Symbiosis:On The Intertextual Relations Between Atwood's Fiction And Poetry

Since the coinage of the term "Intertextuality",a hot discussion has been triggered in the literary arena.As an indispensable conception of the contemporary literary criticism,Intertextuality places an increasing emphasis on the fact that the understanding of one text shall be constructed on the basis of other texts.In this sense,it achieves to involve texts into an unending,ever-containing and interrelated literary net.Currently,scholars mainly focus attention on "Extratextuality",whereas "Intratextuality",particularly the internal relation between works of one single author,is left oblivious.However,plenty of writers,in fact,have demonstrated self-referentiality in their earlier and later works,constantly manifesting their literary pursuit and aesthetic values.Therefore,taking Atwood's fiction The Blind Assassin and her poetic anthology Eating Fire as researching objects,the thesis is devoted to two tasks.First,it aims at an examination of the internal relations between the two works and a penetration into the literariness lurking behind the"self-reflexivity".Also,it intends a slight move to provide potential approaches for Intratextual studies of hetero-generic works of one single author so as to enrich Intertextual study.The thesis incorporates six chapters.Chapter One gives a panoramic view of Atwoodian studies and the purpose of the thesis.Chapter Two clarifies related theories and the correlation between "Intertextuality" and"Intratextuality".Owing to the lack of systematic approaches on the internal relations between hetero-generic works of a same author,the chapter also articulates the validities,values and possible approaches.Chapter Three studies "Generic Intratextuality",which is revealed by the salient presence of one genre within another generically different text and which further illuminates the psychological,social and ideological control behind the diverse discourses.Chapter Four deals with "Imagery Intratextuality".The recurring images are regarded as strong manifestations of self-reflexivity.By Imitative,Derivative and Subversive Intratextuality the target texts mutually echo and complement each other in imagery,joining hands to enrich Atwood's literary map.Chapter Five denotes resonance and dialogues of the two texts in themes,multi-dimensionally interpreting the artistic ideals and literary pursuit of the author.The last chapter draws a conclusion and a reaffirmation on the great significance Intertextuality exerts in understanding hetero-generic works of Atwood.Self-referential consciousness is found throughout her literary writing,which not only demonstrates Atwood's conception of breaking conventional regulations and her life pursuit for"literary symbiosis",but also testifies the likelihood of heterogeneity in Intratextuality.