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I. Fill in the blanks.
1．“The Legend ofSleepy Hollow” was written by ________.（大连外国语学院2008研）
【答案】 Washington Irving
【解析】 短篇小说《睡谷传说》（“The Legend of SleepyHollow”），是华盛顿·欧文的代表作《见闻札记》（The Sketch Book）中最著名的两篇故事中的一篇。另一篇是《瑞普·凡·温克尔》（“Rip Van Winkle”）。
2．Ichabod Crane, the schoolmaster, is a characterin the short story ________ collected in The Sketch Book.（首师大2008研）
【答案】 “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”
【解析】 Ichabod Crane是一个小学校长，欧文的《睡谷传奇》中的人物。
3．The Romantic period in the American literaryhistory covers the time between the end of the _______ century to the outbreakof the _______. It started with the publication of Irving’s_______ and endedwith Whitman’s_______. This period is also called_______.
【答案】 18th; Civil War; The Sketch Book; Leaves of Grass; the AmericanRenaissance
【解析】 美国浪漫主义时期开始于十八世纪末，到内战爆发为止，是美国文学史上最重要的时期。华盛顿·欧文出版的《见闻札记》标志着美国浪漫主义文学的开端，惠特曼的《草叶集》是浪漫主义时期文学的压卷之作。浪漫主义时期的文学是美国文学的繁荣时期，所以也称为“美国的文艺复兴”。
4．In the early nineteenth century, WashingtonIrving wrote ________ which became the first work by an American writer to winfinancial success on both sides of the Atlantic.
【答案】 The Sketch Book
【解析】 美国作家华盛顿·欧文被英国作家萨克雷称为“新世界文坛送往旧世界的第一使节”。《见闻札记》被当时的英国评论界誉为“美国富有想象力的第一部真正杰作”，它“组成了它所属的那个民族文学的新时代”。
5．________ wasregarded as the first great prose stylist of American romanticism.
【答案】 Washington Irving
【解析】 华盛顿·欧文是美国著名作家，他被誉为美国第一位浪漫主义散文文体作家。
6．_______ was regardedas Father of the American short stories.
【答案】 Washington Irving
【解析】 华盛顿·欧文被誉为美国短篇小说之父。
7．In Washington Irving’s work _______ appearedthe first modern short stories and the first great American juvenileliterature.
【答案】 The Sketch Book
【解析】 华盛顿·欧文的作品《见闻札记》（The Sketch Book）是现代文学史上第一部短篇小说集和美国第一部伟大的青少年文学读物。
8．Washington Irving also wrote two biographies,one is The Life of Oliver Goldsmith, and the other is ______.
【答案】 Life of Washington
【解析】 华盛顿·欧文撰写了两部传记：《哥德史密斯传》（The Life of Oliver Goldsmith）和《华盛顿传》（Life of Washington）。
9．James Fenimore Cooper’s novel ________ was arousing tale about espionage against the British during the Revolutionary War.
【答案】 The Spy
【解析】 詹姆斯·费尼莫尔·库柏（James Fenimore Cooper）认为他的小说《间谍》（The Spy）“应当是一部纯粹美国式的以爱国为主题的书”。
10．The central figure in the LeatherstockingTales is ________, who goes by the various names of Leatherstocking, Deerslayer,Pathfinder and Hawkeye.
【答案】 Natty Bumppo
【解析】 《皮裹腿故事集》是美国作家詹姆斯·费尼莫尔·库柏的系列小说。该故事集中的主要人物是Natty Bumppo。在不同的故事中他有皮裹腿、杀鹿者、探路人及鹰眼等别名。
11．In The Pioneers, _______ representsthe ideal American, living a virtuous and free life in God’s world.
【答案】 Natty Bumppo
【解析】 在詹姆斯·费尼莫尔·库柏的小说《拓荒者》（The Pioneers）中，主人公Natty Bumppo正直善良，向往无拘无束的生活，是理想美国人的化身。
12．In 1823 Cooper James Fenimore wrote ThePioneers, the first of the five novels that make up _______. The remainingfour books: The last of Mohicans (1826), The Prairie (1827), ThePathfinder (1840), and The Deerslayer (1841), continue the story ofNatty Bumppo, one of the most famous characters in American fiction.
【答案】 The Leatherstocking Tales
【解析】 《皮裹腿故事集》包括《拓荒者》、《最后的莫西干人》、《草原》、《探路者》和《猎鹿人》五部小说。
II. MultipleChoice.
1．Which is NOT a main focus of the AmericanRomantic Movement in general?（大连外国语学院2008研）
A. A return to eastern philosophy.
B. A deep and spiritual respect for nature and naturallaws.
C. The introduction of self-salvation as opposed tosalvation through Christ.
D. A demand for progress and productivity.
【答案】 D
【解析】 美国的浪漫主义运动崇尚大自然的力量，提倡自我拯救。其中以爱默生为代表的一批作家，吸收了东方哲学的智慧，融合了欧洲神秘先验论思想，形成了超验主义。
2．Which ONE of the following concepts isrelated to the understanding of American Romanticism?（四川大学2007研）
A. Survival of the fittest
B. indifference of the universe
C. exaltation of emotion over reason
D. the human beast
【答案】 C
【解析】 浪漫主义把情感置于理性之上。其余三个选项都是达尔文主义的观点。
3．Which of the following words does notdescribe the features of Irving’s writings?（天津外国语学院2009研）
A. decorum
B. humor
C. musicality
D. imagination
【答案】 C
【解析】 华盛顿·欧文的作品具有幽默风趣的笔调，活跃而优雅的写作风格，富于幻想的浪漫色彩。
4．The following selection is taken from_________.（大连外国语学院2007研）
A. The Cask of Amontillado
B. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
C. A Rose for Emily
D. Babylon Revisited
In the bosom of one of those spacious coves which indentthe eastern shore of the Hudson, at that broad expansion of the riverdenominated by the ancient Dutch navigators the Tappan Zee, and where theyalways prudently shortened sail and implored the protection of St. Nicholaswhen they crossed, there lies a small market town or rural port, which by someis called Greensburgh, but which is more generally and properly known by thename of Tarry Town.
【答案】 B
【解析】 题中片段选自美国著名小说家Washington Irving《睡谷传奇》（“The Legend ofSleepy Hollow”）。此段文章交代了故事的背景。文章大意为：哈德逊河东岸有很多宽阔的小河湾，在一个河湾的深处，很久之前荷兰航海家们曾占领水域，并在那里小心地靠岸，寻求圣尼古拉斯的保护。现在，那里有个小镇，或者农村的港口，有些人叫它格林斯堡，而更多人叫它泰瑞镇。
5．Which ONE of thefollowing is the author of The Leather-Stocking Tales?（四川大学2008研）
A. Henry David Thoreau
B. Washington Irving
C. Edgar Allan Poe
D. James Fennimore Cooper
【答案】 D
【解析】 James Fenimore Cooper（库柏），美国早期作家，The Leather-Stocking Tales（《皮裹腿故事集》）是他的经典之作。
6．James Fennimore Cooper’s novel _________ isthe first to reveal the west and Native Americans’ life in a passionate way.（北二外2007研）
A. Go Down, Moses
B. The Last of the Mohicans
C.Winesburg, Ohio
D.O, Pioneers!
【答案】 B
【解析】 《最后的莫西干人》是库柏《皮裹腿》五部曲之一，描写的是美国西部边疆和美洲土著印第安人的生活。选项A《去吧，摩西》的作者是William Faulkner（威廉·福克纳）；选项C《小城畸人》的作者是Sherwood Anderson（舍伍德·安德森）；选项D的作者是女作家Willa Cather（薇拉·凯瑟）。
7．Washington Irving’s social conservation andliterary for the past is revealed，to some extent，in his famousstory, _________.
A. “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”
B. “Rip Van Winkle”
C. “The Custom-House”
D. “The Birthmark”
【答案】 B
【解析】 《瑞普·凡·温克尔》在一定程度上反映了欧文的保守思想。
8．It is on his_________ that Washington Irving’s fame mainly rested.
A. tales about America
B. early poetry
C. childhood recollections
D. sketches about his European tours
【答案】 A
【解析】 欧文的声望主要体现在关于美国的小说上。
III. Explainthe following term.
1．American Romanticism（四川大学2007研；北航2008研）
Key: American Romanticism: American Romanticism isthe name sometimes given to a flourishing of distinctively American literaturein the period before the Civil War. American Romanticism is represented byworks of Ralph Waldo Emerson, H. D. Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, HermanMelville, and Walt Whitman. They share certain general characteristics: moralenthusiasm, faith in individualism and intuitive.
IV. Read the following quotations and answer thequestions.
Passage 1
“There was, as usual, a crowd of folk about the door, butnone that Rip recollected. The very character of the people seemed changed.There was a busy, bustling, disputatious tome about it, instead of theaccustomed phlegm and drowsy tranquility. He looked in vain for the sageNicholoas Vedder…”
Questions:
(1) From which work isthis passage taken?
(2) How do youunderstand this selection?
Key:
(1) This passage istaken from Washington Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle”.
(2) It shows the change that Rip sees as heenters the village after the 20-year sleep and the destructive effect of thechange. It also reveals, to some extent, the conservative attitude of itsauthor.
Passage 2
“From the listless repose of the place, and the peculiarcharacter of it sin habitants, who are descendants from the original Dutchsettlers, this sequestered glen has long been known by the name of SLEEPYHOLLOW, and its rustic lads are called the Sleepy Hollow Boys throughout allthe neighboring country. Drowsy, dreamy influence seems to hang over the land, andto pervade the very atmosphere. Some say that the place was bewitched by a highGerman doctor, during the early days of the settlement; others, that an oldIndian chief, the product or wizard of his tribe, held his powwows there beforethe country was discovered by Master Hendrick Hudson. ”
Questions:
(1) Who is the writerof this short story from which the passage is taken?
(2) What is the titleof this short story?
(3) Give a definitionof “short story”.
Key:
(1) Washington Irving
(2) “The Legend ofSleepy Hollow”
(3) A short story of a brief prose fiction, usuallyone that can be read in a single sitting. It generally contains the six majorelements of fiction—characterization, setting, theme, plot, point of view, andstyle.
Passage 3
“Arms and the clarion for the battle, but the song ofthanksgiving to the victory!” answered the liberated David. “Friend,” he added,thrusting forth his lean, delicate hand forwards Hawkeye, in kindness, whilehis eyes twinkled and grew moist, “I thank thee the hairs of my head still growwhere they were first rooted by Providence for, though those of other men maybe more glossy and curling, I have ever found mine own well suited to the brainthey shelter. That I did not join myself to the battle, was less owing todisinclination, than to the bonds of the heathen. Valiant and skilful hast thouproved thyself in the conflict, and I hereby thank thee, before proceeding todischarge other and more important duties, because thou hast proved thyselfwell worthy of a Christian’s praise.” …
Questions:
(1) This novel waswritten by the first American novelist. What is his name?
(2) What is the name ofthe novel?
(3) The central figurein this novel appeared in this passage. It is ________.
Key:
(1) James FenimoreCooper
(2) The Last of theMohicans
(3) Hawkeye
V. Short answerquestions
1．Make an introductory comment on JamesFenimore Cooper’s frontier saga The Leather Stocking Tales.（四川大学2009研）
Key: The Leather Stocking Tales is a series of novels by American writer JamesFenimore Cooper. Natty Bumppo is the protagonist of the series. Although he isthe child of white parents, he grows up with Native Americans, becoming anear-fearless warrior skilled in many weapons, one of which is the long rifle.He respects his forest home and all its inhabitants, hunting only what he needsto survive. When it comes time to fire his trusty flintlock, he lives by therule, “One shot, one kill.” He and his Mohican “brother” Chingachgook championgoodness by trying to stop the incessant conflict between the Mohicans and theHurons. He is known as “Deerslayer” in The Deerslayer, “Hawkeye” and “La Longue Carabine” in The Last of the Mohicans, “Pathfinder” in The Pathfinder,“Leatherstocking” in The Pioneers, and “the trapper” in The Prairie.The novels recount significant events in Natty Bumppo’s life from 1740-1806.
2．In American literature history, the RomanticPeriod, during which many famous writers and their masterpieces came intobeing, played an important role. Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne andWalt Whitman, etc, all of whom are not ignored by us. According to theirwritings, discuss the features of American literature in this period.
Key: The whole nation had a strong sense of optimismand the mood of “feeling good”, giving birth to the spectacular outburst ofromantic feelings. The English counterpart, especially the cultural heritage,exerted a stimulating impact on the writings of the young nation. Takingforeign influence into consideration, the great works of American writers stillcarried typically American romanticist color. The young nation had broughtforth its own Philosophy, Transcendentalism, stressing man’s capacity ofknowing truth intuitively, and of attaining knowledge transcending the reach ofthe senses.
VI. Essay questions
1．Discuss the fiction written by American HighRomantics with specific reference to one work.（大连外国语学院2007研）
Key: American Romanticism was influenced by itsEnglish and European counterpart since it was originated from those places. Butwhen it came to the high romanticism, American Romanticism exhibited from theoutset distinct features of its own.
The first was its puritan heritage and rejection of Puritanism.It was more moralizing, edifying more than mere entertainment. Sex and love,for example, are subjects American authors were particularly carefullyapproaching. The way in which Hawthorne wrote The Scarlet Lettersuggests that American Romanticism adapted itself to American Puritanism. Ittakes eloquently about the effect of the adultery on the people rather than thesin itself. Hester Prynne uses her whole life to get out of the shadow of thesin while Dimmesdale dies at last under the pressure of puritan. Hawthornecriticizes the Puritanism, keeping skeptical of religion authority.
The second feature of fiction of High Romantics is itsemphasis on psychological description. The Scarlet Letter employs manypsychological activities to reveal directly the thoughts of characters and thepsychological conflicts to develop the theme.
The third feature is that it explores the dark side ofsociety and human nature. At that time, the society was under the control ofPuritanism and human nature was tortured. Whereas Hester is able to reconstructher life and win a moral victory, Dimmesdale undergoes the tragic experience ofphysical and spiritual disintegration. Though the scarlet letter refers toAdultery, Angel, Able, A may also represent Adamic, or prehistoric, anarchetypal vice suggestive of “original sin”. This reveals another feature ofthis period fiction, which is symbolism. Besides, there are other symbols likethe Meteor, Pearl, and the Rosebush Next to the Prison Door.
2．What is therelationship between American Romanticism and European Romanticism?
Key: American Romanticism and the EuropeanRomanticism share much in common: in reaction to the enlightenment and itsemphasis on reason, Romanticism stressed emotion, the imagination, andsubjectivity of approach.
European literary masters, especially the Englishcounterparts exerted a stimulating impact on the writers of the New World. Bornof one common cultural heritage, American Romanticism is surely to some extent,derivative after their English predecessors.
Although the European influences were strong, the greatworks that demonstrate what American romantic writings were typically America.They revealed unique characteristics of their own in their works and they grewon the native land. The content of the American Romantic period is an originaland diverse body of work. American writers developed some new forms of fictionor poetry.
They also placed an increasing emphasis on the freeexpression of emotions and displayed an increasing attention to the psychicstates of their characters. The strong tendency to exalt the individual andcommon man was another focus of the movement.
3．What’s WashingtonIrving’s main contribution to American Literature?
Key: Washington Irving’s contributionto American literature is unique in more ways than one. He did a number ofthings which have been regarded as the first of their kind in America.
He was the first American writer of imaginative literatureto gain international fame. When he returned home in 1832, he was acclaimed asthe one American author whom people in Europe knew about, and the Americanstook as a sign that American literature was emerging as an independent entity.To say that he was father of American literature is not much exaggeration.
The short story as a genre in American literature probablybegan with Irving’s The Sketch Book, a collection ofessays, sketches, and tales, of which the most famous and frequentlyanthologized are “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”. The booktouched the American imagination and foreshadowed the coming of Hawthorne,Melville, and Poe, in whose hands the short story attained a degree ofperfection as a literary tradition. It also marked the beginning of AmericanRomanticism. The Gothic, the supernatural, and the longing for the good olddays which some of its pieces clearly exhibit, are Romantic enough in subjectif not exactly in style, for Irving wrote in the neoclassical tradition ofJoseph Addison and Oliver Goldsmith. Looking at a picture of Irving surroundedby his nieces, one does sometimes think of the old man, benign and pleasant andrefined, as the uncle of American authors.
4．Analyze TheLegend of Sleepy Hollow.
Key: Washington Irving’s short story The Legend ofSleepy Hollow is about the memorable event of an apparently headlesshorseman throwing his head at his rival in love, and the memorable character ofIchabod Crane with his mixture of shrewdness, credulity, self-assertiveness andcowardice.
The creation of archetypes is a particularly subtle feat ofIrving’s consummate craftsmanship. We may see in Ichabod Crane aprecocious, effete New Englander, shrewd, commercial, a city-slicker, who israther an interloper, a somewhat destructive force, and who comes along toswindle the villagers. His book learning turns on him, and he is driven awayfrom where he does not belong, so that the serene village remains permanentlygood and happy. Brom Bones, on the other hand, is of a Huck Finn-type ofcountry bumpkin, rough, vigorous, boisterous but inwardly very good, a frontiertype put out there to shift for himself. Thus the rivalry in love betweenIchabod and Brom, viewed in this way, suddenly assumes the dimensions of twoethical groups locked in a kind of historic contest.
As to the style of the piece, it represents Irving at hisbest. The association between a certain local and the inward movement of acharacter, the emotional loading of almost every line of the story, theireffect on the five senses of the reader whose attention is so fully engaged andwho feels so much involved in what is happening—all these have placed this andother Irving stories among the best of American short stories.