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1、 Dreisers Naturalism in Sister Carrie ContentsIntroduction.11. The historical and cultural background for Sister Carrie .21.1 Darwinism and Determinism.21.2 American naturalism .22. The typical characteristics of naturalism in Sister Carrie.22.1 The relationship among reason, free will and instinct.
2、22.2 The influence of the environment .33. Dreisers naturalistic attitude of truthful reflection of life.33.1 Dreisers “Sister”一 Carrie .33.2 Hurstwoods decline 一 Dreisers fear of failure .3Conclusion.3Notes.4Bibliography.5 1Dreisers Naturalism in Sister Carrie Abstract：Theodore Dreiser is regarded
3、as an outstanding representative of American naturalism. In this thesis, Dreisers first novel Sister Carrie is taken as an example to analyze the features of Dreisers naturalism. The thesis referred to three great historical and cultural background of the novel which are Darwinism，Determinism. Ameri
4、can Naturalism and Consumerism. Meanwhile the thesis analyzes three features of naturalism. At last, we can draw the conclusion that the leading character of the novel-Carries destiny has a great connection with Dreiser himself and the decline of Hurstwood is a result of Dreisers fear of failure, bu
5、t Dreiser attributes Carrie and Hurstwoods unhappiness to their insatiable desire for life or they are doomed to be unhappy etc, and from which we can see Dreisers naturalism easily. Key Words：Naturalism Darwinism Consumerism desire environment 論在嘉莉妹妹中德萊賽的自然主義論在嘉莉妹妹中德萊賽的自然主義摘要：摘要：美國作家西奧多德萊塞被認為美國自然主義
6、的杰出代表，本文以其第一部小說嘉莉妹妹為例分析德萊塞自然主義的一些特征。論文從德萊塞創(chuàng)作嘉莉妹妹的歷史文化背景出發(fā)，研究德萊塞在嘉莉妹妹中表現出來的自然主義思想。論文涉及該小說的主要三大背景：一是達爾文主義和宿命論；二是美國然主義；三是 19 世紀末在美國興起的消費主義。同時分析自然主義的三大特點：欲望,本能和環(huán)境,最后得出結論：嘉莉妹妹一文中主人公嘉莉妹妹的最終命運與德萊塞本人的命運息息相關，赫思渥德的最終墮落也是德萊塞懼怕失敗的結果。而德萊塞卻把嘉莉妹妹和赫思特渥德最終得不到幸福歸因于“人心 2 Introduction Theodore Dreiser is one of the mos
7、t influential American writers of critical realism, but many of his works referred to the description of naturalism and weakened his critical spirit. His first novel Sister Carrie published in 1990 revealed the financial disparity and the moral decline of American society and thus regarded as forbid
8、den book. But now the book becomes one of the best-sellers of American literature because of the naturalistic features in it. Then Dreiser is regarded as a pioneer of American naturalism and as a naturalist Dreiser expresses the characteristics of naturalism in most of his works. The themes of Darwi
9、nism and Determinism are the common features of Dreisers story which also characterize Sister Carrie.When most novels deal only with the smiling and beautiful aspects of life, Dreiser advocates truthful reflection of life in his fiction. It is not an exaggeration to say that Dreisers Sister Carrie c
10、lears the way for the development of American fiction. Since 1900, American critics have never ceased their study on Dreiser. The early research was mainly based on the writers life experience. It provided us with lots of useful information about the writer. The study witnessed a transition from the
11、 author himself to the text in 1960s. From 1980s, scholars employed new devices of Freudianism, Feminism and Post-Structuralism in their studies. These new methods help us know Dreiser and his works from different angles. However, one thing they share in common is that they lack macroscopic analysis
12、. In china , some Chinese critics have also shown great interest in Sister Carrie. Two domestic literary magazines, Foreign Literature Study and Foreign Literature Review, have been the major publishing fields for these critics In order to find out Dreisers naturalism, the method of text analysis is
13、 employed in this thesis. The author of this thesis reads the novel intensively so that evidences can be dug out to demonstrate Dreisers naturalism. Another method, cultural criticism, is employed to research the complicated relation between Dreiser and the society he lived in. Dreiser is investigat
14、ed in his historical and cultural 3background. The conclusion shows that Dreiser is not only a criticizer of capitalism, but also a builder of American cultural system. 1. The historical and cultural background for Sister CarrieTheodore Dreisers Sister Carrie reflects the profound transformations in
15、 American life in the late nineteenth century. Among the most sweeping changes registered in the novel are the economys shifting from an agricultural base to an 1.1 Darwinism and DeterminismSister Carrie was written at the time when Darwinism was prevalent. Many of Sister Carries themes-struggle, su
16、rvival and desire-derive directly from the evolutionary views. The concept of evolution was put forward in the mid-19th century by Charles Darwin 1.2 American naturalismSister Carrie was written and published also at the rise of American naturalism, which means a particular genre of fiction that dev
17、eloped in the late 19th century America, and associated principally with writers such as Jack London ，Stephen Crane, Frank Norris and Theodore Dreiser 2. The typical characteristics of naturalism in Sister Carrie In Sister Carrie I find out that some of its themes differ from those of other naturali
18、stic works 2.1 The relationship among reason, free will and instinctIn Sister Carrie Dreiser details the relationship among reason, free will and instinct: When humans instinct and reason are at war, the former prevails over the latter in most instances; humans free will is mostly an illusion and su
19、bmits to humans instinct 42.2 The influence of the environmentEnvironment is a tremendous thing and often leads human to a wrong direction. We know that Drouet tells Carrie that Chicago is a wonder, and that she will find lots to see there. Even her meager sister Minnie tells her, “Youll want to see
20、 the city.” 1 3. Dreisers naturalistic attitude of truthful reflection of lifeA phrase often applied to Dreiser by others is standing alone or marching alone. In his Nobel Prize address, Sinclair Lewis tells the Swedish Academy that Dreiser “more than any other man, marching alone, usually unappreci
21、ated, often hated, has cleared the trail from Victorian and Howell Sian timidity and gentility in American fiction to honesty and boldness and passion of life.2” 3.1 Dreisers “Sister”一一 CarrieEmma Dreiser, the prettiest of the five Dreiser sisters, was eight years older than Theodore Dreiser. As a y
22、oung girl in the small town of Sullivan, Indiana, she and her other sisters were deeply interested in boys . 3.2 Hurstwoods decline 一一 Dreisers fear of failure For Hopkins Dreiser substitutes the prosperous and respected upper-middle-class manager who keeps a well-appointed house on the North Side,
23、the best section of Chicago ConclusionThis short thesis can not cover Dreisers meaningful naturalism. His greatness is in his insight, his sympathy, and his tragic view of lifeNotes 5 1Bantam. Sister Carrie M. New York: Bantam Classics , 1992. p.61.2 Ibid., p.51.Bibliography 1Bartlett, L. Teacher De
24、velopment Through Reflective Teaching A. in Richards & Nunan (eds.). Second Language Teacher Education C. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press/Cambridge University Press, 2000.26-29.2He Gang. The Brief Analysis of Jane Eyre. http:/www.pragmatics China. Com/grammaticalization.htm, 20
25、03-05-12.3Williams, M & L. B. Burden. Psychology for Language Teachers M. Beijing: Foreign language Teaching and Research Press/Cambridge University Press, 2000. 4肖晨.英語語言、文學工具書及其使用M.北京：學苑出版社，1990.34-42.Naturalism in Sister CarrieAbstract: Theodore Dreiser ,the writer of Sister Carrie ,is one of the
26、most outstanding representatives of American naturalism. In this thesis, his first novel Sister Carrie is taken as an example to analyze the features of Dreisers naturalism. The thesis referred to three great historical and cultural background of the novel which are Darwinism, Determinism, American
27、Naturalism and Industrial Revolution .And the thesis analyzes three features of naturalism. At last, we pay attention to Dreisers exploration -human desire and revelation of the dark side of human natureKey Words: Naturalism Darwinism desire environment human nature 6Naturalism of Dreiser in Sister
28、CarrieIntroductionTheodor Dreiser (1871-1945)，an American author, outstanding representative of naturalism, whose novels depict real-life subjects in a harsh light. Many of his works referred to the description of naturalism and weakened his critical spirit. His first novel Sister Carrie published i
29、n 1990 revealed the financial disparity and the moral decline of American society and thus regarded as forbidden book. But now the book becomes one of the best-sellers of American literature because of the naturalistic features in it. Then Dreiser is regarded as a pioneer of American naturalism and
30、as a naturalist Dreiser expresses the characteristics of naturalism in most of his works. The themes of Darwinism and Determinism are the common features of Dreisers story which also characterize Sister Carrie.Dreiser chose to reflect life truthful in his works when other novels deal only with the b
31、eautiful aspects of life,. It is not an exaggeration to say that Dreisers Sister Carrie clears the way for the development of American fiction. From follow analysis of three aspects and conclusion,we can find out the naturalism of Dreiser in Sister Carrie1. The historical and cultural background for
32、 Sister CarrieTheodore Dreisers Sister Carrie reflects the profound transformations in American life in the late nineteenth century. 1.1 Darwinism and Determinism In 1859, Darwins The Origin of Specie appeared. It soon changed mans recognition. Before Darwin, human was separated from the animals bec
33、ause of its moral. However, at this time evolutionist considered human as a part of natural things and a member of the animal kingdom. American naturalists accepted “bestiality” and “ human beast” as an explanation of desire. They attempted to achieve extreme objectivity and frankness presenting 7ch
34、aracters of low social and economic classes who are determined by their environment and heredity. They dismissed the validity of comforting moral truth. Darwinism is the most important theory, which greatly affects Sister Carrie.Freuds theory gives theoretic basis to Dreisers description of mans des
35、ire. Freud considers mans natural instinct as determination. To him man is a part of nature since man is a member of animals. Human mentality and action will forever be determined by instinct. Desire is just a genetic instinct in his opinion. 1.2 American naturalismSister Carrie was written and publ
36、ished also at the rise of American naturalism, which means a particular genre of fiction that developed in the late 19th century America, and associated principally with writers such as Jack London , Stephen Crane, Frank Norris and Theodore Dreise.At the end of nineteenth century came a generation o
37、f writers whose ideas of the working of the universe and whose perception of the societys disorder led them to naturalism. A new and harsher realism, naturalism was introduced to the United States, literary naturalists spoke out against the ideas that literature should present what Howells called fo
38、r the smiling aspects of life. Instead, they attempted to achieve extreme objectivity and frankness presenting characters of low social and economic classes who were dominated by their environment or heredity in depicting the extremes of life. American naturalists emphasized that world was amoral th
39、at men and women had no free will, that their lives were controlled by heredity and the environment, that religious truths were illusory, and that the destiny of humanity was misery in life and ablivion in death.1. 3 Industrial RevolutionIndustrial Revolution brought American people a value crisis.
40、The 19th century was the time of industrialization. Serial changes made people feel they were conquering the world and obtaining their treasures. The surprising development made people feel too close to wealth and happiness. Then appeared small amounts of 8industrial giants and large number of poor
41、people, American value materialistic to the core. Living in such a society with such a value system, the human individual is obsessed with a never end, yet meaningless search for satisfaction of his desire. 2. The typical characteristics of naturalism in Sister Carrie In Sister Carrie I find out tha
42、t some of its themes differ from those of other naturalistic works. 2.1 The desire, instinct and the ifluence of environments Freuds theory gives theoretic basis to Dreisers description of mans desire. Freud considers mans natural instinct as determination. To him man is a part of nature since man i
43、s a member of animals. Human mentality and action will forever be determined by instinct. Desire is just a genetic instinct in his opinion.This thesis covers Dreisers meaningful ideas-desire. Mans behavior is dominated by instincts (desires, needs and fear) and environments (cities and consumerism)
44、and chances. In the process of evolution, man is not able to control instincts completely. Desire is considered hereditary and instinctive. In this novel most of the central characters are hurried by a desire of personal affirmation, a desire they can neither articulate nor suppress. And Carrie Meeb
45、er is the representative. She sufferd from a need that her lives assume the dignity of dramatic form, and they suffer terribly, because they do not really understand it.Her view to money is “Money, something everybody else has and I must get.” (Theodore Dreiser, 1979, P77) Drouet then becomes her fi
46、rst ladder. When Drouet give her money for the first time, she hesitates. She knows clearly that no deep, sinister soul with ulterior motives could have given her fifteen cents under friendship, since “nature has taught the beasts of the beats of the field to fly when some unheralded dangers threate
47、ns” (Theodore Dreiser, 1979, P79) Here in her superego, she has a feeble instinct of self-production. However, deep in her mind, there is a strong desire for better clothes, jewelry, dinning in halls and plays in the theaters. Then preconscious becomes weak. Id gets upper hand. At last, id implies t
48、he superego and Carrie chooses to live with Drouet. 9 When she knows that Drouets love is unsteady, the appearance of Hurstwood stimulates her new hope and desire. It is the new hope and desire that compels her actions. “his kind of unfulfilled dreams would beckon and lead her until death and dissol
49、ution dissolve their power and would restore her blind to natures heart” (Theodore Dreiser, 1979, P353) When Hurstwood can supply the life she dreams of, she stays with him, if not, she leaves. With the degradation of Hurstwood, Carrie would not endure losing her dreams. When she meets Mrs Vance, Ca
50、rrie longs for the dainty decorated, beautiful clothes and genteel manners. “What a wonderful thing it was to be rich” (Theodore Dreiser, 1979, P385) is the powerful voice of her heart. Without money,she leaves again.From the beginning to the end, Carrie is just like a machine controlled by the desi
51、res . 2.2 The influence of the environmentEnvironment is a tremendous thing often leads people to a wrong direction.Drouet tells Carrie that Chicago is a wonder, and that she will find lots to see. Even her siste tells her, “Youll want to see the city.” 1She comes there. She comes to the big web of
52、Chicago in order to pursue a happy life. The prosperous parties, lights, dinners, theatres attract her.she chooses Drouet.As soon as she sees Hurstwood, she evaluates his worthhis wealth, position and sexuality-by his “rich” plaid vest, mother of pearl buttons and soft black shoes “polished only to
53、a dull shine.” When she meets Mrs Vance, Carrie longs for the dainty decorated, beautiful clothes and genteel manners. “What a wonderful thing it was to be rich” (Theodore Dreiser, 1979, P385) is the powerful voice from the bottom of her heart. She inters another pursuition.3. Dreisers exploration-h
54、uman desire and revelation of the dark side of human natureFrom the first novel Sister Carrie on, Dreiser set himself to project the American values for what he had found them to be -materialistic to the core. Living in such a society with such a value system, the human individual is obsessed with a
55、 never- 10ending, yet meaningless search for satisfaction of his desires. One of the desires is for money which was a motivating purpose of life in the United States in the late l9th century. For example, in Sister Carrie, there is not one character whose status is not determined economically. Sex i
56、s another human desire that Dreiser explored to considerab1e lengths in his novels to reveal the dark side of human nature. In Sister Carrie, Carrie climbs up the social ladder by means of her sexual appeal. Also in the “Trilogy of Desire,”the possession of sexual beauty symbolizes the acquisition o
57、f some social status of great magnitude. However, Dreiser never forgot to imply that these human desires in 1ife could hardly be defined. They are there like a powerful magnetism governing human existence and reducing human beings to nothing. So like all naturalists he was restrained from finding a
58、solution to the social problems that appeared in his novels and accordingly almost all his works have tragic endings.ConclusionThis short thesis can not cover Dreisers meaningful naturalism. His greatness is in his insight, his sympathy, and his tragic view of life. Dreiser explorated human desire a
59、nd revelation of the dark side of human natureReferences:1Bantam. Sister Carrie M. New York: Bantam Classics , 1992. p.61.2 Williams, M & L. B. Burden. Psychology for Language Teachers M. Beijing: Foreign language Teaching and Research Press/Cambridge University Press, 2000. 3 Theodore Dreiser . Sister Carrie M. Bei Jing : Foreign Language Teaching and Studing Press 1981 : 136.1 蔣道超. 德萊塞研究M . 上海: 上海外語教育出版社, 2002 : 125 .
Dreiser’s Naturalism in Sister Carrie論在嘉莉妹妹中德萊賽的自然主義
