Postmodernism And Neo-realism

The diversification of modern world and literary theories requires us not to classify one writer and his works simply. Mr. Bian Zhilin once said that we can not cut the river of history. Arbitrary division of period which literary works belong to often misleads the readers. The history of literature is continuous. There is no point of end or fixed form. The British literature after the Second World War also experienced the alternation of streams of realism and experimentalism. Some British writers living under the tide of modernism insisted on absorbing materials from reality. Some were even openly opposed to experimentalism. However, some writers also had their innovation in their works. In their works, they combined different factors. David Lodge lived in this multicultural circumstance. His Campus Trilogy was introduced to China in the 1990s and aroused some argumentation. Some scholars analyzed the features of form in the Trilogy, such as parody, collage, polyphony and meta-fiction and made the conclusion that Lodge's literary creation belongs to the realm of postmodernism. However this conclusion still needs discussing.David Lodge himself also holds the same opinion. In his book Modernism, Anti-modernism, and Postmodernism (University of Birmingham, 1977) Lodge says that he absorbs some factors from modernism and postmodernism, but his works are basically realistic (Lu Jiande, 1997:237).Through a systematic study on the content and form of the trilogy, the author of this thesis intends to reveal that Lodge's trilogy not only absorbs some innovative factors of experimentalism, but more important inherits the tradition of realism. The trilogy has great significance in enlightening the developing trend of the contemporary English novel. Lodge places great value on the balance between form and theme. The trilogy combines the innovation of form and the clearness of narration. Some experimental techniques, such as parody and polyphony, are used in the trilogy. Lodge also absorbs the nutrition of realism. In terms of theme, the trilogy reflects the traditional theme of realism - representation of the social reality. In the trilogy the author depicts a big world through a small world, the academic world which is no longer just an ivory tower for study and research. In this small world people pursue their respective desires. The fusion of tradition and experimentation is reflected in its setting, plots, characters and so on. The novel's structure also reflects the fusion of tradition and experimentation. Lodge uses binary structure to organize the novels, which breaks the chronological order. The Trilogy vividly depicts the academic world after World War II, providing the readers with absorbing stories, fascinating plot and distinctive characters. The small world also reflects many problems existing in nowadays society.Lodge inherits and exceeds the great tradition of the realistic novel, keeping the novel as an art form to represent the trueness of life, conveying powerful philosophical and moral messages and to amuse the reader as well. While carrying on the tradition of realistic writing, he makes some innovation in structure and narrative techniques. Lodge's attempt to blend the tradition and the experimentation in the trilogy is successful both artistically and commercially. He provides an alternative for the development of English novel.