1、sinclair lewis 1885-1951 英語0918 葉妙華 2009521091 sinclair lewis nabout the author nmajor works about the author harry sinclair lewis (february 7, 1885 january 10, 1951) was an american novelist, short-story writer, and playwright. in 1930, he became the first writer from the united states to be awarde

2、d the nobel prize for literature, (the first american to win the nobel prize for literature )for his vigorous and graphic art of description and his ability to create, with wit and humor, new types of characters. his works are known for their insightful and critical views of american society and cap

3、italist values, as well as for their strong characterizations of modern working women. major works nmain street (1920) 大街 nbabbitt (1922) 巴比特 narrowsmith (1925) 阿羅史密斯 nlewis showed the villagers to be narrow-minded, greedy, pretentious and corrupt. nhe attacked middle class for its indifference to a

4、rt and culture, and its assumption that economic success made it superior. style nphotographic(逼真的）, verisimilitude（逼真） ncolloquialism(白話 ) ncharacterization: he often created a type of character rather than an individual nold fashioned in theme nlack in psychological exploration point of view satir

5、ical critic of american middle class main street nthe first of sinclair lewiss great successes. main street shattered(使碎裂 ) the sentimental american myth of happy small-town life with its satire of narrow-minded provincialism(地方 主義 ). reflecting his own unhappy childhood in sauk centre, minnesota. n

6、 lewiss sixth novel attacked the conformity and dullness he saw in midwestern village life. young college graduate carol milford moves from the city to tiny gopher prairie after marrying the local doctor, and tries to bring culture to the small town. but her efforts to reform the prairie village are

7、 met by a wall of gossip, greed, conventionality, pitifully unambitious cultural endeavors, and worst of allthe pettiness and bigotry(偏執） of small-town minds. main street nlewiss portrayal （描述）of a marriage torn by disillusionment and a woman forced into compromises is at once devastating（摧毀） social

8、 satire and persuasive realism. his subtle characterizations and intimate details of small-town america make main street a complex and compelling work and established lewis as an important figure in twentieth-century american literature. babbit 1. a novel that satirizes the american commercial cultu

9、re and boosterism. the story was set in the fictional midwestern town of zenith, winnemac, a setting to which lewis would return in future novels. 2. largely a satire of american culture, society, and behavior, it critiques（評論) the vacuity (空虛）of middle- class american life and its pressure on indiv

10、iduals toward conformity. babbit nthe book takes its name from the principal character, george f. babbitt, a middle-aged partner, with his father-in-law, in a real-estate firm. nbabbitt is professionally successful as a realtor（房 地產經紀人 ）. he lives with only the vaguest awareness of the lives and dea

11、ths of his contemporaries（同代人 ）. much of his energy in the beginning is spent on climbing the social ladder through booster functions, real estate sales, and making good with various dignitaries（顯要人物). nlewis paints humorous scenes of babbitt foolishly bartering for liquor (illegal at the time becau

12、se of prohibition), hosting dinner parties, and taking clients to view property. all of this is juxtaposed(并列）against backdrops（背景）of babbitts incessant （無盡無休的） materialism and his growing discontent. the characteristics of babbit na typical member of zeniths hypocritical, ignorant, unthinking, conformist middle class. babbittry in modern society namerican society todayindeed, every modern societyhas its babbitts. they are men and women who subjugate their minds to the collective will in order to gain favors and f