The Imagined Women In Frank Norris's Novels

Frank Norris is regarded as the forerunner of American naturalism and has long stood as a touchstone figure that provides immediate access to what transpires in American thought and literary expression at the close of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth. His vital accomplishments still as a readable literary artist and an insightful observer of American life account for his present status in American literary and cultural history. Being a writer who insists on the writer's inspiration right from the reality, Norris shows his great concern on the hotspots of the turn of the century—women's social role and their awakening. Taking woman as an important theme, Norris portrays different types of women throughout his lifelong creation.Interpreting from a feminist perspective, this thesis takes Frank Norris's three novels as the analyzing texts to reexamine his female characters and excavate his vision of women. After a close reading of his novels, this thesis indicates that Norris's female characters, who are complex and diversiform, can be classified into three types:"angel in the house","new woman"and"bisexual woman". Then, by exploring detailedly these three types one by one, this thesis reveals Norris's ambivalent attitudes towards"angel in the house"and"new woman". For one thing, Norris shows great sympathy for the angel-like woman who is restricted and repressed by the conventions of the patriarchal society. For another, he disgusts the dependent woman who is not made for the harshness of the world. As for new woman, Norris, on the one hand, expresses his appreciation of her characteristics of being active, intelligent, independent and strong-minded. And, on the other hand, he presents his anxiety over her quest for sexual freedom. In his novels, he indicates that sexual liberation is a kind of degradation caused by a repressed side effect and it virtually aggravates woman's slavery. Therefore, Norris implies that a new woman is not the kind of woman to solve the intensive conflict between sexes of that period. Moreover, Norris states that the loss or betrayal of feminine traits predicates bachelorhood to new woman, for this type is not made for man with conventional sexual attitude. By creating the bisexual woman who possesses both masculinity and femininity, Norris demonstrates the complementary relationship between the two sexes on the basis of mutual understanding, mutual trust, mutual love and mutual tolerance. There is no denying that Norris's characterization of the bisexual woman, his ideal woman, is ahead of his time.Although Norris attempts to protest against the inequality of women's position in patriarchy and particularly for his attempt to portray new woman and create his ideal woman, it must be acknowledged at the same time that Norris cannot break away from the patriarchal ideology that constitutes his greatest limitation in his vision of women. As he feels suspicious of some radical statements and actions in feminist movement, especially women'quest for sexual freedom, Norris can not be considered as a feminist. Moreover, Norris is not keen enough to explore female characters'inner thought compared with his contemporary women writers. He approaches most of his heroines externally rather than internally, which results from his unconscious reinforcement of patriarchal modes of perception.