English essay.pptVIP

Part Two Essay Appreciation Definition of Essay It is a relatively short literary composition成分in prose, in which a writer discusses a topic, usually restricted in scope, or tries to persuade the reader to accept a particular point of view. or simply to entertain. the term essai was first applied to the form in 1580 by Montaigne, one of the greatest essayists of all time有史以来, to his pieces on friendship, love, death, and morality. In England the term was inaugurated in 1597 by Francis Bacon, who wrote shrewd meditations on civil and moral wisdom. Two Types of Essay the informal essay personal, intimate, relaxed, conversational, and frequently humorous. Some of the greatest exponents of the informal essay are J. Swift, C. Lamb, W. Hazlitt, T. De Quincey, and M. Twain. Formal essay dogmatic教条的, impersonal, systematic, and expository. Significant writers of this type include J. Addison, Dr. Johnson, M. Arnold, J. S. Mill, R. W. Emerson, and H. D. Thoreau. In the latter half of the 20th cent. the formal essay has become more diversified in subject and less stately庄严的 in tone and language, and the sharp division between the two forms has tended to disappear. Michel Eyquem de Montaigne (1533-1592) French courtier 朝臣and author of ESSAIS, who established a new literary form. Montaigne has remained the greatest exponent of the essay, a short piece that discusses the authors personal thoughts about a particular subject. His successors have followed him in the use of the self as subject, the replacement of logical thought by free association, and the use of essay as a literary device for saying almost everything about anything . Difference between Bacon and Montaigne (1) Montaignes essays show a strong personal touch, stressing on the tentative nature of his mind. His writing is informal thus arouses readers active response and makes them probe into the true nature under human experience.(2) Bacon is very m