Exercise 2 American Romanticism 美国浪漫主义

Exercise 2 American Romanticism

I. Multiple choice:

1. Statement _________ is wrong in describing Nathaniel Hawthorne.

A. One source of evil that Hawthorne is concerned most is over-reaching intellect

B. Hawthorne is a realistic writer

C. Hawthorne is a master of symbolism

D. Hawthorne is also a great allegorist

2. In Walt’ Whitman’s “There was a Child Went Forth,” the child refers to ______.

A. the poet himself as a child B. any American child

C. the young America C. one of the poet’s neighbor

3. In Moby-Dick, the voyage symbolizes ____________.

A. the microcosm of human society B. a search for truth

C. the unknown world D. nature

4. The Transcendentalist group includes two of the most significant writers America has produced so far, Emerson and ____________.

A. Henry David Thoreau B. Washington Irving

C. Nathaniel Hawthorne D. Walt Whitman

5. ________________ is regarded as the first American prose epic.

A. Nature B. The Scarlet Letter C. Walden D. Moby-Dick

6. The Romantic Period of American literature started with the publication of Washington Irving’s ____________ and ended with Whitman’s Leaves of Grass.

A. The Sketch Book B. Tales of a Traveler

C. The Alhambra D. A History of New York

7. The convention of the desire for an escape from society and a return to nature in American literature is particularly evident in _________________.

A. Cooper’s Leatherstocking Tale B. Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter

C. Whitman’s Leaves of Grass D. Irving’s Rip Van Winkle

8. Choose the characters ________________ which appear in the novel The Scarlet Letter.

A. Hester Prynne B. Atthur Dimmesdale

C. Roger Chillingworth D. Pearl

9. The period before the American Civil War is generally referred to as ________________.

A. the Naturalist Period B. the Modern Period

C. the Romantic Period D. the Realistic Period

10. In the following works, which signs the beginning of the American literature?

A. The Sketch Book B. Leaves of Grass

C. Leatherstocking Tales D. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

11. In Hawthorne’s novels and short stories, intellectuals usually appear as ___________.

A. saviors B. villains C. commentators D. observers

12. Washington Irving’s Rip Van Winkle is famous for _______________.

A. Rip’s escape into a mysterious place

B. the story’s German legendary source material

C. Rip’s seeking for happiness

D. Rip’s 20-year sleep

13. The publication of ______________ established Emerson as the most eloquent spokesman of New England Transcendentalism.

A. Nature B. Self-Reliance

C. the American Scholar D. The Over-Soul

14. Which of the following is not a work of Emily Dickinson’s?

A. This is my letter to the world

B. I heard a Fly buzz – when I died

C. the Road Not Taken

D. I like to see it lap the Miles

15. In the history of literature, Romanticism is regarded as _______________.

A. the thought that designates a literary and philosophical theory which tends to see the individual as the very center of all life and all experience

B. the thought that designates man as a social animal

C. the orientation that emphasizes those features which men have in common

D. the modes of thinking

16. In the poem “Song of Myself”, Whitman sets forth the principle beliefs of _____________.

A. the theory of universality

B. singularity and equality of all beings in value

C. both A and B

D. none above

17. Emily Dickinson’s poem (441) “This is my letter to the World” expresses the poet’s __________ about her communication with the outside world.

A. indignation B. joy C. anxiety D. indifference

18. Which of the following features cannot characterize poems by Walt Whitman?

A. lyrical and well-structured B. free-flowing

C. simple and rather crude D. conversational and casual

II. Give brief answers:

1. Emily Dickinson is now recognized not only as a great poetess on her own right but as a

poetess of considerable influence upon American poetry of the present century. What are the qualities of her poems?

2. Nathaniel Hawthorne is one of the most interesting, yet most ambivalent writers in the

American literary history. According to him, “There is evil in every human heart, which may remain latent, perhaps, through the whole life; but circumstances may rouse it to activity.” Based on this thought, he completed Young Goodman Brown. Try to discuss the theme of this work.

Suggested answers:

I. 1.B 2.C 3.B 4.A 5.D 6. A 7. D 8. A.B.C.D 9.C 10. A

11. B 12. D 13. A 14. C 15. A 16. C 17.C 18. A II.

1. There are four characteristics, for example:

A. Dickinson’s poems are usually based on her own experiences, her sorrows and joys.

B. Love is another subject Dickinson dwells on.

C. Many poems Dickinson wrote are about nature, in which her general skepticism about the relationship between man and nature is well-expressed.

D. Dickinson’s poetry is unique and unconventional in its worn way. Her poems have no title, hence are always quoted by their first lines.

2. A. Young Goodman Brown is essentially an allegory. It is concerned with …… 此处隐藏：3513字，全部文档内容请下载后查看。喜欢就下载吧 ……