Walter Scott Scottish Novelist and Poet Scottish national novelist

I. Life  born in 1771 in Edinburgh, Scotland  the son of a solicitor  survived a childhood bout of polio in 1773 that would leave him lame. Edinburgh [ l edinbərə], 爱丁堡 bout [baut] n. 一场 ( 疾病 ) ;polio [ l pəuliəu] n. 小儿麻痹症

 To cure his lameness he was sent in that year to live in the rural Borders region at his grandparents’ farm solicitor [sə l lisitə]n. 初级律师

 Here he was taught to read by his aunt Jenny  He learned from her the speech patterns and many of the tales and legends which characterized much of his work.

 In 1778, back to Edinburgh for private education.  In 1779 at the Royal High School of Edinburgh.

 He was now well able to walk and explore the city as well as the surrounding countryside.  His reading: chivalric romances, poems, history and travel books.

 Scott began studying classics at the University of Edinburgh in November 1783, at the age of only twelve  He was a year or so younger than most of his fellow students.

 During the winter of the 15 year old Scott saw Robert Burns at one of these salons, for what was to be their only meeting.

 When it was decided that he would become a lawyer he returned to the university to study law  After completing his studies in law, he became a lawyer in Edinburgh.

 As a lawyer’s clerk he made his first visit to the Scottish Highlands  an unsuccessful love

 In 1797 Scott married Margaret Charlotte Charpenter.  They had five children.

Scottish-highlands house

His Poetry  Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border  Scott’s first major work in  The Lay of the Last Minstrel  1805, rising into fame  about an old border country legend  a huge success and made him the most popular author of the day

 Marmion  1808  a historical romance in tetrameter  The Lady in the Lake  appeared in 1810 ↑ The statue of Sir Walter Scott is executed in Carrara marble

Bust of Sir Walter Scott in nearby Galashiels

Sir Walter Scott, by Sir John Steell, 1871.

 In 1806 Scott became clerk to the Court of Session in Edinburgh.  To increase his income he started a printing and publishing business with his friend.  The enterprise crashed.

 Scott accepted all debts and tried to pay them off with his writings.  In 1820 Scott was created a baronet.  His wife, Lady Scott, died in 1826, and the author himself had a stroke in 1830.

 Next year Scott sailed to Italy.  After his return to England in 1832, he died on September 21.  Scott was buried beside his ancestors in Dryburgh Abbey

最后一个吟游诗人的歌（节选） 阿伯特 · 格莱姆之歌 有一个美丽的英格兰少女， ( 灿烂的阳光照在卡利斯城墙, ) 她将要嫁给一位苏格兰骑士， 因为爱情永远是至高无上。

迎着朝阳他俩都欢乐无比， 当阳光倾洒在卡利斯城墙； 黄昏降临他俩却忧伤叹息， 虽然爱情仍然是至高无上。 她父亲送她宝石胸针， 灿烂的阳光照在卡利斯城墙； 她哥哥却送她毒酒一瓶， 他恨妹妹视爱情至高无上

Abbotsford, Home of Sir Walter Scott

Novels  When was burdened by his debt, Scott set out, in 1814, to write a cash-cow.  The result was Waverley, a novel which did not name its author.  The novel met with considerable success.

 The success of Waverley established Scott in the career of a novelist, but it did not establish his name in that role.  Unwilling to stake too much on his venture into fiction, he had published Waverley anonymously.

 Finding that the mask of anonymity had stimulated public interest, Scott signed his subsequent novels "by the Author of Waverley."  This signature became his trademark, the novels bearing it being called the "Waverley" novels.

 Scott published all his novels anonymously.  Initially this may have been a precaution ( 预 防措施 ) against the possible failure of “Waverley”  but even after its enormous success, Scott seems to have enjoyed prolonging the mystery  he was nicknamed "The Great Unknown" and "The Wizard Of The North").

 His identity as the author of “Waverley” and its successors soon became an open secret, fairly widely known  but it was not until February 1827 that he officially “revealed” himself, at a public dinner in Edinburgh.

 The Waverley Novels express his belief in the need for social progress that does not reject the traditions of the past.  He was the first novelist to portray peasant characters sympathetically and realistically, and was equally just to merchants, soldiers, and even kings.

 Bride of Lammermoor, 《拉马摩尔的新娘》  Ivanhoe, 《艾凡赫》  Rob Roy, 《罗布 · 罗伊》  The Heat of Midlothian, 《中洛辛郡的心脏》  The Antiquary, 《古董家》  The Talisman--A Tale of the Crusaders, 《护符》  Waverley, 《威弗利》

Historical fiction Definition: a sub-genre of fiction  that often portrays fictional accounts or dramatization of historical figures or events  where fictional characters take part in actual historical events and interact with real people from the past

 Examples:  Sir Walter Scott: Ivanhoe  Nathaniel Hawthorne: The Scarlet Letter  James Fenimore Cooper: Last of the Mohicans  Robert Graves: I, Claudius

Ivanhoe  《艾凡赫》、《劫后英雄传》、《撒克逊劫后英雄略》  the first to deal with English subject matter  written in 1819 and set in 12th century England, an example of historical fiction.  sometimes given credit for helping to increase popular interest in the middle ages in 19th century Europe and America

1. 1. Plot introduction  Ivanhoe is the story of one of the remaining Saxon noble families at a time when the English nobility was overwhelmingly Norman.

 It follows the Saxon protagonist, Wilfred of Ivanhoe, who is out of favour with his father owing to his courting the Lady Rowena and for his allegiance to the Norman king Richard I of England.

 The story is set in 1194, after the end of the Third Crusade, when many of the Crusaders were still returning to Europe.  King Richard, who had been captured by the Duke of Saxony, on his way back, was still supposed to be in the arms of his captors.

 The legendary Robin Hood, initially under the name of Locksley, is also a character in the story, as are his 'merry men,' including Friar Tuck and, less so, Alan-a-Dale.  The character that Scott gave to Robin Hood in Ivanhoe helped shape the modern notion of this figure as a cheery noble outlaw.

 Other major characters include  Ivanhoe’s intractable( 倔强的 ) Saxon father Cedric, a descendant of the Saxon King Harold Godwinson;  various Knights Templar and churchmen;

 the loyal serfs Gurth the swineherd and the jester Wamba, whose observations punctuate much of the action;  the Jewish moneylender, Isaac of York, equally passionate of money and his daughter, Rebecca.

2. 2. Characters (1) Wilfred of Ivanhoe  Heroic Saxon knight who vanquishes Norman enemies and restores Saxon pride. (2) Rowena  Ivanhoe’s beautiful and compassionate beloved.

(3) King Richard I  Rightful King of England and a bold and skillful warrior.  Though French blood runs in his veins, he proves himself a just and worthy king. (4) Prince John  Richard’s evil brother who plots to seize the throne of England.

(5) Isaac of York  Despised Jew who helps Ivanhoe. (6) Rebecca  Isaac’s beautiful and selfless daughter.  For her nobility and strength of character, she is perhaps the most admirable character in the novel.

(7) Locksley  Robin Hood, leader of a band of forest outlaws who help Richard and Ivanhoe.

2. 2. Summary  The novel is historical and deals with the reign of Richard I.  Wilfred of Ivanhoe becomes a favoured subject of Richard during the crusade, but as the familiar story continues John, brother of Richard, plans to depose the king assisted by immoral Norman noblemen.

 The novel chiefly concerns two events:  the great battle at Ashby where Richard defeats the knights of John with the assistance of Ivanhoe  the siege of the castle of Torquilstone where the beautiful Rebecca has been imprisoned by the Normans

 The latter involves Locksley (Robin Hood) who aids King Richard in the conflict.  Subsequently, with Rebecca still hostage to an appalling Templar knight, Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert, Ivanhoe has to show courage and nobility in confronting the Norman enemy.

 Eventually, Ivanhoe and his sweetheart Rowena are brought together by King Richard.  The novel was one of the first to attempt to deal with subject matter from the Middle Ages in a historically accurate manner - even if it does not always manage to achieve this aim.

The themes  (1) Good ultimately triumphs over evil.  (2) Colonialism promotes injustice and foments social upheaval.  (3) National unity requires compromise.

 (4) True love conquers all.  (5) A society divided by classes is destined for trouble.  (6) Anti-Semitism is widespread and deeply entrenched.

The Heart of Midlothian  《中洛辛郡的监狱》  the 7th of Waverley Novels  by many considered the finest  originally published in 1818

 Although the identity of the author of the Waverley Novels was well-known by this time, Scott still chose to write under a pseudonym. The Old Tolbooth, Edinburgh →

Cowan receiving the manuscript of “Heart of Midlothian ” from Sir Walter

 Scott was at the time recovering from illness, and wrote at an even more furious pace than usual.  When the book was released, it more than matched the popularity of his last novel.

 The title of the book refers to the Old Tolbooth Prison in Edinburgh, Scotland, at the time in the heart of the Scottish county of Midlothian.  The historical backdrop was the event known as the Porteous Riots.

 In 1736, a riot broke out in Edinburgh over the execution of two smugglers.  The Captain of the City Guards, Captain John Porteous, ordered the soldiers to fire into the crowd, killing several people.

 Porteous was later killed by a lynch mob who stormed the Old Tolbooth.  Jeanie Deans is the first woman among Scott's protagonists, and also the first to come from the lower classes.

 While the heroine is idealized for her religious devotion and her moral rectitude, Scott nevertheless ridicules the moral certitude represented by the branch of Presbyterianism( 长老会 ) in the novel by Jeanie’s father David.

 Also central to the novel is the early-18th century Jacobitism, a theme found in so many of Scott’s novels.  Scott’s sympathies can be seen in the ideal figure of the Duke of Argyll, a moderate on these issues.