乱世佳人中对女性主义的阐释.docx

An Analysis of Gone with the Wind from the Perspective of FeminismA Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of HUFNIn Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for BA Degree in English Language and Literatureby Liu Shaocong Supervisor: Yu ZhiyingAcademic Title: ProfessorApril, 2014Acknowledgment I would like to express my gratitude to all those who helped me during the writing of this thesis. My deepest gratitude goes first and foremost to Professor Yu Zhiying, my supervisor, for his constant encouragement and guidance. He has walked me through all the stages of the writing of this thesis. Without his consistent and illuminating instruction, this thesis could not have reached its present form. Second, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all the professors in School of Foreign Languages. From whose teaching and enlightening lectures I have benefited a lot and academically prepared for the thesis . Last my thanks would go to my beloved family for their loving considerations and great confidence in me all through these years. I also owe my sincere gratitude to my friends and my fellow roommates who gave me their help and time in listening to me and helping me work out my problems during the difficult course of the thesis.摘要 美国现代女作家玛格丽特米歇尔毕生唯一的著作随风而逝于1937年获得普利策奖，而她本人也因此著作而文明于世界。随风而逝是一部非常受世界欢迎的小说，自出版以来,被翻译成三十多种语言并畅销于世界各地，书中包含有非常明显的女性主义特色，而本文就试图从女性主义的角度解读随风而逝。文章包含四个部分，第一部分介绍当时的社会背景、文化背景以及作者的生平。第二部分阐释了女性主义的定义。第三部分从三个方面分析主人公斯嘉丽 奥哈拉的性格，并从中阐释出她性格中所反映出来的女性主义主题。最后的为总结部分，总结前文观点并得出结论：随风而逝中对斯嘉丽人物性格的塑造，是对女性主义的极好诠释，她是那个时代追求女性自由，摒弃传统的先锋代表。她的对女性地位的认知、勇敢向世俗和偏见挑战的勇气以及追求独立自主的精神，即使是在女性主义思想已成为时尚的今天，也值得我们去学习和探究。 关键词：女性主义；随风而逝；斯嘉丽 Abstract Margaret Mitchell, who was an American woman writer, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1937 for her only novel Gone with the Wind. It was the only book she wrote in all her life, which made her a worldwide known writer. And the book had been translated into at least thirty languages and sold all over the world. It was a valuable novel containing distinct feminism features. This thesis tries to analyze the book from the perspective of feminism. It contains four parts. Part one briefly introduces the social and cultural background and Margaret Mitchells life experiences. Part two will present the definition of “feminism”. Part three analyzes the feminism of the novel through the protagonist Scarletts characters. The last part is the conclusion part. It summarizes the whole thesis and makes a conclusion that the character depiction of Scarlet in Gone With the Wind can be regarded as a good explanation on the initial stage of the feminism. And the protagonist Scarlett is the pioneer in that period who pursues freedom and rebels the tradition. Her awareness towards feminism, her courage to challenge the tradition and her spirit to pursue freedom are worth our learning even in modern times . Key words: feminism;Gone with the Wind;ScarlettTable of Contents1. Introduction12. 1.1.The social and cultural background.11.1.1. The Civil War in the U.S.A .1-21.1.2. Womens social status in that period.21.2. Margaret Mitchells life experiences.22. The theoretic foundation of the thesis  .22.1. The definition of the Feminism .22.2. The development of the Feminism.33. The Feminism in Gone With the Wind through Scarlett.33.1. The brief introduction about Scarletts life experience .33.1.1. Scarletts nature.33.1.2. Scarletts growth.3-43.1.3. Scarletts final maturity.43.2. Feminism reflected from Scarletts three attitudes .43.2.1. Scarletts attitude towards life.53.2.2. Scarletts attitude towards love .53.2.3.Scarletts attitude towards living conditions.5-64. Conclusion.6-75. Bibliography.81. Introduction Its widely accepted that Gone with the Wind was a popular novel and it is worth reading. Though many scholars doubt the literary value of Gone with the Wind, and some even treated the novel as a simple and superficial love story . However, more and more people devote to studying it from many perspectives because its of great significance today. Huang Jinwei(1999) has researched into the glamour, value and characteristics of the book. Ding Yun(1999) has made some research into Scarlets mental spirits, image and aesthetic value. In this thesis, I will analyze Scarletts feminism in Gone with the Wind, and its deep influence on the modern women. 1.1. The social and cultural background1.1.1. The Civil War in the U.S.AThe American Civil War happened from 1861 to 1865 between the federal government led by the president Abraham Lincoln and the Republic Party dominated by President Jefferson Davis, who was the representative of 11 Southern slavery states.In 1861, the Union got the control of the Border States and established a naval blockade as both sides raised large armies. In 1862, the large, bloody battle broke out. After the Battle of Antietam in September 1862, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation encouraged the slaves to seek freedom. In the East, Robert Edward Lee got a series of Confederate victories over the Army of the Potomac. In the West, the Union Navy occupied the port of New Orleans in 1862, and Ulysses S. Grant seized control of the Mississippi River by capturing Vicksburg, Mississippi in July 1863, thus splitting the Confederacy. In 1865, the Confederacy collapsed after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House and the slaves were freed. The full restoration of the Union was the work of a highly contentious postwar era, known as Reconstruction. The war resulted in more than 970,000 casualties (3% of the population), including approximately 620,000 soldiers deathmost of them died of diseases. The main result of this war was the end of slavery in the United States. Gone with the Wind is a novel to describe the American Civil War from the perspective of a southern female. In that period, women have been left behind to experience and suffer the pain of war.Some people yielded to the hardship of rebuilding their homes. But some of them werent afraid of difficulties, struggling for a better life. Scarlett, the representative of feminism, is a typical example.1.1.2. Womens social status in that period Before the Civil War, women had no access to the government positions and social jobs, and their social status was quite low. Women were treated as appendage to men, they all lived for man, and what they only had was the right to live. The way of their manner, speaking and behavior were regulated by a series of rules and conditions. With the burst of the Civil War, all the strong and young men were assigned to the battle, leaving the plantation as well as many job opportunities for women. The shortage of the men gave women chances to work in the government. Women had the chance to go out to help men to protect their home. Scarlett made full use of the opportunity to fight for herself and become a vanguard of feminism. 1.2. Margaret Mitchells life experiences Margaret Mitchell was born in Atlanta, Georgia, where she spent her entire life. She was the daughter of Eugene Mitchell, an attorney and president of Atlanta Historical Society. She dropped out of Smith College because of the death of her mother. She had to return home to manage the household work for her father and take care of her elder brother. An unsuccessful marriage to Berrien Upshaw in 1922 ended in divorce, and in 1925, she married John Robert Marsh. A year after their marriage, she was forced to quit her job because of an ankle injury. Under the encouragement of John, she began to write. Mitchell spent six months rechecking the historical facts of the novel. And she took pride of this novel after having finished it.In the 1830s, America was deeply influenced by the womens movement rising from France. Margaret Mitchell was one of the pioneers who fought for womens political rights and womens liberation. Her female consciousness was fully reflected in the heroin of Gone with the Wind. Scarlett was a mirror of Margaret Mitchell in the aspect of feminism. 2. The theoretic foundation of the thesis 2.1. The definition of feminism Feminism is the belief and aim that women should have the same right, power, and opportunities as men. As an embranchment of the western philosophy-individualism, feminism comes from the conflict between the patriarchy and the individual trend of the society. The beginning of feminism means the awakening of women.2.2 .The development of feminismIn western world, the feminism is divided into three stages: liberal feminism, radical feminism and post-structuralist feminism. The aim of the first-wave feminism was to strive for the right to vote. The purpose of the second-wave feminism was not only to gain the right to vote but also the rights in all the aspects of daily life. The representatives of the post-structuralist feminism tried to pursue their own particular right because different women from different countries had different problems.In a word, the definition and development of feminism provide theoretic support to analyze the feminism in Gone with the Wind.3. The feminism in Gone with the Wind through Scarlett3.1. The brief introduction about Scarlett3.1.1. Scarletts nature Scarlett was a young lady in Tara. At the beginning of this novel, Scarlett was just 16 years old. She was naive, charming and carefree. The only thing that Scarlett did was to dress up beautifully and seek for her ideal husband. She always believed that she was the center of the world and all men would fall in love with her. And she hoped that every man could pay attention to her, but she couldnt draw Ashleys attention no matter what she did. Because of her fathers love, Scarlett possessed many skills which were suitable for her, and she used to ride horses and climb trees. Scarlett disobeyed her mother Ellen and Mummy Jincys orders and words. She would do whatever she wanted to do, without thinking twice. She was not like common women at that time, we could say that was the signs of feminism.3.1.2. Scarletts growth With the outbreak of the Civil War, she went to Atlanta and stayed with her best friend Melanie, the wife of her lover. During that time, she became a widow, which made her have no pleasure time at all, but she still danced with Butler in the party. Things began to change because of the fall of Atlanta. Scarlett tried hard to go back to Tara for help. However, Melanie was going to give birth to Ashleys baby. She had to do what she had promised to Ashley. Without a doctors help, Scarlett delivered Melanies child herself. She did not leave Melanie and her baby alone. She kept her promise to Ashley. At last, Scarlett took Melanie, the baby and the servant back to Tara. This period of life gave Scarletts a feeling of sympathy and responsibility toward people. And from then on, she was no longer as selfish as before. And we can see a womans strong determination from her growth.3.1.3. Scarletts final maturity When she arrived home in Tara, Scarlett found that the houses were in ruin, the crops were burned and they were short of food, and what they only had was the radish on the yard. Most of the servants ran off, but what made her and her father crazy was that her mother Ellen was dead. All the things were in disorder. In other words, the Civil War threw her into a homeless and starved state. But as she swore to God: “If I have to lie, steal, cheat or kill, as God as my witness, Ill never be hungry again!”(阿巴斯基阿鲁斯塔米,1996) she would try her best to live, to protect her family from starvation. That could be the reason why she married her sisters boy friend. From then on, she worked hard to run her family, and she was no longer the former one. All the people who lived in Tara were shocked by her change. She was not like other women who hidden behind their men, and she would never been beaten down by difficulties but to face challenges bravely.3.2. Feminism reflected from Scarletts three attitudes 3.2.1. Scarletts attitude towards life Scarlett, the heroine in the book Gone with the Wind, makes a deep impression on people because of her strong and positive attitude. Before the war, she was the princess of Tara, and she was quite willful. In her opinion, “a ladys highest and the only task for her is to show her perfect character of being a woman(阿巴斯基阿鲁斯塔米,1996).” So her only thing was to dress up beautifully and look for an ideal man. There was no doubt that she lived a carefree and happy life. During the war, Scarlett suffered a lot, and she became a widow. She lived through the desperation. Finally she went back to her birthplace Tara and rebuilt her family. We could say that the pre-war time was sweet memories for Scarlett, the war period would be the catalyst of her growth, which stimulated her to be strong. After the war, she was no longer the one who was self-willed, but a real woman who was capable of living. She was just like a man, fighting for her life and career. She pursued the independence in economy and character, just as what todays women do. Whatever the society was like, she was still positive, just as what she said ,“Tomorrow is another day(阿巴斯基阿鲁斯塔米,1996).” No matter what she faced, she held an optimistic attitude toward life. Her attitude about life made her a distinctive woman in her time. And it was what the feminism advocated. 3.2.2. Scarletts attitude towards love Scarlett had three men in her life, and they were Charles, Kennedy and Rhett. It was not until the end of this story did we know that the true love of her was Rhett. At the beginning of the book, we can say that she loved Ashley so much that she even married Charles impulsively simply because Ashley rejected her love. She even moved to Atlanta to live with Ashleys wife in order to have contact with Ashley. And she expressed her passion to her beloved man Ashley bravely during the war and promised to take care of his wife and kid. Regardless of other peoples criticism, she loved Ashley in her own way. Not until the death of Ashley did she know that Rhett was the man who knew her and whom she loved deeply in heart. But that