在後殖民主義的觀點下，一部「描寫異域」的文學作品，已不再被視為是對殖民地的「寫真」或忠實表現，而是被「解碼」成一種殖民暴力的再現和想像。本論文採取「對位閱讀」(contrapuntal reading)策略，探討《黑暗之心》這部小說對歐洲文明的批判。本論文的基本觀點是：通過一種「暴力再現」，對他者的論述將導致一種「自我認識」和「自我彰顯」的行動，這種自我理解的行動，是通過以「對他者的暴力否定」為工具而獲得表現的。在西方本體論與形上論的約制架構下，「異文化」的形塑是根據歐洲定做的真理和本質來拼湊的，而不是根據歷史的真實。
《黑暗之心》是一部以非洲剛果為目的地的探險故事，但其內容卻並未觸及非洲的文化與社會。做為一部探險文學，《黑暗之心》是一部「歐洲觀點」的探險，一種固著於種族和帝國的殖民想像。對故事中的主角馬羅和克茲而言，「非洲」不是一個導致歐洲文明崩解的強硬體系，而是一種歐洲與非洲之間「權力滿載」的約定，使得「歐洲式的縱欲」成為現實。
本文第一章討論馬羅「邊界論述」的曖昧性：對非洲的負面呈現夾雜著對帝國主義的軟弱批判。馬羅對殖民主義的雙重態度，正是《黑暗之心》的立足點：在揭發帝國主義意識形態卑鄙野心的同時，又通過澄清和辯証帝國主義理想模式，鞏固了帝國主義的典型。第二、三章從「後殖民理論」探討「他者再現」的文本權力觀：通過將第三世界化約成西方道德形上學的範疇，西方得以塑造和管制異己的世界，進而再次議定和確認西方世界的優越性。第三章則分析表現在馬羅「猶豫敘事」的風格下，一個「異族」歷史和語言所遭到的凐沒。第四章以自種女性和克茲的非洲女僕為對照，討論《黑暗之心》的女性角色。
本文的結論是，非洲只是一面鏡子，它折射出歐洲人最原始的感官。對他者的塑造就是對自我的確證，異域的前往是一種中心的回返。對歐洲文明的曖昧批判和對他者的「暴力再現」，構成了《黑暗之心》對一個消逝中的歐洲主體的最後眷念。 / From the perspective of Post-colonial theory, a literary work depicting alien territories is no longer considered as truthful portrayals but is decoded as a violence of representation in Western imagination. This thesis employs a “contrapuntal reading”to explore Marlow's vacillations in his critique of European civilization. In Marlow's vacillations between corrupted and ideal imperialism, a concrete world of the other hemisphere is rendered silent and invisible in Marlow's narrative. The Africa and Africans are invisible in that they are transformed into a negative and abstract category which contributes to Marlow's moral and metaphysical meditations. Through a negative representation of the Africa as an alien other which holds the wicked power the Europe does not possess, Marlow achieves his self-revelation and maintains his European identity. Africa is relegated to a category opposite to the West and is deprived of any concrete reality of history and language. Africans are reduced to function as a negative mirror which reflects the primitive psyche of the European self.
The first chapter explicates the ambiguities of Marlow's narrative which is located in a border terrain, a tension between his disclosure of a ferocious imperialism and his ineffectiveness to criticize. Marlow takes an ambiguous stance to imperialism; he offers contradictory versions of imperialism: one a harsh denunciation of imperialist exploitation, the other a reluctant endorsement of imperialist civilization. The effect of his vacillations is his appeal to cultural and racial solidarity. The second and the third chapters examine the fiction from the viewpoints of post-colonial theories as formulated by Edward Said. The purpose of these two chapters is to unveil extreme subjugation of history and language in the racial Other deployed among Marlow's reflective narration of vacillations and hesitations. Chapter four discusses the function of female characters as a negative trope in the fiction. Both white women (the Intended and Marlow's aunt) and the native women (Kurtz's African mistress) occupy marginal yet essential parts in Marlow's narrative. The conclusion is that Heart of Darkness participates in the very ideology the fiction attempts to expose and destroy. Despite Marlow's effort to step outside the circle of imperialistic premises and to expose their fallacy, ther are still blind spots to the most acute and sardonic critic's perception.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:CHENGCHI/B2002001872 |
| Creators | 林松燕, Lin, Song-Yen |
| Publisher | 國立政治大學 |
| Source Sets | National Chengchi University Libraries |
| Language | 英文 |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Rights | Copyright © nccu library on behalf of the copyright holders |
Page generated in 0.0021 seconds