Subdued Voice Mad Women A Comparative Study Of The Madwomen Avengers In Both Western And Chinese Literary Works

With the development of feminism, the image of madwoman avenger has become a representative image in rebel to the patriarchal society and an emblem of the feminists' literary research and criticism. Throuth the analysis of this kind of image, the feminist critics decontruct the female's angel-like image constructed by the masculine society and achieve to subvert the traditional female image in literature and redefine the female.In this thesis, throuth the analysis of different madwomen avengers in both Western and Chinese literary works, the author tries to find out the shared basic characteristics and the determinants of such images and to demonstrate that those images have acquired a consciousness of subjectivity and dependence.There are also distinct differences between Chinese and Western madwomen avengers. In a historical perspective, there is a tradition of madwomen avengers image that can be traced back to Media; however there is an absence of this tradition in Chinese literature. The reader can hardly find such images in the ancient Chinese literary works. This thesis tries to account the cause of the absence of such images on the influence of the influence of the feudalist ethics. After May 4 Movement, this kind of image gradually appeared and increased in the literary world. In subversion to the male authority, the Chinese writers, especially women writers, constructed such images of madwomen avengers, which later developed into the scenes of "killing the husband". From the absence of images in ancient time to the overflow of those in the contemporary literature, madwomen avengers have come across an extended development in literature.However, despite the heavy blow that the madwoman vengeance has given to the patriarchal society, the madwomen have also suffered ultimately at the cost of the loss of self. Meanwhile, madness or craziness is not the only way the feminist writers should take. Through such analyses, the author of this thesis attempt to bring a little forward the critical approach of feminism.