Abstract: Jennie Gerhardt is one of Theodore Dreiser’s most important works. It tells a story of a girl’s miserable life. Since its publication in 1911，it has aroused extensive attention. Many people have made a lot of analyses about the reasons of Jennie’s tragedy. Since the researches of both domestic and abroad pay close attention to archetypal criticism and spiritual analysis, this essay will analyze Jennie’s tragedy from the social environments, family factors and her own weakness. It points out that the growing gap between the poor and the rich, the low social position of women, and her parents’ different attitudes towards marriage are the important causes of Jennie’s tragedy. But it is the internal cause, i.e. the weakness in her character, her eager desire for money and position, that eventually makes her fall into the abyss of suffering.
Key words: Jennie Gerhardt; tragedy; external causes; internal causes
摘要：《珍妮姑娘》是德莱塞的一部重要作品，它讲述了19世纪末期处于社会底层的一个善良的女子珍妮的悲惨生活。自从1911年出版以来，引起了广泛的关注，很多人对于珍妮姑娘的悲剧根源做出了大量的阐释。国内外对于《珍妮姑娘》的研究多关注于原型批评，精神分析等。 这篇文章将从社会原因， 家庭原因和珍妮的自身因素来分析她的悲剧生活。文章指出了日益增长的贫富差距，女人的地下社会地位以及珍妮父母对于婚姻的不同态度也是造成珍妮悲剧的重要因素。但是，她性格的软弱，她对金钱和地位的极度渴望才是造成她悲惨生活的重要内在因素。
关键词：《珍妮姑娘》；悲剧；外因；内因
