Keywords: "Sister Carrie" new female female characteristics
Sister Carrie is the first work of theodore dreiser, an American naturalist writer at the end of 19 and the beginning of the 20th century. Dreiser, who lives at the turn of the century, is loyal to the true nature of life and bravely faces society and life. He created modern novels with shocking anti-traditional techniques. When Sister Carrie was published, the theme of American literary creation was the Victorian tradition-specifically describing the life of praising the upper class positively, writing those lives with a smile, advocating the tradition of the upper class and advocating the moral norms of the upper class. Dreiser, on the other hand, pays attention to the plight of ordinary women and their spiritual needs during the rise of capitalism.
First, anti-mainstream thinkers: women in the new era
/kloc-At the beginning of the 9th century, women's activities were confined to the narrow field of family, and their survival value was "caring for their husbands and educating their children" and housekeeping, while a small part of their own value could only be realized through the connection between women and patriarchal families. It can be said that the concept of family became the core of the concept of "femininity" at that time, and the first wave of feminist movement from 1880 to 1920 pushed "new women" onto the historical stage. The rise of "new women" is a challenge and query to the mainstream ideology of19th century. Sister Carrie's image in Dreiser's novels came into being under the specific social and historical background of American emerging consumer culture and the rise of new women at the end of 19 century and the beginning of 20 century. The women he portrayed in this novel are not only modern beyond naturalism, but also revolutionary beyond mainstream ideology. We can find relevant information from reading the text.
At the beginning of the novel, we can see Sister Carrie, an innocent girl, leaving her hometown to realize her dream in this bustling metropolis of Chicago. After arriving in Chicago, she lived with her sister Minnie. What she sees is not a rich, fashionable and comfortable life. On the contrary, her sister's poor and boring life disappointed her. Minnie's family life is a microcosm of the male society based on the traditional gender relationship. Carrie noticed the great changes after her sister got married. "She is only 17 years old now. Although she is still strong and healthy, she is already a thin woman. Her views on life are influenced by her husband, and her views on happiness and responsibility are getting narrower and narrower. " (Dreiser, 2002:25) Carrie's view of her sister Minnie shows Dreiser's dissatisfaction with the mainstream consciousness of the traditional family.
Carrie suffered many setbacks in her later years. At first, Carrie pinned her desire to satisfy material life on men. Through hard work, Carrie has changed from an ignorant country girl to a successful actress, from a country girl who came to a big city at the mercy of men to a "new woman" who is self-reliant and financially independent. Carrie no longer entrusts her fate to any man, and she has an independent career. With economic independence, she also achieved personality independence. Carrie gradually realized her own strength in the process of continuous improvement, so as to truly realize her self-worth. This process is essentially a rewriting of the traditional concept of "femininity".
As contemporary critics realize, Carrie "is portrayed as a strong person in her works." She is young, smart, healthy and beautiful, and has all the advantages of competition. She can constantly adjust her life orientation, dare to take risks and compete, and be good at seizing opportunities. She deserves to succeed. Of course, this success is a typical American style, which needs American climate and soil. (Zhou: 265438 There is no denying that her success has its limitations, but at that time, she was a woman who dared to pursue personality liberation, actively seized opportunities and adapted to social progress. Compared with her sister Minnie, Mrs. Vance and Hurstwood's wife and daughter in the novel, she is a real new female representative. Although her "depravity" has been criticized by many critics, the characteristics of various "new women" have passed by her. She is a female fighter standing on the wave of social consciousness and traditional moral reform.
Second, the mainstream consciousness that cannot be surpassed: the shadow of male chauvinism
Dreiser's way of dealing with characters more or less reflects the factors that can't surpass the mainstream ideology in his view of women. In shaping the image of Carrie as a "new woman", the author tried to transcend the mainstream consciousness at that time. At the same time, we should also see the inherent contradiction of Dreiser's view of women: he always shows hesitant moral stance towards Carrie, which makes Sister Carrie a text full of contradictions.
The contradiction of Dreiser's view of women is first embodied in Carrie's image-building. The recurring image of Kelly rocking in a rocking chair in the article appropriately metaphors the author's views on women, even her moral stance. Like Carrie, Dreiser has two mirrors before him, one is his own judgment standard, and the other is the value system of mainstream society, so it is difficult for him to choose between "beautiful Carrie" and "fallen Carrie". As described in the novel, Carrie "heard another voice, and she was arguing with it, complaining to it and asking it to be cold." Dreiser, 2002:58
Dreiser wrote novels not only because of his beliefs, but also because of his profound understanding of human nature. When he created the image of Sister Carrie, he mainly focused on people's basic physiological needs, diluting or even canceling the role of traditional morality in measuring and condemning. Desire is the main driving force of Carrie's character in Dreiser's works. From this aspect, the author tries to make readers take a tolerant attitude towards Carrie's various behaviors. At the end of the article, the author didn't arrange for Carrie to get everything she wanted. After achieving one goal after another, she felt more empty, unable to find the meaning of life, and lost herself. Until the author sends out helpless feelings at the end of the novel: "Ah, the entanglement of life! We really can't see clearly. It is not evil, but the desire for good, which often leads to wrong steps. It is not evil, but good, which often confuses sentimental people who are not used to thinking. " (Dreiser, 2002:259) At the end, we can see Dreiser's inner struggle. He wanted to see a successful and happy Carrie, but under the pressure of mainstream values at that time, he took a compromise position and shaped a "successful loser".
From the text, we can also find that Dreiser has a strong sense of male chauvinism. In Sister Carrie, he gives every man certain male privileges. From the handsome Drouet to the talented Hurstwood to the learned Ames, their appearance made Carrie willing to "commit herself to each other". Compared with Carrie, who comes from humble origins, has no financial resources and has a low education level, these men are more likely to make Carrie, who has just entered the society, have a strong affection and often win the favor of women. When Carrie first met Drouet, she felt that he "must be a happy man … he is really a man." Seeing Hurstwood, she felt that he was "instinctively stronger". In the conversation with Ames, "she thinks men are like this." Carrie subconsciously felt that men were superior. At this point, Dreiser asked Carrie to measure herself by the standards of men every time. This reflects the mainstream thinking at that time, that men are superior to women, that women should serve men and that women should please men.