（英语语言文学专业论文）怪诞与崇高的统一——王尔德画像之美的艺术建构.pdf

重庆大学硕士学位论文 中文摘要 i 摘 要 本文运用怪异美学考察了狂欢诗学中的面具概念并结合悲剧中关于崇高的 理论分析了世纪末唯美主义文学思潮中奥斯卡王尔德在长篇小说道连格 雷的画像中所展示出来的美的独特气质巴赫金在狂欢诗学理论中指出怪诞 是狂欢丑角美学中最重要的方面在悲剧中体现了一种极致的美并与崇高的品 质相结合超越了传统的古典的美悲剧与人生的生存困境相联系处处闪耀着 作为悲剧世界终极力量的人的悲剧精神王尔德在身份危机的困惑中在他的悲 剧性人生中不断寻求着自身定位他的心性引导他寻找新的自我实现的方法 应时而生的唯美主义则为艺术家提供了一种最高品质的生活空间反映在作品中 的美在体现人物生活的画面中产生情感漂移甚至意象变形同时在思想层次上 却具有了一种崇高的品质这种矛盾的身份张力反映在艺术思维的建构中并指 向作品中心矛盾的寓言意象纵观整个矛盾冲突作品的中心则凸现了在形成自 我的模式摇摆中寻求自我理解画像一语双关指的不仅是他的作品道连格 雷的画像或者故事中道连的肖像画更是他的展现艺术的人生王尔德在道 连格雷的画像中由个他转化成他们使自我显像多层次化延伸了自 我价值的寓意并从中看到了幻觉与幻灭的二元性的怪异本质在王尔德悲剧性 精神的指引下在自我变形的身份戏剧性结构和自我认识的终极目的结构中人 们的心灵与王尔德的悲剧生活产生了共鸣我们体验到一种超越了古典美的极致 之美怪诞与崇高的统一 关键词唯美主义狂欢面具怪诞崇高 重庆大学硕士学位论文 abstract ii abstract this thesis makes use of grotesque aesthetics to discuss the concept of mask in carnival, and the theory of sublimity in tragedy, to analyze the particular beauty that is displayed in oscar wildes long novel the picture of dorian gray in aestheticism movement. bahktin pointed out in his theory of carnival: the grotesque was the most important aspect of the aesthetics of clown in carnival, which showed an extreme beauty in tragedy, and was combined with sublimity beyond the traditional classic beauty. tragedy is related to the difficulty of peoples existence in life. it always shines the tragic spirit of human beings as the terminal power in tragic world. wilde always searched for his orientation in identity crisis, in his tragic life; his mind guided him to seek new way to realize himself. at that time, aestheticism provided the artists with a kind of noblest existential space. so the beauty that was reflected in their writings, brought about an emotional excursion or even the metamorphosis of images in the life of the characters, and it was possessed of a kind of characteristics of sublimity in ideological level. this kind of paradoxical tension of identity is reflected in the construction of artistic thoughts, which points to the allegorical image in central contradiction. looking through the whole conflict, the works focuses on seeking for the self-consciousness in the swing of forming a mode of “self”. thus the “picture” is in double meanings; it not only refers to wildes works the picture of dorian gray, or dorians portrait in the story, but also suggests wildes artistic life. in the story, wilde transferred “he” to “they”, which made the image of “self” multiplied and extended the moral of self-value, from which wilde saw the grotesque essence between illusion and disillusion. from the structure of dramatic identity of self-metamorphosis and ultimate intention of self-understanding under the guide of wildes tragic spirit, peoples souls are in resonance with his tragic life. we can thus experience a sensation of extreme beauty superior to that of the classicthe union of grotesque and sublimity. keywords: aestheticism, carnival, mask, grotesque, sublimity 重庆大学硕士学位论文 chapter i introduction 1 chapter i introduction when the god of sun apollo fell in love with sibyl, a prophetess in ancient greece, he made a promise and sibyl asked for eternal life. seven hundred years passed, as sibyl hung in a urn as a slight feather, children asked her: “what do you want, sibyl?” she answered: “death.” when she asked for her eternal ability to predict the world, she forgot her beauty corresponding to life. beauty is a form of talent, a miracle in wonder. what at best can make the beauty aroused from peoples souls and display itself? “what does it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul”(oscar wilde, the picture of dorian gray, 1891: 185)? the absolute value-understanding cannot give people feelings of aesthetic experience and artisitic charming. “like the painting of a sorrow,/ a face without a heart”(wilde, p185). only when the art is reflected in a certain mode of form to reveal peoples spiritual secrets, beauty then is possessed of a symbolic value, and self-consciousness is enabled with the eternal fascination. since adan and eva ate the forbidden fruit in the tree of good and evil, their opened dim eyes greeted “a dream of form in days of thought”(wilde, p12) between heaven and hell. as you are old with white hair in the upcoming end of trip in your life, what a surprising ecstasy that you have found a boy shining with his glittering eyes in a dancing pose in a portrait. the time in the present and the past together point to the future, and the time of future correspondingly exists in the past. “our future would be the same as our past”(wilde, p53). all ways end at the same point. when the time waits for our discovery, we go through the door in memory which ever was our disunderstanding starting point. we can feel the breath of waterfalls in the source of endless river and childrens happy emotion in orchard. the whole paradise defines “the lines of a fresh school, a school that is to have in it all the passion of the romantic spirit, all the perfection of the spirit that is greek”(wilde, p13). in the fresh school, we realize that something precious is losta kind of harmony of soul and body. baudelaire said that he loved recalling the age of no guise. it is a pursuit of beauty a wonderful harmony and a pleasant experience in sensationoriginated from primitive desire. what is beauty at best? a man said his “beauty had been to him but a mask, his youth but a mockery. what was youth at best? a green, and unripe time, a time of shallow moods, and sickly thoughts”(wilde, p190). then “what of art”(wilde, 重庆大学硕士学位论文 chapter i introduction 2 p169)? “it is a malady”(wilde, p169). the pursuit of art becomes an illusion that, “was it really true that one could never change? he felt a wild longing for the unstained purity of his boyhoodhis rose-white boyhood”(wilde, p189). the inner incongruous grotesque essence of illusion and disillusion slides between metamorphoses and thoughts, as the intoxication in body and the release from soul. in this dionysiac carnival, soul and body are in perfect harmony. the artistic impulse is satisfied in the drunken image, which reveals the original innocent state of soul in the form of metamorphosis, and mans whole symbol ability is provoked in the highest extent: “sublimity is the echo of a great soul”(longinus, 1st a.d), and it inspirs peoples benumbed spirit. in the combination of dionysiac tragic spirit and clownish carnivalized formality, and in the harmony of the grotesque and sublimity, beauty is described in perfection, which is completely shown in oscar wildes aesthetic views in the literary movement of aestheticism in 1890s. 重庆大学硕士学位论文 chapter ii social background 3 chapter ii social background what is beauty at best? there are words “kalon” in ancient greek and “pulchrum” in ancient rome. in modern european countries, there are also many words about beauty to describe the pleasant things, such as “bello” in italian and spanish, “beau” in french, “beautiful” in english, “schon” in germany and “piekny” in polish(the history of western aesthetics concept, 1990: 163-164). words are the reflection of the reality. the existence of these words about beauty shows that beauty is in existence. thus there should be a corresponding theory about beauty. words on beauty are just to describe the forms of pleasing objects, and the pursuit of the essence is the most important basis of developing aesthetics in western culture; that is, what makes the different things beautiful? how can people feel them? according to peoples psychology, the ancient greek made a geomitrical division into three parts: recognition, will and emotion. among them, the research about emotion is developed to aesthetics. we can see that the acquisition of beauty is related to aesthetic psychology. it is the contrast of an object for the sake of itself. and this object can be an artistic works, or a natural thing. in the history of western literature, estheticians in each period of time try to make understanding about beauty in multiple aspects to reveal the truth, especially in the movement of aestheticism in the end of nineteenth century. the word “aestheticism” is got from the word of ancient greece, “aistheta”. it means the sensible things. since 1750, a.t.baumgartem, father of morden aesthetics, published his works aesthetica, this word “aesthetic” is then gradually used for evaluating the taste or the beauty of things, namely “aesthetic appreciation”. later, people use “cism” as a suffix to express an interest or inclination of the pursuit of pure beauty, which first showed their clues in ancient greek school of pythagoras and poems in the latter period of time in ancient rome“beauty is form”. saint thomas also thought that beauty existed in the harmony of form, then followed by the german philosopher immanuel kant in his critique of judgment(1790). he thought “the pure aesthetic experience consists of a disinterested contemplation of an object that pleases for its own sake, without reference to reality or to the external ends of utility or morality” (m.h.abrams,2004: 3). lessing and goethe proposed a concept of literature as the independent organism, and schiller was concentrated in his experimental practice of form in art. aestheticism then was developed in france, as a chief headquarter during the latter nineteenth century. in 重庆大学硕士学位论文 chapter ii social background 4 opposition to the dominance of traditional thinking and behaving of the society of their time, the writers developed a refreshing view that a work of art is the supreme value among human products precisely “because it is self-sufficient and has no use or moral aim outside its own being”(m.h.abrams,2004: 3). the works of art is simply to show itself and exist in its formal perfection, that is to sayart for arts sake. the aesthetic views were quickly introduced to victorian england by walter pater. he emphasized the value of art in course in his renaissance in 1873. he recommended ones life with exquisite sensations, and advocated the supreme value of beauty and of love of art for its own sake. in this sense, aestheticism is not only a literature theory, but also peoples views of life and value. in 1890s, the development of aestheticism in england made its summit. oscar wilde systematically expressed his aesthetic views of “art for arts sake” in the preface of the picture of dorian gray(1891). his drama salome(1893) originated from holy bible is also an outstanding art of concrete practice, about the aesthetic theory of self-control, self-content and form for the sake of the vitality of art in aestheticism. the nineteenth century took its name from the french words “fin de siecle”, namely “end-of-century”, when people seemed to be in a state of sorrowful mood on solitary roads at sunset, but at the same time they can get a delightful refreshing inspiration in soul against the current. the end of century historically has two meanings: firstly, it indicates that in 1820s and 1830s, the western people were all in a mood of pessimism, disappointment, cynicism and fear, in the consideration with the prospect of the world and civilization; that is, they thought the world would be to the doom. secondly, it indicates the writers and their arts with decadence and the inclination to pure beauty in 1880s and 1890s. people often combine the word “decadence” in europe in nineteenth century with the word “end-of-century”, to classify the writers and their arts with decadence and the inclination to pure beauty. decadence is based on qualities attributed to the literature of hellenistic greece in the last three centuries b.c, and to roman literature after the death of the emperor augustus in fourteenth century a.d. “these literatures were said to possess the high refinement and subtle beauties of a culture and art that have passed their vigorous prime, but manifest a special savor of incipient decay. such was also held to be the state of european civilization, especially in france, as it approached the end of the nineteenth century”(m.h.abrams,2004: 54). but there existed a different voice in the works fin de siecle and its legacy(1990), that mikulas teich and roy porter said, 重庆大学硕士学位论文 chapter ii social background 5 in the end of nineteenth century in europe, it had taken great change in each aspect in society, such as industry, hygiene, science, art, economy, politics and so on. therefore, it is unilateral for us to use this popular word “end-of-century” to make a conclusion to an age. if we still do as this, we may neglect the disavoidable diversity and complexity in that age. this particular literature current is not negative, and on the contrary, it is a literature movement in the pursuit of a certain model of creation, a vigor of vanguard and the pure nature of art. the starting points to the ending, while the ending claimed means the starting. standing at the same point in a same circle, any behavior has a chance to trigger an opposite power to compose a markable bywords. people try to investigate and discover the world, by the attraction of a magic voice in memory. they recollect our starting point, and there they can hear the sound of waterfalls in the source of endless river, they can find a wonderful scenery. but only a few who are possessed of strange views can enjoy the fanciful scenery, for not everybody can appreciate the tide in tranquility and grasp the temporary present and elusive eternity. in the western literature, there is a strange phenomenon. the artists, who are able to see the splendid scenery, ordinarily sacrifice their life to talent. “we have been living, as it were, the life of three hundred years in thirty” is the impression formed by thomas arnold. by the end of the century, a late victorian could look back with astonishment on great development during lifetime. walter besant, observed that so completely transformed are “the mind and habits of the ordinary englishman” by 1879, “that he would not, could he see him, recognize his own grandfather”. it experienced a host of social and economic problems consequent to rapid and unregulated industrialization. the changes in attitude that had begun to crop up in 1870s, became much more conspicuous in the final decade of the century and give the nineties a special aura of notoriety. the views of value was vulgar, the art was commercial, and the social morality is hypocritical. much of the writing at that time illustrated a breakdown of a different sort, and some writers smartly observed the great contradiction between the appearance and the truth of life, were very much aware of living at the end of the great century and cultivated a deliberatedly end-of-century. they resisted the corrupt world, opposited to hypocritical morality. the artists themselves and their artistic images in works both accomplished an archetype, “artist in end-of-century”. in them, there was a necessary element of disaster, that is, they had the same life. after a brilliant beginning, they became to deprave consciously or nearly unconsciously, and at last it led to doom and death. it is a tragic life, which but usually shines the astonishing power to form 重庆大学硕士学位论文 chapter ii social background 6 personal characteristic aesthetics. among the shining powers, oscar wilde was an outstanding representative at that time. he practised his aesthetic views. at that time, the english society was conservative, and what people said and did should in accordence with the serious social behavior and moral standard. wilde decided to break up the traditional chain. to be aware of the hypocritical social essence, wilde was bravely against the current. he delighted his listeners not only by his polished wordplay, but also by uttering opinions that were both outragious and incongruous. moreover, his literary output showed the versatility of his inventive power as well as the complexity of his social and artistic ideas. he was known for his brilliant comedies, his witty paradoxes and epigrams, and the cleverly constructed plots. from all accounts he was a dazzling conversationalist. yeats said, “i never before heard a man talking with perfect sentences, as if he had written them all overnight with labor and yet all spontanious.” these was an area we cannot neglect when we referred to his anti-traditional view, in which his aesthetic discrimination played an important part. it was his dress. “wildes appearancehis long hair and velvet suit and furtrimmed greatcoat, and his superbly judged, highly mannered style of deliverycontrived to ensure that it was essentially his pose in the high-aesthetic line, even more than any serious aspect of his message, which struck home to his vast transatlantic audience, fascinating and enraging in about equal measure” (peter raby,2001: 40). what he worshiped was the creed: the personal experience overrides all limits. we can see, wildes aesthetics emphasized on sense, form and instant feelings to beauty. he thought that the sense itself was an end, and the eagerness to this sense was a sublime business. oscar wilde(1856-1900), was an irish poet, a dramatist, a novelist and also an essayist. his powers of self-dramatisation were met during his lifetime by multiple dramatisations of his persona in the public domain. cartoons, plays, spoof biographies, poems, songs and dances were all composed in response to the elaborately constructed “ego” which wilde put on display. when walter hamilton wrote to him in 1889 collecting parodies for what would become his six-volume anthology parodies of english and american authors (1884-1889), wilde replied: “i have never collected the parodies of my poetry. collecting contemporaneous things is like trying to hold froth in a sieve. parody, which is the muse with her tongue in her cheek, has always a