A Study On The Protagonist’s Lines Of Flight In The Professor’s House

Willa Cather is one of the most famous American realism writers of the 20^thcentury.Her autobiographical novel The Professor’s House was published in 1925,which describes the conflict between material civilization and spiritual civilization,and the protagonist St.Peter pursues his original self and an ideal life.Based on the theory of lines of flight in Gill Deleuze and Félix Guattari’s philosophical thoughts,the thesis takes the protagonist St.Peter in The Professor’s House as the research object,analyzes St.Peter’s self pursuit in social transition through the method of close reading.St.Peter’s behaviors and attitudes in daily life show his rhizomatic personality,especially his thinking and behaviors of connection,heterogeneity,multiplicity,asignifying rupture,cartography and decalcomania,which is the process of him breaking down traditional thinking into spiritual freedom.St.Peter leaves the hurtful place in physic,his spirit has changed greatly,he sees his original self and ideal life.His deterritorial behaviors are active act,it shows that his search for an ideal world filled with art and beauty helps him achieve spiritual harmony.His final backing is his new choice to face a new future.Not only thinking in his own spirit,St.Peter’s asks the minor group for help.With the strong power of women,plants and imperceptible,he attempts to become the other,combining the strength of himself and the other,producing a kind of possibility to recreate a new life.St.Peter pursuit has double significance:One is that his flight is not a traditional escape,but a positive pursuit.In this process,he reevaluates the relationship between the past and future,dream and reality,life and death,etc.Through his thinking,he finds his original self and an ideal life,and has the courage to face the future and return home.The other is that he realizes that he needs to have a positive attitude in their lives,which includes his search for beauty,taking responsibility and communicating with family,he can live a better life.No matter how difficult life is,it needs to be faced positively.