2。1。3 Previous Research in China

    In China, there is only an extremely small amount of academic research concerned with Freedom。 Generally, domestic researchers chose to interpret the theme from a literary angle of view。 It’s a panoramic novel covered with real-life situations that represented the graphic social life in the United States and made the traditional realism literature return back to the stage (Zhang, 2013)。 Chen Guangxing (2012) indicated that the “immensity” of this book lies in the maximum of its target audience, social representation and subjective expression。 Complying with the realism transition in American literature, the characterization in this novel is highly ordinary so that each reader could find ways to identify himself with the mainstream characters。 Readers make the self-examination through reading, which reflects the artistic features of realism novels。 What’s more, Gao Haiou and Wang Jiangying (2015) revealed the operating mechanism of modern social disciplinary power implied in the novel, and the heroine Patty lost her real freedom under the disciplinary power as the group of modern people do。 How to achieve the real freedom both physically and mentally along with social discipline is a major question for modern people。

    Above all, Freedom is suffused with real life scenarios and endowed with massive vitality under Jonathan Franzen’s specific depiction, which calls in question towards the main trend spiritual value in modern society (Jiao, 2013)。 Currently, research on the novel is still limited, and the perspective of related studies is fragmented。 It is hard to find a study about Jonanthan’s works which are concerned with the heroine Patty and her pursuit of inpidual freedom。文献综述

2。2 Theories about Freedom

2。2。1 Moral Freedom

    Because of perse social backgrounds, liberalism is not the focus for domestic scholars。 Domestic studies on freedom are based on the Isaiah Berlin’s theory, which tries to discuss the relations between morality and liberty through the dimension of morality and ethics。 In China, moral freedom is usually taken as the independent ability to make moral choices and decisions among citizens。 Counting on objective recognition to the law of social development and conscious abidance by sense of morality, people enjoy the genuine moral freedom (Huang, 2012)。 Respect for moral freedom is regarded as a response to social progress。 When people realize that their own interests and the social benefits are inpisible, they will fulfill moral obligations in self-conscious way willingly without external pressure。