A Journey of Self-reconstruction-- An Interpretation of Last Orders from the Perspective of Ethical Literary Criticism
School of Foreign Languages, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan 430205, China
| Abstract: | Last Orders is the representative work of Graham Swift, a contemporary British writer. Swift devotes himself to describing the local life in London and the British characteristics. In the novel, the hero’s funeral journey runs through the whole text, revealing the bitter life of ordinary London elderly citizens, as well as all kinds of ethical dilemmas and complicated ethical problems they face. Using the method of literary ethical criticism, this paper interprets the hidden ethical issues in the novel from three angles: ethical context and historical scene, confusion of ethical identity and Irrational ethical choices, and reconstruction of ethical order. The lack of ethical responsibility of the protagonists Jack and Amy prompted them to make irrational ethical choices-abandoning June and betraying family, resulting in the strangeness and alienation of the relationship between husband and wife, parent-child relationship and friends, showing contradictions and conflicts between people. After ethical reflection, the characters in the novel actively explored the path of self-salvation, and reconstructed the ethical order and rebuilt themselves by making up for their own mistakes during the funeral. This paper shows the complex and contradictory psychological situation of the bottom people in modern society and the deep thinking on ethical topics such as life and family, and further explores the ethical thoughts hidden in Swift’s novels, so as to fully realize the didactic function of literature. |
| Keywords: | Graham Swift; Last Orders; Literary Ethical Criticism; Ethical Dilemma; Ethical Choices |
| DOI: | 10.57237/j.ha.2024.02.001 |
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Received: 2 February 2024
Accepted: 10 April 2024
Published Online: 13 April 2024
Funding
| 1. | 武汉工程大学第十五届研究生教育创新基金项目 (No. CX2023492) |
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