精品课程—英美文学 Charles Dickens.ppt

Charles Dickens (1812-70) His art As a writer, his strength lies in his genius for depicting characters and describing situations, in his use of language. His art 1.vivid characters and unforgettable situations; 2. an extraordinary range of language: lyricism, poetry , slang and dialects , from comic invention to great eloquence; 3. humanity and a feeling for the poetry of life . His early works His early works youthful optimism (1836-41) cheats never thrive, virtue will triumph in the long run. eg. Pickwick Papers (1836-7) an effortless expression of comic view of life, a na?ve youthful exuberance (vitality), a joy of living and a lightness of heart His later works Oliver Twist(1838) pathos ( a feeling of pity and sorrow哀婉,凄楚,悲怆) is beginning to intrude on humor; the cruelty and meanness of some officials and the terrible condition of the workhouse are exposed.  His later works In his later years, the author’s vision of life became more embittered. Bleak House (1853) is an attack on the law’s delay. Hard Times (1854) criticizes the whole ethic of capitalism as represented by Manchester school, laissez-faire (the principle of allowing people’s activities, economics and ethics. A Tale of Two Cities(1859) takes French Revolution as its subject.  His strength He exposed the work house, the debtor’s prison, the private school, the factory system, the court of law. He attacked the hypocritical, the conventionally pious and their “philanthropy”. His weaknesses 1.bourgeois morality 2.sentimentalism In my opinion, both of his strength and weakness lie in his feelings: he had sympathy for the poor, embraced life with his true heart; he knew the people’s feelings too, laughed and wept with them. But excessive indulgence in feelings mars his vision. Great Expectations Social significance: 1.humanitarianism; 2. criticism of morality of bourgeois society; 3.criticism of social evils; 4.criticism of the exploitation of imperi