（英语语言文学专业论文）空间叙事、主体性和价值重塑——福克纳短篇小说研究.pdf

iv 空间叙事、主体性和价值重塑空间叙事、主体性和价值重塑 福克纳短篇小说研究福克纳短篇小说研究 研究生：刘军 年级：2005 级 学科专业：英语语言文学 指导教师：张叔宁 研究方向：英美文学 中中 文文 摘摘 要要 威廉福克纳是美国著名作家，诺贝尔文学奖获得者。国内研究主要集中在他早期的 几部长短篇小说上，内容局限于作品的“时间” 、南方梦、现代主义叙述技巧和人物分析 等。新的批评理论的兴起使福克纳研究仍是国际显学之一。福克纳在短篇小说中展示了空 间与主体性的相互关系，并努力重塑价值世界，对处在空间生产过程中的人类有着重要的 启示意义。 本论文分为五章。 第一章回顾福克纳短篇小说生涯、国内对其短篇小说以及文学中空间的研究现状。 第二章介绍亨利列菲伏尔和迈克尔克朗的空间理论以及我国学者的价值主体性理 论。列菲伏尔认为空间是产品，结合了主体的行动。所有主体都处在空间之中，是他们享 用或改造的空间。只有在空间里，一种价值观才能与其它价值观对证以获得或失去它的特 性。克朗则认为地理景观反映一种文化的信仰、实践和技术。丧失原有土地威胁人们的身 份意识，恶化孤独感，深化世界的异化程度。中国学者认为追求平等价值就是宣告自主和 独立，反对霸权。自我实现和全面发展是全人类的共同人性和元价值。理解主体性意味着 从价值和人类生存意义的角度来解释人与空间的关系。 第三章分析福克纳短篇小说中空间与主体性的关系。追求平等价值、促进人的自我实 现和全面发展的主体性是积极的；反之，则是消极的。空间可以促进主体性，也可消散主 体性；既可促进积极主体性，也可促进消极主体性。空间对主体施以重要的影响。 第四章论述了福克纳通过探索空间和主体性的关系重塑价值世界的努力。美国文学一 直关注社会变迁过程中的人类价值。福克纳通过描绘社会空间及其对主体性的影响，激发 人性的觉醒，呼吁真善美。对自由、友谊、平等和全面发展的追求使之成为世界上杰出的 短篇小说家。 第五章是结论部分，指出不同的主体有不同的利益诉求和价值观，他们在空间中如何 互动以获得和谐幸福生活仍需进一步探讨。福克纳短篇小说中空间与主体间性问题值得深 入的研究。 关键词：关键词：福克纳；短篇小说；空间叙事；主体性；价值重塑 v space narrative, subjectivity and value reconstruction: on short stories of william faulkner postgraduate: liu jun grade: 2005 major field of study: english language otherwise, negative. space can either promote or depress subjectivity; it can promote the positive subjectivity or the negative subjectivity. space exerts great influence on subjectivity. chapter 4 discusses faulkners endeavors in reconstructing the value world through the vi exploration of the relationship between space and subjectivity. american literature always concerns about the human value in the social transition periods. by depicting the social space and its influence on subjectivity, faulkner stimulates the arousal of humanity and calls for the true, the good and the beautiful. his pursuit for freedom, friendship, equality and full development makes him an outstanding short story writer of the world. chapter 5 concludes that it deserves further research on how different subjects, having different benefits and values, interact with each other in space to achieve harmonious and happy life. thus we need to pay more attention to the issue of space and inter-subjectivity. key words: faulkner; short story; space narrative; subjectivity; value reconstruction vii abbreviations cs collected stories of william faulkner, new york: vintage books, 1977. lg lion in the garden: interviews with william faulkner, 1926-1962, eds. meriwether, j. to establish our own critical subjectivity，and to increase the introduction of faulkner research achievements from western countries. they criticize that the chinese research lacks reflection and criticism of its own, thus becoming a passive input of foreign culture. if one can realize the intertextuality and openness of literature texts, open a multi-dimensional space, and enrich the criticism with various minds, chinese studies of foreign literature can establish its own subjectivity. proceeding from more than 100 short stories by faulkner, kong qinghua (2005) analyzes the images, writing techniques, modern writing approaches and themes in his works. he holds that most of faulkners short stories constitute an essential part of the world of yoknapatawpha created by him and possess high literary value. tao jie, professor of english at peking university, has translated some works by william faulkner and other american authors. she thinks that faulkner uses more realist and folk tale 5 techniques in his short stories to make them dramatic and vivid (tao, 2001: 4). tao reviews the achievements and shortcomings in faulkner studies in china since the 1990s. the number of papers in the twenty-first century increases and they are published in journals not only of key universities, but also of some minor colleges. she finds that faulkner studies centered on the sound and the fury and “a rose for emily”. the topics are limited in the function of “time” in the novel, south dreams and the disintegration of southern plantation, and the source of emilys tragedy. she makes some suggestions concerning research topics for future studies, e.g. research on other short stories, faulkners works after 1940s, and faulkners realist methods in his works (tao, 2005: 1-3). yao naiqiang (2004) calls for attention to foreign critics views: the traditional division of faulkners works as major and minor is inappropriate; faulkners works in the late period are not inferior to those in the early period. he agrees that all faulkners works deserve intensive research. his later works reflect the shift from a countryman to a public figure. faulkner began to reexamine his views on race and seek new narrative techniques. therefore, race becomes a focus in the studies. evidence in his correspondence and his public statements demonstrate his high regard of the short story as a serious literary form. his attempts to revise and sell his short stories for best price mean his confidence as a storyteller and his artistic demands. faulkner attracts many chinese senior scholars and young learners. their attention on his short stories is intensifying. the number of papers on faulkners short stories also increases but it is not enough due to the limitation of the depth and scope of the research. and this thesis is a step toward the artist and the fictional world he creates. 1.3 introduction to research on space in literature researches on space in literature are becoming popular in china. there are books on chinese classics, e.g. zhang shijuns space narratology in a dream of red mansions (1999), and papers on space theory, e.g. mai yongxiongs introduction of the aesthetic thoughts of deleuze, philosopher of space in the 20th century. the spatial form is the theoretical type of fiction first put forward by joseph frank, who in “spatial form in modern literature” (1945) declares that there is a strong sense of discontinuity and disruption in it. space and time are regarded as two inseparable factors in fiction. li dan (2006) writes that traditional novels focus on time, while modernist novels, on space. space in modernist fiction means the forms of flashback and juxtaposition. traditional novels present space through the description of environment which includes description of natural landscape, society and characters living scope. peculiar natural settings show the characteristics of space; society is formed by different 6 human relationships; scope is the stage of characters. modernist writers pay much attention to space and juxtaposition. the spatial awareness is embodied in the form of the literary texts. from her observation, faulkner, as a modernist writer, must have space as the focus in his fiction. liu daoquan (2007) agrees that faulkner was making experiments and innovations upon the form of fiction. his novels are characterized by the evident fiction of spatial form. from the perspective of the alienation of time and space, he explores the characteristics and aesthetic significance of the spatial form in faulkners novels. both critics emphasize the formal characteristics of faulkners novels, instead of his short fiction. jiang zhengyun (2007) argues that the existent space, which is composed of natural and human landscapes, spirits and cultures, shapes different living experiences, forming its uniqueness in literary texts of different regions. space participates in the creation of literature and vice versa. so it is necessary to establish a spatial point of view to depict the mutual-construction of literature and space. zhang deming (2007) holds that the building of space and the fashioning of subject begin synchronously. the production of space and the location of culture are interactive and complementary. on designing his existence and building space, robinson crusoe develops a subjective consciousness which is more actual and sentient than ren descartes cogito. thus the novel interweaves the space narrative, modern subject and empire politics together, completing mutual transformation between its poetic and political functions. long diyong (2006) analyses the knowledge and culture background of spatial turn in narrative through the theoretical and practical perspective. space is the base on which human beings exist. space must be conceived and used before it has meaning and feelings. he points out that narrative is to record the events occurring in space so that memory can be preserved and can give meaning to human beings. the existence of space causes the interest of human beings. he discovers that space is the symbol of time. for example, the relationship between emilys house and its environment in “a rose for emily” means the one between tradition and modern. lu yang (2004), professor at nankai university, introduces lefebvre, foucault, sojas theories on space and crangs views on the relationship between space and literature. lu claims that both literature and space are production and reproduction of social space created by texts. zhu zhenwu (2005) points out that faulkner uses the architectural principle to express a strong sense of place to help the novelist focus on his narratives, to evoke mood and ambience, to demarcate caste and class, and to delineate character. daniel spoth (2007) notes the architectural sensibility in faulkners absalom, absalom! gene moore (2007) discusses how the space of the tomblike station serves as the end of the line of the remaining family members “whose labors tend always and only towards death”. numbers of articles on space in faulkners 7 works accumulate but the research on the relationship between subjectivity and space in his short stories is still needed. 8 chapter 2 space theories and subjectivity 2.1 traditional concepts of space and its representation in literature aristotle thinks that the incidents and the plot are the purpose of tragedy for it is an imitation of action and of life. aristotle proposes that a tragedy must have six parts: plot, character, thought, diction, spectacle, song. but he claims that the spectacle in tragedy is the least artistic because the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the poet (zhang, 2002: 42). the setting is subject to character and action, so it is only a “container” where an action goes through. pierre corneille (1606-1684) in “of the three unities of action, time, and place” criticizes that the unity of place does not suit every kind of subject. for example, according to this unity, in cinna, he might lay the first act in rodogunes antechamber, the second, in cl opa tres apartments, the third, in rodogunes, etc. he holds that the scene should change between acts and represent two particular places that these two places should not need different stage settings and that neither of the two should be named (ibid.: 212-213). then it causes the contradiction that enemies speak in the same places. corneille suggests establishing a theatrical place, a room contiguous to all these other apartments, in which the character is presumed to enjoy the same secrecy as if he were in his own room (ibid.: 214). therefore, the spectator who is intent on the action would not notice the difference in the places (ibid.: 213). in “preface to shakespeare,” samuel johnson (1709-1784) points out that shakespeare has no regard to distinction of time or place because the spectators know that the stage is only a stage and the players are only players. the illusion of place could be created simply by speech: at the opening of a scene in twelfth night, one character asks, “what country, friends, is this?” and is told, “this is illyria, lady.” the drama exhibits imitations of successive actions and the imitations, which bring realities to mind, produce pain or pleasure. those who favor the unity of time and place think shakespeare undermines the credibility of the drama. johnson argues that the delight of tragedy proceeds from the consciousness of fiction (ibid.: 279-285). imagination becomes a key to the issue of space in literature. aristotle admits the spectacular effects on spectators; corneille calls for their imagination because the space in a play may stretch beyond the stage; johnson finds out that shakespeare uses the setting to represent different places in order to achieve the greatest grace of a play: to copy nature and instruct life. space, from aristotle to corneille, to johnson, becomes increasingly inevitable. when more locales are involved, a play covers more and the plot becomes more complicated. the imagination makes up the limitation of the stage and techniques. johnson holds that “delusion has no certain limitation” (ibid.: 283). setting is regarded as the general locale, historical time, and social circumstances; it is the particular location in which the action takes place. both the overall and individual settings are 9 vital elements in generating the atmosphere of works (abrams, 2004: 284-285). but due to the length of short story, the details of the setting are minimized. in traditional literature, space is the only part of setting. in the twenty-first century, scholars pay more attention to the spatiality of human lives. its consequences influence the hermeneutics of literary texts and art works. wegner (2006: 180) first reviews that space is treated as the “stage” on which the drama develops and setting is regarded as secondary in importance to character. then he finds that the new attention to the productions of space has entered into literary studies from various directions. he lists many a thinker who challenges the enlightenment and cartesian notion of space as an objective homogeneous extension, distinct from the subject, and the kantian concept of space as a container where human activities unfold. among the thinkers, henry lefebvre and michel foucault made the greatest contribution to the interest in the role of production. lefebvres la production de lespace (1974) provides a strong mechanism for thinking through the spatial dimensions of modern society and culture. foucaults discipline and punish: the birth of the prison (1975) tells us a history of the spatial transformations that cause the modern world (cit. wegner, 2006: 183). their conceptual reorientations make it possible to transform literary and cultural analysis in various ways. attention to the representation of space within literary texts transforms the way we think about literary history. and the attention to spatial concerns calls into question the make-up of the literary cannon. wegner analyzes joseph conrads lord jim (1900), giving us some sense of thinking or “cognitively mapping” an emerging global reality. he stresses that spatial criticism helps us understand the complexity and originality of the global space we live in (wegner, 2006: 179-201). 2.2 postmodern space theories 2.2.1 henry lefebvres production of space david harvey (1991) in “afterword” gives us a description of lefebvre. in 1901, henry lefebvre was born in hagetmau in the pyrenees, which became the site of his sociological enquiries into rural and peasant societies. his mother was catholic, while his father was urbanely anticlerical. he was to relish this contradiction for the rest of his life. his political as well as his intellectual consciousness was shaped by the experience of wwi, the russian revolution and the mass of intellectual change. he attended the sorbonne during the1920s. as a member of jeune philosophes, he refused to take philosophy as an isolated activity. he thought it important to grapple with the progress of science and with the qualities of daily lives. the experience in army and as taxi driver affected his thinking about the nature of space and urban life. 10 in 1958, he was ultimately excluded from the french communist party to which he belonged for thirty years. without stalinist constraints, he could explore many ideas that had been latent by deepening his grasp and practice of marxs dialectical method. he argued against the structuralism of althusser, the detachment from everyday life manifest in foucault, the pessimistic undercurrent entering french philosophy, and the historicism and scientism becoming hegemonic in academic life. he insisted that life be lived as a project, and he fought to save dialectical materialism from the marxists, history from the historians, the capacity for revolutionary action from the structuralists and the social from the sociologists. during the 1960s, and through the events of 1968, lefebvre came to recognize the significance of urban conditions of daily life. the city had been replaced by a process of the production of space (harvey, 1991: 425-431). in his book, lefebvre finds a problem that any search for space in literary texts will find it everywhere and in every guise (lefebvre, 1991: 15). a space implies a process of signification and can be decoded. he thinks that codes are part of a practical relationship, as part of an interaction between “subjects” and their space and surroundings. he highlights the social (spatial) practices inherent to the forms (ibid.: 18). interested “subjects,” as members of a particular society, would agree to their space and to their status as “subjects” acting within that space and comprehending it (ibid.: 16). he argues that (social) space is a (social) product. (physical) natural space is disappearing. every society, i.e. each mode of production, produces its own appropriated space and offers it as an “object” for analysis and overall theoretical explication. production process and product present themselves as two inseparable aspects, not as two separable ideas (ibid.: 37). he goes on that social space contains (1) the social relations of reproduction (the bio-physiological relations be