Lesson-7爱丑之欲

LessonsevenTheLibidofortheUglyH.L.MenckenⅠ.AbouttheauthorH.L.Mencken(1880—1956)•Americanauthorandcritic.•Themostprominentnewspaperman,bookreviewer,andpoliticalcommentatorofhisday.•Atwentieth-centuryjournalist,satirist,socialcritic,cynic,andfreethinker.Hislife•1880,hewasborninthecityofBaltimore,Maryland.HisparentswereGermanimmigrants.•Whenhewasnineyearsold,hereadMarkTwain'sHuckleberryFinn,whichhelaterdescribedasthemoststupendouseventinmylife.Hedeterminedtobecomeawriterhimself.•At16,hecompletedhishighschoolbutdidnotattenduniversity,onlygraduatedfromBaltimorePolytechnicInstitute.•HebecameareporterontheBaltimoreMorningHerald.•1906,hejoinedtheorganizationknownastheSunpaperwhichheserveduntilhisretirement.(areporter,adramacriticandeditor)•Hehelpedtofoundandedittwoliterarymagazines,TheSmartSet（1908）,andTheAmericanMercury（1924）,whichwerehighlyinfluentialamongintellectuals.•In1930,MenckenmarriedSaraHaardt,aprofessorofEnglishatGoucherCollegeinBaltimoreandanauthorwhowas18yearshisjunior.---Themarriagemadenationalheadlines,andmanyweresurprisedthatMencken,whooncecalledmarriagetheendofhopeandwhowaswellknownformockingrelationsbetweenthesexes,hadgonetothealtar.---Haardtwasinpoorhealthfromtuberculosis7throughouttheirmarriageanddiedin1935•MenckendiedinhissleeponJanuary29,1956.Hisuniqueness---InfluencedbyFriedrichNietzsche.(19thcenturyGermanphilosopher)•Hehatednarrow-mindedreligion,esp.thecountry'sreligionfundamentalists”（基要主义者）.Hebelievedstronglyinintellectualfreedomandfoughtagainstthecensorshipofliteratureanddrama.(Hefeltthatthegreatestthreatofcensorshipcamefromthecountry'sreligionfundamentalists”whoseopinionswereallbasedontheirinterpretationoftheBible.)•Hehatedcommercialism•HelaunchedsevereattacksagainstAmerica’smiddleclassculture.Heinventedtheword“booboisie”(愚民阶级),combiningthetwowords“booby”and“bourgeoisie”,todescribetheignorantmiddleclass•Hedidnotsupportdemocracybecauseheconsideredthemassestooignorantandgreedytoexerciseitwisely.•Heenjoyedcontroversyandtriedtoarousehisantagonistswithhisdirectanddevastatingattacks.他希望能煽动他的反对者，且他经常获得成效。他是美国人最令人憎恶却也是最令人敬佩的学者之一。----acentralfigureinAmericanintellectuallifeduring1920s.Hisworks----Hewrote25booksandathousandarticles.masterpieces•TheAmericanLanguage(1918)•Prejudices(6volumes)(1919-1927)•HappyDays/NewspaperDays/HeathenDays(1940-1943autobiography)TheAmericanLanguage----anoutstandingworkofphilology.a)ItexaminedthedevelopmentoftheEnglishlanguageinAmerica,b)ItcontrastedEnglishandAmericanexpressionsandusage.c)ItexplainedtheoriginofmanyAmericanidiomsd)IttracedtheinfluenceofimmigrantlanguagesonAmericanEnglish.---alargecontributiontothestudyoflanguageandscholarlystudyoftheAmericanbranchofEnglishHisstyle•Heiswell-knownforhisbombasticstyleandacidtongue.•Hewrotewithenthusiasmandexaggeration.•Hislanguagewassoamusingandstartlingthatevenhismostviolentlycriticalessaysbecameacceptabletohisreaders.•Heemployedahugevocabularyandlikedtoinsertunusualorunexpectedwords,forsurpriseorcomiceffect•Hewasamasterofhighlyabusive,insultinglanguage.•Hisrhetoriciswittyandcrisp(clearandeffective),yetpompous,overrhetorical,exaggerated,bitingandsharp.Ⅱ.Theauthorandthetext•TheLibidofortheUgly---1927•thearchitectureofPittsburgharea•Criticizing/satirizing•makinguseofsatireandinvectivetocriticizethearchitectureofPittsburghareaandpraisesthatofEurope.WhywasMenckensocriticalinthisessay?•Inthe1920swhenabacklashagainstWWI-erasuperpatriotismandgovernmentexpansionreacheditsclimaxwhichledmanyAmericanliteratiorintellectualstomovetoEuropeortoprotest.•Hewouldhavedelightedinbeingcalledanti-American(thistermwasnotsooffendingatMencken’stime).HisadmirationofcontinentalEuropeanculture(Germanyespecially)ledhimtolaunchattacksonnearlyallaspectsofAmericanculture.Whatdoesthetechnicaltermlibidomean?Libido(originatingfromLatin)---thesexualurgeorinstinct---(psychoanalysis)psychic（精神的;心灵的）energygenerally;specifically,abasicformofpsychicenergy,comprisingthepositivelovinginstinctsandmanifestedvariouslyatdifferentstagesofpersonalitydevelopment〔心〕里必多（奥地利心理学家Freud用语，指性本能背后的一种潜在的能量）Whydoestheauthorchoosethisunusualwordinsteadofamorecommonword“desire”?Menckendeliberatelyusestheword“libido”---tocauseimmediateattention,tomakeitverysensational---(aspecialterminpsychoanalysis)tocreatetheimpressionthathisdescriptionandanalysishassomescientificfoundation,thatistheloveofuglinessintheUnitedStatesisapathologicalproblem(diseasedmind).Ⅲ.Typeofliterature•Description---paintingapicture,inwordsofaperson,place,objectandscene•whatdoesthewriterdescribe?---whathesees,hears,smells,feelsortastes,hisemotionalreactionstothephysicalsensationoftheexperience•Thesoulofdescription---minutedetailsofthereader'ssenseofsight,smell,taste,hearing,touch•thetypesofdescriptivewriting•bythecontentsitdescribesA.ThedescriptionofapersonB.ThedescriptionofaplaceC.ThedescriptionofanobjectD.Thedescriptionofascene•Bythewayinwhichitdescribes1)objective\impersonal---realisticthewriterpaintsaverbalpictureoftherealisticworld,likeacamera※factualwords2)subjective\personal---impressionistic\emotiona