Abstract

Sophie’s choice is one of the greatest novels written by William Styron, a famous American novelist in the 20th century. The paper presents an interpretation of the the novel from the perspective of Psychological Trauma, from the scenes of Auschwitz Concentration Camp and postwar American life, combining with the feminism to focus on the influence of the war and Patriarchal cage on female (taking the heroine Sophie as an example).The paper analyzes the influence of Psychological Trauma on Sophie by introducing the Psychological Trauma Theory and the cause of Sophie’s Psychological Trauma --- Auschwitz Concentration Camp and Patriarchal cage. Through research, this paper not only offers convenience to other researchers, but also has certain social and realistic significance in helping people deal with traumas in the past and present, thus avoiding such tragedy happening again. 

    Key words: Sophie’s choice；Psychological Trauma；Auschwitz Concentration    Camp

摘  要

 

威廉·斯泰龍是20世紀(jì)美國著名的小說家，《蘇菲的選擇》是其成名作之一。本文主要從心理創(chuàng)傷角度出發(fā)，以奧斯維辛集中營及戰(zhàn)后的美國生活為背景，再結(jié)合女權(quán)主義來探討戰(zhàn)爭及男權(quán)囚籠對女性（以主人公蘇菲為例）的影響。本文通過介紹心理創(chuàng)傷理論，結(jié)合蘇菲的心理創(chuàng)傷來源---奧斯維辛集中營及男權(quán)囚籠，分析心理創(chuàng)傷對蘇菲的影響。通過研究，本文不僅為之后的研究者提供一定的幫助；同時(shí)也有一定的社會(huì)現(xiàn)實(shí)意義：有助于人們更好地調(diào)節(jié)過去和現(xiàn)在的心理創(chuàng)傷，避免悲劇的再次發(fā)生。

    關(guān)鍵詞：蘇菲的選擇；心理創(chuàng)傷；奧斯維辛集中營

Contents

I. Introduction 1

A. An Introduction of William Styron 1

B. Theory of Psychological Trauma 1

C. Story of Sophie’s Choice 2

II. Literature Review 3

A. Overseas study on the novel 3

B. Domestic study on the novel 4

C. Personal Review 4

III. Analysis of Sophie’s Choice 5

1.Auschwitz Concentration Camp 5

2.Patriarchal cage 6

a. Sophie’s Father 6

b. Nathan 7

3. Guilt 7

B. The Female Consciousness reflected in Sophie’s Choice 8

C. Sophie’s Failure in Recovery from Trauma 8

1. Attempting to Cure Trauma 9

a. Telling Traumatic Stories 9

b. Reconnecting with Others 10

c. Eros 10

2. Sophie’s Death 11

IV. Conclusion 11

Works Cited 14