聊城大学外国语学院英国文学史与选读课件 Fielding.pptVIP

Henry Fielding (1707-1754) The greatest novelist of the 18th century Henry Fielding Life a.? ?a playwright; comedies, farcesb.? a lawyer; unsuccessful c. a magistrate in Westminster d. a novelist  Henry Fielding Major novels: Joseph Andrews(1742), Jonathan Wild (1743), Tom Jones(1749) Amelia(1751) Henry Fielding Fielding firmly believed in the educational function of literature; Literature not just to amuse, but to instruct people; The object of his novels is to “teach men to know themselves, their proper spheres and appropriate manners.” Contributions to English novel Father of English novel; helped to establish the form of modern novel; giving the modern novel its structure and style; the first to use third person narration , the omniscient narrator or God’s eye narrator; Fielding’s style Greatly influenced by classicism that stressed order, balance and symmetry; In planning his stories, he tried to retain the great epical form of classical works, but at the same time kept faithful to his realistic presentation of common life as it was. “Comic epic in prose”, “prose Homer” Fielding’s language Easy, smooth and familiar, but extremely vivid and vigorous; His sentences are always distinguished by logic and rhythm; Lively, dramatic dialogues and other theatrical devices such as suspense, coincidence and unexpectedness; The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling The novel is admirable for: The panoramic view of the 18th C English society; about 40 characters are portrayed from nearly all classes of society ; the setting is wide-ranging and varied, shifting from the country to the city; Tom Jones The superb plot construction ; 18 books equally divided into 3 sections, clearly marked out by the change of scenes; classical effect of balance ; The vivid character portrayals; Tom, Blifil, Sophia Major Characters Tom: Merits: honest, kind-hearted, high-spirited, loyal , generous, frank and brave; Flaws: impulsive, quick-tempered, lacking pruden