摘 要

绅士文化和牛仔文化是英美文化的重要组成部分。作为英美文学的重要主题，绅士文化与牛仔文化在十八九世纪的文学作品中几乎随处可见。本篇文章选取了英国十八世纪著名小说家亨利·菲尔丁的《汤姆·琼斯》与美国牛仔小说之父欧文·威斯特的《弗吉尼亚人》进行研究比较，通过社会背景及人物性格的比照，发现作为绅士典型的汤姆·琼斯与经典牛仔形象弗吉尼亚人之间存在许多相同之处及不同之处。然而，与人们心目中的绅士及牛仔形象相比，汤姆·琼斯与弗吉尼亚人又有着自己的魅力与特色。对于现代文明而言，绅士与牛仔身上依然有许多可取之处。也正是这些溶于英国文明与美国精神之中的可贵精神，推动着两个国家的发展。所以，人们应该珍惜传统绅士与牛仔身上的宝贵精神财富。

关键词：绅士文化; 牛仔文化; 工业革命; 西进运动

Abstract

Gentleman culture and cowboy culture, important elements in British and American culture, are ubiquitously presented in British and American literature of the eighteen and nineteenth centuries. This paper selects two literary masterpieces "Tom Jones" written by British novelist Henry Fielding and “The Virginian” written by “the Father of Cowboy Novel” Owen Wister. By comparing their different social backgrounds and personalities of the characters, the thesis analyses the similarities and differences between the typical gentleman Tom Jones and classic cowboy the Virginian. Furthermore, distinct from common images of gentleman and cowboy, Tom Jones and the Virginian have their own charms and characteristics. Despite the passage of time, their good qualities and precious spirits, still beneficial to modern civilization, have been shaping the cultures of the two countries. Therefore, the spiritual wealth of traditional gentleman and cowboy are worth exploration.

Keywords: gentleman culture; cowboy culture; Industrial Revolution; Westward Movement

Contents

1 Introduction 1

1.1 Gentleman culture 1

1.2 Cowboy culture 2

2 Literature Review 3

2.1 General introduction about Tom Jones 3

2.1.1 Henry Fielding 3

2.1.2 Plot of Tom Jones 3

2.1.3 Image of Tom Jones 4

2.2 General introduction about The Virginian 4

2.2.1 Owen Wister 4

2.2.2 Plot of The Virginian 5

2.2.3 Image of The Virginian 5

3 Comparison amp; Contrast 6

3.1 Similarities between Tom Jones and the Virginian 6

3.1.1 Story settings 6

3.1.2 Experiences 6

3.1.3 Personalities 7

3.1.4 Other similarities 7

3.2 Differences between Tom Jones and The Virginian 8

3.2.1 Attitudes towards values 8

3.2.2 Classes and diligence 9

3.2.3 Ways of loving 9

4 Conclusion 10

References 12

Acknowledgements 13

A Tentative Comparison on the Cowboy and Gentleman in The Virginian and Tom Jones

1 Introduction

With the development of human civilization, some specific culture or group might appear in every society or community. The emergence of gentlemen and cowboys also relies on great historical background. On the one hand, people’s spiritual needs conduced to the birth of one culture. On the other hand, this culture would also react to people’s spirits and behaviors in an unconscious way.

1.1 Gentleman culture

Gentleman culture, the externalization of English national culture, is based on the spirits of aristocracy, with absorption of spirits of other classes. It is neither a mirror image of noble spirits nor the epitome of middle class’s values. Gentleman culture stresses the importance of moral standard as well as indomitable, courageous and struggling spirits. On the one hand, the spirits of aristocracy absorb some values from middle class; on the other hand, middle class looks up to the nobility. This integration facilitates the formation of gentleman culture.

The core of noble spirits is knight spirit, which encourages the spirits of military and fair play as well as the respect to women. The second substance of knighthood is the spirit of self-reliance, which, still highly appreciated nowadays, encourages knights to fight for their own right and pride (Cai, 2007). Out of consideration of their own benefits, nobles also pay attention to their master-consciousness and social responsibility. Meanwhile, they accept elite education so that they can improve their moral trait and comprehensive quality. Edified by the Christian concept and classical culture and influenced by Renaissance from Italy and France, knight spirits of middle age came into vogue in the 18^th century again and developed into gentleman culture in conformity to the times.