Hemingway's Dualistic Concept Of Nature

The thesis is titled " Hemingway's Dualistic Concept of Nature------An EcocriticalAnalysis of Hemingway's Works". Based on the Ecocritical reading of his works, the thesis has studied the dualistic nature concept of Hemingway possessing both anthropocentric and non-anthropocentric views. And efforts are still made to explore the origins of Hemingway's dualistic concept of nature. It follows that the paradox of Hemingway's nature concept is actually a reflection of human's confusion when dealing with the relationship between man and nature.The whole thesis consists of three chapters. Chapter one outlines the literary theory of ecocriticism on which this thesis is based. It has involved the following aspects: its origin, development, theoretical basis, and interpretive strategies. With the understanding of the environmental problems being deepened, ecocriticism is concerned with natural literature and becomes a part of the radical environmentalism that sweeps across the whole academic circle. It is aimed to explore the literary theme of the relationship between man and nature, answers such questions as what human beings should do to deal with the natural resources, what roles human beings are playing in the natural world, what punishment man will receive if they mistreat the physical world, and so on and so forth. And the tenet of ecocriticism is to further arouse human race's ecological consciousness.Chapter two focuses on the origins of Hemingway's dualistic concept of nature, which has much to do with his father's influence, Western culture, Christian religion and his personal experience, etc.Chapter three is devoted to a study of the paradox of Hemingway's dualistic nature concept in two respects. The first aspect is the love and the killing of animals which reflects the conflict between human's desire to satisfy their need and hopes to keep a harmonious term with nature. The second one is the conquering of and the returning to nature which reflects the dilemma between human's wish to respect nature and desire to control it. In conclusion, Hemingway truthfully depicts man's dilemma when facingnature on which his life depends------on the one hand his anthropocentric need to masterthe natural environment and on the other hand his non-anthropocentric respect for whatever nature may represent.The three chapters are not only independent but interrelated at the same time. Through a study of the paradox of Hemingway's dualistic nature concept from the ecocritical perspective, it turns out that man runs into a dilemma when confronting nature. Regarding nature as their friend and enemy at the same time, this endeavor for balance often leads to tragedy, and the impulse for fighting and struggling inside man decides that they are doomed to destroy the same nature they love most. Consequently, modern people should learn from Hemingway's ecological concept by taking a scientific approach and draw inspiration from it.