英美文学重要名词解释-英汉解释-综合整理版.docVIP

英美文学重要名词解释-英汉解释-综合整理版 名词解释 ENGLISH AMERICAN LITERATURE--DEFINITION OF TERMS Epic: A long narrative poem telling about the deeds of a great hero and reflecting the values of the society from which it originated.Beowulf is the greatest national epic of the Anglo-Saxons. John Milton wrote three great epics: Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained and Samson Agonistes. Alliteration:reptition of the initial letter or first sound of several words, marking stressed syllables in a line of poetry or prose. Used to emphasize meaning and thus can be effectively employed in oratory. Legend: A song or narrative handed down from the past, legend differs from myths on the basis of the elements of historical truth they contain. Romance罗曼史/骑士文学: 1)Romance is a popular literary form in the medieval England. 2) It sings knightly adventures or other heroic deeds. 3) Chivalry (such as bravery, honor, generosity, loyalty and kindness to the weak and poor) is the spirit of romance. Ballad（民谣）: 1)Ballad is a story in poetic form to be sung or recited. 2) Ballads were passed down from generation to generation. 3) Robin Hood is a famous ballad singing the goods of Robin Hood. Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner is a 19th century English ballad. The Heroic Couplet(英雄双韵体) Heroic couplet refers to the rhymed couplet in iambic pentameter Heroic couplets are lines of iambic pentameter that rhyme in pairs (aa, bb, cc). The Heroic Couplet: 1) It means a pair of lines of a type once common in English poetry, in other words, it means iambic pentameter rhymed in two lines. 2) The rhyme is masculine. 3) Use of the heroic couplet was first pioneered by Geoffrey Chaucer. Iambic pentameter: A poetic line consisting of five verse feet, with each foot an iamb—that is, an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. Iambic pentameter is the most common verse line in English poetry. 抑扬格五音步诗：一行诗包含五个音步，每个音步都是抑扬格。 Sonnet(十四行诗) when the classical works of ancient Greek and Roman writers and those of th