The Multiple Connotations Of Character Image System Of The French Lieutenant's Woman

After the publication of The French Lieutenant's Woman, the study about it in and abroad concentrate on four aspects as follows: narrative art, psychoanalytic criticism, existentialist reading, social historical criticism. Although these research have got many accomplishments, but there are also some deficiency as we can see: many researchers pay great attention to the properties of meta-fiction of this novel -the narrative technique different from realistic novel;or abstract analysis of the character images, read Sarah simply as the megaphone of Sartrean existentialism, neglect making an inquiry into the character images as a whole.As an attempt to fill the blank, this paper will surround three major character images — SaTah, Ernestina, Charles, discuss from four angles — conventional concept or modern ideas, id or ego, exist authentically or not, conform to nemo or not. Nemo means individual sense of vacancy, Fowles expounds his nemo thought on the base of psychoanalysis and existentialism. So the conclusion of this paper is, Ernestina represents the aspect of conventional concept, ego personality, non-authentical existence and conform to nemo, Sarah represents the aspect of modern ideas, id personality, authentical existence and conflict to nemo, Charles vacillates between the two. The rich significance of the novel embodies multiple connotations, this prove the text's post-modernity from a new view. Besides, multiple connotations also reflect the novelist's profound interest to individual existence condition in post-modern context, Fowles therefore becomes the most brilliant and the gravest novelist in Briton after the Second World War.