大地

Women’s Survival philosophy ------Analysis of O-lan in The Good Earth

Abstract:O-Lan—first wife, used to be a slave in the house of Hwang. A woman of few words, she is simple minded but nonetheless is valuable to Wang Lung for the skills she acquired previously. She is hardworking and self-sacrificing. Women have their own survival philosophy. Their survival philosophy is from their strong hearts.

Key words: women power survival philosophy

For a long time, woman is treated as a weak one, and is thought cannot be compared with man. However, no matter in history, literary or in reality, we always can see a strong image of woman and this image even more powerful than man. In the novel The Good Earth, O-lan is the main feminine character. She is a woman sold to the wealthy Huang family as a slave when she was ten years old. After she marries Wang Lung, she achieves a respectable position as the mother of three sons. She is a strong, hardworking, resourceful woman and a devoted wife. Still, she is continually marginalized by Wang Lung, and she is eventually replaced in his affections.

Many people remark O-lan’s image as a tragedy, surely, it is reasonable, but this paper will say something about O-lan’s strong and quiet power through her tragic destiny.

Women’s role in the family

Obviously, women mainly act the wife and mother in a family. When O-lan lived in the Huang family, she was a servant girl, or more accurate she was just a slave live in a very low class. After she marries Wang Lung, her role was changed, she was not a slave any more, but become a man’s wife. This is a turning point in her destiny. In a family at that stage, women were always thought attach to men, and should obey them.

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Just as O-lan compliance with her husband and without any claims, and try her best to do what she should do. She takes care of the whole family, gives birth, and undertakes the whole housework. What’s more, she even goes to the farm, work together with her husband. It seems that she is the most hardworking people in the family, and pays out more than everyone in the family. However, the society decides that she is still lower in the family and should obey her husband, because she is a woman. She feels satisfied with the situation; at least, it is much better than the life in the Huang family. It is her survival way, the man changed her role, but she creates an independent life of her own. She gives birth all by herself without anyone’s help, makes cloth and shoes all by her hands. She hidden her pain and tolerate her husband’s second wife. This kind of independent spirit and silent struggle is appreciate and admirable. Such women in literary is not a small part. Hester of the Scare Letter is also a woman own a strong will who makes a living all by herself; Scarlett O'Hara of the Gone with the Wind also has a strong heart that never be beat down.

It says that man knows the philosophy of life, but woman knows the life. Women’s wisdom is mortal, and close to the practical life and this kind of wisdom often cast man into shade.

“A man need two wives, one for love and another for attach the buttons” then “woman also can say a woman need two husbands, one for love, and another for maintaining the family ”. So never look down women’s position in the family, they act an important role to hold the family’s balance.

Women’s potential power

People always say woman is a mysterious creature. In fact, women’s mysterious is because they always hidden some characteristics, such as their abilities and wisdom. If the power burst out, it will even create a miracle.

\"The land we will not sell, surely,\" she said, \"else when we return from the south we shall have nothing to feed us. But we will sell the table and the two beds and the

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bedding and the four benches and even the cauldron from the stove. But the rakes and the hoe and the plow we will not sell, nor the land.\"

There was some calmness in her voice which carried more strength than all Wang Lung's anger.

When the disaster forces them to leave the place, Wang Lung wants to sell his land thus they will have money to go to the South. But he feels painful, for the land has been part of his life, he doesn’t know what to do. Then O-lan came out and made the decision. In an urgent situation, she is much wiser and calmer than Wang Lung. It is a strong but quiet power.

Women’s power is potential. Such as the Scarlett, she is once a beauty and proud girl, but when they fell into the difficulties, she swears strongly, \"As God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again.” Unlike O-lan’s quiet power, it is a strong and powerful outburst, and she makes it as she swears. Besides the strong will, women’s ability is also amazing.

O-lan’s ability meet the requirements of the society, she has done everything a good woman should do in that time.

“Through all these years had followed him faithfully as a dog.”

“When he was poor and labored in the fields himself she left her bed even after a child was born and came to help him in the harvest fields”

This was Wang lung’s thoughts when he is blaming her. He knows she has no wrong to be blamed, but he still can’t control himself. Is it the women’s tragedy or the society’s tragedy? O-lan’s ability is full of hardships and tragedy, make people feel sorry, but it also shows fortitude of her. In Chinese history, there is also a woman whose ability even can match with the man----Hua Mulan. She acts as a man joins the army, and shows her brave and strong ability in war. Besides, in English history, there also appeared a powerful woman---- Elizabeth. She was once a simple and naïvete girl. Then later the responsibility leads her from an innocent girl to a mature and powerful woman. She proved herself by action, as she said: “I am a woman, but I have a heart as men.” So don’t ignore women’s ability, they also have a heart as man, you will

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never know when they will show out and change the life.

Women know more about life, they have their own survival philosophy. Their survival philosophy is from their strong hearts. They are looked weak, but it doesn’t mean their hearts are weak. When women arm themselves by weak, they are most powerful.

Whitman said to women: you are the door of body, and also the door of soul. Women teach man from their survival, and man learns and knows more about life. So their survival philosophy shows a survival enlightens to men. Women’s various kind of survival philosophy let us know more about women and the life.

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