英国文学简史-常耀信-Chapters-23-24

KeyPointsinChapter23Fictionofthe1930sAldousHuxleyGeorgeOrwellEvelynWaughGrahamGreeneChristopherIsherwoodFictionsofthe1930sIntroductionIItisacriticalcommonplacetostatethat,inthe1930sandeversince,Englishfictionhasnotbeenasgoodasitusedtobe.Onethingtonoteaboutthefictionofthisperiodwasitsrefusaltodealwithseriousinternationalcrisis.Thesewritersrevertedbacktothetraditionalplotandcharacterizationwhichmodernistwritershaddespisedandalmostdiscarded.Thewritersofthe1930swerenolonger“Modernist.”Fictionsofthe1930sIntroductionIIBritishwritersfocusednowmoreonBritainandfeltlessconcernedwith“international”orEuropeanliterarycreativity.AldousHuxley(1894-1963)IntroductionAldousHuxleywasgrandsonofthefamousThomasHuxley,thestrenuousanddiscreetdefenderofCharlesDarwin’stheoryofevolution.HisbestliteraryeffortisBravetheNewWorld.GeorgeOrwell(1903-1950)IntroductionOrwellstartedoffwithhisleftistsympathiesinthe1930s,cameoffundertheinfluenceofthesocialistideasafloatthen,tookanactivepartintheSpanishWar,butendedupsorelyfrustratedwithStalinism.HisAnimalFarmplayedanimportantpartinthepost-WWIIanti-Sovietcampaign.EvelynWaugh(1903-1966)IntroductionWaughinheritedtheEnglishliterarysatiricaltraditionandwrotecausticsatiresallhislife.Mostofhisnovelsaremodeledononeconstantthematicandstructuralpattern,thataninnocentyoungmanexperienceshisriseandfallintheworldofevilandtreachery.DeclineandFallinhisfirstworkofimportance,whichsmacksstronglyofblackhumor.GrahamGreene(1904-1991)IntroductionOftensetinanexoticmilieu,whereviolenceandcrimesaretheorderoftheday,hisstoriesmostlycenteronapettycommonpersonlostinanoddlabyrinthofanenvironmentandshiftingthebesthecanforhimself.ThePowerandtheGloryhasbeenseenasGreene’smostsuccessfulwork.ChristopherIsherwood(1904-1986)IntroductionIsherwoodwasaleft-orientedrealistinthe1930s,andwrotehisbestworksinthedecade.HisbestfamousworksarehisBerlinstoriesthatappearinhisnovelsMr.NorrisChangesTrains,GoodbyetoBerlin,andTheBerlinStories.KeyPointsinChapter24PostwarPoetryPhilipLarkinDonaldDavieThomGunnEnglishPoetrysincethe1960sand1970sPostwarPoetryIntroductionIOntheonehand,Modernistpoetsandworkswerestillhighlyvisible.Ontheotherhand,anewgenerationwasemerging.Literaryhistorianshavetendedtolabelthenewpoetsofthe1950sallaspartofwhathascometobeknownas“Movement”poetry.The“Movement”poetsincluded,amongothers,PhilipLarkin,DonaldDavie,D.J.Enright,ThomGunn,RobertConquest,JohnWain,ElizabethJennings,KingsleyAmis,andJohnHolloway.PostwarPoetryIntroductionIIFedupwiththeexperimentalRomanticeffortsofDylanThomasandhiscontemporariestoshapelifeandtheworld,theyreactedstronglybyveeringinanewdirection,andcametogripsdownrightwiththeirnew,differentreality.TherebellionagainstDylanThomasandhisgenerationofpoetswasactuallypartofthelargerpostwarreactiontothedominanceofT.S.EliotandtheMetaphysicalmodeofwritingasshownintheworksofWilliamEmpson.ItisnecessarytoaddthattheMovementpoetswrotealsonovelsandliterarycriticisminadditiontopoetryandthatthegroupwasheterogeneousinideasandpracticesratherthanmonolithicinanysenseoftheterm.PostwarPoetryIntroductionIIITheywereself-expressive,intuitive,obscure,experimental,realistic,andconcernedwithformalcontrol.Thestyleisgenerallyplaindirect,deflated,personal,andformal.Theirdictionisleanandspare.Movementpoetrytendedtobedepressinginmoodandtome.PhilipLarkin(1922-1985)IntroductionILarkinwasalandmarkintheliteraryhistoryofhiscountry.Hedidhisbesttohelprevivethe18th-and19th-centuryliterarytraditionofhiscountryandopposewhattheMovementtermedforeigninfluencessuchasthatoftheHighModernists—Eliot’sandPound’s.Larkin’spoetryisplaininstyle,almostfreefrommetaphorsandmelodiousrhetoric.Larkin’ssubjectisdailylifeasbeinglivedbycommonpeople.Thereisagooddealofdisillusionment,skepticism,andhopelessnessinhiswork.PhilipLarkinIntroductionIILarkinismostlypersonalandevenconfessionalintone.Hispowerliesinthefactthathispersonaltruthoftencoincideswithpublictruthandbecomesidenticalwithit.Generally,Larkin’sworkisshortandlyrical.SoLarkinsounds,andis,generallysad,butisnotwithoutanysavinggrace.PhilipLarkinWorks“PoetryofDepartures”“ChurchGoing”“Aubade”晨歌，黎明曲DonaldDavie(1922-1995)IntroductionHebecameaneo-Augustan.WhatimpressedhimaboutAugustanpoetrywashisintrinsicconnectionbetweenmoralandformalconcerns.Hewasconservativeandtraditional.Heinsiststhatstyleshouldbeconnectedwithmorality.Hewasawell-knowncritic.HiscriticalworksincludePurityofDictioninEnglishVerseandArticulateEnergy:AnInquiryintotheSyntaxofEnglishPoetry.ThomGunn(1929-)IntroductionHeisabouttheyoungestoftheMovementpoets.HisvolumesofverseincludeFightingTerms,TheSenseofMovement,MySadCaptains,Touch,MolyandTheManwithNightSweats.Hisfamouspoemsinclude“ConsideringtheSnail,”“OntheMove”and“FromtheWave.”EnglishPoetrysincethe1960sand1970sIntroductionEnglishpoetryofthe1960sand1970swasonthewholeareactiontotheMovementpoetryofthepreviousdecade.Itwasarevivalofakind,anenthusiasmforAugustanpoets.ThepoetsofthesetwodecadesexhibitedsomethingincommonsuchasattackingMovementpoetryandbeingopentoinfluencesabr