1. Also named:  The Dante Club, “ 但丁俱乐部 ”  Schoolroom Poets, “ 课堂 / 教室诗人 ”  Household Poets, “ 家庭诗人 ”

2.  The Dante Club is a mystery novel by Matthew Pearl.  Set amidst a series of murders in the American Civil War era.

3.  It also concerns a club of poets, including such historical figures as Longfellow, Holmes, and Lowell, who are translating Dante’s The Divine Comedy ( 《神曲》 ) from Italian into English.

4. What are the Fireside Poets?  First group of American poets to rival British poets in popularity in either country. ------------------------------- resilience [ri‘ziliəns] n. 跳回, 弹力

5.  Preferred conventional forms over experimentation.  Often used American legends and scenes of American life as their subject matter.

6. Who were the Fireside Poets? Bryant  William Cullen Bryant, 布莱恩特,1794-1878 Whittier  John Greenleaf Whittier, 惠蒂埃,1807-1892 Longfellow  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 朗费罗, 1809-1882 Holmes  Oliver Wendell Holmes, 霍尔姆斯,1809-1894 Lowell  James Russell Lowell, 洛威尔, 1819-1891

7. The name “Fireside Poets” is derived from that popularity:  (1) The Fireside Poets’ general adherence ( 固 守 ) to poetic convention.  (2) Their poems particularly suitable for  memorization and recitation in school  a source of entertainment for families gathered around the fire at home

8. Characteriza tions: traditional  a. standard forms  b. regular meter  c. rhymed stanzas

9. William Cullen Bryant  I.  I. Quotations  II. Life  III.  III. Poetic Theories  IV.  IV. Major Themes  V.  V. Major Works

10. I. I. Quotations  God: All things that are on earth shall wholly pass away, except the love of God, which shall live and last for aye( 永久 地 ).

11.  Poet: All great poets have been men of great knowledge.

12.  Death:  Approach thy grave like one that wraps the drapery ( 布 ) of his couch ( 卧榻 ) about him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.

13. II. Life  born Nov. 3, 1794, Cummington, Mass.  died June 12, 1878 New York City

14.  born among the beautiful highlands of western Mass.  a region of enjoyment and wonder to the boy, full of  nature’s creatures  deep forests  tiny brooks

15.  developed an interest in poetry early in life.  Under his father’s tutelage, he emulated ( 效仿 ) Alexander Pope & other Neo-Classic British poets. ---------------------------------------------  tutelage ['tju:tilid ʒ ] n. 监护, 指导

16.  considered a child-prodigy ( 神童 )  published his first poem at 10  published his first book Embargo ( 禁运、禁令 ) when he was 13

17.  Embargo was a political satire, which began as a small poem and then expanded to 420 lines.  In this work, young Bryant addressed President Jefferson with disparaging ( 贬损 ) words.

18.  With the popularity and success of Embargo came his father’s decision that Bryant should attend college. → William Cullen Bryant Homestead, Cummington, MA -----→

19.  studied both Latin and Greek  had access to a library full of the classics, which explains many of the classical allusions ( 典故 ) in his poetry.

20.  September of 1810, Bryant entered the sophomore class at Williams College.  He found the curriculum and instruction to be intellectually dreary.

21.  His father pressured him into studying law and he subsequently moved to Worthington to be guided under an attorney ( 律师 ).

22.  Abraham Lincoln after delivering a lecture in New York, invited Bryant to join him in conversation and remarked that  “It was worth a journey to the East merely to see such a man.”

23.  In 1866 his wife, Fannie, passed away after a long period of invalidism ( 疾病缠身 ).  Her death was a heavy blow for Bryant whom had been particularly devoted to her.

24.  On June 12, 1878, Bryant died, the result of a fall 14 days before.

25. III. III. Poetic Theories He stressed, “The most beautiful poetry is that which takes the strongest hold of the feelings…. the great spring ( 投 射, 喷涌 ) of poetry is emotion.”

26.  “[P]oetry is the spontaneous overlow of powerful feelings...recollected in tranquility” ----William Wordsworth

27.  He came under the influence of the romantic British poets  William Wordsworth  Samuel Taylor Coleridge  Bryant conveyed ( 表达 ) a love of nature that he retained throughout his career.

28. IV. IV. Major Themes  death  nature  New Englanders  American literary voice

29. A. A. Thanatopsis  1. Introduction  2. Meter  3.  3. Themes  4.  4. Main Ideas  5.  5. Main points  6.  6. Analysis

30.  Written by Bryant at 17  a masterpiece of American poetry  remains a significant milestone in American literary history

31.  associate editor at the Review, initially doubted its authenticity, saying to another editor, “No one, on this side of the Atlantic, is capable of writing such verses”.

32.  reflecting the influence of English “graveyard” poets such as Thomas Gray  The title is from the Greek thanatos (“death”) and the suffix -opsis (literally, “sight”)  often translated as “Meditation upon Death”.

33. Thine individual being, shalt thou go To mix forever with the elements, To be a brother to the insensible rock And to the sluggish clod….  thine [ðain] pron. 你的东西, 你的  thou [θau] pron. 你  sluggish [ l sl ʌɡ i ʃ ] adj. 行动迟缓的, 不活泼的, 无精打采的  clod [kl ɔ d] n. 土块, 泥块

34. 2. 2. Meter  Iambic pentameter--- a line of poetry with 5 iambic feet each containing one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable. 1 2 3 4 5 ∨ ∕ ∨ ∕ ∨ ∕ ∨ ∕ ∨ ∕ To him| who in| the love | of Na | ture holds

35. 3. 3. Themes  Nature of death  Power of nature

36. 4. 4. Main Ideas  (1) When facing death, you should take comfort in nature.  Looking at the natural work, you can see the earth as everyone’s final resting place.

37.  (2) Although you will eventually lose your life, you are destined to acquire in death the companionship of all other mortals.

38.  (3) When you die, you do not die alone and will be in good company and rest with great figures of the past.

39.  (4) Those who have died far outnumber the living.  (5) All people who live after you will eventually share your destiny and die too.

40.  (6) When you face death, do not go with bitterness; rather, be sustained by the knowledge that it is part of nature’s plan.

41. 6. 6. Analysis  Lines 01-17  Lines 18-57  Lines 58-72  Lines 73-81

42. Lines 1--17 Man should  commune with Nature  listen to her teaching  receive her “healing sympathy” when he is oppressed by thoughts of death.

43. Lines 18-57  Nature offers a “magnificent couch”  adorned with all the glories of Nature  shared by kings, the wise and the good  to the man who faces death.

44. Lines 58-72  Dying unmourned ( 无人哀悼的 ) is not important, because all those who go on oblivious ( 没有注 意 ) to the dying man’s departure shall, before long, share the same bed with him.

45. Lines 73-81  It is important that one live with an unfaltering ( 坚决的 ) trust in Nature so that when death approaches, he can go to it soothed and sustained in the knowledge that it is a part of the natural course of man’s life.