论文总字数：27875字

摘 要

《嘉莉妹妹》是德莱赛的一部伟大作品。讲述了主人翁嘉莉来到芝加哥追求更好的生活,先后与推销员杜洛埃和酒店经理赫斯特伍德同居，后又凭自己的能力步入上流社会的故事。

本文将以女性主义视角探究《嘉莉妹妹》。文章的主体分为三个部分：第一部分关于嘉莉对父权社会的反抗；第二部分分析了她在经济上的独立；第三部分探究了她最后如何实现了自己的目标。

通过分析《嘉莉妹妹》，这篇论文旨在给当今女性一些启示。引导女性思考如何实现自我价值，获得真正的独立。

关键词：《嘉莉妹妹》；女性主义；父权制；女性意识

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature Review 1

3. Resisting the Patriarchy 3

3.1 Oppression from Patriarchy 3

3.2 Resistance to Patriarchy 4

4. Getting Economic Independence 5

4.1 The Change of Traditional Gender Roles 5

4.2 The Pursuit of Economic Independence 6

5. Achieving Goals 8

5.1 Realization of Pursuing Material Comfort 8

5.2 Realization of Pursuing Spirit 9

6. Conclusion 10

Works Cited 12

1. Introduction

Theodore Dreiser is the pioneer of modern American novel. In 1900, he published his first novel Sister Carrie. The novel is about a girl named Carrie goes to Chicago to pursue a better life. After experiencing difficulties, she leaves her sister’s home and cohabits with Drouet. When Drouet refuses to marry her, she feels disappointed and becomes Hurstwood’s mistress. Hurstwood soon reduces to live like a dog after stealing money. Carrier finds work in the theater and becomes popular gradually. She leaves Hurstwood and lives a life with glory, splendor, and wealth just as she desires.

In the 19th century, the center of the feminist movement moved to the United States. There are three feminist waves in American history. The first wave began in the late 1840s because of the first Women Conference. The theme of the conference is feminism, the rights of gender equality were stated in the conference.

In 1920, the US Congress passed the Nineteenth Amendment. Later women have the right to vote. It marked the first feminist movement was drew to a successful close.

Because of the feminist movement, women begin to realize their subservient position. They no longer believe that their responsibilities are only about bringing up children and becoming their husband’s vassals. The oppressed women fought against the patriarchal society and demanded equality of politics, economy and society.

The industrial revolution makes many women go to work. They get economic independence and shake the position of men as breadwinners. The economic independence of women is a compensation on the loss of rights between women and men, it leads to the liberation of women

2. Literature Review

Sister Carrie was first issued by Doubleday, pageamp;Co. Since 1900, it has been the focus of American critics and is studied widely by scholars from all over the world. In the early 1920s, many scholars researched it from the perspective of the relationship between literature and public morality.

Many critics appreciate this novel like Sinclair Lewis thinks that it breaks vestiges of Puritan morality in America. Sherwood Anderson holds the view that the feet of Dreiser are making a path for us and they are tramping through the wildness making a path.

Sister Carrie is controversial since it was published. Carrie is abused as a fallen woman by traditional critics and this novel is attacked strongly. Many critics condemn that he had eradicated distinctive human values and had made animal instincts the supreme fact in human life”.

By the late 1960s, people researched the richness of the novel. From the 1980s to the 1990s, people took Dreiser’s life and work as a reflection of the beliefs and values of his time.

The criticism of the novel is mainly divided into three parts. In the first half of the 20th century, it was about the novel’s historical background. From the 1960s to the 1970s, it was studied from the view of structuralism. From the 1980s till now, people hold the view that Carrie has the rebellious spirit.

Domestic scholars begin to study Dreiser in the 1930s. His works were first introduced to china by Qu Qiubai who gave Dreiser’s work high appraise.

The criticism of Dreiser’s works in China began from 1978 but there were only a few studies. From the 1990s till now, there are more and more studies of Dreiser and his works. People study his works from the perspective of naturalism, Freudian psychology, realism, feminism and so on.

Some people interpret it from feminist perspective. Simone de Beauvoir’s analyzes woman’s different situation in different life phrases and makes judgments on potential predicament she may encounter. She thinks that the reference to distinguish women is men and it is necessary for women to gain economic independence. She also explains social causes of narcissistic woman, woman in love and pious woman.

“the only way to liberty is to be independent”. She emphasized that “only by improving economic status, can woman be equal with man in the society which is man-dominated.” (Beauvoir 134)

3. Resisting the Patriarchy

3.1 Oppression from Patriarchy

“Patriarchy, it is male-centered and controlled, and is organized and conducted in such a way as to subordinate women to men.”(Sloane 23)

Women are subordinate in marriage and the society. In the home, the roles played by husband and wife are different. Husband works outside to earn money. Wife is just a housewife to take care of her husband and children. The different roles they played are caused by the patriarchal society. The life of Minnie and Hanson is a typical example.

Minnie and Hanson live in a small house. Hanson is a laborious man, he works from morning to evening without resting and endures the whole cost of family. Minnie is a housewife, she does housework everyday and takes good care of Hanson and their baby.

In Carrie’s initial exploration of a happy life, her sister and Hanson do not provide any help, but excite her vanity by their own repression and make her even more eager for a life of luxury. Their only concern is her weekly 4 dollars board fee. When Carrie can not find any work after she is ill and laid off, Hanson and her sister urge her to go back home.

On the train to Chicago, Carrie meets with Drouet who likes pursuing beautiful lady by using sweet talk. He represents the energetic part of Chicago. The second time she encounters him, he invites her to a restaurant, buys her beautiful clothes and takes her to enjoy dramas.

He gives Carrier $40 to buy clothes which is a huge sum to her. “She felt that she was immensely better off for the having of them. It is something that has power in itself.”(67)

When she wears new Clothes, “Carrie turned before the glass. She could not help feeling pleased as she looked at herself. A warm glow crept into her cheeks.”(67)

The descriptions of Carrie’s beauty and Drouet’s wealth reflect different standards of the patriarchal society to judge men and women. “The destiny of woman and her sole glory are to make beat the hearts of men...she is a chattel and properly speaking only a subsidiary to man” (Beauvoir 124 )

In the patriarchal society, women are seen as the property of men, they are supported by men financially. What women need to do is to satisfy men by making up themselves. In that society, Carrie is no exception. It is reasonable for her to choose to live a wealthy life. She has no capacities of telling truth from lies, she does not have enough social experience and her horizon is narrow.

Carrie meets with Hurstwood through the introduction of Drouet. Hurstwood represents a superior and more beautiful life. Unsatisfied with Drouet, she lives with Hurstwood together soon. Many scholars abuse Carrie as a fallen woman because she cohabits with many men. Actually, Carrie wants to get protection, support and compassion, she hopes that marriage can let her life be perfectly justifiable. However, Hurswood just enjoys the joy of getting the beautiful lady, he doesn’t want to marry her.

In the patriarchal society, most crimes related to sex are attributed to women. Carrie is oppressed by the patriarchal society in family. She is influenced by feminine nature to seek masculine protection and attention and she carries with traditional feminine values of affiliation to man.

3.2 Resistance to Patriarchy

With the development of the feminist, thousands of women flood the city to support themselves by working. They fight for equal rights and greater independence. Carrie leaves her hometown to Chicago with only little possessions under such background.

Her feminist consciousness can be found by comparing with Minnie who is a typical woman with features of Victorian Women. Minnie and Hanson’s life is different from the world outside. They are frugal, laborious and indifferent. Minnie pins her hopes on her husband . However, Carrie is unwilling to be subordinate and she pins her hopes on herself.

One day Hurstwood steals pup’s money and deceives Carrie to leave. “The sea was already full of whales. A common fish must need disappear wholly from view-remain unseen. ”In other words, Hurstwood is nothing. (179)

Carrie realizes that she can not depend on Hurstwood any more. Her revolt is quiet, she decides she will not “live cooped up in small flat”.(186) She begins to go to work again. Before long, Carrie makes a great success by becoming the most famous actress and is pursued by many men. She earns much money and enters the upper-class society.

Carrie is at the center of a man-dominated world. Her insistence on stepping on the stage reflects her revolt against the patriarchal society. She attempts to get rid of masculine control and shows her challenges to the social restrictions. She doesn’t just revolt against men, she revolts against the role she is supposed to follow.

The new woman typically has a career and is economically independent. Carrie is such a new woman, she deserts Hurstwood, earns money on the stage. She is different from the passive girl who yields to Drouet’s solution for her trouble. When Hurstwood can not find a job and pay for family cost, Carrie supports him generously.

After hesitating which way to choose, she finally jumps out of the circle of her small family. Due to Carrie’s success and Hurtswood’s increasing laziness, the family goes to final disintegration without the protection of marriage. Carrie finally gets rid of depending on men and becomes an independent new woman from a rural girl.

Men control women economically, this is one of the most effective ways to realize the domination of patriarchy. Men dominate women by family. The family is the basic unit of patriarchy, which plays an important role in maintaining social mechanism.

Only when Carrie has the ability to live independently, can she put herself in the equal position with men instead of looking up them. Carrie’s success shakes patriarchy. Economic factor is the decisive factor. Poverty is not only the fundamental reason to force her to attach to a man, but also is the driving force to make her successful. She is considered inferior and often neglected for her independence. Gradually, when she has nobody to rely on, she actively pursue what she wants and get rid of the oppression of patriarchy.

4. Getting Economic Independence

4.1 The Change of Traditional Gender Roles

“Due to long-term effect of patriarchy, many women don’t know that they take masculine standards as theirs. Women cater to masculine aesthetic ideals and value because they depend on men economically.” (Woolf 42)

The social and cultural changes influence people’s life. Industrialism creates proletariat at the mercy of external forces what they can’t control. The gap between the rich and the poor becomes wide. To the poor, the city life is full of insecurity, pain and violence. Under such background, women begin to consider their place in the society. Because of the harsh and indifferent world, man is no longer kind to everyone, and the dream that man can depend on divine for help and guidance is broken. Life becomes a struggle for survival.

It also affects people’s ideas. American industrialization leads to city boom, more and more people immigrate from the countryside to the city. In1889, Chicago is like “A giant magnet drawing to itself from all quarters the hopeful and the hopeless. The metropolis is to lots of people like a lighted candle to the moth:some people’s fortune and affairs had reached a disastrous climax.” (21)Economic pattern transforms from agricultural pattern to industrial one, and also changes the pattern of traditional family.

As we all know, the virtues that women should hold in agricultural economy are purity, submission and diligence, the roles of women are housewives and mothers.

As factories demand large quantities of labor, a lot of people leave their home to work in the factory. The family centered on economy is gradually changed. When women go outside to work, the meaning of family also changes. Women hope to redefine themselves.

Before industrialization, women are seen as labors in the family. After the beginning of industrialization, women spend more and more time on the field outside their family. As a result, they are no longer satisfied with doing housework and have more demands on spirit. Due to these changes, the virtues cherished by women are broken and are replaced by consumption culture which emphasizes spending and undermines the virtues like frugality and diligence. Many women divorce with the traditional gender role. They escape the domination of men and be new independent woman.

4.2 The Pursuit of Economic Independence

Woman gained an economic importance because the industrial revolution changed female fate and opened an new era for them. Women went outside and play new roles in the factory. Machine made the change possible because the difference of physical strength between men and women basically don’t work in production. The Increasing of industry needed large quantities of labors than men alone could provide.

Sister Carrie shows the change of the economy, it is driven by consumption. We can get the concept when Carrie rejects the hard work favored by her sister, Minnie, a typical housewife with virtues of: purity, submission and domesticity. Minnie is busy looking after the whole family everyday. But her life is not good. “The first class antagonism which appears in history coincides with the development of the antagonism between man and woman in the monogamous marriage and the first class oppression with that of the female sex by the male.”(Engels 66)

The man-dominated economy results in flattery of women to men. Women therefore think that they are inferior to men. They submit to their husband to be housewives. As a result, they lose the abilities of thinking independence.

Women can escape the oppression from men because of the importance their work would take on through industrial revolution. Carrie starts to find job with a few dollars. Even she finds a job, she can not win economic independence for her little salary. Carrie is always not satisfied with what she has got. When she lives with Drouet, her dream is realized. But she feels dissatisfied again after seeing splendid buildings with gardens. She looks out of the window to enjoy beautiful buildings, then she has no desire to eat. The clothes she wears are bought by Drouet, she still has no economic independence.

After cheated by Hurstwood, she still depends on men. With the fall of Hurstwood, her consciousness of economic independence begins to grow. She eventually succeeds in finding a job as an actress. Now, she desires for more upscale houses In New York. She regrets her decision to live with Hurstwood when she realizes Hurstwood’s humbleness. When Hurstwood proposes to live in a smaller flat after his business goes bankrupt, it shows that his life faces a crisis and he is not a wealthy man any more.

As we said above, women are subordinate in marriage because the roles they played are different from men. Men work outside to earn money. Women just stay at home. Masculine privilege actually is their economic privilege. Women are oppressed by men because they don’t have economic status. However, this time Carrie exchanges her role with Hurstwood when she starts to earn the money while Hurstwood waits to live on her labor. Her increasing wage lets her confident and makes her know that she can leave her domestic sphere to pursue a better life by herself. After breaking from Hurstwood, she completely become a woman of economic independence.

5. Achieving Goals

5.1 Realization of Pursuing Material Comfort

If Carrie does not come to Chicago, she may lead a simple life in the countryside. However, in Chicago, she is attracted by the wealth of city and desires to get whatever she wants.

According to Maslow, human needs can be arranged: requirement for survival at the bottom and self-actualization at the top. The physiological needs are the basic needs like food and clothes. So what she needs to do at first is to get food and clothes to live.

When she loses the job and her relatives are indifferent to her, she is sad, however,

“The life of the streets continued for a long time to interest Carrie. She never wearied of wondering where the people in the cars were going or what their enjoyments were. Her imagination trod a very narrow round, always winding up at points which concerned money, looks, clothes, or enjoyment”.(49)

So Carrie’s desire does not vanish despite the difficulty. Her desire of living a better life gives her power to move forward. During the process of her realization of goals, she shows great bravery and persistence. In capitalist society, this commercialization destroys previous social relations, and penetrates into many fields. Everyone can’t escape capitalist relations. The commercial values distort the relationship between man and woman. Commercialization of sex desire makes the relationship between man and woman break into pieces. Sex desire plays an important role in consumer society, and it affects social life. “ Sex is the most important thing in consumer society. Everything for consumption is connected with sex exposition. Of course sex is also used for consumption itself ”(全志刚 159)

As an girl from countryside, Carrie wants to live a cozy life like other women. However, the cruel reality of life shocks her. As above, when she looks for a job, she meets with difficulties, and her efforts vanish with failure because of her female identity. Finally, she realizes she can not live the life she wants only by herself and she has no choice but to find another way. Through living with Drouet and Hurstwood, she knows that her body is an advantage. Carrie begins to improve the charm of her body, imitates those beautiful ladies. Finally she becomes an elegant lady with beautiful dresses and good manners. Thus, she treats body as commodity to live a better life.

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