Freedom Theme Represented By Jake In Under The Net

Iris Murdoch has been hailed as one of the great modern novelists and philosophers in Great Britain. Being a prolific writer, Murdoch has published lots of novels, plays, and essays, which help her gain reputation. In her novels, Murdoch always expresses her own understanding of philosophy and morals.Under the Net was first published in 1954 and it is considered as the masterpiece of hers. This novel is also considered as the Sartrean novel. Since its publication, it has drawn great attention. Many critics have made their approaches to this novel from different perspectives such as the male narration, Wittgenstein linguistic philosophy and form and contingency. Among these critics, some notice the existentialistic theory expressed in this novel, but few of them pay attention to Murdoch's own theory about human existence and freedom. Indeed, Murdoch's idea has surpassed Sartre's.Murdoch doesn't accept Sartre's freedom theory completely. She argues that Sartre offers no analysis of the moral virtues for Sartre's lacks of objective criticism. Compared with Sartre's, Murdoch finds that freedom is possible only for those who love and accept an object which is other and distinct from the loving subject. Freedom is the exercise in the confrontation by each other of two irreducibly dissimilar individuals. This thesis endeavors to focus on and interpret Murdoch's descriptions of the protagonist Jake's comic adventure and his existence status, and to think about the means of getting freedom.