英语论文12.ppt

Lecture 2
American romanticism and the independence of American literature
The rise of romanticism and its features
:1810---1840(rough range: from the end of the 18th century to the outbreak of Civil War)
2. representative writers: Washington Irving, James Fenimore Cooper, Edgar Allen Poe, William Cullen Bryant
reason for its rise and its features:
(1) the rapid economic development after independence: the flourishing of journals;
(2)the national experience of westwards pioneering provides rich materials for writers;
(3) the influence from Romanticism in Europe;
(4)the rating influence of cultural heritage----Puritanism.
Section 1 Washington Irving (1783--1859 )
1. fame: the father of American literature, the first writer who achieve international recognition
: he was the first writer who make American literature appear independently.
3. the style and feature of his prose and essay: Gentle tone and diction, elegant and fluid, humorous yet witty.
4. the feature of his short story: gothic, supernatural, nostalgic.
ideas of his work: humanitarianism
His representative works
▲Rip Van Winkle
▲ The Lengend of Sleepy Hollow
The introduction about Rip Van Winkle:
1. story:
-theme:
(1) world-weariness:
(2) change and reform:
(3) nature
Section 2 Edgar Allen Poe(1809--1849)

2. Career
(1) Poe the short story writer
(2) Poe the critic
(3) Poe the poet
▲Poe and American romantic poetry
features of American poetry in 19th century:
(1) Common theme for the poems in this period : human nature, and this theme reveals as follows: a. existence and spirit of human being;
b. reason and emotion,
c. and the relation between human being and history, God, nature and machinery.
(2) Two types for poems in this period :
A. traditional type: poetry revealing relation between human being and nature.
representative poet: William Cullen Bryant
▲B. creative type: poetry revealing the relation between Western and Orie