《名利場》中兩位女主人公的對比分析

1、名利場比分析中兩位女主人公的對AComparativeAnalysisoftheTwoHeroinesinVanityFair名利場中兩位女主人公的對比分析AbstractVanityFairisafamousnovelandmasterpiecewrittenbyWilliamMakepeaceThackeray,anditisafamousworkofcriticalrealism.Inthenovel,ThackerayhascreatedtwofemaleimagesBeckyandAmelia,whoarefreshandplump.Theyrespectivelystandsfor

2、twotypesoffemaleimages:oneisthe“badwomanimage”representedbyBeckywhobreaksthetraditionones;andtheotheristhetypicaltraditional“familyangelimagerepresentedbyAmelia.HoweverboththebadwomanandangelhavethedualnaturesinThackeray'seyes.Inthispaper,itmakesacomparativeanalysisofthetwofemaleimagesshapedbyTh

3、ackerayinVanityFair,todiscussthesimilaritiesanddifferencesbehveentwofemalesimages'characters,values,anddestiny,andprobeintothedeepreasonsforsuchdifferences.Throughthisnovel,the19thcenturyEnglishsocietycanbeseenatalllevelsandhowdifferentpeoplesurviveinthecruelsociety.Researchingthistopichasimport

4、antsignificanceinunderstandingandbecomingfamiliarwiththesocietyandcultureofthe19thcenturyBritishcapitalism.Keywords:characters;Becky;Amelia中文摘要名利場是19世紀(jì)英國著名小說家威廉梅克比斯薩克雷的成名作也是其代表作，是一部著名的批判現(xiàn)實主義作品。小說中塑造了兩位女主角蒂基和愛米麗亞，形象鮮活豐滿，栩栩如生。她們分別代表了兩種女性形象：一種是?；淼拇蚱苽鹘y(tǒng)女性形象的“壞女人”：一種是愛米莉亞所代表的典型傳統(tǒng)家庭天使形象。然而，不管是壞女人還是天使，在薩

5、克雷的眼中都是有其兩重性的。本文就薩克雷在名利場中所塑造的兩位女性形象進(jìn)行對比分析，分析二人性格、價值觀及命運的異同，并探討導(dǎo)致這種差異的深層原因。透過這篇小說，我們可以看到19世紀(jì)英國上流社會的各個層面，以及不同的人怎樣在社會中謀得他們的一席之地。研究此課題對了解和熟悉19世紀(jì)英國資本主義社會文化具有重要的意義。關(guān)鍵詞：性格；存基；愛米麗亞Outline1. Introduction2. ComparisonofBeckyandAmeliainVanityFair2.1 DifferentCharacters2.1.1 Becky-一BreakingtheTraditionalImageof

6、Women2.1.2 Amelia-ATopicalTraditionalFemaleImage2.2 DifferentAttitudetowardLoveandMarriage2.2.1 Becky-AToolLeadingHertotheUpperSociety2.2.2 Amelia-DevotedHerselftoLove2.2DifferentFates2.2.1 Becky'sDestiny2.2.2 Amelia'sFates3. ReasonsforTheirDifferentFates3.1 LivingEnvironment3.2 SocialSituat

7、ioninVictorianEra3.3 TraditionalFemaleMorality4. Conclusion91. IntroductionVanityFairisamasterpieceoftheBritishnovelistThackeray.Itmainlydepictstheencountersanddestiniesoftwobeautifulgirls-BeckyandAmeliawholiveintheBritishupperclassintheearlytimeofthe19thcentury.Beckyisatypicaladventuressinthecapita

8、listsociety.Theinfluencesanddiscriminationsoftheunderworldcauseherpersonalitiestobecomedistorted.Inordertomakealiving,shedoesn'tgiveupanyopportunitiesandtriestoreachherpurposethroughmarriages.Shelikestoshowherfaceinpublic.Infact,thelifepursuedbyherisfilledwithfameandwealthaswellastheendlessdesir

9、es.Sheisevil,butsuccessful.Sheisanoutcomeofthedualfunctionoftheeraandsociety.Onthecontrary,Ameliaisaprettyandsimplewomanwithgoodcharactersandpurelove.Shecomesfromarichmerchantfamily,lookingforwardtotheidealloveandtryingtoweaveherownlifewithlove.Sheispoor;buthappy.Beingdeeplyattractedbythesetwoheroin

10、es9distinctpersonalitiesanddifferentfates,theauthortriestoexploretheimpliedsocialreasonsfortheirdifferentencountersandviewsofloveandmarriage.ThroughanalyzingBeckyandAmelia'sdifferentcharacters,viewsonloveandmarriageaswellasfatesinthisnovel,thispaperaimsatsummarizingthecoremoralconceptsoftheVicto

11、rianwomenandexploringtheimpliedsocialreasons.Hopethispapercannotonlybeasupplementtothepreviousstudies,butalsohelpthereadersbetteriinderstandthedeepconnotationsofthisnovel.2. ComparisonofBeckyandAmeliainVanityFairBritainatthattimeisnothingshortofVanityFair.Therefore,tosurviveinsuchacruelsociety,onemu

12、sthavecertainlifeskills,especiallypeopleborninpoorfamilies.SodoBeckyandAmelia.Inthispart,thecharacters,attitudetoloveandmarriage,aswellastheirfateswillbecompared.2.1 DifferentCharactersIntheVanityFair,thetwoheroines,BeckyandAmelia,appearfullblown,especiallyBeckywhoisoneofthemostsuccessfulandtypicalc

13、haractersinnovels.Inthefollowingpart,theirdifferentcharacterswillbediscussed.2.1.1 Becky一BreakingtheTraditionalImageofWomenBeingdoughtytopursue:IntheVitoriatimes,socialcultureandeconomicstatusdeterminethestatusofwomen.InVictorianBritain,omenhavenoopportunitytogetknowledgethrougheducationorwork;theya

14、reonlytoldtowhatkindoftheirbehaviorsareinconformitytonorms,whichboundthefemale'scharacters(Hagan,1975:479).Rebeccaisapoororphan,butshewantstowintherespect,andobtainstheeconomicstatusandsocialstatus.Herindependentpersonalityisinconflictwithherstatusconferredbythesociety.Herdesireofrespectderivesf

15、romherchildhoodexperience.Herfatherwouldbeathiswifeanddaughterwhendrunk,andcomplainedthesociety'sinjustice.Herfather'spunishmentintensifiedherangeiandherchildhoodexperiencemadeherrealizeshewaslivingininacageofpatriarchalsociety.Shewantstohaveadifferentchildhoodlife,butthesocietyimposedrestri

16、ctionsoffemalesonhenTherefore,inthatsociety,tolivewithyourowngoalsanddesiresisagreatchallengeforher.IntheVictoriantimes,onlywomenintheupperclasshavetheopportunitytoaccepttheeducationaboutmanners;foragirllikeRebeccasuchagirlfromthebottomofthesociety,lifeismorebound.Rebecca'ssocialstatuscondemnshe

17、rtorelyonherownbutnootherway.Shewillneveraccepttherestrictionsofgenderandstatusimposedformthesociety,andshehasherownplansandtriestorealizeheraspirationsbyherself.ResistingSpirits:Afterhisfatherdied,Rebeccaisallowedtostayinschool,buthastoteachothergirlsFrench.Rebeccaisangeredbyotherstudents9discriini

18、nation,andshebeginstodesireforprestigeextremely.Theschoollifemakeshermoreawarenooneelsecanrelyonbutherself,soshebeginstoplanforherownfuture.Shecannotbearother'sdiscriminationanymore,soshedeterminestoentertheuppersociety.However,beforegraduation,shefindsthechallengetothetraditionalconceptswillonl

19、yhurtherself,soshegetsherownangerandambitionhidden,andpretendstosurrender.ShehaslearnedfromAmeliathatbeingsubmissiveandnaivewillbemorepopulartopeople.AndthehugedifferencesinMissPinkertontreatingonAmeliaandher,makessherealizethatshehastohidehernaturalinstincts,buttoshowelegantandpolitemanners.Innater

20、ebelliondoomsherwon'tchangeherbehaviortoachievethesocialexpectationsofwomen.(Hainmond92002:26)Shesocializescarefullywithpeoplearoundher,andthenlaughsatthembehindeLordSteyne'shumiliationletshergetthesenseofsatisfaction,becausehisnoblestatussymbolizesforthecagesetbyherchildhoodsocialsystem.Wit

21、andCapability:InVictorianpatriarchytraditionalsociety,womencannotleavethemanalone,butthemenonlythinksthemselves.Rebeccahastransformswoman'sinferiorrolethroughherintelligentmanipulationordeceivemenaroundher.Asagoverness,shebreaktherulesrestrictedbythesocietyforwomenthroughbecomingindispensablefig

22、ures.Inthemaster'shome,althoughsheisonlyafamilyteacher,butshefindsherselfactuallydominatingthefamilybusinesstoagreatextent.Rebecca'swordsanddeedsunderthecoverofInnocenceareverypersuasive.ShecontrolsothersthroughherwordsandactionstomakethembelievesheawomanlikeAmelia:obedient,andchildlikeinnoc

23、ent.2.1.2 Amelia-ATopicalTraditionalFemaleImageAmeliacomplieswiththerequirementsofbeing“anangelinthehouse9(Hammond,1992:663)Shenotonlyactsasaqualifiedmother,butalsoactsasadocilewifeandafilialdaughter.Thesocialgenderisnotonlydeterminedbythephysiologicalsex,butalsoconstructedbythesociety.Throughoutthe

24、Victorianera,formostofthemiddle-classwomen,theirlifeisshapedbyboththeirfamilyrolesandtheideaofwhatfeminizationis.Andtheirsenseofself-conceptisdeterminedbytheirsocialstatusandeconomicconditions.Femalesaredescribedascaring,simpleandignorantgroups.AccordingtotheVictoriansociety,theidealwifeshouldbeloya

25、l,obedient,passive,self-denyingandandpureandsoon.Ameliaissucharepresentative.ShedesirestobeanVictorianangel"whichisconsistentwiththerequirementsofthetimes.However,thesocietydoesn'tsupporthersenseofself-conceptandlimitsallherindependentawareness.Beauvoirhaseversaidthatwhenfemalesrelyonmalest

26、omakealivingandenjoysuchakindoflifestyle,theyarewillingtobeothers.(Zeng,2006:149)AndthisisaveryexactdescriptionforAmelia.DuringthesixyearsofstudyinginPinkertongirls'school,Ameliahasbeenalsopraisedandlovedbypeoplearoundher.Whenshefinishesherstudies,theheadmasterMissPinkertonsaysthat:Ameliapossess

27、estheuniquepersonalitiesthataqualifledBritishwomanshouldhave.Shestudieshardandhasmoderatetemperament9winningthepraiseofteachersandclassmates.Thus,everyoneintheschool,youngandold,lovesher."AmeliaregardsBeckyashermostintimatefriencLOnce,afterBecky'sstayingatherhomeforaweek,shestillwantshertos

28、tayatthereforanotherweek,whichsoundsextremelyincredible.ThesentimentalAmeliaInherentlytendstodependonpeoplearoundher,makingherbeinasubordinatepositioninthepatriarchalsociety,butshedoesn'tmindatalLShetakesloveandmarriageasalifelongcareer.Sheistheembodimentofangelsandhercowardandgentlepersonalitie

29、sareinaccordancewiththesocialnormsofthattime.However,sheisnotperfect.Shealsohasthefoolishandselfishside,withnothought,noinsight,notalentandnofun.SheisavulgaridealistandcanberegardedastherepresentativeofUtopians.Ameliahereisnolongersynonymouswithpurityandgoodness.Instead,sheisthebestreflectionofstupi

30、dityandselflshness.Intheend,whenBeckyshowsherGeorge'sbetrayaltoher,shedecidestothrowherselfonWilliamDobbin,soastofindanewpersontodependon.BothAmelia'sunnaturalself-sacrificeandherdistortedpurityaretheproductsofthepatriarchalsociety.2.2 DifferentAttitudetowardLoveandMarriageIntheVanityFair,be

31、causeoftheirdifferentpersonalitiesanddifferentbackgrounds9theattitudestoloveandmarriageheldbyBeckyandAmeliaarecompletelydifferent.2.2.1 BeckyAToolLeadingHertotheUpperSocietyAsapoorpainter'sdaughter,BeckyIswillingtotryallmeanstoenterintotheupperclassandfinallyshesuccessfullybecomesonememberofitfr

32、omhavingnothingatallwiththegoodappearance.DifferentfromAmelia9Beckyregardsallthepeopleashersteppingstonestotheupperclass.Andtoher,tolookforarichhusbandisthetruefocusoflife.Atfirst,sheseducesAmelia'sbrother-Joseph,arichtaxman.Justtomakeherselfbecomerich.Latei;shegetsmarriedwithayoungofficer-Rawdy

33、whoislikelytoinheritahugefortune.Soonafterthemarriage,Rawdy'smotherdies,herfather-in-lawaskshertomarryhim.Thenshefeelsveryregretful,sincethedreamofbeingabaronessseemssonear,butmeanwhilesofarawayfromher.Evenlater,underherunremittingefforts,sheunexpectedlyknowsabiggerman-theLordSteyne.Withhishelp,

34、shenaturallystepsintotheuppersocietyandmeetstheKingluckily.Whensheisverycomplacent,herhusbandfindsherillicitrelationsandbecomesangrywithher.HerscandalsareimmediatelymadepublicandLordSteyneabandonsheratonce.Herdreamsoflivingintheupperclassgraduallybedashed.However,shedoesn'tchangehernatureatallan

35、dstilltriestoenterintotheupperclasswithhertricks.Herpurposeisverysimple,namelyrealizingherdreamsthroughmenandgettingtherecognitionoftheworld.However,shecannotrealizethesedreamsonlybyherownstrength,whichisasadnessofawoman.SimonedeBeauvoirhassaidthatinTheSecondSex:"Insteadofsayingthatwomenareinbo

36、rn,itwouldbebettertosaytheyareshaped.Thereisnophysical,psychologicaloreconomicfactorwhichcandeterminewomeiVsstatusinsociety,butthehumancultureasawholecreatethisintermediatecalled'women'betweenmenandasexualroles.M(citedin,Chen,2010:154)Beckyhaseversaidthat“IthinkifIhavefivethousandpoundsayear

37、,Iwillalsodoarespectablewoman產(chǎn)(Thackeray,2010:173)InThackeray'sdescription,Beckv'sactionsareforcedbvherlivingenvironments.Ifsheisborninarichandnoblefamily,thereisnonecessityforhertoconquerthehypocriticalmenoneafteranothertogetwealthandstatus.2.2.2 Amelia-DevotedHerselftoLoveInherently,thesen

38、timentalAmeliawouldliketodependonpeoplearoundher,makingherbeinasubordinatepositioninthepatriarchalsociety,butshedoesn'tmindatall.Shetakesloveandmarriageasalifelongcareer.Shecanberegardedastheembodimentofangelsandsheisafaithful“martyr”ofthepatriarchalsociety-(Yu,2010:127)Amelia'sloveandblindw

39、orshipforGeorgemakeherignoreherownfeelings.Herhelplessnessandlowlinessinemotionsisprimarilycausedbythesocialcustomswhichclassifyfemalesintothepassiveandsubservientgroup.Thus,femalesinthelifelosetheirself-esteemandandbecomepowerless.Insuchasociety,manybehaviorsoffemalesarestartedfromthepointoflove,le

40、adingthemtohavenorightineconomy,bedependentinpsychologyandbehumbleinemotion.Amelia'semotionalfantasyofmales'virtuesandfemales'responsibilitiesmakeherbeinaimmaturestateofpsychology.ShetrieshardtobelievethatGeorgeisloyalandnoble.HerloyaltytoGeorgeisbasedonherbenevolenceandtrust,whichisalso

41、herweakness,sincesheislackofcourageandstrengthtoadmitGeorge'struecolorsandsheisawaysinsistingherbeliefsofbeingagoodwife.However,Thackerayhasn'tshapedherasaperfectimage.Shedoesn'tpossessherownthoughts,insights,talentsandfuns.Tosomeextent,sheisonlyavulgaridealist.Shedoesn'tdecidetothro

42、wherselfonWilliamDobbinuntilBeckyshowsheranoteinwhichGeorgesaysheasksBeckytoelopewithhim.soastofindanewpersontodependon.Infact,Amelia'sdistortedpurityistheoutcomeofthepatriarchalsocietyandit'salsothelawsthatimposedbymales.ThackerayhaseverevaluatedAmeliawithsuchwords:"WhatapersonIwanttos

43、hapeisJustlikeAmeliawholivesinaworldwithoutgod.Theonlyadvantageofheristheendlessloveinherheartandthusshecanbesaved.”(CitedIn,Lindner,2002:564)WhendepictingAmelia,heshowshissympathyforher.However,whatheshowsmoreishisdisagreementwiththe“angelinthehouse”intheVictorianage.2.3 DifferentFatesInVanityFair,

44、BeckyandAmelia'sdifferentfatescanbesaidastherepresentativesofthevirtuousfemalesandrebelliousfemales'sencounters.2.3.1 Becky5sDestinyBeckySharpcomesfromthebottomlayeroftheBritishsocietyandherparentshavebeendeadbeforeshebecomesunderage,soshehastofinishherstudiesbyworkingparttime.Afterleavingth

45、eschool,shestartsherownJourneytostrugglewiththereality.Asaveryordinaryfamilyteacheratthebeginning,throughholdingeverymanshemeets,shecreatesopportunitiesoneafteranotherforherselftoenterintotheuppersocietyandchangethedestiny.Afterexperiencingrepeatedsetbacksandfailures,Beckyfinallybecomesasocialbutter

46、flyattractingnumerousmales5attentionintheBritishupperclass.Attheendofthenovel,BeckycarriesoutadeceptiveacttoJosephagain.Afterwinninghisfavor,shebeginstosqueezethisstupidtaxman,makinghimdiewithillnessfinally.Nomatterhowhardshetries,shegetsnofame,status,moneyandlove.SheisJusttheonewhoisspurnedbytheupp

47、erclass.Becky'sentirelifeisfilledwithupsanddowns.Thedesiresinherheartarealwaysincomparablyattractivebutunreachable.Thus,suchdesiresaredestinedtobesuppressedandtheyarealsothemainfactorsresultinginhertragicending.ThingsareimpermanentandThackerayhasgivenoutsuchafeelingformanytimes.(Citedin,Lindner,

48、2002:564)However,allthehelplessnessandsighscannotproveanything.Thetemptationofthefameandfortunemakespeoplepursuethematallcosts,evenbyhurtingtheirlovedonesandfriends,eventuallymakingthemselvesfallintotheabyss.2.3.2 Amelia'sFatesFacedwiththesufferingsandmisfortunesoflife,Ameliaislackoffightingspir

49、itandcourage.Sheistooweakandtoosubmissive.AfterOsborne'sdeathinthewar,hersonbecomeshernewhopeoflife,shecannottrustanyoneathometotakecareofhim.Later,duetoherparents'becomingpoor,therearenoothereconomicsourcesforhertosupportherson.Thus,shesendshersontohisgrandfatherhome.However,lifeisimpermane

50、nt.Thetwoheroines'fatesinthisnovelchangeagainintheirmiddleage.Amelia'sgoodnesseventuallymakeshergetstatus,moneyandloveagainwhileBecky'sclevernessletherreturntothestartingpointoflife-一livinginpoverty.TotoleratetheEmilyofsacrificeforothers,finallynosweetwithoutsweat,status,moneyandlove.Tha

51、ckeray'ssuchanarrangementofthetwoheroines9fatesundoubtedlyimpliesagreatirony.Inthiskindofvanityfair,allthesplendorwillbewashedandpeople,onegenerationafteranother;willbeeliminated.However,therewillbestillalotofaspirantswhodon'tgiveupandwantashare.Itseeinsthatsuchalifeisjustwhattheyseek.Thacke

52、raycatchesthemysteriesofthevanityfairandshowsthemoutwithaspecialway,makingpeopleknowthesethetragicanddeplorableroles.3. ReasonsforTheirDifferentFatesThemajorreasonsfortheirdifferentcharactersliesintheirdifferentgrowingenvironment,aswellasthethesocialsituationandthetraditionalfemalemoralityinVictoria

53、nera.3.1 LivingEnvironmentVanityFairisstartedfromBeckySharpandAmeliaSedley'sgraduation.Whentheygraduatefromthegirls'school,Ameliagetboththeheadmasterpraiseandherclassmates'send-offwhileBeckyiscompletelyignored,sincetheirhavegreatdifferencesinsocialstatus.Ameliagrowsupinarichandsuperioren

54、vironment.Sheiswelcomedbyeveryonearoundher,combinedwithhermother'scare,sheisshapedwithdocileandvirtuouspersonalitiesMeanwhile,sheisalsoendowedwithaninnocentmindandselflessemotion.Thus,shebecomesthemodelofpossessing“womanliness”inthepatriarchalsociety.ComparedwithAmelia,Becky'slifeiscompletel

55、ydifferent.SheloseshermotherinherearlychildhoodwhileherfatherisJustanalcoholicpoorpainteranddieswithoutleavinganyassetstoBeckywhensheis17yearsold.HeJustentrustsBeckytoMissPinkerton.Beckyisapart-timestudentintheschool,sosheishelplessandsuffersalotofdiscrimination.Thehypocrisyofhumanitycombinedwiththe

56、povertyoflifemakesBeckydeeplyrealizestheimportanceofmoneyandpowerinthiscompetitiveandhypocriticalsociety.Inordertoenterintotheupperclass,shedoesirtmissanyopportunities.Influencedbydifferentgrowthenvironments,theirpersonalitiesarealsoquitedifferent:Ameliaisgentle,weakandkind-hearted;Beckyisbold,vixen

57、ishandaggressive.ThetwoimagesareJusttheepitomeoftheBritishsocietyatthattime.Thesharpdisparitybetweentherichandthepoormakestheirlivesbefullofsetbacksonthewaytopursuingtheirownhappiness.Ifyoureallyunderstandtheconnotationofhappiness,whentheycangettheirownneeds.3.2 SocialSituationinVictorianErauTheclas

58、sicalnovelVanityFairmainlydescribesthesociallifeofBritainintheearlytimeofthe19thcentury.Atthattime,thereisasharpdisparitybetweentherichandthepoor.Theemergingbourgeoisieconstantlyaccumulatesocialcapitalismandgraduallyenterintothearistocraticcirclewiththepowerofmoney.Thoughfemalesatthistimehavebeenalr

59、eadyunsatisfiedwiththeirtraditionalpositioninthefamilyandstarttochallengethepatriarchalsociety,itstillcannotchangethemale-dominatedstatus/Wang,2007:93)Insuchasociety,femalescannotenjoyequaleconomicstatus,socialstatusandopportunitieswithmen.Theyhavetobedocileandvirtuous,accepttheirowndestiniesandobey

60、males5directions.Onlybedoingthis,cantheybepraisedforpossessingwomanlinessandgetsocialrecognition.AmongthenumerousimagescreatedbyThackeray,AmeliaandBeckyarejustthetwotypicalfemaleimageswhorespectivelyrepresentgoodandevil,nobilityandselfishness.Insuchamale-dominatedsociety,Becky'sdestinyappearmoretragic.Shewantstodependonmaleswhilesheattemptstofight