英语论文.docx

英语论文.docx

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英语论文

1.Introduction

NadineGordimerisawhiteauthorwholivesinthecountryofSouthAfrica.Sheisknownforherexcellentcharactersandthevividdetailsofherbooks.HerstoriesarewritteninthecontextofherSouthAfricanexperiences.ShealsowritesaboutthepreviouschallengesSouthAfricametunderapartheid,atatimewhensocietywassplitbyrace.Shehaswrittenalargenumberofnovels,Gordimer’ssubjectmattershavebeentheeffectofapartheidonthelivesofSouthAfricansandthemoralandpsychologicaltensionsoflifeinaracially-dividedcountry,whichsheoftenwroteaboutbyfocusingonoppressednon-whitecharacters.GordimerexplainsmanyaspectsofthisprobleminSouthAfricawithherASoldier’sEmbrace.

ManywritersandcriticsinChinahavedonesomeresearchonGordimer.CriticsapplaudGordimer’sauthenticportrayalsofSouthAfricanexperience,andbelievethatherfictionhasgiventheworldanunderstandingofthehorribleracisminhercountry.HuZhongqingargued“[Gordimer]revealsfullysubconsciousnessinthedepthofblackpeople’sheartandoppressivemetamorphicdesire,whichmakesreaderdetectblackinstraitenedcircumstancesunderapartheidsystem”（Hu,2007:

177）.QuShijinghasdividedGordimer’swritingsintotwosectionsandmadetheconclusionthat“Gordimer’soutlookonartsisalsoherpoliticalperspectiveandoutlookonlife”（Qu,1998:

156-160）.CriticsabroadaremorethanthoseinChina.Gordimer’sorientationtowardanon-racialorhybridculturespecifictoSouthAfricaisoftenadmired.StephenClingmanisthemosttypicalrepresentativeinthisrespect.Inhisview,“Gordimerisfirmlypartofdevelopingnon-racialcultureinSouthAfrica”（Clingman,1993:

xxxiv）.And“atitsbroadestherstruggleasanovelistliesinprogressingtowardsanew,integratedSouthAfricancultureofthefuture”（Clingman,1993:

4）.Inmoreradicalviews,KathrinWagnercriticizesGordimerasdealingwith“theissueofpost-colonialreality”butremaining“inessenceenmeshedandentrappedinsomearchetypalcolonialistparadigmsinherdeepestpsyche”（Wagner,1994:

4）.Herrecurrentthemesarenottoreinforcebuttodeconstructthecategoriesoftheapartheiddichotomyandunmasktheideologyunderlyingit.

NadineGordimerbegantowriteatnine.Attheageofthirteen,Gordimer’sfirstshortstorywaspublishedintheLiberalJohannesburgMagazine,Forum.Fromthenon,herlifehasbeendevotedtoherwriting.Shehasneverbeenopposingsomethingintentionally;shewrotenovelsoutofcuriositytolife,expectingtoexplainwhatlifeandhumanityare.However,borninaracially-dividedcountry,thisiswhatshefeelsfamiliar.Whilemanyblackwriterswerebusyingengagingnationalliberalrevolution,andkeptsilentinliterature.Gordimerinsistedonthecombinationofpublicconcernsandliterarycreation.ShenevergivesupherdeepconcernforthefateofSouthAfrica.

Theracially-dividedsysteminSouthAfricawentagainstthepublicconcernthateveryoneisequal.Thesystemopenlydrewuplawandputitintoeffecttodeprivebasichumanrightsofblackpeople.Duringthetimeofbeingoppressed,theaboriginalsinSouthAfricawerecontinuouslypushedtoedge,andtobe“other’’,losingbasichumanrights.Tooverthrowtheunequaltreatment,blackfighterspersistedinfightingagainstwhiteforalongtime.Underthestrongforcefromdomesticandoverseas,finally,blacksucceededinregainingfreedom.

ASoldier’sEmbraceportrayedawhitecouplewhosympathizedandhelpedfreedomfighters,whentheycelebratedrevolutionarytriumph;itreflectedtherelationshipbetweenblackandthemselves,andtherelationshipbetweenrevolutionandthemselves.Thecouple’sexcitedandhappyemotionchangedintosadanddrearyofhavingtoreflectthemselves.Thecouple,forashortwhile,wasunabletotreatexactlyblackleadersaftertheyobtainedpower.Intheend,theyhadtoleavetheirtwentyone-year-oldhouse.ThroughoutASoldier’sEmbrace,Gordimerdevelopsthethemeofman’sinhumanitytomanthroughthepoliticalsysteminSouthAfrica.

Chapter2

Thoughfarfromadequate,thispartmakesasymptomaticreadingofpostcolonialismoutofASoldier’sEmbraceandthispartalsoemploysterminologyofpostcolonialtheoryforanalysis.Often,thetermpostcolonialismistakenliterally,tomeantheperiodoftimeaftercolonialism.Griffithsregardpostcolonialismitselfas“aspecificdiscoursewhichneverthelesshasneitheraspecificobjectnordefinablesetofnon-discursivefeatures;itis,atanygivenpoint,whatitsaysitis.”（Griffiths,1989:

154）. Inotherwords,itisimportanttoacceptthepluralnatureofthewordpostcolonialism,asitdoesnotsimplyrefertotheperiodafterthecolonialera.Bysomedefinitions,postcolonialismcanalsobeseenas“acontinuationofcolonialism,albeitthroughdifferentornewrelationshipsconcerningpowerandthecontrol/productionofknowledge”（Sharp,J.2008,230）.What,then,ispostcolonialtheory?

Theemergenceofpostcolonialtheorysincethelate1980ssignifiesthedissolutionofcertainlimitedpedagogicalobjectssuchasThirdWorldLiterature,ColonialDiscourse,NewLiteraturesinEnglish,evenComparativeLiteratureinthestrictsenseandtheirreconstitutionunderthesignsofculturalandphilosophicalpostmodernities.Thisinvolvesextendingthemeaningofpostcolonialismtoincludeanyandallstructuresofpoweranddomination,while,inanotherdirection,alsodissolvingthedifferencebetweenproceduresofliterarystudyandmethodologiesofhistoricalstudy.（Said,1993:

124）.

HomiBhabhaisaninfluentialpostcolonialcritic,andthetheorythatiscentraltoBhabha'sdiscourseonpostcolonialismisthatofhybridity,which“presentsitselfasacritiqueofessentialism,partakesofacarnivalesquecollapseandplayofidentities,andcomesunderagreatmanynames”（Bhabha,1994:

64）.Anotherimportanttheoryisidentitywhichmeansindividualismanddistinctive,itisdecidedbydifferenceofcultureTherefore,identityis”anunstableeffectofrelationswhichdefineidentitiesbymarkingdifferences”（Hall,1996:

89）.Identitymarksourwayintheworldandprovidesawayofunderstandingtheinterplaybetweenoursubjectiveexperienceoftheworldandtheculturalandhistoricalconstructionofoursubjectivity.Inthispart,theseaspectsofpostcolonialtheoryandwriterswillbereferredtointheexaminationofcontextofpostcolonialsiminASoldier’sEmbrace.

2.1HybridityembodiedinASoldier’sEmbrace

Thefirstpieceopensonacelebrationoffreedom.TheblacksinthisSouthAfricancountryhavejustwontherighttogovernthemselves.Theyaredancinginthestreet,togetherwiththewhitecolonialsoldierswhoonlyyesterdayweretheirenemies.AsNelsonMandela,whohadbeenkeptinprisonfortwentysevenyearsbecauseofparticipatinginantiapartheidmovement,said“onewhoisoppressedothersandonewhobeingoppressedbotharesupposedtogainliberation.Itishatredthatdrivespeopletodespoilother’sliberty”（Mandela,1978:

153）.ThefightersaretooexcitedtorememberwhatEuropeanpeasantboysdidtothembefore.

Theetiquetteofgreetingsomeonemayvaryfromcountrytocountry.Asweallknow,inwesterncountries,whenpeoplemeetorsaygoodbyetotheirfriend,theywouldembraceeachotherasthickasthievesorkisseachotherontheircheek.However,inAfrica,peoplewouldholdtheirownhands,andshakehandsbeforetheireyes,orpeoplewouldtoucheachother’snose.

Caughtintherejoicingthrong,inthespiritofliberty;awhitewoman,onherwayhome,isblockedoffbytwosoldiers’clumsyembrace;shethrowsonearmaroundablackfreedomfighterandtheotheraroundawhitecolonialsoldierandkisseseachonthecheek.Thewhitecheek,thewomanremembers,was“sallowandpimply;”（Gordimer,1990:

420）,theblackshowedarawscar.Shefeelsasifsheismodelingforaposter,modelingfortheideaoffreedom.Thesoldierssheembracedsmelledofdeathaswellassweatandsoap.

Thetechniqueofthestoryisgraduallytodeveloptheembraceofthewhitesoldierandtheblacksoldier.Thetwosoldiers,oneiswhiteandtheotherisablack.Theycomefromdifferentnationsandtheyhavedifferentculturalbackground.Theybothembracepeopletoshowtheirexcitedandintimatefeeling.Thisisaphenomenonofculturalhybridity.Inpost-colonialtheory,hybridityrefersto“theintegration（or,mingling）ofculturalsignsandpracticesfromthecolonizingandthecolonizedcultures.Theassimilationandadaptationofculturalpractices,thecross-fertilizationofcultures,canbeseenaspositive,enriching,anddynamic,aswellasoppressive”（Bhabha,2004:

37）.“Hybridity"isalso“ausefulconceptforhelpingtobreakdownthefalsesensethatcolonizedcultures--orcolonizingculturesforthatmatter--aremonolithic,orhaveessential,unchangingfeatures”（Bhabha,2004:

45）.Inshort,hybridityidentifiesthepotentialforidentitiestoshiftand/ormerge,suggestingthatencountersbetweendifferentculturalidentitiescanproduceanewwayofbeing.

Manycriticsofpost-colonialismarguethatinpost-colonialistsociety,cultureofcolonyandaboriginalandcultureofcolonizerpresent“conditionofexistingineachother”（Zhangzhongzai,2002:

636）.Hybriditythus“makesdifferencesintosameness,andsamenessintodifference,butinawaythatmakesthesamenolongerthesame,thedifferentnolongersimplydifferent”（Young1995:

26）.Homik·Bhabhaputforthhisideaofhybriditytoexplaintheveryuniquesenseofidentitysharedandexperiencedindividuallybymembersofaformercolonizedpeople.Hemaintainsthat“membersofapostcolonialsocietyhaveanidentitywhichhasbeenshapedjointlybytheirownuniqueculturaland