英国文学史I. Old English Literature & The Late Medieval Ages 贝奥武夫 :the national epic of the Anglo-Saxons Epic: long narrative poems that record the adventures or heroic deeds of a hero enacted in vast landscapes. The style of epic is grand and elevated. Artistic features: 1. Using alliteration Definition of alliteration: a rhetorical device, meaning some words in a sentence begin with the same consonant sound（头韵）Some examples on P5 2. Using metaphor and understatement Definition of understatement: expressing something in a controlled way Understatement is a typical way for Englishmen to express their ideas Geoffery Chaucer 杰弗里· 乔叟 1340~1400 (首创“双韵体” ，英国文学史上首先用伦敦方言写作。约翰· 德莱顿（John Dryden）称其为“英国诗歌之父”。代表作《坎特伯雷故事集》。) The father of English poetry. writing style: wisdom, humor, humanity. ① 坎特伯雷故事集：first time to use ‘heroic couplet ’(双韵体 ) by middle English ② 特罗伊拉斯和克莱希德③ 声誉之宫Medieval Ages ’ popular Literary form: Romance( 传奇故事 ) Famous three：King Arthur Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Beowulf II The Renaissance PeriodA period of drama and poetry. The Elizabethan drama is the real mainstream of the English Renaissance. Renaissance: the activity, spirit, or time of the great revival of art, literature, and learning in Europe beginning in the 14th century and extending to the 17th century, marking the transition from the medieval to the modern world. Three historical events of the Renaissance – rebirth or revival: 1. new discoveries in geography and astrology 2. the religious reformation and economic expansion 3. rediscovery of ancient Roman and Greek cultu...
