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1、 英语系毕业论文The Mixture of the Old and the New-An Analysis of Scarletts Characteristic in Gone with the Wind1. Introduction As a novel that reflect the American history and social custom in the middle 19th century, theres no doubt that Scarlett, the main character in Gone with the Wind, is an “individua
2、l” fighter with unique features, it likes Rastignac that in order to accomplish his cause, he could lose his conscience and cross the moral baseline. The difference is, “Rastignac is turn from good to evil, but Scarlett is both good and evil” （Myers, Jeffery ,2001:102）, between the intertexture of t
3、his “good” and “evil”, she owns the wealth and position she dreamed of, instead of it, she loses her close skin (mother Ellen and daughter Bonnie), her loves person Ashley, her respectful friend Melanie, and Rhett, a person loved her best. After all people that loves she and she loves have gone, the
4、 novel leaves us a person to think a person with joy and anger, love and hate, confuse and hope. Wolfgang Iser states his opinion briefly: “Now whatever judgments may have been passed on the work will also reflect various attitudes and norms of that public, so that literature can be said to mirror t
5、he cultural code which conditions these judgment. This is also true when the readers quoted belong to different historical ages, for whatever period they may have belonged to; their judgment of the work in question will still reveal their own norms, thereby offering a substantial clue as to the norm
6、s and tastes of their respective societies.”（朱刚，2001:198）This article tries to go deeper into Scarletts respectable character and her questions that also can be meditated by the readers.2. Struggle: Hardship, Brevity, Loneliness, OptimismAmerican Spirit is a kind of special product of America in thi
7、s new continent. “In there, the only limit to peoples development and self-improvement is their own shortcomings.” (卢瑟S利德基,1993:120) In human beings opinion, America is a country where men and women can start their new lives. So American thinkers often encourage people to excavate and pay attention
8、to their own values. “Golden dream” and “loving dream” are two typical cases among these. (刘晓文，1995:67) So there is no wonder of Scarletts pursuing on wealth and love, she is only one of thousands of main forces in pursuing American dreams. The only difference is that she is a woman, and actually ge
9、t some achievements among men relies on her becility and craftiness instead of imploration and compassion. When Scarlett steps out on the stage, she is only sixteen years old. Her modern life begins when the Civil War fires. Before this, Scarlett was living a free and ease life. Her mother and grand
10、ma tried their best to mould her into a fair maiden, but Scarletts Ireland blood makes her willful and untrammeled. She, a female image fulfill of legendary, experiences cruel war and rough of rebuild after war. 2.1 Hardship and BrevityThe time background and family environment make Scarlett equippe
11、d with the ability of adapting to changes in society, this mainly depends on her own personalities. She bleeds the slave nobles blood, at the same time, she also has the bourgeois features.(韦建国，1996:276-277) American nation spirit always full with passion, never satisfying, and never stop, Scarlett
12、is a typical of this. She is full filled with aggressiveness, which belongs to the stronger. She is unruly, selfhood, reality, utility. She has intense tension of strive and decisive action competence. She is very masculinity, she never satisfy with the reality and dare to pioneer and adventure, her
13、 peculiarity of these spirits are very familiar to ancient Greeces. In her thoughts, she is afraid of nothing and she starting point is always relates to her real profits, even loving affairs must slide back into the second place. There are also doughty warriors around Scarlett, such as black amah,
14、her aunt and so on, but she always turns a deaf ear to their moralizations. She has the behavior standards of her own: looking forward to future and money forever. Before the war, Scarlett laughs at those slaveholders as they show no understanding of the reality and their thoughts are behind the tim
15、e, they can do nothing before the real conditions but only to cherish the memory of the beautiful old days that they have spent. Scarlett has the qualification to ridicule them as faced to ages great storms, she doesnt indulge herself in the old days, instead, she chooses to be distinguished and kee
16、p pace with the times and finally surfing on time tide easily.During the war, Scarlett suffers numerous difficulties, but she never holds back, she will prop up an new area of life. Tara is the main source of the whole family, and only soil can give her support in the mind. For Tara, where her heart
17、 belongs to, she can do everything no matter it is proper or not. Excepting the real profits, there is no space for the moral idea that a woman should obey of that times in her minds dictionary. She walks out of the family, proves a womans courage and capability forcefully through her practical acti
18、ons. She engages in the work that belongs to men in her society and undertake the responsibility that also belongs to men, all these she has done are by her. It is hard to imagine how difficult it will when she does these in that times. Her struggle forms a distinct contrast against Ashleys escaping
19、 and highlight her strength that as a woman.2.2 LonelinessSince the 20th century, “loneliness” this word has appeared frequently and became the noticed topic to many people. Modern society is a place that everyone emphasizes on their own selves and cult of their personalities; everyone has the stron
20、g conscious of egocentrism. The development of production capacity motivates the improvement of society, but at the mean time, it alienates the relationship between human beings. Peoples communications fall into a predicament, they are isolated by a thick wall. Everyone is covered by a mask and gott
21、en defensive with others. Smiling is becoming apparent、rigidify and no longer representative peoples true thoughts.(Zhumei, 2007:38-39) On the contradictory, everyone are all aspire for been concerned with, aspire for their communications can be going on between heart to heart, but this “ great aspi
22、ration” cant be realized by every person. Scarletts struggle processing is full of sounds, but boisterous belongs to others, the busiest place often is the loneliest place. Loneliness is invisible, isolation is inevitable. As a reflecting character of Mitchells age, loneliness full fills Scarletts d
23、eep heart. During the process of revealing the homeland and pursuing material wealth, Scarlett gets her personalities stretched, gets her aptitude expressed, however, she doesnt get any bosom friend. At the end of the work, Scarlett gains some achievement on material, but doesnt gain an end-result f
24、or her heart. People loved she and she loved all have gone; she obtains the whole world at the cost of losing her soul. During the struggle, she has no time and vigor to take her mental state into account. While when she succeeds and has the time to do so, nothing has left for her to concern about.
25、When there is someone around her, she is still lonely as no one can understand her; when all people have gone, her loneliness comes to a higher degree and hardly to dispel.2.3 Optimism Loneliness is external and hidden in peoples mind. To readers, they are mostly moved by Scarletts steadiness and op
26、timism. She expresses supernormal self-confident and find more reasons for herself before she does anything, no matter it is ethical or not. It is more aggressive of her at the time of fighting for love、family、marriage and careers, she has the inexhaustible vigor that never to be depleted. Even when
27、 Rhett leaves away, what she thinks is to come back to Tara to rest, to wait for him and find him back. Scarletts chief asset is that in front of every difficulty, she always can find comfort and retreat for herselfcome back to Tara and firmly believe that “ tomorrow is another day”, which is foreve
28、r her motto, optimism is the dominant spirit in the journey of her life.3. Retreating to Defend the Homeland and Pushing Forward to Modern Times Margaret began to create Gone with the Wind at the year of 1926 and published it in 1936. Capitalistic economic depression and World War II were just occur
29、red during these ten years. The most important topic in the early 20th century are material and mental, spirit and blood, tend to the new and stick to old ways, and the conflict in it are very outstanding. Capitalist material wealth that accumulated by hundreds of years is destroyed by World War I,
30、afterwards, peoples believes、value systems are destroyed by it in turn. The whole world becomes to be wildness on material, the old is destroyed before the new is buildup; the area of their mental is an empty desert. It is not only that people must bear the extremely shortage in material, but also s
31、tand the feeling of loneliness、anxiety、absurd and unsafe in mental, and they easily think of the stable plantation life terms of south American in the old days. We can know this better through the description of Scarletts life style before the war.Scarlett is living in the time during and after the
32、war. At that period, capitalism is largely put into effect in South America, and the value standards in the south have changed a lot. It is unavoidable that there are some traditional elements in Scarletts characteristic, at the same time, there are also modern elements that suit for living and deve
33、loping in the modern society. She is at the crossing of the road. 3.1 Pushing Forward to Modern Times For one thing, she can generally change her noble living habits from action to spirit and doesnt cherish that old passing day; this indicates that she is making her best to suit for the changing sit
34、uation, to tend toward to the new. Before the American Civil War, the South America carried on the system of semi-feudalism and semi-slavery, under this social system, women have the lowest position in the society; they are nothing but just mens dependency. A gentlewoman must know lest, eat lest and
35、 behavior more bashful. Even woman herself regards that as a truth and tries their best to educate their daughters to be more graceful. However, Scarlett is hard to docile; it is doubly difficult to turn her to be a law-abiding girl.(郑渺渺,2007:57) She is a realistic girl from young, she only particip
36、ate in activities what she real likes. She masters the “art” on how to please the men. She begins to question the traditional ethical code at the age of the young. In order to revenge Ashley, Scarlett married Charles quickly just one day before Ashley and Melanies wedding. Her behaviors express her
37、character: brave, infatuated, tough and tensile, fervent as fire. She pursuing love、equal、women independence, just likes a modern woman. Seen from the historical angle, Scarlett is the defector of that society; in the opinion of the modern people, she is new woman. When her husband Charles died duri
38、ng the war, she shows little sadness toward his dead. She detests live in widowhood, however, there are some strict principles about widows. The nature of Scarlett is full of energies, she loves freedom best. It is like the purgatory to ask her to obey the principles of widow. Traditional ethics hav
39、e penetrated in every aspect of the society. When Scarlett goes to her husbands home for a long stay, she is warned by Aunt Betty not to “break the pattern” constantly in the family, she is also monitored by common peoples behavior standards outside. For a short while, she has to bow to traditional
40、moral principles superficially. On one hand, war has brought her hurts, but on the other it also bought her chance to break the tradition. When Rhett pays lots of money only for having a dance with the widow Scarlett, there is no one confirms that she will respond, as it is the behavior that break t
41、he moral and no widow dears to go into this forbidden area before. But surprised to every people, she agrees and dances with him, she lays the tradition behind the thought bravely. Any hinder on tradition that stops her step has been kicked off by her from that on. Readers sympathizes with what she
42、has meet, appreciate her courage. In my opinion, it is perfectly justified for a woman to pursuing freedom and love; it is anti-humanity of South American moral principles.Scarlett is the pioneer of womens liberation after war. It is not only combated by her husband when she found her first cutting-
43、wood factory, but also encountered lots of discussion from the society. She proves that that the womens stages are not only in their families, they are not the race only can do small deals, but also can start their own industry and commerce and get succeed by her real activities. In her opinion, the
44、 things that men can do also can be done by the women; it needs to break the routine if you want to be succeeded. And Scarlett is a woman of this kind. She keeps step with the time and never afraid of difficulties, saying from this meaning, Scarlett is the founder of the new society and also the spo
45、kesman of the feminist movement in early-stage. 3.2 Retreating to Defend the Homeland For another, she can never give up Tara as soil is forever her bedrock and the most love thing; this is the traditional aspect of her. Although we have saw her intense aspect of tend to the new, she still anxious a
46、bout her spirit home Tara at every times. She needs to save her last spirit homeland.Human beings cant prevent the step of historical course; the old will always be replaced by the new. At the time when people lose the old ways, naturally they will feel confused and dont know what to do. They fail t
47、o prevent and want to find mental entrust to care of from the old. When people get rich in material wealth, at the same time of enjoying their material desires, they often feel disappointed, as there is some missing in their deep hearts, vacuous and lose full fills their lives and feelings will acco
48、mpany them like their shadows. At this condition, they may encounter the mental crisis easily as their spirit and blood are in a intense battle. (刘晓伟, 2007:235)The most important reason for why modern people often feel blank is that they cant find a home for their spirits. So under writers pen, ther
49、e appear more literature works that main subjects are about pursuing spirit homeland. Cherishing the homeland is not simply cherishing the soil land where have been lived, but the chiefly to find a home for their tired hearts. Maybe at there, it can be not rich on material, but they can get easy in the mind and free in the spirit. Those who cannot find home for their soul, their minds will be lonely and will keep on the road all the time, they will not know where to stay permanently