A Study Of Survival Predicament In The Sympathizer From The Post-colonial Perspective

The Sympathizer by Vietnamese American writer Viet Thanh Nguyen won the Pulitzer Prize of 2016 in Literature in the United States.The novel shows the physical and mental torture and struggle of the protagonist as a Vietnamese spy and refugee in the United States.He carries a double identity,crosses two cultures,goes through unimaginable physical and mental torture,and struggles in the search for his own identity.Since the publication of the novel,scholars at home and abroad have studied the novel from the perspectives of memory,diaspora and trauma.At present,no one has studied the survival predicament of the refugees in the novel.This thesis,starting from postcolonial theorist Said‘s Orientalism,―the other‖,multiculturalism and Homi K.Bhabha‘s simulation,hybridization and the ―third space‖,analyzes and explores the survival problems of Vietnamese refugees presented in The Sympathizer from the two concepts of ―heterogeneous‖ and ―pluralistic‖ in the theory.The thesis analyzes the internal and external reasons for the refugee dilemma,and explores the attempts made by Vietnamese immigrants in the novel to get rid of and fight against the survival dilemma.This thesis attempts to make a useful supplement to the study of Vietnamese American literature.This thesis includes four parts: abstract,introduction,main body and conclusion.In the part of introduction,Viet Thanh Nguyen and the main content of The Sympathizer are introduced,as well as the overall idea of the thesis is elaborated.The first chapter is the theoretical basis,which discusses the origin and development of postcolonial theory,and takes Homi K.Bhabha‘s heterogeneity,simulation and hybridity and the concept of the third space as the theoretical basis of this study.In the second chapter,from the post-colonial perspective,the thesis discusses the protagonist the ―Nameless‖ and the plight of the Vietnamese refugees he sympathizes with from the perspective of double-sided and heterogeneous perspectives,namely the other and marginalization.First of all,the paper analyzes the difficult living conditions of the―Nameless‖ and refugees as marginalized groups in society from the perspective of heterogeneity.They are discriminated against and neglected,lack of voice,and their economic situation is concerning.Secondly,from the perspective of double and heterogeneous,the paper analyzes the physical and mental torture of the protagonist as a double agent,and the great dilemma of survival.In the third chapter,the paper analyzes the external and internal causes of the―Nameless‖ and Vietnamese refugees‘ predicament.The external reason for the predicament lies in the fact that under the influence of racial discrimination,the protagonist and Vietnamese refugees inevitably suffer from racial discrimination and the refugees suffer social exploitation due to their marginalized ―the other‖ status,thus falling into physical and psychological difficulties.Secondly,individual political and cultural consciousness is the internal root of the protagonist‘s survival predicament.Ethnic minority refugees lack a clear cultural awareness,sensitivity to the impact of cultural differences,and enthusiasm to adapt to the mainstream cultural environment.Their dual cultural consciousness just brings them into the vicious circle of survival dilemma.Chapter four explores the ways in which the protagonist and refugees try to overcome their existential difficulties.First,the hero subconsciously tries to rescue himself from his psychological predicament as he realizes his mixed racial identity.He tried to reconstruct his personal identity in mainstream society.Secondly,Vietnamese refugees gradually try to integrate into the society through cultural simulation,but at the same time,they do not give up their ethnic cultural foundation,and seek their own belonging by maintaining cultural memory.In such a ―third space‖,Vietnamese refugees find their own mixed cultural identity and try to break the cultural dilemma.Finally,the thesis summarizes the plight of Vietnamese refugees represented by sympathizers reflected in the novel and their efforts to reconstruct their identities.Through the self-consciousness of hybridity,the return to Vietnamese cultural memory,and the active integration of mainstream cultural groups,they strive to get out of the predicament of survival,and make an attempt to establish a multicultural and coexisting cultural community.