Construction Of Communicative Rationality A Study Of Novels By Elizabeth Gaskell

My thesis mainly focuses on novels by Elizabeth Gaskell. Starting with the conflicts and resolutions in personal communication and basing on the theory of communicative action by Habermas, I am trying to explore the important role of communicative rationality and the construction of communicative rationality in communication. Based on the discussion of multiple factors which influence the communicative rationality, I will mainly explore the basis of the communicative rationality in personal communication.This thesis consists of four parts.The first part mainly deals with the important role communicative rationality in the novels by Elizabeth Gaskell. First, most of novels by Elizabeth Gaskell involves the tense personal relationships caused by the lack of communicative rationality. The rationality of communicative rationality is a very important plot in her novels. Then, the exploration of communicative rationality can further enhance the understanding of the novels' significance. And taking the issue of construction of socializing sense as the pre-assumption theory will make the research in Elizabeth Gaskel more unique.The second part discusses the lack and construction of communicative rationality. Based on the text, this thesis analyzes the lack of communicative rationality, and the contradictions and conflicts raised by them. The purpose of construction of s communicative rationality is not to reach the absolute common ground of personal communication, but to pursue an affective way in communication to promote the mutual understanding, and then a comparatively harmonious personal relationships.The third part analyzes the factors that affect the rationality of communicative rationality. I will mainly discuss on the reasons of lack of socializing sense from several aspects, the characters' education, cultural background, ages, gender, personality, values and external factors—power and violence.The fourth part emphasizes the foundation of the construction of communicative rationality. This thesis will explore the possibility and ways of the construction of communicative rationality in three aspects: language environment background in personal communication, moral code background and language standard background, in order to realize the generalization and institutionalization of standard of construction of communicative rationality.