The Study Of Unreliable Narration And Its Aesthetic Effects In The Underground Railroad

The Underground Railroad is a full-length novel conceived by African American writer Colson Whitehead over a period of 16 years.As an African-American writer,Whitehead shows the unreliability of the narration and its aesthetic effect by showing the situation where the narrator contradicts the norms of the implied author in the novel,and expresses his deep concern for the black community’s pursuit of equality and freedom.Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad uses a large number of unreliable narrations to show how the characters’ survival conditions and the external restraints of society make their reports,perceptions,and value judgments one-sided.Thus,this thesis aims to interpret the reasons and functions of the unreliable narrations in The Underground Railroad by the analysis of the strategy of the unreliable narrations used in the novel.Therefore,this thesis focuses on the embodiment of unreliable narrations in facts and events,values and judgments,knowledge and perception,and analyzes the internal or external reasons for these unreliable narrations.It also studies the aesthetic effects of unreliable narrations on readers.Based on the analysis of unreliable narrations in the novel,the final conclusion can be made as follows: firstly,unreliable narrations in The Underground Railroad are due to the narrator’s wrong or inadequate reporting,the narratee’s wrong or inadequate interpretation,and their wrong values.This also reveals the implied author’s criticism of slavery,racial discrimination and the oppression of women.Secondly,these unreliable narrations strengthen the communication between readers and the implied author,enhance the aesthetic effect of irony,morality and emotion.