Satisfaction And Reconstruction Of American Readers' Horizon Of Expectation In The Good Earth

Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (1892-1973) is an outstanding female novelist and autobiographer in America. The Good Earth, her most popular masterpiece, was first published in 1931. To everyone's surprise, about two million copies were sold out by the end of that year. It ranked first on the list of Publishers Weekly Bestsellers in the US in 1931 and 1932. Only one year after its release, Buck received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and then, in 1938, won the Nobel Prize in Literature. Consequently, she became an important literary figure all across the world.Since the publication of The Good Earth, critics have studied it from various perspectives, for example, narrative theory, feminist criticism, post-colonialism and imagology. However, critics seldom apply reception theory in their study of this novel, as if they have taken its popularity for granted. However, it is generally acknowledged that a great literary work does not necessarily enjoy wide popularity. Considering the fact that The Good Earth is a bestseller as well as a literary classic, it deserves a study from the perspective of reception theory, so that the secret to its lasting popularity can be revealed.This thesis falls into four chapters. The first chapter introduces Pearl S. Buck's life and achievements,gives a survey of previous studies on The Good Earth,and explains the key terms of reception theory and the structure of the thesis.The second chapter reveals how The Good Earth manages to satisfy American readers' horizon of expectation. In order to invoke empathy on the part of American readers, Buck incorporates many elements familiar to them in her depiction of China and Chinese figures. To be exact,she highlights the turbulent social circumstances similar to the American society during the Great Depression,transplants America thinking in the story, models Western mythological figures in characterization, and emulates Western writing styles, biblical style in particular.Chapter Three is mainly about the reconstruction of American readers' horizon of expectation in The Good Earth. The novel, to a great extent, negates the stereotypes Americans hold for Chinese people, and presents new Chinese figures with abundant virtues that may win Americans' approval. Furthermore, Buck appropriates the writing techniques of traditional Chinese serial novels, and includes Chinese customs in her writing. In this way, she reconstructs American readers' horizon of expectation concerned with China and Chinese people.Chapter Four is the conclusion, which summarizes the previous discussions and restates the major arguments of the thesis.