Lecture 6 (18世纪文学)课件.pptVIP

英国文学史及选读;The 18th Century Historical Background: 1) The idea of democracy and liberty was rooted and taken into shape at home. The constitutional monarchy set up by parliament in 1688 was a compromise between the middle class and the aristocrats. After the Glorious Revolution, the monarch was deprived of ruling power and in his place Parliament became the actual leader of the country. The conservative Tory and the liberal Whig, though representing the interests of different classes, both supported commerce and the policy of tolerance. 2) England began to become a supreme power abroad. England grew from a second rate country to a powerful country in the 18th century by defeating other European powers, esp. France. In these wars the navy of England grew in strength and by the end of the 18th century England had become the leading naval power in Europe. ;With the ascent of the middle class cultural life had undergone remarkable changes. Some special features are worthy of our notice: 1. Political writings: The rise of the political parties and their rivalry called forth writers and literary men willing to work for either party in order to help either of them win more votes. In the previous ages authors had to depend on the patron, i.e., feudal lords, for their support either financially or politically. From now on writing became an independent job, and many writers became hack writers, or “Grub Street writers” (for many of them lived on Grub Street) who took writing as a profession. Both parties were looking for writers who could best give voice to their policies. Hardly a writer of the time was free from political bias. And so long as they were well paid, they could serve any master and would shift their political ground easily. Thus, Swift at first was a Whig, and later became a Tory, and Defoe served whatever party that was in power. ;2. Newspapers and journals: With the coming of the 18th century a new mass medium came into being. Both parties printed newspaper as