A Comparative Study Of Eugene O'Neill's Expressionist Conception Of Drama

Based on the research of Eugene O'Neill both at home and abroad, the dissertation tries to discuss the characteristics of Eugene O'Neill's expressionist conception of drama and analyze its foundation and origin in terms of comparative aesthetics, comparative poetics and the interdisciplinary methodology,The research is not confined to an intensive analysis of one certain text and a discussion of one aspect in the studies of Eugene O'Neill, which is common in the Chinese academic circle. Rather, it extends to the comprehensive interpretation of his entire expressionist drama and conception of drama, the dissertation bases on the analysis of his works and transcends it, upgrading the study to the aesthetical and philosophical analysis in the hope of bringing new idea to the domestic research of Eugene O'Neill and the study of expressionist drama.The dissertation consists of five parts. The first chapter, "the main factors influencing and restricting the formation of Eugene O'Neill's conception of drama", mainly discusses the political inclination, religious belief, education background, personal life experience and lifestyle of Eugene O'Neill. The other important factors are discussed in other chapters.The second chapter, "The correspondence of expressionist conception of drama in Eugene O'Neill and the movement of expressionist drama", explores the agreement of O'Neill and the German expressionism in the conception of drama and aesthetics and investigates whether O'Neill was influenced by Expressionist drama.The third chapter, "the origin of O'Neill's dramatic view of expressionism", probes into the influence on O'Neill from August Strindberg, Henrik Ibsen and Anton Chekhov.The fourth chapter, "the mental source of O'Neill's expressionist conception of drama", discusses the influence on O'Neill from Friedrich Nietzsche, Freudianism and Arthur Schopenhauer.The fifth chapter, "the social origin of the formation of O'Neill's expressionist conception of drama", analyzes the influence of his time, social, historical and cultural background on O'Neill.