黑人氣味與南方羞恥:以情動力閱讀威廉·福克納《八月之光》與《墳墓的闖入者》

Abstract

本論文旨在探討威廉·福克納《八月之光》與《墳墓的闖入者》中種族與情動力複雜的交互作用與相互影響。種族在福克納的作品中一直扮演著重要的因素。福克納的小說展現了他對種族議題的關注與偏好—其作品主題多圍繞在南北內戰的鬼魅記憶、南方白人對種族通婚的恐懼，以及黑人在佃農制度下所受到的壓迫。不同領域的學者以不同的觀點與理論架構來探討福克納小說中的種族關係，而本文則提出以情動力的角度來閱讀《八月之光》與《墳墓的闖入者》中福克納如何處理與再現種族歧視和種族關係。透過與研究情動力學者們的對話，本論文主張情動力在種族建構上扮演著重要的角色，透過在日常生活情境中與他者和環境的互動，情動力得以鬆動種族界線。 論文分成四個章節。第一章為論文概要，並回顧了福克納小說中種族建構的現有理論，以及情動力研究中幾個重要的觀點。第二章探討了《八月之光》中負面情動力與味道/氣味的交互作用。透過喬·聖誕與他人氣味相遇而引發出的情動力，我分析喬不安且混亂的種族身分認同。我認為味道/氣味能引出喬負面的情動力，如焦慮與厭惡；氣味也同時引出了喬自我認同中一直存在的他者性。第三章討論羞恥如何能對《墳墓的闖入者》中的白人男孩契克·莫里遜對種族歧視的看法產生影響。羞恥感不只能動搖契克自身的種族身分認同，透過他和黑人路喀斯·布香相遇的歷程，也進一步促使他重新認識種族與種族關係。最後一章回到了導論中所提到的當代種族議題，並思考情動力其過去與現在複雜的糾葛如何能指向未來、如何能為種族歧視與固有的種族關係帶來改變。This thesis aims to investigate the complexity and interplay of race and affect in William Faulkner’s Light in August and Intruder in the Dust. Race has been an important factor in Faulkner’s works as he demonstrates his thematic preoccupation with issues of race—from the haunting memories of Civil War, the white South’s anxiety over miscegenation, to the oppression of the black under plantation system. While the question of race and race relations in Faulkner’s novels has been explored by scholars of different fields and through various frameworks, the thesis proposes to read how Faulkner represents race in Light and Intruder through the lens of affect. By engaging in dialogue with different affect theorists, the thesis argues that affect plays a vital role in formulating race and challenging racial lines through dynamic interactions with others in the context of everyday experiences. The thesis is divided into four chapters. Chapter one serves as an introduction to the whole project and reviews both existing approaches to Faulkner’s construction of race and theories of affect. Chapter two looks into the workings of negative affect and its intersection with smell in Light in August. I delveinto Joe Christmas’ troubled racial identity through his affective encounters with the smell of others. I argue that smell plays a crucial part in generating negative affect in Joe yet at the same time catalyzing his sense of being an other from within. Chapter three investigates what shame does to Chick Mallison, a young white boy, and his stance toward racism in Intruder in the Dust. I look into how shame not only unsettles Chick’s racial identity but also pushes for his new way of understanding race and race relations through his encounters with Lucas Beauchamp, a black man to whom Chick owes money. In the concluding chapter, I evoke contemporary issue of “Black Lives Matters” to see how affect speaks to current racial issues and to think about how the future-oriented effect of affect can challenge and unmoor current race relations.