[英语学习]汤姆索亚的人物性格分析--袁青湖南城市学院外语系.doc

CONTENTSAbstract.1Introduction.2Chapter 1 Tom Sawyers Innocence and Romance.6 1.1 Tom Sawyers Innocence.6 1.2 Tom Sawyers Romance.9Chapter 2 Tom Sawyers Wit and Leadership.13 2.1 Tom Sawyers Wit.13 2.2 Tom Sawyers Leadership.15Chapter 3 Tom Sawyers Rebellion and Heroism19 3.1 Tom Sawyers Rebellion.19 3.2 Tom Sawyers Heroism.22Conclusion.26Notes28Bibliography29Acknowledgements.30An Analysis on the Character of Tom SawyerYuan Qing（Foreign Language Department, Hunan City University, Yiyang, Hunan 413000, China）Abstract: As one of Mark Twains representative works, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, successfully illustrates a lovely character of a child, Tom Sawyer, who is a naughty and brave boy, and a perfect dreamer as well. Since the book published, it is greatly reviewed by thousands of Americans, both children and grown-ups, as this novel is not solely a description of children, but also a symbol of the authors ironic attitude to the hypocritical of the adult world. This paper probes into the analysis of Tom Sawyers character in three aspects, namely, innocence and romance, wit and leadership, rebellion and heroism, all of which shapes Tom Sawyers unique charm. A conclusion is drawn through the analysis of Tom Sawyers human character.Key words: Tom Sawyer; child; character; adventurous spirit摘 要：作为马克吐温的代表作之一，汤姆索亚历险记成功地塑造了汤姆索亚这个非常可爱的儿童形象。汤姆索亚是一个调皮捣蛋、内心勇敢的孩子，同时也是一个出色的梦想家。这部作品一问世，就受到成千上万美国读者的关注，不光孩子们喜欢，成年人也不例外。因为这不仅仅是一部儿童读本，更是作者从一个孩子的角度，对虚伪的大人世界所作的讽刺。本文从性格方面着手，分三个章节来分析出汤姆索亚的性格，分别是天真浪漫、聪明机智、叛逆勇敢，这三方面的性格特点使得汤姆索亚极具个人魅力。通过对汤姆索亚性格的分析，本文揭示了该人物形象的深刻意义。关键字： 汤姆索亚；儿童；性格；冒险精神IntroductionMark Twain (1835-1910), the pen name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, who was regarded as the greatest humorist in the 19th century. His works of realism was the landmark of the American literary history. Mark Twain was born at the riverside of Mississippi. His life experience filled with changes, as he used to be apprentice, typesetter, sailor, and soldier. In 1863, he began to write with the pen name Mark Twain. His colorful life experience helped him a lot, since they were the best sources of his creation.The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was finished in year 1876 when the United States ended the Civil War. Since the nation had thousands of things to do to rebuild their homeland, people were inspired to create a new country with all their efforts. This was also the time when Emancipation Proclamation was issued by President Lincoln in 1863, which freed the Negro slaves from the oppression of Capitalists. The traditional economic model was corrupting, and doomed to be replaced by Capitalism coming from the North. People in this country all lived with hopes.In the preface to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Mark Twain writes “most of the adventures recorded in this book really occurred” 1. Indeed, we can easily find the prototype of Tom Sawyer in his diary which is written in 1866, where Mark Twain recalls his childhood. However, Mark Twain does not simply copy the diary; instead, he rearranges a number of details to make his work a novel rather than a pure memoir. Immediately after the publication of this novel, it elicited a strong response, not only from the children, but also from numerous adults. Therefore, Tom Sawyer, the naughty boy, soon become one of the well-known characters through American literary history.In writing about childhood experiences, Mark Twain shows the trustworthiness of the heart as seen in children, the pleasure of rural American as seen through childrens eyes, the moral decline that could accompany growing up and the sense of loss when childhood is gone. If Mark Twain does not directly make social criticism as a theorist in economics and philosophy, he is in fact more effective in that he shows a genuine hatred for social hypocrisy and pretentiousness through his use of humor. He is relentless with his humor in exposing the importance of religious teaching in the face of temptation and the iniquity of slavery. In sum, Mark Twains assault of the hypocrisy in the adult world shows that he remains a child of innocence in his heart. However, Mark Twain is not a romanticist because he knows that child-like innocence has no place in the real world. The innocent character built by Mark Twain always couples with irony. As an ironist, Mark Twain allows us to see the adult through the eyes of a child, and to see the child through the adults perspective. His greatest gift is therefore his multidimensional understanding of innocence. This understanding of innocence in Mark Twain has been deeply extended to Americans encountering Europe. In much encounters, the irony of “innocence” mocks both the American naivety and the European pretentiousness. America and Europe take on the same ironic dynamisms that involve a child and an adult.This paper dedicates to analyze Tom Sawyers character in three aspects, namely, innocence and romance, wit and leadership, and rebellion and heroism. Among those characters, rebellion is pejorative. Mark Twain aims at nothing but describing Toms eagerness for freedom. To Mark Twain, rebellion is not to blame, because children are tired with the hypocrisy and greediness in adult society. Tom is a fighter, and his enemy is the complicated adult world. Tom is restrained by the social rules, even feels hard to breathe. He performs impolitely in the Sunday school, he dislikes the teacher, and never have been able to recite The Bible, he seldom listen to what Aunt Polly orders him to do, always walk with his feet naked.Tom Sawyers individuality is interesting. He wants to do everything in his own way which is quite different from what is supposed to be, but somewhat similar to the knight novel. He admires pirate very much. This is understandable if we pay attention to the difference between the life of a pirate and a child, especially when the child has little freedom in choosing his lifestyle. Anyhow, Tom Sawyer is a tough boy. He dares to oppose to the social rules, the adults authority. He never stops making efforts to live his own life where only love, justice, and peace exist. The reason why people worship Tom Sawyer from generation to generation is that peoples dream for freedom never die easily. Chapter 1 Tom Sawyers Innocence and RomanceLike any other children, Tom Sawyer is innocent and carefree. He owns a pure and nave inner world. Mark Twain puts emphasize on describing his personalities as an innocent boy who is quite fond of play. In the novel, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Toms innocence is perfectly described together with his romantic nature.1.1 Tom Sawyers InnocenceThe world in childrens eyes is pure and simple. They always explain the things happened around them with their innocent mind, and they think with their unique simplicity. In this novel, Mark Twain has skillfully shaped Tom Sawyer as a standard bad boy, one who owns the traits that can be seen in the other average kids. Whatever situation Tom meets, he can successfully solve them by certain means.Generally, children indulge themselves in playing games, which is true for both boys and girls. In their opinion, there is nothing in the world that is more attractive and exciting than being allowed to play as long as they possibly can. Tom Sawyer owns various kinds of toys, and he takes much pride in showing his wealth in front of his pals. He prepares for exchange whenever he finds there is something better than he has on hand. One Saturday morning, “Tom appeared on the side walk with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush.” 2 Aunt Polly orders Tom to whitewash the board fence which stretches for almost thirty yards. This is a hard punishment for Toms naughty behavior happened the day before. Thinking it is nearly impossible for him to finish the task; he believes that there should have some shortcuts. Tom always has measures to deal with any kinds of difficulty. He signs to Jim, a little slave, when Tom saw him with a tin pail. Jim knows Tom is going to bring water from the town pump, which has always been hateful work in Toms eyes before. But this time, he would like to try by asking Jim to make a deal. He says “Say, Jim, Ill fetch the water if youll whitewash some.” 3 But Jim refuses Toms proposal, as Aunt Poly has already told him to do his own job and leave Tom away. Tom fails in this exchange after he tried to persuade Jim again and again. Then he begins to tempt Jim with his toy which would be a big lure to Jim. He tells Jim his bargaining chip is a white alley, besides, he will show Jim his sore toe, which is truly a powerful attraction for Jim. The business is done, only if Aunt Polly does not notice. “In another moment he was flying down the street with his pail and a tingling rear, Tom was whitewashing with vigor, and Aunt Polly was retiring from the field with a slipper in her hand and triumph in her eye.” 4 Toms reaction against Aunt Pollys punishment perfectly shows his innocence and loveliness. Mark Twain describes the childrens innocent and pure inner world from the adults viewpoint, and makes us recall our childhood where no hypocrite exists. In this novel, Tom Sawyers ability of making himself happy is impressive. His toys can be anything, such as tooth, stone, frog, and even a tick. In a sleepy noon, the air is dead, and no wind outside. Tom feels dreary, then his hands search for a box in his pocket, he opens the box, there is a tick inside. Tom sets the tick free, and the tick begins to move around the desk. Toms bosom friend, Joe Harper, feels like just as the same. He is desperately eager to join Toms entertainment. Tom permits Joe, and he then draws a line in the middle of the desk, which means they will play it in sequence. Tom says: “as long as he is on your side you can stir him up and Ill let him alone; but If you let him get away and get on my side, youre too alone as long as I can keep him from crossing over.” 5 Tom makes this rule to guide their entertainment. However, the game goes out of their prediction, because the tick does not run cross the line to Toms side. By and by, Tom sits there angrily, as the tick remains at Joe Harbors desk. He glowers at Joe having a lot of fun and he could do nothing but watching all this happening. In the end, Tom breaks the rule and fight against Joe. “A tremendous whack came down on Toms shoulders and its duplicate on Joes; and for the space of two minutes the dust continued to fly from the two jackets and the whole school to enjoy it.” 6 It is quite difficult to depict a childs behavior so vividly from the adult perspective, but Mark Twain has done it well. In the story Tom fights against his bosom friend, we can realize that the friendship is quite different for children when comparing with the adult friendship. What makes the childrens friendship tight is they can share the happiness. When it is impossible for them to share fun, the friendship breaks up. In this regard, Mark Twain expresses his will for the pure friendship. However, that kind of relationship does not exist in the adult world, as adults are hypocritical and snobbish, even some of them are trained to be, and the rests are forced to be.1.2 Tom Sawyers RomanceEvery adult has his own memory of childhood. The first time they do something must be funny and unforgettable, the first school day, first trip, first examination, and the first romance. In The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Mark Twain managers his delicate pen well to delineate Toms romance with Becky Thatcher, a beautiful girl who attracts Tom at their first encounter. Tom immediately loses himself, and he forgets Amy Lawrence, with whom Tom makes engagement before. After Tom finishes his whitewashing, Aunt Polly gives him praise and permits him to go out. That is a good day, because he meets an angel when he is passing by Jeff Thatchers house. “A lovely little blue-eyed creature with yellow hair plaited into two long tails, white summer frock, and embroidered pantalets.” 7 That beautiful girl ruins Toms mind, he thinks himself has fell in love with the girl, and his engagement with Amy Lawrence is a fault. Then Tom tries everything to show off to draw Beckys attention. For some reason, Becky seems to be hard-hearted; she does not show her interests in Toms performance. Tom keeps his showing off until nightfall. Finally he runs back home with much disappointment. That night, Tom does not sleep well, as Becky keeps wandering in his mind. From that day on, Tom Sawyer becomes sentimental. He cannot help thinking of Becky, he cares everything he acts in front of her. He thinks that is love, and hopes Becky will love him in return, thus they can make an engagement. In order to get closer to Becky, he sits right beside her in class, teach her drawing picture, and even take the punishment for her. Tom has done all that intentionally. By and by, he wins Beckys affection. Their engagement seems to be possible. When school breaks up at noon, Tom has figured out a plan. He whispers in Beckys ear to ask her pretending to go home, therefore they could be together without others attention. The children sit in the classroom alone, quietly they has a good time. Tom tells Becky he wants to engage himself to her. Tom seems like knowing everything about love, which is hard for us to believe. He knows a boy and a girl have to kiss if they have engaged. From this point, we can find that Tom is not merely a carefree boy, but also a romantic man. He proposes to his beloved girl, and kisses her in her face. Toms way of loving Becky is similar to the way adults do. He acts as a grow-up in front of Becky; he feels happy when Beck does, and he becomes depressed when Becky is facing difficulty. They will be jealous when either of them is playing with others of opposite sex, which is an interesting but an essential part of love.All men fell in love are romantic, even a boy. In this novel, Tom shows his romantic nature, just like the above mentioned, he acts like a man. The first time Tom sits with Becky is interesting. Tom is late for class, and because of this, he gets punishment from the teacher, but that could not be a threat to Tom, since he is used to it. Not long after that, the teacher requires Tom to sit with girls, which is exactly what he wants, as he notices Becky is sitting alone there. He inches towards her and sit down. He glances at the girl and she makes a mouth as reply. In a minute, he takes out a peach and lays it on Beckys desk when she cautiously faces around. In this plot, we can see Tom is considerate and good at pleasing girls. Love is an important part through ones life. It helps to build ones value of life, and makes one mature. True love is beautiful, and eternal. Poets never feel tired to express their praise and longing for true love. Man always falls in love with a woman unconsciously, and it may take his whole lifetime to forget. Love is pure, and it is weak too. Actually, love is always twisted by the outside world, such as, family restrains, class status, power, racial discriminations, and etcetera. In this regard, the relationship between Tom and Becky is far from love. It is a kind of special friendship, since they are too young to know the true meaning of love-responsibility. Tom is romantic, and his understanding of romance is originated from the medieval romance he read. He imitates the books, for example, the way of he make engagement with Becky. Tom does not know what a kiss truly mean, but he kisses Becky. Thus, the romance between Tom and Becky is substaincially different from adults. For the children, love is a pure game and is not related to sex or marriage. In this novel, Mark Twain on the one hand, portrays Tom Sawyers innocence and romantic gift, which deeply impressed the readers; on the other hand, criticizes the hypocrisy and snobish in the adults world. Chpter 2 Tom Sawyers Wit and LeadershipA competent leader must be a wise man. He ought to have the ability of making right decision at the right time, and it will be better if he knows much more than his partners do. It is reasonable that the one knows the most is likely to be admired by the others, thus he is regarded as the leader. In The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Tom is a good leader. 2.1 Tom Sawyers WitTom Sawyer is an intelligent boy, even if performs badly in the Sunday school. He can hardly recite a few lines of The Bible, but the fact is that he has a new Bible, while other boys have none. He can always find ways to escape from Aunt Pollys punishment, and even makes Aunt Polly live in distress. We are astonished by Toms smartness when we see him tactfully makes the other children to help him to whitewash the board fence which is really a hard task. The other children voluntarily do as whitewashers, and they are convinced that is an honor. When Tom fails in persuading Jim to replace his job, he begins to seek for other means. He thinks it would be a shame if other boys saw him, because they would make fun of him for having to work in such a beautiful day. He then plans to buy an exchange of work with his toys, but he soon finds his prosperity is too poor to buy half an hour. In a moment, he gets an idea. He works like an artist; he pretends to be obsessed with his job when he saw Ben Rogers is coming towards him. Ben Rogers is commanding his steamboat, the Big Missouri, and considers himself to be drawing nine feet of water. He is playing the captain, the sailor, and the steamboat all by himself. He believes Tom would be eager to join