W. B. Yeats, Cultural Nationalism, and Disempowered Women

葉慈、文化國族與弱勢女性

10.6184/TKR.201212_43(1).0003

Tsung-Chi Chang

葉慈 ； 文化國族主義 ； 愛爾蘭女性 ； W. B. Yeats ； cultural nationalism ； Irish women

Tamkang Review

43卷1期（2012 / 12 / 01）

51 - 65

英文

國家認同問題向來困擾著愛爾蘭人，影響甚鉅，性別議題則相對未受重視。國族主義頗不利女性自我認同的發展，但除了政治國族思想之外，愛爾蘭女性亦深受文化國族主義之害。本文藉由閱讀葉慈詩歌與劇作，討論愛爾蘭文化國族與父權宰制的關聯。第一部份為導論，主要介紹在歷年來男性宰制的愛爾蘭文化當中，女性所扮演的角色。第二部份從女性主義的角度出發，重讀葉慈的三首詩歌（〈復活節一九一六〉、〈沒有第二個特洛伊〉、以及〈為吾女祈禱〉）。第三部份討論的重點則為葉慈的戲劇（例如《在貝里的海濱》、《凱撒琳．尼．胡利漢》、還有《凱撒琳女伯爵》），剖析其中男性神話英雄古哈嵐總被神聖化，女性角色卻遭到妖魔化的現象。最後一部份則總結前文，說明在葉慈這位備受讚譽的文化國族作家筆下，愛爾蘭女性如何遭到曲解與失去權力。

Irish people have been preoccupied with decoding their national identity, while gender issues are comparatively obscured. It is well-known that nationalism is unfavorable to the development of female identity, yet political nationalism aside, the subordination of Irish women is entangled with the practice of cultural nationalism. This paper aims to discuss the formation and operation of Irish patriarchy by bringing Yeats's poetry and plays into discussion. Section One is an overview of the role Irish women play amid the always already male-dominated Irish culture. Section Two presents a feminist re-reading of Yeats's three lyrics, ”Easter 1916,” ”No Second Troy,” and ”A Prayer for My Daughter.” This focus on Yeats's poetry is followed by Section Three, in which the canonized mythical hero Cuchulain and the demonized female characters in Yeats's plays like ”On Baile's Strand”, ”Caithleen ni Houlihan”, as well as ”The Countess Cathleen” are discussed. The final section recapitulates how Irish women are disempowered and disfigured in the works of this wellacclaimed cultural nationalist.

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