中国人民大学2007年硕士研究生入学考试试题
英美文学部分
Ⅰ.Define，in complete sentences，the following terms and phrases in English and American literature.（10 points）
1.ottava rima
2.closet drama
3.the cry of“art for art’s sake”
4.psychological realism
5.Sentimentalism
Ⅱ.Place each of the following works in its proper century，indicate its genre，and give the full name of the author.（14 points）
1.My Last Duchess
2.The Fall of the House of Usher
3.The School for Scandal
4.The Man of Property
5.She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways
6.Anecdote of the Jar
7.The American Crisis
Ⅲ.Identify each of the following quotations by giving the title of the work and the full name of the author，and explain the implications of the underlined parts.（12 points）
1.There was music from my neighbor’s house through the summer nights.In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars.At high tide in the afternoon I watched his guests diving from the tower of his raft，or taking the sun on the hot sand of his beach while his two motor-boats slit the waters of the Sound，drawing aquaplanes over cataracts of foam.On weekends his Rolls-Royce became an omnibus，bearing parties to and from the city between nine in the morning and long past midnight，while his station wagon scampered like a brisk yellow bug to meet all trains.And on Mondays eight servants，including an extra gardener，toiled all day with mops and scrubbing-brushes and hammers and garden-shears，repairing the ravages of the night before.
2.Make room，and let him stand before our face.
The world thinks，and I think so too，
That thou but lead’st this fashion of thy malice
To the last hour of act；and then，’tis thought，
Thou’lt show thy mercy and remorse，more strange
Than is thy strange apparent cruelty；
And where thou now exacts the penalty，—
Which is a pound of this poor merchant’s flesh，—
Thou wilt not only loose the forfeiture，
But，toucht with human gentleness and love，
Forgive a moiety of the principal，
Glancing an eye of pity on his losses，
That have of late so huddled on his back
Enow to press a royal merchant down，
And pluck commiseration of his state
From brassy bosoms and rough hearts of flint，
From stubborn Turks and Tartars，never train’d
To offices of tender courtesy.
3.The bowls never wanted washing.The boys polished them with their spoons till they shone again；and when they had performed this operation（which never took very long，the spoons being nearly as large as the bowls），they would sit staring at the copper，with such eager eyes，as if they could have devoured the very bricks of which it was composed；employing themselves，meanwhile，in sucking their fingers most assiduously，with the view of catching up any stray splashes of gruel that might have been cast thereon.Boys have generally excellent appetites.He and his companions suffered the tortures of slow starvation for three months：at last they got so voracious and wild with hunger，that one boy，who was tall for his age，and hadn’t been used to that sort of thing（for his father had kept a small cook-shop），hinted darkly to his companions，that unless he had another basin of gruel per diem，he was afraid he might some night happen to eat the boy who slept next him，who happened to be a weakly youth of tender age.He had a wild，hungry eye；and they implicitly believed him.A council was held；lots were cast who should walk up to the master after supper that evening，and ask for more；and it fell to him.
4.“Prophet！’”said I，“thing of evil！—prophet still，if bird or devil！—
Whether tempter sent，or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore，
Desolate yet all undaunted，on this desert land enchanted—
On this home by horror haunted—tell me truly，I implore—
Is there—is there balm in Gilead？—tell me—tell me，I implore！”
Ⅳ.Answer the following questions according to your understanding of English and American literary history and criticism.（14 points）
1.How did Chaucer’s creative work reflect the changes of the English society in the second half of the 14th century？How much was Chaucer influenced by foreign authors such as Dante or Boccaccio？What are some of the significances of such influences？
2.In what ways does Sister Carrie or some other major works by Theodore Dreiser reveal his perception of the“American Dream”？What do you know and think of the controversy about Dreiser as a man and as a writer？
参考答案与解析
Ⅰ.Define，in complete sentences，the following terms and phrases in English and American literature.（10 points）
1.ottava rima
Ottava rima is a form of eight-line iambic stanza rhyming abababcc.Byron’s Don Juan and William Butler Yeats’“Sailing to Byzantium”are outstanding examples.
2.closet drama
A closet drama is a play that is not intended to be performed on stage.Instead，it is read by a solitary reader or，sometimes，out loud in a small group，perhaps in a small room called a closet.
3.the cry of“art for art’s sake”
The theory of“art for art’s sake，”also called Aesthetic Movement，was first put forward by some French artists then advocated by English writer Oscar Wilde.Prevailing in Europe in the middle of the 19th century，the theory is a cry that art should serve no religious，moral or social purpose.
4.psychological realism
Psychological realism is a work of prose fiction which places more than the usual amount of emphasis on interior characterization，and on the motives，circumstances，internal action which springs from，and develops external action.In this type of writing，character and characterization are more than usually important，and they often delve deeper into the mind of a character than novels of other genres.
5.Sentimentalism
Sentimentalism is a pejorative term to describe false or superficial emotion，assumed feeling，self-regarding postures of grief and pain.In literature it denotes over much use of pathetic effects and attempts to arouse feeling by“pathetic”indulgence.The Vicar of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith is a case in point.
Ⅱ.Place each of the following works in its proper century，indicate its genre，and give the full name of the author.（14 points）
1.My Last Duchess
A poem written by Robert Browning in the 19th century.
2.The Fall of the House of Usher
A story written by Edgar Allan Poe in the 19th century.
3.The School for Scandal
A comedy of manners written by Richard Brinsley in the 18th century.
4.The Man of Property
The first novel of The Forsyte Saga written by John Galsworthy in the 20th century.
5.She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways
A poem written by William Wordsworth in the 18th century.
6.Anecdote of the Jar
A poem written by Wallace Stevens in the 20th century.
7.The American Crisis
A series of pamphlets written by Thomas Paine in the 18th century.
Ⅲ.Identify each of the following quotations by giving the title of the work and the full name of the author，and explain the implications of the underlined parts.（12 points）
1.（1）The excerpt is from The Great Gatsby written by F.Scott Fitzgerald.
（2）cataracts：large steep waterfalls
scampered：running or going quickly
ravages：the destruction caused by something
Implications：All these words describe Gatsby’s grand party bustling with noise and excitement，which implies Gatsby’s extravagant and wasteful life.
2.（1）The excerpt is from The Merchant of Venice written by William Shakespeare.
（2）lead’st this fashion of thy malice：you just pretend to be so cruel
moiety：either of the two parts into which something is divided
Enow：enough
Implications：The juxtaposition of“moiety”and“enow”shows that a little mercy given by Shylock would save Bassanio from danger.However，Shylock doesn’t follow the Duke’s words and goes the opposite way，which implies his cruelty and meanness as well as Bassanio’s generosity and fraternity.
3.（1）The excerpt is from Olive Twist written by Charles Dickens.
（2）assiduously：diligently and persistently
voracious：eager to eat great amounts of food ravenously
Implications：The words“assiduously”and“voracious”imply that the children in the workhouse are very starved and ill-treated.
4.（1）The excerpt is from“The Raven”written by Edgar Allan Poe.
（2）Prophet：a person who speaks by divine inspiration or as the interpreter through whom the will of a god is expressed
implore：to beg for urgently
Balm in Gilead：a healing compound that can relieve one’s pain
Implications：The word“Prophet”implies a mysterious force；the word“implore”implies the poet’s miserable mood；“Balm in Gilead”implies the speaker’s longing for something to relieve her anguish.
Ⅳ.Answer the following questions according to your understanding of English and American literary history and criticism.（14 points）
1.【解题点津】
本题共涉及三个考点，分别考查乔叟的代表作《坎特伯雷故事集》是如何反映14世纪下半叶的英国社会的，外国作家如但丁、薄伽丘对乔叟产生了哪些影响以及这些影响的意义。回答考点一时考生要结合《坎特伯雷故事集》创作的时代背景。考点二和三可以综合外国作家对他的影响及意义回答。
Keys for Reference
（1）The Canterbury Tales，though produced in the medieval period，reflects some vital social changes that foreshadow the coming of a new age—Renaissance.The work affirms men and women’s right to pursue their happiness on earth and opposes the religious dogma of asceticism.The work presents，for the first time in English literature，a comprehensive realistic picture of the medieval English society and creates a whole gallery of vivid characters from all walks of life.The changes reflected by those vivid characters mark the transition of England from a feudal society to a modern society.
（2）Chaucer derived his narrative inspiration for his works from several sources，including such Italian authors as Dante，Petrarch，and Boccaccio.The example of Dante gave him the idea of writing in the vulgar English rather than in the court French of the day.Based on that，Chaucer introduced from France rhymed stanzas of various types（heroic couplet）into English poetry to replace the Old English alliterative verse and made London dialect the foundation for modern English speech.In addition，Boccaccio’s love story provides some inspiration for his best poetry，among which includes“Troilus and Cressida.”What’s more，Chaucer’s work The Canterbury Tales owes a lot to The Decameron，a collection of 100 tales written by Boccaccio.
2.【解题点津】
本题考查德莱塞的《嘉莉妹妹》或他的其他作品对“美国梦”的体现以及他作为一个人和作为一个作家所体现出的自相矛盾。考生首先可以简述《嘉莉妹妹》的故事梗概，然后结合她对“美国梦”的追求来分析作家对于“美国梦”的理解。而第二个问题则需要考生对德莱塞有一定的了解。德莱塞因早年受达尔文主义思想的影响，作品有浓厚的自然主义倾向。作品中的主人公为获得物质的成功和生存的机会信奉“适者生存”的法则。德莱塞对主人公的做法不作任何评论，但却在嘉莉妹妹不惜一切代价取得物质成功的时候把她描写成一个在摇椅中来回摇摆的人。她孤独、茫然并且空虚。这表明了作者对“美国梦”的矛盾态度。他一方面揭露了资本主义的残酷现实，同时也流露出了悲观主义倾向。而作为一位作家，他的作品因其写作风格而饱受争议。《嘉莉妹妹》中所表现出的对国家道德标准的忽视态度令公众震惊，虽然他并没有攻击这种标准。
Keys for Reference
（1）In Dreiser’s novel Sister Carrie，all the characters search for their own“American Dreams”—the dreams of material success.For example，Carrie Meeber，a poor country girl，arrives in Chicago，filled with the expectations of acquiring the better things in life.
（2）Sister Carrie is a reflection of Dreiser’s perception of the American Dream.Influenced deeply by Darwinism，Dreiser’s characters believe in the law of“survival of the fittest”in securing material success and survival in social competition.Dreiser does not comment on whether his characters are right or wrong in pursuing the American Dream.However，at the end of Sister Carrie Dreiser describes Sister Carrie as a lonely and empty person rocking in a rocking chair.This reveals Dreiser’s ambivalent attitude towards the American Dream.
（3）Dreiser is controversial as a man and as a writer.The controversy lies in that he is always struggling with the pressure of life and pursuing his own American Dream.Caught in and disillusioned by capitalism，Dreiser became more pessimistic and fatalist.
（4）Dreiser’s style has been a controversial aspect of his work.The publication of Sister Carrie shocked readers because the prevailing tone of the book ignored the nation’s puritanical moral code.Moreover，his German name caused many critics to attack his“barbaric naturalism”and unconventional writing style.