摘要：女性的自由解放一直是热议的话题，越来越多的女权主义者主张女性的社会地位应不断地提高，现代社会应摒弃男尊女卑的思想。在文学领域，思想解放的女性形象在中外文学作品中也很受青睐。与此同时，文献梳理发现对于经典文学女性形象的解读偏重从女性主义角度出发，鲜有从存在主义这一研究角度出发。因此，本文尝试从波伏娃的存在主义的角度来解读经典的女性文学作品《爱玛》中女主角的女性形象。

存在主义是二十世纪最重要的哲学思潮之一。普遍认为，存在主义的主要思想是自由，存在主义强调尊重个体的个性和个体自由选择的权利。在《第二性》一书中，基于萨特的存在主义思想，波伏娃强调对所谓的女性“内在性”和“依附性”的超越。“内在性”和“依附性”是指女性依附于父亲或丈夫，将自己局限于婚姻、生育、家务劳动中的一种生活状态。波伏娃认为女性应该通过斗争成为一个自由独立的个体，实现自身的价值。

《爱玛》是简奥斯汀的著名作品之一，出版于 1815 年。女主角爱玛聪明智慧，思想独立自由，在男权社会中要求男女平等，有先进的婚姻观和价值观。她既不依附于父亲也不依附于丈夫，是一个独立的个体。爱玛不仅替父亲打理家里大大小小的事务，还积极投身于社会生活，走出了家庭的局限，突破了女性的“内在性”和“依附性”。本文将结合前人对《爱玛》中女主角爱玛的女性主义研究，从波伏娃的存在主义角度对爱玛的女性形象进行分析，探讨爱玛这一女性形象体现的存在主义的两个特征及其局限性，为研究女性主题的文学作品提供了一种新的视角，有助于读者更好地理解相关文学作品。此外，虽然现代女性已经有充分的自由选择自己的伴侣和工作，但是男性和女性之间仍然存在着不平等，本课题除了具有一定的学术价值，也旨在唤起更多的人对女性权利的关注。

关键词：爱玛；女性形象；存在主义

ABSTRACT

An Existentialist Interpretation of the Heroine’s Female Image in Emma

The liberation of women is always a heated topic. More and more feminists  appeal to improve women’s social status and the modern society should get rid of the idea of women being inferior to men. In the field of literature, liberated female images are well received among authors and readers. Most of the classic female images are analyzed from the perspective of feminism and there are relatively fewer studies done from the perspective of existentialism. Therefore, this thesis intends to interpret the heroine’s female image in Emma, which is a classic work of female literature, from  the perspective of existentialism of Simone de Beauvoir.

Existentialism is one of the most important philosophy in the 20th century. The predominant existentialist thought is commonly acknowledged to be freedom. It stresses the importance of human beings’ personality and freedom of making their own choice. In The Second Sex, based on the existentialist ideas of Sartre, Beauvoir holds the view that women should break “immanence” and “attachment” to men. “Immanence” and “attachment” refers to women’s condition of being dependent on their fathers or their husbands and confining themselves to marriage, giving birth and household chores. Beauvoir believes that women ought to fight to become an independent individual and achieve their own values.

Emma, published in 1815, is one of the classic works of Jane  Austen.  The heroine Emma is portrayed as a brilliant and independent-minded girl. She calls for gender equality and has advanced views on marriage. Emma is independent from her father and her husband. She not only helps her father deal with family issues, but also takes an active part in social activities. Thus, Emma breaks the constraints of family and surmounts “immanence” and “attachment”. This thesis is to interpret Emma’s female image from the perspective of existentialism of Beauvoir and to discuss two existentialist characteristics, as well as the limitations in Emma’s female  image, which intends to provide a new perspective for study of related novels and helps readers have a better understanding of English and American literature works. In addition to its academic value, the thesis also intends to appeal more people  to concern women’s rights in modern society for gender inequality still exists.

Key words: Emma; female image; existentialism