东华理工大学长江学院

本科生学年论文

Abstract

In American literature’ history, Theodore Dreiser , a famous American realism writer,whose first naturalism fiction Sister Carrie has great significance in American literature. To discuss Theodore Dreiser’s naturalism and environment-oriented theory , the thesis will analyze it from Darwinism, American naturalism and consumerism. In the meantime , the influence of naturalistic factors to characters and plots development will be further analyzed .In conclusion , the fate of Carrie Meeber in the book is closed with Dreiser’s in real life, Dreiser’s own experience lays the foundation for the creation of Sister Carrie.

Key words: naturalism; heredity; chance;environment

摘要

在美国文学的历史中，美国现实主义作家西奥多德莱赛的第一部自然主义小说《嘉莉妹妹》具有划时代的意义。为探讨西奥多德莱赛明确的自然主义观点和环境决定论，本文将从达尔文的进化论，美国自然主义,第一次工业革命及19世纪末兴起的消费主义来进行分析。同时分析自然主义因素对小说角色及情节构建的四大影响：人的遗传，本性的欲望，机遇以及环境。最后本文得出一个结论：书中嘉莉妹妹的命运与德莱赛在现实生活中的命运息息相关,德莱赛的自身经历为《嘉莉妹妹》的创作奠定了基础。

关键词：自然主义；遗传 ；机遇；环境

CONTENTS

Chapter 1 Introduction 1

Chapter 2 Introduction of the Historical and Cultural Backgrounds 4

2.1 Darwin's Evolutionism 4

2.2 American Naturalism 5

2.3 Industiral Revolution 23

Chapter 3 Self-construal Theory Embodied in Buck’s Growth 8

3.1 Individual Self Embodied in Buck’s Growth 8

3.1.1 Loss of Original Self and Germination of a New Self 8

3.1.2 Full Reflection of Individual Self 10

3.2 Relational Self Embodied in Buck’s Growth 13

3.2.1 Germination of Relational Self 13

3.2.2 Full Reflection of Relational Self 15

3.3 Collective Self Embodied in Buck’s Growth 16

3.3.1 Germination of Collective Self 16

3.3.2 Full Reflection of Collective Self 18

Chapter 4 Implication of Buck’s Growth from Self-construal Theory 20

4.1 Buck’s Self-transcendence 20

Chapter 5 Conclusion 26

References 28

Analysis of Theodore Dreiser’s Naturalism in Sister Carrie

Chapter 1

Sister Carrie is a novel written by Theodore Dreiser who is a great writer in American literature for his naturalistic style . It was first printed in 1900 but publication was held up until 1912 because its realism and alleged immorality were judged likely to give offense.The book is talk about a young country girl who moves to the big city where she starts realizing her own American Dream by first becoming a mistress to men that she perceives as superior and later as a famous actress.This novel deeply influenced later 20th-century writers,it has been called the "greatest of all American urban novels."

The reason which leads to Carrie’s tragedy is her identity as a woman. Although the economy develops rapidly, Victorianism still controls people’s ideology. This society is men’s society,not women’s. Women have no social status. Women like Carrie who are considered to be depraved have to be extricate themselves by ending up their lives.

The naturalists expose what the “Genteel tradition” really is,and the state of the industrialization of American society. Women are nothing but weak in the indifferent society. Meanwhile people are unable to fight against the social pressures and personal limitations. As a result, women have to suffer the disappointment and live in despair.

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 Dreiser's Sister Carrie clears 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 writer's life experience. It provided us with lots of useful information about the writer.

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…

The author of this thesis reads the novel intensively so that evidences can be dug out to demonstrate Dreiser's naturalism. Another method, cultural criticism, is employed to research the complicated relation between Dreiser and the society he lived in. Dreiser is investigated in his historical and cultural background. The conclusion shows that Dreiser is not only a criticizer of capitalism, but also a builder of American cultural system.

Chapter 2 Introduction of historical and cultural background

This chapter will introduce historical and cultural background of Sister Carrie . It contains Darwin’s evolutionism American naturalism and industrial revolution.

2.1 Darwin’s evolutionism

In 1859, Darwin’s The Origin of Specie appeared. It soon changed man’s recognition. Before Darwin, human was separated from the animals because of its morality. 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 characters 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.

Freud’s theory gives theoretic basis to Dreiser’s description of man’s desire. Freud considers man’s 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.

2.2 American naturalism

Sister Carrie was written and published 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 Dreiser.

At the end of nineteenth century came a generation of writers whose ideas of the working of the universe and whose perception of the society's 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 for 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 that 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 oblivion in death.

2. 3 Industrial Revolution

Industrial Revolution brought American people a value crisis. 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 industrial giants and large number of poor 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.

Analysis of Theodore Dreiser