陶潔版美國(guó)文學(xué)選讀第三版課后習(xí)題答案解析

1、美國(guó)文學(xué)選讀 第三版 課后習(xí)題答案 陶潔 （ 部分 ）Unit 1 Benjamin FranklinQuestions.Why did Franklin write his Autobiography?Franklin says that because his son may wish to know about his life, he is taking his one week vacation in the English countryside to record his past. He also says that he has enjoyed his life and wo

2、uld like to repeat it.What made Franklin decide to leave the brother to whom he had been apprenticed?His brother was passionate, and had often beaten him. The aversion to arbitrary power that has stuck to him through his whole life .After a brush with the law, Franklin left his brother.How did he ar

3、rive in Philadephia?First he set out in a boat for Amboy, the boat dropped himoff about 50 miles from Burlington, the next day he reached Burlington on foot, in Burlington he found a boat which was going towards Philadelphia, he arrived there about eightor nine o clock, on the Sunday morning and lan

4、ded at theMarket Street wharf.What features do you find in the style of the above selection?It is the pattern of Puritan simplicity, directness, and concision（ 言簡(jiǎn)意賅 ）. The narrative is lucid（ 易懂的 ）, the structure is simple, the imagery is homely（樸素的 ）.Unit 2 Edgar Allen Poe.Who is the narrator? What

5、 wrong does he want to redress?Montresor.Fortunato, one of wine experts insulted him, so he wanted to murder him.What is the pretext he uses to lure Fortunato to his wine cellar?He baits Fortunato by telling him he has obtained what he believes to be a cask of Amontillado a rare and valuable sherry

6、wine.Fortunato is anxious to determine whether or not it is truly Amontillado, so he goes to the vault with Montresor.What happens to Fortunato in the end?He was walled up alive behind bricks in a wine cellar.Describe briefly how Poe characterizes Montresor andFortunato as contrasts?Poe uses color i

7、magery to characterize them. Montresor face is covered in a black silk mask, In contrast, Fortunato dresses the motley-colored costume of the court fool, whogets literally and tragically fooled by Montresors masked motives.The color schemes here represent the irony of Fortunatos death sentence.Throu

8、gh the acts, words, and thoughts of?Fortunato,we know He is greedy, he was lured into the dark and somber vaults just because a cask of Amontillado.This is also due to his bad habit of bibulosity（ 酗酒） . He lost himself on hearing the wine.At the same time, he was cheated by his enemy, which reflecte

9、d his ignorance.When he heard the pretended compliment from Montresor, he became very boastful and arrogant.He was easily confused by the superficial phenomena and failed to watch out for others. He couldn t tolerate that others were stronger than him.For example, Montresor always stimulated him wit

10、h Luchresi who was good at connoisseur （鑒賞） in wine.Under the i mpulse of vanity, he fell into Montresor sterrible trap.In fact, he was careless and foolish and didn t find that the danger was approaching him.He looked down upon Montresor and others.He didn t realize his foolishness until the death

11、was coming.Talking from theappearance,Monstresorwas awell- educated and “ kind ” businessman.He enjoyed the honor and respect in the city. But in fact, he was an evil and awful person.His inner feelings were so cruel that they even madepeople tremble.Under his rich appearance was the dirty soul and

12、despicable character.Wecouldn t see any glorious virtues in his mind. Instead, his heart was cold and dark.It was the revenge that threw Montresor into the deep evil valley.unit 4 Nathaniel Hawthorne.Why is the prison the setting of Chapter 1 ?No matter how optimistic the founders of new colonies ma

13、ybe, they are quick to establish a prison and a cemetery in their “ Utopia, ” for they know that misbehavior, evil, and death are unavoidable.This belief fits into the larger Puritan doctrine, which puts heavy emphasis on the idea of original sin the notion that all people are born sinners because o

14、f the initial transgressions of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. he is therefore using the prison building to represent the crime and the punishment which are aspect of civilized life What is the implication of the description of the roses?The rosebush symbolizes the ability of nature to endure a

15、nd outlast mans activities.The narrator suggests that roses offer a reminder of Natures kindness to the condemned; for his tale, he says, it will provide either a“sweet moral blossom ” or elsesome relief in the face of unrelenting sorrow and gloom.Describe the appearance of Hester Prynne and the att

16、itude of the people towards her.The second paragraph on page 30.The crowd in front of the jail is a mixture of menand women, all maintaining severe looks of disapproval.Several of the women begin to discuss Hester Prynne, and they soon vow that Hester would not have received such a light sentence fo

17、r her crime if they had been the judges.One woman, the ugliest of the group, goes so far as to advocate death for Hester.What has happened to Hester?As a young woman, Hester married an elderly scholar, Chillingworth, who sent her ahead to America to live.While waiting for him, she had an affair with

18、 a Puritan minister named Dimmesdale, after which she gave birth to Pearl.The scarlet letter is her punishment for her sin and her secrecy.Why does she make the embroidery of the letter A so elaborate?It seems to declare that she is proud, rather than ashamed, of her sin.In reality, however, Hester

19、simply accepts the “sin ” and its symbol as part of herself, just as she accepts her child.And althoughshe canhardly believeher present“ realities, ”she takes them as they are rather thanresisting them or trying to atone for them.How does this tell us about her character?Throughout The Scarlet Lette

20、r Hester is portrayed as an intelligent, capable. It is the extraordinary circumstances shaping her that make her such an important figure.Unit5 Herman Melville.What are the stories Ismael tells about Moby Dick?Ishmael compares the legend of Moby Dick to his experience of the whale.He notes that spe

21、rm whale attacks have increased recently and that superstitious sailors have come to regard these attacks as having an intelligent, even supernatural origin.In particular, wild rumors about Moby Dick circulate among whalemen, suggesting that he can be in more than one place at the same time and that

22、 he is immortal. Ishmael remarks that even the wildestof rumors usually contains sometruth.Whales, for instance,have been known to travelwith remarkable speed from the Atlantic to the Pacific; thus, it is possible for a whale to be caught in the Pacific with the harpoons of a Greenland ship in it.Mo

23、by Dick, who has defied capture numerous times, exhibits an “ intelligent malignity ”（狠毒） in his attacks on men.Why does Ahab react so violently against the white whale?First, he lost one of his legs because of the white whale.Second,He considers Moby Dick the embodiment of evil in the world, and he

24、 pursues the White Whale， because he believes it his inescapable fate to destroy this evil.Ishmael suggests that Ahab is “ crazy ” and call him“ araving lunatic. ” Do you agree with him? Why or why not?Ishmael describes Ahab as madin his narration, and it does indeed seem madto try to fight the forc

25、es of nature or God. What narrative features can you find in the selected chapter?In the selected charpter, Melville employed the technique of multiple view of his narrative to portray Moby Dick to achieve the effect of ambiguity and let readers judge the meaning.Unit 6 Henry David Thoreau.Where ind

26、eed did Thoreau live, both at a physical level and at a spiritual level?He lived in a cabin on Walden Pond, which belonged to Emerson s property.Had Thoreau ever bought a farm? Why did he enjoy the act of buying?No, he hadn t.He avoided purchasing a farm because it would inevitably tie him down fina

27、ncially and complicate his life.Thoreau didn t see the acquisition of wealth as the goal for human existence, he saw the goal of life to be anexploration of the mind and of the magnificent world around us.He regarded the places as an existence free of obligations and full of leisure.Is it significan

28、t that Thoreau mentioned the Fourth ofJuly as the day on which he began to stay in the woods? Why?Yes, it is.Because The Fourth of July is known as Independence Day,the birthday ot the United States.Here Thoreau uses the day to express his beginning of?regeneration at Walden.It also means a symbol o

29、f his conquest of being.4.How could you answer the question Thoreau asked at theend of this selection?Unit 7 19th Century American Poets1. Henry Wadsworth LongfellowI Shot an ArrowWhy did the speaker lose sight of his arrow and song?The arrow flies too swiftly and too far away to be seen by the spea

30、ker; whereas the song is naturally invisible.In what circumstances did he find them again?He finds them unexpectedly years later from the trunk of a tree and the heart of a friend.What do arrow and song stand for in this poem?The images of arrow and song here may stand for friendship.A Psalm of Life

31、What kind of person is the speaker of this poem?The speaker is a man of action, always optimistic and cheerful, trying to achieve as muchas possible in the short span of life.According to the poem, how should our lives be led to overcome the fact that each day brings us nearer to death? We should wo

32、rk harder and live happier.Interpret the metaphor of Footprints on the sand of time (line 28).The metaphor refers to human deeds in real life.2. Walt Whitman(1)Ones Self I SingWhat is the significance of singing about ones self?It is an exaltation of the individual spirit, which is typical of Americ

33、an people.What is the difference between physiology and physiognomy?Physiology is a science that deals with the functions and life process of human beings, whereas physiognomy refers to an art of judging character from contours of face itself or the appearance of a person.What does Whitman mean by t

34、he term of the Modern Man? He means that a man should be free from any prejudice and pride, totally different from the traditional one, that is full of bias.O Captain! My Captain!Why is the word Captain capitalized throughout the poem?In this poem the word “ Captain ” specially refers to Abraham Lin

35、coln, president of the United States.What overall metaphor does the poet employ in this poem? Life is a journey.Whydo people on the shores exult and bells ring, while the speaker remains so sad?They welcome the ship returning from its hard trip, whereas the speaker is sad because the captain fails t

36、o receive his own honor.3.Emily DickinsonTo Make a Prairie What things are needed to make a prairie? In whatsense can one really do it?Some grass and insects and small animals. People can make a prairie with their imagination.How can revery alone create a prairie?The prairie stays in ones mind.Succe

37、ss Is Counted SweetestWhy is success counted sweetest by those who neer succeed?Those who have tasted the bitterness of failure would havea keener desire for success.Who are the purple host?The so-called successful people in the world.Who is he in the last stanza?Anyone who is pursuing his success.I

38、m Nobody!Who are the pair of us and they in this poem? Thepair of us refers to the speaker in the poemand the reader, and they refers to the public, especially those in power.What does an admiring bog really mean? (line 28).It Implies the vain and empty commonpeople, whoare always admiring and pursu

39、ing the celebrities.What is the theme of this poem?The real admirable life is a secluded and common one.Do you want to be nobody or somebody? Explain your reasons.Different persons would have different answers to thisquestion. Personally, I prefer to be nobody.Unit 8 Mark TwainWhy do you think Mr.Wh

40、eeler is so eager to tell these stories?From Mr.Wheeler s behaviors and contents of his narration we can know he is so eager to tell these stories.First, when I asked him to tell me something about W.Smiley, he“ backed meinto a corner and blockaded mewith his chair, and then sat down and reeled off

41、the narrative ” . And during the process of telling his stories, he never paid any attention to othersresponse to his story and just went on telling what amused him. At last when the listener felt boring and wanted to leave, Mr.Wheeler even didnt notice it and still asked him to sit there listening

42、to him.Does his audience share his enthusiasm in telling thestories? No. the audience does not show any interest in Mr.Wheeler stories. In fact, the narrator was very feverish about his stories, but ,in the eyes of the listener,the stories were very boring and had nothing todo with his preoccupation

43、. As an educated man, the listener couldnt understand the way of laborers for joy, and hewould never bother himself to understand it. So after the long time of Mr.Wheeler solo narration and when the audience got a chance, he fled away.Do you think the narrator and his listener ever suspect the prese

44、nce of humor? Why? How do you interpret their interactions?The narrator and his listener never noticed or suspectedthe presence of humor.During the intercourse,the narrator went vigorously on his monotonous narrative wihout a little smiling talking about the animals and the things like ,while the li

45、stener felt rather puzzled or botheredby his stories.It seemed to be kind of coarse things. Sothe two different scenes go on separately without a intersection.And their interaction was a complete failure accordingtoour commonsense about communication.But it in this sense produced the effect of humor

46、 which can be tasted by our readers due to the skills adopted by Mark Twain.Unit 14 F - Scott Fitzgerald1.Do you think Gatsby deserves to be called “ the great ” ? Why?（ 1 ） I think it is too complicated to simply say Gatsbydeserves to be great | or not.For one thing, Gatsby was ambitious, hardworki

47、ng, generous and passionate. He was so extremely loyal to his love and Daisy that he could doanything to get Daisy back: he did shady business to earn moneyand social position; he threw luxurious parties just to draw Daisy s attention; he could take the blame for a death that he did not cause.(2) In

48、 this respect, he is much- greater | than hiscontemporaries. For another thing, Gatsby never realized that Daisy wasn t the girl he loved anymore. Gatsby was so innocent that he staked everything on his dreams, not realizing that his dreams are unworthy of him. He wasn t sober enough to be great.Doe

49、s“the green light ” Gatsby believed in exist inreality? Why or why not ?I think the green light | does not exist in reality. Because the green light which situated at the end of Daisy s East Egg dock and barely visiblefrom West Egg lawnrepresents Gatsby s unattainable dream. Although the color itsel

50、f can be seen as hope and bright future, Gatsby s quest for Daisy back is doomedto be impossible. Daisy lived in a material world without being real, where poor ghosts, breathing dream like airII .( 2 ) After five years when Gatsby met Daisy again, the miracle Daisy had lost her original glory. Ther

51、efore, there is no delaying that Gatsby s dream would not come true. In the novel, the green light not only represents that innocent Gatsby looked forward to the future, but alsomeans his longing for the history his happy past withDaisy. The distinction between ideal and reality was huge. As if Amer

52、ican dream between golden past and golden future always suffered from the realistic betrayal and crush.What does Gatsby s Schedule reveal about him and how does it relate to the American Dream?The schedule is a reflection of Gatsby s determination and ambition. It reveals that he is hard on himself

53、in pursuit of his goal to be an upper-class man.（ 2 ） On one hand, we can know that he is persistent inpursuing his American Dream- to attain wealth and happiness through his struggle. On the other hand, he is too idealistic and naive.3） He tries his best to make money and learns everything required

54、 to be an upper-class manso that he can get access to his beloved girl.Money is important ， but there are other barriers difficult to penetrate. The girl he loves is as vulgar and superficial as others in her circle, she is unable to meetsGatsby s romantic fantasy. So his dreamis destined to shatter

55、, which indicates the disillusion of American Dream.When you read the line “He （the manwith owl -eyed glasses） took off his glasses and wiped them again, outside and in , ” what image s does it create in your mind, given the novel s numerous references to the strikingly strange scene of the spectacl

56、ed eyes?From this line , superficially, owl-eyes is a person with thick and blurry glasses who can not see clearly all the things in the world. However, we know he is actually an owl-wise observer and sees more clearly than anyone else in the novel. Owl-Eyes, except Nick, is the only friend to appea

57、r at the rain-soaked burial of Gatsby, when others are unwilling to come. Hefeels sympathy for Gatsby s tragedy.After reading this line, I cannot help thinking of the Dr.Eckleburg billboard with its huge yellow spectacles in this novel. In many rainy days, Dr. Eckleburg s eyes arealso dimmed and see

58、m blind. But in fact this is a pair of all-seeing eyes. The Owl-Eyed Man is similar to Dr. Eckleburg, sadly looking at the people s life and idealism of this time. Both of them symbolize an uninvolvedspectator god. They watch all the activities of the humans.Owl-eyes is the avatar of the sightless D

59、r. Eckleburg.Unit 16 Ernest HemingwayHowdo you interpret the irony of the title after reading the story?The title-A Clean Well-Lighted Place | refers to thecaf e in the text. The caf e was very clean and well- lighted. From the literary meaning, we may feel this place was very warmand comfortable, w

60、as a place where people need warmth wanted to go. So the old man, who was rich but deaf and lonely came here to find warmth and avoided nada. It was the only place he could go and could find some comfort.2) However, the younger waiter was very selfish. As his wife was waiting him on the bed, he want