From Death to Rebirth – A Symbolic Analysis of Spinalonga In The Island Abstract The Island, as Victoria Hislop’s first and the most far-reaching novel, shows us a historical romance mixed with a dash of family secrets and a flash of self-discovery. It reveals the real life status of lepers in the middle of 20th century in the Mediterranean area. Through the fast-paced narrative and utterly convincing sense of place, the mysterious and now deserted island, which once intertwined with terrific disease and unpleasant wars and has witnessed many ups and downs, returns to the focus of the public. The tone of this novel is grave and miserable, retelling the taboo topic of that age, however, hope and vitality can always be noticed, even sometimes slightly, and as the story goes on, it become more apparent and noticeable. 52880
This thesis will mainly focus on Spinalonga as the research object, to analysis it by applying the theory of Symbolism, not only on its settings both of natural sceneries and social backgrounds, what’s more, main characters related to the island will be interpreted. As the novel develops, the symbol of Spinalonga has transited from death and silence at the beginning of the novel to later life and vitality, which helps a lot to express and reveal Hislop’s reflection on the motifs of life and death.
Keywords: The Island; Victoria Hislop; Spinalonga; Symbolism
从死亡到重生 --对《岛》中斯皮龙纳格岛的象征主义分析
摘要《岛》,作为维多利亚•希斯洛普的处女作品，也是她影响最广的一部小说。这部作品给读者讲述了一个充满家族历史和自我发现的传奇故事。它展现给我们的是在20世纪中期发生在地中海地区的关于麻风病人近乎真实的生存状态。作者以快速的讲述方式以及对故事地点的不断强调，使得斯皮龙纳格，这个曾经交织着令人毛骨悚然的疾病以及令人厌恶的战争的神秘小岛，如今已成为荒岛的地方再一次回归到了公众视野之中。整部小说基调沉重而悲哀，但却时时可以看到希望与生命力。
本篇论文就将以斯皮龙纳格岛为研究对象，运用象征主义的相关理论，对该岛屿的自然景观和社会背景变化进行分析，同时将对与该岛屿相关的人物心理的转变作为研究的主要重心进行讨论。随着小说不断延伸递进，斯皮龙纳格岛这一象征的意义从一开始的死亡静寂发展到了后来的生命与活力。由此，讨论和揭露作者对于生死的这一文学母题的思考。
毕业论文关键词：《岛》，维多利亚•希斯洛普，斯皮龙纳格岛，象征主义
Contents
1．Introduction 1
1.1 Introduction to Victoria Hislop and The Island 1
1.2 Introduction to Spinalonga 2
1.3 Literature Reviews: Previous Studies Concerning The Island 2
1.4 Paper Statement, Structure and Significance. 3
2. Theoretical Basis 5
2.1 Symbol 5
2.2 Symbolism 6
2.3 Interpretation of Symbolism on Literature Works 7
3. Symbolic Analysis of Spinalonga 8
3.1 Symbolic Analysis on the Settings of Spinalonga 8
3.2 Symbolic Analysis on Characters Related to Spinalonga 9
4. Conclusion 14
References 15
1．Introduction
The Island, the newly known British writer Victoria Hislop’s first long novel, brings the once unknown island to the public view and lets the rest of the world get to know the story of a family located at the Mediterranean area. Published in 2006, the novel is an excellent work which fully deserves to afford readers’ expectation. The Times names it as a masterpiece with joys and sorrow that moves the Europe and even the whole world. Readers are touched deeply from the bottom of hearts. In the form of a memoir, the novel tells the story of an ordinary family with a love-hate interwoven past. By using the plain narration, the author spares on effort to show us a world full of love and hope and let us see that “even in the saddest stories, one can still find hope”, just as Sunday Express’s comment on this novel, it is “A page-turning tale that reminds us that love and life continue in even the most extraordinary of circumstances”. 对《岛》中斯皮龙纳格岛的象征主义分析:http://www.youerw.com/yingyu/lunwen_56926.html