对《天黑前的夏天》的生态女性主义解读

论文总字数：80946字

摘 要

多丽丝·莱辛(1919-2013)通过关注女性和自然反思现代社会文明。在她的小说《天黑前的夏天》中，女主人公多次梦见一只受伤的海豹，以一种隐喻的方式描画了女性与自然之间的共情关系。本文采用生态女性主义的研究角度，探索女主人公的认知困境和成长过程。

论文分为五个部分。第一部分简要介绍了莱辛小说《黑暗中的夏天》，关于小说的国内外的相关研究和生态女性主义的主要概念。第一到第三章为论文的主体部分。第一章讨论父权统治下的女性和自然。凯特陷入困境和海豹伤痕累累就是具体的体现。在男性主导的社会，凯特被迫接受性别角色使她在婚姻生活中失去了方向，以一种隐喻的方式和梦中受伤的海豹相互映衬。在第二章中，论文分析了女性与自然的亲密关系关系。正如文化和绿色生态女性主义者苏珊·格里芬指出的那样，女性往往更加亲近自然。在小说中，凯特从她的花园中得到安慰，作为自然象征的水也给予凯特希望。第三章探讨凯特如何走出阴影、实现自我转变以及海豹回归海洋。在大自然的帮助下，凯特从痛苦的过去中挣脱出来，实现了她的身份认同，在自我发现之旅中，对自我、婚姻有了更深刻的理解。同时，在凯特的帮助下，挣扎的海豹终于回归大海，免受伤害。通过上述三章的解释和分析，论文总结了女性和自然共同的遭遇使她们更加亲近，她们的共情关系使她们有一个明亮的未来。

关键词：天黑前的夏天；多丽丝·莱辛；凯特；海豹；共情关系

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………...….....i

English Abstract……………………………………………………………………...ii

摘要…………………………………………………………………………………...iii

Introduction………………………………………………………………………….1

Doris Lessing and The Summer before the Dark………………………………….1

Literature Review on The Summer before the Dark……………………………….2

Theoretical Framework: Eco-Feminism…………………………………………...5

Thesis Structure……………………………………………………………………7

Chapter One Patriarchal Domination over Women and Nature………………….9

1.1 Kate’s Predicament……………………………………………………………9

1.2 A Scarred Seal in Struggle……………………………………………………12

Chapter Two Empathy between Women and Nature ……………………………17

2.1 Women as Caretakers of Nature……………………………………………...18

2.2 Nature as a Shelter for Women……………………………………………….22

Chapter Three Illuminating Future for Women and Nature…………………….26

3.1 Kate’s Transformation and Self-construction………………………………...26

3.2 Seal’s Return to the Sea…………………………………………………........31

Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………...34

Works Cited…………………………………………………………………………36

Introduction

Doris Lessing and The Summer before the Dark

Doris Lessing, a prolific British novelist with fickle style, known as the literary "evergreen", won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2007. She is described by the Swedish Academy as “that epicist of the female experience, who with skepticism, fire and visionary power has subjected a divided civilization to scrutiny”(230). Her works pay more attention to contemporary social civilization, the conflict of gender, race and other contradictions, displaying her reflection on the modern society and her analysis of modern civilization. She is in possession of a strong sense of social responsibility.

Doris Lessing is one of the extraordinary women whose profound insight into the nature of intellectual life today command international interest and admiration. Her Golden Notebook is her masterpiece, involving the contradiction of class, discrimination of sex and politics. The Summer before the Dark(1973) is not on her list, but it is a refined piece to read, which is as the best novel after Marquez's “One Hundred Years of Solitude”. Mrs. Lessing is always concerned about the situation of women in the modern time. But her treatment of the emotional gulf that opens up before a middle-aged woman no longer needed as a wife and mother is a starting point for much more：a confrontation with the threat of annihilation, the terrors of old age and death.

Kate Brown is the protagonist in the novel. She is faced with the prospect of being alone for the first time in twenty years. Her children grow up; her husband, a successful neurologist, is going to work for some months in an American hospital. Urged by him to take a job, she finds herself acting as an interpreter for an international conference on food, flying off to Turkey for another conference, to Spain for an affair with a younger man… starting the exploration, freedom and self-discovery travel. In Kate’s journey, the frequent occurrence of the dreams of a seal's injury and the psychological changes of the Kate are reflected against each other in a metaphorical manner, and her garden and the image of water appear many times, which depicts the empathy relationship between women and nature. In this sense, interpreting this work from the perspective of eco-feminism can gain new explanations and understand the cognitive predicament and growth of the heroine better.

Susan Linfield indicates that Kate is the first one that depicts a different stage of life, that of the aging woman who recognizes both her psychological and physiological life changes and eventually embraces them in the process of getting along with nature(60). Katherine Fishburn puts it that, Lessing portrays a woman who does not necessarily experience a radical breakdown but whose biological tendencies allow her to become a new one and realize her transformation with the help of nature(200).

Literature Review

In fact, the research on Doris Lessing is not a recent development and the directions of studies concerned with The Summer before the Dark are various. Many researches study it from the angle of narrative strategies, symbolism, psychological research, feminism and so on. It is fortunate to witness that Doris Lessing and her book have received much attention over the years. Quite a few researches have been carried out to study her book The Summer before the Dark both abroad and at home.

Since the publication of Lessing's first novel in the 1950s, Western critics have begun to pay attention to Lessing's literary works. The relevant research results are very fruitful. At present, foreign commentators mainly focus on the following aspects in the study of the novel The Summer before the Dark.

First of all, most of the studies talk about the patriarchal domination over women and women’s predicament. Earl G. Ingersoll puts forward that women are going through an unprecedented feeling of subversion and its premise of subversion is that women have the courage to break through themselves(13). Supriya Agarwal mentions about the awakening of women(67). The whole novel with a simple line outlines the story of a married woman's self breakthrough, and by using some delicate techniques to show the awakening of women step by step. Thus it can be found that researchers often criticize the patriarchal domination and courage women’s awakening.

In addition, some studies focus on narrative strategies or techniques of The Summer before the Dark. For example, Russell Belk indicates that the novel is full of dream description, soliloquy and changing narrative perspectives(13). Swan Merrill indicates that Lessing uses the third-person omniscient narration technique to describe the heroine Kate’s mental torture that suppressed by the marriage and family bondage, and expresses the oppression of women by the traditional patriarchal system(209). At the same time, other minor figures also choose women to perform. Men mentioned in the article are also the gazed objects of the female figures, expressing women’s struggle for the right to speak and resistance to the patriarchal society, conveying the author’s voice skillfully. Claire Sprague also analyzes the novel from narrative patterns(135).

Besides, symbolism is another aspect for scholars to study. James Hopkins concentrates on the symbolic meaning of the title of the novel. He points out that the title well expresses the theme of the novel, namely Kate’s self-discovery journey and self-renewal(55). “Summer” is the season when the story begins, symbolizing the heroine's self-discovery dream and physical journey. The novel ends in autumn before the dark winter. “Darkness” not only represents Kate’s self as a living body, but also symbolizes her gradual aging body and eventually coming to death, expressing her psychological status, which means that she is always anxious and represses herself in her daily life. Kate has been making efforts to resist the suppressed life, trying to light up the dark side of her life. Therefore, it can be found that the title of the novel implies that Kate will realize her self-reconstruction before the coming of darkness. Social life can help women realize themselves but it cannot give them anything they want. The family plays an important role in the lives of women. If Kate wants to achieve her inner balance, she must find out her true spiritual appeal and what the family really means to her.

As her works continue to spread, in China, Lessing’s research began in the 1980s and formed a trend at the beginning of the 21st century. In recent years, especially after 2007, Lessing won the Nobel Prize for Literature, related research at home is gradually warming up, and the published research papers have grown dramatically(238).

In general, domestic studies on The Summer before the Dark are as follows:

First of all, many scholars studies in this novel from the feminism perspective. Wang Lina in the essay “Awakening at Dusk: A Feminist Study of The Summer before the Dark”, studies this novel from the aspect of feminine growth. She puts forward that Kate is aware of her boundaries of years of being an elegant wife and a qualified mother and she tries to reconstruct a new identity while suffering pain and confusion, and finally Kate will enter the phase of old age and her life goes into a new state of life(280). Other articles such as Jiang Yao’s “Spiritual Confusion and Self-awakening” and Zhang Xufang’s “Descent, Retreat and Return” are also from the perspective of feminism. Thus it can be concluded that many studies state that the difficult travel is necessary for women to find themselves and women should keep a balance between the family role and their own identity.

Second, some researchers apply the psychological analysis to interpret Kate’s physical, psychological and spiritual transformation. For instance, Chen Wei analyzes the novel from the perspective of analytical psychology in the article of “Kate’s Journey to Individuation: A Study of The Summer before the Dark from the Perspective of Analytical Psychology”. She points out that Lessing uncovers the fact that the protagonist Kate has incomplete personality and at the same time Lessing provides a blueprint for modern women who are in search of self-realization by depicting Kate’s self-quest in reality and dreams(25). Sun Yuan states in the thesis “A Freudian Interpretation of the Personality of Kate in The Summer before the Dark” from the aspect of Freudian psychoanalysis that Kate’s self-lost and self-quest are from the view of personality structure. The author also points out that the limitation of dreams is that dreams only provide her spiritual compensation but cannot solve the practical problems(38). Therefore it indicates that some researchers analyze the process of Kate’s physical and psychological change, and conclude that Kate experiences a psychological process of division and integration that regards the essence of her journey as a spiritual return.

Most of the studies analyze the book especially the part about the dreams of the seal from the feminist and psychological perspective. But indeed the seal is not only the soul meaning of the heroine Kate, but also represents the nature and ecology. So the research will interpret this work from the perspective of eco-feminism so that people can gain new explanations and understand the cognitive predicament and growth of the heroine better.

Eco-Feminism

Eco-feminism is the product of combination of feminist movement and ecological movement. It is put forward by French feminist scholar Francois d’ Eaubonne in the 1970s. It aims to set women and nature free and criticizes the rule and oppression of patriarchy, speaking highly of feminist culture’s function to solve the ecological problem. It combines the ecological problem with the gender problem. It has a distinct characteristic that it belongs to both women and ecology.

Eco-feminists make attempts to find out the roots. Eco-feminism opposes all kinds of unfairness and hierarchy in the patriarchy and fights against control and power. Eco-feminists speak ill of patriarchal society’s dualistic hierarchies and attempt to reconstruct some new concept of harmonious, co-existence and eco-centric relationships to take place of power-over relationship, rule and dominance. They are dedicated to creating a sustainable lifestyle for everything on earth and want to create an interconnected community where all beings –human, nature have their own living meaning and intrinsic value. They emphasize the harmonious relationship between man and nature, men and women. They are living together as a whole.

Eco-feminist literary criticism pays attention to ecological problem besides gender problem. Eco-feminists can see the connection between the liberation of women and the liberation of nature. They explore female problems through nature. Eco-feminist literary is a nature-women-centered way for literary study. The philosophy of it is the connections between human and nature, men and women, none of whom can be in dominance of others. With the eco-feminism developing deeply, the common roots of gender problem and ecological problem are dug out. The famous feminist G.Gaard puts forward that eco-feminism is just like a lake, and the water of different feminist peaks’ thoughts flows to this lake. There are also many activist roads leading to eco-feminist lakes, which contributes to the multiple pattern of eco-feminism with a variety of schools such as cultural eco-feminism, social eco-feminism and philosophical eco-feminism. Green eco-feminist literary criticism is another important genre of criticism for its direct and long-term influence(167).

Susan Griffin is one of the representatives of cultural eco-feminist and green eco-feminist. She advocates caring for nature, protecting animals, caring for the earth and the equality of species. Under the influence of the concept of ecological organic ethics, she advocates feeling and telling about the world with the eyes and hearts of women or animals and plants through the artistic techniques of empathy, which is very suitable to apply Susan Griffin’s theory to analyze Doris Lessing’s The Summer before the Dark(165). Doris Lessing has her unique angle of view in her works. She cares more about the marginalized people and things. Her works include many subjects such as different kinds of oppression: sexual discrimination, species discrimination, ecological crisis and so on. She pursues the harmonious relationship between human and nature, men and women. She believes human and non-human are an integral part in the world. She rejects anthropocentrism and thinks that human beings should respect nature and treat nature friendly. Doris lessing’s The Summer before the Dark is a good example that reflects her eco-feminist thought and can get a better explanation though Susan Griffin’s theory.

Thesis Structure

As is stated above, this research will analyze the novel The Summer before the Dark from the eco-feminist respective. First, the research reviews the main content of the book The Summer before the Dark and previous studies home and abroad about the book in the classification of theme. Then this research introduces the theoretical framework: eco-feminism. The theory of eco-feminism including its origin, the formation and the development of eco-feminism are introduced as they are the theoretical bases of the thesis. And this study will take cultural and green eco-feminist Susan Griffin’s idea to make a better explanation of the novel. Her eco-feminist thought that women are more intimate to nature can be used to illustrate the empathy relationship between women and nature.

The first chapter firstly analyzes the patriarchal domination over women and nature whose expressions are Kate’s predicament and a scarred seal in struggle. It discusses the protagonist’s obedience and compliance in the family which have a meaning of the blind worship for the male-dominated society and family tradition resulting in her losing herself in her marriage life while the seal in Kate’s dream has the same fate as Kate. Besides, this chapter analyzes the reason for both women and nature’s predicament.

The second chapter mainly analyzes the empathy between women and nature: women as caretakers of nature and nature as a shelter for women. As the cultural and green eco-feminist Susan Griffin points out that women tend to be more intimate to nature and they have the gift to get in close touch with nature. So in this chapter, garden as the embodiment of nature being looked after well by Kate and water as the symbol of nature giving Kate comfort and hope will be discussed and will get a better annotation by combining the Susan Griffin’s theory.

The third chapter focuses on the illuminating future for women and nature including Kate’s transformation and self-construction and seal’s return to the sea. With the help of nature, Kate breaks from the painful past and realizes her identification and her real initiation comes true. She has a better and correct understanding of ego, marriage, and responsibility through the self-discovery journey. At the same time, with the help of Kate, the seal who is in struggle finally returns to the sea free from harm.

Through the critical analysis of the above three chapters, the thesis concludes that empathy between women and nature depends on their same suffering and their gifted abilities. Besides, it is the empathy between them that shapes an illuminating future for both of them.

Chapter One Patriarchal Domination over Women and Nature

Anthropocentrism overemphasizes the value of human beings and put man in a dominant and ruling place. This overt emphasis on the power of man results in the oppression on women and nature. Women especially housewives are trapped in a predicament where they lose themselves and undergo severe crisis.

1.1 Kate’s Predicament

As is described at the beginning of the novel, “A woman with arms crossed, standing on the steps behind their house, waiting for something...she was trying to grab something and making it barely lying in front of her so that she can look at it closely and clearly” (Lessing 8). Kate is willing to serve her husband and children for 20 years with satisfaction. She regards taking care of the family as her own work and devotes herself to it. However, her husband gets further away from her and even has an affair with another woman outside in their marriage of many years. Her four children grow up and no longer need their mother’s help and company. Marion Arnold in her article mentions that she once was a happy housewife and satisfied with her daily life in her opinion(260). For the first time she has a feeling of confusion and isolation. She is slowly aging in trivial matters of the family. She wants to see clearly what kind of person she becomes. Too many things such as her patience, her gentleness and her time concern her and limit her, all becoming the target of the attack. Instead of encouragement, urged by her husband, she is invited to serve as an international Portuguese translator at the food conventions. At this conference, she has begun to redo the old job: to be a nanny, a nurse and a mother. Work is just like doing her own housework, mechanically and with ease.

Kate suffers a lot at home. But when she is trapped in the same situation at work, she enters a circulation without end.

As far as people are concerned, Kate needn’t do housework hard at home or worry about anything of her family members. It’s a liberation and freedom for her. She can do everything she wants, she can live for herself, and she can lead a life at her will. It’s an excellent and wonderful opportunity for Kate. However, in Kate’s opinion, she never thinks that she can own a long time that only belongs to herself. And she feels confused, lonely, and helpless when she masters herself. It is a great challenge for her to live on her own.

What makes her suffer this and why does she enter a circulation without end? That is what eco-feminists want to criticize. Eco-feminists point out the reason why women face different crisis on family, marriage and the predicament that women suffer.

In Ecofeminism: Women, Culture, Nature, Karren J. Warren’s representative work, the author explains how patriarchal domination frames in western countries become systematical. She also shows clearly that the origins of the exploitation of women and nature are rooted in the patriarchy hierarchy, the hierarchical system and binary opposition(23).

It can be found that patriarchy is the root, which is characterized by current and historic unequal power relations between women and men when women are disadvantaged and oppressed. It takes place across almost every sphere of life but is particularly noticeable in women’s duty to housework while men’s unwillingness to housework, women’s devotion to family while man’s neglect of family, women’s obedience to husband while men’s domination to wife.

In the case of Kate, Kate feels like a machine, setting the function as a wife and a mother. Undoubtedly, she is a victim of the patriarchal society. She gives up her dreams and marries Michel. She compromises out of consideration for the general interest and is quite accommodating and cares for overall interests for more than 20 years. Every day, her dressing is in a delicate manner matching with her identity, but she doesn’t like it. She is conscious that she’s been living in others’ expectations. She is deeply suppressed and she could not even choose what she wants. Her choice can only be arranged in accordance with the preferences of the family. Maybe it can’t be called her choice.

After getting used to the authority of the male-dominated society, Kate always puts herself in a very low position. Her children take Kate’s relocation and obedience for granted, and they also take deciding mother’s thought for granted. In addition, in order to balance family income, Kate does not go to the United States with her husband, because she knows that the philosophy of marriage is that one side gives, the other side takes. She thinks she should be the side who gives. And she is willing to stay at home to take care of her little son who is not a little child. She works for her children, their friends, friends, and friends. When a husband’s friend needs to find an interpreter for an international food organization, her husband does not wait for her to decide but already arranges for her, and rents their house simply and crudely regardless of Kate’s opposition. It can be seen from this that Kate suffers heavy patriarchy at home.

Dorothy Dinnerstein believes that the patriarchy will cause the traditional double standard that women should be absolutely loyal to men but men needn’t be loyal to women totally(26). And thus Kate has been living under the “wife” role and turns up as a gentle, considerate wife who should bear all the betrayal of her husband. She is surrounded by the concept of sexual loyalty between husband and wife and is limited by the awful concept. Although her husband Michael repeatedly claims that he only loves Kate and will love Kate forever, but he always has a little one-night stand outside. Although Kate realizes that her husband will not make changes or admit his mistakes, which deeply stabs Kate's heart, Kate is still forgiving him again and again and pretends to stand up or receive everything and continues to retain a friendly relationship with Michael on the surface. But in her inner heart, her tolerance suppresses her true self strongly. Her inner anger and disappointment are reflected in her dream when she is sleeping. Dream has potential meanings, almost every dream contains remains or mentions of memories of one or several things on the previous day. Kate always experiencing the harm of patriarchy, and therefore this kind of situation often happens in Kate's dream with no exception. For example, the king who is dancing with Kate suddenly abandons her and turns to a young and beautiful girl and dances with her. Kate is very angry but the king accuses her of being narrow-minded, unreasonable and not clear of the rules that govern life. The king states that as a king of a country, he must stands on the high stage in the face of the villagers, dancing with all the women in the kingdom, and no women can leave out.

This dream is exactly a true portrayal of the relationship between Kate and Michael. And, from Kate's dream, it is obvious that she is anxious about the relationship between husband and wife. Shaereh puts forward that sexual restraint or abstinence will inevitably cause “Libido” not to be satisfied, and “Libido” insists on venting but it cannot be sublimated in other ways, so abstinence will cause anxiety(42).

Although Kate loves her husband, and the sexual aspect does not seem to be unsatisfied, the husband’s infidelity to Kate and their marriage makes Kate’s sexual psychology suppressed and anxious. This is an important incentive for her to have an affair with another man when she is on her trip.

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