Harry Angstrom's Spiritual Dilemma

Harry Angstrom's Spiritual Dilemma

本文旨在探討美國當代小說家John Updike的代表作Rabbit, Run一書中，自由／安全的矛盾困境作為全書人物發展與行為動機的心理基礎。人們有追求個人滿足的內在驅力，亦有避開孤絕和確保安全的心理需求。此二種矛盾的力量，在主角的心理與行動中具體而微地展現互為辯證的關係。本文集在追索Rabbit試圖逃避環境陷阱與死亡的命運牢籠，追求精神層面的心路歷程，而Rabbit對自由的追求本身卻成為一種負担。

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate how the freedom-safety dilemma embodied in John Updike's Rabbit Run provides a psychological center from which the motivation for action and the development of character in this novel derives. This dilemma establishes the dialectic between man's inherent drive to achieve satisfaction through individuation and the necessity to avoid isolation and remain safe. This article traces the development of Rabbit's attempt to escape the traps of a confining environment and his quest for a spiritual dimension. And it also investigates how Rabbit's freedom itself becomes a burden.