Awakening And Rebelling: A Psychoanalytical Study Of Clara Maugham's Pursuit Of Self-identity In Jerusalem The Golden

Margaret Drabble is regarded as one of the most famous and influential women writers in contemporary literary field.Her fourth novel,Jerusalem the Golden which was published in 1967 received a huge response.Every chapter of this novel gives a bright light to the wisdom.If people want to acknowledge the inner parts of intellectual young ladies in Britain in the 1960 s through literature,Jerusalem the Golden is the perfect one.So this novel attracts people a lot.Some critics focus on the theme of intellectual women's pursuit on this novel.Others admire the theme of religion and culture.This thesis attempts to use the perspective of Freudian psychoanalysis to explain the main character's pursuit of self-identity.This thesis is composed of five parts.Chapter one provides the brief introduction of Margaret Drabble,her works and the researches of home and abroad.Besides,the related theories of Freud are also introduced in this part.Chapter two discusses the main character's tolerance as a little girl.The tolerance comes from the depressing environment and the antipathetic traditional values.The main character's experience can be analyzed from the perspective of Freud's theory on children and the latent inhibition theory.As we all known,childhood is very important for people's personal development.As a little girl,the main character is not strong enough to fight against the situations.The little girl is fighting in her deep heart.Chapter three illustrates the main character's awakening of rebellious consciousness as a young lady.This part can be considered as a turning part.It analyzes the main character's transformation of fighting from preconscious to conscious.Then the main character is gradually driven by the new conscious.At the same time,the main character is refusing to reconcile with her past and making up her mind to change her future life.Chapter four analyzes the main character that pursues a balanced personality as an intellectual woman.Rebelling against traditional attitudes and accepting the new values are parts of superego;Searching for an ideal self-identity is a part of Id;and pursuing a harmonious relationship with others is a part of ego.When superego,Id and ego are harmonious with others,one can be fully developed.The main character gradually forms a balanced personality and starts a better life.Chapter five makes a conclusion which has summarized the former analysis of this thesis.By analyzing the psychology of the character,people can get more comprehension about Drabble's writing style and know how to form a balanced personality.Besides,in this part,it contains the innovations,limitations and the significance for further study.