Inextricable Shackles

Joseph Conrad is one of the most important English writers in the late 19th century and the early 20th century.He set sail around the world for nearly twenty years and collected rich experience about living at sea.As a result,the most of his novels are marine adventures,for which he is highly praised as the master of marine novels.He wrote 13 novels,28 short stories and 2 memoirs throughout his life;among them,Typhoon is one of his representative works.In Typhoon,Conrad reconstructs the Chinese image that was assaulted by Western Imperialists.and the Chinese always remained a marginal position in the late 19th century.In today's increasingly accelerated globalization,Typhoon has greatly realistic meanings,but there has not been much research on this novella,particularly on the framework of Orientalism.Based on Said's Orientalist theory of Orientalism,this thesis tries to expound Typhoon,by studying the Orientals as the other and the Occidentals as the self,in order to disclose the Orientalism of this work.Furthermore,the academia generally considers Conrad is an anti-imperialist and anti-colonialist writer,however,due to the influence of Eurocentric and imperialist ideology in that time he could not get rid of the shackles of Imperialism and Colonialism.In view of this,this thesis also tries to disclose the orientalist ideology of Conrad.This thesis takes Edward W.Said's Orientalism as the theoretical foundation.In his orientalist theory Orientalism,Said mentioned the Orient was not the real Orient,but a place created by occidentals that is totally different from the Occident.In the division between the Self and the Other,discourse power is handled by the Self,namely Westerners all the time.Thus,a contrast of the British crews as the Self and the Chinese coolies as the Other is built up.In the main body of this thesis,which respectively analyze the identities of the Orientals as the other and the Occidentals as the Self.First,These Chinese coolies are always marginalized,who are absent in the names and appearances,even deprived of their voice.The barbaric looks and behavior of these Chinese coolies in this novella echo the image of the Orientals as the savages perceived by orientalist scholars.Paying more attention to the incapacity of the Chinese coolies when facing the typhoon,Conrad actually regards these Chinese as the saved and governed Other.Second,Conrad focuses on almost every British crew,even the minor Western characters,who are attached much weight to.In this novella.they are all vivid portrayed with distinct personality.As a result,a dual position of the savage Chinese and the civilized British is built up.In the meanwhile,Conrad exaggerates the British crew's heroism in order to construct another contrast of the British savior and the saved Chinese.For one thing,Conrad regards imperialism and colonialism as loathing,yet he is programmed into the Eurocentric and imperialist ideology,so he can't extricate himself from the Orientalism ideology.For another,it shows the necessity of critical reading of Western works;in the same time,we should strengthen the Sino-Western dialogue,so as to remove the Westerners' false perceptions of China as the Other,Cultural hegemony as well.As a result,it can promote the parity and integration of different cultures.Furthermore,as citizens of the most important eastern powers,we should show neither inferiority nor superiority,but with respect when treating people in other countries.Moreover,with an open mind of receiving the cultures of different countries and nations,we should carry forward the Chinese traditional culture,in order to prompt to reacquaint vigorous China.