勃朗宁的多元文化思想在美国的接受及影响_英语论文

The Acceptance and Influence of Browning’s Multiculturalism in America

摘要

作为英国维多利亚时代最著名的诗人之一，罗伯特·勃朗宁不仅是一位精通“戏剧独白”这种诗化的表现形式的大师，还连接着英国、美国两个国家，因为他的诗作起先在祖国英国并不十分流行，反而在北美大陆收获了很高的声誉和一大批读者、研究者。鉴于此，研究勃朗宁，就意味着研究那一时期英美两国的文学、文化与历史。本文结合文化与文学层面的美国主义内涵以及多元文化主义，研究勃朗宁诗歌作品中所体现的多元文化思想在现当代美国的接受程度并分析其原因；采用的研究方法主要为历史文献梳理、理论阐释和文本分析等。

勃朗宁的多元文化主义思想表现在三个方面：丰富的异域文化元素、泛人性论思想和对文化中心主义的批判。三者之间存在一定的联系：丰富的异域意象使诗人得以从广泛而有代表性的戏剧人物身上总结出具有泛人性论特点的主题（很大程度上表现为作者对精神性的重视），而关心整个人类的福祉也催生了诗人对不公正现象的批判（例如殖民主义）。分析勃朗宁在美国被读者接受的两个阶段时，双方各有特点：第一个阶段美国读者对其的解读多关注他（当时仅传入美国）的几首诗，评价也是赞誉多过批评；而在第二阶段，对诗作的评论更为客观、角度更加多样，诗人自身的公众形象及其带来的社会影响也得到了较大关注。勃朗宁的多元文化主义之所以在美国社会产生了较大的影响，部分原因就在于其与超验主义的内在相关性，以及与“熔炉理论”的微妙关系（后者在美国族裔同化理论体系中占有重要地位）。

关键词： 罗伯特·勃朗宁；多元文化主义；超验主义；熔炉理论

Abstract

As one of the most famous British poets in the Victorian era, Robert Browning was not only a master of dramatic monologue, but also a messenger who connected Britain and America, and thus, an examination of his success among American audiences means a lot to the literary, historical and cultural studies of the relationship between these two countries. This thesis will analyze the theme of multiculturalism inherent in Robert Browning’s poetry, and, from the perspective of Americanism in the fields of literature and culture, explores its acceptance in the United States as well the cause and the effect. Major research approaches employed in writing this thesis include going through historical documents, referring to theories on intellectual development, and close reading of the target text. 

The multiculturalism as reflected by Browning’s poetry can be revealed in three aspects: images of different countries and cultures depicted in almost every poem, a strong belief in the universality of human nature (mainly shown in his emphasis upon spirituality), and his anti-ethnocentric and anti-colonial attitude, which are tightly interlinked with one another. Chronologically speaking, the acceptance of Browning by American readers takes on two major stages, with the first one mainly focusing on the review of poems by this newly-known poet and the second one taking more interest in the poet himself from a more objective point of view. As it turns out, Browning’s multiculturalism is intentionally associated with the so-called ideology of Americanism in the fields of culture and literature, since it echoes transcendentalism that shaped American culture and to a certain degree resonates with the melting-pot theory, which proves to be a key intellectual trend in the process of American assimilation. 

Keywords: Robert Browning; multiculturalism; transcendentalism; melting-pot theory

Contents

Acknowledgements i

Abstract ii

摘要 iii

Introduction 1

Chapter One The Multiculturalism in Browning’s Works 6

1.1 Multicultural Images in Browning’s Works 6

1.2 Universal Humanity in Browning’s Works 12

1.3 Anti-Ethnocentric and Anti-Colonial Perspectives in Browning’s Works 14

Chapter Two Two Stages of Browning’s Acceptance in America 17

2.1 During the Westward Movement: Prosodic Greatness and Obscurity 17

2.2 After the Westward Movement: A Multi-Faceted Poet 19

Chapter Three Relationship of Browning’s Multiculturalism and Americanism 21

3.1 Similarity with Transcendentalism 21

3.2 Echoes in the Melting-Pot Theory 23

Conclusion 25

Works Cited 26