The Theme Of Female Growth In Hefeng Nagai's "Flower Of Hell"

Kafu Nagai is one of the representative writers of Japanese aestheticism literature.His early masterpieces,the novella Jigoku no hana,which reflects the realistic dilemma of women's survival and initiation in Meiji period.Through the heroine's experience,it shows the sociologically women growth,is a rare female initiation theme work over the same period.Initiation is the most important process of life,which is related to the comprehensive sublimation of individual in physiology,emotion,cognition and so on,and reflects the influence of society in many aspects.Therefore,it has extensive and profound practical significance.Through the artistic representation of the female initiation theme in this novel,the writer reveals the humanistic concern for women,while strongly criticizing the mainstream values of feudal society.Jigoku no hana vividly describes the theme of female growth with the structure of the plot and the shaping of the main characters of female growth.He combines the preciseness of naturalism with the romanticism of idealism,which not only shows the sharp edge of his thinking and criticism,but also shows the sad beauty of realistic women's growth.This theme also expresses the author's deep thinking on some social issues,and skillfully integrates the rigor of naturalism with the romance of idealism,which not only highlights the sharpness of the author's thinking and criticism,but also shows the poignant beauty of the female subject growing up in the realistic predicament.It can be said that it is a perfect combination.The first chapter summarizes Kafu Nagai's life and creations,and the basic information of Jigoku no hana,including the literary status and writing style of the work.This piece incisively and vividly shows the naturalistic features of Kafu Nagai's early creation,which is regarded as a declaration of naturalism by Japanese literature.The critical spirit,female care and other ideological elements in this work run through his literary career and this work occupies a special position in all his creations.The second chapter elaborates the connotation and origin of initiation theme,and initiation theme's evolution in Japanese literature.The first section analyzes the main characteristics of “initiation” in physiology,psychology and sociology,and clarifies its multi-dimensional connotation.Through its profound cultural metaphor and extensive social identity,“initiation” has developed from an inevitable experience of individual life to a universal cultural phenomenon,and thus has become one of the eternal themes in literature.The second section organizes the origin,historical evolution and breakthrough of initiation theme in literature,discusses the general development trend of the theme from “social education” to “self-understanding”,and examines the theme's vigorous vitality in keeping with the social development.The third section briefly describes the evolution of initiation theme in Japanese literature,focusing on the contradiction between personality development and social mainstream consciousness,focusing on the characteristics of individual spiritual freedom,which provides historical reference for the subsequent interpretation.The third chapter comprehensively interprets the female initiation theme of Jigoku no hana.The first section is based on the plot structure pattern of “leaving home —ordeal — confusion — epiphany — mature — recognize ego and life” in the work,summarizes the heroine's growth and interprets the narrative core of the female initiation theme.It highlights the hardship of women's self-consciousness awakening and subjectivity establishing,and precipitates the feudal social morality headed by the concept of chastity restrains women's self-development.The second section uses the heroine's character image to interpret the guiding role of her three personality traits,such as good thinking,kindness and innocence,coexistence of compromise and resistance,on the outcome of the female initiation theme.The third section explores the ideological connotation of the theme,expounds the practical significance and progressiveness of the work.At the same time,this section will combine with the creative background,explore the cause of the author's rebellious spirit and humanistic care for women.