人性的弱点-《嘉莉妹妹》的悲剧解读Weakness of Humanity---An Analysis on the Tragedy of Sister Carrie.doc

Weakness of Humanity-An Analysis on the Tragedy of Sister CarrieAbstract: Sister Carrie is written by the naturalist writer-Dreiser. Throuht analyzing the intricate relationship among the characters and the various means they use for their goals. It reveals the characters weakness of humanity and a series of tragedies caused by these weaknesses.Key words: Sister Carrie; American Dream; physical enjoyment; weakness; tragedy人性的弱点-嘉莉妹妹的悲剧解读摘要：嘉莉妹妹是美国自然主义作家德莱塞的作品，通过分析人物之间错综复杂的关系以及他们为达目的的各种手段，揭露了人物人性中的弱点，以及由这些弱点而导致的一系列悲剧。关键词：嘉莉妹妹、美国梦、物质享受、弱点、悲剧1.BackgroundIn the late 19th century, capitalism was rapidly developed in America, the great gap between the rich and the poor; contradiction between employers and employees; the corruption of moral and humanity, increasingly drew peoples attention. However, the bottom of the society were eager to catch the so-called “American Dreams”-those who pursure their goals in life through hard work and free choice, and never gave up their hope for success, so they struggled and fighted in order to make their dreams come to realize. And at that time, consumption was regarded as a symbol of peoples social position. Those who could afford to buy the most exspensive and luxurious things implied their high social status. To reach that respectable life, lots of poor people moved from rural to urban, or even frome other countries to the U.S.A., to fulfill their dreams for good fortune. The essence of American culture emphasizes personal value, the core of it is individualism, people of America think highly of it, and firmly believe that one can come to success through hard work and persistence. And “businessmen were the heros at that age, the power of consumption influence and balance peoples degree and reputation”3. Therefore, each of them have a dream, a dream that can lead them to glorious future. Of course, not everybody can achieve that goal, the road to success is not that easy. And to realize their dreams, different people have different approaches. Some did make big fortune through their own diligence, while others, by some immoral ways. The American system at that time, however, produced many bad things, like vanity, desire and selfishness, etc. So, we may say, the moment the American society created wealth as well as stimulated peoples endless desire. The corruption of morality and the incresion of desire are the most popular thing in America and in fact, the public in America stress achievements, respect heros, and this kind of mentality has a profound influence on them because individual accomplishment is one of the most highly appraised views of value, the American people have strong sense of success, and nearly all of them want to be successful. They firmly believe that a single persons value is exactly equal to the achievement he makes in business.2. Information about the author and his workSister Carrie was published in 1900, a period when industrialization appeared. At that time, the American social system was changing: both the development of cities and the prosperity of markets brought new chances to people, and they had implicit trust in the concept thast money makes the world go around. Being a newspaper reporter, Theodore Dreiser had lots of knowledge of this chang and experienced it himself. Later he wrote the book Sister Carrie and based this first novel on the life of his sister Emma, who ran away to Toronto, Canada in 1883, with a married man who had stolen money from his employer. In his book Sister Carrie, Theodore Dreiser depicted a story about a girl-Carrie Meeber, who tried to make her own living from villiage to Chicago. She first met Drouet, a playboy that helped her a lot in life and gave her material enjoyment. And later, Hurstwood, a genteel manager, also tempted her to be his mistress. To quickly climb up to the upper class and to satisfied that kind of life style, Sister Carrie accepted the two rich mens requirements, even though it is immoral, as long as whichever way can help her to her aim, she took it for granted. And later, Sister Carrie became a famous actress in New York, while Hurstwood, died. “Theodore Dreiser showed his own point of view about morality to the world, but such ending was definitely not accepted by the masses.”4 So the book was initially refused by many publishers, because of its immorality. Harper Brothers, the first publisher to see the book, rejected it by saying it was not: “sufficiently delicate to depict without offense to the reader the continud illicit relations of the heroine.” Although finally Doubleday and Company published the book in order to fulfill their contract, but Frank Doubleday refused to promote the book. However, it is no doubt that this book fully reflects American reality life, it is a success. Generally speaking, the success of Sister Carrie has a great relationship with Theodore Dreisers own life. Dreiser was the ninth of 10 surviving children in a family whose perennial poverty forced frequent moves between small Indiana towns and Chicago in search of a lower cost of living. When he was 12, Dreiser worked as a news boy and a clerk in a shop; at the age of 15, he moved to Chicago and held jobs washing dishes, clerking a hardware store, and tracing freihgt cars. The next few years, when he was 18, Dreisers spotty education in parochial and public schools was capped by a year(1889-1990) at Indiana University. And he began a career as a newspaper reporter in Chicago in 1892 and worked his way to the East Coast. While writing for a Pittsburgh newspaper in 1894, he read works by the scientists T.H.Huxley and John Tyndall and adopted the speculations of the philosopher Herbert Spencer. Through these readidngs and his own experience, Dreiser came to believe that human beings are helpless in the grip of instincts and social forces beyond their control, and he judged human society as an unequal contest between the strong and the weak. Therefore, we may say the Dreisers own harsh experience of poverty as a youth and his early yearnings for wealth and success would become dominant themes in his novels, and the misadventures of his brothers and sisters in early adult life gavr him additional material on which to base his characters. As we have discussed above, Theodore Dreiser experienced a vivid life and this rewarded him a lot. He came to know much about the dark side of the American society, came to realize the real relationship among different people. Then, he wanted to reveal the weaknesses of humanity. Here, we will discuss what kinds of weaknesses of humanity, and to analyse some features of them. 3. Weakness of Humanity in Sister Carrie3.1 IgnornaceAs we know that if someones “lack of knowledge or information about something,”8we may call him an ignorant person. Because he has little experience of the world, especially of evil or unpleasant things. Sister Carrie is that kind of person. Without any sense of danger, she tells the truth to a stranger when she is still on the train:”I live at Columbia City. Ihave never been through here, though.” 11To a stranger like Drouet, who is often a lier, cajoling girls is the tricks he uses all the time. But Sister Carrie does not realize that, even tries to give her sisters address to him, so “she fumbled her purse which contained the address slip.”11 The mere reason for her doing so is that she judges Drouet only by the appearance, from his elegant clothes and graceful style of conversation, she believes that Drouet is a gentleman and a rich man, whats more, he knows so much about the world, especially Chicago. In her own mind, he is a decent and knowledgeable man, and deserves her trust. Actually, what Sister Carrie has done fully explains the fact that she is ignorant, knows nothing about the complicated world and has no sense of protection. For a young and inexperienced girl, it is definitely perilous being so. From this point of view she needs to learn and experience life and observes life, only by doing so can she grow maturely.3.2 VanityApart from ignorance, nearly all of the characters have the essence of vanity in the book Sister Carrie. Farrell once said: “In Sister Carrie, money plays a very important role.”2From the moment Sister Carrie flees from the countryside to Chicago, vanity follows her like a shadow. She stresses her own charms, eagerly seeks the material things, holds the principle that good clothes, “dainty slippers and stockings”11, and of course, money, are the most important things in her life. So there is no doubt that the moment she receives her salary in the shoe factory, she thinks only to buy beautiful clothes, and she spends a dollar and a quarter from her small savings to buy a new umbrella only because th one Minnie gives her is worn and faded. Even when Drouet takes her to the street, she merely concerns the material things, and she takes it for granted that a persons social status is high if he dresses elegantly, or at least that kind of people is from the upper calss, that is to say, he is rich, he has the money to derecate himself and to lead a decent life. Sister Carrie believes that life can not be happy without plenty of money and satiated physical enjoyment. So, vaity makes a person forever insatiable. Then ,Charles Drouet, a tipical cunning person, who is used to attracting different women around him by showing his smart new suit,shiny tan shoes and fat purse, a vain man who values people not only by appearance but also by status, because he often craves the best things, even though he is niot a man that likes drinking so much, he usually goes to the Rectors, gains much satisfaction being in the same place with some celebrities. Whats more, he also likes to go to the Fitzgerald and Moys since there is a famkous manager there-Mr.G.W.Hurstwood. Drouet wants to be friends with people from the upper calss, in order to make himself glory and important. However, on the other hand, Charles Drouet is a poor man, he even does not know his own position, stubbornly prusues the so-called satisfaction. To be sure, it is only a sense of vanity.3.3 DesireWhile the most obvious weakness in Sister Carries character is desire, which is a very strong wish for something, such as fame, wealth, power, etc. Donald Pizer is more specific about what Sister Carrie wants: “Of the major forces in her life, it is primarily her desire for objects that furnish a sense of physical and mental well-being-for fine clothing and furniture and attractive apartments and satisfactory food-which determines much of her life.”6 In an article entitled “Dreiser as Hero,” Randolph Bourne concludes: “The insistent theme of Mr. Dreisers work is desire, perennial, unquenchableHis hero is really not Sister Carrie, ot the Tinan or the Genius, but that desire within us that pounds in manifold guise against the iron walls of experience” 10Indeed, we have to think, we have to dream and we have to hold strong desire to achieve our goals, because there is no royal road to great accomplishment. Thus, we have to work hard and try our best to make it instead of taking advantage of others. Only by our own hand can we taste the sweet fruit. However, Sister Carrie does not do that, her aim is: fiem clothing, plenty of money,celebrated reputation, regardless of whichever method she uses. And the strong desire in her heart is endless. Firstly, the comparison in life between her sisters and Drouets: “She felt the drag of a lean and norrow life.” 11While Drouets speech and behaviour “built up for her a dim world of fortune.”11 The first words whispered literally in Carries ear as her train is approaching Chicago come from a flashy salesman, who quickly finds out that she is on her first visit to the city. The initial meeting captures Charles Drouets habit of asserting his impotance through boasting: “You want to see Lincoln Park,” he said, “and Michigan AvenueIts a second New York, great. So much to see-theatres, crowds, fine houses.”11 Drouet wishes to impress on Carrie his association with the “great” world of the city and to intimate that he regularly partakes of the pleasures of Chicago-a city, he suggests, busy imitating New York. The glamorous account makes the attractions seem desirable, which of course affects Sister Carrie. The seeds of desire are so firmly planted in her imagination that Carrie grows suddenly conscious of her appearance. As a matter of fact, at the very beginning, she can not bear to live so poor life, thus she goes to Chicago, the big city with many opportunities, to seek her fortune, so it is beyond question that she will take the $20 Drouet fices her. And Sister Carries desire for wealth is one of the major reasons that makes her leave her sister.1 Secondly, after seeing the beautiful broad lawns and interiors with luxury decorations with Mrs. Hale, Sister Carrie thinks that her room is comparative insignificance. The ability to purchase a big house and a nice car separates those who are considered successful from those who are not.7 Another desire exits: she can find her happiness in the beautiful places. Thirdly, she meets Hurstwood-a man whose wealth is several hundred times more than Drouets, and whats important, Hurstwood is charming and has good taste, experienced and sophisticated. All of these call help her fulfill her desire of physical enjoyment. Sister Carrie needs more pleasure, she needs people to think highly of her. Thus, to achieve her dream, she accepts Hurstwoods temptation, being a mistress of him, and gains more happiness, at least, in her own mind, it can be called so. With the aim to draw peoples attention and to be a more beautiful and elegant woman in the city, she needs eye-catching dresses to wear and a gentleman to be her partner, Hurstwood is a better choise. However, “whether she can success finally or not will depend on her luck”.93.4 selfishnessHere we are going to talk about another weakness in Sister Carrie-selfishness. Firstly, selfishness means “caring only about yourself rather than about other people.”8 Mr.G.W.Hurstwood is a married man, and he has a daughter named Jessica and George, his son. In peoples eyes, he owns a happy family, because they are rich and graceful, and the most important thing is that Huustwood, the model husband and father, has no affairs. Nevertheless, all of these are the apparent things. Hurstwood, indeed, a very selfish man in that he totally ignores his family, he does not love his wife and never cares about her. “Between himself and his wife ran a river of indifference.” The things he does for the family is completely out of responsibility. Also, he lacks communication with his daughter and son, never knows what they are doing. What he cares about is his own happiness, he cherishes the days he spends with Sister Carrie, because Carrie makes him feel young and blissful again. To him, the relationship with his family is a chain that binds his feet.Then what about Sister Carrie? Is she a selfish person, too? The answer is positive. She betrays Drouet after Hurstwoods apperance and then discards him for chasing mkore entertainment and safisfaction. In New York, it happens that she has the chance to be an actress in Casino, later, a most famous performer in the stage. When everybody flatters her, she thinks that Hurstwood is a burden of her, for that she has to raise him. Sister Carrie would rather buy a pair of new shoes than support him. Judging from this, we may draw a conclusion that both Hurstwood and Sister Carrie are selfish.4 Tragedy caused by weakness4.1 Tragedy of HurstwoodFrom the book Sister Carrie we can see that Hurstwood, a once gentle and elegant manager fo Fitzgerald and Moys, has high salary and leads a respectable life, falling to be a nobody at the bottom fo the society completely. Buying foods on credit, asking for jobs shamelessly and at last, being a poor begger in the street of New York. Even though he commits suicide finally, there is no doubt about that. The tragedy of Hurstwood mainly caused by himself. On the one hand, without having strong desire to get Carrie, he would not complain so much about his family, and then lacks communication with his daughter and son. Caring little about his wifes emotion. When he has trouble himself he wont discuss it with his family. Most of the time, he looks down upon their behaviours but try nok efforts to correct them. Absolutely, being a husband and father, Hurstwood is not competent enough. In the meantime, he has affairs outside. So firstly, he is a selfish man, caring nobody but himself. On the other hand, after all the failures in New York three years later, he still doesnt have consideration about his future life because he thinks day and night that he remains has the luck to be rich again by doing business himself. As a rule, his change is the process of a mans degeneration. He wants to own a wealthy life like the people do in the upper society, but at the same time, he believes that his position is still high and is not willing to earn his living by doing hard work like a worker, for that he will lose face. Meanwhile, he recalls those glory days in Chicago all the time, holds that he is the excellent one and then deserves a better life, being down and out only because he has not found the good chance. It is a pity that owing to these thoughts and actions that Hurstwood digs a hole for himself to jump. A man does have the chance to live a better life through hard work, and where there is a will, there is a good life, a life to happiness. In a word, Hurstwood is a weak man, a man dare not change, in the meantime, he is a desirable person, who always dreams of getting better things while do nothing in reality. In general, his selfishness and desire lead to his own tragedy.4.2 Tragedy of CarrieApart from Hurstwood, Sis