Abstract：Willa Cather, who is one of the most famous female American authors, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1923.Willa was famous for her ecofeminist consciousness of the harmony between nature and women. O Pioneers! is a novel that women themselves persistently searched for the harmonious relationship with nature. In the novel, Mrs Bergson is on behalf of the submissive women of the first generation, who is a representative “Family Angel”. She obeys her husband’s governance and persists in playing her role of housewife. In the process of the hard pioneering, she can not identify the relationship between nature and herself. Alexandra, who is the women representative of the second generation, is the heroine of the novel. She is brave, independent and responsible..During the process of conquering the land, she gradually realizes the connection between nature and female, and she finally lives in harmony with nature. Marie stands for the third generation of women who strongly longs for freedom. She knows about her social position clearly, but still strives against the patriarchy such as her husband. She pursues true love but eventually fails, which lets we know that pursuing equality and freedom is still hard in such a feudal and patriarchal society.  

This thesis, based on the theory of ecofeminism, makes attempts to show the images of women pioneers and glorify their courage as they conquered the land, so as to explore the women pioneers’ pursuit of self identity and their different attitudes toward nature 

Keywords:  O Pioneers!  Willa Cather  Eco-feminism

中文摘要：薇拉▪凯瑟是美国最著名的女作家之一，她曾在1923年赢得普利策奖。薇拉凭借她独特的对于自然与女性之间的生态女性意识而闻名于世。《啊，拓荒者！》是一部关于女性不断探索其自身与自然之间和谐关系的小说。小说中，伯格森太太代表了第一代顺从的女拓荒者，她是典型的家庭天使。她始终听从她丈夫的命令，始终扮演者家庭主妇的角色。在困难的拓荒过程中，她无法意识到自身与自然之间的联系。亚历山德拉作为第二代女性拓荒者的代表，勇敢，独立，有责任心。在她征服土地的过程中，她逐渐意识到女性与自然之间的联系。最终她学会了如何与自然和谐共处。麦丽则代表了第三代女性拓荒者，她极度渴望自由。她清醒地认识到自身的社会地位，但她仍然反抗以她丈夫为代表的父权主义。她向往自由，可是她悲剧的结局使我们认识到，在当时那样一个封建的、男权统治的社会中，追求平等与自由仍旧很艰难。

本论文旨在用生态女性的理论，通过女性角色的展现以及赞扬她们在征服土地过程中体现出的勇气的方式，来分析女性拓荒者对身份的追求和她们对于自然的不同的认知。

关键词: 《啊，拓荒者！》；薇拉·凯瑟；生态女性主义

Contents

Abstract

中文摘要

Chapter One Introduction-1

1.1 A Brief Introduction to Willa Sibert Cather-1

1.2 A Brief Introduction to O Pioneers!-1

1.3 Research Status of O Pioneers!-2

1.4 Structure of the Thesis-3

Chapter Two Eco-feminism-4

2.1 Definition of Eco-feminism-4

2.2 Development of Eco-feminism-4

Chapter Three Analysis of O Pioneers! From the Perspective of Eco-feminism-6

3.1 Mrs. Bergson’s Oppressed Status-6

3.1.1 Being Submissive as a Housewife-6

3.1.2 Failing to Identify with Nature-7

3.2 Alexandra Bergson’s Changing Attitude towards Nature and Female Identity-7

3.2.1 Understanding Nature from a New Perspective-7

3.2.2  Accepting Her Female Identity-9

3.3 Marie’s Pursuit of Equality between Men and Women-10

3.3.1 Realizing Female Subjectivity in True Love-10

3.3.2 Seeking True Love Nurtured by Nature-11

Chapter Four Conclusion-12

References-13