TITLE:
Studies of Different Views of Love and Marriage Based on the “Four Elements” of Literary Criticism—Taking A Dream of Red Mansions and Jane Eyre as Examples
AUTHORS:
Jiayi Mao, Lingling Lou
KEYWORDS:
Four Elements Theory, Comparison, Views of Love and Marriage, Culture Differences
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.12 No.1,
January
25,
2024
ABSTRACT: In today’s world, cultural exchange and comparison are becoming
increasingly frequent, and literature research is also becoming more in-depth. Jane
Eyre, and A Dream of Red Mansions, as exemplary works of
Chinese and Western novels, have naturally become key objects of cultural
dissemination to the foreign people. In 1953, American literary theorist Abrams
proposed the “Four Elements Theory” in “Mirror and Lamp: Romantic Literary
Theory and Critical Tradition”: author, work, universe, and audience. In this
article, the author will introduce this theory for the appreciation of the two
masterpieces above, trying to find out the different views of love and marriage
between domestic and foreign in ancient times.