The Analysis Of Religious Prototype In On The Road

Based on the study of U.S. writer Jack·Kerouac's"On the Road", this paper uses the method of archetype analysis, through interpreting the theme archetype, the plot archetype and character archetype of the text, to research the diversion and distortion of Bible which is studied by Kerouac.There are four chapters in this paper. The first chapter studies the religious belief of Kerouac under the background of United States'Religious Revival in the 1950s years. Although Kerouac doesn't stick to life instruction of the Catholic religion in his life, he is admitted to be a Catholic believer and longs for the salvation of God.From two theme archetype"salvation"and"original sin", the second chapter explores the necessity of seeking salvation in on the road. In the section of"salvation", Dean, who is a modern knight, continuously sets out to seek God and the meaning of existence in order to get salvation. Dean is reckless and prepares to give up everything in order to persist. Even he reduces to be deserted and mangled, he is still persisting. In the section of"original sin", a group of people such as Dean and Sal, because of the crime nature of their ancestors, indulge their desires continuously, and make themselves be lost in the sins of the eyes'lust, physical desire and the pride of life etc, which finally leads to failure of their search.The third chapter analyzes the application of two religion archetype, from the two plot archetype of"Paradise"and"abandonment". At first, the author regards Sabinal life of picking cotton as the life of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Sal describes Sabinal as a paradise where everyone is harmonious, friendly and loves labor. Secondly, the author uses the plot archetype of abandonment when he shapes the image Dean. In on the road, Dean was abandoned by his father, his wife and children, believers and his friends, finally he sets out to search God and the meaning of existence lonely. It testifies that modern people have to suffer from loss through the plot of Paradise and abandonment, and also proves that believers can keep God's blessing and enjoy the bliss only by continuing to seek God's will, faith in Jesus Christ, and accepting the guide of Holy Spirit in the real life.In the fourth chapter, the author especially analyzes the differences of Roman Catholic and the New Protestant from the image of aunt, and the image archetype of Jesus is Dean, and the image archetype of Notre Dame is aunt. Through these, the author points the misconception of Roman Catholic in the relation between"Notre Dame"and"church"(or Jesus, because Jesus is the leader of church.) At the end of the novel, Sal gives blessing to Dean, and Laura (Sal's young girlfriend) leaves Dean holy tears. Tears are like those tears in a Western painting, when the Virgin holds Jesus who is nailed in the cross, which is a symbol of the Virgin's love to Jesus, and expresses the sadness of her powerless to save the Jesus.In a word, after Kerouac takes such a series of adventures according to the meaning of life, the God, eternal life, the ultimate metaphysical meaning, he finally gives up the search, and lets wilderness linger in his heart.