摘要：本文是一篇英美文学论文，在市场经济转型的基础上，19世纪末20世纪初，美国中产阶级白人的传统身份和地位面临着前所未有的挑战。在这种情况下，白人建立了一种新的男性模式，称为市场男子汉。笔者认为作为《麦田史诗》三部曲的第一卷，《章鱼》被认为是主人公霸气的表现。接着诺里斯继续他的创作在坑通过关注市场的男子气概，这被认为是经济发展的产物开发.设置在当时的经济和社会条件下，《坑》全面地描述了主人公贾德温在市场上的男子气概。
chapter one male desire in the speculation in marketinvestment
1.1 chase for profit by taking risks
tracing back the history of american masculinity, it is found that self-made menhave been playing a prominent role. self-made men describe those men who rise from rags to wealth and fame through personal efforts. even if the definitions of self-mademen change over time, there were some traditional thoughts giving guidance to thesecrets of success. one of the most significant embodiment was protestant ethic,which was prevalent at the turn of the nineteenth century. this religious traditionlooks on professions as callings. except for this, it lays stress on the virtues such asindustry, frugality, and temperance. thereby puritans work diligently to search formaterial gains as many as they can, which promotes them to pioneer the westernfrontier. it is conductive to the formation of adventurous and aggressive spirits. formen, the west not only can assist them in retreating from domestic life but also offeran alternative geographical location to exercise their masculinity where men havemore scopes for economic success. synchronously, a thrifty lifestyle is advocated bythem to impose restrictions on consumption. this notion is applicable to theagricultural society where professions such as farmers and artisans were entitled toeconomic autonomy, which guarantees the relevance between the self-employedlaborer and the product. comparatively speaking, traditional qualities stand on therealm of agricultural society, while the newly-developed ideals bottom on a firm basisin the context of industrial society.
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1.2 passion for fame and reputation
actually, the prototype of character jadwin is joseph leiter, whose father is alsoa self-made businessman. before the summer of 1897, leiter was familiar with thetrading pit. since that time, he has been treating deals. among them, buying wheatlong occupies the larger part. from 1897 to 1898, leiter was capable of givinginstructions on the price of the wheat as he manages to corner the market. thus, heachieved high-profile celebrity among newspaper audiences as jadwin did. havingobtained large amounts of money by buying wheat long, it was conceited of josephleiter to show disregard of the law of supply and demand. given that there wasprospective wheat in the market, he continued to purchase wheat to carry on hismonopoly. seeing the disadvantaged situation, finally, his father ceased to give him aboost, and he is obliged to sell the wheat.
since material wealth is believed to form the basis for male identity, it is worthnoting that “this economic fortune would have to be translated into permanent socialstanding” (kimmel, “manhood in america” 13). this is well explained in jadwin’scase. throughout the novel, fame and reputation are needed for jadwin to acquiresocial influence as an investor. norris posits jadwin as an ambitious man who chasesfor social admiration to which he receives a breakdown in his fame and reputation. inhis speculative career, jadwin develops from a member in the chicago board of tradeto a master of the wheat futures market. each step is embedded with his male desirefor higher fame and reputation. unfortunately,2.1 maneuvers to scheme the market
the end of the american civil war created favorable conditions for theindustrialization and promoted the development of the capitalist market of the unitedstates. from the second half of the nineteenth century, the united states was involvedin the second industrial revolution, which exerted a profound influence on all aspectsof american economy and society. the second industrial revolution brought about asignificant change in the industrial structure, giving birth to some new industrialsectors. in the meantime, american economy achieved unprecedented progress duringthis period. before the second industrial revolution, agriculture played a primary roleonce. but the second industrial revolution witnessed a rapid progress of the industryand decline of the agriculture. during the last ten years of the nineteenth century, it isthe industry that occupied a leading role, which marked the transformation of theagricultural society to industrial society. in this way, the united states graduallyestablished its position as a powerful industrial nation in the world. moreover, thisrevolution accelerated the development of agriculture. the agricultural mechanizationfacilitated the improvement of agricultural productivity and increased the output ofagricultural products. in this phase, the urbanization of the united states also enteredits heyday. by the end of the century, the urban system was basically formed. a largenumber of farmers attempted to acclimate themselves to the urban life with whichthey are unfamiliar. with the accumulation and concentration of capital, theproduction relations have changed fundamentally followed by the change of thestructure of the bourgeoisie. one of the most striking characteristics is the rise of thenew middle class and the decline of the old middle class. independent and freefarmers made up a part of the old middle class. while in the city, small entrepreneursare engaged in such economic activities as commerce, speculation and so forth, whoconstitute another portion of the old middle class.
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2.2 sadistic lust for dominating peers
it is generally known that accomplishments in the market are determinants of theidentity of marketplace men. not only did they need to achieve success, but also theyare put into continuous attention and question in market economy, so they are pressedto testify their masculinity continually. the public arena is one of the primary fieldsfor men to demonstrate their masculinity. it is admitted that “rational, bureaucratic,bourgeois, revolutionary, and usually male” (hearn 25) are typical features of the public domain. according to kimmel, homophobia signifies the fear or humiliation ofbeing misunderstood not to be a real man under the close supervision of other men inthe public filed. since men are laid at the verge of masculinity because ofhomophobia, the fear of subjection spurs them to make greater efforts. men are placedunder the focus of the public, especially in front of other men.