当前位置：文档库 › 四位作家

四位作家

George Gordon, Lord Byron

( 1788-1824)

George Gordon, Lord Byron

?No hand can make the clock strike for me the hours that are passed. --- Byron

光阴如流水，一去不复返。---拜伦

?Love my I report with sigh, hate my me to smile away, regardless head top what kind of the sky,

I will greet the whole storm. --- Byron

爱我的我报以叹息，恨我的我置之一笑，无论头上是怎样的天空，我将迎接一切风暴。---拜伦

Early Life

George Gordon Byron, also known as

the Lord Byron, was born in a noble

family in London on 22 January1788,

one year before the French Revolution.

Patents

his father: a captain nicknamed

―Mad Jack‖;

squandered away the money of the

poet’s mother and then deserted her;

finally died deep in debt.

his mother: a Scottish noblewoman,

Catherine Gordon,

a descendant of the King of Scotland.

Education

Harrow and Cambridge 1798-1809

?In his second year at Cambridge: accepted into a group of older, influential scholars;

?At Cambridge, he had become entranced by the beautiful face and angelic singing voice.

?while a student, Byron published his first collection of poems ,

Hours of Idleness《悠闲的时光》(1807-19)，which were cruelly attacked.

Two years later(1809-21),in the form of a satire ,

English Bards and Scotch Reviewers《英国诗人和苏格兰评论家》

published and caused great shock in the upper classes.

Byron’s Life

First Travels to the East

?After the success, Byron spent the next two years in Europe(1809-1811) 21-23.

?The experience in Europe provided him with poetical material and his creative work soon reached a new stage.

The Grand Tour

The first two cantos of

Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage(1809)《恰尔德. 哈罗德游记》

He said "I woke up one day and found myself famous".

Marriage 1815-1816 27-28

In January 1815, Byron married

Miss Milbanke.

an unhappy marriage;

the birth of their daughter Ada;

His wife left him and refused

to come back, saying ―He was insane‖.

Leave London Forever

In 1816, 28-year old

On April 25,1816,he left

England forever.

his leaving remarked his

split with the reactionary

British Government and the

hypocritical English high society.

Switzerland 1816 -28

Byron in Greece 1821-1823 33-36

Byron Died

Byron’s death,

was deeply mourned by

the Greek people and by all progressive

people throughout the world

The Works of Lord Byron

1788-1824

II. Works

?A. Long Poems

1. Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage

2. Don Juan

Don Juan 《唐璜》

?It was written in Italy during the years from 1818 to 1823.

?It has 16,000 lines in 16 cantos and witten in ottava rima （八行体）.

?Each stanza contains 8 iambic pentameter lines.

?The rhyme scheme is abababcc

The Plot of Don Juan

II. Works

?B. Byron’s Short Lyrics ( nature, love and political aspiration )

1. She Walks in Beauty

2. When We Two Parted

3. Hebrew Melodies

4. Sonnet on Chillon

?C. dramas

?Manfred (1817)

?Cain (1821)

Others

Byronic Hero

1）being a rebel;

2) having a distaste for social institutions;

3) being an exile;

4) expressing a lack of respect for rank and privilege;

Byronic Hero

5) having great talent;

6) hiding an unsavory past;

7) being highly passionate;

8) Ultimately being self-destructive

Appreciation

Byron’s Poems

When We Two Parted

?Subject: looking back with regret at a broken relationship. It is aroused by the remembrance of their parting.

?Form: 4 octaves. All have very short lines, producing an effect of separation. Each two lines meant to be one – a severing. Punctuation gives even more expression of the lines being broken, and his heart being broken.

When We Two Parted

Tone: doleful, slow and sad, melancholy, grieving, depressing. Obvi ously he hasn’t yet got over the loss of his love.

Intention: is to give vent to his feelings: to portray his grief, lingering sorrow, as well as anger at being treated so.

She Walks in Beauty

?Form of the poem:The three stanzas of this poem all follow the same rhyme scheme (ababab, cdcdcd, efefef) and the same metrical pattern.

Byron’s ―She Walks in Beauty‖

She Walks in Beauty

?It was inspired by Mrs. Wilmot, Byron’s cousin, when he saw her wearing a spangled dress at Lady Sitwell’s party in June, 1814.

She walks in beauty, like the night

Of cloudless climes and starry skies;

Byron’s ―She Walks in Beauty‖

And all that's best of dark and bright

Meet in her aspect and her eyes:

Thus mellow’d to that tender light

Which heaven to gaudy day denies.

?The focus of the vision is upon the details of the lady’s face and eyes, which reflect the mellowed

and tender light.

Byron’s ―She Walks in Beauty‖

Note:

?The poem concerns itself with the two forces—darkness and light—at work in the woman’s beauty,

?and also the two areas of her beauty—the internal and the external.

Four Beauties in Ancient China

●Xi Shi (c. seventh to sixth century BC, Spring and Autumn Period), said to be so entrancingly beautiful that fish would forget how to swim and sink away from the surface when she walks by.(西施沉魚)

●Wang Zhaojun (c. first century BC, Western Han Dynasty), said to be so beautiful that her appearance would entice birds in flight to fall from the sky.(昭君落雁)

●Diao Chan (c. third century, Late Eastern Han/Three Kingdoms period), said to be so luminously lovely that the moon itself would shy away in embarrassment when compared to her face.(貂嬋閉月)

●Yang Guifei (719–756, Tang Dynasty), said to have a face that puts all flowers to shame.(貴妃羞花)

Child Harold’s Pilgrimage

?1. a highly successful expression o f the poet’s views and feelings

?2. a record of the ―pilgrimage or tour of a young English aristocrat compared to the adventures of a medieval knight

?3. consistent attitude of antagonism toward tyranny and his great enthusiasm for freedom

Child Harold’s Pi lgrimage

?4. passionate utterances on the national liberation movement

?5. beautiful descriptive passages on wild nature

?6.varied poetic style

The Isles of Greece

?拜伦在致出版商麦利的信中说：

“要让唐璜在欧洲旅行一趟”，“目的是使我有可能指出各国社会的可笑方面。”

Don Juan

The Isles of Greece

?Byron’s most effective poetical utterances on national freedom

?A Greek singer at the wedding of Don Juan and Haidee

?Contrast: struggle for their national freedom and liberation

?the freedom enjoyed by the Greek ancient people

?the enslavement of the early 19th century Greeks

Don Juan (1818-1823)

1. The series of his adventures gives a panoramic view of

the different types of society in different parts of Europe.

2. Many different themes are touched upon or dealt with.

3. It shows Byron’s progressive or even revolutionary

stand in political, social and philosophical problems.

Don Juan (1818-1823)

?4. It ridicules the education of the young in aristocratic circles in Catholic Spain, the slave market in Turkey and the impartial court at St. Petersburg.

?5. It shows his conviction that people will rise up one day against the tyrants and that revolution is the only remedy to change the world.

Define the Following Terms

?1. Ottava rima: a form of verse stanza consisting of eight lines rhyming abababcc, usually employed for narrative verse but sometimes used in lyric poems.

?It was introduced into English by Thomas Wyatt in the 16th century, and later used by Byron in Don Juan as well as by Keats, Shelley and Keats.

Define the Following Terms

?2. Spenserian Stanza: a nine-line stanza with the following rhyme scheme: ababbcbcc. The first eight lines are written in iambic hexameter and is called an alexandrine.

?The Spenserian stanza was invented by Edmund Spenser for his epic poem The Faerie Queene. The Spenserian stanza was also used by Byron, Keats and Shelley.

Homework

?1. Tell the theme of Don Juan.

?2. Make a comment on Byron.

Answer

?1. 1) Byron invests in Juan the moral positives like courage, generosity and frankness which are virtues neglected by the modern society.

?2) By making use of Juan’s adventures, Byron presents a panoramic view of different types of society.

Answer

?3) Don Juan presents brilliant pictures of life in its various stages of love, joy, suffering, hatred and fear.

?4) The unifying principle in Don Juan is the basic ironic theme of appearance and reality. With Don Juan, Byron launches satire on the hypocritical English society.

Answer

?2. 1) Byron is one of the most excellent representatives of English Romanticism. He was one of the most influential poets of his time.

?2) His literary career was closely linked with the struggle and progressive movements of his age. He opposed oppression and slavery, and had an ardent love for liberty. He praised the people’s revolutionary struggles in his works.

Answer

?3) His poems show energy and vigor, romantic daring and powerful passion.

?4) Though he was a romantic, he had stronger ties to the 18th century writers than any of his. He was a great admirer of Dryden and Pope.

Percy Bysshe Shelley

( 1792—1822)

?Poetry is the record of the best and happiest moments of the happiest and best minds.

?Without exception the best and least selfish man I ever knew.

— Byron

?One of the best artists of us all

—Wordsworth

I. Shelley’s Life

Shelley’s Life

I. Shelley’s Life

II. His Literary Works

●1) The Necessity of Atheism

●《无神论的必要性》in Oxford University

II. His Literary Works

●2) Queen Mab: in the form of a fairy tale dream

《仙后麦布》the first long poem, in London

a revolutionary poem condemning tyranny and exploitation and the unjust war

a Utopian-socialist

rejecting the path of revolution by violence

II. His Literary Works

●3) Prometheus Unbound: the Greek tragedian Aeschylus’s play Prometheus Bound

●《解放了的普罗米修斯》in Italy

●Steal fire; on Mt. Caucasus, a vulture

●noble-hearted revolutionaries

3) Prometheus Unbound

II. His Literary Works

?4) Ode to the West Wind

?《西风颂》in Italy

?5) The Masque of Anarchy

?《暴政的行列》a political lyric；

?The Peterloo Massacre: in Italy

His Literary Works

?6) A Defence of Poetry

?《诗之辩护》in Italy

?7) The Triumph of Life

?《革命的胜利行列》in Italy；504 lines unfinished

Ozymandias

Ode to the West Wind

Define the Following Terms

1. Ode: is a single, complex and often lengthy lyric poem, often in the form of a lengthy ceremonious address to a person or abstract entity, written in a dignified formal style on some lofty or serious matter.

Define the Following Terms

2. Terza rima: a verse form consisting of a sequence of interlinked tercets rhyming aba bcb cdc ded. Thus the second line of each tercet provides the rhyme for the first and third lines of the next, the sequence closes with one line rhyming with the middle line of the last tercet. The form was invented by Dante Alighieri for his Divine Comedy.

Comments on Shelley’s Poetry

1)Shelley has a reputation as a difficult poet: erudite (/érudait/) (learned), complex (difficult), full of classical and mythological allusions（神话典故）.

2)His style abounds (is rich) in personification and metaphor and other figures of speech. Comments on Shelley

1. He and Byron are justifiably (justly, rightly) regarded as the two great poets of the revolutionary romanticism in England.

Comments on Shelley

2. Shelley is one of the leading Romantic poets, an intense and original lyrical poet in the English language.

3. Shelley loved the people and hated their oppressors and exploiters.

Comments on Shelley

4. He called on the people to overthrow the rule of tyranny and injustice and prophesied（预言）a happy and free life for mankind.

5.He stood for this social and political ideal all his life.

Homework

1.Tell the theme of Ode to the West Wind.

2. What is the symbolic meaning of ― the West Wind‖?

3. How is Shelley’s Prometheus Unbound different from the traditional Greek interpretation? What is the significance of this difference?

Answer

?1. 1). It expresses Shelley’s optimistic belief that the old world must go, a new world must come with the spring, faden with fresh sweet promises for suffering humanity. It anticipates the political triumph.

?2). The poet asks the wind to work in him, restoring him to spiritual health and creative vigor.

Answer

?2. 1) regeneration which follows the destruction and death of winter

?2) the wind of spirit and inspiration

?3) the destructive and revolutionary energies that had been seen in Europe

?4) an abstract expression or manifestation of the spirit within nature

Answer

?3. The plot of Shelley’s drama is borrowed from Prometheus Bound, a play of the Greek tragedian Aeschylus.

?1). Aeschylus made Prometheus finally become reconciled with Zeus. Shelley transformed the compromise into a struggle, which leads to the liberation of the oppressed. Zeus is driven from the throne and Prometheus is unbound.

Answer

2) In this poem Prometheus represents mankind itself and Zeus , a symbol of all reactionary institutions.

This radical transformation symbolizes the victory for man’s struggle against tyranny and oppression and expresses Shelley’s faith in the ultimate victory of th e people.

John Keats ( 1795-1821)

A poet is a sage, a humanist, physician to all men.

Keats (1795—1821)

Keats’ Life Story

John Keats’ Life

Here lies one whose name was writ in water.

（这儿躺着一位名字用水写成的人）

1.济慈临终前并不认为自己的诗歌在诗坛占据了重要的地位，所以―名字用水写成‖说明一经阳光的照射声名便会如雾散去，表达对自己人生与事业的失望。这也是最流行的一种说法。

2.阿蒙特有名言―你所做的一切好事，都将记录在水上‖，而济慈一贯的报负就是通过诗歌的事业―为世界做些好事‖，所以这个墓志铭可能暗示济慈毕生追求的用心。

3.―名字用水写成‖，水为流通的媒介，济慈客死于罗马。可能暗喻其客死他乡或诗魂从水上飘回家乡。

John Keats and Fanny Brawn

●A. creation time: in the second half of May 1819

●B. background

●C. In this ode, Keats focuses on immediate, concrete sensations and emotions.

●D. At the same time, it is full of the speculation about life and death and art full of the ―light and shade‖ .

●E. The ode is written in ten-line stanzas.

●F. Its rhyme scheme is the same in every stanza: abab cdecde.

●G. Birds are always ideal symbols of poets and poetry.

●In this ode, Keats not only expresses his raptures upon hearing the beautiful songs of the nightingale and his desire to go to the ethereal world of beauty together with the bird,

●but he also shows his deep sympathy for and his keen understanding of human miseries in the society in which he lived.

Ode on a Grecian Urn

Homework

Why is Keats, unlike the radical Shelley and Byron, among the active Romantic poets? Give comments on John Keats.

Answer

1.1) his connections with the group of radicals in Leigh Hunt’s circle

2) his uncompromising attitude toward reactionary criticism

3) his sympathy for the poor and the miserable

4) his belief in the lofty mission of the poet to work for the welfare of the people

Jane Austen

Jane Austen (1775-1817)

Hampshire, a small town in southwest England

I. Life Experience

1. Family

2. Hobby

3. Education

4. Marriage

I. Life Experience

II. Six Novels

1. Sense and Sensibility

(1811)

2. Pride and Prejudice

(1813)

3. Mansfield Park

（1814）

II. Six Novels

4. Emma

（1815）

5. Northanger Abbey

(1818)

6. Persuasion

（1818）

Scott’s Comment on Austen

Virginia Woolf’s Comment on Austen

?the most perfect artist among women

III. Writing Features

A. modern middle-class characters in everyday village life

III. Writing Features

B. realistic descriptions

the frequent use of dialogues

humor

C. a wealth of wit

delicate satire

IV. Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice（1813）

the original title First Impressions

(the second novel)

IV. Pride and Prejudice

Characters: are the persons represented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the reader as being endowed with particular moral, intellectual and emotional qualities by inferences from the dialogue and the action.

Characters

A. Main Characters

IV. Pride and Prejudice

?Plot—everyday life of simple country society

The story centers around the heroine Elizabeth and the hero Darcy and her sister Jane and his friend Bingley.

B. Plot

IV. Pride and Prejudice

?Point of view: limited omniscient （Elizabeth ）

?Tone: light, satirical, vivid

C. Character Analysis

Elizabeth Bennet

intelligent, lively and animated

opinionated

the revolt against conventions of society

Fitzwilliam Darcy

kind, helpful and honest

opinionated and arrogant about his position in society

capable of growing and adjusting his value system

D. Chapter One

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

—Pride and Prejudice

D. Chapter One

?The main subject of the novel will be courtship and marriage

?To establish the humorous tone of the novel by taking a simple subject to elaborate and to speak intelligently

?To prepare the reader for a chase in the novel of either a husband in search of a wife, or a women in pursuit of a husband

D. Chapter One

To define Austen’s book as a piece of literature that connects itself to the 18th century period the emphasis on man in his social environment rather than in his individual conditions

( satire and wit )

The Opening Sentence

1. a miniature sketch of the plot

2. the standard of ideal marriage in Regency England

Attitudes Towards Marriage

for fortune, money and social rank

for beauty, attraction and passion

for love and mutual understanding

Marriages

?Darcy and Elizabeth: a successful and lasting marriage; mutual understanding ?Bingley and Jane: a successful marriage; too gullible and too good-hearted to ever act strongly against external forces

?Lydia and Wickham: a bad marriage; appearances, good looks, and youthful vivacity; hasty marriage based on superficial qualities quickly cools and leads to unhappiness

Marriages

?4. Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Bennet: their relationship was similar to that of Lydia and Wickham; she was once as energetic as Lydia; he found refuge in his library or in mocking his wife; use good judgment to select a spouse

?5. Mr. Collins and Charlotte：on economics rather than on love or appearance

Marriages

?These five marriages contribute to the theme that a happy and strong marriage takes time to build and must be based on mutual feeling, understanding, and respect.

?Hasty marriages acting on impulse, and based on superficial qualities will not survive and will lead to inevitable unhappiness.

IV. Pride and Prejudice

?Irony: A contrast or an incongruity between what is stated and what is really meant, or between what is expected and what actually happens.

Irony

?Three kinds of irony:

1) verbal irony：spoken words

2) dramatic irony：what the character says, thinks, or does and the true situation

3) irony of situation：logical cause/ effect relationships and justifiable expectations

Homework

1.Irony abounds in the novel Pride and Prejudice. Please illustrate it with reference to some examples.

2. Make a general comment on Jane Austen.

Answer

?1. Irony plays a decisive part in characterization as well as in plot development.

?1) The verbal irony in the dialogues and the situational or dramatic irony are especially note-worthy. ?2) In terms of plot, the whole story seems to be composed of ironies. With a negative start on both sides at the beginning of the story, we watch with anxiety the gradual development of love between Darcy and Elizabeth.

Answer

3) Characterization:

Mr. Collins—propose to one but marry another;

Miss Bingley—try to engage the heart of her beloved by speaking ill of her rival;

Wickham—his lies lead to the exposure of his true nature and the final union of Darcy and Elizabeth; Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Bennet

Answer

?2. 1) Jane Austen’s main concern is about huma n beings in their personal relations, human beings with their families and neighbors. She is particularly preoccupied with the relationship between men and women in love.

Answer

?2) She writes a narrow sphere. The subject matter, the character range, the moral setting, physical setting and social setting and plots are all restricted to the provincial and village life of the 19th century England.

?3) Her novels are surprisingly realistic, with keen observation and penetrating analysis.

Answer

4) Austen uses dialogues to reveal the personalities of the characters. The plots of her novels appear natural and unforced. Her characters are vividly portrayed and everyone alive.

5) Her language, which is of typical neoclassicism, is simple, easy, naturally lucid and very economical.