摘要

毛姆的短篇小说在世界文学史上的地位颇高，也帮他赢得了“英国的莫泊桑”与“短篇小说大师”等荣誉佳赞。毛姆的短篇小说有很强的故事性，跌宕起伏的情节和简单易懂的语言。毛姆擅于在小说中运用反讽手法，不仅增加了小说的叙事感染力和更好地诠释了小说主题,还体现了作者对人生与历史的理解和态度。本文选取的三篇短篇小说《万事通先生》、《教堂司事》和《午餐》皆是毛姆的经典作品，都能体现作者客观又深刻、冷静又有趣地揭示了资产阶级的丑恶嘴脸，塑造栩栩如生的形象和深入探索人性的复杂与矛盾。本文运用文本研读法，文献检索法和归纳法，从情景反讽和言语反讽两方面对毛姆的三篇短篇小说进行分析与解读，揭示作者如何利用反讽手法更好地塑造人物和揭露主题，进一步地挖掘了小说的艺术特点、深层主题意蕴和文学价值。

关键词：反讽  短篇小说  威廉·萨默塞特·毛姆

Contents

Abstract i

摘  要 ii

Chapter One  Introduction 1

1.1  A Brief Introduction to W. Somerset Maugham and the Selected Stories 1

1.1.1 A Brief Introduction to W. Somerset Maugham 1

1.1.2 A Brief Introduction to the Selected Stories.3

1.2  Purpose of this Thesis 4

1.3  Structure of this Thesis 4

Chapter Two  Literature Review 6

2.1  Previous Studies on the Selected Short Stories of Maugham 6

2.1.1 Previous Studies at Home 6

2.1.2 Previous Studies Abroad 8

2.2  Summary 10

Chapter Three  Theoretical Framework  11

3.1  Definition of Irony 11

3.2  Type of Irony 11

3.2.1 Verbal Irony 12

3.2.2 Situational Irony 13

3.2.3 Structural Irony 14

3.3  Summary 13

Chapter Four  Analyzing Irony in Stories 15 

4.1  Representation of Verbal Irony in the Storie 15

4.1.1 Verbal Ironies in “Mr. Know-All” 15

4.1.2 Verbal Ironies in “The Verger”16

4.1.3 Verbal Ironies in “The Luncheon”17

4.2  Representation of Situational Irony in the Stories 18

4.2.1 Situational Ironies in “Mr. Know-All” 18

4.2.2 Situational Ironies in “The Verger”19

4.2.3 Situational Ironies in “The Luncheon” 20

4.3  Implication of Irony in the Stories 20

4.3.1 Irony for Shaping Characters 21

4.3.2 Irony for Indicating the Themes 22

Chapter Five  Conclusion 24

5.1  Summary 24

5.1.1 The Value of Irony in Maugham’s Stories 24

5.2  Limitations 24

Bibliography 25

Acknowledgements 26