On Heroism-A Comparison Between Guan Yu In Three Kingdoms And Santiago In The Old Man And The Sea

Nowadays the cross-cultural study has become one of the most important research areas to facilitate communication between different cultures. In the process of cultural exchanges between China and the West, the comparative study of literary works has become a hot approach in the Chinese academic field.Both Three Kingdoms and The Old Man and the Sea have been very popular in China and in the West. So far lots of research papers have confined the studies to each work alone. There are very few studies comparing these two works, and even fewer comparing the two characters of Guan Yu and Santiago. Based on studies of previous scholarship, this thesis is an endeavor to make a comparative study of the heroic images of Guan Yu and Santiago in these two world-famous works. By way of analysis and comparison, this thesis discusses various aspects of heroism in the two different societies, so as to throw new light on the cultures of Western Countries and of China. First, this thesis gives a general account of Western heroism and Chinese heroism in terms of their origins, characteristics and evolutions. And then the writer makes a comparative study of the two characters from the perspective of plot development. It sorts out their differences and then analyzes their similarities. Through careful analyses, the author concludes that Santiago is encouraged by western individualism, which gives him the courage to fight against fate. Guan Yu is inspired by nationalism, which gives him courage to sacrifice personal interest. The tragedy of Santiago gains the so-called effect of defying fate in Western literature, while the tragedy of Guan Yu mainly obtains solemnity and stirs tragic emotional effects.With regard to the images of characters, the protagonist Santiago shows a bit more initiative than Guan Yu in expressing and defending dignity. The thesis points out that western people are passionate, brave and independent. They firmly believe in God and think that they are entitled to enjoy happiness. On the other hand, Chinese people are reserved. They often attach great importance to human relations and have a strong collective consciousness. In a word, different cultural values lead to the distinctions of the two heroes. The end of the thesis echoes the beginning. In the last part, the thesis calls for more heroism in this modern materialized society. Meanwhile, it also hopes the heroes will value their lives much more dearly.