Geoffrey Chaucer The Canterbury Tales
1. How is the setting of the tales described? With such a setting, could you predict the general tone of the tales?
Early spring. General tone: happy, easy, lively, humorous. 2. Character of the Knight?
The knight displays many traits which make him seem almost too good to be true, and a true gentleman that rarely exists in reality. The knight holds four main admirable traits, making him the most liked traveler in \Canterbury Tales,\and also amplying the doubt of his realism. From the characters impressive introduction, it is clear that this man is the most valued and honorable traveler among the group. This perfect gentleman holds a love of ideals that are often not displayed by people. First and foremost, he believes in the ideals of chivalry, and always stays true to its principles. He also feels that one should be honest, truthful and faithful, which many people are not all of these ideals. The knight thinks one should only do what is right, and what will gain him honor and reputation. This character also believes in freedom and generosity towards all, and displays this ideal repeatedly throughout the novel. And lastly, the knight also strongly feels that any proper person should display courtesy and elegance at all times.
Another aspect of this character's life which makes him seem too prestigious to be truthful is his impressive military career. He fought in the holy war, The knight obviously held a very respectable reputation, and was treated with much honor and respect. He was a perfect gentleman, showing kindness and understanding to everyone he came in contact with. The knight was extremely well-mannered, always being on his best behavior. His appearance was the \gentle spirit. This main character was clothed still in his armor, wearing a tunic of harsh cloth and his coat of mail is rust-stained, clearly showing remaining signs of past battles.
Shakespeare Hamlet P8
1. Why is sleep so frightening, according to Hamlet, since it can “end” the heartache and the thousand natural shocks”? Nobody can predict what he will dream of after he falls asleep. Death means the end of life, you may go to or unknown world and you can’t comeback,. If he dies, Hamlet's can't realize his will. Though ―sleep‖ can end the heartache and the thousand natural shocks, it is a state of mind. Hamlet didn’t know at all. He is frightened by the possible suffering in the long ―dream‖. He can’t predict what will happen in the sleep, may be good may be evil.
2. Why would people rather bear all the sufferings of the world instead of choosing death to get rid of them, according to Hamlet? Death is so mysterious that nobody knows what death will bring to us. Maybe bitter sufferings, great pains, heartbreaking stories…Because people hold the same idea \that the dread of something after death-the undiscover’d country, form whose bourn no traveler returns-puzzle the will, and make us rather bear those ills we have than fly to others that we know not of?‖ People also are frightened by the myths in another world after death.
3. What, after all, makes people lose their determination to take action? Please explain in relation to the so-called hesitation of Hamlet.
Conscience and over-considerations. He wants to revenge, but doesn’t know how. He wants to kill his uncle, but finds it too risky. He lives in despair and wants to commit suicide. However, he knows if he dies, nobody will comfort his father’s ghost. He is in
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face of great dilemma. They don’t know the result after their taking the action. Such as Hamlet, he doesn’t know what would happen if he kills his uncle or kills himself . So Hamlet was hesitated. Sonnet 18 P13 1. How does the poet answer the question he puts forth in the first line? (Page 14) The poet opens with a question that is addressed to the beloved, \to a summer's day?\question is comparing ―thee‖ to the summer time of the year. It is during this time when the flowers are blooming, trees are full of leaves, the weather is warm, and it is generally considered as an enjoyable time during the year. The following eleven lines in the poem are also dedicated to similar comparisons between the beloved and summer days. In lines 2 and 3, the speaker explains what mainly separates the young woman from the summer's day: she is \lovely and more temperate.\(Line 2) Summer days are sometimes shaken by \always as welcoming as the woman. However in line 4, the poet gives the feeling again that the summer months are often too short by saying, \a date.\or too dim, \gold complexion dimmed\(line 6) as \fair from fair sometime declines.\summer in various aspects. Her beauty will be one that lasts forever, \eternal summer shall not fade.\At last two lines, the poet explains how the beloved's beauty will accomplish this everlasting life unlike summer days. And it is because her beauty is kept alive in this poem, which will last forever. It will live \(Line 13) the poem is outwardly a simple statement of praise about the beauty of the beloved woman and perhaps summer to the speaker is sometimes too unpleasant with the extremes of windiness and heat that go along with it. However, the beloved in the poem is always mild and temperate by her nature and nothing at all like the summer.
At last, the poet starts to praise that the beloved is so great and awing that she is to live forever in this sonnet. The beloved is so great that the speaker will even go as far as to say that, \thee.‖(line 13、14) that the beloved is deserving to live on forever.
2. What makes the poet think that “thou” can be more beautiful than summer and immortal?
At the very beginning, the poet puts forth a question: ―Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?‖ Then he gives an answer: ―Thou art more lovely and more temperate.‖ On the one hand, ―Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, and summer’s lease hath all too short a date;‖ on the other hand, ―Sometime too hot the heaven shines, and often is his gold complexion dimmed.‖ So from the above two aspects the poet thinks that ―thou‖ can be more beautiful than summer. In addition, ―And every fair from fair sometime declines, by chance, or nature’s changing course untrimmed.‖ Compared with immortal, ―But thy eternal summer shall not fade, nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st, nor shall death brag thou wand’rest in his shade, when in eternal lines to times thou grow’st.‖ Therefore, the poet draws a conclusion: ―So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives life to thee.‖ In this poem, the poet makes ―thou‖ more beautiful than summer and immortal because of his beautiful lines. So in this case, ―thou‖ in the poem can be regarded as female because love can beauty eternal. Or ―thou‖ can be referred to male, for friendship can make beauty everlasting. Even ―thou‖
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can be abstract ―love‖ or ―beauty‖ which will become eternal in the wonderful poem.
Francis Bacon Of Marriage and Single Life P17 1. Is marriage an impediment or help to one’s career development?
In the easy Of Marriage and Single life, Bacon prefers marriage to single life. He thinks ―unmarried men are best friends; best masters; best servants; but not always best subjects; for they are light to run away; and almost all fugitives are of that condition‖, ―Wives are young men’s mistresses; companions for middle age; and old men’s nurses‖. I have to say his words can still be true today; I’m at his back, though many young people now choose to remain single no mater male or female. But since ―3S ladies‖ or ―overleft ladies‖ become the catch word, the female seems more terrible. Maybe because women are easier to get old but to men 30 is the gold ages of career development. For the main reasons of 3S ladies, some are high standard for husband; some are the further studying. For men, maybe they are fighting in business; maybe they are too bad to find a wife.
Then we can see all the state of present marriage. Even though some say ―marriage is the tomb of love‖, I yet support marriage. Marriage and family make people more responsible and loving, make deeper love between spouses and make life more colorful. The ability to love and be loved is the most precious of gifts given to man, which should be highly treasured. Family let a man learn to care the whole unit. He has to take good care of his wife and son, love them, be responsible for them, all of which are the same to women. All these qualities are vital to anyone’s career. When you work back home, wife or husband is always the listener to you, son the warm heart to you. Spouses help each other and support each other; family is the harbor for soul. Thus it is help to one’s career development.
2.Certainly, wife and children are “a kind of discipline of humanity”。妻子儿女显然是人性的一种纪律约束
A bachelor’s单身 life focus is but himself, so he will spend a lot of money on everything that feast his eyes without hesitation. What’s more, he is likely to have a go at any risks that make him feel exciting and fresh for being free from any burden.
However, a married man always tends to think twice before making an important decision in order to prevent bringing any harm to his family. He should have the motivation to work hard to fulfill wife and children’s expectation.As a result, family let a man learn to care the whole unit. He has to take good care of his wife and son, love them, be responsible for the.A loving husband and a qualified father can contribute the greatest merit for the public to a large extent.
人的感情会移位，结婚的人对人生的态度肯定与单身之时不一样。有孩子的人更因为对孩子的爱迁移到芸芸众生身上。结婚意味着两个人的结合，不论肉体还是精神。在无形中把不相干的两个人熔铸成合体的一个人，对对方的关心和照顾如同自己，对对方的牵挂那是牵肠挂肚。婚姻也让两个人变得更有责任感，感情更加丰富，对社会将会产生奇异的变化，对人生的探索产生深远的影响。单身是自由的，没有婚姻的束缚，没有孩子的牵绊，享受生命的存在，享受一个人的独处.当孤独来临时单身的人会去找人生的知己，会碰到与之共度人生的另一半，于是便有了婚姻。 3. Bacon prefers marriage to single life. Do you find his arguments convincing?
Yes. I think Bacon’s arguments are convincing. In the demonstration process, Bacon uses the method comparison to analyze the advantages of marriage and the shortcomings
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of single life in order to tell us marriage is better than single life. Taking the sentence ―wives are young men’s mistresses, companions for middle age, and old men’s nurses‖ for example, it is quite convincing and reasonable. Marriage can bring happiness to people. It is the ecstasy when people pursue marriage in their youth. To a young man, on one hand, a wife needs his care and good graces. A wife is a flower and a man should pay much attention to her and give her special love. On the other hand, women are always older than men according to their mental ages. So, wives are more mature than her husband and she could make many decisions and arrangements for the family. That is why wives are young men’s mistresses. When a man in his middle age, he needs his wife to help him not only in the career but also in the family life. The middle-aged man suffers great pressure in career and he wants his wife to support the family together. Also, he could confide his troubles to his wife. So, that is the reason for having a wife in middle age. When the man grows older, his body is not so strong like before. So, he needs his wife to take care of him and do the things as ―nurses‖ for him. In addition, an old man is always like a child and he needs special attention from his wife. So, according to the reasons mentioned above, a wife is always necessary to a man and a wife always plays important and irreplaceable role in a man’s life. In addition, the argument is the conclusion according to Bacon’s long—time observation and consideration towards life. From my perspective, his arguments are convincing.
I think his arguments are convincing. Bacon’s basic idea is that marriage is good to both individual and society. His analysis is taken step by step. At first, a single man thinks just to live a single life can he make some great contributions to the society. But a single person only cares about himself, he doesn’t pay attention to the future, it can be very unwise. Single life could also make a man to be serious to his freedom. On the contrary, marriage makes a man be responsible, tender, enthusiastic and warm-hearted. As the author saying: “wives are young men’s mistresses, companions for middle age, and old men’s nurses”. It means that when a man is young, wife talks about love with him, when he comes to middle age, wife always stay with him as a companion, when he becomes old, wife will take care of him till the end of time. Even though a wife marries a bad husband, marriage offers a good chance for husband to correct themselves. The whole essay’s main point is very obvious, author tells from two aspects. Firstly, he says how bad it is to be a single man. Secondly, he tells a lot of advantages of being married. Each aspect has enough proof. At Bacon’s period, his arguments may be more convincing than nowadays.
Of Studies P18 1. We are now living in the age of “information explosion”. What lessons can we learn from Bacon’s< of studies> in our access to information?
Our planet is developing forward. The fast-moving development of science and technology makes it more convenient for students to get sufficient and effective information by countless ways. That is the external condition for our study, which we can appropriately make full use of. But what we have to keep in mind is that the eternal master of study is no one but ourselves in the process of studying.
Actually, I’m sure everyone clearly knows the importance and significance of reading, of studies. However, the biggest problem is that they hardly have powerful resistance to those temptations around us, such as new-style video games, latest Hollywood block-buster, Avril Ramona Lavigne’s next concert. Placed in the information current,
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young students are difficult to rationally deal with the flooding information. The terrible result is that they become more and more indifferent to reading books, and whenever academic assigns come , we just start up their computer and access to information on the Internet no matter how much information they can really copy and make use. What a pity!
As to efficient study methods to all these information, Bacon insists on the combination of theory and practice, ―studies themselves do give forth directions too much at large, except they be bounded in by experience.‖ And in terms of books which mean for today not only paper books but also information online for example e-books, Bacon holds the view ―some books are to be read only in parts; others to be read, but not curiously; and some few to be ready wholly, and with diligence and attention‖. All the ideas can definitely give college students precious lessons to study and reading books today.
When we face the flooding information, some are to be read in part; they’re just providing nothing than background which can be useful to understand and complete assignments. We cannot merely depend all on the computer instead of meditate hard on our own. Of course, practicing is quite significant today. In fact, that doesn’t mean practice should be the action out of papers; in turn, the term paper finished on one’s own is a practice of applying his knowledge to practical writing.
Information around us is showing up without stopping. They are all never checked by experts, true or false. We access to them when in need. Still we have to be cautious and just view them as a reminder or brainstorm resources to help integrate our ideas to well organize the whole assignment. This is the right attitude to information and to our own study.
2. In what sense does reading make a full man?
Reading makes a full man. Histories make men wise, poets, witty; the mathematics, subtle; natural philosophy, deep; moral, grave; logic and rhetoric, able to contend. Reading histories makes people learn lessons from the ancient time, avoid making the same mistakes and predict the development of things. People who read histories will be wiser than these who just act according to their own preferences without learning from histories. Reading poem s makes people learn the beauty of language, the beautiful classical style of art and live a poetic life. People who read poems will be wittier than these who haven’t feel the beautiful mood and pure life. Reading mathematics makes people focus on the accurate calculation, develop a scientific attitude, and form a pragmatic spirit. People who read mathematics will be more subtle to consider things from all aspects and do things from the drop carefully than these who don’t read. Reading natural philosophy makes people pursue truth, explore the unknown mystery, and practice actively. People who read natural philosophy will be deeper than these who don’t learn the theory of reflecting the truth. Reading moral makes people learn the way of harmony living, form the principle of ethical behaviors and develop correct outlooks on values. People who read moral will be graver than these who behave without correct principles and can’t deal with different relationships. Reading logic makes people master the rules of thinking, dealing with different things and exploring objective reality. People who read logic will be more contend to have clear ideas, mater the principles of objective truth than these who don’t act according to rules.
Different kinds of reading materials play different roles in making a full man. People should get into different reading fields and train themselves to become a comprehensive talent. Reading will do good to one’s physical health according to some reading materials of physical training. What’s more important, reading promotes the development of logic
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thinking and morality. People can be called a full man on condition that they have fine quality, delicate self-cultivation and strict morality. Try to read extensively and become a full man.
As far as I’m concerned, reading can make a full man, can cultivate a man, and can make a man move forward in the way he understand the view of the world, the life and the value. A full man should have a positive world view and adopt an active philosophy of life, which are usually based on a balanced knowledge structure. From Francis Bacon’s Of Studies, I know that the essay not only introduces the methods of reading books and discusses the purposes and functions of reading, but also analyzes the different attitudes of the people who are reading books. Most importantly, we can know how to be a full man from reading.
Francis Bacon’s Of Studies says ―Histories make men wise, poets, witty; the mathematics, subtle; natural philosophy, deep; moral, grave; logic and rhetoric, able to contend.‖ That is to say, we read all kinds of books in order to have more perfect knowledge and form critical thinking which can make us be a full man by reading. .
Reading can make a full man. That is to say, we should read more books which are useful and helpful for us. Reading can enlarge our knowledge in different fields. From Of Studies, studies serve for delight, for ornament, and for ability. It means that studies can make people happy, wise, increasing knowledge. If we read all kinds of books, we are able to taste what might not happen to us in real life, and then ask ourselves what we would do in that situation. Besides, we read more books and fewer mistakes would be made by us. For that, we can learn more mistake examples from books so that we will make few mistakes in the future. So reading can make a man full because it can make the man taste all the emotions about the world and have a true understanding about the life. Of Studies also teach us that we should choose some book to read, but not read all the books. Some useful books should be read carefully and taken notes. Different books have different functions, the essay tells us that reading different books can bring different knowledge which we lack. The essay says that different books have different methods to read.
In a word, reading books of certain field brings certain knowledge and ability we lack. Of Studies gives us the method of reading books and getting knowledge. It also tells us different books have different functions for us. So whether reading makes a full man lies in what books you read and how you read. Reading a right book can make a man more wise, more emotional and more respected.
John Donne The Flea P23 1. Why does the poet say that \maidenhead\
The speaker tells his beloved to look at the flea before them and to note \that thing that she denies him. For the flea, he says, has sucked first his blood, then her blood, so that now, inside the flea, they are mingled; and that mingling cannot be called \\
2. What do you think is the addressee's parents' attitude toward the poet's wooing? The addressee's parents' attitudes are against him. (...Though parents grudge...) 3. What is the real purpose of the poet to say that in killing the flea \actually killing three lives?
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He compares the killing of the flea to murder. It would be ―three sins in killing three‖ (l. 18) since he and his lover would be killed within the flea if she were to follow her natural tendency to dispose of the insect. He even states that the act of killing the flea would be ―sacrilege‖. This is a term that is generally applied to acts that go against religion. If the lover denies the fact that their blood, and therefore their lives, are contained within the flea, it is similar to committing an irreligious act. This would seem to make the reverse, to acknowledge their closeness within the flea, compatible with religion. To acknowledge this closeness is also to acknowledge that it is allowable, which could lead to the conclusion that Donne wishes his lover to arrive at: she should give in to his desires because there is nothing wrong with the intimate mingling of two people. Holy sonnet 10 1.why does John Donne say that death is the \desperate men\
The poem reveals Donne's belief in life after death. It reads like a bold challenge to the \may derive\meaning of the sentence from John Donne`s Death Be not Proud is like that, Death, you are slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men; you are the slave to human beings. We, human beings, are in charge of you.
2.What does the poem mean when he says” we wake eternally” after one short sleep? The world \frightening in death. Though we might die, we can keep alive spiritually forever.
John Milton-Paradise Lost The general subject（总的主题）is man’s disobedience and the loss thereupon of Paradise, with its prime cause, Satan, who, having revolted from God, has been driven out of heaven.
4. Where are the serpent蛇 and his followers condemned after their defeat? They are driven from Heaven into hell.
5. What are the God’s punishments for those rebellious angels as described by Milton in lines 59-74?
Satan looks around and finds himself in a horrible dungeon. There is a great furnace in the dungeon. What is burning is sulfur, with flames, but without light. Through the visible darkness, he can discover sights of woe, regions of sorrow, mournful shades,
where peace and rest can never live. Hope goes everywhere except to this place. It is such a place as Eternal Justice had prepared for those rebels. It is far away from God and light of Heaven.
6. What is considered by Satan as “ignominy” and “shame” (line 115)?
To bow and sue for grace with suppliant knee and deify his power. To give in to God, to fall down on one’s knees to beg for mercy submissively, worship God’s power, become scared for God’s authority and power, lose confidence.
7. What is Satan advising the serpent and his followers to do in this part of Paradise Lost?
He is defeated in the battle against God, but he does not lose heart. He will not bow down to God. Instead, he is advising the serpent and followers to rise up again and fight another battle.
Daniel Defoe
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Robinson Crusoe鲁宾逊漂流记 2. What do you think of Crusoe’s way of marking time? Why is it important for him to keep track of time?
A good way. He doesn’t want to forget time. For a civilized man, time is precious. 3. From this excerpt, what do you find admirable in Robinson Crusoe?
Strong-minded, careful, capable, persevering, optimistic, ambitious, self-reliant, clever, practical, adventurous, patient, rational, sympathetic, hardworking, imaginative, energetic, courageous, amiable (kind-hearted).
First of all, he is adventurous. Unlike common people, Robinson is eager to take
adventures. So he is brave under most circumstances and curious about new things. Even when he was left in a deserted island, he was not afraid of what he was confronted with. What’s more, during the time he lived in the island, Robinson was faced with lots of difficulties. However, he has overcome all of them with strong will and firm
determination. And he tries his best to survive and takes an optimistic attitude towards life. Instead of despair, Robinson is full of passion in such a harsh situation. He never gets frustrated by failures and always perseveres in making efforts to create a new life. Besides, Robinson pays much attention to details. For example, when he wants to find a place for his settlement, he has taken many aspects into consideration, such as security, convenience, and sunshine. Also, he makes a list of specific figures on which he can base his construction. In this sense, Robinson is careful and considerate. To sum up, Robinson is not only brave and adventurous but also wise and thoughtful. When he has difficulties, he spares no efforts to overcome them and try his best solve the factual problems. What impressed me most is his optimism and perseverance. All the good qualities in Robinson Crusoe are admirable and he shows us a positive attitude towards life.
Confronting such an adversity, Robinson showed his amazing willpower and staunch life-force. He also showed people how to deal with adversity in life. Under such an adverse circumstance, he overcame various difficulties and created splendor of his life. ~If he or she does not make a plan for the future, he may not get out of the adversity. Take Robinson as an example, he made a series of plans about his food, his bullets, his powder and his daily work. He believed that he would starve or be attacked when he had not those things. So he ate very cannily. And he tried to train the sheep so that he did not waste so many bullets to shoot them. The truth proved that it was wise for him to do so. ~Robinson always thought of some new ideas when he was faced with some difficulties. If he did do everything with fixed rule, he would not create the necessities that he needed in his life. Owing to his ability to bring forth new ideas, he solved many problems. And those ideas helped him overcome the adversity.~ Robinson had been perseverant for twenty-eight years, and was saved finally.
Jonathan Swift Gulliver’s Travels 格列佛游记 1. In what ways are Yahoos comparable to human beings in Guliver’s Travels? Comment on the Houyhnhnms’ attitude toward human beings.
（1）Yahoos, hairy, wild, low and despicable brutes, who resemble human beings not only in appearance but also in almost every other way.
（2）Houyhnhnms conceive the vilest opinion of humankind such as corrupt ，detestion and debased group。
2. What are the symbolic meanings of Yahoos and Houyhnhnms?
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The Yahoos as a satiric representation of debased humanity, while taking the Houyhnhnms as representatives of Swift’s ideals of rationality and order.
Yahoos, hairy, wild, low and despicable brutes, who resemble human beings not only in appearance but also in almost every other way.
There is no evil, no lie, no illness, no power, no war, no government, no law, no punishment in Houyhnhnm.
William Blake The Lamb P48 1. Does this poem describe a lamb or the mind of the child who is speaking to the lamb? What is the relation of the lamb and the child to the God?
The poem describes the mind of the child who is speaking to the lamb so as to show the gentleness and tenderness of the lamb. The lamb is the symbol of the child to the God. It shows the love of God that he creates the lamb and Jesus is often called the lamb of the God. So the poet not only appreciates the kindness of the lamb but also praises the mysterious power which can create the lamb. In this poem, God, Jesus and the lamb are combined together.
(Reference:上帝创造自然中体现的慈爱;耶稣是上帝的羔羊；温良和自我牺牲精神；上帝彰显的慈爱：对羔羊、对孩子的关爱) 2. What does the lamb stand for?
Line 20: When you read the word \Lamb of God\gods in general until God offered his Son, Jesus Christ – his lamb – as the final sacrifice for the sins of mankind. In line 20, Blake references a version of Christianity that states that God created Jesus (Protestant version vs. the Catholic doctrine of the Trinity). In any case, you don’t need to know all the theology, just that it’s a reference to Jesus and an allusion to Christianity. Blake asks whether God, who created Jesus, also created the Tiger. Also, don’t forget that \ of another poem by Blake, from the Songs of Innocence; the two poems are often read together. The Tiger P50 1. Why does the poet mention the Lamb? Do you think both the Lamb and the Tiger can illuminate each other?
The Tyger is corresponding to The Lamb. Both the poems show the poet’s exploration, understanding and plaint of the mysterious creation. In this poem, the author implies that the Tiger is created by God as well as the Lamb. So either the Tiger or the Lamb is essential to God.
I think both the Lamb and the Tiger can illuminate each other. Although the Lamb can represent the kind ―innocent society‖, it will be lack of enough motivation to make progress. While the Tiger will cause social misery, unrest or even disruption, but it can make people release their creativity. So the poet believes that the Tiger is the symbol of strength and courage. And he also praises its passion, desire and all the lofty beauty.
2. What is the symbolic meaning of the tiger? What idea does the poet want to express?
The symbol of the Tyger is one of the two central mysteries of the poem (the other being the Tyger’s creator). It is unclear what it exactly symbolizes, but scholars have hypothesized that the Tyger could be inspiration, the divine, artistic creation, history, the sublime (the big, mysterious, powerful and sometimes scary. Read more on this in the \
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is, the Tyger is important, and Blake’s poem barely limits the possibilities
The tiger is the embodiment of God's power in creation: the animal is terrifying in its beauty, strength, complexity and vitality. The poem is divided into six parts. In the first part, the author imagined that he met a terrible tiger on a dark night and was frightened by its awful eyesight. There are creations and creators. How great the creator is that he could create such an awful creation like tiger! In the second part, the author continues to ask, where comes the eyesight like fire, sea or sky? The following two parts, the author describes the creator as a smith. He creates the tiger. What behind the questions is the frightening and respect of the author to the creator. In the fifth part, the author changes his tone and asks when the stars throw down their spears, why they are not happy? The last part is as same as the first part, the creator is too mysterious to understand.
The tiger shows its outstanding energy. It’s the vitality which the author thinks highly of. The key sentence of the poem is \the one-track religious views of the 18’s century. The view only concluded that god create the lame, he is so kind a father. But it didn’t know god also create the tough tiger. He can also be very serious. The god is someone who can’t be truly understood by human beings.
Robert Burns A Red, Red Rose 1. How does the narrator in the poem express his love? To use many figures of speeches: simile, metaphor, repetition 2. Why is this poem so touching to the readers? 1) Original flavor in fiery and direct expression: directly passionate
2) Artistic recreation; imagery presentation: newly sprung rose/ sweetly played melody 3) In repetition to stir an echoing effect
Auld Lang Syne P55 1. What does “cup o' kindness” imply?
Auld Lang Syne (old long since)by Robert Burns is a narrative poem praising for friendship. From the title and the first section we can easily get it, especially from the words ―acquaintance‖, ―forgot‖, ―brought to min'‖. After reading the whole poem, we will know ―cup o' kindness‖ here should imply the friendship between Robert Burns and his friend that he is now together with.
―Cup o' kindness‖ is showed in the second and the last section, which are both their reunion occasion. The people in the poem used to be friends and are old now; they are gathering to honor their friendship and memorize their happy childhood and adolescence. After the first ―cup o' kindness‖, the author starts to recall their joyful life: they has run in the brae, picked up the fine gowans, wandered a long and weary journey, paddled in the stream all the day. But all the nice memory has been the history ―Sin' auld lang syne.‖ And they are best affection and friendship for them two.
Then again comes to the present gathering, there is one more ―cup o' kindness‖ to imply that how much the author really worships the friendship and wish for it forever. ―And we'll take a cup o' kindness yet, For auld lang syne.‖
William Wordsworth I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud P57
1. What is the relation between the poet and nature as described in the poem?
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all nature poets, and he’s in top form in \entry about the day in question, Wordsworth's sister Dorothy wrote about their surprise at finding so many daffodils in such a strange place, next to a lake and under some trees. \those get there?\she wondered, even guessing that maybe the seeds floated across the lake. The event is one of the minor miracles that nature produces all the time, as anyone who has seen the documentary Planet Earth or the Disney movie Earth knows. Wordsworth’s nature is full of life and vitality. He appreciates its wildness and unpredictability, but he humanizes the landscape and fits it to his own mind. Theme of Happiness
\that even when you are by yourself and lonely and missing your friends, you can use your imagination to fine new friends in the world around you. As John Milton famously wrote, \The speaker of this poem makes a heaven out of a windy day and a bunch of daffodils. His happiness does not last forever – he’s not that unrealistic – but the daffodils give him a little boost of joy whenever he needs it, like recharging his batteries. Theme of Spirituality
The 19th century Scottish writer Thomas Carlyle coined the phrase \supernaturalism,\which has been used by later critics to describe how the Romantic poets, and especially Wordsworth, viewed the natural world as a spiritual realm. The idea is that Heaven comes down to earth and is viewed as part of the world. This poem illustrates the principle of natural supernaturalism. The daffodils are like angels and twinkling stars, and the \of heaven occurs in speaker’s imagination. He uses Christian ideas and images to make an ode to nature without any reference to God. Theme of Memory and the Past
\of Wordsworth’s other most famous works. In both poems, the memory of beautiful things serves as a comfort to the speaker even after the experience of viewing them has ended. He can always draw on his imagination to reproduce the joy of the event and to remember the spiritual wisdom that it provided. In the case of \Cloud,%until the fourth stanza, when he describes just how often the daffodils have comforted him.
2. Do you think nature can have healing effect on mind?
I think nature can have healing effect on mind, but the precondition is that the nature should be peaceful and earthly. Let’s imagine a scene. At the very beginning, we felt a little sad. Then, we place ourselves at a peaceful and clean lake. We sit on the comfortable and green grass. There are several wild flowers on the grass. Some little birds are walking near us with chirp. We can breathe the smell of the earth. When we are watching it glistening in the sunshine, there may be a smile on our face again. Nobody will be not touched in this condition unless there is something wrong with his mind. It is just like a picture. Or it is just like a clean bracing and ethereal melody. We can close our eyes to listen to it without any distracting thoughts. It always can comfort our hearts, and we will not feel that desperate. Every time I feel not happy I will listen to a piece of piano music. That makes me good, all my fidgeting will go away from me. Sometimes I will reflect where the problem is. Peaceful music is just like the nature. Both they can give me a kind of feeling like mother. Do not be scared at all. Sometimes I suppose if the criminal can live in the nature and experience it, they will not do that evil. In another hand, those
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artists maybe can not create the works. As the author said, a host of golden daffodils beside the lake, beneath the trees, fluttering and dancing in the breeze. The memory made him excited and brought his lonely heart happiness. If a writer does not watch any beautiful scenery, I believe he or she can’t be a good writer. Peaceful nature is a place people can release themselves and remove the unhappiness. In this circumstance, the writer digs their inspiration.
Yes, I think so. Some people may think that our nature has been highly polluted by our human beings. And it won’t have any effects on us. The others may think the nature has bad influence on our bodies because of the contamination. But I think nature must have a lot of healing effect on mind. As the development of the society, people may meet more and more difficulties, and it may lead to more stress. For example, when a person has worked for a long time, it is hard for him to do more. He would like to spend sometime travelling to somewhere. The place is best to be beautiful, clean, comfortable, with clear sky and green grass. People can breathe the fresh air there. When he lies on the grass and watches the sky, he may forget all the stress on work. The only thing he can do is to enjoy the charming scenery and great nature.
Nature also can affect people when they are ill especially serious disease. The patient may feel their life meaningless. At that time, their families will take them to a remote place. They may also let the patient have a pet. During the feeding period, the patient may feel that a life is so difficult to bring up. He will heal the spirit to live. Different people have different ideas. I can’t say that nature doesn’t have mischief, but in my opinion, its good effects are more.
Jane Austin Pride and Prejudice 1. Do you agree with the statement “it is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife”? What’s the relationship between money and marriage? I do not agree with the statement. I think it is wrong to get married for money and position, but at the same time it is idiot to do not consider money and position. In this novel, we can see the hero Darcy proposed marriage to Eliza but failed every time. Because Eliza has prejudice on Darcy and hated his pride actually. This kind of pride is a reaction from position’s differences. Unless the pride disappears, it will be possible that they could get married. Then Eliza observed Darcy’s doing, especially found his changing on his pride. She removed her prejudice and got married with Darcy. From the distinct attitudes to Darcy, It’s not difficult to find Eliza maintained women should pursue their right of personality independence and fairness. And this attitude reflected Austen’s view of marriage as well. Therefore, she maintained that we can not get married for money and see marriage as a game. She stressed the significance of ideal marriage, and love is the cornerstone. Through this novel Jane Austen tried to tell people must take some action and reflect, then there will be hope. Because respection is not native, we can only get it from our action and reflection. Here, we can easily discover author thought women should have self respect and be independent. What women want is not just money, they also need the respect and right. Marriage is not a trade. It is impossible that I give you money, then you will marry me. There is a third thing——love. If two people love each other, they will not break up because of how much money he own.
In my point of view, I think this statement is partial. This is only a truth
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acknowledged by a few families in the neighborhood of Long bourn. The opening sentence is ironically stated and has a subtle, unstated meaning. In its declaration that a wealthy bachelor must be looking for a wife, it hides just beneath its surface the real truth : A single woman, especially the one not in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a (wealthy) husband. We see in Jane Austen’s society, eighteenth and nineteenth century, marriage is the status all the women strive to achieve, while money plays a important role in marriage. It was extremely sensible and common to take a prospective partner's financial situation and status into consideration, especially for people of a less fortunate background or inheritance. Marriage was considered to be the only way, for women in particular, to live a comfortable life, free of financial worries. If a woman never got married, because of lacking money or looks, she would go and live with a married sister or brother. If she did not have any brothers or sisters to live with, she would become a governess.
2.What do you think of Mrs. Bennet? How can you characterize her? Mrs. Bennet’s mind was less difficult to understand. She was a woman of poor understanding, little information and uncertain temper. When she was discontented, she imagined herself nervous. The business of her life was to get her daughters married, the solace of her life was visiting and news. We can see from these examples.
―…for Mrs. Long…all about it.‖: from this sentences we can see that her important source of information is neighboring women’s gossip. (she was a woman of poor information)
―Is he married or single?‖: For a future son-in-law, this is the most important qualification which Mrs. B didn’t mention. From this we can see she pay a great attention on money.
―four or five thousand (pounds of income) a year. What a fine thing for our girls! ‖: Her thoughts skipped quickly and wildly: maybe was thinking already of a big house, beautiful garden, expensive clothes, etc.)
―How so? how can it affect them?‖: pretended to be na?ve by using apparently innocent questions so as to tease / make fun of her.
When Mr. Bennet said；―... or you may send them by themselves which perhaps will be still better; for, as you are as handsome as any of them, Mr. Bingley might like you the best of the party‖: This was said in obvious irony, but the irony was completely missed by his wife / beyond her understanding. She took it for his sincere praise of her beauty. But in eighteenth and nineteenth century, she had no idea but had to crazy about these things. Because in Britain at that time only the eldest son had the privilege of inheriting his father’s possessions. Younger sons and daughters who are used to luxurious lives have no choice but marry a man or woman in possession of a large fortune to continue their comfortable lives. Thus, we can see that getting married is a way to become wealthier, particularly for women without many possessions. Jane Austen told us that money and possession determined everything, including marriage and love in her century.
Mrs. Bennet is a woman who cares for nothing more than to have her daughters married off. A reference from the last chapter book which supports this statement is \her two most deserving daughters.\
I also see that Mrs. Bennet is extremely fickle and changes her mind quickly. In the course of the book we see two examples of this; the first one is in the
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beginning of the book after the foolish Mr. Collins chooses to marry Jane instead of Elizabeth. \was now high in her good graces\
called Mr. Darcy a \their friends, the Lucas’s and later on in the last few chapters of the book called him \her daughter, Elizabeth, was to marry him.
Mrs. Bennet is a woman who thrives on gossip. It is almost all she cares about. Even the guidance of her daughters is not on the top of her priority list, and this bad decision is shown to us by the flirtatious daughter that is Lydia. What she doesn't realize is how the 18th century society looks down upon her. She is quite unaware of her class and is downright silly. In her eyes Lydia, the shallow
and insensitive daughter of the five is her favorite because of her liveliness and good humor. Lydia marries Wickham who at first is a charmer having all the good qualities a man should have: good looks, humor, liveliness and is instantly accepted into the society. However, later it will be found out that Wickham is
insinuating and sly. And yet, when Mrs Bennet finds out that Lydia is marrying him, she is absolutely ecstatic and her main focus is on the dress that Lydia will wear on her wedding. These are the most obvious points of Mrs Bennet.
3. What makes Elizabeth feel so grateful to Darcy? How does Darcy respond to her.( P71) Elizabeth’s sister Lydia has always been frivolous and she runs away with Wayne, who is poor and hypocritical. This behavior is not recognized at that time which destroys the Bennet’s reputation. The whole family feels ashamed, especially Elizabeth. Although Lydia has the plan to marry Wayne, Wayne, as a playboy, considers everything as a game. Elizabeth is so worried with her poor sister, so she decides to leave her hometown to find her sister. Fortunately, Darcy gives a helping hand. He finds them and tries his best to convince Lydia to come back. Faced with Wayne’s greedy, he doesn’t flinch. He pays the debts for Wayne and gives Lydia a large amount of money. In order to help them, he also buys an official post for Wayne. Besides these, Darcy is also very gentle, he doesn’t expose Wayne so as to protect the whole family’s reputation. He does everything for Elizabeth; he doesn’t want her to be harmed. Darcy is proud at the beginning, which makes Elizabeth hate him so much, but after he has done so many things, Elizabeth’s prejudice is eliminated and she feels so grateful to Darcy.
Darcy feels sorry at the beginning. He is also surprised and excited. Originally, Darcy doesn’t want Elizabeth to know everything. He doesn’t help her sister for certain purpose. Generally, he is delighted that Elizabeth is not so indifferent to him as before. He has never wanted to get her gratitude, but this time he feels hopeful. He tells Elizabeth that all his done was for her only, because it’s only her in his heart. He shows his affections to her again which makes Elizabeth so embarrassed. Darcy also apologizes for his pride in the past time. Now, they have cleared up the misunderstanding. It’s a turning point of their emotional journey.
George Gordon Byron She Walks in Beauty她在美中行 1. What is the colour of the lady’s dress? How do you know?
Black. The poet compared the lady to the night (...like the night Of cloudless climes and starry skies).
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2. What does “their dwelling place” refer to in the last line of the second stanza? Their dwelling place refers to the lady's mind or soul. This lady had not only physical beauty but also inner beauty.
3. Where are the lady’s winning smiles? How do they appear to the poet? They are in the poet's imagination. They appear serene, sweet, pure, and perfect.
Percy Bysshe Shelley Ode to the West Wind P78 1. In what way is the West Wind both a destroyer and a preserver?
West wind is the destroyer as it is turbulent and strong and destroys the wide spread vegetation. It is a destroyer of the old, decaying and valueless things (such as dead
leaves), blowing over the land, drives away the dead leaves. Shelly shows the irony of the wind that acts in a contradictory manner.(use and Describe the words that show the
potential strength and use effective language)It is the preserver as it brings life to the dead atmosphere, it spreads the seeds and they lie two inches beneath the ground and eventually sprout into seedlings.
2. What is the relation between the West Wind and the poet?
In \The natural world is especially powerful because it contains elements like the West Wind and the Spring Wind, which can travel invisibly across the globe, affecting every cloud, leaf, and wave as they go. Man may be able to increase his status by allowing Nature to channel itself through him. The speaker of the poem appeals to the West Wind to infuse（灌输，影响） him with a new spirit and a new power to spread his ideas.
3. As “the trumpet of prophecy”, what does the west wind predict in physical reality? How do you understand it symbolically?
As the speaker of \the wind to use him as an instrument, inhabit him, distribute his ideas, or prophesy through his mouth. He hopes to transform himself by uniting his own spirit with the larger \
The speaker wishes that the wind could affect him the way it does leaves and clouds and waves. Because it can’t, he asks the wind to play him like an instrument, bringing out his sadness in its own musical lament. Maybe the wind can even help him to send his ideas all over the world; even if they’re not powerful in their own right, his ideas might inspire others. The sad music that the wind will play on him will become a prophecy. The West Wind of autumn brings on a cold, barren period of winter, but isn’t winter always followed by a spring?
John Keats
Ode on a Grecian Urn希腊古翁颂 3. Comment on the epigram “beauty is truth, truth beauty”.
The poet point out the relation between art and reality: Beauty is truth, truth beauty.The conclusion of this stanza is praising the greatness and eternity of art. That is to say people consider truth is beautiful because it is true. Just owing to the affective bias, in people’s mind true things are really beautiful, while false things are just seemingly beautiful. Therefore, only truth is real beauty.
Charlotte Bronte Jane Eyre P88
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1. What is Jane Eyre’s view of love as reflected in the excerpt?
When we connect death with life, we’ll find our life requiring more cherishment---love your life and love the people (be kind to others). Jane listened to the call of her inner world. Once caught it, she pursued it-- she fell in love with her master bravely. She cherished everything around her: the people, the plant, the animal and the whole nature. Besides Mr. Rochester, she was kind to her friends, her cousins, her students and the servants, even to the dog and the moorland. To her hostile enemy, Jane gave the same mercy: Mrs. Reed, her daughters and son, the evil mad woman of Mr. Rochester.
Jane was totally a speaker of the author Charlotte: what can we do before the hardness of life, including death? Charlotte learned to have (and maybe decided to love). The love consisted of two passions: the deep feeling to the human and the thankful cherishment of being. With constant sufferings in life, which were believed to be unbearable for most of us, Charlotte struggled to live her noble life, taking her responsibility in family and society, starving friendship and pursuing her career.
2. Why does Jane Eyre decide to stay with Mr. Rochester?
Jane Eyre decides to stay with Mr. Rochester because she deeply loves him. In fact, during the time when Jane Eyre lives in Thorn field a year ago, she falls in love with Mr. Rochester. She is attracted by Mr. Rochester’s charms. Later she leaves him because she loves him; she could not be Rochester’s mistress. She wants a sense of complete love. However when Jane hears that her lover Rochester becomes disabled, she desperately comes back to accompany Mr. Rochester. She decides to stay with Mr. Rochester because she always loves Rochester, the love never changes. Just as in this excerpt Jane says ―But if you wish me to love you, could you but see how much I do love you, you would be proud and content. All my heart is yours, sir: it belongs to you; and with you it would remain, were fate to exile the rest of me from your presence for ever‖.
For one thing, now Jane wants to accompany Rochester because she wants to soothe him. She wants to use her love to soothe Rochester; she wants to live with Rochester till the end of her life no matter how Rochester looks, how much he possesses. She loves Rochester deeply in her heart. As we all can see that Rochester loses his eyesight and strength as Rochester says in this excerpt, he is no better than the old lightning-struck tree. She knows the Mr. Rochester’s sufferings, and she knows Rochester’s love to her always never disappears. Now she wants to comfort Rochester. She says Rochester is no ruin, he is green and vigorous. She can not let her lover live alone in his rest time of life. For another, under this circumstance (Rochester’s wife is dead and he is also suffers a lot.), Jane thinks the love between Rochester and her is liberty and equal. As indicates in the whole book, we can find that Jane always pursues the equal and free love. Now she needs not to be a mistress and she doesn’t need to look up to Rochester. She can gain a completed love which she is always looking forward to achieve. She can be Rochester’s wife legally and morally. So she can stay with Rochester honestly.
In a word, Jane decides to stay with Mr. Rochester because she loves him deeply. It is love that leads Jane’s decision to stay with Rochester.
3. What kind of relationship between Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester does the last paragraph of the excerpt suggest?
The last paragraph of this excerpt describes a scene of Jane and Mr. Rochester’s subtle movements for expressing their love. ―Then he stretched his hand out to be led. I took that dear hand, held it a moment to my lips, then let it pass around my shoulder: being so much a lower of stature than he, I served both for his prop and guide, we enter the wood, and wended homeward.‖
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From just all these words, we may easily see the sincere love and forgiveness and support to Mr. Rochester. All the way, Jane holds the unchangeable views of respect, of love, of freedom and of equality, no matter when she is his governess or she refuses to his marriage or now she is his wife. In the past she and Rochester, She of course knows their great disparity of social status, a rich village manor owner and a low-grade governess. Nevertheless, there exists all along a standpoint in her mind, they were born equal.
Jane’s love is invariably loyal and faithful to Rochester by rejecting John River’s proposal. When he has terribly suffered the fire, she still accepts him, which is really a vowed love. Rochester as well expresses his deep love to Jane. This was her perfect love view, an equal love, a hundred-percent love, a respected love, a self-giving love.
Now they are equal spouses in status and also economy and love. For this moment Jane holds him to homeward, acting as both his prop and guide, which does not only means to guide his walk but also means she will support him and is willing to guide him to the happy life, no more his previous cold life. She hopes in the future they can carry each other as now.
Charles Dickens Great Expectations P100 1. Magwitch the “the convict” takes the risk of being “hanged” when comes back to London to see Pip. How do you evaluate this meeting?
First, to Pip it is a surprising meeting which happens so suddenly. Pip always regards Miss Havisham as his sponsor who gives money to him and he struggles for Estella. So when he meets Magwitch, he is very surprised. He never thinks that it was a convict who donates money for him to be the gentleman in the upper class. He can not receive this result. He can hardly imagine that it is the convict who helps him to be a member of the upper class. Then it is an unwilling meeting to Pip. According to this excerpt, we can see that when Magwitch eagerly wants to hang with Pip, Pip escapes several times. In Pip’s heart, Magwitch is just the man who he saves when he was only a young boy. Now, Pip is a gentle man with a lot of money and lives as the noblemen. He looks down upon Magwitch. So when he meets Magwitch, he feels anxious, dispirited and even abhorrent. As we can see in the following narrations ―All the truth of my position came flashing on me; and its disappointment, dangers, disgrace, consequences of all kinds, rushed in such a multitude that I was borne down by them and had to struggle for every breath I drew‖. To him, the meeting is just like a disaster.
To Magwitch it is a willing meeting which he has been looking forwards to for a long period of time. As from this excerpt, we can see that Magwitch is very excited and passionate to see Pip to whom he gives money to cultivate him as a gentleman. From the conversations between Pip and him, we can see that Magwitch works hard just for making money for Pip. As he knows the boy he subsidizes has been a very successful man in his mind. It seems that he is also a successful man as he crates Pip. He desperately wants to meet Pip and wants to hang with him for several times. So when he meets Pip, he shows his excitement, pleasure and proud as the text depicts, ―Yes, Pip, dear boy, I’ve made a gentleman on you! It’s me wot has done it!‖ So even when Magwitch knows that he will die soon, he comes a long way to see Pip. He regards himself as Pip’s second father and he prepares a lot to see Pip, his ―son‖. To him, it is a meaningful meeting. He comes to meet the great gentleman he creates with his own hands. He is happy, excited and proud.
2. What’s the meaning of “gentleman” in the contest of the novel?
In Victorian era, the essence of a gentleman is that he comes from a pure gens, or is
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perfectly bred, after that, gentleness and sympathy, or kind disposition and fine imagination. However, in Great Expectations, the word ―gentleman‖ has a derogatory meaning. The author uses a method called allegory to tell readers something.
The main protagonist and narrator Pip once was a poor, but sympathetic and warm-hearted boy. He was simple and innocent. He dreamed of being a blacksmith like his brother-in-law Joe and owes his living with his own hands. But after he met Estella, he couldn’t help but fell in love with her. However Estella despised him for his being poor. So he wanted to be a gentleman for sake of Estella. Then he got an inheritance from someone to finance him being a gentleman. Finally he becomes a gentleman, but his virtue disappeared. In his bid to be a gentleman transformed him to be miserable and unkind person. Although at that time he was wealthy, well-groomed and well-educated, he was a man with a fragile heart and powerful conscience. He was selfish and cool-hearted to his poor old friends. When Joe came to London to see him, he was unwilling and reluctant to meet him and was cruel to him. He was numb by his high social status and wealth then. Also he was not really happy at all. Here we can see the meaning of ―gentleman‖ in the contest. Pip’s definition of gentleman was narrowed by the influence of Miss Havisham and Estella who see social status, high education and material wealth as the essential components of being a gentleman.
In my opinion, Great Expectations by Charles Dickens challenged the predominant concept of being a gentleman in the Victorian Era by implicating that a gentleman can be judged not on their affiliation, social status or material wealth but rather by their character and personal accomplishments. In this novel there are two different characteristics between the poor Pip and the gentleman Pip. So it is the title ―Gentleman‖ that changes Pip from good to bad. The author wants to uncover some social problems by this. He wanted to criticize the dirty capitalism and the dark society, in this world people like to pretend to be gentlemen. 3. Character of Pip?
As a character, Pip’s two most important traits are his immature, romantic idealism and his innately good conscience. On the one hand, Pip has a deep desire to improve himself and attain any possible advancement, whether educational, moral, or social. His longing to marry Estella and join the upper classes stems from the same idealistic desire as his longing to learn to read and his fear of being punished for bad behavior: once he
understands ideas like poverty, ignorance, and immorality, On the other hand, Pip is at heart a very generous and sympathetic young man, a fact that can be witnessed in his numerous acts of kindness throughout the book (helping Magwitch, secretly buying Herbert’s way into business, etc.) and his essential love for all those who love him. Pip’s main line of development in the novel may be seen as the process of learning to place his innate sense of kindness and conscience above his immature idealism.
Not long after meeting Miss Havisham and Estella, Pip’s desire for advancement largely overshadows his basic goodness. After receiving his mysterious fortune, his
idealistic wishes seem to have been justified, and he gives himself over to a gentlemanly life of idleness. But the discovery that the wretched Magwitch, not the wealthy Miss Havisham, is his secret benefactor shatters Pip’s oversimplified sense of his world’s hierarchy. The fact that he comes to admire Magwitch while losing Estella to the brutish nobleman Drummle ultimately forces him to realize that one’s social position is not the most important quality one possesses, and that his behavior as a gentleman has caused him to hurt the people who care about him most. Once he has learned these lessons, Pip matures into the man who narrates the novel, completing the bildungsroman.
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James Joyce Araby P171
2. Chief qualities of the boy’s character?
The boy is a natural character with which to begin a book because he possesses so many qualities attractive to readers. First, he is sensitive — sensitive enough to experience a wide range of feelings in spite of his tender age, including apparently contradictory combinations like fear and longing (at the end of the story's first
paragraph), anger and puzzlement (while falling asleep), and, especially, \of freedom\strange,\ Second, he is intelligent — and not merely in the conventional sense of the word. Sure, he is brainy enough to absorb much of the arcane information shared with him by the priest. (It makes sense that he has grown into the articulate storyteller who shares the tale of Father Flynn's influence upon him.) But the protagonist of \Sisters\think, and act — emotional intelligence, you might call it.
It is no surprise that a boy so sensitive, so intelligent, would find himself somewhat alienated from others — cut off, fundamentally, from his family and peers. He appears to lack altogether a connection with his uncle, much less Old Cotter, and it is said that he rarely plays \young lads of his own age.\Even when he is in the company of his aunt and the priest's sisters near story's end, the reader's main sense of the boy is that he is alone.
The school boy, in the story 'Araby\narrator of the story. He has not yet attained majority and is by nature bashful. He lived alone with his auntie and uncle and knew a few play-mates with whom he played in the street. Mangan's sister was perhaps only girl who lived in his neighborhood. He started appreciating her figure and dress without actually realizing that he had grown to like her. Being preadolescent person he had not become conscious that such a passion is just natural and it does not call for apology or regrets. If he had expressed his noble feeling of love for the girl he might have been able to overcome his bashfulness. Once he hesitated in expressing his sentiments, he developed an inhibition with the result that he was never able to make his feelings known to her. He went worshipping her silently. By chance, she happened to talk to him, he felt confused and did not know how to express himself. His desire to visit Araby became an obsession for him and he made up his mind to go to the market at the earliest and bring a gift for her. The hour that he reached Araby, was not at all fit for purchasing something really worthwhile. He experienced a sort of bitterness even worse than defeat. Being a lonely person, he is in search of a kindred soul. But lacking self-confidence he is not able to win her, as any other person without inhibition could have done so easily.The boy in the story is so bashful and inept in his relation with Mangan's sister only. He was quite a sociable boy in his own way and was good at studies. His auntie and uncle never discovered any oddity about him. He certainly proved quite helpful when he accompanied his aunt on her shopping trips. After his missed venture with Araby he lost interest in his studies. His teacher stared feeling concerned about him. But he did not know the real reason for this lack of interest in his studies. He is a hardworking and responsible boy and is capable of changing his attitude in keeping with the changing conditions. His unrequited love has proved disappointing experience for him, but certainly it would have made him wiser and more practical in future.
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Alfred Tennyson The Eagle 1. Make a list of adjectives which can describe your impression of the eagle.
(1)The image of the eagle：a bird of prey, of strength, size, gracefulness, keen vision and power of flight.
(2)In the poem the eagle is pictured as lonely.
(3)The bird is small against its surroundings(an azure sky and mountain).
(4)The bird is at great height or as the poem states, \ The eagle, at its great height, is a representation of a man at the peak of his life, clinging on desperately. (有时间就写下面的)
(5)The eagle is not only memorized Hallam, it’s also a description of Tennyson’s life and express his strong mind.(6)The eagle is proud even falls from the mountain top just as Tennyson.
2. Does Tennyson use many adjectives to describe the eagle? Why?
Yes. (1)The eagle in the poem is favorably presented as being strong and tough, proud and majestic, sharpeyed, alert and quick in movement. (2)The poet carefully chooses the words describing the eagle and his environment.
3. Why is the word“crawls”employed to describe the sea?
（1）The sea represent the universe. Similar to the eagle's smallness as compared to the sea, is man's as compared to the universe. The man is lonely in that he must enter and leave the world alone.
（2）The sea give the reader a sense of vastness and boundlessness, power and mystery. The wave of the sea is tremendous and turbulent. But in the eyes of the eagle, the wave of the sea is wrinkled and crawl. These devices make the whole poem appeal to the readers’visual as well as aural sense.
Break, Break, Break溅吧，溅吧，溅吧
1. Why does the poet describe the stones as “cold” and “gray”? It is an expression of his personal grief.
2. What effect do they joyful scenes in the second stanza bring to the whole poem? （1）In the narrator's dark hour of grief, the sun rises, children laugh, business goes on as usual. How could the world be so cruel and unfeeling? （2）In this poem, the poet’s own feelings of grief stands in sharp contrast with the carefree joys of the children at play and the young sailor at work, and with the unfeeling movements of the ship and the sea waves 3. Whose is the “vice that is still”?
His best friend, Arthur Hallam, a fellow poet.
Robert Browning My Last Duchess 我已故的公爵夫人
1. Why does the Duke want to show his guest his art collection? To boast and/or to threaten.
2. Why is the Duke dissatisfied with his last Duchess? What can you say about the Duchess’ personality from the Duke’s monologue?
(1)Because his last Duchess’s genuine kindness and innocent reveals he as a serf-conceited, cruel and tyrannical man. (2) kind, lively, artless
3. The Duke hints that his commands have something to do with the death of his last
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Duchess.Why does he give his guest such a clue?
Based on the poem's style, structure, and historical references, it becomes evident that even if the speaker did not directly kill his wife, he certainly had something to hide.
Thomas Hardy Tess of the D’Urbervilles 1. How does Tess react to Clare’s suggestion that they should leave their shelter? Why?
She showed a strange unwillingness to move. Because she doesn’t want to put an end to all that’s sweet and lovely peacefulness and affection.
2. What is the significance of Tess resting on an altar in the heathen temple?
1）She is the sacrifice of the social conventions and prejudice which society has placed upon her
2）In Hardy's eyes, she is the epitome of the purity of women, as pure as the sacrifices which are placed upon the altar.
3）She knows the fate which is about to befall upon her, just as the sacrifices on the altar, inescapable death.
4）Her death is caused by human hypocrisy and foolishness, similar to that of a sacrifice. 5）At the end, the only place which can accept her for who she is is death and sacrifice. 6）Biblical allusion. Parallel to phrase the first, when Abraham and her where on the carriage. Similar to the biblical story where Abraham was to sacrifice his son, the family sacrificed Tess.
3. Comment on this sentence: “Justice’ was done, and the President of the lmmortals (in Aeschylean phrase ) had ended his sport with Tess”. In what sense is Tess’ story tragic?
(1)Tess is a typical victim of the society. Poverty of the family, inhumanity, injustice and hypocrisy of the society decide her tragedy. The two men— the one who takes away her virginity and purity, the other who takes away her love but deserts her on the very weding night— though apparent rivals, join their forces in bringing about her final destruction. Hers is a personal tragedy; it can also be a social one.(2)The tragic fate of Tess and her family was not that of an individual family, but it was symbolic of the disintegration of the English peasantry--- a process which had reached its final and tragic stage at the end of 19th century
George Bernard Shaw Pygmalion 1. Why does the Greek dipolmatist pretend that he cannot speak nor understand English?
Because he doesn’t reveal his origin that he speaks English so villainously that he dare not utter a wordof it.
2. What do people at the party think of Eliza? Why do they stare at her so intently? She is so intent on her ordeal that she walks like a somnambulist. Because they admir her dress,her jewels,and her strangely attractive self.
William Butler Yeats The Second Coming 1. What does the line “Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;” mean?
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These lines confirm the above idea by showing that without order \fall apart.\Society's center dissolves as the gyre widens, introducing anarchy.
The ceremony of innocence This phrase reflects Yeats' appreciation of ritual as the basis of civilized living
2. What do “a shape with lion body and the head of a man” and the “rough beast” refer to?
The speaker's horrific vision is of a supernatural creature with a body that is half-lion and half-man[Sphinx]. This beast represents the new god of the new era.
As stated earlier in the poem, order has been destroyed and now is replaced by a supernatural being who combines the image of humanity with a violent, disturbing image of nature.
Note also that this vision is set in a desert landscape. This implies that the coming era will create a dry, withered existence.
3. Yeats wrote this poem in the early 20th century while the fin-de-siecle mood was still quite popular. At the beginning of the 21st century, what do you think of this poem?
Yeats gives the readers freedom of interpretation. The poem ends with a question mark. Yeats seems to ask who will win the battle in the end? which is represented as the beast or Good, which is about to be born in Bethlehem?
In his poem \Second Coming,\William Butler Yeats indicates that the continued destructive actions of humankind will result in the birth of a new age that is dark, foreboding, and ruled by anarchy.
The poem serves as a warning of what might lie ahead if we do not change the direction society continues to take.
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