解读《嘉莉妹妹》中两种对立的道德价值取向

On the Double Contradicting Moral Values in Sister Carrie

《嘉莉妹妹》中西奥多·德莱赛对主人公堕落的宽容和同情无异于对传统道德的背离,更使得该小说难以为当时的社会所理解和接受。然而,小说的情节安排却处处透露出作者对传统道德的认同和继承。本文将从主要人物分析入手,结合小说创作时的特定社会历史背景,剖析文本中双重道德价值倾向并存这一矛盾现象背后的深层根源。

In Sister Carrie, Theodore Dreiser showed great sympathy for the protagonists in spite of their degeneration, which obviously departed from the traditional morals and negatively contributed to the wide criticism and misunderstanding the novel had received in his time. However, the moral values woven in the plots, unlike the apparently controversial moral orientation on the surface of the whole story, showed no radical departure from tradition yet, on the contrary, indicated the writer＇s acceptance of the traditional moral values and his respect to the values. Considering the special social background when the novel was created, this essay, starting from the analysis of lead-ing characters, is trying to explore the profound reasons of the two kinds of contradicting moral values in the novel.