浅析欧.亨利短篇小说成功的秘诀

1、AnAnalysisoftheSecretsbehindtheSuccessofO.HenryShortStoriesIntroductiontotheauthorandartisticfeaturesinhisshortstoriesIntroductionoftheauthorO.HenrywasthepseudonymoftheAmericanwriterWilliamSydneyPorter(September11,1862June5,1910).HewasborninGreensboro,NorthCarolina,thesonofphysicianAlgernonSidneyPor

2、ter.HismotherdiedwhenPorterwasthreeandhewasplacedinthecareofhispaternalgrandmother.Heleftschoolatfifteenandbeganworkinhisunclespharmacywherehebecamealicensedpharmacist.HelatermovedtoHouston,andthentoAustin,Texas.Afteraseriesofjobs,in1891hebecameatellerwiththeFirstNationalBankinAustinwherehewascharge

3、dwithembezzlingfunds,achargesomestillquestion.Leavinghiswifeanddaughter,PorterfledtoNewOrleans,thentoHonduras,butreturnedbecauseofhiswifesdeterioratinghealth.ShediedshortlybeforePorterwasconvictedofembezzlementandsentencedtofiveyearsinprison.WhileinprisonPorterstartedtowriteshortstoriestosupporthisd

4、aughterMargaret.UsingthepennameO.Henry,hisstory,WhistlingDicksChristmasStockingappearedinMcCluresMagazinein1899,adozenmorestoriesfollowed.Afterservingthreeyearshewasreleasedfromprisonin1901.HemovedtoNewYorkCityin1902wherehewroteastoryaweekfortheNewYorkWorld.Hisfirstcollection,CabbagesandKingswaspubl

5、ishedin1904.ThesecondTheFourMillion,publishedtwoyearslaterincludedthefamous;TheGiftoftheMagi.TheequallyfamousTheRansomofRedChief,wasincludedinWhirligigspublishedin1910.O.Henrypublishedtencollectionsandover600shortstoriesduringhislifetimegainingworldwideacclaimasAmericasshortstorywriter.Henryslastyea

6、rsweretroubledbyalcoholism,illhealth,andfinancialproblems.HediedofcirrhosisoftheliverinaNewYorkhospitalalmostpenniless.TodaytheO.HenryAwardsareanannualrecognitiongiventooutstandingshortstories,theO.HenryPun-OffWorldChampionshipsareheldeachyearinAustin,TexashostedbythecitysO.HenryMuseumandacleveruseo

7、ftwistendingsinanystoryistermedanOH.enryEnding.ArtisticfeaturesinhisworksApreliminaryintroductionofhisworksInO.Henrysworks,sometimeswecanseetherealityofhumanliving,goodandevil,thevalueandmeaningoflife,thedarknessofsociety,aswellasbittertearswithsmile.ButsuchworksofO.Henryaretoofew,hisworks,amonghalf

8、ofthemcannotberegardedasmasterpieceswhileafewaredifficulttoread.Ithink,thisisprobablybecauseO.Henryhaswrittentoofastandtoomuch,causingthoseunevenworks.Whatmorewecouldfindsomeplotsinhisworkswherethewriterrepeatedhimselfandhumoredonlyforthesakeofhumor.However,inordertomakeliving,O.Henryhadtowritequick

9、ly,whichisreallysuchabadthingprobablytheworkConfessionsofHumorististheportrayaltothissorrowfulrealitybyO.Henry.MorethanhalfofO.Henrysnovelsarerealism,buttherearealsosomeworksinadifferentstylesuchastheTheDreamwhichwasnotfinishedbeforehepassedtheworld.ThemainroleMurrayhasbeenputintoprisonwhenhewasdrea

10、ming,beforetobesentencedtodeath,thereasonforthispenaltyisthat“Murray,thecriminalaccuseconvictedofthebrutalmurderofhissweetheart-amurderpromptedbyjealousrage,”and“atfirstfacesthedeathpenalty,calm,and,toalloutwardappearances,indifferenttohisfate.”atthistime,“Ashenearstheelectricchairheisovercomebyarev

11、ulsionoffeeling.Heisleftdazed,stupefied,stunned.Theentiresceneinthedeathchamberthewitnesses,thespectators,thepreparationsforexecutionbecomesunrealtohim.Thethoughtflashesthroughhisbrainthataterriblemistakeisbeingmade.734-735)”(HenrThisnovelonlyownstwopageswhilethestyleistotallydifferentfromhispastwor

12、ksandlookslikeamodernisticwork.Andwhentalkingaboutcreationintention,O.Henryoncesaidlikethis:IwanttoshowthepublicthatIcanwritesomethingnew-newforme,Imean-astorywithoutslang,astraightforwarddramaticplottreatedinawaythatwillcomenearermyideaofrealstorywriting(Henry734).Whatagreatpitythatwecannotapprecia

13、tethetwistendingmethodofO.Henryinthisworkforever.AnotherspecialworkisRoadsofDestiny,thoughithasthesimilarstructurewithArabianNights,fable-stylebrushwork,buttakingawholelook,itcanberegardedasapaperinthestreamofconsciousness.TheiterateddescriptionbetweendreamsandrealitiesinthenoveTlheMagicKiss,makingt

14、heworksstyleclosetothestreamofconsciousness,oritcanberegardedasthestreamofconsciousness.Buttheideologicallevelofthelevelisrathercommon.InthepartofArtandLiteratureinTimes,thereisanEssayfromCollectionsofO.Henry,whichrecords12poemsandsomeletters.Buttheselettersarebasicallysatirewithlitterartisticvalue.

15、Hislettersareveryhumorousandsomeareasinterestingashisnovels.Thereisonethingwehavetonoticethathementionedhiscreationtheoryinaletter.Thefollowingissomeabstract:Iwanttowriteastoryofapersonnotaspecialperson,butakindwhile,atthesametime,Iwantthispersontopresent“thekindofnaturalhuman”,ifsuchapersonreallyex

16、ists.Thenoveliswithoutlessons,withoutmoralspeechandwithouttheorydevelopment.Iwantittobetheideaofaperson,atruerecordofunfortunateandadventure.Thetruthdoesnotindisguisedobjectivelyunderthenameofsomething.Ireferthat,forthemainrole,everythingistrueopinionandevaluation.IwanttoleteveryoneseehowGodputhimin

17、toimpasseIwanttoleteveryoneknowwhathecandoforthis(Xiao12.)O.Henrysshortstoriesarewellknownfortheirwit,wordplay,warmcharacterizationandclevertwistendings.Inthisthesis,IwanttomakeapreliminaryanalysisonthesuccessofO.Henryshortstoriesfromthefollowingparts:dramaticscene,characterization,useofpuns,surpris

18、ingendings,thebeginningandsomeotherproofs.ReasonforthethesisThereasonwhyIwanttodoaresearchofO.Henryisthatfirstlyhereallyownedahighstatusintheworldliterature.Hisworkshasbeenwidelyspreadthroughouttheworld.Thenitismypersonalloveofthewriter.IwasdeeplyimpressedbyhissurprisingendingwhenIfirstreadthestoryT

19、heGiftoftheMagi.AndthefiguresinO.Henrysworksareallverylovelyandkindandalsorememberbyreadersaftertheirfirstreading.DramaticscenesinO.HenrysshortstoriesDramaticsceneinPsycheandtheSkyscraperO.Henryissuchawriterwhoisgoodatseizingtypicallydramaticsceneswhichareinterestingandfullofphilosophy.InthestoryPsy

20、cheandtheSkyscrape,rthechiefactressDaisyislovedbytwoboysatthesametime.OnceshegoestotheroofoftheSkyscraperforgreatsightswiththephilosopher.ThephilosophertalkedtoomuchabouttheknowledgehegainedfromencyclopediasuchasthedistancebetweentheSunandtheEarth,theorderlinessandmovementofstarsetc.Toanaveragereade

21、r,theseshouldberathersimpleandcommon,whileinDaisyseyes,thesearetotallyshockingandseemslikeaswindlemadebythephilosopher.AtlengthDaisychoosestheotherpersonasherhusband.Inthestory,thewritersharplycriticizedtheignoranceofthosepeoplewholivedatthattimeinanironicaltone(Shen24).DramaticsceneintoSeeaDoctorSu

22、chtypicaldramaticscenesareverycommoninO.HenryworkTso,inthestorySeeaDoctor,theleadingactorhasgotadistractednervousbreakdown,duetotheover-therapymethodofthedoctorinthecity,e.g.thedoctortakestheleadingactortomadhouseforrecuperation;lethimdocoordinatedmovementandtrainingthatareimpossibletoendure;orlethi

23、mdietaccordingtospecialrecipe.Throughthoseafflictions,thepatientbecomesfullofambivalencewhiletheillnessbecomesworseandworse.Laterhelearnedthatthereisaspecialkindofherbcancurehisstubborndiseasewhileitisverydifficultforattaining.Inordertocurethedisease,Tatumtakestheleadingroleintothemountainforamontha

24、ndsearchfortheherb,allthepeopleinthevillagesaythatthediseasehasturnedoutbetter.Atthemomenttheleadingrolecompletelyunderstandsthatactuallytheso-calledherbsdonotexist,thevillagedoctoronlywantstotakethepatientforclimbingmountainsandenjoyingbeauties,makingaclosecontactwiththenature,thusyouwillrelaxyourm

25、indandbody.Thewriterexpressedhiswisdominanexaggeratedandhumorouswaybetweenthelineswiththought-provokingphilosophies.Whenreadingthisstory,whenhuntingfornovelty,weshouldalsohaveascanatlifeinO.Henryseyesandlearntojudgebetweentruthandfalsehood.Onlyinthiswaywecanunderstandthenovelclearly,thenholdingthees

26、senceandhistoricalvalueofthenovel.CharacterizationAsIhavementionedbefore,IlovethefiguresinO.Henrysshortstoriesandareallkindlovelyandhonest.Inthissection,Iwillmakeanintroductionofthesefigures.A.KindnessKindnessisoneofthebiggestcharacterizationsinO.Henrysworks.ThefiguinO.Henryworksareallreluctanttohel

27、pothersnomatterhowdifficultthesituationisorhowgreateffortstheywillmake,suchasthemainroleBermanintheshortstoryTheLastLeaf.Bermanisatypicalrepresentativeforthepoorintheartisticcircleandhisactionrevealsthepreviousfriendshipexistedbetweenthosepeoplewhoareleadingapoorlifebutwillingtohelpothers.Andhisacti

28、onsalsoareareflectionofbeautifulsoulamongthecommonpeople.ThemainroleBermaninthestoryTheLastLeafisanoldpainterwhohasnotcreatedanywonderfulworksthroughhiswholelifeanditisthebiggestpityforhim.Butinordertoencouragetheyoungpainterwhoispoorandsicktocontinuewithlife,he,justthisoldmanalone,paintedanever-die

29、leafinaneveningthatisfullofstormsandrains.Andthepoormanhaspaidhislifeasthepricefortheexcellentworkmade,encouragedbythenever-dieleaf,theyoungpainterisabletoliveonwhiletheoldmanhaslefttheworldforever.Inmyownopinion,thisnoveldescribesanaffectingstoryandchantsthenoblebeautyofhumannatureexitedamongcommon

30、people.BLovelinessOHenrytendstowriterobbers,graftersandcapitalistsinTrinity,inordertoexposeandcriticizethecruelworld.InhisshortstoriescollectionTheGentleGrafter,themainroleJeffPetersisa“lienahuin”themodernsocietyandtheresultofthefierceworld.InthestoryTheManHigherUp,agrafter,arobberandacapitalistgath

31、eredtogetherbychance,tocomparetheircheatingability.Thegrafterdidfictitioustransactionandgotthemoney.InO.Henrysworks,therobbersandgraftersarenotbadtotally,theycanberegardedas“GentleGrafters”th,ecapitalistRickssaidveryprettywordsinappearancewhilehewascruel,causingmanypeoplelostafamilyfortuneT.heRoadsW

32、eTakethroughdescribingthestoryof“theshark”Dodsonkilledhisfriendsandoccupiedtheillicitmoneyalone,finallybecamethebossofWallStreet,monopolizingsharesandtrappingfriendsagain,deeplycriticizingthephenomenonofbigfisheatlittlefish.Notonlydoesthestorycombinetherobbersandcapitaliststogether,butalsoexposehisc

33、heatingstoriesatdifferenttimesandpositions,emphasizingtheessenceofcapitalistscheatingandselfishness.InTheExactScienceofMatrimony，marriageandmatrimonialnoticebecameanelaboratearrangedcheat(Zhu5).Fromthenovelsinthissubject,wecanseeO.Henryasttitudetowardstherichwhodominatethesociety.Hethoughtthatthenor

34、malgraftersarebetterthanthosenew-rich.Thewayofmakingfortunebythosemillionairesismoreviciousthanthenormalgraftersandrobbers.Thedevelopingroadofcapitalismisfullofblood,everyporeofthecapitalistsdistributingthestinksofmoney.Fromthispointofview,theexpositionofO.Henryisrathervivid;however,ifwejuststayatth

35、epoint,itwillbesuperficialfortheexpositionofcapitalism.Thesecretofcapitalistsmakingfortunenotdependoncheating,mainlydependingonthelaborssurplusvalue.Cheatingisindeedacommonphenomenoninbusinesscompetition,otherwiseitisapartialsocialappearanceofsomepeopletomakefortune.Anothertypicalrepresentativeisthe

36、famousstoryTheGiftoftheMagi.Christmasiscoming,andaccordingtoChristiancustoms,andpeoplewillalwaysgiveeachothergift.Thisnoveldepictsapooryoungcouplegiftsstory.Thisyoungcoupleismutualrespectandlove,thoughtheyleadaverylowstandardofliving,therestillexitspureandloyallovebetweenthem.Inordertolettheotherhav

37、eahappyChristmas,theyare6文档来源为:从网络收集整理.word版本可编辑.欢迎下载支持.willingtomakeabigsacrifice.Atthebeginningofthestory,deliberatelyrenderingtheprotagonistDellacountedthelittlemoneyintroubleonChristmasEve,whichhighlightsthesadcircumstanceofadilemma:tobuyagiftandeconomicconstraint.ThewriterintendstohighlighttheO

38、NEDOLLARANDEIGHTY-SEVENCENTS，verysmallamountofmoneybutitisnoteasytoget,whichmakesDellafeelthedesireofbuyingaChristmasgiftdifficulttoachieve.FortheChristmasgift,shehasbeenlivesfrugallyandplannedcarefullyformonths,butwhenfacingthetotalamountof“ONEDOLLARANDEIGHTY-SEVENCENT”S,Dellareallythinksthatifther

39、eisstillanythingshecando.However,withasudden,Dellaseesherownhairfromthemirror,“hereyeswereshiningbrilliantly”Obviouslysheisplayingtheattentionofthehair,“butherfacehacolorwithintwentyseconds”,thisindicatesthatsheisunwillingtosellherhair.Butshefinallymadethedecisiontosellherhairfortheonlytwentydollars

40、.DellamakesenormoussacrificesandfinallygetsaplatinumwatchchainforJim.However,atthetimewhenJimseesDella,hepresentsanexpressionthatishardtounderstandandbeyondexpectation.Evidently,JimistotallyconfusedbythelookofDellaaftershehasherhaircutanddemonstratesafacialexpressionthatDellahasneverseen.AfterDellah

41、sairbecameshorter,JimexcitedlytakesoutthegiftthatispreparesforDella-thecomb.Butatthemoment,Jimhasnotgothisbeautifulpresent.Theauthordescribedthedramaticclimaxsceneinthenovellikethefollowing:Shehelditouttohimeagerlyuponheropenpalm“Isnotitadandy,Jim?IhuntedallovertowntofinditgivemeyouIwanttoseehowitlo

42、oksonit.”“Dell,”saidhe,“letusputourChristmaspresenatnsdakweaeypawhile.Theyaretoonicetousejustatpresent.Isoldthewatchtogetthemoneytobuyyourcombs.Andnowsupposeyouputthechopson5).”(HenryOnlyatthismoment,wecanunderstandwhyJimtakesastrangelookatDella.ThewriterintendstomakethewatchchaininDellashandtobesee

43、nbyJimintheend.Atthispoint,readershavebeenclearlyawarethatifthereisawatchchainwithoutgoldenwatch,theliberalpresentofthefemaleroleiswastedtotally,however,inthisway,thereaderscanunderstandthattrueloveexistedamongpeople.Thecoupledidthedealofsellingandpurchasingintwodifferentlineslight&dark,andtheycombi

44、nedtogetherintheendofthestory,withasynthesisoftheirownpreciousgiftscanbeattachedtotheDepartment,whichformthemagicoftheendandownedfullofendlessaestheticcharm.C.HonestHonestisatreasurecharacterinthenatureofhuman.Almosteveryonewantstomakefriendswiththosewhoarehonestandgenuine.Andhonestisthethirdbiggest

45、characterizationinO.Henrysnovels.ThestoryTheGiftoftheMagiisalsoagoodexampleforthisidea.Thechieffemaleroleandchiefmaleroleloveeachotheroutoftheirownhearts,thustheywouldliketodosuchbigsacrificefortheother.Theydonotonlythinkofthemselves,intheirownhearts,theloveristhemostimportant.Theywerewillingtoletth

46、eirlovehaveawonderfulChristmasnomatterhowgreatthepricetheywillpay.Inthewholestory,wecanseeonethingclearlylove,lovewithoutselfishness,lovewithoutcomplaint,themostimportantisthatlovewithhonest.O.Henrysworksarewidelyappreciatedbyreaders.Andheisfamousasoneofthethreeshort-storyauthorsintheworld,equallyto

47、MaupassantinFranceandChekhovinRussia(Huai1).Thereisfullofdifficultiesandfrustrationsduringhiswholelife.Atwistoffatehaschangedhislifetrackandprisonlifelethimsuffermorepain,howeverthishasbecometheuniquewritingtentaclestrialsinhisstories.Hisstoriesarenoaffected,truefeelingsofthecharactersandspecialaffe

48、ctiontowardsthebottomofsociety.O.Henryoftenemphasizesdespisinglitterfigureswiththickinkandheavycolors.InWhistlingDicksChristmasStocking,themainroleDickisjustanoccupiedtrampandhasalwaysbeenspurned.OnaChristmasevening,hewanderedonthestreetandhappenedtoacarriage,thegirlwhoseatonthiscarriagehadmercyonhi

49、mandgavehimablackstocking,saying“MerryChristmas!”tohimwithahappysmileonherface.AtthismomentDickwasdeeplymovedandsenthisbenevolencegreatly.Hetookrisktoinformthefarmerfamilyandhelpthemescapesuccessfullyfromthedisaster.CoincidentlythedaughterofthefarmerisjustthegirlwhogaveDickthestocking.Thestoryproves

50、theideathatgoodwillbereturnedbygood,whichisavividdescriptionoftruth,kindnessandbeauty,filledwithamazingartisticimpression,alsocombinedappreciationandeducationtogether.UseofpunsandsurprisingendingsPunsThewriterisgoodatusingthePuninEnglish,non-standardandhomophonicpronunciation,whichmakesfreshideasout

51、ofoldstandardsandhisworkspiquant,fullofamazingimaginationandcreation.InTelemachus,Friend,theauthorwrotelikethat,“Now,IgiveyoumyownrecipeforinveiglingawomanintothatstateofaffairswhenshecanbereferredtoasneeJoneS.Learnhowtopickupherhandandholdit,andsheisyoursIntheabovesentences“Learnhowtopickupherhanda

52、ndholdit(”Henry99).hereisapunintheoriginalparagraph,theauthorplaysagameofwords,inEnglishtheword“hand”canbeusedtoformtermsownthemeaningcompletelydifferentfromtheoriginalmeaningof“hand”suchastheterm“askforalady(toproposemarriagefromawoman);“giveoneshandto”(toengagewithsomebodythusthewords“pickupherbyh

53、erhand”meansthatthemanhasproposedmarriagefotheladysuccessfully.Throughthesewords,wecanseeclearlythatO.Henryspreeminentabilitytomasterlanguage,especiallyhisuniquewayofusingwordswhichmakeshisworksfulloffreshideas(Shen89).SurprisingendingsO.Henrysstoriesarefamousforthesurprisingendings,whichisoalthebig

54、gestcharmofhisworks,formingthedeepestimpressionthattheworkalwaysleft.Whatsmore,theendingsalwaysappearreasonableandlogical,harmoniouswiththewholestory.Usuallyintheeyesofcommonpeople,thestoryplotwilltakereadersintotheaccustomedlogicofdailylife,whilethetruemeaningofthestoryalwaysfallswhollyintotheendin

55、g.Such“Surprised”aestheticfeelingsalwaysmakereadersinanexpectedconditionof“waittihnegyn”,everknowwhatkindofsurprisethewriterwillgivebeyondtheirexpectation.ThisisthetypicalsymbolofO.Henrysshortstories.InTheCopandtheAnthem,themainroleSoapyisjustatrampandhewantstobeputintoprisoninordertopasstheAmerican

56、severelycoldwintersafelyandpleasantlybecause,inhisideas,theprisonisaratherwarmplace.Andhehasmadegreateffortsforthispurposethroughmanymethodsatthebeginningofthestory.Whileeverythinghappenscontrarytohisdesire:themorehewantstobeseizedbypolicebyviolatingpoliceregulations,themoreimpossiblehisdesirewillbe

57、realized.Whenhedeterminestocorrecthispasterrorsandstartanewlife,heisseizedbypolice.Itseemsanabnormallogic,whileamongalltheoccasions,thisisthebiggestone.Itisjustthebiggestoccasionthatsymbolstheabsurdnessandstupidityinaso-called“societyoflegalinstitution”.Suchplotarrangements,notonlybeyondexpectationb

58、utalsowithinthereason,reflectlotsofunreasonablethingsintherealdailylife(Shen104).TheendinginthetragedyTheFurnishedRoomhasliftedthesorrowfulatmospheretoatoplevel.Thenovelpresentstheshockedeffectoftragedythoroughlythroughdescribingtheplotthatapairofloversuicidesinthesamefurnishedroomsuccessively.Theno

59、velTheRansomofRedChietfellsastorythat,inacaseofkidnapping,thehostagefinallybecomesanightmarewhichcannotbegottenridofbythekidnappers.ThestoryismorelikeaHollywoodcomedymoviesthatwearefamiliarwiththoseinnowadays.SuchendingsareverycommoninO.HenrysWsitocrhies,Loaves,ToBeginAgain,etc.allownssuchsurprising

60、endings(Yi375).SomeotherproofsCartoon-styleironyO.Henryisgoodathumor,wit,saucy,exaggeration,banterandsomeothermethodtorendertheoraleffect.Andallthesemakethefiguresinhisstoriesvivid,asiftheywerefromcartoons.Thewriterdescribesapersonwhoregardshimselfas“cosmointhestoryACosmopoliteinaCafe,fromexpression