湖州师范学院外国语学院2008 2009学年第 二 学期美国文学期末考试试卷（A卷）答案暨评分标准I. Write the names of the authors. (10%) 1 Walt Whitman2 Edgar Allen Poe3 Wallace Stevens4 Franklin Norris5 Stephen Crane6 William Faulkner7 Sinclair Lewis8 John Steinbeck9 Langston Hughes10 Tennessee WilliamsII. Fill in the following blanks with appropriate information.（10%）1 New England2 Regionalism or Local color writing3 semi-autobiographical4 anti-realism5 Imagist6 Santiago7 multiple narrations or points of view8 19309 Harlem Renaissance10 Eugene ONeillIII. Choose only one answer form the four choices as the most appropriate answer. （20%）15. A D C B B 610. D B E B AIV. Identify the author and the title of the work from which each of the following excerpts is taken. And then answer the question after each excerpt. (20%)Passage 1the author: Walt Whitman (1%) the title of the work : Songs of Myself (1%) Question: What is the poet celebrating? (2%) The poet is celebrating individualism and nationalism, singing of all those people who form the American nationality.Passage 2the author: Eugene ONeill (1%) the title of the work :Desire Under the Elms (1%) Question: What do you think is Abbies real intention of showing affection to Eben? To seduce Eben, with the intention to be pregnant with a son that could inherit the farm. (2%) Passage 3the author: Emily Dickinson (1%) the title of the work: “Because I could not stop for death” (1%) Question: What is the implication of this final stanza? (2%) Death leads us to immortality. Passage 4the author: F. Scott Fitzgerald (1%) the title of the work : The Great Gatsby (1%) Question: What is the author s attitude toward such persons as Tom and Daisy? The author criticized them as selfish, hypocritical persons. (2%) Passage 5the author: Edgar Allan Poe (1%) the title of the work: “To Helen” (1%) Question: Comment on the beauty of this poem. (2%) The beauty of form. （diction，rhyme and rhythm，rhetorical devices.） The beauty of content. V. Answer the following questions briefly.（20%）1. Mark Twain, “The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County”:（1）What realistic elements can you find in this story? (5%) 1 Background: Gold Rush (2%)2 California was a world of men, isolated, homesick, and eager for entertainment. (1%)3 Gambling was one of the easiest and most popular ways to amuse themselves. (1%)4 The Easterners had a reputation for being civilized, cultured, and advanced; whereas the Westerners were considered to be less-educated, less-refined and easy to be deceived. (1%) （2）What role does language play in the story? (5%)1 Informal language vs. formal language: (2%)2 To highlight the educational background of the characters (1%)3 To help create a realistic picture of how the characters speak (1%)4 To make the narration more vivid (1%)2. What is the Lost Generation? (10%)1) The Lost Generation is a term used to describe a group of American intellectuals, poets, artists and writers fled to France in the post WWI years to reject the values of American materialism and to seek the bohemian lifestyle in Paris. (2%)2) Full of youthful idealism, these individuals sought the meaning of life, drank excessively, had love affairs and created some of the finest American literature to date. (2%)3) American poet Gertrude Stein actually coined the expression lost generation. Speaking to Ernest Hemingway, she said, you are all a lost generation. The term stuck and the mystique surrounding these individuals continues to fascinate us. (2%)4) There were many literary artists involved in the groups known as the Lost Generation. The three best known are F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway and John Dos Passos. Others usually included among the list are: Sherwood Anderson, Kay Boyle, Hart Crane, Ford Maddox Ford and Zelda Fitzgerald. (2%)5) The Lost Generation writers all gained prominence in 20th century literature. Their innovations challenged assumptions about writing and expression, and paved the way for subsequent generations of writers. (2%)VI. Answer ONE of the following questions.（20%）1. Analyze An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser.2. Analyze William Faulkners The Sound and the Fury.The score is given to the theme (7), content (6) and writing style (7) of the work chosen. 4