An Analysis Of The Intertextuality Between Daniel Deronda And The Portrait Of A Lady

George Eliot is a distinguished novelist in Vitoria era. Daniel Deronda is Eliot’s last novel, in which the delineation of characters represented by Gwendolen wins unanimous praise from the entire critic circle, including Leavis and Henry James. Henry James greatly appreciates this novel, praising the novel for its "multitudinous world" and "its widening narrative". James’s being under Eliot’s profound influence in aspects of theme and characterization makes F. R. Leavis assert that Henry James wouldn’t have written The Portrait of a Lady if he hadn’t read Daniel Deronda. And James ever pens Daniel Deronda:a Dialogue to comment on Eliot’s novel. But James does not only copy the plot, he innovates many techniques and ideas of novel writing on the basis of the tradition, forming the style of psychological realism. Therefore, this paper aims to explore the intertextuality between Daniel Deronda and The Portrait of a Lady, trying to delve James’s inheritance of and transcendence over Eliot.This dissertation consists of three parts:the Introduction Part, the Body Part which contains four chapters, and the Conclusion Part.Part One is Introduction, briefly outlining the theory of intertextuality, pointing out the inadequate aspects of the previous research and some main research aspects of this paper.Chapter Ⅰ is the overview of the theory of intertextuality and the two works. Based on Saussure’s influential structural linguistics and Bakhtin’s theory of dialogism and polyphony, Kristeva comes up with the term "intertextuality" in the 1960s. Kristeva divides texts into phenol-text and geno-text, maintains that horizontal axis and vertical axis are interwoven and form a huge system of intertextuality. Roland Barthes develops the ideas of "the Author", "Readerly Text" and "Writerly Text". French structuralists further divide transtextuality into five types. Then the paper makes an interview of George Eliot and her works Daniel Deronda, Henry James and his works The Portrait of a Lady respectively. And the relevant research achievements are summarized. The previous studies have certain limitations. And this study is committed to making a fuller research over the intertextuality between the two works in question.Chapter Ⅱ proceeds to the analysis of the intertextuality between the plots. The two novels follow the pattern of temptation—suffering—redemption. Gwendolen’s main temptation is from the desire for wealth and control while Isabel’s main temptation is from the will to be independent. After entering the marriage, they find their husbands are nothing but tyrants and they suffer greatly in the tragic marriages. After the accidental drowning of Grandcourt, Gwendolen gains the moral redemption under the help of Daniel. By returning to Rome to shoulder her responsibility to the step-daughter, Isabel faces her mistake bravely and gains the redemption. Then it deals with the intertextuality between the characters. Gwendolen, Daniel, Grandcourt and Gasher are the victim, the suitor, the tyrant husband and the mistress respectively. The corresponding roles can be found in The Portrait with Isabel, Ralph, Gilbert Osmond and Madame Merle playing the similar parts.Chapter III is about the intertextuality between the themes. First, they both attach a great attention on the fate of women, who are victims of the patriarchal society. Two novels both depict the universal difficulties and problems in the heroine’s marriage and growth. Then both of them are concerned with the business civilization and its influence on people’s life. The tragic marriages of both the heroines are linked with the mercenary trend in that era. Besides, Eliot’s moral reflection is subtilized into James’s creation. Both of them touch on the morality theme in their works. Through Gwendolyn’s growing from a self-centered one to a morally better one, and by exposing the upper society’s moral hypocrisy, Eliot shows her moral reflections. This has a profound effect on James, and similar moral concerns are reflected in Isabel, Mrs. Merle and others.Chapter IV is devoted to exploring the intertextuality between the two works in terms of psychological analysis and narrative techniques. First is the psychological analysis. In Daniel Deronda, Eliot makes thorough and detailed psychological analysis of Gwendolen and Deronda, analyzing the emotions which are beyond subjective consciousness such as motive and desire. And James places the centre of the subject in the young woman’s consciousness. Second is the narrative technique. Both novels uses non-chronological narrative order and multi points of view, enabling the readers to have a more comprehensive understanding of the story and characters. Third is that they both excel in the symbolism and irony. The snake serves as the symbol of evil in the two novels. In the aspect of marriage plot two writers show great irony, promoting the novel’s dramatization. The heroines’pursuit of freedom just makes them further bounded by marriage.The last part is the conclusion, making a summary of the whole paper. Eliot and James are two peaks in the history of literature, the former exerting a great influence on the latter. James creates the image of Archer based on Gwendolen in Daniel Deronda. Reading the two works from the perspective of intertextuality can help us better understand the inheritance and subversion between them, and is also conducive to re-examine the reading and writing behavior in the general sense.