The Construction Of The Harmonious Male-Female Relationship Through Self-Improvement

Doris Lessing(1919-) is one of the world's most significant English novelists. She holds a unique place among twentieth century women writers for the variety and scope of her works.During her literary career, she produced more than 10 long novels, more than 70 short stories, 2 dramas, one collection of poems and some essays and reminiscences.The Golden Notebook was published in 1962, which has been considered as Lessing's masterpiece, presenting her feeling of feminism. With its profound and diversified thematic concerns, the novel has attracted increasing critical attention. Viewed as a key text of the feminist movement, the Golden Notebook was acclaimed as "a useful weapon in the sex" and "the Bible of the Women's Movement" because of its impact on the Women's Liberation Movement during 1960s and 1970s.Based on the feminist theories, and by way of textual analysis, this thesis presents an interpretation of the implied theme underlying the complex novel The Golden Notebook. Lessing stands for social justice and believes that women are able to play a greater part in improving the society if the harmonious male-female relationship is established.The thesis is divided into five chapters.Chapter one mainly introduces Lessing's life experiences and her novel The Golden Notebook, including the literature review of the study, her experiences of growth, the brilliant literary status that she occupies in modern literature.Chapter two presents the theoretical framework of the thesis to indicate the significance and methodology of the study.Chapter Three deals with the binary opposition between male and female implied in this novel, including the repression of patriarchal ideology on traditional women and the impossibility of the so-called " free women" 's separation with men.Chapter four discusses the self-improvement of both sexes as a means to construct the harmonious male-female relationship by illustrating the relationship between Saul and Anna. Chapter five draws a conclusion. This paper focuses on illustrating the male-female relationship in the novel and bears the great significance that the sense of responsibility plays a key role in the construction of harmonious male-female relationship.