On Female Consciousness In Katherine Anne Porter's Works

Katherine Anne Porter is a prestigious southern female writer in American literature.Although it is well acknowledged that she is not a prolific writer,she is skillful in drawing materials from her own rich and complicated experiences and then elaborates on the difficulties that the western people were facing in certain time period and background with her pen and ink,so as to trigger readers' reflections on self and society.Besides,most protagonists in Porter's works are females modeled on the real ones living in her world of reality and she focuses on illustrating their seeking for selves as well as realizing self-value in the conflicts between the new and old order,ideal and reality in an era of change.Thus,some scholars at home and abroad regarded Porter as a feminist writer.Nevertheless,Porter created her works mainly after the first wave of feminist movement had declined and before the second wave of feminist movement began to take shape.Besides,Porter's attitude towards feminist movement was cautious and she extremely resisted the title of �feminist writer�.Therefore,female consciousness in her life and her works is always the bone of contention among scholars.Since 1980 s,domestic scholars have analyzed her and her works from different perspectives such as female consciousness,southern consciousness and religious views and research on female consciousness in some of Porter's representative works has already acquired some achievements.However,due to the exquisite depiction and profound meaning of her works,these works still need further analyses.Through analyzing some of her representative or neglected works,this thesis aims to illustrate the wakening and fading of female consciousness reflected in Porter's works and prove that she is not a feminist writer.Meanwhile,this thesis also intends to provide researchers at home and abroad with references for further studying this legendary female and her elaborate works.