Analysis of Antoinette’s Tragedyin Wide Sargasso Sea

刘英波　王丹邱�オ�

Abstract：Jean Rhys published Wide Sargasso Sea in 1966， which won her the Royal Society of Literature Award. The article explores the factors contributing to the protagonist Antoinettes tragedy， namely social factors， family factors and personal factors and demonstrates the inevitability of Antoinettes tragedy.

Key words： tragic fate； patriarchal society； colonialism

Jean Rhys （1890-1979）， a contemporary British female writer disappeared from public view for 20 years. Until 1966， with the publishing of Wide Sargasso Sea，she caused a sensation in literary circles. The heroine Antoinette in the novel was based on the mad woman who was imprisoned in the attic in Jane Eyre.

One of the social factors that led to Antoinettes tragedy was colonialism. The story of Wide Sargasso Sea took place in Jamaica which became one of the crown colonies. Because of cruel treatment， the black slaves often had uprisings to fight for their freedom. The conflict between the British colonists and the local blacks became unprecedentedly serious. Her identity dilemma was another factor that led to her tragedy in the colonialism background. From childhood to adolescent， she lived in a paradoxical life with her special identity.

Racial discrimination was another social factor that led to Antoinettes tragedy. As a white Creole girl， Antoinette was discriminated by racism from both the local blacks and the whites. The discrimination from both the local blacks and the white English made her feel very lonely and inferior during her whole life. Her character flaw was an important factor that led to her tragedy. Even when their marriage was going to end， she was not brave enough to leave him and begin a new life. This was a cause which led to her unfortunate marriage later. Antoinette， who grew up in the turbulence and loneliness was eager for a safe life. She rested all her hope on the Englishman who married her but this led to her tragedy later. In that patriarchal society， a womans resistance was useless. Men had most of the power and significance. Womans freedom， the economy， even marriage was dominated by men. Her step-father was the representative of male power in her family. Her step-father arranged her marriage with Rochester. In patriarchal society， Antoinettes marriage， freedom and economy were dominated by her step-father who was the originator of her unfortunate marriage. On account of her mothers indifference and rejection in her childhood， she felt very lonely and had no one to rely on. The tragic fate of her mother created her fear of marriage. Antoinettes unfortunate marriage was the biggest factor which led to her tragic fate.endprint

One reason for her miserable marriage was lacking of true love. After Antoinette lost her financial independence， she lost her social status and her right to speak and to decide. Besides economic deprivation， in such a marriage， Antoinette was also traumatized by her husbands physical violence. Another significant factor of Antoinettes unfortunate marriage was class difference. These differences caused many misunderstandings and gaps between them after they got married. For their different social classes， they had different manners. Meanwhile， because they came from two different classes， cultural differences were another big factor that led to their unhappy marriage. Besides their different view towards Granbois， they also had a different attitude towards the local people.

In the whole novel， the author had written about Antoinettes dream three times. Her dreams the author wrote at different stages of Antoinettes life represented her different experience and psychological state. As well the dreams predicted her following destiny. She first dreamed that someone who hated her followed her in the forest represented her embarrassing situation： unaccepted by others and her state of mind： lack of security. Her second dream appeared when her stepfather took her out of the convent indicated her unfortunate marriage which she would experience later. However， her last dream happened when she was taken to England and locked in an attic. She dreamed her whole life was on fire. Her tragic destiny like the moths disappeared in the flame.

The ending of Antoinettes life was the ending of her dream of love and freedom； as well it was the ending of her fighting against racial discrimination， colonial domination and patriarchal oppression.

Although the heroine in Wide Sargasso Sea didnt succeed in pursuit of her dream of love and independence， her story was an inspiration for women of today who lost their way in the pursuit of love and career. Through the analysis of the reasons causing Antoinettes tragedy， women would know how to foster a right outlook on life and values， how to deal with the relationships with other people and the environment， how to seek self-worth and how to choose a happy marriage. Thereby the readers would avoid replaying the heroines tragedy. This article helped to give a better understanding of the themes by analyzing the factors contributing to the tragedy of the heroine， and offered a deeper recognition of women at that social background. Besides， it helped to appreciate the female literature in the same background.

Bibliography

Rhys， Jean. Wide Sargasso Sea. London： Penguin Books Ltd， 2011.

[2]Savory， Elaine. The Cambridge Introduction to Jean Rhys. New York： Cambridge University Press， 2009.

（作者单位：沈阳理工大学外国语学院，辽宁 沈阳 110000）endprint