国美“黑人文学”对自我身份的探寻以拉尔夫埃利森《看不见的人》为例--本科毕业设计

The Seekingof African-AmericanLiterature’s Identity—Bythe Exampleof Invisible Man LiuConghui刘聪慧AcknowledgementsUponthefulfillmentofmypaper,Iwouldliketoexpressmy heartfelt gratitudetothosewhohavegivenmetremendoussupportand encouragement.Firstofall, I amgreatlyindebtedtomysupervisor,HuangXiaoli,Whonotonlyproofreadmyproofeadmydissertationingreatdetail,butalsoprovidedmewith invaluableguidance inmystudyoverthepassfouryears, I thankherforherenlighteninginstructions,forhergenerosityinspending her precious timediscussingwithmethequestionsinvolved inthisthesisaswellasforherconstantencouragementwhichisakindofinvisiblestrength inmywritingthe thesis.MygratefulnessalsogoestoprofessorandmanyotherrespectableteachersintheEnglishDepartmentofUniversityofScienceandTechnology,liaoning,fortheirinsightfullecturesandacademicintelligence.Finally andmostimportantly, I wouldgivemydeepgratitudetomy parents fortheirloveaswellasdevotedsupportandencouragementalltheseyears.Contents美国“黑人文学”对自我身份的探寻——以拉尔夫•埃利森《看不见的人》为例 摘要 《看不见的人》是拉尔夫•埃利森花费七年呕心沥血完成的唯一一部长篇小说，自1952年第一次出版时，被誉为划时代的小说，可以说是现代美国黑人生活的史诗。一些主要的书评报刊，如《纽约时报》、《时代》、《星期六评论》都高度赞扬了这部小说，一致认为它具有重要的文学价值，是美国黑人文学史上具有里程碑意义的小说，被誉为“划时代的小说，可以说是现代美国黑人生活的诗史”。作者拉尔夫埃里森也是因为这本书赢得了不朽的名声。《看不见的人》是一部黑人小说，同时也是一部典型的以身份危机作为主的小说。整部小说就是主人公，作为现代人的美国黑人，讲述他自己如何探索、寻找自我身份的生活历程。小说采用了“看不见”的表现形式，着重表现主人公所感受的精神压抑，描绘心理异化的过程，以主人公从天真幼稚走向认识成熟并最终觉醒所蒙受的苦难为主线，着重分析了主人公“我”探索自我身份所做出的努力，以及作为现代人的美国黑人在探寻自我身份过程中的异化感和自我身份的失落。本文主要通过阐述《看不见的人》这部作品中主人公迷失及寻找自我的生活历程，探究其在当时的社会背景下如何迷失自我和迷失自我的原因，包括种族、社会及自身的原因。并论述如何探寻自我身份和探寻自我身份的深远意义。不仅使读者对这部作品有更深刻的了解，并对自我身份的探寻有更多的认识与思考。因此，对自我身份的探寻具有深刻意义，启迪我们要正确认识自我，实现自我价值。    关键词：迷失；自我身份；探寻         The Seekingof African-AmericanLiterature’s Identity—Bythe Exampleof Invisible Man ABSTRACT InvisibleManistheonlysaganovelofRalphEllisonwhohasspentaslongassevenyearsdedicatingtofinish.Ithasbeenhailedasoneoftheepoch-makingnovelsandepicofthemodernAmericanblack’slives.SomeofthemajornewspaperssuchasTimes,NewYorkTimes,CommentsonSaturdayetc,highlypraisethisnovelforhavingimportantliteraryvalueandregasrditastheremarkofblackAmericanliteraryhistory.TheauthorRalphEllisonalsowonimmortalfameforthisbook.InvisibleManisablacknoveland,atthesametime,atypicalonewithidentityasthethemeofit.ThenovelisaboutthejourneyoftheprotagonistexploresandsearchesforhisownidentityasamodernblackAmerican.Thenoveltakesthe“invisible”fromasanexpression,paysmoreattentiontothespiritualdepressionthattheprotagonisthasalwayssensedperceivedanddescribestheprocessofpsychologicaldissimilation.Thisnoveltakestheprotagonist’spersuitforhisegoidentity,aswellastheenlightenmentofmodernhumanbeing’sseekingforselfidentityandsenseofalienationwhichmakeEllison’snoveldeeperinthemeandmoreprofoundinfluencethangenealblacknovels.Throughtheanalysisofthenarrator’slifeexperienceoflosingand lookingforhisidentity,thispaper points outthathowthenarratorlosthisidentityandthereasonsoflosingidentityincludingracism,thesocietyandthenarratorhimself. Thendiscusshowthenarratorlooksforhisidentityandthemeaningofseekingone’sidentity. Readers can notonly have amoreprofound understandingofthenovel,butalso havemorethinkingaboutseekingone’sidentity. Therefore,thereisa deeper meaningofseekingone’sidentity,allabove these, ittells us that weshouldhaverightself-recognition andachieveself-realization.  KeyWords: Lost; Identity; Seeking       CONTENTS 摘要ABSTRACTCONTENTSIntroduction1.About RalphWaldoEllisonand InvisibleMan1.1RalphWaldoEllison1.2 InvisibleMan2. The Lostof the Narrator’sIdentity2.1TheConfusionoftheSociety2.2TheConfusionoftheNarratorhimself3.TheReasonsoftheLostoftheNarrator’sIdentity3.1Racism3.2TheImpactof AmericanCulture3.3The InfluenceoftheNarratorHimself4.SearchforIdentity4.1 HisAwakening4.2HisFreedom4.3HisResponsibilityConclusionBibliographyAcknowledgements      1.Introduction 1.1 RalphWaldoEllison RalphWaldoEllison (March1,1914–April16,1994)wasanAmericannovelist,literarycritic,scholarandwriter.HewasborninOklahomaCity, afterhisthirdyear,EllisonmovedtoNewYorkCitytostudythevisualarts.HemadeacquaintancewiththeauthorRichardWright,withwhomhewouldhavealongandcomplicatedrelationship.AfterEllisonwroteabookreviewforWright,WrightencouragedEllisontopursueacareerinwriting,specificallyfiction.ThefirstpublishedstorywrittenbyEllisonwasashortstoryentitled"Hymie'sBull."From1937to1944Ellisonhadovertwentybookreviewsaswellasshortstoriesandarticlespublishedinmagazinessuchas NewChallenge and NewMasses.When World WarIIwasnearingitsend, Ellison was reluctanttoserveinthesegregatedarmy,chosemerchantmarineserviceoverthedraft.Ellisonisbestknownforhisnovel InvisibleMan,whichwaspublishedin1952andwontheNationalBookAwardin1953. In1964,Ellisonpublished ShadowandAct, acollectionofessays,andbegantoteachatRutgersUniversityandYaleUniversity, whilecontinuingtoworkonhisnovel. In1967,Ellisonexperiencedamajorhousefireathishomein Plainfield Massachusetts,inwhichheclaimedmorethan300pagesofhissecondnovelmanuscriptwerelost.Writingessaysaboutboththeblackexperienceandhisloveforjazzmusic,Ellisoncontinuedtoreceivemajorawardsforhiswork.In1969hereceivedthePresidentialMedalofFreedom;thefollowingyear,hewasmadeaChevalieroftheOrdredesArtsetdesLettresbyFranceandbecameapermanentmemberofthefacultyatNewYorkUniversity astheAlbertSchweitzerProfessorofHumanities,servingfrom1970to1980. In1975,EllisonwaselectedtoTheAmericanAcademyofArtsandLettersandhishometownofOklahomaCityhonoredhimwiththededicationoftheRalphWaldoEllisonLibrary.Continuingtoteach,Ellisonpublishedmostlyessays,andin1984,hereceivedtheNewYorkCityCollege'sLangstonHughesMedal.In1985,hewasawardedtheNationalMedalofArts.In1986,his GoingtotheTerritory waspublished.ThisisacollectionofseventeenessaysthatincludedinsightintosouthernnovelistWilliamFaulknerandEllison'sfriendRichWright,aswellasthemusicofDukeEllingtonandthecontributionsofAfricanAmericanstoAmerica’snationalidentity.1.2 InvisibleManInvisibleMan isa novelwrittenbyRalphEllison in1952.ItaddressesmanyofthesocialandintellectualissuesfacingAfrican-Americansearlyinthetwentiethcentury,including BlackNationalism, therelationshipbetweenblackidentityandMarxism,andthereformistracialpoliciesofBookerT.Washington,aswellasissuesofindividualityandpersonalidentity. InvisibleMan wontheU.S.NationalBookAwardforFictionin1953.In1998,theModernLibraryranked InvisibleMan nineteenthonitslistofthe100bestEnglish-languagenovelsofthe20thcentury. Time magazineincludedthenovelinitsTIME100BestEnglish-languageNovelsfrom1923to2005. InvisibleMan wasabookthatchangedthewaywhiteAmericansthoughtaboutblackAmericans. ItalsochangedthewayblackAmericansthoughtaboutthemselves. Anditcausedmajordisputesamongbothblackand white critics. CriticHaroldBloomconsiders InvisibleMan oneofthefinestAmericannovelsofthe20thcentury.Likemanyothernovels,Ellison’sstoryisaseriesofexperiencesasthestorytellerlearnstodealwithlife. Yet,unlikeothernovels, InvisibleMan takesplaceinadream-likeatmosphereintheUnitedStates. Itisaworldwheredreamscomeclosetoreality,andtherealworldlookslikeafrighteningdream. Themantellinghisstoryin InvisibleMan livesinahiddenundergroundspace. Buttoprovethatheexists,atleasttohimself,hehaslithisundergroundroomwithonethousandthreehundredsixty-ninelights. Theyremainlitwithpowerhehasstolen fromtheelectriccompany. InmuchofEllison’snovelthepersontellingthestoryisavictim,usuallyofwhitepeople,butalsoofsomeblacks. Hebothlovesandhatestheworld. Heplanssomedaytoleavehisundergroundshelter. Hesaysthatasamanheiswillingtobelievethat “eventheinvisiblevictimisresponsibleforthefateofall.”Themantellingthestorysaysthatasaboy,whitemencoveredhiseyeswithacloth.Thewhitementelltheboytoblindlyfightotherblackboys. Theblacks areforcedtofighteachothertopleasewhites. AttheendofnovelthestoryhasmovedfromtheAmericanSouthtoNorth. ThereareriotsinHarlem,theblackareaofNewYorkCity. Insteadoftenblackchildrenfightingeachotherblindly,grownblackmenarebattingeachotherto thedeath. Blackstillarehavingtheirstrengthturneduponthemselves.2.Thelostofthenarrator’sidentity2.1 The confusion ofsocietyInthelate1920sorearly1930s,thenarrator livedintheSouth. Since heisa favoredpublicspeaker,heisinvitedto make aspeechtoagroupofimportantwhitemeninhistown.These menrewardhimwithabriefcasecontainingascholarshiptoaprestigiousblackcollege,butonlyafterhumiliatinghimbyforcinghimtofightina“battleroyal”inwhichheispittedagainstotheryoungblackmen,all blindfolded,inaboxingring.Afterthebattleroyal,thewhitemenforcetheyouthstoscrambleoveranelectrifiedruginordertosnatchatfakegoldcoins.Thenarratorhasadreamthatnightinwhichheimaginesthathisscholarshipisactuallyapieceofpaperreading“ToWhomItMayConcern...KeepThisNigger-BoyRunning.”Threeyearslater,thenarrator become astudentatthecollege.Heisaskedtodriveawealthywhitetrusteeofthecollege,Mr.Norton,aroundthecampus.Nortontalksincessantlyabouthisdaughter,andthenshowsanundueinterestinthenarrativeofJimTrueblood,apoor,uneducatedblackmanwhoimpregnatedhisowndaughter.Afterhearingthisstory,Nortonneedsadrink,andthenarratortakeshimtotheGoldenDay,asaloonandbrothelthatnormallyservesblackmen.Afightbreaksoutamongagroupofmentallyimbalancedblackveteransatthebar,andNortonpassesoutduringthechaos.Heistendedbyoneoftheveterans,whoclaimtobeadoctorandwhotauntsbothNortonandthenarratorfortheirblindnessregardingracerelations.Backatthecollege,thenarratorlistenstoalong,impassionedsermonbytheReverendHomerA.Barbeeonthesubjectofthecollege’sFounder,whomtheblindBarbeeglorifieswithpoeticlanguage.Afterthesermon,thenarratorischastisedbythecollegepresident,Dr.Bledsoe,whohaslearnedofthenarrator’smisadventureswithNortonattheoldslavequartersandtheGoldenDay.Bledsoerebukesthenarrator,sayingthatheshouldhaveshownthewhitemananidealizedversionofblacklife.Heexpelsthenarrator,givinghimsevenlettersofrecommendationaddressedtothecollege’swhitetrusteesinNewYorkCity,andsendshimthereinsearchofajob.Thenarratortravelstothebrightlightsandbustleof1930sHarlem,wherehelooksunsuccessfullyforwork.Thelettersofrecommendationareofnohelp.Atlast,thenarratorgoestotheofficeofoneofhisletters’addressees,atrusteenamedMr.Emerson.TherehemeetsEmerson’sson,whoopenstheletterandtellsthenarratorthathehasbeenbetrayed:thelettersfromBledsoeactuallyportraythenarratorasdishonorableandunreliable.TheyoungEmersonhelpsthenarratortogetalow-payingjobattheLibertyPaintsplant,whosetrademarkcoloris“OpticWhite.”ThenarratorbrieflyservesasanassistanttoLuciusBrockway,theblackmanwhomakesthiswhitepaint,butBrockwaysuspectshimofjoininginunionactivitiesandturnsonhim.Thetwomenfight,neglectingthepaint-making;consequently,oneoftheunattendedtanksexplodes,andthenarratorisknockedunconscious.2.2Theconfusionof thenarrator himselfThenarratorwakesinthepaintfactory’shospital,havingtemporarilylosthismemoryandabilitytospeak.Thewhitedoctorsseizethearrivaloftheirunidentifiedblackpatientasanopportunitytoconductelectricshockexperiments.Afterthenarratorrecovershismemoryandleavesthehospital,hecollapsesonthestreet.SomeblackcommunitymemberstakehimtothehomeofMary,akindwomanwholetshimlivewithherforfreeinHarlemandnurtureshissenseofblackheritage.Oneday,thenarratorwitnessestheevictionofanelderlyblackcouplefromtheirHarlemapartment.Standingbeforethecrowdofpeoplegatheredbeforetheapartment,hegivesanimpassionedspeechagainsttheeviction.BrotherJackoverhearshisspeechandoffershimapositionasaspokesmanfortheBrotherhood,apoliticalorganizationthatallegedlyworkstohelpthesociallyoppressed.Afterinitiallyrejectingtheoffer,thenarratortakesthejobinordertopayMarybackforherhospitality.ButtheBrotherhooddemandsthatthenarratortakeanewname,breakwithhispast,andmovetoanewapartment.ThenarratorisinductedintotheBrotherhoodatapartyattheChthonianHotelandisplacedinchargeofadvancingthegroup’sgoalsinHarlem.AfterbeingtrainedinrhetoricbyawhitememberofthegroupnamedBrotherHambro,thenarratorgoestohisassignedbranchinHarlem,wherehemeetsthehandsome,intelligentblackyouthleaderTodClifton.HealsobecomesfamiliarwiththeBlackNationalistleaderRastheExhorter,whoopposestheinterracialBrotherhoodandbelievesthatblack Americans shouldfightfortheirrightsoverandagainstallwhites.Thenarratordeliversspeechesandbecomesahigh-profilefigureintheBrotherhood,andheenjoyshiswork.Oneday,however,hereceivesananonymousnotewarninghimtorememberhisplaceasablackmanintheBrotherhood.Notlongafter,theblackBrotherhoodmemberBrotherWrestrumaccusesthenarratoroftryingtousetheBrotherhoodtoadvanceaselfishdesireforpersonaldistinction.WhileacommitteeoftheBrotherhoodinvestigatesthecharges,theorganizationmovesthenarratortoanotherpost,asanadvocateofwomen’srights.Aftergivingaspeechoneevening,heisseducedbyoneofthewhitewomenatthegathering,whoattemptstousehimtoplayouthersexualfantasiesaboutblackmen.Afterashorttime,theBrotherhoodsendsthenarratorbacktoHarlem,wherehediscoversthatCliftonhasdisappeared.Manyotherblackmembershaveleftthegroup,asmuchoftheHarlemcommunityfeelsthattheBrotherhoodhasbetrayedtheirinterests.ThenarratorfindsCliftononthestreetsellingdancing“Sambo”dolls—dollsthatinvokethestereotypeofthelazyandobsequiousslave.Cliftonapparentlydoesnothaveapermittosellhiswaresonthestreet.Whitepolicemenaccosthimand,afterascuffle,shoothimdeadasthenarratorandotherslookon.Onhisowninitiative,thenarratorholdsafuneralforCliftonandgivesaspeechinwhichheportrayshisdeadfriendasahero,galvanizingpublicsentimentinClifton’sfavor.TheBrotherhoodisfuriouswithhimforstagingthefuneralwithoutpermission,andJackharshlycastigateshim.AsJackrantsabouttheBrotherhood’sideologicalstance,aglasseyefallsfromoneofhiseyesockets.TheBrotherhoodsendsthenarratorbacktoBrotherHambrotolearnabouttheorganization’snewstrategiesinHarlem.ThenarratorleavesfeelingfuriousandanxioustogainrevengeonJackandtheBrotherhood.HearrivesinHarlemtofindtheneighborhoodinever-increasedagitationoverracerelations.Rasconfrontshim,deploringtheBrotherhood’sfailuretodrawonthemomentumgeneratedbyClifton’sfuneral.Rassendshismentobeatupthenarrator,andthenarratorisforcedtodisguisehimselfindarkglassesandahat.Inhisdarkglasses,manypeopleonthestreetsmistakehimforsomeonenamedRinehart,whoseemstobeapimp,bookie,lover,andreverendallatonce.Atlast,thenarratorgoestoBrotherHambro’sapartment,whereHambrotellshimthattheBrotherhoodhaschosennottoemphasizeHarlemandtheblackmovement.HecynicallydeclaresthatpeoplearemerelytoolsandthatthelargerinterestsoftheBrotherhoodaremoreimportantthananyindividual.Recallingadvicegiventohimbyhisgrandfather,thenarratordeterminestounderminetheBrotherhoodbyseemingtogoalongwiththemcompletely.Hedecidestoflatterandseduceawomanclosetooneofthepartyleadersinordertoobtainsecretinformationaboutthegroup.Butthewomanhechooses,Sybil,knowsnothingabouttheBrotherhoodandattemptstousethenarratortofulfillherfantasyofbeingrapedbyablackman.WhilestillwithSybilinhisapartment,thenarratorreceivesacallaskinghimtocometoHarlemquickly.Thenarratorhearsthesoundofbreakingglass,andthelinegoesdead.HearrivesinHarlemtofindtheneighborhoodinthemidstofafull-fledgedriot,whichhelearnswasincitedbyRas.Thenarratorbecomesinvolvedinsettingfiretoatenementbuilding.Runningfromthesceneofthecrime,heencountersRas,dressedasanAfricanchieftain.Rascallsforthenarratortobelynched.Thenarratorflees,onlytoencountertwopolicemen,whosuspectthathisbriefcasecontainslootfromtheriots.Inhisattempttoevadethem,thenarratorfallsdownamanhole.Thepolicemockhimanddrawthecoveroverthemanhole.Thenarratorsaysthathehasstayedundergroundeversince;theendofhisstoryisalsothebeginning.Hestatesthathefinallyhasrealizedthathemusthonorhisindividualcomplexityandremaintruetohisownidentitywithoutsacrificinghisresponsibilitytothecommunity.Hesaysthathefinallyfeelsreadytoemergefromunderground.3.Thereasonsofthelostofthenarrator’sidentity3.1RacismAsfortherelationshipbetweenracismandthe lostofthe narrator’sidentity,wecansayitisracismthatdirectlyleadstothelostofthenarrator’sIdentity.ItiswellknownthatracismwaspopularinAmericawhenthenovelwaswritten.Asthenarratorstrugglestoarriveataconceptionofhisownidentity,hefindsthefactthatheisanAfricanAmericanlivinginaracistAmericansocietymakeshiseffortsmorecomplicated.Becauseofracialeducationhereceives,itisoftenpainfulforthenarratortorecognizeofthekinshipwithallAfricanAmericans.Atfirstheattemptstoconformtothestandardsofthewhiteworldandthusmakeaplaceforhimselfinit.Foraratherlongtime,hewouldnotliketoaccepthisblackidentity.Wehavealreadynotedhisfeelingof superioritytotheotheryoungblackswhoparticipateinthedebasingprizefight.Duringthebattleroyalepisode,thenarratorannounceshisdisdainfortheotheryoungmenwhoparticipateinthewhite-sponsoredfray.Heseeshimselfassetapartfromtheranksoftheblackcommunityduetohisroleasfeaturedspeakerduringthesmokerfollowingthebattle:“Isuspectedthatfightingabattleroyalmightdetractfromthedignityofmyspeech. Inthenarrator’smind,heisdifferentfromotherAfricanAmericans.Soatthebeginningofthestory,healwaystriestokeepadistancefromotherAfricanAmericans.However,therealityisintheeyesofAmericanwhites,heisablack.Themajorobstacletothenarrator’sdistinguishinghimselffromother AfricanAmericansisthefactofhisown“blackness”,whichatthesametimecanneverbeexcisedfromhisbeing,causingaseeminglyirresolvabletensionwithinthenarrator’spsycheasthewilltoindividualidentityconfrontsthefactofcommunityheritageandidentification.AnexampleisduringhisfirstdaysinNewYorkhedisclaimshisSouthernbackgroundwhenherefusesabreakfastofporkchopandgrits.Heisdeterminedtoshedthis“bumpkin”past,andisoffendedbyawaiterwhooffershimporkchopsandgritsforbreakfast.Fortunately,thenarratorgratefullyacceptsMary’saidandacknowledgestheirracialkinship.Onthedayofthefirstwintersnow,whenheemergefromhissafe retreatinMaryRambo’shome,thenarratorencountersastreetvendorsellingbakedyamsandexperiencesasuddennostalgiafortheSouth.Hebuysthreetoeatashewalksdownthestreet,feelingtotallyfree.Heevenimagineshisclassmate’sshockatseeinghimwiththeseemblemsofSouthernculture.Hescornsthemfordistancingthemselvesfromallofthethingsthattheyinfactlike:yams,chitterlings,andboiledhog’smaws.Bybuyingbakedyams,eatingthemandscorningthoseracistideas,thenarratoropenlyassertsbothhiskinshipwithAfricanAmericansandhisSouthernorigins.Thenarratorisasmartyouth.SowehaveeveryreasontobelievethathemusthavefoundthesimilaritiesbetweenhimandtheSamboDolls—bothofthemareblacksandmanipulatedbyothers.Soinasense,thenarrator’sreassignmentremindshimofhistruemarginalitywithintheorganizationandpointsouttohimbothhisdependenceonthepoweroftheBrotherhoodandthe importanceofhisidentificationwiththeblackcommunityifheistoachieveindividualidentity.Herealizesthenecessityofembracingthe“we”hehashithertorejectedifheistoconstitutethe“me”—or,moreappropriately,thesubject“I”—hesodesires,forhecanlayclaimtoindividualidentityinnootherway.3.2 TheimpactofAmericanCultureItiswell-knownthateverycountryhasitsuniqueculturalcomplex. ToAmerican,oneofitsculturecomplexistheAmericanDr