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摘 要

19世纪末20年代初,自然主义文学盛行。自然主义文学认为人并不能掌控自己的命运,而是环境,遗传和机遇等因素控制着自己。《嘉莉妹妹》是德莱塞第一部自然主义作品,展示了19末20世纪初美国自然主义。本文从自然主义的角度,分析环境、遗传因素和机遇对小说主人公嘉莉妹妹悲剧命运起的作用。

通过这次研究,我们可以更多的了解德莱塞的自然主义观：人类被遗传和环境等力量所控制;人的自由意志无法改变已经注定的命运。同时本文试图为那些面临着残酷环境的人提供一些看法：当面临残酷环境的时候，我们不应该悲观，而是要尽力用勇气、智慧和毅力克服困难。

关键词：自然主义；嘉莉；命运

1. Introduction

Naturalism was a kind of creative thought, which sprang up in the late 19th and became popular in Europe and America in the twentieth Century. Theodore Dreiser was one of the pioneers of modern American fiction. He is also a naturalist, whose works were close to the life of the people with honesty, boldness and passion. In 1900, Dreiser published his first novel Sister Carrie. Depending on the broad background of society, Dreiser described the disillusion of Carrie’s happy life and exposed the darkness of capitalist society. In Sister Carrie, Dreiser pointed out that true happiness could not be found in America. Only by selling soul can man get the money and status. The anti-traditional image in the works was criticized by most people.

Dresier’s most outstanding contribution to the history of American literature lied in the fact

that he broke with the imprisonment of traditional ideas and liberated American fiction. He succeeded in using naturalism to the works. With the publication of Sister Carrie in 1900 for the first time, both Dreiser and this novel caused controversy in the world of literature and criticism. Up until now, the relevant research on Dreiser and Sister Carrie is principally concerned with the frustration of the American dream, naturalism, consumerism, feminist and pessimism. This paper tries to analyze it from naturalistic point of view to explain how environment, hereditary and opportunity influence Carrie's fate.

The meaning of this study is to help us have a better understanding about Sister Carrie: how do the environment, hereditary factors and opportunity lead to the tragedy of Carrie? Secondly, we can learn more about American naturalism. Sister Carrie is a pioneer and representative of American naturalism.

1. Literature Review

2.1 An overview of American naturalism

In 1985, Origin of Species was published. Darwin advocated the concept of “survival of the fittest”, which not only shook the original theoretical foundation, but also became the popular topic and the reference standard of morality. At that time, a large number of new writers absorbed Darwin’s theory of evolution, which made the American literature shrouded in gloomy and desperate color.In the next 20 years, the American had undergone the baptism of the war and the destruction of social unrest. Influenced by Darwinism and Zolalism, American naturalist writers tried to describe such an American dream in their works- all of them got rid of the shackles of the origin and reality.

The naturalists, who were represented by Zola, thought the novels should be objective to embody the theory of environmental action and to emphasize the feelings and instinct of human beings. They recognized it was capitalism that led to a series of negative phenomena such as the population explosion, the lack of human consciousness and the extreme disparity between the rich and the poor. They insisted on that man was a kind of animal which is unable to control and understand, and was influenced by external force and internal pressure. So their novels always reflect pessimism and determinism.

Through the pursuit of scientific accuracy and the accumulation of facts, they showed that man was helpless and insignificant under the pressure of congenital and acquired circumstances. They regarded the objective reality as the highest law of writing and tried to explore the human nature in the whole social environment. They believed human beings as the victims, affected by heredity, opportunity and environmental force. And they believed that human beings and society were controlled by the laws of nature and they had no choice but to accept the mysterious fate. They saw the cruelty and indifference of the society, and began to realize the helplessness and hopelessness of the people. Under the control of these two kinds of power, human beings drained of life. Then, American naturalist writers from a series of social changes, were committed to the pursuit of objective response to the real life. They used the sentimentalism to highlight that the natural instincts of man suffered from the control of life and the loss of self confusion in such an anomic society.

Although naturalism always disclose the darkness and ugliness of the real society. And

from these complaints, we can feel the writer’s own desire for social progress and sympathy for the lower class.

2.2 Naturalism in Theodore Dreiser's writings

Dreiser has been a controversial writer in the history of American literature. His writing styles and thoughts were irreconcilable with the literary idealism. After more than half a century of debate, research and comparison, more and more people recognized his important position in the history of American literature. The first American writer to win the Nobel Prize, Sinclair Lewis, spoke highly of Dreiser’s achievements in American literature at the Nobel Prize Ceremony in 1930. He thought Dreiser cleared the way for the writing style of Howell’s timid and gentle writing to be faithful, bold and full of passion for life. No one dared to portray the beauty and horror of life as he did.

Dreiser had a poor and sad childhood. The trails and hardships of life offered her lots of opportunities to contact with different levels of society and various characters. Life taught him to stand in the position of the labor to speak for them; Life prompted him to truly record the sins of the capitalist and the suffering of the people. Sister Carrie was his first novel, which broke through the conservative and elegant tradition of Vitoria and opened up a new world, which led to the reality and passion of life. However, just as Chang said, Sister Carrie was rejected because of its relentless presenting the true nature of American life. (Chang, 2008:148)

Dreiser was a great advocate of Darwinism. He saw society as a jungle, and the people who lived in the community were the animals who sought survival in the jungle. “Look all around you, that voice goes on... look at the kind people; they look down upon what you are doing. Look at the nice girls, they will hide from you, if they know that you are easy to be enticed. You have died without struggling against the hard times” (Dreiser, 2008:114).

Man is like “a wisp in the wind” (Dreiser, 2008:85). Dreiser believed in luck and opportunity because a man couldn’t control his fate under the force of environment and heredity. Dreiser believed that human beings were controlled by environment and heredity. (Jiang Daochao, 2003:21) In Sister Carrie, Dreiser vividly described the different attitudes and experiences of different people under the drive of desire and environment. He showed us an unmoral world to us through a large number of documentary description. In such a heartless society, helpless Carrie was like a machine, which was driven by desire, blindly seeking every opportunity to satisfy her own desire. However, she could never achieve the peak of self realization because of the gap of her heart.

3.Naturalism in Sister Carrie

3.1 Impact of environment on Carrie's fate

Environment includes living environment and social environment. People are bound to be affected by the environment because of living in the environment. Both realism and naturalism emphasize the influence of environment on people. But naturalist writers believe that the environment is strong and unmoved. Therefore, in front of the environment, man is small and helpless. Man can only be manipulated by the environment and become the victim of the environment. In Sister Carrie, it showed the importance of environment.

3.1.1 Impact of living environment

Dreiser thought that the living environment directly led to the success or failure of Carrie.

Due to dissatisfaction with the poor life in rural areas, the kind girl, Carrie, sitting alone on the train to the big city, Chicago. Just like the author said: “Either she falls into saving hands and becomes better, or she rapidly assumes the cosmopolitan standard of virtue and becomes worse. Of an intermediate balance, under the circumstances, there is no possibility. ” (Theodore Dreiser, 2008: 1-3) For Carrie, her greatest wish was to have enough food to eat, clothes to wrap and a house to take shelter from rain. But such a simple wish could not be realized. The grim reality of the metropolis and the dirty, hard working environment destroyed her American dream.

“That mystic period between the glare and gloom of the world when life is changing from one sphere or condition to another.” (Dreiser, 2008:3) In this passage, the author revealed that the urban environment had great influence on people. Chicago was just like a huge magnet, and the people who came to the city were like iron filings. For Carrie, Chicago was so attractive that she never wanted to return poor home. The sound and lights of the metropolis had magic powers, which appealed to the people like Carrie. However, the danger hid behind the temptations. When showing the charming and allure, it suggested people fell into a wrong path. Carrie came to Chicago with the desire of changing her destiny. A superb collection of beautiful things, gorgeous clothes, luxury hotel and various enjoyment made her desire to continue expansion. By the way, the hypnotic power of the city not only aroused her desire for material, but also contributed to her moral degradation. Her working experience in Chicago made her realize that hard working and honesty couldn’t be successful. A poor but innocent country girl, like Carrie, either died in the tremendous working pressure and excessive exploitation, or sold their souls to succeed. In order to achieve her aspirations, she became Drouet’s mistress, and later she married with the bar manager Hurstwood who had gotten married. Finally, she suffered a fatal accusation of immorality.

New York was another living environment for Carrie’s success. As a prosperous city, New York provided an ideal platform for Carrie to show her talent for acting. Due to a series of opportunities, Carrie became a comedy star. Although she was successful materially, Carrie still felt confused and empty. She did not find happiness. In this sense, she was the victim of the environment— the capitalist way of life.

3.1.2 Impact of social environment

Social environment affected Carrie’s values. When Carrie met Drouet on the train, she felt inferior. Her blue dress was miserable and her shoes were shabby. Drouet talked with eloquence made Carrie feel inferior. Carrie sighed, how nice it was to have money. As long as there was lots of money, all the troubles would disappear. Therefore, she was determined to achieve her dream of life and hope, even at the expense of their own conscience and chastity. Drouet also taught her manners. And she thought he was a lady at last. Carrie also instinctively imitated the behavior of others, for example, she used her feet less heavily. In the view of Dreiser, in order to obtain material satisfaction, paving the way with her body and beauty was the inevitable result of the force of environment. It was not difficult to understand what she considered was a rich life when she abandoned Drouet and Hurstwood.

In Dreiser’s view, all she got were forced by the external environment. Although she had wealth and fame, she still felt lonely. She knew that she didn’t gain the real happiness, that showed she was different from other rich people. In essence, Carrie was not a bad girl. But she was the product of the environment and a true portrayal of survival of the fittest.

3.2 Impact of heredity on Sister Carrie’s fate

In the works of naturalism, heredity includes human instinct and desire, especially sexual desire, as well as animal, genetic disease and so on. Naturalistic writers think the desire as a dominant force and the cause of all human behavior. They believe that all human behaviors are to meet the needs of desires. In Sister Carrie, the author revealed the desire of all kinds of people with vivid plots and examples.

Carrie came to Chicago to change her destiny. In the glamorous cities with “A blare of sound, a roar of life, a vast array of human hives” (Dreiser, 2008:12), driven by the desires, the innocent Carrie falls into the traps and disasters step by step. The colorful nightlife of the city, the beautiful clothes and all kinds of entertainment aroused the desire of Carrie. However, there was a sharp contrast between Carrie’s living environment and desire. From the experience of her short working experience, she saw that it was impossible to get beautiful clothes and to live a happy life through hard work. Later, she met Hurstwood, who was the manager of the most luxurious bar in Chicago, a member of the upper class. After coming to New York, Hurstwood was not rich any more and lost his jobs. However Carrie was eager to buy clothes and enjoy life, and she finally left Hurstwood. With the beauty and good luck, Carrie ended up as a Broadway comedy star with a material success. Although Carrie got great social and material success, she found no happiness or satisfaction, but suffered from the chronic insatiability. In this sense, she was a victim to her desire.

In naturalistic novels, the novelists were also interested in the sexual instinct. In Sister Carrie, Carrie reflected the lust for money and material wealth, and Drouet and Hurstwood embodied the influence of sexual instinct. Driven by sexual instinct, Drouet was like the moth. As long as meeting beautiful women, he couldn’t help chasing. When he met Carrie on the train, he was attracted by Carrie’s beauty and struck up a conversation with her. At the end of the novel, in a snowstorm night, Drouet was discussing playing with women with her companion. In the novel, driven by his own desire, Drouet was like driftwood with no living purpose. Hurstwood was another embodiment of sexual instinct. He was a manager of a luxury bar in Chicago and had a high position in the society. However, he was not satisfied with the luxury life. After work he often played with different women. After meeting Carrie, he was moved by Carrie’s beauty and determined to take Carrie away from his friend Drouet. Through a series of means, finally Hurstwood won Carrie. However, his wife found what he had done and took all his money away. Under the heavy pressure, Hrust stole the money of the bar and absconded with Carrie. From a respected manager, he turned into an escapee. It can be said that his tragedy was caused by his own sexual instinct.

Dreiser devoted his understanding of human nature in the creation of naturalistic novels. H believed that human beings were in the middle stage of evolution, and they were rational but the power of rationality was too weak, which was not enough to control the desire and instinct. Every step of man’s action was due to his own desire. The novel mentioned the dialogue between conscience and desire in the dilemma of Carrie. However, her material desire often overwhelms conscience. In his eyes, human beings were such a kind of animal called human, which were still controlled by “animal”.

3.3 Impact of opportunity on Sister Carrie’s fate

Dreiser was deeply influenced by Spencer and Darwin in his early years. From a philosophical view, he was a mechanical determinist and regarded man as a victim of “unavoidable forces of nature”. He said that man was infinitely small energy and was controlled by its powerful forces around. In his novel, these powerful forces include not only the effects of hereditary and environmental factors, but also the role of some occasional factors. This kind of factors was also a mysterious master of power. Sister Carrie clearly emphasized the contingency and randomness of things. In this novel, there were Carrie’s fame and Hurstwood’s fall. The dramatic changes in the fate of the two men were proving the magic of this factor.

On the train to Chicago, Carrie met Drouet. After becoming his mistress, she recognized Hurstwood. If Drouet didn’t happen to sit next to her, Carrie’s experience would be another story. When Carrie lost her job and had to go back home, she met with Drouet again which changed her life track. Drouet boasted that he could find the amateur actress. When he couldn’t cope with it, he let Carrie as an actress. But it was the first step of Carrie’s success. Hurstwood put all his possessions under the name of wife and made himself in trouble. When he saw the safe door was not locked, he took the money out. At that moment, the box door locked its back, which forced him to become an unexplained theft. The failure was mainly caused by his luck instead of his own quality or ability: He was always smart and capable. That night, he has been hesitant. The safe door— perhaps because of the wind’s sake, the door bounced back. Contingency deprived him of the moral struggle and the right to make a decision.

4. Conclusion

Up to now, an intensive and comprehensive analysis of naturalism reflected the heroine has been made. It is safe to say that Sister Carrie is one of the best naturalist works in the world. It exposes the true face of contemporary life of American boldly and raises the banner of natural science. Based on the use of Naturalism to explain Carrie’s fate, the thesis points out that environment instinct and opportunity have played a decisive role in one’s life. It can be concluded that Theodore Dreiser is a real master of applying naturalism into his works in order to fulfill the theme, describe the characters, and express his opinions better and more smoothly.

It is essential to notice that there should be some limitations in naturalism. Although Dreiser see the essence of capitalism clearly, he was also influenced by class limitations. Dreiser couldn’t express the causes of unfair social phenomenon and he couldn’t find another outlet for people at the bottom of the society, so the characters in his novels were all tragedies. But the tragic effect made the American notice that there was a difference between the American dream and the reality.

Above all, the thesis attempts to offer some implications for those confronted with the harsh environment: facing the harsh environment, we should not be pessimistic, and instead we should take pains to overcome difficulties with courage, intelligence and the perseverance.

Bibliography

Dreiser, Theodore. Sister Carrie. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press.2008.

Furst, R. Lilian and Peter. N. Skrine. Naturalism. London: Methuen, 1971.

Pizer, Donald. American Realism and Naturalism. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press.1859:27.

常耀信，美国文学简史. 天津：南开大学出版社，2008.

蒋道超，德莱塞研究. 上海：上海外语教育出版社， 2003:21.

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