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Abstract Sister Carrie tells a story of a naive, intelligent and beautiful country girl, whom everyone kindly calls Sister Carrie, leaving for Chicago to make a living. In the end Carrie gets rid of men and becomes an independent woman. Therefore, she knows that family is indifferent, and love is faking, and the only way to get a better life depends on her striving. This kind of transformation reflects her independent consciousness of women and a change from a hazy dream to a clear proposal.
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This thesis analyzes the characteristics of Sister Carrie and tries to discuss Sister Carrie’s growth from the perspective of feminism. Through the investigation, readers will find that Carrie’s feminist consciousness awakes step by step. Finally she becomes an independent new woman survival in the androcentric society.
Key words：Sister Carrie, American feminism, dreams, independence, new women
摘要《嘉莉妹妹》讲述了一个天真,聪明的女孩独自一人去芝加哥谋生的故事。最后嘉莉妹妹靠着自己的努力，成为一个独立的新女性。嘉莉妹妹自从意识到家庭的冷漠，爱情的虚伪以后，终于明白要过上好的生活唯一的办法就是取决于她的自己的努力。这种转变反映了主人公嘉莉妹妹独立意识的一步步增强到最后实现自己梦想的过程。
本文通过分析嘉莉妹妹的人性特点，试图从女性主义角度出发探讨嘉莉妹妹的成长过程。其中通过嘉莉妹妹怀揣梦想到梦想破碎，最终到女性主义意识的觉醒，可以看出嘉莉妹妹已然成为一个独立的新女性，并且在社会中占有一席之地。8004
关键词：《嘉莉妹妹》，美国女权主义，梦想，独立，新女性
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements. i
Abstract ii
摘要 iii
1 Introduction1
2 American Feminism.3
2.1 The Background of American Feminism in 19th century3
2.2 Women’s Culture and American Literature of Feminism.3
3 The Development of Carrie’s Feminist Consciousness.6
3.1 Vague Dream6
3.2 Broken Dream7
3.3 Swing Dream. 9
3.4 Realized Dream11
4 The Factors for Carrie’s Development as a New Woman.13
4.1 Outside Factors – Social Effects.13
4.2 Inside Factors – The Nature of New Woman.14
4.3 The Enlightment on Sister Carrie’s Spirits.14
5 Conclusion 16
Bibliography. 17
1 Introduction
Sister Carrie is the most controversial work of Theodore Dreiser. In the history of American literature, Sister Carrie is a big milestone. Sister Carrie tells the story of a naive, intelligent, beautiful country girl whom everyone kindly calls Sister Carrie, leaving for Chicago to make a living. What has happened to her is unfortunate. Carrie is a beautiful pure rural woman and attracted by the bustling Chicago. She is once like an article moving from her father to her brother-in-law, from her brother-in-law to Drouet, then from Drouet to Hurstwood, but in the end Carrie gets rid of men and becomes an independent woman. Carrie has several times thought of changes. Therefore, she knows that family is indifferent, and love is faking, and the only way to get a better life depends on her striving. This kind of transformation reflects her independent consciousness of women and a change from a hazy dream to a clear proposal.
Theodore Dreiser was one of the greatest American social novelists that reflected the "American dream", and revealed the corrosive of capitalist society. But comments on his works have been controversial. Donald said: “He is the most influential one of the realistic writers in the twentieth century American literary world” (2006:4). Meanwhile, his many works involved naturalism description and the realistic criticism.
Theodore Dreiser had a hardscrabble youth and years of newspaper work behind him when he began his first novel, Sister Carrie, which was published by Doubleday in 1900. It was not until 1981 that the work was published in its original form. The novel gained a reputation as a shocker. Sister Carrie, the original manuscript of which is in the New York Public Library collections, is now universally recognized as one of the greatest and most influential American novels. Today, Sister Carrie has already become an immortal world famous work and has a large number of readers.