An Archetypal Interpretation Of All The Light We Cannot See

Anthony Doerr is one of the most popular writers in contemporary America.His novel All the Lights We Cannot See has won the Pulitzer Prize in 2015.The novel with its charm of language and captivating plots has attracted the research and discussion of scholars at home and abroad.Based on the historical events of World War II,All the Lights We Cannot See tells the story of two children from opposing countries struggling to survive in the war.German orphan Werner joined the Nazi organization and searched for illegal signals for the army in order to change the fate of going down the mine.French blind girl Marie-Laure was forced to flee away from Paris with her father because of the war and fought secretly with the Nazi organization in Saint-Malo.The war broke their peaceful life and intersected their lives.By using children narrators,Doerr focused on the living conditions of ordinary people in World War II.Scholars at home and abroad mainly study the novel from book review,theme analysis,ecological thought and trauma theory,but there is no sufficient research from archetypal criticism.The theoretical foundation of this thesis employs Jung’s collective unconsciousness and Frye’s myth-archetypal criticism.Through close reading,this thesis explores the archetypal patterns such as archetypal plots,archetypal images and archetypal characters,and emphatically elaborates the relationship between archetypal patterns and thematic expression in the novel.The thesis firstly analyzes archetypal plots in the novel.War plots in the novel are closely aligned with mythological plots,and the reflection of mythology and war plots emerges from the U-shaped narrative structure,the transformation and displacement of myths.Secondly,the thesis focuses on archetypal images in the novel.These archetypal images,including the images of water,bird and light,changed the traditional way writers described the violent visual impact of war by their symbolic function,but creating a more powerful spiritual impact on readers.Thirdly,the thesis studies archetypal characters in the novel.It mainly from two aspects of childrens’ groups and adults’ statues to discuss the characterization influenced by Jung’s collective unconscious.For instance,the teenager Werner with animal archetype,the girl Marie-Laure with animus archetype,and the adult Etienne with indoctrinatory father and wise old man archetype.Shaping diverse archetypal characters reveals the fact that no one can escape from the persecution of the war.In addition to the above analysis of archetypal patterns,a discussion of the relationship between archetypal patterns and these motifs,such as redemption,war and love,helps readers gain a fuller appreciation of the novel creation and the spirits that Doerr conveys in the novel.In All the Lights We Cannot See,Doerr,through the delicate plot arrangement and the shifting of alternative narrative perspectives,shows the way of redemption in a special period,that is,the mutual redemption among people.In the process of narration,readers can also feel Doerr’s keen concern for human nature.By analyzing the archetypal patterns in the novel,this thesis interprets the influence of war on the life of ordinary people and the light of humanity shining in the struggle against the dark.The Second World War has left an indelible historical memory for people.The pursuit of human nature and love occupies the eternal theme of human society.Doerr reproduces to readers a world still full of love in the war through archetypal patterns.