Abstract

Thomas Hardy is a great poet and novelist of the Victorian Age, whose works are transitional. They not only inherit the traditional critical realism, but also pave a way for English literature in the twentieth century. Jude the Obscure is one of his most important works. It has attracted close attention of critics once published. This paper will try to learn the women's voiceless struggle in the novel through letters. Though Jude the Obscure is not an epistolary novel, letters play an important part in it. It contributes to the development of the plots and makes the characters' images more complete.

Sue Bridehead is one of the protagonists in the novel. She is a representative of educated and civilized women in Victorian Age. Through her tragedy, the author expresses his thoughts about religion, marriage and love of English society at that time. To some feminist critics, the position of Sue is more significant than the hero Jude. In the novel, Sue is changeable and unpredictable. She seems to be calm, cautious and strict with herself in front of people. However, she behaves differently in her letters. She can express her real thoughts through the letters. Therefore, this thesis will try to combine self-expression of women with letter writing to learn more about Hardy and his novel.

Key words: Jude the Obscure, letter writing, enlightened woman, self–expression
 
摘        要

托马斯•哈代是英国著名的小说家、诗人。他的作品承上启下，既继承了英国批判现实主义的优良传统，也为20世纪的英国文学开辟了道路。《无名的裘德》是他最重要的作品之一。《无名的裘德》一经发表，便引起了评论界的高度关注，而且历来评论家们看法不一。本文旨在通过对《无名的裘德》中书信来解读小说中女性无声的呐喊。尽管《无名的裘德》并不是一本书信体小说，但书信在小说中起到了举足轻重的作用，它推动了故事情节的发展，塑造了更鲜明的人物形象。
    淑•布莱赫德是小说的主要人物之一，她代表了英国维多利亚时期的新女性形象，也体现了作者对当时英国社会的宗教、婚姻、爱情等问题的思考。在一些女性主义批评家看来，淑在小说中的地位甚至超过了男主人公裘德。在小说里，淑的情绪起伏不定，难以捉摸。在人前，她表现得克己，冷静。但在她的书信里，她又表现出了不为人知的另一面。借助书信这个平台，她能表达出自己内心的真实想法。因此，本文试图通过分析小说中的书信写作来分析女性自我的表达，加深对哈代及其小说的研究，进一步发掘小说的价值。


关键词：无名的裘德，书信写作，新女性，自我表达