On Three Kinds Of Forsytes' Views On Responsibility In John Galsworthy's The Man Of Property

John Galsworthy (1867-1933) is a rather controversial realist writer. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1932, and thus reached the peak of his literary achievements. However, Galsworthy drew fierce criticism from his contemporaries such as Lawrence, Woolf and other modernist writers who labeled him as a"materialist". After his death, researches on him also fell into the trough. 1960s and 1970s witnessed an upsurge of the study on Galsworthy in western literary world, but it did not last long. In China, the relevant study on Galsworthy progressed at a low pace despite the fact that his works had been translated into Chinese.The Man of Property is generally recognized as Galsworthy's representative work, in which Galsworthy expresses his concerns about the fall of personal morality and disorder of social ethic in British society during the period of social transformation. Why traditional Forsytes are unable to extricate themselves when indulged in property Why the ideal of anti- Forsytes is only utopia Why can New Forsytes successfully reconcile the property with beauty and art What causes the different fates of these three kinds of characters These problems will be analyzed one by one in the thesis.In recent years, literary ethical criticism has trigged a big response in domestic academic circle. As a method of literary criticism, literary ethical criticism aims to study literature and related issues from the perspective of ethic and emphasizes the ethical values of literature including social responsibility and moral obligations. Galsworthy also believes that"the contribution of novelists is to promote the development of human ethic by the creation of characters in the novels". Thus, research on the responsibility theme lied in The Man of Property from the perspective of ethic will help us to fully understand his ethical ideal through his view of responsibility.In the light of literary ethical criticism, with three different kinds of characters as the penetrating point, and responsibility as the key word, this thesis explores the decisive role that views of responsibility play in the fates of characters by combining historical and cultural backgrounds in late Victorian age. To begin with, this thesis gives a literature review and a brief introduction to responsibility and literary ethical criticism. Then, this thesis firstly introduces traditional Forsytes, who consider continuous possession of property as their aims while ignore their responsibilities for family and society. Afterwards, this thesis examines anti-Forsytes, who pursue beauty and art regardless of their responsibilities for transforming Forsytes. Finally, this thesis deals with new Forsytes, whose breakthrough is their realistic reconciliation between property, beauty and art. On the basis of the above analysis, the conclusion clarifies Galsworthy's ideal to establish a harmonious ethical order.