Abstract:The purpose of the paper was to investigate the unreliable narration in Pride and Prejudice as the approach to irony.According to literary research, “Unreliable Narration” was first suggested by Wayne C. Booth in his The Rhetoric of Fiction. When a narrator’s ideas and descriptions were in conflict with that of the implied author who was a perfect existence of a story, the narrator was unreliable. Two approaches were mainly adopted by western scholars in the study of “Unreliable Narration,” namely, “Synthesizing Cognitive” and “Rhetorical Approaches.” This paper focused on the latter as it was more authentic. Findings suggested unreliable narration served as a major cause of irony. Jane Austen is a master of irony and her Pride and Prejudice is a typical example of irony as well as a good text to study unreliable narration as its cause. This paper studied the theory with examples from three aspects including diction, characterization and plot.
Key Words: unreliable narration, irony, diction, characterization, plot
摘要:本文旨在探究《傲慢与偏见》中的不可靠叙述策略如何产生反讽效果。 “不可靠叙述”最初由布思在其《小说修辞学》中提出。该理论核心内容为当叙述者的思想或描述与隐含作者的相悖，该叙述者就是不可靠的。在西方学术界对该理论的研究主要有两个方向：“认知（建构）方法”和“修辞方法”。由于后者更加可信，本文致力于从“修辞方法”这一方面研究《傲慢与偏见》中的“不可靠叙述”。简·奥斯汀是一位反讽大师，其《傲慢与偏见》更是一部反讽的杰作。笔者在本文中阐述了小说中反讽产生的根源—“不可靠叙述”，分别从其对反讽言辞、人物刻画和情节三方面的影响进行了剖析，并加以一定的例证说明。
关键词：不可靠叙述 反讽 言辞 人物刻画 情节
Pride and Prejudice is a novel full of irony, which is Austen’s usual writing feature. Ironic diction, characterization and plot are three most outstanding aspects in the novel. The three effects are mainly due to the use of unreliable narration. Diction of the novel is ironic because words used are unreliable and betray the truths; unreliable narrators say or behave differently with the implied author without knowing they have done so, hence they are ironic; ironic plots come out as the result of the unreliable recognitions of narrators, namely, they misunderstand truths.
To conclude, irony is the result of unreliable narration, that is, the inconsistence between narrations and truths. The study of unreliable narration as a major cause of the ironic effect in this novel will contribute to a deeper study of the theory as well as a better understanding of Austen’s ironic writings.
