An Analysis Of The Existential Elements In The Benefactor

Susan Sontag(1933—2004)is a well-known American intellectual and critic and since the 1960 s,she has created lots of art reviews and essays.The Benefactor is her first novel and has shown the obvious influence of Sartre's Existentialism on her novel,relating a story of the protagonist confused about the dreams and reality.The novel has obviously shown the Existential elements and the thesis makes some contribution to the study of the origin of Sontag's ideas and her cultural criticism.This paper has analyzed the Existential elements in the Benefactor,and the first chapter expounds the interpersonal alienation and its influence on the protagonist-no matter in terms of kinship,friendship or love relations.Just as Sartre says: “Hell is Others.” The indifference and isolation between people make them alienated with each other,thus Hippolyte fully feels the loneliness and isolation.The second chapter elaborates what effects the dreams have on Hippolyte's behavior and the protagonist's addiction in his dream world which is the junction point between the reality and dream world.Hippolyte is confused about the seam between dreams and reality.He is addicted to the dream world to realize his Narcissism plots,however,dreams are after all different from reality,the living state of Hippolyte is completely absurd and meaningless,which echoes to Sartre's words that life is meaningless and doesn't change itself as people wish.The third chapter expounds the relationship of the absurd life of Hippolyte and the free choices.Though life is absurd and anguish,people still own the rights of free choices.People can make free choices in their love relations,even if sometimes the choices are against the social morality and regulations,and they are free to choose their love relations even homosexual partners.In the perspective of lifestyles,people can also have free choices and Hippolyte has chosen the unprecedented,precocious,and retro way of life.Sartre claims that Existentialism is humanism and people can make free choices but at the same time shoulder the responsibilities.The novel In a word,this paper has studied these three elements of Existentialism in The Benefactor.