Abstract

As one of the most extraordinary modernist writers in 20th century, Virginia Woolf has long been at the centre of literary criticism. Between the two world wars, Woolf was the central figure in London literary field and a member of the Bloomsbury Group. Critics have studied Woolf’s works from the perspective of modernism, feminism, psychoanalysis and the technique of stream of consciousness. Mrs. Dalloway is among the best known of Woolf’s work in which binary opposition is successfully applied. Binary opposition is one of the most remarkable features of Western philosophy and culture. Some of the binary oppositions are clearly contrasted in the novel, such as man and woman, life and death, sanity and insanity. This thesis strives to analyze the three pairs in details and to explain the significance. Some of the binary oppositions are profoundly explored in Mrs. Dalloway, such as man and woman, life and death, sanity and insanity, which are the focus of this thesis. The first part provides a brief introduction of the life and writing of Virginia Woolf. In the second part, the author defined and illustrated binary opposition. The third part discusses the three pairs of binary opposition in details. The binary opposition of man and woman has influenced our society deeply. Men tend to be seen as strong and superior while women fragile and obedient; men act as dominators and women as subordinates. The relationship of life and death is a central theme in Woolf’s writing.
Life is a sense of alienation and a journey in search of meaning; death threats people as the end of life, but it is also the end of alienation and a solution to the troubles of life. People of sanity have clear understanding of the world they live in and acute judgment; insane people cannot communicate with the world and see the insane truth of it. In the conclusion part, the author explores the significance of the application of binary opposition in the novel.

Key Words：binary opposition, man and woman, life and death, sanity and insanity

摘  要

弗吉尼亚·伍尔芙是20世纪英国最优秀的现代主义作家之一，同时也是一名女性主义先锋。在两次世界大战期间，伍尔芙是伦敦文学界的核心人物，也是布卢姆茨伯里派的成员之一。《达洛卫夫人》是伍尔芙最著名的小说之一，评论界多从现代主义，女性主义，精神分析和意识流手法等方面研究伍尔芙的作品。。二元对立是西方哲学和文化的最显著的特征之一，伍尔芙在其中成功运用了二元对立模型，小说对男女，生死，理智与疯狂等二元对立模型进行比较。本文致力于详细分析这三个对立模型并解释其意义。在第一部分对伍尔芙及其生平作简要介绍，第二部分简单介绍了二元对立的定义和解释，第三部分详细分析这三组二元对立。男女二元对立深刻地影响了人类社会，人们倾向于认为男性强大、优越，女性柔弱、顺从，男性是统治者而女性是从属者。生与死的关系是伍尔芙作品的一个重要主题。生存让人感受到一种异化感，是人寻求意义的过程。死亡是生命的终结，威胁着人类，但又能终止异化感，解决人生的苦恼,使人获得解脱。理智的人清楚地了解社会，具有敏锐的判断力。疯癫的人思想荒诞，无法与世界交流，但是能够看到另一种社会现实。在结尾部分，作者探究了运用二元对立的效果。

关键词:二元对立,男性与女性，生存与死亡，理智与疯癫