摘 要

《岛》是英国当代著名作家维多利亚·希斯洛普的长篇小说，书写了三代人深受麻风病折磨并被放逐孤岛，却在与麻风病的不断对抗中重获新生的故事。本文以小说中的三代女性人物为主要研究对象，探讨《岛》所反映的重生主题。

本文包含五部分。导论介绍作者以及国内外对于《岛》的研究状况。第二章，“第一代人的重生”，分析主人公的曾祖母伊莲妮在与麻风病战斗中重拾对家人、事业和生活的热爱。第三章，“第二代人的重生”，一方面谈论姨外婆玛利亚在病痛后学会爱护亲友和自身，在爱中重获新生；另一方面，分析外祖母安娜未获重生的根源在于自私。第四章,“第三代人的重生”，强调索菲娅勇敢面对身世，找到自我，重获新生，以及阿丽克西斯的自我重新认知。最后总结三代人的重生，提出重生在于平衡个人和社会，梦想和现实的价值观，同时延伸了“重生”一词在现代社会的丰富和发展。

关键词：重生; 麻风病; 比较分析; 价值

Abstract

The Island is a novel written by the famous British contemporary writer Victoria Hislop. By exploring how these three generations fight against the disease, the paper aims at a thematic study of the novel—the theme of rebirth. Set on the island of Spinalonga, it tells about the stories of three generations fighting against the disease of leprosy.

This paper contains five parts: the introduction, three chapters as the main body and the conclusion. The introduction introduces the author and the novel. Chapter Two, “Rebirth of the First Generation”, analyzes the fighting destiny of the narrator’s great grandmother, Eleni, and her process to rebirth. Chapter Three, “Rebirth of the Second Generation”, talks about the successful revival of her grandma aunt, Maria and the failure rebirth of her grandmother Anna objectively. Chapter Four, “Rebirth of the Third Generation”, emphasizes the redefinition of Sofia and Alexis. The conclusion summarizes the whole paper, and figures out that rebirth as the main theme in this novel which means the balance of values of individuality and society, the dream and the reality. It brings up some essential connotations of rebirth in modern society.

Key Words: rebirth; leprosy; comparative analyze; value

Contents

1 Introduction 1

1.1 Introduction to Victoria Hislop and The Island 1

1.2 Literature Review 2

1.3 Structure of the Paper 3

2 Rebirth of the First Generation 4

2.1 Eleni’s Regaining from the Leprosy 4

2.2 Giorgis’s Regeneration of his Honorable Insistence 5

3 Rebirth of the Second Generation 7

3.1 The Successful Renewing Life of Maria 7

3.2 The Failure in Rebirth for Anna 8

4 Rebirth of the Third Generation 11

4.1 Sofia’s Recognition of the Inglorious Family 11

4.2 Alexis’s Redefinition of Herself 12

5 Conclusion 14

References 15

Acknowledgements 16

A Thematic Analysis of Rebirth

in The Island

Introduction

Introduction to Victoria Hislop and The Island

The famous British contemporary writer Victoria Hislop worked earlier in Daily Telegraph and many other mainstream British media as a columnist, who also had accumulated a profound literary skills. She is one of the most famous female novelists in Britain. The Island is Hislop’s first attempt to interpret life, which preceded her latter works. Thus, it was regarded as “the new Captain Corelli's Mandolin” in Sunday Express. What’s more, Victoria was the Newcomer of the Year at the Galaxy British Book Awards 2007 and won the Richard amp; Judy Summer Read competition. She shows her readers a rich and exquisite female inner world and expresses the warm and optimistic spirit of life. Her literal works have accumulated millions of copies in 24 languages all over the world.

Born in 1959 in London, Victoria Hislop studied English at St Hilda’s College, Oxford, and worked in publishing, she worked as a journalist before becoming a novelist. The experiences for being the journalist and the novelist make her own a good understanding of social life and the complex humanity for different classes of people and build good writing habits along the way. On April 16, 1988, she married with Private Eye editor Ian Hislop in Oxford and now they have two children. This lovely and peaceful family provides Hislop with a comfortable writing environment and opportunity for her to unleash her full potential and creativity to write.