Quest For Self-Identity In Lives Of Girls And Women From The Perspective Of Feminism

Alice Munro, a famous contemporary Canadian short-story writer, is considered one of the greatest female writers of the world. She is known as the "master of the contemporary short story" and "Canadian Chekhov". She has completed over two hundred short stories and published a collection of them, which include Dance of the Happy Shades, Who Do You Think You Are, and Runaway, Dear Life. As a female writer, the issue of female’s self-identity is one of the most prominent issues in her works. She is extremely good at portraying the female characters’ struggle and growth.This thesis probes into the analysis of her famous novel entitled Lives of Girls and Women by adopting a feminist perspective. The novel subtly depicts the comprehensive growth process of the heroine, Della and introduces how she grows up from an ignorant and naive girl into an intelligent and independent life observer. The study attempts, based on careful perusal, to examine the heroine’ pursuit ofself-identity mainly from three aspects of the novel: the external and internal influences of heroine’ initiation and development of self-consciousness from a patriarchal society; the ways which the heroine employs to construct her self-identity;the problems and solutions which the heroine uses in the journey of her quest for self-identity. Through the analysis, the author finds that under the oppression of the patriarchy, women construct their self-identities in line with the male-defined social standards. As a result, they can not correctly understand themselves. Meanwhile, the road for women to construct their self-identities is not a smooth sailing. They need to be brave and mature enough to overcome the difficulties derived from family, love and marriage. By struggling with these difficulties,their self-consciousness and independent thinking will be enhanced, which help them achieve the spiritual liberation and economic independence and finally construct their self-identities.This thesis can be divided into six parts.Chapter One makes a brief introduction of the author Alice Munro and her works,describes the background of the novel and states the purpose and significance of the study.Chapter Two introduces the theoretical basis of the study: feminism. And the author mainly focuses on the second wave feminism happened in Alice Munro’s existing time through analyzing its main focuses and objectives. Besides, the author makes a brief literature review of the related domestic and international studies and summarizes their implications and limitations.Chapter Three explores how the major characters around Della in the novel influence the development of Della’s self-consciousness. Under the influence of her uncles and aunts,Della gradually realizes the oppression of the patriarchal society and women’s loss of self-identities. Under mother’s inspiration,Della’s self-consciousness is increasingly developed and she learns some possible ways to fight against the patriarchal society.Chapter Four investigates the inner development of Della’s self-consciousness.The author mainly focuses on two points. First, how Della becomes brave enough through overcoming her psychological fear towards death. Second, how Della develops her independent thinking and enters into her adolescence through the process of certifying her religious belief.Chapter Five studies the enlightenment and enchantment of Della’s sexual awareness through her four experiences of love. The author subtly analyzes Della’s psychological change and development in these four love experiences so as to demonstrate how she achieves spiritual liberation and economic independence and eventually constructs her self-identity as a woman writer.Chapter Six concludes the meaning and significance of Della’s pursuit of self-identity. Through analysis, this study aims to help readers gain a better understanding of the story from feminism perspective. Besides, it will shed light on the modern women on their way to change their lives for the better. In the end of the thesis, the author points out the limitations of the study and proposes some directions for further research.