摘 要

《长日留痕》出版于 1989 年，曾获布克奖，是诺贝尔文学奖得主石黑一雄的代表作之一。小说的主人公史蒂芬斯是达林顿宫的管家，目前为美国绅士法拉戴先生服务。在此之前，他曾为达林顿公爵服务长达 35 年。小说中他频繁回顾自己眼中的黄金岁月，沉湎于昔日的社交圈子，怀念旧主人以及感叹今不如昔。本文旨在运用图式理论分析史蒂芬斯怀旧的原因，同时探究石黑一雄刻画该人物的初衷。本文从认知图式的内容、认知图式的认识和实践作用以及认知图式的功能分析了史蒂芬斯的怀旧其实是在现实中被疏离、壮志未酬、不接受达林顿宫的变化以及不理解现主人的调侃而彷徨不安触发的怀旧；同时还运用认知图式的评价和指导实践的功能分析了石黑一雄刻画此怀旧人物旨在通过批评过分的怀旧情绪给予这个时代正面的指引。

关键词：石黑一雄；《长日留痕》；认知图式；怀旧

Abstract

The Remains of the Day, a novel by Kazuo Ishiguro, was published in 1989 to great acclaim, winning Booker Prize. The book tells the story of Stevens, an English butler, who served Lord Darlington at Darlington Hall for 35 years. Now he helps his new employer, an American gentleman. In the novel, Stevens frequently looks back to the old golden days in his own eyes and indulges in reminiscing about his social circle, recalling his former employer and lamenting that the present is not what it used to be. This paper aims to explore Schema Theory to analyze the reasons of the butler’s intense nostalgia, and why Kazuo Ishiguro depicts such a figure. The author of this paper examines the causes of the butler’s sense of alienation, the frustration of the unrealized ambition, the unacceptable feeling for the change of the house and the fidget for the baffling banter under the contents, characteristics, and functions of cognitive schemas. This paper also analyzes Kazuo Ishiguro’s positive guidance of this novel by criticizing the unduly nostalgia under the features of cognitive schemas.

Key Words: Kazuo Ishiguro; The Remains of the Day; cognitive schemas; nostalgia

Contents

1. Introduction 1
   1. Kazuo Ishiguro 1
   2. The Remains of the Day 2
2. Literature Review 3
   1. Study Abroad 3
   2. Study at Home 4
   3. Nostalgia 5
3. Theoretical Foundations 8
   1. Schema 8
      1. Introduction about Schema 8
      2. Literary Schema 8
   2. Schema Theory 9
      1. The Development of a Heterogeneous Theory 9
      2. Functions of Cognitive Schema 10
      3. Characteristics of Cognitive Schema 11
4. Analysis of the Nostalgia in the Novel under Schema Theory 13
   1. Analysis of the Reasons for Stevens’s Nostalgia under Schema Theory 13
      1. Nostalgia Triggered by the Sense of Alienation 13
      2. Nostalgia Triggered by the Depression of Unfulfilled Ambition 14
      3. Nostalgia Triggered by the Changes of the House 15
      4. Nostalgia Triggered by the Anxiety 16
   2. Analysis of why the Author Depicts Such a Figure under Schema Theory 17
5. Conclusion 18

References 19

Acknowledgments 21

Analysis of the Nostalgia in Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Remains of the Day under Schema Theory

Introduction

Kazuo Ishiguro

Kazuo Ishiguro, who won Nobel laureate for literature in 2017, is one of the most eminent and accomplished contemporary writers in his generation (Ying, 2018). He was born in Japan in November 1954. Then, he moved from Japan to Britain with his parents and elder sister at the age of six (Ning, 2012). After settling in England, he was sent to a local school to study English. After graduating from high school in 1973, he traveled abroad to America for a year. He once worked as a percussionist owing to his great passion for music. Then, not long after being a percussionist, he received an offer from the University of Kent. In the UK’s European university, he mainly studied English and Philosophy. After getting his bachelor’s degree, he was hired as a residential social worker in London. Shortly afterward, he commenced a postgraduate course at the University of East Anglia. In the University of East Anglia, he learned Creative Writing, which laid the foundation for his later writing career. During his graduate study, he also came into contact with a bunch of writers who had inspired him.

He has devoted to writing since 1982. In the same year, he acquired British citizenship. He was not a prolific writer. Over three decades, Kazuo Ishiguro has only published seven novels and a collection of short stories. And the followings are some his works: A Pale View of Hills, An Artist of the Floating World, The Unconsoled, When We Were Orphans, The Remains of the Day, Never Let Me Go, Nocturnes: Five Stories of Music and Nightfall and The Buried Giant. All of these works were carefully crafted. Therefore, these masterpieces brought him a variety of awards. For instance, in 1983, shortly after the publication of his first novel named A Pale View of Hills, Kazuo Ishiguro was nominated by a magazine named Granta as one of the best of 20 young British writers. His name was also listed in the same promotion when it was awarded in 1993.