

Chapter 2 English Literature of the Late Medieval Ages。

I. Introduction。

1. The Historical Background.。

(1) The year 1066: Norman Conquest.。

(2) The social situations soon after the conquest.。

A. Norman nobles and serfs; 。

B. restoration of the church.。

(3) The 11th century.。

A. the crusade and knights.。

B. dominance of French and Latin;。

(4) The 12th century.。

A. the centralized government;。

B. kings and the church (Henry II and Thomas);。

(5) The 13th century.。

A. The legend of Robin Hood;。

B. Magna Carta (1215);。

C. the beginning of the Parliament。

D. English and Latin: official languages (the end)。

(6) The 14th century.。

a. the House of Lords and the House of Commons—conflict between the Parliament and Kings;。

b. the rise of towns.。

c. the change of Church.。

d. the role of women.。

e. the Hundred Years’ War—starting.。

f. the development of the trade: London.。

g. the Black Death.。

h. the Peasants’ Revolt—1381.。

i. The translation of Bible by Wycliff.。

(7) The 15th century.。

a. The Peasants Revolt (1453)。

b. The War of Roses between Lancasters and Yorks.。

c. the printing-press—William Caxton.。

d. the starting of Tudor Monarchy(1485)。

2. The Overview of Literature.。

(1) the stories from the Celtic lands of Wales and Brittany—great myths of the Middle Ages.。

(2) Geoffrye of Monmouth—Historia Regum Britanniae—King Authur.。

(3) Wace—Le Roman de Brut.。

(4) The romance.。

(5) the second half of the 14th century: Langland, Gawin poet, Chaucer.。

II. Sir Gawin and Green Knight.。

1. a general introduction.。

2. the plot.

III. William Langland.。

1. Life

2. Piers the Plowman。

IV. Chaucer

1. Life

2. Literary Career: three periods。

(1) French period。

(2) Italian period。

(3) master period。

3. The Canterbury Tales。

A. The Framework; 。

B. The General Prologue;。

C. The Tale Proper.。

4. His Contribution.。

(1) He introduced from France the rhymed stanza of various types.。

(2) He is the first great poet who wrote in the current English language.。

(3) The spoken English of the time consisted of several dialects, and Chaucer did much in making the dialect of London the standard for the modern English speech.。

V. Popular Ballads.。

VI. Thomas Malory and English Prose。

VII. The beginning of English Drama.。

1. Miracle Plays.。

Miracle play or mystery play is a form of medieval drama that came from dramatization of the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church. It developed from the 10th to the 16th century, reaching its height in the 15th century. The simple lyric character of the early texts was enlarged by the addition of dialogue and dramatic action. Eventually the performance was moved to the churchyard and the marketplace.。

2. Morality Plays.。

A morality play is a play enforcing a moral truth or lesson by means of the speech and action of characters which are personified abstractions – figures representing vices and virtues, qualities of the human mind, or abstract conceptions in general.。

3. Interlude.

The interlude, which grew out of the morality, was intended, as its name implies, to be used more as a filler than as the main part of an entertainment. As its best it was short, witty, simple in plot, suited for the diversion of guests at a banquet, or for the relaxation of the audience between the divisions of a serious play. It was essentially an indoors performance, and generally of an aristocratic nature.。

Chapter 3 English Literature in the Renaissance。

I. A Historical Background。

II. The Overview of the Literature (1485-1660)。

Printing press—readership—growth of middle class—trade-education for laypeople-centralization of power-intellectual life-exploration-new impetus and direction of literature.。

Humanism-study of the literature of classical antiquity and reformed education.。

Literary style-modeled on the ancients.。

The effect of humanism-the dissemination of the cultivated, clear, and sensible attitude of its classically educated adherents.。

1. poetry

The first tendency by Sidney and Spenser: ornate, florid, highly figured style.。

The second tendency by Donne: metaphysical style—complexity and ingenuity.。

The third tendency by Johnson: reaction--Classically pure and restrained style.。

The fourth tendency by Milton: central Christian and Biblical tradition.。

2. Drama

a. the native tradition and classical examples.。

b. the drama stands highest in popular estimation: Marlowe – Shakespeare – Jonson.。

3. Prose

a. translation of Bible; 。

b. More;

c. Bacon.

II. English poetry.。

1. Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard (courtly makers)。

(1) Wyatt: introducing sonnets.。

(2) Howard: introducing sonnets and writing the first blank verse.。

2. Sir Philip Sidney—poet, critic, prose writer。

(1) Life:

a. English gentleman; 。

b. brilliant and fascinating personality; 。

c. courtier.

(2) works

a. Arcadia: pastoral romance;。

b. Astrophel and Stella (108): sonnet sequence to Penelope Dvereux—platonic devotion.。

Petrarchan conceits and original feelings-moving to creativeness—building of a narrative story; theme-love originality-act of writing.。

c. Defense of Poesy: an apology for imaginative literature—beginning of literary criticism.。

3. Edmund Spenser。

(1) life: Cambridge - Sidney’s friend - “Areopagus” – Ireland - Westminster Abbey.。

(2) works

a. The Shepherds Calendar: the budding of English poetry in Renaissance.。

b. Amoretti and Epithalamion: sonnet sequence。

c. Faerie Queene:。

 The general end--A romantic and allegorical epic—steps to virtue.。

 12 books and 12 virtues: Holiness, temperance, justice and courtesy.。

 Two-level function: part of the story and part of allegory (symbolic meaning)。

 Many allusions to classical writers.。

 Themes: puritanism, nationalism, humanism and Renaissance Neoclassicism—a Christian humanist.。

(3) Spenserian Stanza.。

III. English Prose。

1. Thomas More

(1) Life: “Renaissance man”, scholar, statesman, theorist, prose writer, diplomat, patron of arts。

a. learned Greek at Canterbury College, Oxford; 。

b. studies law at Lincoln Inn; 。

c. Lord Chancellor; 。

d. beheaded.

(2) Utopia: the first English science fiction.。

Written in Latin, two parts, the second—place of nowhere.。

A philosophical mariner (Raphael Hythloday) tells his voyages in which he discovers a land-Utopia.。

a. The part one is organized as dialogue with mariner depicting his philosophy.。

b. The part two is a description of the island kingdom where gold and silver are worn by criminal, religious freedom is total and no one owns anything.。

c. the nature of the book: attacking the chief political and social evils of his time.。

d. the book and the Republic: an attempt to describe the Republic in a new way, but it possesses an modern character and the resemblance is in externals.。

e. it played a key role in the Humanist awakening of the 16th century which moved away from the Medieval otherworldliness towards Renaissance secularism.。

f. the Utopia

(3) the significance.。

a. it was the first champion of national ideas and national languages; it created a national prose, equally adapted to handling scientific and artistic material.。

b. a elegant Latin scholar and the father of English prose: he composed works in English, translated from Latin into English biography, wrote History of Richard III.。

2. Francis Bacon: writer, philosopher and statesman。

(1) life: Cambridge - humanism in Paris – knighted - Lord Chancellor – bribery - focusing on philosophy and literature.。

(2) philosophical ideas: advancement of science—people:servants and interpreters of nature—method: a child before nature—facts and observations: experimental.。

(3) “Essays”: 57.。

a. he was a master of numerous and varied styles.。

b. his method is to weigh and balance maters, indicating the ideal course of action and the practical one, pointing out the advantages and disadvantages of each, but leaving the reader to make the final decisions. (arguments)。

IV. English Drama。

1. A general survey.。

(1) Everyman marks the beginning of modern drama.。

(2) two influences.。

a. the classics: classical in form and English in content;。

b. native or popular drama.。

(3) the University Wits.。

2. Christopher Marlowe: greatest playwright before Shakespeare and most gifted of the Wits.。

(1) Life: first interested in classical poetry—then in drama.。

(2) Major works。

a. Tamburlaine; 。

b. The Jew of Malta; 。

c. The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus.。

(3) The significance of his plays.。

V. William Shakespeare。

1. Life

(1) 1564, Stratford-on-Avon; 。

(2) Grammar School; 。

(3) Queen visit to Castle; 。

(4) marriage to Anne Hathaway; 。

(5) London, the Globe Theatre: small part and proprietor; 。

(6) the 1st Folio, Quarto;。

(7) Retired, son—Hamnet; H. 1616.。

2. Dramatic career。

3. Major plays-men-centered.。

(1) Romeo and Juliet--tragic love and fate。

(2) The Merchant of Venice.。

Good over evil.。

Anti-Semitism.

(3) Henry IV.

National unity.。

Falstaff.

(4) Julius Caesar。

Republicanism vs. dictatorship.。

(5) Hamlet

Revenge

Good/evil.

(6) Othello

Diabolic character。

jealousy

gap between appearance and reality.。

(7) King Lear

Filial ingratitude。

(8) Macbeth

Ambition vs. fate.。

(9) Antony and Cleopatra.。

Passion vs. reason。

(10) The Tempest。

Reconciliation; reality and illusion.。

3. Non-dramatic poetry。

(1) Venus and Adonis; The Rape of Lucrece.。

(2) Sonnets:

a. theme: fair, true, kind.。

b. two major parts: a handsome young man of noble birth; a lady in dark complexion.。

c. the form: three quatrains and a couplet.。

d. the rhyme scheme: abab, cdcd, efef, gg.。

VI. Ben Jonson。

1. life: poet, dramatist, a Latin and Greek scholar, the “literary king” (Sons of Ben)。

2.contribution: 。

(1) the idea of “humour”.。

(2) an advocate of classical drama and a forerunner of classicism in English literature.。

3. Major plays

(1) Everyone in His Humour—”humour”; three unities.。

(2) Volpone the Fox。

Chapter 4 English Literature of the 17th Century。

I. A Historical Background。

II. The Overview of the Literature (1640-1688)。

1. The revolution period。

(1) The metaphysical poets;。

(2) The Cavalier poets.。

(3) Milton: the literary and philosophical heritage of the Renaissance merged with Protestant political and moral conviction。

2. The restoration period.。

(1) The restoration of Charles II ushered in a literature characterized by reason, moderation, good taste, deft management, and simplicity. (school of Ben Jonson)。

(2) The ideals of impartial investigation and scientific experimentation promoted by the newly founded Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge (1662) were influential in the development of clear and simple prose as an instrument of rational communication. 。

(3) The great philosophical and political treatises of the time emphasize rationalism. 。

(4) The restoration drama.。

(5) The Age of Dryden.。

III. John Milton。

1. Life: educated at Cambridge—visiting the continent—involved into the revolution—persecuted—writing epics.。

2. Literary career.。

(1) The 1st period was up to 1641, during which time he is to be seen chiefly as a son of the humanists and Elizabethans, although his Puritanism is not absent. L'Allegre and IL Pens eroso (1632) are his early masterpieces, in which we find Milton a true offspring of the Renaissance, a scholar of exquisite taste and rare culture. Next came Comus, a masque. The greatest of early creations was Lycidas, a pastoral elegy on the death of a college mate, Edward King.。

(2) The second period is from 1641 to 1654, when the Puritan was in such complete ascendancy that he wrote almost no poetry. In 1641, he began a long period of pamphleteering for the puritan cause. For some 15 years, the Puritan in him alone ruled his writing. He sacrificed his poetic ambition to the call of the liberty for which Puritans were fighting. 。

(3) The third period is from 1655 to 1671, when humanist and Puritan have been fused into an exalted entity. This period is the greatest in his literary life, epics and some famous sonnets. The three long poems are the fruit of the long contest within Milton of Renaissance tradition and his Puritan faith. They form the greatest accomplishments of any English poet except Shakespeare. In Milton alone, it would seem, Puritanism could not extinguish the lover of beauty. In these works we find humanism and Puritanism merged in magnificence.。

3. Major Works

(1) Paradise Lost。

a. the plot.

b. characters.

c. theme: justify the ways of God to man.。

(2) Paradise Regained.。

(3) Samson Agonistes.。

4. Features of Milton’s works. 。

(1) Milton is one of the very few truly great English writers who is also a prominent figure in politics, and who is both a great poet and an important prose writer. The two most essential things to be remembered about him are his Puritanism and his republicanism.。

(2) Milton wrote many different types of poetry. He is especially a great master of blank verse. He learned much from Shakespeare and first used blank verse in non-dramatic works.。

(3) Milton is a great stylist. He is famous for his grand style noted for its dignity and polish, which is the result of his life-long classical and biblical study.。

(4) Milton has always been admired for his sublimity of thought and majesty of expression.。

IV. John Bunyan。

1. life:

(1) puritan age; 。

(2) poor family; 。

(3) parliamentary army; 。

(4) Baptist society, preacher; 。

(5) prison, writing the book. 。

2. The Pilgrim Progress。

(1) The allegory in dream form.。

(2) the plot.

(3) the theme.

V. Metaphysical Poets and Cavalier Poets.。

1. Metaphysical Poets。

The term “metaphysical poetry” is commonly used to designate the works of the 17th century writers who wrote under the influence of John Donne. Pressured by the harsh, uncomfortable and curious age, the metaphysical poets sought to shatter myths and replace them with new philosophies, new sciences, new words and new poetry. They tried to break away from the conventional fashion of Elizabethan love poetry, and favoured in poetry for a more colloquial language and tone, a tightness of expression and the single-minded working out of a theme or argument.。

2. Cavalier Poets。

The other group prevailing in this period was that of Cavalier poets. They were often courtiers who stood on the side of the king, and called themselves “sons” of Ben Jonson. The Cavalier poets wrote light poetry, polished and elegant, amorous and gay, but often superficial. Most of their verses were short songs, pretty madrigals, love fancies characterized by lightness of heart and of morals. Cavalier poems have the limpidity of the Elizabethan lyric without its imaginative flights. They are lighter and neater but less fresh than the Elizabethan’s.。

VI. John Dryden.。

1. Life:

(1) the representative of classicism in the Restoration.。

(2) poet, dramatist, critic, prose writer, satirist.。

(3) changeable in attitude.。

(4) Literary career—four decades.。

(5) Poet Laureate。

2. His influences.。

(1) He established the heroic couplet as the fashion for satiric, didactic, and descriptive poetry.。

(2) He developed a direct and concise prose style.。

(3) He developed the art of literary criticism in his essays and in the numerous prefaces to his poems.。

Chapter 5 English Literature of the 18th Century。

I. Introduction。

1. The Historical Background.。

2. The literary overview.。

(1) The Enlightenment.。

(2) The rise of English novels.。

When the literary historian seeks to assign to each age its favourite form of literature, he finds no difficulty in dealing with our own time. As the Middle Ages delighted in long romantic narrative poems, the Elizabethans in drama, the Englishman of the reigns of Anne and the early Georges in didactic and satirical verse, so the public of our day is enamored of the novel. Almost all types of literary production continue to appear, but whether we judge from the lists of publishers, the statistics of public libraries, or general conversation, we find abundant evidence of the enormous preponderance of this kind of literary entertainment in popular favour.。

(3) Neo-classicism: a revival in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries of classical standards of order, balance, and harmony in literature. John Dryden and Alexander Pope were major exponents of the neo-classical school.。

(4) Satiric literature.。

(5) Sentimentalism。

II. Neo-classicism. (a general description)。

1. Alexander Pope。

(1) Life:

a. Catholic family; 。

b. ill health; 。

c. taught himself by reading and translating; 。

d. friend of Addison, Steele and Swift.。

(2) three groups of poems: 。

e. An Essay on Criticism (manifesto of neo-classicism); 。

f. The Rape of Lock; 。

g. Translation of two epics.。

(3) His contribution: 。

h. the heroic couplet—finish, elegance, wit, pointedness;。

i. satire.

(4) weakness: lack of imagination.。

2. Addison and Steele。

(1) Richard Steele: poet, playwright, essayist, publisher of newspaper. 。

(2) Joseph Addison: studies at Oxford, secretary of state, created a literary periodical “Spectator” (with Steele, 1711)。

(3) Spectator Club.。

(4) The significance of their essays.。

a. Their writings in “The Tatler”, and “The Spectator” provide a new code of social morality for the rising bourgeoisie.。

b. They give a true picture of the social life of England in the 18th century.。

c. In their hands, the English essay completely established itself as a literary genre. Using it as a form of character sketching and story telling, they ushered in the dawn of the modern novel.。

3. Samuel Johnson—poet, critic, essayist, lexicographer, editor.。

(1) Life:

a. studies at Oxford; 。

b. made a living by writing and translating; 。

c. the great cham of literature.。

(2) works: poem (The Vanity of Human Wishes, London); criticism (The Lives of great Poets); preface.。

(3) The champion of neoclassical ideas.。

III. Literature of Satire: Jonathan Swift.。

1. Life:

(1) born in Ireland; 。

(2) studies at Trinity College; 。

(3) worked as a secretary; 。

(4) the chief editor of The Examiner; 。

(5) the Dean of St. Patrick’s in Dublin.。

2. Works: The Battle of Books, A Tale of a Tub, A Modest Proposal, Gulliver’s Travels.。

3. Gulliver’s Travels.。

Part I. Satire—the Whig and the Tories, Anglican Church and Catholic Church.。

Part II. Satire—the legal system; condemnation of war.。

Part III. Satire—ridiculous scientific experiment.。

Part IV. Satire—mankind. 。

IV. English Novels of Realistic tradition.。

1. The Rise of novels.。

(1) Early forms: folk tale – fables – myths – epic – poetry – romances – fabliaux – novelle - imaginative nature of their material. (imaginative narrative)。

(2) The rise of the novel。

a. picaresque novel in Spain and England (16th century): Of or relating to a genre of prose fic。

雾都孤儿的英文背景

situation. The use of this technique gave the story a circular form wherein one event was the center, with various points of view radiating from it. The multiple points of view technique makes the reader recognize the difficulty of arriving at a true judgment.。

95. Myth: A story, often about immortals and sometimes connected with religious rituals, that is intended to give meaning to the mysteries of the world. Myths make it possible for people to understand and deal with things that they cannot control and often cannot see. A body of related myths that is accepted by a people is known as its mythology. A mythology tells a people what it is most concerned about.。

96. Narration: Like description, narration is a part of conversation and writing. Narration is the major technique used in expository writing. Such as autobiography. Successful narration must grow out of good observation, to-the-point selection from observation, and clear arrangement of details in logical sequence, which is usually chronological. Narration gives an exact picture of things as they occur.。

97. Narrative poem: A poem that tells a story. One kind of narrative poem is the epic, a long poem that sets forth the heroic ideals of a particular society.。

98. Narrator: One who narrates, or tells, a story. A story may be told by a first-person narrator, someone who is either a major or minor character in the story. Or a story may be told by a third-person narrator, someone who is not in the story at all. The word narrator can also refer to a character in a drama who guides the audience through the play, often commenting on the action and sometimes participating in it.。

99. Naturalism: An extreme form of realism. Naturalistic writers usually depict the sordid side of life and show characters who are severely, if not hopelessly, limited by their environment or heredity.。

100. Neoclassicism: A revival in the 17th agogo of order, balance, and harmony in literature. 。

101. Nonet: the nine-line stanza. Spenserian stanza: ababbcbcc.。

102. Nonfiction: It refers to any prose narrative that tells about things as the actually happened or that presents factual information about something. The purpose of this kind of writing is to give a presumably accurate accounting of a person’s life. Writers of nonfiction use the major forms of discourse: description (an impression of the subject); narration (the telling of the story); exposition (explanatory information); persuasion (an argument to influence people’s thinking). Forms: autobiography, biography, essay, story, editorial, letters to the editor found in newspaper, diary, journal, travel literature.。

103. Novel: A book-length fictional prose narrative, having may characters and often a complex plot. 。

104. Octava: the eight-line stanza. 2 quatrains/ 2 triplets + 1 couplet.。

105. Ode: A complex and often lengthy lyric poem, written in a dignified formal style on some lofty or serious subject. Odes are often written for a special occasion, to honor a person or a season or to commemorate an event.。

106. Onomatopoeia: The use of a word whose sound in some degree imitates or suggests its meaning.。

107. Oxymoron: a figure of speech that combines opposite or contradictory ideas or terms. An oxymoron suggests a paradox, but it does so very briefly, usually in two or three words.。

108. Paradox: A statement that reveals a kind of truth, although it seems at first to be self-contradictory and untrue.。

109. Parallelism: (a figure of speech) The use of phrases, clauses, or sentences that are similar or complementary in structure or in meaning. Parallelism is a form of repetition.。

110. Parody: The humorous imitation of a work of literature, art, or music. A parody often achieves its humorous effect through the use of exaggeration or mockery. In literature, parody can be make of a plot, a character, a writing style, or a sentiment or theme.。

111. Pastoral: A type of poem that deals in an idealized way with shepherds and rustic life.。

112. Pathos: The quality in a work of literature or art that arouses the reader’s feelings of pity, sorrow, or compassion for a character. The term is usually used to refer to situations in which innocent characters suffer through no fault of their own.。

113. Persuasion: It’s the type of speaking or writing that is intended to make its audience adopt a certain opinion or perform an action or do both. Persuasion is one of the major forms of discourse. 。

114. Pictorialism: It’s an important poetic device characterized by efforts to achieve striking visual effects. Among its features are irregularity of line, contrast or enchantment of light, color and image. Other means of pictorialism include personification, juxtaposition and the matching of colors with verbs of action.。

115. Plot: Plot is the first and most obvious quality of a story. It is the sequence of events or actions in a short story, novel, play, or narrative poem. For the reader, the plot is the underlying pattern in a work of fiction, the structural element that gives it unity and order. For the writer, the plot is the guiding principle of selection and arrangement. Conflict, a struggle of some kind, is the most important element of plot. Each event in the plot is related to the conflict, the struggle that the main character undergoes. Conflict may be external or internal, and there may be more than one form of conflict in a work. As the plot advances, we learn how the conflict is resolved. Action is generally introduced by the exposition, information essential to understanding the situation. The action rises to a crisis, or climax. This movement is called the rising action. The falling action, which follows the crisis, shows a reversal of fortune for the protagonist. The denouement or resolution is the moment when the conflict ends and the outcome of the action is clear.。

116. Poetry: The most distinctive characteristic of poetry is form and music. Poetry is concerned with not only what is said but how it is said. Poetry evokes emotions rather than express facts. Poetry means having a poetic experience. Imagination is also an essential quality of poetry. Poetry often leads us to new perceptions, new feelings and experiences of which we have not previously been aware.。

117. Point of view: The vantage point from which a narrative is told. There are two basic points of view: first-person and third-person. In the first-person point of view, the story is told by one of the characters in his or her own words. The first-person point of view is limited. In the third-person point of view, the narrator is not a character in the story. The narrator may be an omniscient. On the other hand, the third-person narrator might tell a story from the point of view of only one character in the story.。

118. Pre-Romanticism: It originated among the conservative groups of men and letters as a reaction against Enlightenment and found its most manifest expression in the “Gothic novel”. The term arising from the fact that the greater part of such romances were devoted to the medieval times.。

119. Protagonist: The central character of a drama, novel, short story, or narrative poem. The protagonist is the character on whom the action centers and with whom the reader sympathizes most. Usually the protagonist strives against an opposing force, or antagonist , to accomplish something.。

120. Psalm: A song or lyric poem in praise of God. 。

121. Psychological Realism: It is the realistic writing that probes deeply into the complexities of characters’ thoughts and motivations. Henry James is considered the founder of psychological realism. His novel The Ambassadors is considered to be a masterpiece of psychological realism.。

122. Pun: The use of a word or phrase to suggest tow or more meaning at the same time. Puns are generally humorous.。

123. Quatrain: Usually a stanza or poem of four lines. A quatrain may also be any group of four lines unified by a rhyme scheme. Quatrains usually follow an abab, abba, or abcb rhyme scheme.。

124. Quintain: the five-line stanza.。

125. Realism: The attempt in literature and art to represent life as it really is, without sentimentalizing or idealizing it. Realistic writing often depicts the everyday life and speech of ordinary people. This has led, sometimes, to an emphasis on sordid details.。

126. Refrain: 叠句: A word phrase, line or group of lines repeated regularly in a poem, usually at the end of each stanza. Refrains are often used in ballads and narrative poems to create a songlike rhythm and to help build suspense. Refrains can also serve to emphasize a particular idea.。

127. Renaissance: The term originally indicated a revival of classical (Greek and Roman) arts and sciences after the dark ages of medieval obscurantism.。

128. Rhyme: It’s one of the three basic elements of traditional poetry. It is the repetition of sounds in two or more words or phrases that appear close to each other in a poem. If the rhyme occurs at the ends of lines, it is called end rhyme. If the rhyme occurs within a line, it is called internal rhyme. Approximate rhyme is rhyme in which only the final consonant sounds of the words are identical. A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhymes in a poem. Interlocking rhyme is a rhyme scheme in which an unrhymed line in one stanza rhymes with a line in the following stanza. Interlocking rhyme occurs in an Italian verse form called terza rima.。

129. Rhythm: It is one of the three basic elements of traditional poetry. It is the arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables into a pattern. Rhythm often gives a poem a distinct musical quality. Poets also use rhythm to echo meaning.。

130. Romance: Any imagination literature that is set in an idealized world and that deals with a heroic adventures and battles between good characters and villains or monsters.。

131. Romanticism: A movement that flourished in literature, philosophy, music, and art in Western culture during most of the 19th century, beginnigogom.。

132. Satire: A kind of writing that holds up to ridicule or contempt the weaknesses and wrongdoings of individuals, groups, institutions, or humanity in general. The aim of satirists is to set a moral standard for society, and they attempt to persuade the reader to see their point of view through the force of laughter.。

133. Scansion诗的韵律分析: The analysis of verse in terms of meter.。

134. Sentimentalism: Sentimentalism came into being as a result of a bitter discontent on the part of certain enlighteners in social reality.。

135. Septet: the seven-line stanza. Chaucerian stanza: ababbcc.。

136. Sestet: the six-line stanza. 3couplets/ a quatrain + a couplet/ 2 triplets.。

137. Setting: The time and place in which the events in a short story, novel, play or narrative poem occur. Setting can give us information, vital to plot and theme. Often, setting and character will reveal each other.。

138. Short Story: A short story is a brief prose fiction, usually one that can be read in a single sitting. It generally contains the six major elements of fiction—characterization, setting, theme, plot, point of view, and style.。

139. Simile: (a figure of speech) A comparison make between two things through the use of a specific word of comparison, such as like, as than, or resembles. The comparison must be between two essentially unlike things.。

140. Skaz: It’s a Russian word used to designate a type of first person narration that has the characteristics of the spoken rather than the written word. In this kind of novel, the narrator is a character who refers to himself as “I” and addresses the reader as “you”. He or she uses vocabulary and syntax characteristic of colloquial speech, and appears to be relating the story spontaneously rather than delivering a carefully constructed and polished written account.。

141. Soliloquy: In drama, an extended speech delivered by a character alone onstage. The character reveals his or her innermost thoughts and feelings directly to the audience, as if thinking aloud.。

142. Song: A short lyric poem with distinct musical qualities, normally written to be set to music. In expresses a simple but intense emotion.。

143. Sonnet: A fourteen-line lyric poem, usually written in rhymed iambic pentameter. A sonnet generally expresses a single theme or idea.。

144. Speech: It was defined by Aristotle as the faculty of observing all the available means of persuasion.。

145. Spenserian stanza: A nine-line stanza with the following rhyme scheme: ababbabcc. The first eight lines are written in iambic pentameter. The ninth line is written in iambic hexameter and is called an alexandrine. 。

146. Spondee扬扬: It consists of two stressed syllables.。

147. Sprung Rhythm: A term created by the poet Gerard Manley Hopkins to designate a variable kind of poetic meter in which a stressed syllable may be combined with any number of unstressed syllables. Poems with sprung rhythm have an irregular meter and are meant to sound like natural speech.。

148. Stanza: It’s a structural division of a poem, consisting of a series of verse lines which usually comprise a recurring pattern of meter and thyme.。

149. Stereotype: A commonplace type or character that appears so often in literature that his or her nature is immediately familiar to the reader. Stereotypes, also called stock characters, always look and act the same way and reveal the same traits of character.。

150. Stream of consciousness: “Stream-of-Consciousness” or “interior monologue”, is one of the modern literary techniques. It is the style of writing that attempts to imitate the natural flow of a character’s thoughts, feelings, reflections, memories, and mental images as the character experiences them. It was first used in 1922 by the Irish novelist James Joyce. Those novels broke through the bounds of time and space, and depicted vividly and skillfully the unconscious activity of the mind fast changing and flowing incessantly, particularly the hesitant, misted, distracted and illusory psychology people had when they faced reality. The modern American writer William Faulkner successfully advanced this technique. In his stories, action and plots were less important than the reactions and inner musings of the narrators. Time sequences were often dislocated. The reader feels himself to be a participant in the stories, rather than an observer. A high degree of emotion can be achieved by this technique. 。

151. Style: An author’s characteristic way of writing, determined by the choice of words, the arrangement of words in sentences, and the relationship of the sentences to one another.。

152. Suspense: The quality of a story, novel, or drama that makes the reader or audience uncertain or tense about the outcome of events.。

153. Symbol: A symbol is a sign which suggests more than its literal meaning. In other words, a symbol is both literal and figurative. A symbol is a way of telling a story and a way of conveying meaning. The best symbols are those that are believable in the lives of the characters and also convincing as they convey a meaning beyond the literal level of the story. If the symbol is obscure or ambiguous, then the very obscurity and the ambiguity may also be part of the meaning of the story.。

154. Symbolism: Symbolism is the writing technique of using symbols. It’s a literary movement that arose in France in the last half of the 19th century and that greatly influenced many English writers, particularly poets, of the 20th century. It enables poets to compress a very complex idea or set of ideas into one image or even one word. It’s one of the most powerful devices that poets employ in creation.。

155. Synecdoche: A figure of speech that substitutes a part for a whole.。

156. Terza rima: An Italian verse form consisting of a series of three-line stanzas in which the middle line of each stanza rhymes with the first and third lines of the following stanza.。

157. Theme; The general idea or insight about life that a writer wishes to express in a literary work. All the elements of a literary work-plot, setting, characterization, and figurative language-contribute to the development of its theme.。

158. Tone: The attitude a writer takes toward his or her subject, characters, or audience. The tone of a speech or a piece of writing can be formal or intimate; outspoken or reticent; abstruse or simple; solemn or playful; angry or loving; serious or ironic.。

159. Tragedy: In general, a literary work in which the protagonist meets an unhappy or disastrous end. Unlike comedy, tragedy depicts the actions of a central character who is usually dignified or heroic.。

160. Triplet: The three-line stanza. Tercet: aaa, bbb, ccc, and so on; terza rima: aba, bcb cdc, and so on.。

161. Trochee扬抑格: the reverse of the iambic foot.。

162. Villanelle维拉内拉诗: An intricate verse form of French origin, consisting of several three-line stanzas and a concluding four-line stanza.。

163. Wit: A brilliance and quickness of perception combined with a cleverness of expression. In the 18th century, wit and nature were related-nature provided the rules of the universe; wit allowed these rules to be interpreted and expressed.。

16和17世纪英国文学特点，中英文都可以，谢谢。急。

Charles DIckens's Oliver Twist。

Oliver Twist: The Parish Boy抯 Progress。

Charles Dickens created an astonishing collection of literary masterpieces each of which tightly grasped the attention of the audience. Dickens was able to maintain a writing schedule that would have exhausted any other author. In slightly more than thirty years, Dickens published more than twenty novels, acted as editor for a variety of literary journals, created his own magazine, worked as a freelance reporter, and executed a series of charismatic public readings. His popularity established Dickens as one of the first 揷elebrities.?SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Crowds brimming with eager fans would accumulate as Dickens bellowed out the charming lines of his tantalizing novels. His significance and notoriety are still easily identified in contemporary literary cannons. Although his books sold and the audience waited on edge for the next installment of his works, Dickens was not given completely favorable reviews to every text. 。

Oliver Twist was begun in February 1837 and continued as monthly installments in Bentley抯 Miscellany until April of 1839. Dickens originally titled the novel Oliver Twist: The Parish Boy抯 Progress but it has since been shorten to simply Oliver Twist. Dickens finished writing the novel in the London of 1838 and the first edition of the novel was found on shelves in November of 1838. The novel falls into the genre of a children抯 detective story but the novel also contains an aspect of social protest as Dickens details the Poor Laws and workhouses. Dickens uses his hyperbolic irony and sentimentalism to create characters currently residing in the underworld of industrial London. The themes that appear within the text are the delineation between good and evil, the hypocritical attitudes and behaviors of public institutions, and the ultimately flawed theory of individualism. Dickens uses mistaken identities and familial ties to create a story, which closely details the journey of a virtuous orphan through the mean streets of poverty (Spark Notes: Oliver Twist).。

While Dickens was composing Oliver Twist, he was also working as editor of Bentleys Miscellany. As an author, Dickens rarely completely finished one work before beginning an entirely new project. For example, Pickwick Papers was not completed prior to his beginning of Oliver Twist. Nor was Oliver Twist completed before Dickens had moved on to Nicholas Nickleby. Master Humphrey抯 Clock and The Old Curiosity Shop were soon to follow. Dickens wrote at a fevered pace which would have been daunting to other authors. In addition to his rapid publication of novels, Dickens was also able to create strikingly differing works. His first serially published novel, Pickwick Papers, was fully of comic charisma; however, Gilbert Keith Chesterton states that Oliver Twist 搃s by far the most depressing of all his books?(Chesterton). 。

Oliver Twist is the story of an orphan who unwittingly stumbles upon his hidden fortune. The tale is one that vividly depicts the dismal prospects of one born into a workhouse without parents and is forced to survive on little or no compassion. Oliver is unloved and unwanted from the open of the novel. However, as the novel progresses, Oliver finds that his honest and kind disposition win him a variety of friends in high places. Although Fagin and the other street urchins continually seek to ruin Oliver抯 connections, Oliver抯 faithful heart find a home in the end. The novel demonstrates the benefits of a good will that may be found in the most unlikely of people. Oliver抯 merits carry him through life and away from the poverty that capture those with weaker morals. In the conclusion of the tale, Oliver finds himself among those with equally good manners and morals. His situation is only improved through the inevitable triumph of good over evil.。

Dickens initially published Oliver Twist in the format of serial publication. Dickens used the process of creating monthly installments to create a high level of suspense, leaving the audience eagerly awaiting the next installment in the series. Oliver Twist was reportedly 揳 part of everyday conversations, just as top rated television shows are for us today.?SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Dickens effectively used the publishing techniques to his benefit; he was able to work the system (Oliver Twist桾he Author and His Times).。

Interestingly, Dickens抯 personal environment was greatly shaken in both a happy manner and a sad one during the publishing of Oliver Twist. In May of 1837 Mary Hogarth died, devastating Dickens. Hogarth, his sister-in-law, was a dear friend and supporter of Dickens. Many critics speculate that the characters of Rose and Nancy were modeled after Dickens?companion Mary Hogarth. After Hogarth抯 death, Dickens feelings of abandonment seep into the world of Oliver. Oliver fears the loss of Rose as Dickens mourns the loss of Mary (Oliver Twist桾he Author and His Times). Catherine Dickens was also reported to have given birth to Charles, the first of ten children during this time (Victorian Web). The splendor of a new baby was contrasted with the great loss of a close friend. Dickens, in fact, was forced to take a break from his busy writing schedule to cope with the drastic changes that took place in his personal life at this time.。

The Poor Laws were established prior to the publication of the novel. The Poor Laws, according to The Victorian Web, were created to destroy the relief programs that were in play since 1601. The Poor Laws generated a system of workhouses. The workhouses allowed for a program of assistance that did not merely dole out money but rather doled out food, shelter, and clothing. The Poor Laws provided an answer to the declining laws that were supporting the impoverished. The problems were obvious: the current system left the aged uncared for, the children ignorant and uneducated, and the lower class population starving. King George III proposed a plan to:。

Stop the allowance system梩o deprive the magistracy of the power of ordering out-door relief梩o alter in certain case the constitution of parochial vestries梩o give large discretionary powers to the central commissioners梩o simplify the law of settlement and removal梩o render the mother of an illegitimate child liable to support it. Dickens[1] 366。

However, the workhouses proved to be yet another place to shove the poor. The theory may have been formed from noble ideals but the foundations were flawed.。

The boundaries and faults of the Poor Laws are blatantly exemplified in Oliver Twist. Oliver is forced to suffer the indignities of starvation, brutal treatment, and is damned to life in a workhouse. Dickens used his artistic talents to speak for the silent, to fight for the oppressed, and to champion those defeated. Dickens himself states: 揑t was my attempt, in my humble and far distant sphere, to dim the false glitter surrounding something which really did exist, by showing it in its unattractive and repulsive truth?(Dickens 6). Dickens used his literary engine to fuel the debate over the Poor Laws and to reveal the reality that so many unfortunate souls were forced to inhabit.。

The novel was received in a variety of ways. Many hailed the novel as a 搑unaway bestseller?and an encore to the highly prized Pickwick Papers. On the other hand, the Jewish population as well as other critics found the novel to be far too sentimental and lacking. One of the major issues raised by an entire community against the novels was the portrayal Fagin, the evil Jew. Milton Kerker in his article 揅harles Dickens, Fagin and Riah?states that Fagin may be the 搈ost grotesgue and villainous Jew in all of English literature.?SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Fagin was found by the Jewish community to be a ruffian with the devil dwelling within his cold heart. In 1854 the Jewish Chronicle was outraged and presented the public with this criticism of Dickens. Later in 1863, Eliza Davis writes Dickens to question his portrayal of Fagin. Dickens responds to Davis by stating:。

I must take leave to say, that if there be any general feeling on the part of the intelligent Jewish people, that I have done them what you describe as 揳 great wrong,?they are a far less sensible, a far less just, and a far less good-tempered people than I have always supposed them to be. Fagin, in Oliver Twist, is a Jew, because it unfortunately was true of the time to which that story refers, that that class of criminal almost invariably was a Jew. Dickens 378。

The public did not openly object to the portrayal of Fagin until several years after the novel was originally published. However, despite the fact that Dickens maintained his innocence, Dickens did attempt to make alterations in the next edition of the novel to correct this offensive implication. In the 1867 edition of chapter 38, Fagin is referred to as 搕he Jew?more than 250 times. However, in later chapters he is referred to as 搕he Jew?only 32 times. This is thought to have been Dickens抯 attempt to reconcile Fagin抯 character with the Jewish community. Despite this characterization of Fagin and Dickens抯 wording changes, Dickens never openly abused a Jewish person nor did he openly practice anti-Semitic opinions (Kerker).。

Likewise, the Monthly Review of January 1839 demanded that Dickens used characters that are so low that sympathy cannot be created. The reviewer feels that although there were comic pieces worth noting, the ending does not comply with the standard notion that the evil ones must face strict consequences while the just are rewarded. The reviewer does not go so far as to claim Dickens to be an immoral writer but he does not treat the characters with the morals that would classify Dickens with the 揾ighest rank of our moral fictionists.?Dickens is yet again commended for openly stating the plea of the downtrodden but in this reviewer抯 opinion, the downtrodden are not moral enough to place Dickens in a higher class of fiction novelists (Dickens 403-405).。

Just as the Monthly Review questions the worth of such characters as Nancy, William Makepeace Thackeray also claims that such characters are not worth the sympathy or the attention of the audience. Thackeray does allow for Dickens抯 popularity but questions his use of setting and characters. True, Dickens can charm an audience like none other. True, one must continually read Dickens to satisfy some strange need. Unfortunately, the fact remains that Thackeray does not believe there is much to be gained by closely examining the life of the poor and forgotten (Dickens 408-410). In the opinion of Thackeray, would it not be much more prudent to bestow such kind sympathies upon a worthier class of characters? Character such as Amelia Osborne and Becky Sharp are worthy of moral scrutiny but Oliver Twist and the like shall remain in the gutter, below the view of the mainstream population.。

Early reviews from The Examiner, September 10,1837, claim that this novel is an 揺xact painting?of the reality Dickens wished to present to the public. Dickens was praised for his capture of the emotions surrounding death of Nancy and the detailing of Oliver抯 life as an orphan. Although the reviewer is surprised to see Dickens making use of the Poor Law Debates in the first chapters of the novel, the reviewer understands the philanthropy that Dickens is attempting to inspire (Dickens 399-401). In conclusion of this review, the author states: 揥e leave him most reluctantly, and so will every read who has any capacity to see and feel whatsoever is most loveable, hateful, or laughable, in the character of the everyday life about him?(401).。

The Spectator states on November 24, 1838, that Dickens 揾as genius to vivify his observation.?SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Dickens is complimented for his powerful use of pathos and his description of truth. The reviewer admires Dickens抯 ability to find good in all humanity despite the dirty surroundings of unfortunates such as Oliver. Dickens抯 style is commended to be capable of an effective use of language while never sounding forced (Dickens 401-402).。

The Literary Gazette, and Journal of the Belles Lettres declares on November 24, 1838, that Dickens has 背ug deep into the human mind; and he has nobly directed his energies to the exposure of evils梩he workhouse, the starving school, the factory system, and many other things, at which blessed nature shudder and recoiled.?SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Dickens抯 ability to capture the suffering of Oliver intrigues the reading audience. Those who are far removed from the factories and the workhouses are suddenly acutely aware of the plea of the poor and the corruption of the Poor Laws. Dickens抯 has made a successful journey into social activism with the guidance of Oliver and his band of companions (Dickens 402-403).。

The Quarterly Review of 1839 published a glowing review of the novel. The reviewer believed Dickens to be 揳 sign of the times?and as such, he provoked 搈ore interest than that of Halley抯 comet.?SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> The reviewer felt that not only did he write just enough and not too much, but also he wrote with enough vigor to demand that the public read the next installment. His popularity was unparalleled and his installments were always immediately read. Dickens manages to tell of 搑eal pain?while the novel lacks in false sentimentalism (Dickens 405-408). The reviewer states: 揌e deals truly with human nature, which never can degrade; he takes up everything, good, bad, or indifferent, which he works up into a rich alluvial deposit. He is natural, and that never can be ridiculous?(Dickens 406).。

Ironically, Oliver Twist, one of Dickens抯 earliest published works, returned to Dickens upon his death. During his career, Dickens performed public readings of his novels to large crowds of people. It was reported that such readings drew people from great distances to watch as Dickens reenacted his colorfully written scenes. During one of these readings, his last dramatic performance, Dickens suffered a collapse in April of 1869. Dickens was reading the portion of Oliver Twist where Sikes violently murders Nancy. The scene was 损hysically and emotionally exhausting?for the over-worked author. After this collapse, Dickens ceased to perform public readings of his novels. The stress on his body led to his death on June 8th of 1870. Dickens was working on The Mystery of Edwin Drood at the time of his death (Oliver Twist桾he Author and His Times). 。

Dickens has been criticized for his choice of characters and setting. At times the novel tends to shift to a sentimentality that leaves a sour taste in the mouth of the reading audience. The novel condemns the world of the Poor Laws by describing in great detail the life of a prostitute, orphan, gang of thieves, and other miscreants that grope their way along the underbelly of civilization. However, many of the reviewers felt that Dickens抯 ability to color realism with his pen was worth reading. Although Fagin may have been referred to as 搕he Jew?numerous times, Dickens was able to effectively shed light upon the suffering of the impoverished. After all, Dickens抯 goal was to pointedly describe the reality of where and how Oliver lived and survived the streets of a city that did not want him. The novel depicts the best of human nature in contrast with the worst of human nature. Couple the dynamic duo of good verse evil with the name of Charles Dickens and a best seller is a sure thing.。

16和17世纪英国文学特点：

在诗歌中出现了以多恩为代表的玄学派诗和一些称为骑士派的贵族青年所写的爱情诗，前者用新奇的形像和节奏写怀疑与信念交替的复杂心情，显示出当时科学大进展冲击传统文化的影响，後者则表达了一种末世情调。

17世纪40年代，革命终于爆发。人民经过公开审判，处决了国王查理一世﹐并在打了一场激烈的内战之後建立了以克伦威尔为首的资产阶级政权。

在文学上﹐革命主要表现于两个方面﹕一是有大量的传单和小册子印行﹐各种集团特别是属于革命阵营左翼的平均派和掘地派通过它们来发表政见﹐其中李尔本﹑温斯坦利等人写得犀利有力﹔二是出现了一个革命的大诗人──弥尔顿。

弥尔顿对于革命的贡献﹐首先在于他的政论文。从1641年起﹐他搁下了早以优美著称的诗笔﹐而用英文和拉丁文写了许多政论小册子﹐为英国人民处死国王的革命行动辩护，也发表他的进步主张。

扩展资料：

20世纪英国文学特点：

20世纪文学的第一个成就是戏剧创作上的突破。首先是爱尔兰人萧伯纳来到伦敦﹐用泼辣的剧评为易卜生所代表的欧洲现实主义新戏剧打开局面﹐接著又在自己的创作里巧妙地把它同阿里斯托芬以来的欧洲古典喜剧传统结合起来。

写出了51个剧本﹐其中有《华伦夫人的职业》(1894)﹑《人与超人》(1903)﹑《英国佬的另一个岛》(1904)﹑《巴巴拉少校》(1905)﹑《皮格马利翁》(1913)﹑《圣女贞德》(1923)﹑《苹果车》(1929)等名作。

它们或是辩论社会问题﹐或是发表新颖思想﹐但都给观众以高尚的艺术享受。萧伯纳的出现使过去一百年英国戏剧不振的局面根本改观。

在小说方面，继续现实主义传统的更大有人在。老一辈作家中，威尔斯不止善写科学幻想小说﹐而且长于描绘伦敦小市民的职业生涯﹐高尔斯华绥用上层人士的语言写资产者福赛特的家史﹐本涅特和毛姆用法国式的现实主义手法写人们的情感生活﹐都拥有广大的读者。

对知识分子更有吸引力的是著重写人与人之间的交情的福斯特﹐他的名作《印度之行》(1924)表达了东西文化在精神上的隔膜。赫胥黎则利用他对于科学和文艺的广博知识﹐写知识分子在现代世界里的困惑。

20年代之末出现了普里斯特利的《好伙伴》(1929)﹐写一个民间剧团在各处演出时的遭遇﹐发扬了狄更斯的喜剧式的现实主义传统。

参考资料来源：百度百科—英国文学。

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