A Comparative Study On “Idiotic Narrator” Of Chinese And American Novels In The 20^th Century

The discussion of narrator is the most important lay of narratology,many authors choose the men of low intelligence as narrators to tell stories in the 20 th century’s Chinese and American novels.These special kind of narrators share some similarities and bring new feelings and distinctive aesthetic taste to the works and readers.This essay tries to discuss the particularities of idiotic narrators,seeking the relationship between the modern society and non-rationality,giving a new view and a solution for human being to deal with conflict between self and others.Firstly,the essay identifies the concept “idiotic narrator”,deeming that they are a kind of people who has lower intelligence than other person in the story or who are called idiotic by obeying their own value judgment,narrating the story by the view of first person.He is both the participant of the story and the maker of the narrative action.From the fundamental ideas,the essay tries to summarize the characteristics of idiotic narrators on the level of text and discourse.As a figure,they are the successor of downfallen family,or ordinary people,their behaviors are driven by sensibility and lack of rationality.They all participate in the story and contact with other figures.As a narrator,it behaves as confusion on narrative skill and the viewpoint of the stories is multiple,combining the singly limited view with omniscient perspective.Sometimes authors’ voice would be brought in to complete the stories and causes a special beauty.The last chapter discusses about the aesthetic significance that idiotic narrators entitle the works.Because of the special nature of the narrator,the work itself presents two traits: primitiveness and post-modernity.When it comes to the creation intention of the author,the works are written to express the truth of the content and to create a effect of irony.At last the essay proves the new views brought by this kind of works and fresh reading experience from the angles of the relationship of society and aesthetics of reception.Above all,idiotic narrators,as a literary phenomenon,can give readers a feeling of defamiliarization and a new standpoint to scan the relationship between the society and ourselves,which is helpful to search the nature of the life.