A New Historicist Study Of Jack London's Self-consciousness Construction

As a world-renowned American writer, Jack London has never been a fashionable one among critics of American literature. In the context of postmodernism, however, his literary position is continually rising. An increasing number of critics have shown their interest in his great depth and unique writing style. This thesis attempts to reinterpret London's self-consciousness from the perspective of New Historicism's author theory. Based on New Historicists' argument that writing is the medium for the writing subject to construct his self-consciousness and obtain his subjectivity, the thesis makes a study of the possibility, process and cultural significance of London's self-consciousness construction within the scope of The Call of the Wild, The Sea Wolf and White Fang.The thesis consists of five parts.In Introduction, it presents a brief description of London's life and literary achievements, the previous study of London as well as the purpose and significance of this research.Chapter I constructs a theoretical frame for later chapters by introducing New Historicism and its author theory. It analyzes the discrepancy and continuity of London's self-consciousnesses shown in the three novels. Despite the discrepancy, there exists a distinctive thread of construction in London's three self-consciousnesses.Chapter II examines how London constructs his self-consciousness. London as the writing subject acts as both a negotiator and an interpreter in the course of his writing. His self-consciousness is a product of his negotiation, circulation and exchange with the cultural system. The subject's negotiation with the cultural system is a motive force of his self-consciousness construction while his interpretation of the cultural system is an indispensable step in the self-consciousness construction. The construction of London's self-consciousness is a complex and dynamic process occurring in his writing.Chapter III considers the cultural significance of London's self-consciousness construction. London as the writing subject serves as the bridge between the literary discourse and the cultural discourse. It is the subject's negotiation and interpretation that...