Sister Carrie describes that the rural girl Carrie came to the big cityChicagoIn search of happiness, in order to get rid of poverty and sell his chastity, he lived with a salesman and a hotel manager successively, and later became an actor by virtue of his beauty and singing voice.The writer, represented by Carrie, deeply exposed the United Statescapitalist systemThe cruelty of squeezing the poor people and the bourgeois lifestylePetty bourgeoisieCorrosivity of molecules.
Sister Carrie, as Dreiser's masterpiece, is known as the first great American novel in the 20th century.[11]
Carrie, a rural girl, came here with a longing for the cityChicagoAfter a period of time, Carrie soon felt disappointed. She lived in her sister's home, which was full of poverty and humiliation, and destroyed her original dream.Carrie, of course, was dissatisfied with the status quo. At this time, Drouet, whom she met on the train, appeared. He extended his generous hand and helped financially. Then they lived together.The current life is a bit like her original dream, but she found that the relationship is not properly named and smooth.Later, I met Hurstwood, the owner of a hotel. They came and went, and soon fell in love with each other. They often walked through the limelight, and lived a life of opening their mouths and reaching out for their hands. Carrie saw that the dream was consistent with the reality.However, this kind of life cannot come so easily. When you reach a flat place, you must come to a steep slope, or even a fire pit. The hotel owner has an accident.In desperation, Hurstwood fled to New York with Carrie.In later life, the hotel owner was like a dog.She once again experienced what hardship is.
By chance, Sister Carrie found a job in the Opera House. Her beauty and a naturally good voice came into play. She gradually became popular and rich, while Hurstwood became like a rusty old machine before her eyes.She left Hurstwood and lived in splendor and wealth alone.Hurstwood gradually collapsed and finally committed suicide.[1]
One of the most important plots in Sister Carrie is that Hurstwood stole the money from the hotel, cheated Carrie onto the train and began to elope.The prototype of this plot is actually the life experience of Dreiser's sister Emma.The cashier of a hotel once stole 3500 dollars from the store and eloped with Emma toMontrealAnd then went to New York.[14]
The United States in the early 20th century,laissez-faire capitalismThe United States has developed vigorously and entered a period of prosperity, from an agricultural society to a city centered society.Mechanized production improves efficiency.Surplus rural labor has also entered the city;The development of science, technology and economy has reduced the dependence of human beings on nature, and people have more freedom to choose the lifestyle they want.Undoubtedly, the city is the center of modern life and has become a place for young people to pursue.Sister Carrie was one of them.
With the rapid development of American capitalism and economic prosperity, rich material supply stimulates consumption.It encourages people's desire and worship for money.The ideology of consumption has gradually replaced the ideology of production.This consumption ideology emphasizes expenditure and material, which weakens the traditional moral standards of thrift, thrift, self-control, etc.[2]
Creation process
In the autumn of 1899,Theodore DreiserUrged by his friend Arthur Henry, he began to write Sister Carrie.The material of the novel mainly comes from his understanding and accumulation of city life at that time when he was a journalist for a long time, as well as his own life experience and extensive reading in Chicago and New YorkBalzac、Hardy、spencer The enlightenment from the works of others.The life experience of his childhood and the sufferings of his family members are also one of the main sources of his creation.One of the most important plots in Sister Carrie is that Hurstwood stole the money from the hotel, cheated Carrie onto the train and began to elope.The prototype of this plot is actually the life experience of Dreiser's sister Emma.The cashier of a hotel once stole 3500 dollars from the store, eloped to Montreal with Emma, and then moved to New York.In March 1900, Dreiser completed the first draft of Sister Carrie.[3]
Carrie was the youngest daughter of a mill worker who was born at the bottom of the society. She was unwilling to live such a dull and narrow life in her hometown in the countryside all her life. When she was 18 years old, she came up with the illusion of youth and ignoranceChicagoThe train, seeking a new life, seeking happiness.On the bus, she met a young salesman named Drouet.His description of Chicago's prosperity also interested Carrie.Carrie had a wonderful vision of Chicago.But when she arrived in Chicago, her dream was shattered.Carrie was disappointed that her sister Minnie's house was narrow and small, full of a shabby smell.Even if she stayed at her sister's house, she had to pay for board and lodging. The next morning, Carrie had to go out to find work with dim hopes.However, all she got were cold answers of "no one".Finally, it was not easy to find a job in a shoe factory, and the work was very hard.Nevertheless, she could earn only 4. 5 yuan a week.When winter comes, she has no coat, woolen hat or cotton shoes. When the wind blows on her, she shivers.When Carrie was discouraged, she met the young salesman Drouet.Soon Carrie became his mistress.In fact, Drouet was just playing a game of chasing women according to the old rules.Carrie longed for happiness, but she still felt uneasy from time to time. She was confused that Drouet would never formally marry her, and doubted that she did not love him but was afraid of losing his concern.At that time, Hurstwood, the manager of the Fermo Hotel in the city, appeared, and Carrie's emotional balance was inclined to Hurstwood's side until Drouet found out, and he left Carrie alone in anger.Carrie, who longed for freedom and loneliness, finally fell into Hurstwood's arms.The author describes Carrie's disillusionment in her pursuit of a happy life in a broad social background, exposing and criticizing the 19th century Americacapitalist society The dark side of the world: there is no way out by honest labor. Only by moral decay and selling yourself can you get money status. In such a society, you can have real happiness.[4]
Hurstwood
Hurstwood was a person who fell from the upper class of the American society, or was excluded.At that time, he was a famous hotel manager in Chicago and a powerful figure in the society.Among many happy, well-dressed and merrymaking people like him, there is a vivid saying that "he can call the wind and call the rain".Hurstwood's infatuation with Carrie finally led his wife to divorce and ask for alimony, making him a penniless man, because his property was recorded in his wife's name.He left Chicago with Carrie and came to New York.In New York, Hurstwood ran around looking for a career, but got nothing. He gave up himself and broke into the gambling table. After several gambles, he only had 100 yuan left.CoincidentallybrooklynHurstwood went to apply for a job when the tram workers were making trouble and were eager to hire drivers.However, when the local people drove out of the company under the protection of the police, they were“scab”The stone smashed the window glass and almost hit his head. Finally, he had to escape quietly.The cost of living depended entirely on Carrie's income. Carrie became disgusted with him and abandoned him.Later, he was ragged, skinny, hungry, and depended on relief and begging for a living.He begged passers-by many times and was refused many times.One night in the severe winter, he lay in the dark room of the beggars' shelter, letting the gas help him get to know.Hurstwood used to be rich and powerful, but once he lost his money and status, he would never turn over. Even if he tried hard, it was in vain, and finally fell to the bottom of capitalist society.In fact, this is the manifestation of the cruelty of capitalist society, and also fully demonstrates the realistic tendency of the novel to expose and deny American capitalist society.[4]
Catalogue of works
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1. The Gravity of the City, Wandering Army, Wandering Orphan Girl
2. The threat of poverty: a copper building built on rock
3. Questioning the Fate: Four and a half yuan a week
4 Fantastic and realistic mockery
5. The function of reputation of a shining night flower
6 Machines and Maiden Modern Knights
7. The temptation of material beauty
8 The call of the winter messenger
9 Conventional kindling, jealous eyes
10 Advice in winter, the presence of lucky messenger
Eleven upper class seduction emotional self-defense
Courtship of 12 Apartment Lighters
13 Accept trust and honeyed words
14 The attraction of the blind party is weakened
15 Tired of old love, the magic of youth
16 Foolish Aladdin's Gate to the World
17. A glimpse through the door of my home brings hope
18 Cheers and Farewells Across the Dream World
19 The stage is noisy for an hour
The temptation of the soul and the pursuit of lust
The temptation of the soul and the pursuit of lust
22 The battle between human nature and body
23 Painful souls find a way out
24 Shadow of the ash window of the kindling
25 kindling, ash burning, helpless
26 Angel's Decline Seeks a Way Out
27 Get involved in the vortex and hope for a savior
28 Wandering fugitives trapped in their souls
29 A boat that comforts the sea
30 The dream of the great kingdom tourists
31 Lucky darling Broadway is full of joy
32 The prophet that Belshazzar's banquet can explain
33 Stay away from the siege
34 The stone mill turns a pile of shell chaff
35 Effort is ineffective, and the face is full of sadness
36 The situation is harsh and the opportunities are fantastic
37 Soul Awakening and Re exploring Life
38 Fairyland Games Abroad
39 Farewell of Light and Shadow
An open dispute, a final plea
41. Four strikes and no alternative
42 Spring is just beginning, and people are gone
43 Le Monde praises the light in the darkness
44 This is not a fairyland Reputation Gold is hard to buy
45 The poor have strange means of making a living
46 The more agitated the water, the more confused the mind, the more confused the thinking
This work, with vivid realism as its distinctive feature, truthfully reveals the tragic fact that people were crazy about pursuing the American dream at the beginning of the 20th century, reveals the instinctive theme that drove people to enjoy but ultimately disillusionment, and shows that there can be no real happiness in the American capitalist society with money as its center.
It can be seen from the novel that there are certain social factors in Carrie's degeneration.First of all, because of the capitalist system at that time, Carrie was the representative of a group of people at the bottom of the society. Forced by the hard life, she had to embark on the road of degeneration;On the other hand, it stems from Carrie's dissatisfaction with the current situation of life, and her constant pursuit of a higher life to meet her own desires, which leads her ever changing dependence on men to embark on this path of degeneration.
The loss of Carrie's job is a social factor and an objective reason. It is precisely because of this objective factor that Carrie has embarked on a downward path, including when Hurstwood told her that he had a wife and family, his economic ability and social status still deeply attracted Carrie, making her follow him to New York,Because this man can satisfy Carrie's desire and her great vanity.Because in the society at that time, having money meant still having a high quality of life and a high social status. This was not Carrie's value orientation alone, but the value orientation of the whole society. It was this value orientation that affected a group of girls from the countryside, like Carrie, to go on this road.[5]
Sister Carrie
Dreiser had a thorough insight into the American society at that time. Through Sister Carrie, he exposed the dark side of American society and attacked the moral standards of American society.It shows that in such a society where money is paramount, the American Dream is just a fantasy, and that the poor rise to the top of the society by virtue of honest labor is just a fantasy to comfort themselves.Sister Carrie was once regarded as a true realistic novel by the British public. Dreiser expanded his vision from people and things around him to the broad American society and endowed it with profound moral implications.Carrie is always a contradictory complex. She has both the characteristics of traditional women and the pursuit of new women;Both material appetite and spiritual yearning;Dreams depend on men, but have to be independent of men.
SartreOfexistentialismThe thought runs through Sister Carrie, providing a new perspective for studying the novel.Sister Carrie's essence is reflected in her choices again and again. She left her poor hometown to New York and became the mistress of Drouet and Hurstwood successively.Later, he stepped onto the stage and became a famous actor.These choices also reflect "people are absolutely free existentialism philosophy style". Carrie's every choice is closely related to society and others, and she also has to be responsible for her choice, but also to others and society.In the end, although Carrie successfully realized her dream, she squeezed into the upper class society.But all existence is nihility. She can't find the meaning of life and lives alone.Carrie constantly proves her existence through free choice, and takes responsibility for her choice. The consequences are endless loneliness and pain, which more prominently reflects the absurdity and ugliness of the world she lives in.[6]
artistic characteristics
naturalism
Dreiser inheritedZolaOfnaturalismThe tradition, using naturalistic writing techniques, discusses the influence of desire instinct and environment on individual destiny, especially the analysis of the fate of the little people living at the bottom of society, and describes the pragmatic America at that stage vividly.[7]
Symbolism
Sister Carrie uses a lot of symbolic techniques to express the hero's desire and despair, initiative and passivity, and the contrast between symbolic meanings makes the theme of the novel more distinct.Through the comparison of symbolic meanings, it shows the different thoughts, qualities and social status of different characters.
Rocking chair
In this novel, the rocking chair is mentioned many times and appears in every residence of the hero, even in the hotel where Carrie and Hurstwood live in Montreal.The hero often sits in a rocking chair, and always in a certain environment. It is not just a piece of furniture.
Carrie, Hurstwood and Drouet often sit in the rocking chair, but Carrie is the person who sits most frequently in the rocking chair. Interestingly, every time she sits in the rocking chair, it is after a major event and reflects her certain mood.
newspaper
Newspapers symbolize outdated news and past events.People who read newspapers also belong to the past, so they are classified as nostalgic. They are people who no longer look forward to the future and expect to rise to the top of society.Hurstwood's daughter talked about people going to Europe being published in the newspaper.In this way, being published in the newspaper represents a state of improvement of social status. On the other hand, reading newspapers is a form of decline of social status.In Chapter 20 of the novel, when Hurstwood first read the newspaper, the newspaper symbolized the past and an inability to rise in the future.
clothes
Clothes also have important symbolic significance in the novel.Dreiser expresses the different social status of different characters through their clothes.In Carrie's opinion, clothes represent a person's social status and also indicate the happiness he enjoys.
theatre
The frequent appearance of theaters in novels has a special meaning.The theater is the epitome of a mysterious city.In the real society, there are all kinds of people in the city, while in the theater there are only illusions. Everything that happens on the stage is contrary to the hard real life, but it is people's good wishes for real life.So the theater is another symbol, representing the contrast between reality and fantasy.[8]
Character image
Sister Carrie is a different artistic image from the characters in American novels in the past. She is an American at the turn of the centuryMonopoly capitalismThe product of development.She represents the young generation of the United States“American Dream”The pursuit of.She is the first pursuer of the "American Dream" in American literature. It is not difficult to see the temptation of money and fame to her.She, a young girl, did not marry anyone in the church, but went to bed with two men one after another and became a mistress. But instead of being punished, she successfully overcame the difficulties and became a lucky star.[9]
Psychological description
Psychological description is another important feature of this novel.A large number of psychological descriptions are used in the novel, which play a very important role in revealing the development of the characters' personality and closely touch the heartstrings of the readers.For example, the description of Hurstwood's psychological activities when he stole money and fled, Hurstwood began to regret: "Ah, that beautiful position, that elegant office; how could he give up everything? Ah, how beautiful it was that I abandoned!" Here, the author vividly described the characters' psychological contradictions,It also foreshadows the abnormal development of Hurstwood's psychology in the second half of the novel.[4]
Influence of works
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Sister Carrie has broken through the field of fictionVictorian eraThe tradition of conservatism and elegance opened a new world of faithfulness, boldness and passion for life, which brought a revolution to the American literary world at that time and made it unique in the history of American literature.[7]
Examining the development of American literature, the historical value of Dreiser and his Sister Carrie is prominently reflected in two aspects: on the one hand, in terms of content, "Sister Carrie is a new creation, depicting a world that has never existed in his previous novels",Dreiser developed a new set of languages and themes on the basis of the new and rapidly changing cultural reality of American society, thus paving the way for American modernist writers;On the other hand, in terms of expression, Dreiser broke the "tradition of elegance" that filled the American literary world at that time, adopted the realistic style of "frankness, frankness and bold criticism", broke the shackles of traditional ideas, "liberated American novels, and brought a revolution to American literature".[12]
In 1998, the American Modern Library listed Sister Carrie as one hundred of the best English novels of the 20th century, ranking 33.[13]
Work evaluation
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American writerSinclair Lewis"Sister Carrie" is like a free and strong westerly wind blowing into the closed and dull America, bringing self to our stagnant personal worldMark TwainandWhitmanThe first breath of fresh air since. "
《Daily Mail》Sister Carrie is a great novel written by Americans.
Defender: Sister Carrie is "true, sensitive and unbiased. It is a 'document' with historical value in American history".[9]
About the author
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Theodore Dreiser[10]
Theodore Dreiser(Theodore Dreiser, 1871-1945), American novelist.BornIndianaTreehot Town.His father was a poor German immigrant.He received early education in public schools and laterIndiana Universitystudy.I spent most of my life in journalism.Go aroundChicago、Pittsburgh, New York and other big cities, widely and deeply observe and understand the society, accumulating rich materials for future literary creation.The first novel was Sister Carrie (1900).In 1911《Miss Jenny》Came out and then published《trilogy of desire 》The first two parts of《financier》(1912) and《giant》(1914), which established Dreiser's position in American literature.《genius》(1915) is Dreiser's most satisfactory novel.It accuses the capitalist society of destroying art through the degeneration of a young painter.Themed on real criminal cases《American Tragedy》(1925) is Dreiser's representative work.[10]
