英国文学Chapter-4-Eighteenth-Century-English-Literatur

Chapter4EighteenthCenturyEnglishLiteratureJoyceCONTENTSIntroductiontoNeoclassicismBackgroundFeaturesRepresentativesBackground•TimeSpan:1660-1798•SocialTurbulence–RestorationofKingCharlesIIin1660–theGreatPlagueof1665,70,000diedinLondon–theGreatLondonFire,2/3homeless–theGloriousRevolutionin1689–constantstrifeinpolitics:themonarchandtheparliament;theToriesandtheWhigs-overthecontroloftheparliamentandgovernment,betweenopposingreligioussectssuchastheRomanCatholicism,theAnglicanChurchandtheDissenters,betweentherulingclassandthelaboringpoor,etc.–Inshort,itwasagefullofconflictsanddivergenceofvalues.EconomicalBackground:thework-shopoftheworldthefastdevelopmentofEnglandasanation•Abroad,acontinuousincreaseofcolonialwealthandtradeprovidedEnglandwithamarket.Andathomeinthecountry,ActsofEnclosurewereputtingmorelandintofewerprivilegedrichlandownersandforcingthousandsofsmallfarmersandtenantsofflandtobecomewageearnersinindustrialtowns.Features(熟悉)1.Theeighteenth-centuryEnglandisalsoknownastheAgeofEnlightenmentortheAhteenth-centuryEnglandisalsoknownastheAgeofEnlightenmentortheAgeofReason.2.ThemovementwasafurtheranceoftheRenaissanceofthefifteenthandsixteenthcenturies.3.Itspurposewastoenlightenthewholeworldwiththelightofmodernphilosophicalandartisticideas.4.Theenlightenerscelebratedreasonorrationality,equalityandscience.Theyheldthatrationalityorreasonshouldbetheonly,thefinalcauseofanyhumanthoughtandactivities.GenresandRepresentatives（熟悉）Poetry:theearlystageJohnDryden,AlexanderPope,SamuelJohnsonNovels:themid-centuryDanielDefoeHenryFieldingJohnDrydenJonathanSwift(1667-1745)LifeandWorks1.JonathanSwift(1667-1745),aposthumouschild,wasborninDublin,Ireland,ofanEnglishfamily.2.1689-1699aprosesatirist,bybeingaprivatesecretaryofTemple.3.learningmuchfirst-rateknowledgeaboutthevice,hypocrisy,intrigues,deceptionandcorruptioninthepoliticalworld.4.Forseveralyears,hewasamostnotablefigureinLondonastheeditoroftheofficialToryorgan,TheExaminer.MajorWorks•towpowerfulsatiresoncorruptioninreligionandlearning,*ATaleofaTub(1704)and*TheBattleoftheBooks(written1679,published1704)•*Gulliver'sTravels,1726,amasterpiece•*AModestProposal,1729•TheDrapier'sLetters(1724-1725)*LiteraryIdeas•Ofgreatmoralintegrityandsocialcharm,hehadadeephatredforalltherichoppressorsandadeepsympathyforallthepoorandoppressed.•Inhisopinion,humannatureisseriouslyandpermanentlyflawed(havingdefects).•Tobetterhumanlife,enlightenmentisneeded,buttoredress(correct)itisveryhard.•So,inhiswritings,althoughheintendsnottocondemnbuttoreformandimprovehumannatureandhumaninstitutions,thereisoftenanunder-orovertoneofhelplessnessandindignation.Style•SwiftisoneofthegreatestmastersofEnglishprose.•Heisalmostunsurpassedinthewritingofsimple,direct,preciseprose.•Hedefinedagoodstyleasproperwordsinproperplaces.•Clear,simple,concretediction,uncomplicatedsentencestructure,economyandconcisenessoflanguagemarkallhiswritings-essays,poemsandnovels(insinuation含沙射影).Gulliver'sTravels•Protagonist:SamuelGulliver•Story:TravelsintoSeveralRemoteNationsoftheWorld•Structure:Thebookcontainsfourparts,eachdealingwithoneparticularvoyagewhichGullivermeetswithextraordinaryadventuresonsomeremoteislandafterhehasmetwithshipwreckorpiracyorsomeothermisfortune.Voyages•Lilliput:inhabitantssixinchestall•Brobdingnag:peopletentimestallerandlarger,butalsosuperiorinwisdom.•FlyingIsland:thephilosophersandprojectorsdevotealltheirtimeandenergytothestudyofsomeabsurdproblems.•Houyhnhnmland:wherehorsesareendowedwithreasonandallgoodandadmirablequalities,andarethegoverningclass.ThereheisshockedanddisgustedtomeettheYahoos,hairy,wild,lowanddespicable(mean)brutes,whoresemblehumanbeingsnotonlyinappearancebutalsoinalmosteveryotherway.Theme•Asawhole,thebookisoneofthemosteffectiveanddevastatingcriticismandsatiresofallaspectsinthethenEnglishandEuropeanlife-socially,politically,religiously,philosophically,scientifically,andmorally.Sarcasm•Herewefinditsauthorathisbestasamasterofprose.Instructure,thefourpartsmakeanorganicwhole,witheachcontriveduponanindependentstructure,andyetcomplementingtheothersandcontributingtothecentralconcernofstudyofhumannatureandlife.Thefirsttwopartsaregenerallyconsideredthebestpaired-upwork.Here,manisobservedfrombothendsofatelescope.Theexaggeratedsmallnessinpart1worksjustaseffectivelyastheexaggeratedlargenessinPart2.ThesimilaritiesbetweenhumanbeingsandtheLilliputiansandthecontrastbetweentheBrobdingnagiansandhumanbeingsbothbearreferencetothepossibilitiesofhumanstate.•Part3,thoughseeminglyabitrandom,furthersthecriticismofthewesterncivilizationanddealswithdifferentmalpracticesandfalseillusionsaboutscience,philosophy,historyandevenimmortality.Thelastpart,wherecomparisonismadethroughbothsimilaritiesanddifferences,leadsthereadertoafundamentalquestion:whatonearthisahumanbeing?Thanks!