《艾玛》是英国十九世纪女性文学作家珍.奥斯汀晚期的创作,也是作者个人特别喜爱的作品。
珍.奥斯汀有一个有名的建言,她跟姪女建议说:三、四个乡间村落的家庭,是小说的最佳题材。而这也正是《艾玛》的故事架构。这部小说的背景设定在英国南方的小村落,描述村落中一小群人的关系,艾玛则是书中主人翁的名字。故事中,艾玛以为有几个角色彼此钟爱,但她却总是猜错。她凭借个人的想像力,以为爱情就像当时代的罗曼史小说所描绘的那样。
在珍.奥斯汀的时代,年轻女子的志向就是尽可能嫁个好人家,但故事的女主角艾玛却决心不结婚。这种人物设定本身就不寻常,因为在当时候女人的职责就是嫁人。
《艾玛》的道德主题是社会秩序的存在,故事中违反社会规范的角色,最后落得的下场不是生病,就是不幸。小说鼓励人应该要诚实面对人际关系,并且融入自己生活的社群之中,不然不会有幸福的生活。此外,在社会地位、教育程度和外表上,结婚的选择对象都要门当户对,才有真爱和良缘可言。
Jane Austen began writing Emma in January 1814 and she finished it in March 1815. Emma was then published in December 1815 by John Murray, who also published the works of the poet Lord Byron. The novel was published in three volumes.
Jane Austen famously advised her niece that, three or four families in a country village are the perfect subject for a novel, and this is exactly what she wrote about. Emma is set in the small village of Highbury in the south of England, and it follows the relationships of a small group of people in the village: Emma and Mr Knightley, Frank Churchill and Jane Fairfax and their friends and families.
At that time, a young woman’s aim was to marry as well as she could. The main character, Emma, decides not to marry. This is unusual. It’s a woman’s duty to marry. But because Emma is rich, she doesn’t have to marry.
The moral theme in Emma, is that there is a social order. If the characters break the rules of their society, the result is illness or unhappiness. People must be honest about their relationships. If they are not, they’ll be unhappy. To be happy you must fit into the community you live in, and you must be polite and kind to everybody in that community.
We’re told in the novel that true love and a good marriage can only happen if you choose someone of an equal position in society, equal education and equal good looks.
Emma thinks that several of the characters are in love with each other, but she is always wrong. She relies on her imagination. She sees love as it is in the romantic novels of the time, which Jane Austen disliked.
【Helbling文学读本(Helbling Readers)简介】 ● Helbling Classics(经典英文文学改写)
● Helbling Fiction(当代原创英文小说)
《Helbling文学读本》为一套最优质的英文分级阅读读本,英语难易度由初级衔接到中级。在各项英语认证考试中,本系列书培养的英语能力级数如下:
GEPT英检 | TOEIC多益 | TOEFL iBT托福 | IELTS雅思 |
中级 | 550 | 57-86 | 4.5 |
全系列皆随书附赠全文朗读MP3。
内文编排精美,採用彩色印刷,全文穿插精美插图,单元设计丰富。
除了精彩的小说之外,另编写有:
1.About the Author(作者简介):介绍作者,帮助认识创作背景。
2.About the Book(本书简介):介绍故事内容概要,帮助了解故事的背景与旨意。
3.Before Reading(阅前活动):设计各种问题和活动,帮助暖身,启发各种探讨与学习。
4.After Reading(阅后练习):设计各种深入的问题和题目练习,帮助复习内容,加深英语的学习印象。
5.Test(测验):有些读本在阅毕之后,设计有各种测验题目,包括文意测验和英语练习等。
6.Translation(中译):完整的英文故事翻译,帮助理解文意。
7.Answer Key(解答):针对「阅前活动」、「阅后练习」和「测验」,提供解答。
8.随文讨论:在故事行文中,另设计有针对内文情节的问题探讨,帮助做启发性的思考。
【本书录音採用英式发音】