常耀信美文学笔记.txt

湖师真是奇怪,复试指定的参考书跟跟实际考试几乎不沾边。而且今年跟去年明显不一样,听一位好心的师姐说去年复试的笔试以客观题为主,今年全是主观题,总共三道:1,。奥斯汀文学评论的一篇文章,2,对海明威《永别了,武器》最后一部分的理解。3,文学与我的英语作文,500--600字。两个小时完成。几乎完全与杨岂深编的几本大部头书无关。不知学院用意何如?
A Concise History of American Literature
What is literature?
Literature is language artistically used to achieve identifiable literary qualities and to convey meaningful messages.
Chapter 1 Colonial Period
I. Background: Puritanism
features of Puritanism
(1) Predestination: God decided everything before things occurred.
(2) Original sin: Human beings were born to be evil, and this original sin can be passed down from generation to generation.
(3) Total depravity
(4) Limited atonement: Only the “elect” can be saved.
Influence
(1) A group of good qualities – hard work, thrift, piety, sobriety (serious and thoughtful) influenced American literature.
(2) It led to the everlasting myth. All literature is based on a myth – garden of Eden.
(3) Symbolism: the American puritan’s metaphorical mode of perception was chiefly instrumental in calling into being a literary symbolism which is distinctly American.
(4) With regard to their writing, the style is fresh, simple and direct; the rhetoric is plain and honest, not without a touch of nobility often traceable to the direct influence of the Bible.
II. Overview of the literature
types of writing
diaries, histories, journals, letters, travel books, autobiographies/biographies, sermons
writers of colonial period
(1) Anne Bradstreet
(2) Edward Taylor
(3) Roger Williams
(4) John Woolman
(5) Thomas Paine
(6) Philip Freneau
III. Jonathan Edwards
life
works
(1) The Freedom of the Will
(2) The Great Doctrine of Original Sin Defended
(3) The Nature of True Virtue
ideas – pioneer of transcendentalism
(1) The spirit of revivalism
(2) Regeneration of man
(3) God’s presence
(4) Puritan idealism
IV. Benjamin Franklin
life
works
(1) Poor Richard’s Almanac
(2) Autobiography
contribution
(1) He helped found the