Abstract

 Gone with the Wind is created by Margaret Mitchell. This book was published at 1936, and since that time it has been popular by readers all over the world. The romantic story in Gone with the wind, happened in a southern plantation, Atlanta. Scarlett O’Hara is the main line, and this novel describes southern people's living condition before and after the Civil War of the United States. To show Scarlett’s strong female consciousness, this novel depicts the emotional entanglements of Scarlett, Rhett, Ashley and Melanie in twelve years through the war and Scarlett’s three sections of marriages. She has the characteristics of a new female that traditional southern women do not have. Therefore, from 16 to 28 years old, after the experience of the war, she becomes an independent and tough emerging bourgeoisie from a rebel girl.  This thesis consists of three parts. The first part analyses Scarlett's three marriages and discusses the main characters’ views of marriage and value in different periods. The second part analyses the changes of the heroine in the three periods according to the Civil War. The third part analyses the novel symbolic significance of Scarlett's female consciousness growth process. Scarlett’s rebellious image in the male-dominated society and the typical change in the war are the embodiment of female consciousness, which gave the novel strong vitality, also made the novel still attractive for modern readers.

Key Words: Scarlett; Gone with the Wind; Feminist consciousness; Male-dominated society

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1  Introduction-1

2  Scarlett’s Feminist Consciousness in Different Marriages-3

2.1 The Marriage with Charles-3

2.2 The Marriage with Frank-4

2.3 The Marriage with Rhett-6

3  The Development of Scarlett’s Feminisit Consciousness-8

3.1 Before the War: Rebellious and Sentimental-8

3.2 During the War: Courageous and Independent-9

3.3 After the War: Mature and Self-fulfilling-11

4  The Symbolic Meanings of the Heroine’s Feminist Consciousness-12

4.1 A Song of the Old South America in the Civil War-12

4.2 A New Woman in the Male-dominated Society-13

5  Conclusion-16

Bibliography-18

Acknowledgments-20