Destruction Or Coexistence-A Thematic Study Of Moby Dick And The Wolf Under Ecocriticism

Moby-Dick is a masterpiece of Melville, and generally acknowledged as a classic of American literature created in the middle of the 19^th century, while Cherishing the Memory of the Wolf (hereafter abbreviated to The Wolf or TW) is a famous novel written by Jia Pingwa and published at the beginning of the 21^st century. The two works are closely related in many ways. They are both characteristic of symbolism, similar in narrative style, and what's more both foretell a tragic destruction of human and nature under anthropocentrism and both explore ways to a harmonious coexistence between man and nature based on their different cultural traditions, which are significant in modern ages with worsening ecological crisis.This thesis tends to have a cultural study of Moby Dick and The Wolf from the perspective of Ecocriticism, based on a scrutinous analysis and depiction of the main characters in both works (Ahab and Ishmael in Moby Dick, Fushan and Ziming in The Wolf), their visions toward nature symbolized by the whale Moby Dick and the wolves respectively in two works and the different aftermaths under anthropocentrism and ecological holism: the vision of man as master while nature the servant or the symbol of devil would undoubtedly result in the total destruction of both man and nature, while an ecological view of the relationship between man and nature would lead to a harmonious coexistence of both. At last, thesis goes to unfold ways to a harmonious man-nature coexistence implied in two works by Melville and Jia Pingwa, so as to be a little help, if it can, in man's handling with ecological crisis we are facing now.