Abstract

Romeo and Juliet and Butterfly Lovers are two well-known literary creations in the western and Chinese histories. Both are classified as great love tragedies in that their heroes and heroines all first struggled desperately in the conflict between love and feudalism, and at last coincidentally gave up their youthful lives for love. However, owing to cultural discrepancy between western countries and China, a comparative study of these two works deserves even greater appreciation. This thesis dwells on their dissimilarities from three aspects:conflicts, love concept reflected in the main charaters and causes of differences in love concepts. It is cherished that such a comparative research will further enhance readers’ appreciation as well as the literary status of these two treasures in the world of literature. 

Keywords: conflict; love concept; causes

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1. Introduction-1

2. Literature Review-1

3. Conflicts in Dramas-1

3.1The conflict in Romeo and Juliet-2

3.2 The conflict in Butterfly Lovers-2

4. Love Concepts Reflected in Main Characters of Dramas-4

4.1 Love concept in Romeo and Juliet-4

4.2 Love concept in Butterfly Lovers-5

4.3 The differences of love concepts between these two couples-6

5. Causes of Different Love Concepts-7

5.1 The ethical concepts of the East and the West-7

5.2 Different social backgrounds-8

6.Conclusion-10

Works Cited-11