Abstract：Richard Yates, an American novelist, was born on February 3, 1926 in the city of Yonkers, New York. Yates created a total of seven novels and two collections of short stories in his life, which won him a high reputation among American writers. Revolutionary Road is his debut work as well as his most widely-known novel.

The novel portrays a love tragedy of a middle class couple named April and Frank in the 1950s in the United States. From cherishing a hope for a new life to the final break-up, their marriage was caught in a vicious circle of quarrels, jealousies and accusations. Eventually, April chose to commit suicide and ended the marriage. Based on the theory of feminism, this thesis analyzes the losing, awakening and searching of the feminist consciousness of the heroine April in this novel and explores the possible reasons for April’s tragic ending. It is hoped that this thesis can provide a new perspective for the interpretation of this work.

Key words:  feminism  April  Revolution Road  Richard Yates

Contents

Abstract

摘要

Chapter One Introduction-1

1.1 Introduction to Richard Yates-1

1.2 Introduction to Revolutionary Road-1

1.3 Research Status of Revolutionary Road-2

1.4 Structure of the Thesis-2

Chapter Two Feminism-4

2.1 Origin of Feminism-4

2.2 Development of Feminism-4

Chapter Three Process of April’s Feminist Revolt-6

3.1 April’s Suffering in a Patriarchal Society-6

3.2 April’s Outburst of Depressed Feelings-6

3.3 April’s Revolt against Patriarchal Society-7

3.4 April’s Tragic Ending-8

Chapter Four Major Reasons for April’s Tragic Ending-10

4.1 Defects in April’s Personality-10

4.2 Frank’s Misunderstanding-10

4.3 Pressure from a Patriarchal Society-11

Chapter Five Conclusion-13

References-14