Reflections on the tragedy in one Life of Maupassant

周孟辭

Abstract：Maupassant was an outstanding novelist who focused on shaping personality of women characters from different angles. One Life is one of his representative works. This paper focuses on the reasons of the heroines tragedy， and wants to explore further about female situation under social gender perspective.

Key words：Maupassant； One Life （‘Une Vie in French）； inequality

中圖分類號：I207.42 文獻標識碼：A 文章編號：1005-5312（2017）35-0094-01

一、Character introduction

Firmly holding patriarchal culture habits that the wife must dedicate her whole life to the husband， even after her husband death， she still has to rely on other male family members. The value of women is to meet needs of men and conform to requirements of the patriarchal society. One life is the case in point. Living in a declining aristocratic family， the heroine， Jeanne， was pursuing to be a dutiful wife and loving mother. She married Julien in a hurry with the hope of enjoying sweetness of love. Unfortunately， the truth is opposite as she wanted. Although Jeanne tried to resist， she gave in， and gradually to dwell in the state of numbness. All her tragedy is the result of a variety of reasons will be discussed as follows.

二、Causes of formation

（一）Religious suppress and social environment

When it comes to cultural influence on female in western society， the bible and religious forces play an indispensable role. One Life happened in the 19th century， which was an historical turning point in France. The bible provides a logical and reasonable explanation for male-dominated society. Jeanne was sent to a convent， where she led a life of confinement. The views of bible subtly influence her thoughts and later the deeds. What she heard and learned， all of which conveyed a message that men are supreme. For instance， when Jeanne found Julien betrayed her， the priest gave an excuse that a man is naturally falling into temptation of woman. This mindset was an epitome of that time. It can be seen in Madame Bovary and Ibsens Nora， though their lives were not the same， they all were poisoned by this concept， and finally become victims of religious culture in the patriarchal society.

（二）Conventional concepts and inappropriate education

Throughout history of Western civilization， deep-rooted cultural beliefs allowed women perform certain roles. Many people considered women are better suited for childbearing and homemaking rather than for involvement in public. The widespread belief that women were intellectually and physically inferior to men caused most societies to limit women education. When Jeanne was a little girl， her father came up with a set of solutions to bring her up， including sending her to convent. He instilled his thoughts to her， hoping this would form a cultivated and demure virgin. As a result， it can be expressed that Jeanne was just like other women who have a tragic fate. They must through mens eyes to see the world rather than wielding their own experiences to explore the truth. They are shaped and characterized in accordance with the requirements and education for traditional patriarchal society and accept the role of feminization without demur.endprint

（三）Lack of self-awareness

If a man doesnt know what he or she wants， it is vulnerable to lose the perception of his own desires， and get paranoid to become an object of others. （This desire is not the bodily kind directed toward any real person but a longing generated from within due to a lack of love.） Jeanne is an object of the projection of others and the construction of male ideology. She never thought about what kind of person she wants to be and has been playing the role of a good wife who being met with the needs of family and society. Unfortunately， most of women accept these expectations instilled by society. Throughout the life of Jeanne， she failed to recognize her own subjectivity， only passively reduced to be a victim of others desires， as if there was a kind of invisible strength in pulling her. The education she accepted fails to distinguish this situation.

三、Conclusion

No matter whether it is reasonable， it has become a kind of notion which is too deeply rooted in everyones mind to be corrected in a short term. Whats worse， many mothers schooled their daughters in the myth of female inferiority. Therefore， gender roles have been handed down for generations， thus a vicious cycle has been formed. It will not going to an end until biological features and social civilization of mankind get a qualitative leap. Recognizing the fact is not mean that woman should give up the chance of striving for equality， however， we females ought to have a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of the reality while most importantly， not let your happiness depend on others.

References：

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[4]（法）莫泊桑，張冠堯（譯）.漂亮朋友[M].北京：人民文學出版社，2008.endprint