Spiritual Regeneration In Chaos

Saul Bellow is the most influential Jewish writer in United States in 19th century. Henderson the Rain King was usually considered to be one of the representative works of Bellow's. The novel was basically about the adventure and recognition of Henderson's inner world since he could not endure the loneliness or the fear to death. Therefore, he needed to discover himself in the new world—Africa. The novel's theme is related to the nature of human being together with the study of fate of people. The relation between human being and the nature, as well as the society was also covered. While throughout the whole work. Bellow has been trying to create varieties of relations and contradiction between people and the society. Bellow has attempted to explain these items from different perspectives. However, the ultimate answers to questions were still pending. Through these strategies, Bellow aimed to uncover the hidden conditions and realities of the society. In these complicated discussions, people from different aspects were invited to join the debates. So the contradicting and opposing ideas were frequently seen in the novel.S. Freud believes that the basic element of human's spirit is the "ID." It contains the basic needs, requirements, the impulse and opposing power of people. The principle of happiness is usually seen as the guidance rule for it. Thus, there are scarce limits to it. The demand of Ego requires the all-round satisfaction of spiritual and materialistic fulfillment of human being. Therefore, it is basically a subconscious concept. The "Superego" refers to an ideal identity, which was formed through the accumulation of social customs and conventions for decades. It can also be understood as the forming of a set of principles. The behaviors of single person should be within the limits of social agreements. The whole activities of human beings should be monitored by people's consciousness. So, it is believed to the ideal part in the nature of human being.The thesis aims to explain and study the inner state of Henderson the Rain King with the framework of Freud's theories. Through the analysis of the discourse and dialogues of the novel, the theme and the meaning of the novel is to be identified respectively.The author of the thesis will introduce the general condition and the background of the current research. The second chapter contains the conclusion of Freud's theories especially the Ego and Superego. The third chapter covers the summary and conclusion of Henderson the Rain King. The fourth chapter is about the application of theories of Ego, Superego and spiritual regeneration in the novel. The fifth chapter is the conclusion of the thesis and suggestions for future studies.