ABSTRACT

The French Lieutenan’s Woman is the most representative work of John Fowles, a prestigious British writer. Against the conservative social background of Victorian society where people are lack of the ideas of freedom, jealous of each other and show no solicitude for other people, the feminist thoughts in this novel become even more prominent and conspicuous. The heroine, Sarah, is bold, mysterious, reserved, and dedicated to the pursuit of freedom which is denied to women at that time. Defying the traditional fetters of the Victorian era, Sarah finally manages to get her freedom and achieves her self-value, which embodies Fowles’ feminist thoughts in this novel. 

The analysis of the process of Sarah’s self-realization reveals that Sarah is a new female image who is independent and brave enough to struggle for freedom. She is thoroughly burdensome at that time. The depiction of such a heroine demonstrates Fowles’ view that confronted with the repression of human nature at that time, Victorian women, inspired by their awakening feminist consciousness, can break the bondage of secular society, and achieve their aspirations for freedom, equality, self-realization and the value of love. 

Key words：The French Lieutenant’s Woman; feminist thought; self-realization; freedom

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ABSTRACT

摘要

Chapter One INTRODUCTION-1

Chapter Two LITERATURE REVIEW-3

Chapter Three THE SELF-REALIZATION OF SARAH-5

3.1. The Difficulties of Sarah’s Self-realization-5

3.2. The Process of Sarah’s Self-realization-6

3.3. The final success of Sarah’s self-realization-7

Chapter Four JOHN FOWLES’ FEMINIST THOUGHTS IN THE NOVEL-9

4.1. Fowles’ Feminist Thoughts Conveyed through the Heroine-9

4.1.1. Sarah’s attitude towards male and female-9

4.1.2. Sarah’s attitude towards master and servant-11

4.2. Fowles’ Feminist Thoughts Conveyed through Male Characters-13

4.3. Limitation in Fowles’ Feminist Thoughts in this Novel-13

Chapter Five FORMATION OF JOHN FOWLES’ FEMINIST THOUGHTS-16

5.1. Feminist Thoughts in Victorian Times-16

5.2. Social and Cultural Backdrops of The French Lieutenant’s Woman-16

5.3. John Fowles’ Personal Life Experience-17

Chapter Six CONCLUSION-19

WORKS CITED-21