英美文学选读.ppt

English Literature Part One The Renaissance Period Part Two The Neoclassical Period Part Three The Romantic Period Part Four The Victorian Period Part Five The Modern Period  The Original Source for the Rise and Growth of English Literature England was conquered by the Romans, the Anglo-Saxons, and the Normans.The latter two conquests much affected England.The Anglo-Saxons brought to England the Germanic language and culture, while the Normans brought a fresh wave of Mediterranean civilization.This civilization includes Greek culture, Roman law, and the Christian religion. The cultural influences of these two conquests provided the source for the rise and growth of English literature. The period of Old English literature is from about 450 to 1066, the year of the Norman conquest of England.The Anglo-Saxons from Northern Europe brought their language, the basis of Modern English, as well as a specific poetic tradition. This kind of poetry is bold and strong, mournful and elegiac in spirit.The Old English poetry can be divided into two groups: the religious group and the secular one. The religious poetry is mainly on biblical themes: Genesis A, Genesis B and Exodus are poems based on the Old Testament; The Dream of the Rood comes from the New Testament. The secular poetry includes the national epic poem, Beowulf, and a number of short lyrical poems which evoke the Anglo-Saxon sense of the harshness of circumstance and the sadness of the human lot. The Wanderer, Deor, The Seafarer, and the Wife’s Complaint are among the best of the secular group of poetry of shorter length. Such poems reflected the fatalistic views towards sorrowful life as well as courage and determination. Beowulf Beowulf is a typical example of Old English poetry. However, the hero and the setting of Beowulf have nothing to do with England. In fact the story took place in Scandinavia. The poem was originally in an oral form, sung by the bards at the end of the 6th century. It w