康拉德家庭伦理叙事中的人物悖论

The Paradoxical Figures in Conrad's Familial Ethical Narratives

在对康拉德的《在西方目光下》《黑暗的心》《间谍》和《进步前哨》等作品中的人物评述中,许多评论家运用后殖民主义等理论,通过分析人物的言行举止及其动机,揭示了他们虚伪、贪婪、自私的负面性格特征,但从家庭伦理叙事层面对其进行悖论式分析的文章却十分鲜见。本文旨在通过悖论分析比较这些作品中的人物关系和社会状况,结合康拉德独特的出身背景及个人经历,揭示其作品的思想内涵和伦理取向。分析认为,康拉德作品中的人物越是虚伪和贪婪,其对社会的负面影响就越大,但作为社会单元的家庭却从中受益越多。尽管康拉德暗示,对家庭的关怀往往是影响人物性格发展及其社会关系建构的重要因素,但他通过对人物悖论式发展的表征,表达出在工业文明和殖民扩张背景下对家庭伦理困境的忧思。

Many critics decipher the characters'negative features such as vanity,corruption,and selfishness in Conrad's Under Western Eyes,Heart of Darkness,The Secret Agent,and An Outpost of Progress by employing the post-colonial theories.However,few articles,if any,paradoxically deal with the characters in terms of familial ethical narratives.This article attempts to reveal the connotations conveyed in the works as well as Conrad's ethical orientation by a paradoxical comparison of the relations between father and daughter,elder sister and brother,and husband and wife,plus Conrad's family background and experiences.The article,through the analysis above,concludes that the more the characters convict the evils,the more their families enjoy the benefits from their misconduct.While suggesting that the concern about families may exert a strong impact on the development of characters'personalities and the building of their social relations,Conrad,through his representation of the paradoxical development of the characters,undoubtedly reveals his anxiety over familial ethical dilemma in the background of industrial civilization and colonial expansion.