Subversion And Reconstruction: A Research Into Dylan Thomas’ Poetry

Dylan Thomas is one of the most influential British poets in the 20 th century who is largely known for his imaginative use of language.His extraordinary poetry opens a new chapter in the history of British poetry.Different from other famous poets of his time,Dylan Thomas focus on exploring the inner feelings.His poetry is full of glorification of humanity,the continuous sympathy towards human fate and the concern for life and death.Considered to be one of the greatest Welsh poets,Dylan Thomas definitely attracts lots of scholars to study his poetry.Both foreign and domestic studies basically revolve around the following aspects: his own personal life,the themes of his poems,and the language and rhyme of his poetry.These studies provide abundant resources for further exploration and interpretation of Dylan Thomas’ poetry.On the basis of these studies,this thesis tries to provide a systemic illustration of Dylan Thomas’ poems and seeks out the basic tendencies reflected in his poetry.In this thesis,the author holds that Dylan Thomas’ poetry tends to subvert the God’s image,anthropocentrism and rationalism,and at the same time it reconstructs a poetic world full of human power,harmony between man and nature and Neo-romantic elements.This thesis consists of five parts including: the introduction,three chapters as the main body and the conclusion.The introduction begins with a brief depiction of the Dylan Thomas’ life experience and features of his poetry.And then the literature review of Dylan Thomas and his poetry both at abroad and at home are provided.The central argument,research method and research significance are also given at the end of the introduction.Chapter One intends to carry out a detailed analysis of the subversion of God image and reconstruction of human power in Dylan Thomas’ poetry.Chapter Two intends to illustrate the subversion of anthropocentrism in Thomas’ poetry by analyzing his pursuit of the human subjectivity and the equal position of all species in the world.And Thomas also reconstructs a harmonious relationship between man and nature by fully presenting his nostalgia complex and poetic dwelling spirit in his poetry.Chapter Three interprets the tendency of subversion and reconstruction in the field of literature,which is mainly reflected in the subversion of rationalism and the reconstruction of the Neo-romanticism.Finally the conclusion summarizes the whole thesis,reaffirming the two tendencies reflected in Dylan Thomas’ poetry.This thesis is a new attempt to interpret Dylan Thomas’ poetry from these two tendencies,and it is also an important way of systematic and comprehensive understanding of Thomas’ poetry.