An Analysis of Florens in A Mercy from the Perspective of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs_英语论文

摘要

托尼·莫里森是美国当代黑人女作家，因对非裔美国人生活的敏锐观察而闻名。她的小说《慈悲》以17世纪末的北美大陆为背景，揭示了早期奴隶制对人性的破坏，而小说的主人公佛罗伦斯就是受害者之一。本文从马斯洛需求层次角度解读人物佛罗伦斯，试图从生理需求、安全需求、爱与归属需求、尊重需求和自我实现需求五个方面对她的需求进行详细分析，从而展现托尼·莫里森对17世纪末的非裔美国女性生存处境的独特认知，揭示蓄奴制、性别歧视以及种族歧视对她们的压迫，并通过分析佛罗伦斯的自我实现需求来凸显追求精神独立与自由对于非裔美国女性重塑自我的重要性。

关键词：《慈悲》  需求层次理论  佛罗伦斯  托尼·莫里森

Abstract

Toni Morrison, a contemporary African-American female writer, enjoys a reputation for her keen observation of African American life. Her fiction A Mercy, against the background of the North American continent in the late 17th century, reveals the devastation to human nature incurred by early slavery, whose protagonist, Florens was one of the victims. 

This thesis interprets the character Florens in A Mercy from the perspective of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, with an attempt to make a detailed analysis of her needs in five aspects embodying physiological needs, safety needs, love and belonging needs, esteem needs and self-actualization need, thus showing Toni Morrison’s special cognition of the living conditions of African American women in the late 17th century, revealing their oppression by slavery, sexism and racism, and highlighting the significance of pursuing spiritual independence and freedom for African American women to reshape themselves through analyzing Florens’ self-actualization need.

Key words: A Mercy  Hierarchy of Needs  Florens  Toni Morrison 

Contents

Chapter One  Introduction 1

1.1  About Toni Morrison and A Mercy 1

1.2  Introduction of Abraham Maslow and the Theory of Hierarchy Needs 2

1.3  Purpose of the Thesis  5

Chapter Two  Literature Review 8

2.1  Previous Studies on A Mercy Abroad 8

2.2  Previous Studies on A Mercy at Home 9

Chapter Three  An Analysis of Florens from the Perspective of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs 11

3.1  The Physiological Needs of Florens 11

3.2  The Safety Needs of Florens 12

3.2.1 The Lack of Personal Security 12

3.2.2 The Lack of Health Security 14

3.3  The Belongingness and Love Needs of Florens 14

3.3.1 The Belongingness Need of Florens 15

3.3.2 The Love Needs of Florens 18

3.4 The Esteem Needs of Florens 22

3.4.1 The Lack of Self-esteem 22

3.4.2 The Lack of Esteem of Others 23

3.5  The Self-actualization Need of Florens 26

Chapter Four  Conclusion 28

Bibliography

Acknowledgments