第四讲 18世纪文学.pptVIP

4). influence: It is briefly mentioned in Jane Austens Emma, Charles Dickens A Tale of Two Cities, Mary Shelleys Frankenstein, Charlotte Bront?s The Professor, Louisa May Alcotts Little Women and in Goethes The Sorrows of Young Werther Comments on Goldsmith 1). Representative of sentimentalism: Goldsmith shows his compassion for the poor and the afflicted. His novel appeals to human sentiment as a means of achieving happiness and social justice. The popularity of “Pamela” was due to the moralistic nature of the story, which made it acceptable for the centurys rapidly growing middle class. The epistolary form was an innovation that was a source of great pride for Richardson. But contemporary readers were shocked by some questionable behaviors of the characters; it was easy to regard Pamela, for example, as a scheming young woman trying to gain higher social status by making a nobleman marry her. “Clarissa Harlowe” 1). masterpiece, a tragic story, epistolary form Clarissa Robert Lovelace Solmes Colonel Morden 2). the first important novel that pays close attention to women’s position in the bourgeois society. Background: “Clarissa Harlowe”, in 7 volumes. The massive work, which runs to more than a million words and stands as one of the longest novels in the English language. Except novel sequences, it may well be the longest novel in the English language. It contains 547 letters, most written by the heroine, Clarissa Harlowe, her friend, Anna Howe, Lovelace, and his friend, John Belford. 3). analysis ＊Clarissa dares to run away from her family to avoid marrying the man she dislikes----her revolt against family tyranny ＊She refused to marry Lovelace after being seduced by him ---- fight for thorough emancipation of women ＊But she, representative of the virtue, is too weak to fight against the wicked social environment, so her struggle is a doomed failure. 4). reception of “Clarissa”