美国文学名词解释

Puritanism:isthereligiousbeliefofthePuritans,whohadintendedto“purify”orsimplifythereligiousritualsoftheChurchofEngland.TheybelievedintheoriginalsinandtheharshDayofDoom,althoughsomegoodpeople---thechosenpeopleor“theElect”---maybesaved.Theirwayoflifewasbasedontheirsomberreligionandstressedhardwork,thrift,pietyandsobriety.Puritansaremorepractical,tougher,andtobeeverreadyforanymisfortuneandtragicfailure.Theyareoptimistic.AmericanPuritanismwasoneofthemostenduringshapinginfluencesinAmericanthoughtandAmericanliterature.Transcendentalism:Followingtheriseofromanticism,Transcendentalism,whichappearedafter1830,markedthematurityofAmericanromanticismandthefirstrenaissanceintheAmericanliteraryhistory.thetermtranscendentalismwasderivedfromtheLatinverbtranscendere,meaningtoriseabove,ortopassbeyondthelimits.InageneralsenseitmaybeusedinEnglishtorefertoanyphilosophywhichteachesthetranscendentnatureofultimatereality.Transcendentalismwasaromanticidealism,orphilosophicalromanticism.Itmayalsoberegardedasaconsiderable-scaleideologicalandculturalrevolutionafterAmericanpeoplestruggledtogetfreefromtheEnglishcolonialrule.AmericanNaturalism:Americannaturalismwasanewandharsherrealism.Thenaturalistsattempttoachieveextremeobjectivityandfrankness,presentingcharactersoflowsocialandeconomicclasseswhoweredeterminedbyenvironmentandheredity.Itemphasizedthattheworldwasamoral,themenandwomenhadnofreewill,thatliveswerecontrolledbyheredityandenvironment,thatthedestinyofhumanitywasmiseryinlifeandoblivionindeath.ThepessimismanddeterministicideasnaturalismpervadedtheworksofsuchAmericanwritersasStephenCraneandTheodoreDreiser.TheGildedAge:theGildedAgereferstotheeraofrapideconomicandpopulationgrowthintheUnitedStatesduringthepost-CivilWarandpost-Reconstructionerasofthelate19thcentury.ThetermGildedAgewascoinedbyMarkTwainandCharlesDudleyWarnerintheir1873book,TheGildedAge:ATaleofToday.TheGildedAgeismostfamousforthecreationofamodernindustrialeconomy.TheendoftheGildedAgecoincidedwiththePanicof1893,adeepdepression.Thedepressionlasteduntil1897andmarkedamajorpoliticalrealignmentintheelectionof1896.AfterthatcametheProgressiveEra.TheLostGeneration:TheLostGenerationisagroupofexpatriateAmericanwritersresidingprimarilyinParisduringthe1920sand1930s.ThegroupwasgivenitsnamebytheAmericanwriterGertrudeStein,whousedalostgenerationtorefertoexpatriateAmericansbitterabouttheirWorldWarIexperiencesanddisillusionedwithAmericansociety.HemingwaylaterusedthephraseasanepigraphforhisnovelTheSunAlsoRises.ItconsistedofmanyinfluentialAmericanwriters,includingErnestHemingway,F.ScottFitzgerald,WilliamCarlosWilliamsandArchibaldMacLeish.HarlemRenaissance:TheHarlemRenaissancewasafloweringoftheartsinthe1920‟sand30s.AfricanAmericansusedwriting,music,andarttodemonstratestrongbeliefs.Manyofthesebeliefsweremphasizedthenecessityofblackliberation,retainingblackculturalpride,andnotgivingintowhitestandards.Especiallytheawarenessoftheblack‟sidentity.//HarlembecamethebiggesthotspotinAmericaforanyaspiringAfricanAmericanartist.Thecitycamealiveatnightasbarsandclubsburstwithmusicanddancing.//Respondingtotheheadyintellectualatmosphereofthetimeandplace,writersandartists,manyofwhomlivedinHarlem,begantoproduceawidevarietyoffineandhighlyoriginalworksdealingwithAfrican-Americanlife.//Theseworksattractedmanyblackreaders.//HRwasmorethanjustaliterarymovement:itincludedracialconsciousness,„thebacktoAfrica‟movementledbyMarcusGarvey,racialintegration,theexploringofmusicparticularlyjazz,spiritualsandblues,painting,dramaticrevues,andothers.Itwasahugeleapforblackliberationandculture.Catch-22:Catch-22isageneralcritiqueofbureaucraticoperationandreasoning.Resultingfromitsspecificuseinthebook,thephraseCatch-22iscommonidiomaticusagemeaningano-winsituationoradoublebindofanytype.ThetermwasoriginallyfromJosephHeller‘santinovelCatch-22.TheBeatGeneration:groupofAmericanwritersofthe1950swhosewritingexpressedprofounddissatisfactionwithcontemporaryAmericansocietyandendorsedanalternativesetofvalues.Thetermsometimesisusedtorefertothosewhoembracedtheideasofthesewriters.TheBeatGeneration'sbest-knownfigureswerewritersAllenGinsbergandJackKerouac.PsychologicalRealism:itistherealisticwritingthatprobesdeeplyintothecomplexitiesofcharacters‘thoughtsandmotivations.Itplacesmorethantheusualamountofemphasisoninteriorcharacterizationandonthemotives,andinternalactionwhichspringsfromanddevelopsexternalaction.InPsychologicalRealism,characterandcharacterizationaremorethanusuallyimportant.HenryJamesisconsideredagreatmasterofpsychologicalrealism.FreeVerse:freeverseispoetrythathasanirregularrhythmandlinelengthandthatattemptstoavoidanypredeterminedversestructure,instead,itusesthecadencesofnaturalspeech.Whileitalternatesstressedandunstressedsyllablesasstricterverseformdo,freeversedosesoinalooserway.WaltWhitman‘spoetryisanexampleoffreeverse.ConfessionalPoetry:itisatypeofmodernpoetryinwhichpoetsspeakwithopennessandfranknessabouttheirownlives,suchasinpoemsaboutillness,sexualityanddespondence.RobertLowell,SylviaPlathandAllenGinsbergandTheodoreRoethkearethemostimpo