The Survival Of Women In Alice Munro's Works

As for Canadian literature, and by extension Canadian identity, according to Margaret Atwood, it is characterized by the symbol of survival. It is also noticed that the theme of survival finds its full expression in Canadian women‘s literature. Alice Munro, one of the representatives of the contemporary Canadian literature, mainly focuses her works on the regional lives in the area of southwestern Ontario, especially that of women who are in the constant struggle of life. These Munro women survive the crisis of life by constantly redefining of their gender identity. Meanwhile, their seeking for a distinctive gender identity resembles exactly the Canadian national search for a cultural identity. Munro‘s Canadianness is reflected not only in the native names or scenes recurrent in her Ontario stories, but also her authentic and undeniable sense and knowledge of Canadian women lives. Moreover, by describing the survival state of women, Munro has succeeded her ?survival? in the history of contemporary world literature. Through the method of close reading and the approach of ecofeminism, this thesis endeavors to reveal intensively and comprehensively the inner pain, struggle and frustration of the Munro Women in different relationships as well as Munro‘s efforts in seeking a way for the survival of women and herself as a Canadian female writer.This thesis discusses the different survival crisis of women in Munro‘s works, involving the crisis in self-identity, in love and marriage and in profession. Then at the basis of identifying the three kinds of crisis, it explores the Munro Women‘s strategies of survival in face of different crisis, suggesting three of the strategies, namely, women survive the crisis of life by questing for female identity, by returning to family and by seeking consolation from nature. What‘s more, in the consideration of some aesthetic and stylistic features of Alice Munro, the Canadian female writer, it analyses the writer‘s ?survival? in the world literature, which includes the transition from a feminist to a humanist, from an ironist to an artist and from regionality to universality. Chapter six is a conclusion to the thesis. In this chapter, it not only summarizes the main points in the former chapters but also suggests that women in Munro‘s works is similar to the Canadian women in view of life difficulties and survival strategies as well, thus, reflecting Munro‘s Canadianness. This thesis also highly acclaims Munro‘s contribution to the Canadian literature in the end.