★★★

①Although?vastly popular?during?its time, much?nineteenth-century?women’s fiction?in the United States went unread by the?twentieth-century educated elite, who were taught to ignore it as?didactic. ②However,?American literature?has a tradition of?didacticism?going back to its?Puritan roots, shifting over time from sermons and poetic transcripts into novels, which proved to be?perfect vehicles?for?conveying?social values. ③In the nineteenth century, critics reviled?Poe?for neglecting to conclude his stories with?pithy moral tags, while?Longfellow?was canonized for his?didactic verse.?④Although?rhetorical changes?favoring the?anti-didactic?can be detected as?nineteenth-century American?transformed itself into a?secular society, it was?twentieth-century criticism, which placed?aesthetic value?above everything else, that had no place in its doctrine for the?didacticism?of others.

pithy 簡練有力的

①事實或者是elite的觀點?? ② 事實/作者觀點??

? ?? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?? ? ↓

? ?? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??? ??③句內(nèi)客觀對比支持上句

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??? ??↓? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ????? ?④?評論界的觀點

文章大意：

很多19世紀女性的小說盡管在當時非常流行，但是20世紀的精英們是不讀的，因為他們認為這玩意很說教。可是美國文學本身從清教徒時期就有說教的根源，文學形式從布道文本到小說，都是非常好的傳播社會價值的媒介。19世紀那倆哥們就是很好的例子，一個沒用（說教）被懟，一個用了（說教）被捧。盡管19世紀美國轉(zhuǎn)型期也有反說教的聲音，這種思想到了20世紀強調(diào)美學至上之后才大行其道。

關于didactic：

Around the 19th century the term?didactic?came to?be used as a criticism for work that appears to be?overburdened with instructive, factual, or otherwise educational information, to the detriment of the enjoyment of the reader.

---- from Wikipedia

1. Which of the following best describes the function of the highlighted sentence??結(jié)構(gòu)題

結(jié)構(gòu)看關系，細節(jié)看信息

B

A. It explains why the fiction mentioned in the?first sentence?was not popular in the twentieth century. 無關，關注句間關系

B. It assists in drawing a contrast between nineteenth-century and twentieth-century critics. 符合，支持第二句對第一句的轉(zhuǎn)折（20世紀這里不是“沒有證據(jù)”，文章整體在對比時間背景下的不同，不能說當句沒有就不選，結(jié)構(gòu)題要看信息關系，細節(jié)題才是關注信息本身）

C. It provides an example of?how?twentieth–century readers were taught to ignore certain literature.?沒有how的證據(jù)，且與第一句無關

D. It?questions?the?usefulness?of a particular distinction between Poe and Longfellow made by critics.?原句是順承上句，不是反向功能，同時也沒有usefulness的證據(jù)

E. It explains why Poe’s stories were more?popular?than Longfellow’s verseduring the nineteenth century.?沒有證據(jù)

2. In the context in which it appears, “conveying” most nearly means

convey:?

to communicate or express something

convey a sense/an impression/an idea etc

A. carrying?攜帶，具有

B. transferring?轉(zhuǎn)移，移交

C. granting?準許，授予

D. imparting:?to give information, knowledge, wisdom etc to someone?傳達，透露

E. projecting 投擲，發(fā)射；放映；預測

背景拓展：

Edgar Allan Poe (/po?/; born Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, editor, and literary critic.?

Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre（死亡主題）. He is widely regarded as a central figure of Romanticism in the United States and of American literature as a whole, and he was one of the country's earliest practitioners of the short story. He is generally considered the inventor of the detective fiction genre and is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. He was the first well-known American writer to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in a financially difficult life and career. 說白了就是第一個寫書把自己寫窮的。。不是個好榜樣啊。。

Longfellow wrote many lyric poems known for their musicality and often presenting stories of mythology and legend. He became the most popular American poet of his day and also had success overseas. He has been criticized by?some, however, for imitating European styles and writing specifically for the masses.?