英美文学 第七章Word格式文档下载.docx
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英美文学 第七章Word格式文档下载.docx
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ChapterITheAmericanLiteratureinthe1930s
1.HistoricalBackground
Itisamisconceptionthatthe1930swasadimdecadeascomparedwiththeglitteringtwenties.Thereisavisiblecontinuitybetweenthetwodecades.Whileauthorswhomadetheirnamesinthetwenties,authorssuchasEliot,Hemingway,Fitzgerald,andFaulkner,continuedtoproducegreatworksofliterature,newforcesappearedonthescene,writingwithnolessvitalityandenergy.
However,themoodofthethirtieswasdifferentfromthatofthetwenties.TheWallStreetcrashof1929setthetoneforthewritingofthedecade.AstheDepressionspread,lifebecameanexperienceofwant,poverty,andabsolutemisery.Economicdisasterandthewretchedworklessexistenceforthemassesofthepeoplebroughttherealizationthatthesystemhadcollapsed.Everythingseemedtobedisintegratingallofasuddenandallatonce,andanordered,rationalexistenceprovedtobeimpossible.Therewaswidespreadpanic.Iftherehadbeenanyhopeinthefrustratingtwenties,therewas,formany,sheerdespairinthebleakyearsofthethirties.Itistruethat,whenF.D.RooseveltcameintotheWhiteHouse,hebroughtwithhimarefreshingbreezeofhopeandoptimismintoitandintothecountry.RooseveltwascleverenoughtoofferhisNewDealwhichhelpedtowarddispellingthecrisis-ladenatmospherehangingoverthecountry.Thismeasurerestoredconfidencetothedefeatistnation.However,itwasnotuntiltheoutbreakoftheSecondWorldWarthatthecountryfeltsafeagain.ThewarsavedtheUnitedStates.
Facedwiththenewrealityofwantanddespair,Americanwriters,liketheirbrothersinEnglandandEurope,foundthemselvesaskingthequestion,“Whatcanwritersdoforthecountry?
”Itwasapparentthatsocialconcernwastopmostinthemindsofmanyauthors,andthatsocialinvolvementwastobethemajorfeatureoftheliteratureofthethirties.
InadditiontoDosPassosandhismonumentaltrilogy,U.S.A.,therewereyoungnovelistssuchasJamesT.Farrell,JohnOhara,andErskineCaldwellwhopouredouttheirangerandprotestintheirleft-orientedworks.
2.ProminentFiguresinthe1930s
1)JohnDosPassos(1896-1970)
Hislifeandhisliterarycontributions:
InasensethethirtiescanbecalledthedecadeofJohnDosPassos.HewastheleadingnaturalistoftheDepression,andhismasterwork,U.S.A.,wasprobablythebestworkthatcameoutoftheperiod.JohnDosPassoswasaspectacularphenomenoninthe20thcenturyliteraryhistoryoftheUnitedStates.
Hestartedoffwritingfortheoppressed,callinghimselfa“redradicalrevolutionary”in1917.HiswritingswereCommunist-orientedforalongperiod.Andhisattackoncapitalismremainedgreatuntilthefiftieswhenhischangetoconservatismseemedcomplete.Duringthelatterpartofhiscareer,DosPassosshowedadmirationforbusiness,andsupportedtheU.S.involvementintheVietnamWar.
DosPassos’literaryoutputwasimmense.Inadditiontothenovelshewrote,heisrememberedtodaychieflyforU.S.A.,themostambitiousoffictionsproducedinthethirties.HewantstotellthetruthaboutAmericanlife.HehopestopaintapanoramaofAmericansociety.Andhedidso.
ThecommonthemeofDosPassos’sworksisattackonthe“machine”,thatis,thegovernment.Hebeheldthatthe“machine”ishostiletothephysicalandspiritualwelfareoftheindividual.Thereasonwhyhefinallygaveupcommunismwasthathebelievedthatcommunismwasanother“machine”.
LikeWilliamFaulkner,JohnDosPassoswasalsoacourageousexperimentalistintheartofnovel-writing.Heemployed,inhisfiction,deviceswhichhadnotbeenknownbefore,suchasthe“Newsreels”(新闻短片),“Biographies”(人物肖像),“CameraEye”(摄影机眼).
2)JohnSteinbeck(1902-1968)
A.HisLife
AnothersignificantDepressionwriterwasJohnSteinbeck.HewasborninSalinas,California.Hisfatherwasgovernmentofficial,andhismotheraschoolteacher.HegrewupathomereadingBritishandFrenchclassics.HewenttoStanfordUniversity,butnevergraduated.Aratheroddperiodofhisyouthfollowedinwhichhedidnotknowwhattodowithhimself.Heworkedasafarmlaborer,aseamanonacattle-boat,anewspaperreporter,abricklayer,achemist’sassistant,asurveyor,andamigratoryfruitpicker.Thiswasaveryeducationalperiodforhimbecauseitsetthebasisofhisworks,especiallyTheGrapesofWrath.Later,withhisfather’ssupport,hedecidedtobeaprofessionalwriter.Hewrotesomeromanticbooks,butnoneofthesemadeanystirintheliteraryscene.
Thenin1935,attheageof33,Steinbeckdiscoveredhimself.Hediscoveredbothhissubjectandhismethod.Thebookthatappearedthatyear,TortillaFlat(1935),madehimpopular.
B.HisLiteraryAchievementsandContributions
Hisgreatestbookis,ofcourse,TheGrapesofWrath(1939).AstoryofthemigrationofagriculturalworkersfromthedustbowlofOklahomatoCalifornia,thenovelisfullofbitternessandpainbutnotexactlydespair.Throughinconceivablesufferingandprivationshinesstillarefreshingrayofhopeconspicuouslyabsentintheothercrisisnovelsofthethirties.Itisessentiallyitshumanitythattriumphs.TheGrapesofWrathhelpedingreatmeasuretowardincreasingthenation’sawarenessoftheseriousnessofitsproblems,andwonintimethePulitzerPrizeforfiction.Itwasbannedandattackedforalengthoftimeonbothideologicalandartisticgrounds:
itwasaccusedofbeingcommunist(whichitisofcoursenot)andstructurallyformlessbook.
TheGrapesofWrathisacrisisnovel.ItisSteinbeck’sclearexpressionofsympathywiththedispossessedandthewretched.TheGreatDepressionthrowsthecountryintodisorderandmakeslifeintolerableforthelucklessmillions.Oneoftheworststrickenareasisthecentralprairielands.There,farmersbecomebankruptandbegintomoveinabodytowardCalifornia,wheretheyhopetohaveabetterlife.ThewestmovementisamosttragicandbrutalizinghumanexperienceforfamiliesliketheJoadsinthenovel.Thereisunspeakablepainandsufferingontheroad,anddeathoccursfrequently.Everywheretheytravel,theyseeauniversallandscapeofdecayanddesolation.WhentheyreachCaliforniaandtrytosettledown,theymeetwithbitterresistancefromthelocallandowners.Theprophecyofanimminentexplosionissentforthfromtheanger-filledpages:
“Whenamajorityofthepeopleishungryandcoldtheywilltakebyforcewhattheyneed,”Steinbeckissaying.Thedayofwrathiscoming.Inthesoulsofthepeoplethegrapesofwratharefillingandgrowingheavy.Somethinginthenatureofasocialrevolutionwouldbeabouttohappenifnothingisdonetostoptheexplosion.Thisisperhapsoneofthereasonswhythebookwasbannedformanyyears.
Structurally,TheGrapesofWrathconsistsoftwoblocksofmaterial:
thewestwardtrekoftheJoadsandthedispossessedOklahomans,andthegeneralpictureoftheGreatDepression.
Readerssensethedespairastheyreadalong,andseenoprospectofcompensationforallthisearthlysufferinguntilonereachesthelastchapterofthebook.There,oneseesagleamofhope,andone’sconfidenceinmanandhumannature,thebeliefthatabetterlifewillbepossible,returnstooverbalancethescaleofone’sjudgment.Herelays,probably,thedistinctionwhichtellsSteinbeckapartfromothercrisiswritersofthe1930s.Amidthegloomandthedefeatismwhichpervadethewritingofthedecade,Steinbeckmanagestokeeparefreshingfaithinhumanity,inthefuturewhenmanwillcometogripswithhisproblemsandcomeoutallright.ThisabilitytoseebeyondtheimmediatepresentintoabetterfuturehasprovedtobeoneofthethingsthathavegivenSteinbeckhisclaimtofameandpermanence.
ChapterIIAmericanDrama
Late19thcenturysomerealistsmadetheirattempttoplacerealisticdramaontheAmericanstage.Somecarriedoutdramaticexperimentationaroundtheturnof20thcentury.Withthestimulusthatcamefromthenaturalistic,symbolic,andcriticaldramaofEurope,andpossiblymovedbythevigorousstirringinAmericanpoetryandfiction,AmericandramabegantheprocessofdevelopingitselfintoadepartmentofAmericanliteratureequalinsignificancetobothpoetryandthenovel.
ThetheatreoftheDepressionwasnotdepressing.Likeotherbranchesofliteraturethedramawaspreoccupiedwithsocialconcerns.Allthroughthefortiesandinthepost-warperiod,newplayskeptappearingandwiththemnewplaywrights.IfEugeneO’Neilldominatedthetheatreinthe1920s,thenitissafetosaythatTennesseeWilliamsdidsointhepost-waryears.Thelatefiftiessawatemporarydeclineindramaticproductions,butinthenextdecade,Americandramapickedupagooddealoffreshenergyandenteredanewphaseinitsdevelopmentwithdiversityasitsfeatures.Theperiodisstillinprogress,andreputationsarestillbeingmade.ThisisanoverviewofAmericandrama.ThereareafewimportantfiguresthatwestudentsshouldknowaboutAmericandrama.
WebeginwithEugeneO’Neill(1888-1953),Americangreatestplaywright.Withhisfatherwhowasafamousactor,loveofdramaraninthebloodoftheman.Itwassomeyearsyetbeforehebecameamatureplaywright,butthoseyearsofknowingaboutintheworldcanbeseenasapreparationforhiscareer.Hetraveledaroundwithhisfather,hadbeentoSouthAmericaandSouthAfrica.BackinAmerica,hewasoutofwork.Hemadefriendswiththelowestofsocietyandgottoknowlifebetter.Theexperienceofwanderingandloafingaboutprovidedhimwithmaterialforhiscreativeworks.
Hisfirstperformedplay,theone-actBound
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