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1、Dreisers Naturalism in Sister Carrie ContentsINTRODUCTION11. THE HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL BACKGROUND FOR SISTER CARRIE21.1 Darwinism and Determinism21.2 American naturalism22. THE TYPICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF NATURALISM IN SISTER CARRIE22.1 The relationship among reason, free will and instinct22.2 The
2、influence of the environment33. DREISERS NATURALISTIC ATTITUDE OF TRUTHFUL REFLECTION OF LIFE33.1 Dreisers “Sister”一Carrie33.2 Hurstwoods decline一Dreisers fear of failure3CONCLUSION3NOTES4BIBLIOGRAPHY5Dreisers Naturalism in Sister Carrie Abstract：Theodore Dreiser is regarded as an outstanding repres
3、entative 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. American Naturalism and Consu
4、merism. 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, but Dreiser attributes Car
5、rie 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 论在嘉莉妹妹中德莱赛的自然主义摘要：美国作家西奥多德莱塞被认为美国自然主义的杰出代表，本文以其第一部小说嘉莉妹妹为例分析德莱塞自然主义的一些特征。论文从德莱塞
6、创作嘉莉妹妹的历史文化背景出发，研究德莱塞在嘉莉妹妹中表现出来的自然主义思想。论文涉及该小说的主要三大背景：一是达尔文主义和宿命论；二是美国然主义；三是19世纪末在美国兴起的消费主义。同时分析自然主义的三大特点：欲望,本能和环境,最后得出结论：嘉莉妹妹一文中主人公嘉莉妹妹的最终命运与德莱塞本人的命运息息相关，赫思渥德的最终堕落也是德莱塞惧怕失败的结果。而德莱塞却把嘉莉妹妹和赫思特渥德最终得不到幸福归因于“人心 Introduction Theodore Dreiser is one of the most influential American writers of critical rea
7、lism, 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 forbidden book. But now the book becomes one of the
8、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 Darwinism and Determinism are the common features o
9、f 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 clears the way for the development of American
10、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 author himself to the text in 1960s. From 198
11、0s, 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. In china , some Chinese critics have also sh
12、own 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 employed in this thesis. The author of this t
13、hesis 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 investigated in his historical and cultural background.
14、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 American life in the late nineteenth century.
15、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, survival and desire-derive directly from the evol
16、utionary 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 developed in the late 19th century America, and as
17、sociated 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 naturalistic works 2.1 The relationship among reason, f
18、ree 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 submits to humans instinct 2.2 The influence of t
19、he 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 the city.” 1 3. Dreisers naturalistic attitude
20、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 unappreciated, often hated, has cleared the trail from Vi
21、ctorian and Howell Sian timidity and gentility in American fiction to honesty and boldness and passion of life.2” 3.1 Dreisers “Sister”一CarrieEmma Dreiser, the prettiest of the five Dreiser sisters, was eight years older than Theodore Dreiser. As a young girl in the small town of Sullivan, Indiana,
22、she and her other sisters were deeply interested in boys . 3.2 Hurstwoods decline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, the best section of Chicago ConclusionThis short thes
23、is can not cover Dreisers meaningful naturalism. His greatness is in his insight, his sympathy, and his tragic view of lifeNotes 1Bantam. Sister Carrie M. New York: Bantam Classics , 1992. p.61.2 Ibid., p.51.Bibliography 1 Bartlett, L. Teacher Development Through Reflective Teaching A. in Richards &
24、 Nunan (eds.). Second Language Teacher Education C. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press/Cambridge University Press, 2000.26-29.2 He Gang. The Brief Analysis of Jane Eyre. http:/www.pragmatics China. Com/grammaticalization.htm, 2003-05-12.3 Williams, M & L. B. Burden. Psychology for
25、 Language Teachers M. Beijing: Foreign language Teaching and Research Press/Cambridge University Press, 2000. 4 肖晨.英语语言、文学工具书及其使用M.北京：学苑出版社，1990.34-42.Naturalism in Sister CarrieAbstract: Theodore Dreiser ,the writer of Sister Carrie ,is one of the most outstanding representatives of American natura
26、lism. 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 Naturalism and Industrial Revolution .And the thesi
27、s 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 natureNaturalism of Dreiser in Sister CarrieIntroductionTheodor Dreiser (1871-1945)，an Amer
28、ican 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 in 1990 revealed the financial disparity and the moral
29、 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 as a naturalist Dreiser expresses the characteristics
30、 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 beautiful aspects of life,. It is not an exaggeration
31、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 Sister CarrieTheodore Dreisers Sister Carrie reflect
32、s 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 because of its moral. However, at this time evolutionist
33、 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 de
34、termined 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 desire. Freud considers mans natural instinct as determin
35、ation. 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 published also at the rise of American naturalism, which m
36、eans 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 of writers whose ideas of the working of the universe a
37、nd 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 for the smiling aspects of life. Instead, they attempted
38、 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 we
39、re 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. The 19th century was the time of industrialization. Se
40、rial 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. Livin
41、g 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 that some of its themes differ from those of other natural
42、istic 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 is a member of animals. Human mentality and action will
43、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) and chances. In the process of evolution, man is not ab
44、le 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 Meeber is the representative. She sufferd from a need that
45、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 first ladder. When Drouet give her money for the first ti
46、me, 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 threatens” (Theodore Dreiser, 1979, P79) Here in her superego,
47、 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 the superego and Carrie chooses to live with Drouet. Whe
48、n 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 dissolution dissolve their power and would restore her blind to natures heart” (Theodore Dreiser, 1979, P353) When Hurstwood can supply the life she dreams of,
