Rebellion And Rebirth

Sarah Waters occupies an important position in British literature in the21stcentury. Most of her novels are set in London of the Victorian era. Because of hertrilogy Tipping the Velvet, Affinity, Fingersmith which describe the Victorian age,she receives the readers’ widespread praise and is eulogized as one of the besttwenty English writers. Most of her works refer to the homosexual theme, and thusSarah Waters is labeled as a lesbian writer. Tipping the Velvet is her firstlesbian-themed novel. It makes Sarah Waters one of the most influential writers incontemporary Britain.Tipping the Velvet is Sarah Waters’ debut. Since its publication in1998, thisnovel has attracted great attention. However, because of its homosexual theme, thereare very few people who have done researches on it, especially at home. However, inrecent years, with the development of society, the marginalized groups havegradually aroused wide public concern. They are no longer silent and begin to speakup for themselves. They are sincerely eager to get more recognition and tolerancefrom the public.Starting from the theme of this novel and having queer theory as its framework,the thesis analyzes how the heroine Nancy rebelled against the heterosexualhegemony and then got rebirth from the heterosexual hegemonic society. It studiesthe profound humanistic care and positive significance contained in this novel.According to the queer theorist Judith Butler’s “gender performativity”, this thesisanalyzes the homosexual’s deconstruction to the heterosexual hegemony byquestioning the basis of heterosexual mechanism: internal consistency of biologicalsex, gender and sexual orientation. Dominated by the main value of “sexual norm”,Nancy experienced the forbidden secret love, miserable breakup, and then used“drag” to highlight her masculinity. This behavior deconstructed the naturalizedfemininity in females. Eventually, Nancy examined herself bravely and obtained thetrue love and a new self. Nancy’s insistence on being true self and obtaining truelove are the most powerful fight against the heterosexual hegemony. This thesis consists of three parts.The first part is the introduction which concentrates on Sarah Waters’ life andher literature career, the background and researches of this novel, the briefintroduction to the thesis.The second part is the main body of the thesis that includes four chapters.The first chapter elaborates queer theory, which includes the emergence anddevelopment of the theory and its researches at home and abroad. It provides thetheoretical basis for the analysis of the heroine’s psychological and behavioralactivities.The second chapter focuses on the powerful heterosexual hegemony in theVictorian era, and analyzes how Nancy’s first love was destroyed under its tangibleinfluence.The third chapter analyzes how Nancy adhered to the true self and rebelledagainst the heterosexual hegemony.The fourth chapter discusses the rebirth of Nancy under the heterosexualhegemony. After the hardships, she finally found her soul mate and transformed intoa new woman. Nancy got the real rebirth.The third part is conclusion. In the Victorian age，it was characterized by thestern moral value. Thus the homosexuals had small living space. As a marginalizedindividual, Nancy was courageous to be the true self. Finally she gained her true loveand a new social identity after the severe test of life and the horrible torture of heart.By analysis of Tipping the Velvet from the perspective of queer theory, the thesisaims to encourage more queers to strive for their rights, and hopes that more peopletreat them with a kind and tolerant heart. In so dong, a harmonious society can bejointly built.