英语泛读第三单.pptVIP

Unit 3 Web (I) John Wyndham I. Background Information 1. John Wyndham: English science-fiction writer, who gained fame with his catastrophe novels： The Day of the Triffids (1951)《三角树时代》 The Kraken Wakes (1953) 《海妖苏醒》 The Chrysalids (1955)《蝶蛹》 Life Story: John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris Was born in the village of Knowle in Warwickshire, England, the son of George Beynon Harris, a barrister (大律师). After trying several careers including farming, law, commercial art and advertising, he started writing short stories for Money in 1925. After serving in the Civil Service and the army during the war, Wyndham returned to writing, inspired by the success of his brother who had had four novels published. He altered his writing style and by 1951, using the John Wyndham pen name for the first time, wrote the novel The Day of the Triffids. The book proved to be an enormous success and established Wyndham as an important exponent of science fiction. He went on to write and publish six more novels under the name John Wyndham, all of which appeared in his lifetime. Major works The Day of the Triffids (1951), filmed in 1962 The Kraken Wakes (1953) was published in the United States as Out of the Deeps. The Chrysalids (1955)was published in the United States as Re-Birth, and was adapted as a BBC Radio 4 play in the early 1980s. The Midwich Cuckoos (1957) has been filmed twice as Village of the Damned. Trouble with Lichen (1960) Chocky (1968) has been adapted as a Thames Television serial. Web (1979) is a short novel that, although less well known, includes all his major themes. The first four novels, written over a fairly short period in the 1950s, are widely regarded as the peak of his achievement. The Day of the Triffids remains best-known work, but some of his readers consider that The Chrysalids was really his best. Central Theme and Heroes: The central theme in Wyndhams major works is catastrophe ---- the struggle for