On The Construction Of Community In Last Orders From The Perspective Of Space Theory

Graham Swift(1949-)is one of the most successful and highly regarded novelists in contemporary Britain.His sixth novel Last Orders was published in 1996 and received the Booker Prize that year.With the help of Ferdinand T?nnies' s concept of community and Henri Lefebvre's space theory,this thesis intends to explore what kind of community is formed in Last Orders and what factors contribute to the construction of that community by demonstrating the changing relationships and feelings of characters along the journey.Apart from Introduction and Conclusion,there are four chapters in this thesis.The Introduction presents the life of Graham Swift,the plots of Last Orders,previous researches on the novel,and the meaning of this research.Based on the studies of Western critics and Chinese scholars,this thesis further analyzes the specific features of the community in Last Orders and its construction,as well as the function of various spaces which influence the relationships among characters.Chapter One introduces the concept of space and community,especially Lefebvre's classification of “space” and T?nnies' s idea of “community”,their relations at theoretical level,and the practice of community studies in literary criticism.This chapter proves that it is feasible and helpful to study relationships of the characters in Last Orders with the help of Lefebvre's space theory,T?nnies' s community concept,and Steven Brint's disaggregated approach.Chapter Two explores how the physical spaces in Last Orders function in community construction.The analysis develops along the places they stop on the journey.By analyzing the cultural background of those places,and the physical or mental activities of characters in those spaces,this chapter illustrates the significance of common life experience,frequent communication and interaction,compromise and reconcilement,fraternal feelings and common beliefs for the construction of a harmonious community.Chapter Three provides analysis of how social spaces influence community construction.Social space is the production of social relations,and changes the way people communicate with each other.By explaining the typical social spaces of the story,this chapter shows that the community Last Orders is not formed through “natural will”;rather,it results from the efforts to conquer self-interest and to embrace group identity.Chapter Four offers explanation of how the typical mental spaces in the novel represent crucial factors for community construction.Mental space is formed through inner activities and emotional expression.The mental spaces of Lenny,Ray,Vic and Amy show that duty and loyalty,respect and sympathy,emotional commitment and personal concern are of great significance for the community construction in Last Orders.This research concludes that the journey to scatter ashes can be regarded as the constructive process of a community.The main characters in Last Orders have participated in the construction of a small-scaled,close,and harmonious community based on neighborhood,family,and friendship.They are faithful and responsible for community members,but indifferent to outsiders and abnormal people.Based on common life experience and beliefs,they eventually build a genuine community,because they share fraternity,responsibility,and emotional commitment,and they positively settle conflicts.This research is meaningful for contemporary society where people are quite indifferent to each other and often have little sense of belonging.