论《阿姆斯特丹》中空间色彩变化与克利夫命运起落的关联_英语论文

On Relevance Between Color Changes in Spaces and Clive’s Ups and Downs in Amsterdam

摘要

伊恩·麦克尤恩（1948-）是英国当代最具影响力的作家之一，曾是1998年英国布克奖、2002年美国国家书评人协会奖获得者。《阿姆斯特丹》（1998）是其布克奖获奖作品，在主人公所在的物理空间和社会空间描写上独具特色。主要描述了两位好友——著名作曲家克里夫·林雷和《大法官报》的主编弗农·哈利戴产生积怨，互相在阿姆斯特丹谋杀的过程。

本文尝试运用亨利·列斐伏尔的空间理论，从主人公克利夫日常生活创作的物理空间和社会空间入手，凸显其在不同人生阶段中命运起落的过程，并运用小说中的色彩：紫色、奶油色和灰色，指涉克利夫不同人生阶段所呈现出的新潮开放，保守精致和富有冲突的特点。通过对克利夫人生的探讨，发掘文学作品中物理及社会空间对人物形象、性格塑造起到的重要作用。

关键词：伊恩·麦克尤恩；《阿姆斯特丹》；空间理论；物理空间；社会空间

Abstract

Ian McEwan(1948-) is one of the most influential British authors, who has won the Man Booker Prize in 1998 and the National Book Critics Circle Award in 2002. Amsterdam(1998) is his masterpiece which has won him the Man Booker Prize. It is lively in the description of main characters’ physical and social spaces. This novel is about two close friends, music maestro Clive Linley and the chief editor of the Judge newspaper Vernon Halliday, finishing each other’s life in Amsterdam, because of accumulated grievances. 

This paper tries to further probe into different life stages of Clive by discussing about physical and social spaces with the theoretical basis of Henri Lefebvre’s Spatial Criticism. Meanwhile, colors from the novel(purple, cream and grey) are utilized to promote different characteristics of Clive’s life stages, which are stylish, delicate and conflicting. By discussing Clive’s ups and downs, this paper reveals the importance of physical and social spaces to character image and characteristics building in literary works. 

Key Words: Ian McEwan; Amsterdam; Spatial Criticism; color; physical space; social space

Contents

Acknowledgments I

摘  要 II

Abstract III

Introduction 1

Chapter One  “Purple” Physical and Social Spaces 5

 in Clive’s Developmental Stage

1.1 Open and Stylish Physical Spaces 6

1.2 Diverse and Extended Social Spaces 6

Chapter Two  “Cream” Physical and Social Spaces 8

 in Clive’s Golden Stage

2.1 Delicate and Conservative Physical Spaces 8

2.2 Selected and Upgraded Social Spaces 9

Chapter Three  “Grey” Physical and Social Spaces 11

in Clive’s Fading Stage

3.1 Luxurious and Chaotic Physical Spaces 11

3.2 Upper-class and Stressful Social Spaces 13

Conclusion 15

Bibliography 17