An Interpretation Of The Bonesetter’s Daughter From The Perspective Of Ecofeminism

Amy Tan is one of the foremost contemporary Chinese American writers.Her novel The Bonesetter’s Daughter,which explores the mother-daughter relationship,interweaves the tragic condition of women from androcentric persecution with the harsh natural environment,revealing Tan’s concern for women and nature.Ecofeminism puts a high premium on the relationship between women and nature.According to ecofeminism,there is an intimate relationship between mistreating women and destroying nature.This intimate relationship is related to value dualism,the hierarchical thinking and the logic of domination of Western culture,namely the patriarchal oppressive conceptual framework as proposed by Karen J.Warren.Under the direction of Karen J.Warren’s ecofeminist theory,this thesis seeks to provide a thorough analysis and interpretation of The Bonesetter’s Daughter.The thesis begins with an examination of the survival situation of women and nature under the patriarchal oppressive conceptual framework,including the distressing misfortunes of women and nature under patriarchal ideologies and the intimate relationship between them.The thesis contends that whether in feudal society,where patriarchal culture prevails,or in modern Western society,where freedom and democracy are advocated,women are in varying degrees of silence and subordination,while nature is vulnerable to unending human exploitation and plunder.Secondly,the thesis indicates that in the face of oppression and persecution,women and nature take courageous vengeance and resistance against the patriarchal oppressive conceptual framework,which aids in dissolving the binary opposition between human and nature,men and women in traditional Western thinking.Finally,by delving into the harmonious relationship between people,human and nature in the novel,the thesis presents Amy Tan’s vision of building a harmonious society.Interpreting The Bonesetter’s Daughter from an ecofeminist perspective aims to examine the predicament of women’s survival and nature’s ecological crisis.It also calls for the collective,relentless efforts of human beings to overthrow the patriarchal oppressive conceptual framework in order to construct a society in which people,humans and nature can coexist in harmony.