美国文学史练习题

美国文学史练习 题 快递公司问题件快递公司问题件货款处理关于圆的周长面积重点题型关于解方程组的题及答案关于南海问题 Part 1 Early Literature 1. The Puritan dominating values were . a. hard work b. thrift c. piety d. sobriety 2. Anne Bradstreet was a Puritan poet. Her poems made such a stir in England that she became known as the“ ” who appeared in America. a. Ninth Muse b. Tenth Muse c. Best Muse d. First Muse 3. In American literature, the eighteen century was the age of the Enlightenment. _______was the dominant spirit. a. Humanism b. Rationalism c. Revolution d. Evolution 4. At the Reason and Revolution Period, Americans were influenced by the European movement called the . a. Chartist Movement b. Romanticist Movement d. Modernist Movement c. Enlightenment Movement 5. usually was regarded as the first American writer. a. William Bradford b. Anne Bradstreet c. Emily Dickinson d. Captain John Smith 6. From 1732 to 1758, Franklin wrote and published his famous _______, an annual collection of proverbs. a. The Autobiography b. Poor Richard’s Almanac c. Common Sense d. The General Magazine 7. The American _______ as a cultural heritage exerted great influences over American moral values. a. Puritanism b. Unitarianism c. Deism d. Protestantism Part 2 Romantic Literature 1. The romantic period of American literature started with the publication of Washington Irving’s _______and ended with Whiteman’s Leaves of Grass. A. The Sketch Book B. Tales of a Traveler C. The Alhambra D. A History of New York 2. In the middle of 19th century, America witnessed a cultural flowering which is called “________”. A. the English Renaissance B. the American Renaissance C. the Second Renaissance D. the American literary Revolution 3.______ is usually agreed to be the summit of the American Romanticism in the history of American literature. A. New England Transcendentalism B. England Transcendentalism 1 C. the Harlem Renaissance D. New Transcendentalism . In the following works, _______ signs the beginning of the American literature. 4 A. The Sketch Book B. Leaves of Grass C. Leather Stocking Tales D. Moby Dick 5. According to ________, man’s capacity is infinite. A. James Cooper B. Emily Dickinson C. Walt Whitman D. Ralph Emerson 6. As a philosophical and literary movement, Transcendentalism flourished in New England from the 1830s to the Civil War, whose most important representatives are ______. A. Emerson and Thoreau B. Emerson and Whitman C. Hawthorne and Melville D. Allan Poe and James Cooper 7. Which of the following poet is NOT a romanticist in the history of American literature? _______ A. Walt Whitman B. James Russell Lowell C. Edgar Allan Poe D. Emily Dickinson 8. The essay_______, written by Ralph Waldo Emerson, has become so important that most people consider it an unofficial manifesto for the “Transcendental Club.” A. Nature B. Walden C. The Over-Soul D. Self-Reliance 9. In spite of strong foreign influences, American romantic writings are typically American which can be revealed in the following except . A. a desire for an escape from civilized society and a return to the ennobling nature B. American type of characters speaking local dialects appeared in the fiction C. the American national experience of “pioneering into the west” D. an emphasis on the free expression of emotions 10. Which of the following statements about the Romantic period in the history of American literature is NOT true? _______ A. In most of the American writings of this period there was a new emphasis upon the imaginative and emotional qualities of literature. B. The writers of this period placed an increasing emphasis on the free expression of emotions and displayed an increasing attention to the psychic states of their characters. C. There was a strong tendency to exalt the individual and the common man. D. Most heroes and heroines in the writings of this period exhibited extremes of reason and nationality. 11. _______, Melville’s masterpiece, is regarded as the first American prose epic. A. Typee B. Omoo C. White Jacket D. Moby Dick 12. _____ 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. A. Emily Dickinson B. Harriet Beecher C. Anne Bradstreet D. George Eliot 2 13. Dickinson’s poems are usually based on her own experiences, her sorrows and joys. But many of her little lyrics concern ______. A. the whole human beings, which include religion, death, immortality, love, and nature B. the lower-class working people who live a life of poverty and sordidness C. the middle-class people who live in confusion and in void of faith D. the upper-class people who live in comfort and idleness 14. The subjects of Emily Dickinson’s poems are mainly about the following except______. A. religion B. death and immortality C. man and morality D. love and nature 15. Which of the following is not right about the characteristics of Emily Dickinson’s poetic writing? _______ A. Her poetry is unique and unconventional in its own way. B. Her poems have no titles and a particular stress pattern. C. Her poems are usually rather long and rarely less than 20 lines. D. Her poetic idiom is noted for its laconic brevity, directness and plainness. 16. In American literature the first important writer who earned an international fame on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean is _______. A. Washington Irving B. Ralph Waldo Emerson C. Nathaniel Hawthorne D. Walt Whitman 17. Irving was best known for his famous short stories such as_______. A. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow B. Legend of the Alhambra C. Life of Goldsmith D. Life of Washington 18. Washington Irving got his idea for his most famous story, Rip Van Winkle, from a ________ A. Greek legend B. German legend C. French legend D. English legend 19. Rip Van Winkle is found in Irving’s longer work, ________ A. The Sketch Book B. History of New York C. Tales of a Traveler D. The Precaution 20. It is on his _______ that Washington Irving’s fame mainly rested. A. childhood recollections B. sketches about his European tours C. early poetry D. tales about America 21. In_______, Washington Irving agrees with the protagonist on his preference of the past to the present, and of a dream-like world to the real world. A. “Young Goodman Brown” B. “Rip Van Winkle” C. “Rappaccini’s Daughter” D. “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” 3 22. is worth the honor of being “the American Scott” for his literary craftsmanship. A. F. James Cooper B. Nathaniel Hawthorne C. Washington Irving D. Ralph Waldo Emerson 23. In the well-known story Rip Van Winkle, Rip falls into sleep for 20 years, during which ________ takes place. A. the Revolutionary War B. the Civil War C. the War for Independence D. World War I 24 Washington Irving’s ’Rip Van Winkle’ is famous for_________. A. Rip’s escape into a mysterious B. The story’s German legendary source material C. Rip’s seeking for happiness D. Rip’s 20-years sleep 25. “Strange names were over the doors— strange faces at the windows— every thing was strange. His mind now began to misgive him, that both he and the world around him were bewitched. Surely this was his native village, which he had left but the day before.” The above passage is taken from ______. A. Irving: “Rip Van Winkle” B. Hawthorne: “Young Goodman Brown” C. James: “Daisy Miller” D. Hemingway: “Indian Camp” 26. In the following statements, _______ is NOT true about Washington Irving’s famous story “Rip Van Winkle.” A. The story is not only well-known for Rip’s 20-year sleep but also considered a model of perfect English in American literature. B. The story is set against the background of the inevitably changing America. C. The social conservatism and literary preference for the past is revealed, to some extent, in the story. D. Irving describes Rip’s response and reaction in a dramatic way, so that we see clearly both the narrator and Irving agree on the preferability of the present to the past. 27. The famous 20 years in Rip Van Winkle helps to construct the story in such a way that we are greatly affected by Irving’s _____. A. concern with the passage of time B. expression of transient beauty C. satire on laziness and corruptibility of human beings D. idea about supernatural manipulation of man’s life 28. Which of the following statements about Washington Irving is NOT true? A. Literary imagination should breed in a land rich in the past culture. B. He is preoccupied with the Calvinistic view of original sin and the mystery of evil. C. His stories are among the best of the American literature. D. Some of his works are based on the materials of the European legendary tales. 29. About Washington Irving, Father of American short stories, which of the following statement is right? ______ 4 A. Many of his writings focused on American subjects, landscapes, particularly the legends of the Hudson River region of the fresh young land. B. His writings preferred the Old World to the New. C. As a writer, his taste remained a democratic and always exalted a disappearing past. D. He is well-known for his international theme across the Atlantic. 30. New England Transcendentalism was started by a group of people who were members of an informal club, i.e. the Transcendental Club in New England in the ____. A. 1850s B. 1840s C. 1830s D. 1860s 31. The publication of _______ established Emerson as the most eloquent spokesman of the New England Transcendentalism. A. American Scholar B. Nature C. The Poet D. Self-Reliance 32. The main issues involved in the debate of Transcendentalism are generally philosophical, concerning ________. A. the cold, rigid rationalism of Unitarianism B. the relationship between man and woman C. the development of Romanticism in America D. nature, man and the universe 33. American Transcendentalists most typically believe that ______. A. man is divine in name B. art is superior to life C. man can transform nature D. poetry is the highest form of art 34. According to Emerson, which of the following is said about nature? _______ A. Nature is emblematic of the material world, alive with God’s overwhelming presence. B. Nature exercises a healthy and restorative influence on human mind. C. Without nature man can improve himself and become spiritually whole. D. both A and B 35. Which of the following is not claimed by the Transcendental philosophy? ______ A. Man is capable of knowing truth intuitively. B. Man can attain knowledge transcending the reach of the senses. C. The individual is divine and therefore self-reliant. D. Nature is ennobling and man is dependent on nature. 36. About the basic principles of American Transcendentalism, which of the following statements is NOT right? _______ A. Individualism is elevated by the Transcendentalists. B. Intuition is less important than experience. C. Nature is only another side of God. D. Transcendentalists have a new and delight thrill in nature. 37. Which of the following statements is said about most of the poems in Whitman’s Leaves of Grass? ________ A. They identify his ego with the conservative America. 5 B. They celebrate the self and ignore sexuality. C. They sing of the “en-masse” and the self as well. D. They reject the pursuit of love and happiness of individuals. 38. Walt Whitman was a pioneering figure of American poetry. His innovation first of all lies in his use of ______, poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme. A. bland verse B. heroic couplet C. free verse D. iambic pentameter 39. As a great innovator in American literature, Walt Whitman wrote his poetry in an unconventional style which is now called free verse, that is ______. A. lyrical poetry with chanting refrains B. poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme C. poetry without rhymes at the end of the lines but with a fixed beat D. poetry in an irregular metric form and expressing noble feelings 40. As a man of literary craftsmanship, Nathaniel Hawthorne is good at ________. A. exploring the complexity of human psychology, especially the power of blackness deep in people’s heart B. exploring the goodness hidden deeply in people’s heart C. revealing the shallow complexity of human psychology, especially the romanticists’ confusion before the real world D. both A and C 41. “There is evil in every human heart, which may remain latent, perhaps, through the whole life; but circumstances may rouse it to activity”, which author of the following authors does the mention belong to________. A. Washington Irving B. Ralph Waldo Emerson C. Nathaniel Hawthorne D. Walt Whitman 42. Hawthorne’s unique gift was for the creation of ______ which touch the deepest roots of man’s moral nature. A. symbolic stories B. romantic stories C. gothic stories D. humorous stories 43. Pearl is the heroine in Hawthorne’s novel _______. A. Moses from an Old Manse B. Twice-Told Tales C. The Scarlet Letter D. The Blithedale Romance 44. About the novel The Scarlet Letter, which of the following statements is not right? A. It’s very hard to say that it is a love story or a story of sin. B. It’s a highly symbolic story and the author is a master of symbolism. C. It’s mainly about the moral, emotional and psychological effects of the sin upon the main characters and the people in general. D. In it the letter “A” takes the same symbolic meaning throughout the novel. Additional Part I. Multiple Choices. 1. The finest example of Hawthorne’s symbolism is the recreation of Puritan Boston in ________. 6 A. The Marble Faun B. The Scarlet Letter C. Twice-Told Tales D. Young Goodman Brown . Most of the writings in the period of Romanticism in the history of American 2 literature emphasize upon the imaginative and emotional qualities of literature, which included the following romantic qualities EXCEPT _______. A. the exotic B. the sensuous C. the sensational D. the surrealistic 3. The desire for an escape from society and a return to nature became a permanent convention of American literature. Such a desire is particularly evidence in ____ Leather-Stocking Tales. A. Washington Irving’s B. Waldo Emerson’s C. James Fennimore Cooper’s D. Walt Whitman’s 4. ____ is regarded as an encyclopedia of everything: philosophy, religion, history, etc. A. Walden B. Nature C. The Scarlet Letter D. Moby Dick . Which of the following statements about American Romantic literature is right? 5 _______ A. Emerson and Edgar Allan Poe are the forerunners of the literary movement of New thEngland Transcendentalism in the 19 century. B. The forest Young Goodman Brown goes to during his night journey is literally a place where the evil beings rustle about. C. For Emerson and his disciples, material economy is good for spiritual. D. Rip Van Winkle feels happy and fortunate to be with his family again after he comes back from the woods. 6. Which of the following is NOT regarded as the characteristics of Whitman’s poetic style? _______ A. the use of “free verse” B. his strong tendency to use of formal language C. the use of parallelism and phonetic recurrence at the beginning o the lines D. the use of the poetic “I” 7. Melville’s novel ______ is a tremendous chronicle of a whaling voyage in pursuit of a seemingly supernatural white whale. A. Typee B. Omoo C. White Jacket D. Moby Dick 8. The great sea adventure story Moby-Dick is usually considered______. A. a symbolic voyage of the mind in quest of the truth and knowledge of the universe. B. an adventurous exploration into man's relationship with nature C. a simple whaling tale or sea adventure D. a symbolic voyage of the mind in quest of the artistic truth and beauty 9. Moby Dick, the big white whale, is possibly read as symbolic of all the following EXCEPT_______. A. mystery of the universe B. sin of the whale C. power of the Great Nature D. evil of the world 10. In Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, “A” may stand for________ . 7 A. adultery B. angel C. amiable D. all the above 11. _______ is not a fictional character in the Scarlet Letter. A. Hester B. Arthur Dimmersdale C. Roger Chillingworth D. Ichobad Crane 12. Which of the following statements about The Scarlet Letter is NOT true? A. It explores man’s never-ending search for the satisfaction of materialistic desires. B. It relates the conflicts between the society and the individual. C. It is about the effect of sin on the people involved and the society as a whole. D. It presents a psychological analysis of the inward tensions of the characters. 13. Perhaps Dickinson’s greatest rendering of the moment of is to be found in “I heard a fly buzz— when I died—”, a poem universally considered one of her masterpieces. A. enthusiasm B. death C. crisis D. fantasy 14. Whitman’s poems are characterized by all the following features EXCEPT ______ . A. the strict poetic form B. the free and natural rhythm C. the easy flow of feelings D. the simple and conversational language 15. “Standing on the bare ground,—my head bathed by the blithe air, and uplifted into infinite space ,—all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball. I am nothing. I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God.” The above passage is taken from ______. A. Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin B. Cooper’s Leatherstocking Tales C. Emerson’s Nature D. Dreiser’s Sister Carrie 16. Like Nathaniel Hawthorne,_______ also manages to achieve the effect of ambiguity through symbolism and allegory in his narratives. A. Mark Twain B. Henry James C. R. W. Emerson D. Herman Melville 17. Most of Herman Melville’s novels are based on sea voyages and sea adventures. Which of the following is not the case? ______ A. Typee B. Moby-Dick C. Omoo D. The Confidence-Man 18. In Hawthorne’s novels and short stories, intellectuals usually appear as _______. A. commentators B. Observers C. villains D. Saviors 19. Henry David Thoreau’s work _______, has always been regarded as a masterpiece of New England Transcendentalism. A. Walden B. The Pioneers C. Nature D. Song of Myself 20. Emerson based his religion on an intuitive belief in an ultimate unity, which he called ______. A. the Spirit B. the Over-lord C. the over- soul D. the Self 21. “The Birthmark” drives home symbolically Hawthorne’s point that is man’s birthmark, something he is born with. A. goodness B. gratefulness C. evil D. bitterness 22. The theme of Washington Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle” is ______. A. the conflict of human psyche B. the fight against racial discrimination 8 C. the familial conflict D. the nostalgia for the unrecoverable past 23. Of all the following issues, _____is definitely NOT the focus of the Romantic writers in the American literary history. A. Puritan morality B. Human bestiality C. Noble savages D. Divinity of man . Give brief answers to the following questions. II 1. What is the significance of American Puritanism in American literature? 2. Give a brief analysis of the major features of American romanticism. 3. The Romantic Period was called “The American Renaissance”. Discuss the background of the Romantic Period, and compare it with the Romanticism of Britain. 4. Explain the theory of Transcendentalism, then list its important author and works. 5. Washington Irving was called “Father of the American short stories” and “the American Goldsmith”. What are the characteristics of his work? 6. Write about Washington Irving’s main contribution to American literature. 7. Give a brief analysis of Irving’s Rip Van Winkle. . Give a brief discussion of Whitman’s style and language. 8 9. Analyze the themes and characteristic of Hawthorne. 10. Give a brief account of Emily Dickinson’s poetic style. 11. What is the most important theme of The Scarlet Letter? 9