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Selected Readings in English Literature is to serve as a textbook for Readings in English Literature, a companion-course to History of English Literature, for third-and fourth-year students majoring in English in Chinese colleges and universities.
The selected readings included herein are all taken from original writings in English literature through the centuries, with the exception of excerpts from Beowulf and Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales for which modern English translations are given in the place of the original works in Old English and Middle English. As a rule, short texts chosen are given in their entirety, while longer works are represented by excerpts. In accordance with the wishes of a number of teachers who will be using this book, we have included more selections here than are necessary for normal classroom use so that teachers may feel free to make their own choice.
Ample notes for difficult words and phrases in the selections are provided in simple English, in rare cases with added brief explanations in Chinese.
There are short introductory remarks to precede each selection and there are two appendices at the end of the book: Appendix I giving biographical sketches of the authors of the selections and Appendix II a list of books (with specified editions and dates of publication), from which the texts in this anthology are taken.
We have tried here to give selections of representative works in English literature from its beginnings to the 20th century, but our personal inclinations make it almost impossible to avoid arbitrary choices. We welcome suggestions for improvement from our readers so that revisions may be made from time to time.
Finally we wish to show our gratitude to all those who gave us their invaluable assistance and encouragement in the course of our preparations for this compilation.
For assistance with the biographical sketches of the authors represented, with the introductory remarks to the selections and with the notes to the texts. the editor wishes to express his indebtedness first of all to Associate Professor Xie Chulan of Nanjing University and next to Mr. Yang Renjing, also a colleague at Nanjing University, and to two graduate students at the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature, Liu Haiping and Wang Xisu. Acknowledgments are here made also to other friends and colleagues who have at different times contributed to the making of this book. In conclusion, the editor wants to show his gratitude to all the participants at a conference held shortly before the completion of the book, especially to Professors Li Funing, Yang Zhouhan of Beijing University, Wu Jingrong of Foreign Languages Institute of Beijing, Dai Liuling of Zhongshan University, Zhang Junchuan of Hangzhou University, Huang Hongxu of Normal University of Hebei and Zhang Jian of Shandong University, for their helpful suggestions on the selection of the texts, on the making of the notes and on other relevant matters.
Chen Jia
The selected readings included herein are all taken from original writings in English literature through the centuries, with the exception of excerpts from Beowulf and Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales for which modern English translations are given in the place of the original works in Old English and Middle English. As a rule, short texts chosen are given in their entirety, while longer works are represented by excerpts. In accordance with the wishes of a number of teachers who will be using this book, we have included more selections here than are necessary for normal classroom use so that teachers may feel free to make their own choice.
Ample notes for difficult words and phrases in the selections are provided in simple English, in rare cases with added brief explanations in Chinese.
There are short introductory remarks to precede each selection and there are two appendices at the end of the book: Appendix I giving biographical sketches of the authors of the selections and Appendix II a list of books (with specified editions and dates of publication), from which the texts in this anthology are taken.
We have tried here to give selections of representative works in English literature from its beginnings to the 20th century, but our personal inclinations make it almost impossible to avoid arbitrary choices. We welcome suggestions for improvement from our readers so that revisions may be made from time to time.
Finally we wish to show our gratitude to all those who gave us their invaluable assistance and encouragement in the course of our preparations for this compilation.
For assistance with the biographical sketches of the authors represented, with the introductory remarks to the selections and with the notes to the texts. the editor wishes to express his indebtedness first of all to Associate Professor Xie Chulan of Nanjing University and next to Mr. Yang Renjing, also a colleague at Nanjing University, and to two graduate students at the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature, Liu Haiping and Wang Xisu. Acknowledgments are here made also to other friends and colleagues who have at different times contributed to the making of this book. In conclusion, the editor wants to show his gratitude to all the participants at a conference held shortly before the completion of the book, especially to Professors Li Funing, Yang Zhouhan of Beijing University, Wu Jingrong of Foreign Languages Institute of Beijing, Dai Liuling of Zhongshan University, Zhang Junchuan of Hangzhou University, Huang Hongxu of Normal University of Hebei and Zhang Jian of Shandong University, for their helpful suggestions on the selection of the texts, on the making of the notes and on other relevant matters.
Chen Jia