《他们》的心理现实主义解读(英文)

A Reading of Them from Perspective of Psychological Realism

乔伊斯·卡罗尔·欧茨(1938—)是当代美国文坛上一位多才多艺的高产作家。其作品常常反映了美国社会充满暴力和动荡的黑暗面,以及人们的孤独、恐怖、痛苦等精神困境。《他们》出版于1969年,是欧茨作品三部曲之一,同时也被认为是欧茨最好的一部代表作。该书于1970年荣获了美国全国图书奖。欧茨说,这部小说是"一部用小说形式写就的历史著作。"它记录了温德尔家三代人的命运及挣扎,展现了从20世纪30年代大萧条时期到动荡不安的60年代期间,底层人民在追求美好生活和精神慰籍的过程中所遭遇的种种艰辛和苦难,反映了现代人面临的来自社会、家庭、甚至他们自身的多重压力。

Joyce Carol Oates (1938—) is one of the most prolific and versatile contemporary writers in America. Her works often reflect the violent and dark side of American life, and people’s obsessions of isolation, fear and affliction. them, one of Oates’s trilogy, which is considered as Oates’s best known and representative work, published in 1969. This book won the National Book Award in 1970. Oates proclaims, this novel is'a history in fictional form.'As a realistic novel and one of the masterpieces of Oates, it records the life and struggle of the three generations of the Wendall family, and reflects the psychological progress of the lower class people in American society from the Great Depression of 1930s to the turbulence of 1960s.In their pursuit of material life as well as spiritual comfort, they undergo many hardships and confront with the multiple pressures from family, society and even themselves.