摘 要

文化是指一个民族或国家在长期的社会发展和生产生活过程中形成的独具特色的历史文化、传统习俗、生活方式、文学艺术、行为模式、思维结构、价值观等。中西方文化之间存在着很大的差异，这些文化差异都能在中西方的文学作品中得到体现。《红楼梦》与《简爱》是中西方文化史上两部现实主义巨著，林黛玉和简爱两位个性鲜明的女主人公的性格和命运也给后世留下了巨大的影响。林黛玉与简爱有着相似的家庭背景、性格特征，然而两人却有着迥然不同的命运，体现了中西文化的巨大差异。

本论文尝试从社会背景、价值观、哲学和女性审美四个角度来分析两人的性格以及命运。从社会背景来说，18世纪的中国封建专制达到顶峰，林黛玉对于封建大家庭的安排只能选择自己默默接受；而19世纪的英国，经历过工业革命，女权主义悄然出现 简爱就是如此的追求。从宗教角度来说，林黛玉深受佛教思想的影响，选择接受各种不公平的对待，并通过绝食希望从痛苦中超脱；西方的基督教则宣扬每个人生来有罪，要自我赎罪，要学会原谅他人，因此简爱博爱、善良、自立，这些优点使得本不可能的爱情成为了现实。从哲学方面来说，中国的哲学以儒家思想为主导，三纲五常，礼教死死地禁锢了每一个人，因此林黛玉对于贾宝玉的爱发乎情，止于礼；西方哲学这追求“真”，因此简爱不避讳自己真实的情感，敢于反抗欺负她的堂兄，大胆与贵族相爱，并为爱斗争。从女性的审美角度来说，中国女性更加注重自己的操守名节，并且有一定的自卑心理；而西方文学里女性则顺从内心的真实情感并且有着强烈的平等意识。这些方面深刻了影响了两位女主人公的命运，林黛玉凄凉地含冤死去，简爱则获得了平等的珍贵爱情。

关键词：林黛玉，简爱，中西文化差异，性格，命运

Contents

Acknowledgments...........................................................................................................I

Abstract (English) II

Abstract (Chinese) III

Chapter 1 Introduction.................................................................................................1

1.1 Research Background.......................................................................................1

1.2 Significance of the Research............................................................................2

1.3 Structure of the Thesis......................................................................................2

Chapter 2 Literature Review...........................................................................................4

2.1 Definition of Culture.....................................................................................4

2.2 Studies Abroad 4

2.3 Studies at Home 5

Chapter 3 Cultural Differences between Lin Daiyu and Jane Eyre.............................7

3.1 Differences in Social Background....................................................................7

3.1.1 China: Feudal Autocracy ......................................................................7

3.1.2 Britain: Feminism ....8

3.2 Differences in Religion.......................................................................................8

3.2.1 China: Buddhism .. ..9

3.2.2 Britain: Christian..................................................................................9

3.3 Differences in Philosophy............................................................................10

3.3.1 China: Group-oriented Thought ............................................................10

3.3.2 Britain: Individual-oriented Thought......................................................11

3.4 Differences in Aesthetical Standards.............................................................11

3.4.1 China: Chastity and Self-abasement........................................................11

3.4.2 Britain: Rebellion Consciousness and Equality.......................................12

Chapter 4 Conclusion..............................................................................................13

4.1 Major Findings of the Study............................................................................13

4.2 Implications ....................................................................................................14

4.3 Limitations and Suggestions 14

Bibliography..................................................................................................................................15

Impacts of Cultural Differences on Lin Daiyu and Jane Eyre

Chapter 1 Introduction

1.1 Research Backgrounds

The heroines of A Dream of Red Mansions and Jane Eyre are two famous women in China and Western literature. Both Lin Daiyu and Jane Eyre have an important influence on the females in many aspects. They have lots of similarities in life experience: both of them are orphans, and depend on their relatives for a living. What’s more, they have the similar characters.

A Dream of Red Mansions and Jane Eyre are such representative novels that they are famous among people of different ages. Jane Eyre is the first foreign literature book I read; A Dream of Red Mansions also is a famous classic literature. These two books have a great impact on me.

As we all know, Jane Eyre is adapted by the writer’s own experience. As Zhang Min (2011:5) said: Charlotte Bronte showed her willing of independence and equality to males through the description of Jane Eyre. A dream of Red Mansions is a classic novel which reflects the true social life of that time, so it is significant to make deep research on the social background. During the time of creating the two heroines, both China and Western emerged the new thoughts. On one hand, China appeared the bud of capitalism, so Lin Daiyu has some advance thoughts. On the other hand, the feminism appeared in Western. Lin Daiyu was affected by Buddhism; she bore and tolerated every unfair thing that had happened to her. Nevertheless, Jane believed in self-redemption. In China, people paid high attention to the Confucianism, moral principals were the most important code of conduct to women and it advocated the group-oriented thought. The Western philosophy paid an emphasis on the individual, and encouraged people to seek for meaning of life, that’s why Jane gained the impossible marriage. In terms of the aesthetical standards on women, in Chinese classic, the mainstream is the gifted scholars and beautiful ladies. Lin Daiyu and Jia Baoyu are two typical models. However, the Western focuses more on the inside beauty of women. As Currer Bell (1847：2) wrote in the preface to the Jane Eyre: The appearance should not be mistaken for truth; narrow human doctrines, that only tend to elate and magnify a few, should not be substituted for the world-redeeming creed of Christ.

These two novels also arouse researchers’ interests. However, in the past decades, researchers focused more on the similarities, so the studies of the differences in the two heroines, especially from the aspects of Chinese and Western culture, are relatively weak. As we all know that the cultural environment of the authors will have a great impact on the figures of their novels, that is to say, what had been described in the book is a reflection of that time. So when we analyze Lin Daiyu and Jane Eyre, it is necessary for us to study from the culture aspect. Although Lin Daiyu and Jane Eyre are all self-respected, kind, they gained entirely different fates because the different background and times. There must be some reasons behind the different fates and characters. The present study tries to analyze the different culture caused Jane Eyre and Lin Daiyu different fate from the perspective of social background, religion, philosophy as well as the aesthetical standards on women.