On The Use Of Analepsis And Its Significance In Alice Munro's Short Fiction

This thesis investigates the relationship between Alice Munro's use of analepsis and its narrative effects in her fiction in light of the narrative theory produced by French narratologist Gerard Genette.The investigation focuses on the three types of analepsis as defined by the French theorist in his analysis of narrative order and examines their functions in character portrayal,plot development,and theme advancement in three of Munro's representative short stories,namely,"Oranges and Apples" in Friend of My Youth,"The Bear Came over the Mountain" in Hateship,Friendship,Courtship,Loveship,Marriage,and"Runaway" in Runaway.When Alice Munro was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013,she was praised as the modem Chekhov by the selection committee for her extraordinary ability to create life-like scenes in her short stories.Numerous scholars of different schools of thought have treated her work from various perspectives:biographical,historical,feminist,structuralist,deconstructionist,thematic,religious,sociological,psychological,and symbolist,and so on.There are a few studies using the narratological approach.However,none has paid sufficient critical attention to Munro's crafty use of analepsis in her stories,to how such skilful use has contributed to the creation of a multi-layered fictive world that is complex,interesting,and informative.I hope my study of this narrative aspect of Munro's fictional writing and the research outcome that I produce will add to the reservoir of criticism about Alice Munro.My critical approach in the study here is narratological in nature;in particular,I am concerned with one small but significant phenomenon,i.e.,the use of analepsis in fiction,which is an important component in Genette's discussion of order in his comprehensive narrative theory expounded in his seminal book Narrative Discourse:An Essay in Method(1980).Genette makes his discussion of "Order" in fiction the first chapter in his book,for it involves time,expressed by tense in Western literature,"in which the relationship between the time of the story and the time of the discourse is expressed"(29).Naturally and logically,this should be the primary field(or the basis)for any meaningful textual analysis.Genette creates the narrative concept of Analepsis to help clarify the critical discussion of narrative,which consists of three categories:internal analepsis,external analepsis,and mixed analepsis.I will elaborate on the specific meanings of these three definitions in my Introduction.By narrowing the focus of my investigation to analepsis and its function in the narrative,I hope to be relatively thorough in the examination of this narrative phenomenon.By looking at each of the three subcategories of Analepsis,I expect to discover the organic relationship between them and the substantive elements in prose fiction,that is,character,plot,and theme.Munro's later and mature work seldom begins from the beginning,so to speak;the story often begins in medias res and the narrative timeline frequently intersects the story timeline and this act of mixing-up creates narrative dissonances that may seem confusing at first sight.Using the theoretical tools provided by the narrative theory,we are able to discern the intricate narrative design of the story,and in turn we are better able to appreciate the character portrayal,the plot development,and the theme advancement.Conducting this kind of research and analysis,I believe,will help to deepen our understanding of the superb novelistic art of Alice Munro.The thesis consists of five chapters.Chapter 1 explains the nature of the thesis I have just presented above,and introduces the context and method of my research in some detail.Chapter 2 analyzes the use of analepsis in terms of characterization in the story "Oranges and Apples." In particular the discussion explains how the moral qualities of the hero and the heroine are revealed by the skilful and unobtrusive use of analepsis seen in the story.Chapter 3 focuses on the use of analepsis in the story "The Bear Came over the Mountain" in terms of its contribution to plot development.The discussion there looks at especially the nature of the intimate relationship between the plot and the content it has to carry and move forward.Chapter 4 deals with the use of analepsis in the story "Runaway" in terms of its contribution to advancing the theme of feminist idea and practice.In particular the discussion focuses on the two instances of the heroine's runaway experiences and tries to discover the motivations behind them.At the same time attempts are made to establish the true notion of feminism there.Chapter 5 concludes the previous discussions and summarizes the main points of the thesis.