【英语论文】《老人与海》中的硬汉形象.doc

“Code Hero” in the Novel The Old Man and the Sea A further Analysis of Hemingways Writing Style老人与海中的硬汉形象 Outline I. “Code hero” and his featuresII. The “code hero” in The Old Man and the SeaA. Santiago as the “code hero”B. Features of SantiagoIII. The writing style of Hemingway in modeling the “code hero”A. The language features of HemingwayB. Hemingways way to model “code hero” C. Hemingways symbolism IV. Conclusion “Code Hero” in the Novel The Old Man and the Sea A further Analysis of Hemingways Writing StyleAuthor: Zhang Ming Supervisor: Li MingIn Hemingways works, there exist certain common features among the protagonists. These characters share identical personalities and life experiences and they bear similar attention towards society. Their way of life can be defined by the way in which they responded to conflicts as well as the way in which they are depicted. We use the term “code hero” in description of Hemingways characters. Such a concept seems to have created the illusion that Hemingways heroes all behave in accordance with certain principles, or that some code rules their behavior, and that certain principles dominate their inner conflicts and control their life orientation. The "Code hero" has been interpreted as courageous and stubborn. "Code hero" is not a concept concerned with individuals, but with groups. The essence of "Code hero" is a pessimistic world outlook and an aesthetic faith in life. Hemingway's four important novels, A Farewell to Arms, The Sun Also Rises, For Whom the Bells Tolls and The Old Man and the Sea, can be regarded as a quartet of code heroes. Through the four heroes' life experiences and their pursuit of values, this quartet demonstrates the process of the development of the "code hero", and thus represents the course of the construction of the world outlook. The “code”, sometimes called “grace under pressure”, is an ideal set of belief and attitudes, essentially a mode of self- regard, which enables the heroes to function in a hostile, destructive environment. According to this code, a man is defined by will, pride, and endurance: the ability to accept pain, even loss, when loss cannot be avoided. The pride of knowing that one has done ones best, with the courage to act truly to ones nature; and the will to face defeat or victory without complaint on one hand or boasting on the other. The word “hero” can mean both “hero” and “protagonist” in English. In the literary works the two concepts “hero” and “protagonist” are both closely related and distinctive. Talking of hero, we have to trace back to its original meaning and connotation in the ancient Greek civilization. A man can be a hero because of unusual bravery, nobility of action, moral and intellectual qualities. Like Prometheus, Odysseus, Julia Caesar, Napoleon, a great number of figures are esteemed and respected as models for heroes because they represent the collective desire and yearning for sublimity, and grandeur. So the hero carries its traditional meaning and serves as a prototype for instruction, education and imitation. However, from the late 19th century, owing to the social, political and cultural changes, the hero in the contemporary world bears different meanings. Hemingways heroes make a breakthrough in the connotation and transcend the traditional function of heroes. Many of the characters in Hemingways novels and stories are called heroes because they still preserve some of the virtues of the romanticized figures and the noble people in the traditional sense bravery, courage, faith, perseverance, dignity, etc. Meanwhile, from their external action and internal mind, there always permeates a pessimistic mood and overtone. These heroes are more human than divine, more complex than simplex. The virtues Hemingways heroes show when facing the harsh reality serve not as models for people to follow but purely as the revelation of the consolation and comfort for the bitter agony and pains. Hemingways heroes are not always strong-minded, tough, sturdy, but rather dualized. Their courage, faith and moral code are rooted in the firm presumption that “Man proposes, God dispose”. Nobody can achieve ultimate success when confronting the decided fate. So Hemingways heroes, unlike those to be worshipped and honored, always show the weakness of human beings cowardice, resignation, vanity and so on. The reason why they are entitled “heroes” rests not with their awareness of the emptiness of the world, but with their consequent attitude toward the meaningless life. They display the outstanding quality in spite of the doomed end. A protagonist in a story is supported by other minor characters or gains his position by direct conflict with the antagonists. Santiago in The Old Man and the Sea is the protagonist and the “hero”. In the story the presentation of facts such as going out to the sea, fishing, fighting, losing, and turning back from the sea is unfolded along with the development of the protagonist Santiago. And the conflicts between characters as well as the settlement of the conflicts such as that between Santiago and sharks focuses on Santiago. There are very few characters in the stories and the personal background of the protagonist is left unexplained, so the readers full attention is focused on the hero. The “code hero” has great physical potential and courage. Whether he is a soldier, a hunter, or a fisherman, his physical power is always activated by critical situations. However, the physical power will encounter harm from the greater forces. The real value, according to Hemingway, lies in the fact that the hero can always rise from destruction. They were all hurt in some way, yet they were not defeated. The “code hero” measures himself by how well they handle the difficult situations that life throws at him. In the end the “code hero” will lose because we are all mortal, but the true measure is how a person faces death. The “code hero” is typically an individualist and free-willed. Although he believes in the ideals of courage and honor he has his own set of morals and principles based on his beliefs in honor, courage and endurance. A code hero never shows emotions; showing emotions and having a commitment to women shows weakness. A final trait of the “code heroes” is that they are endowed with certain specialized skills, such as fishing, bull fighting, and hunting, etc. Such skills are necessary for the internal courage and constraint in the heroes. In another sense, a person that is good for nothing is likely to be presented as “weak” or useless, yet the Hemingways heroes are free from such deficiencies as they possess practical skills. II. The “code hero” in The Old Man and the Sea A. Santiago as the “code hero”The Old Man and the Sea is a short novel about Santiago, an old Cuban fisherman who has gone for 84 days without catch. Therefore the boy, Manolin, who used to sail with him, is forced to leave him and catch in another ship. The old man insists on fishing alone and at last, he hooks an eighteen-foot, giant marlin, the largest he has ever known. But the fish is very powerful and disobedient. It tows the old man and his boat out to sea for 48 hours, with the old man bearing the whole weight of the fish through the line on his back. The old man, with little food and sleep, has to endure much pain and fights against his treacherous hand cramp. To his great excitement, on his third day at sea, he succeeds in drawing the weakened marlin to the surface and harpoons it. On his way home, he lashes marlin alongside his boat because it is too big to be pulled into the boat. But, unfortunately, the sharks in different numbers come across for four times. The old man fights to kill the sharks with as much might and many weapons as he can summon, but only to find a giant skeleton of his marlin left after his desperate defense. At last, Santiago, having lost what he fought for, reaches the shore and struggles to his shack. He falls into sound sleep, dreaming of Africa and the lions again. His struggle wins him much respect.Santiago is a “man” in the fullest sense of the word. Although his strength is gone, his endurance and courage permits him to conquer the marlin. Even faced with defeat, he does not quit; knowing that he has no chance against the sharks, he continues the struggle against them. For Santiago, “a man who struggles against fate will not be defeated.” “You can destroy him, but you can not defeat him” 1 is the essential truth of the Hemingway code. Santiago loses the fight against the sharks but he is not afraid, his value lies in the fact that he rises from his failure and regains his confidence. The success alone is meaningless without the initial setback. The old man is confident and self - assured. He knows clearly he is no longer as strong as he used to be and he has nothing to rely on but his staying power and experience. As a fisherman who is often alone out at sea, Santiago knows very much about himself. He knows clearly what sort of advantages he has and to what extent he can win. And for the fish, he also has great ideas of how to win in a fair fight with his tricks and resolution. He has no illusions about his ability and never boasts about himself, what he waits for is the opportunity to prove his ability. Santiagos actions are brief and accurate, and there is nothing unnecessary. It seems that all his actions are calculated and no energy is wasted. Santiagos life is simple but not wrenched. He is humble but not low. In his action there is always dignity and self-respect. To a real hero, no matter what kind of plight he is in and no matter how high his social position is, maintaining ones dignity is the most important. Such dignity should not fluctuate with changes in wealth and turning of luck, and it is a necessary part in humanity. Santiago maintains his dignity in his action and displays heroism as a code hero with his undefeated spirit when he has lost the fight. Someone denied Santiagos hero status and blamed Santiago for his lack of social concern as well as his failure to develop an independent perception of life. For Santiago, many things are limited by his narrow personal circumstances, and Santiagos experiences are not broad, yet his life circumstances are of much wider significance. His life is full of meaning, particularly when he is faced with the big fish in the sea. He is also deeply concerned about society. Santiago has developed close relationships with the people around him and he is not isolated from the real world. He is able to enjoy the warmth of friendship, and he is also able to give his concern and love to Malolin. However Santiagos character is not without its flaws. For example, he allows the conversation on the non-existing rice and the cast net to go on with the little boy Manolin. And such illusionary talking reveals his irrationality. “What do you want to eat?” the boy asked. “A pot of yellow rice with fish. Do you want some?” “No, I will eat them at home. Do you want me to makethe fire?”“No, I will make it later on. I may eat the rice cold” “May I take the cast net?” “Of course.” 2In fact they have neither rice nor fish, nor the cast net. Yet everyday they share in the illusion with different attitudes. Manolin is being sympathetic when he tries to keep the lies, whereas Santiago indulges in the illusion because of his weakness in character. However, such weakness does not make the hero low, but makes him lovable and closer to humanity. If a character is portrayed as too perfect or rational, it loses much of his quality and hence appears rather inhuman. But such a tendency is avoided in Santiago through the portrayal of his emotional make-up. B. Features of Santiago Santiago as a protagonist is not exactly like the early “Code heroes” in Hemingways stories. The characters in Hemingways early works lack such codes and are therefore unsuccessful and passive but in his later works especially in “The Old Man and the Sea”, he has acquired those important codes and values; the characters, therefore, turned out to be courageous, taking on great social responsibility. Compared to the early code heroes, there are some differences in the characterization of Santiago. First, Santiago is the epitome of all the other code heroes Hemingway has created. In Santiago there are all those outstanding qualities Hemingway most admires, such as courage, nobility, confidence, tricks, and a remarkable personality. Santiago demonstrates stronger will power and nobler dignity due to his physical limits. Second, Santiago is a new type of hero, and is distinguished from any code hero formerly created by Hemingway. He has greater emotion depth and is an accomplished mediator. He is not without sympathy and warmth. So he is morally superior. Moreover, the ending arranged for him is active and prospective. He is able to enjoy the warmth of friendship and teach his own experience to the would-be hero, Malolin. It is therefore to say that the image in this novel is optimistic and promising. Finally, in Santiago, Hemingway illustrates his understanding of human life. To sum up, Santiago is old but senile, unlucky but not defeated, gentle but not soft, proud but not boastful, resigned but not passive, perhaps most importantly, hopeful for himself without jealousy of others.III. The writing style of Hemingway in modeling the “code hero”A. The language features of HemingwayAmong many great American writers, Hemingway is famous for his objective and terse prose style. As the last novel Hemingway published in his life, The Old Man and the Sea typically reflects his unique writing style. Of course, Hemingway has used many techniques in this novel, such as realism, the creation of suspense, monologue, etc. But here the focus is on the language features in this novel.The language is simple and natural, and has the effect of directness, clarity and freshness. This is because Hemingway always manages to choose words which are concrete, specific, more commonly found, more Anglo-Saxon, casual and conversational. He seldom uses adjectives and abstract nouns, and avoids complicated syntax. Hemingways strength lies in his short sentences and very specific details. His short sentences are powerfully loaded with tension, which he sees in life. Where he does not use a simple and short sentence, he connects the various parts of the sentence in a straightforward and sequential way, often linked by “and”. In the modern English, “and” is among the simplest conjunctions, and its grammatical function is to join the units with similar grammatical function. But the wide use of “and” in modeling the hero means much more than grammatical function. For example: He settled comfortably against the wood and took his s