徘徊在“荒原”上的孤独英雄——评《榆树下的欲望》中凯布特的悲剧性

On the Tragedy of Cabot in Desires under the Elms

在《榆树下的欲望》中奥尼尔刻画出一位不同于古典悲剧中的现代悲剧英雄。表面上 ,凯布特自私残忍 ,一生都在逼迫家人和自己一起在农庄上辛苦耕耘 ,但他内心深处是在反抗物质利益至上的清教思想 ,他鄙视那些丧失理想 ,一心只想获得财富的人。在与世俗社会的思想和行为的斗争中 ,他注定以失败的命运而告终 ,但这恰好显现了人物的悲剧色彩。

In the Desires under the Elms, O'Neill depicts a modern tragic hero who is totally different from the classical tragic heroes. Superficially, Cabot is cruel and selfish and constantly drives his family to toil on the farm, but in his inner heart, he defies the materialist Puritanism. He keeps his contempt5 for those money seekers who have lost their spiritual pursuit. Even facing the scorn and hostility from the others, he never gives up his dream. To demonstrate his individual existence, he yields his opportunity to get rich. In his struggle against the dominant spirit and behavior in the mainstream society, he is doomed to end in failure, but his heroic tragedy arises.