On The Subversion Of Mainstream Ideology In The Sea Wolf

Jack London(1876-1916)is a well-known realistic writer in American literature.His best-selling novel The Sea Wolf is not only a sea story but also a highly realistic book.London moves the social arena to the Ghost in The Sea Wolf,and explores their lives of suppressing,revolting,surviving or being destroyed in history by placing the characters into the specific historical context: the Gilded Age.This thesis mainly adopts Stephen Greenblatt's “subversion” and“containment” theory to analyze main characters' subversion and containment of the mainstream ideology.Subversion refers to the subversion of power and mainstream consciousness.If the subversion threatens the dominance of the ruling class,it will be contained by powerful mainstream ideology.The thesis analyzes the mainstream ideology on the Ghost at first.The ruler of the ship,Larsen,is a brutal representative of the bourgeoisie.The mainstream ideology on the Ghost is the reflection of acceptance to Wolf Larsen's domination and maintenance of his interests.Money-oriented capitalism and Wolf Larsen's violence are two ways to maintain the mainstream ideology.In The Sea Wolf,sailors are alienated into labor machines under the oppression of money-oriented capitalism while Weyden,a literary critic,suffers from violence on the Ghost.Secondly,the thesis analyzes threecharacters' subversion of mainstream ideology.Johnson and Leach,are the working people in the micro-society.They are eager to be treated equally and refuse to be alienated into working machines.Johnson and Leach are indifferent to money temptation and try to assassinate Wolf Larsen.Weyden insists on his non-violent ideas,desiring to pursue the kindness of humanity.However,during the Gilded Age,they are all considered as subverters on the Ghost because their desires are contrary to the interests of monopoly capitalism.They are all contained by the mainstream ideology.Johnson and Leach are isolated by other members of the Ghost and forced to make a compromise with Wolf Larsen.However,they are still killed by the bourgeoisie.In order to protect his lover,Weyden betrays Johnson and abandons his belief.He still cannot survive on the Ghost and is reduced to be a runaway.In the Gilded Age,many people tried to get rid of the oppression and restraint of mainstream ideology but in the face of the powerful mainstream ideology,their resistance is not power enough and will eventually be contained.Through portraying the tragic fate of the working people,London expresses sharp criticism on the reality of monopoly capitalism and deep sympathy for the predicament of the working people in the Gilded Age.