从耻感文化视角看《朗读者》中女主角汉娜的悲剧命运

On theTragic Fateof theProtagonist Hannain The从耻感文Reader from the Perspectiveof ShameCulture化视角看《朗读者》中女主角汉娜的悲剧命运guilt society,in whichcontrol ismaintained bycreating andcontinually reinforcingthe feelingof guiltforcertain condemnedbehaviors,in whichcontrol iskept by the fearof retribution.

4.Shame culture and the tragic fate of HannaAs for the perspective Ichose,it is a specialorientation to analyze Hannascharacters and her behaviors.Shame itself is apsychological concept.Shame culture is one specific angleto observeHannas actions.

4.1The firein the church and Hannas first tragedyWhen itcomes to the firsttragedy of Hannas fate,we have to recognizeher workingexperience.Hannagave up the opportunityfor promotiontwice becauseof herilliteracy.When sheworked at Siemens,she tried tokeep herilliteracy asecret soshe left.When sheworked as a conductress,she alsoescaped from the brightfutureshe wasgoing toget.If allgoes backto squareone,if Hannasnot afraidand ashamedof being anilliteracy,there woulddefinitely be a differentstory,in whichcase Hannawould neverhave togo to the jail.

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1.1Hanna as a victimThefirsttragedyof Hannasfate beganwith the fact that she was illiterate.By dividingHannas workinglifeinto twostages,in general,Hanna herselfwasilliterate,and,she wasconstantly changingher jobin ordertocover upthe fact.She choseto be the guardof theNazi concentration camp onlyfor the reason the guard did notneed to read or write.Unlike thecruel andcold-blooded Nazis,Hanna hadno intentionof being a Naziaccomplice.Even ifshe didnot become theguardof theconcentration camp,the Jewscould notescape ahardescape.Therefore,Hanna is also apoor victim,involved in the historyof the long river,unconsciously becomeahistorical sinner.Hanna workedat Siemenswhen sheentered herearly twenties.Her outstandingperformance atwork wonher a promotion.But when she foundthe promotionmight leadto herilliteracy,she backedout and then gottheoffer to be a guard atAuschwitz.The reasonis verysimple,that is,beinga guard doesnot needto reador to doa lotof paperwork.She canearn moneyand donot haveto befeared for the exposingof herilliteracy.As anindividual,dignity andvalue comefrom therole orrelationship of the selfin thesociety.BeforeHannas quittingfrom Siemens,the promotionshe gotproved that she wasgood at her work,that is arecognition sheearned.If this affirmation becomesa partof the reasonable acceptanceof herindividualpersonality,she canalso formher positiveself to win others9approval and to sensethe valueof theexistenceand fulfillthe infinitepotential oflife.However,due to the inwardshame,she leftSiemens.She notonly dispelledthe chance to provethe worldherpositive side,but alsocut offthe relevancebetween her and herfamiliar environment.She lockedherself upin the cageof self-enclosing.It is a frustratingself-denial thatmade herlose thechancetopresent herself to theoutsideworld.She wantedto beisolated.Solitude becameher onlyweapon to maintain herdignity.

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1.2Hanna as an injurerWhenwe lookat Hannain theperspective of the injurerof the war,there is a conceptthat we should bringup.In1963,a famousJewish politicalthinker namedHannah Arendtput forwarda conceptof thebanality ofevil.Otto AdolfEichmann was a GermanNazi SS lieutenant coloneland one of themajor organizersof theHolocaust.He wastasked bySSlieutenantgeneral ReinhardHeydrich withfacilitating andmanaging thelogisticsinvolved in the massdeportation ofJews toghettos andextermination campsin Nazi-occupied EasternEuropeduring World War ILIn1960,he wascaptured inArgentina by the Mossad,IsraePs intelligenceservice.He wasfound guiltyof war crimes in a widelypublic trialin Israel,and washanged in

1962.Arendt examinedthe questionof whetherevil isradical orsimply afunction ofthoughtlessness,atendency ofordinary peopleto obeyorders andconform tomass opinionwithout acritical evaluationof theconsequencesof theiractions.She wassharply criticalof the way the trial wasconducted inIsrael.She alsowascritical of thewaythat someJewish leaders,notably M.C.Rumkowski,acted during the Holocaust.Thiscaused considerablecontroversy andeven animositytoward Arendtin theJewish community.Arendt endedthe bookby writing:Just asyou Eichmannsupported andcarried outa policyof not wanting一to share the earth with theJewish peopleand thepeople of a numberof othernations asthough youand yoursuperiorshad anyright todetermine who should and whoshouldnot inhabitthe world-we findthat no one,thatis,no memberof thehuman race,can beexpected towant tosharetheearthwithyou.This is thereason,and theonlyreason,you musthang.In away,Hanna facedthe samepredicament asEichman did.Many of the chaptersin thebook reflectthe“banality of evil“and theindifference tohuman natureof Hanna:Some of us were dead,and the others hadleft.They saidthey weretaking thewounded to the fieldhospital andcould comeback,but theyknow theywerentcoming back,and sodid we,5Schlink,1997:

126.When the judge askedher whatdid shedo,she saidthat“We didntknow whatto do.It allhappened sofast,with thepriests houseburning and the churchspire,and themen and the cartwere thereone minuteand gonethe nextIf wehad openedthe doorsand theyhad allcomerushing out”Schlink,1997:

127.Hannahas herown understandingof herduty as a guard.In the face of the judgesenquiry,Hanna askedthe judge,“what would you havedone”Schlink,1997:128The rhetoricalquestion revealedHannas helplessnessandthe helplessnessof thejudge.It isunquestionable toperform agood jobof herown in Hannas mind.Whatswrong withit Herignorance andsuperficiality made her not able todistinguish betweenright andwrong,andshe didnot thinkthat she was sorryforthedead Jews.In the German WorldWar II,thousands ofpeople likeHannaserved theNazis unconsciously.It canbe statedthat undersuch circumstancesduring the war,anyordinary personmight chooseto closethe doorof thechurch andmake thesame mistakeas Hannadid.Hannasfirst tragedycomes from the incomprehensionof the war andhumanity.

4.2The trialand Hannassecond tragedyThesecond stageof the story beganwith theunexpected reunionbetween MichaelandHannain thecourt.At thattime,Hanna andMike had been apartfrom eachother foreight years,and Michaelbecame alaw schoolstudent.

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2.1Hanna as a confessorHanna wasasmall screwon themachine ofcamp massacre.She workedasascrew tokeep themachinerunning.As illiteratepersons like Hanna,those womenbecome participantsin thewar withoutknowing theseverityof thepossible consequences.It canbe saidthat Hannalost herability ofjudging,it alsoreflects theindividualsare likesingle water-droplets in the oceanof histoiy.The victimsweredead,but thousandsofindependent individualslikeHannaare stillalive.They needto spendtheir lifetime reflectingon theirunconsciousfault.Hanna wasguilty but it didnot meanthat theadjudicator cansimply punishher with the abstractchargesand thesimple useof thelaw.If thetrial isnot basedon thetrue understandingof allthe particularitiesof thedefendant,but basedon thebalance betweenvarious calculations,then theresno justicein sucha trial.In fact,it isnotataboo forHanna toadmit to thejudgeher sins.She isjust asmall unimpressivebeing inthewave of thewar.

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2.2Hanna asa liarFromHannas point of view,beingaconcentration campguard isjust acommon job.It doesntneed toreadorwrite.She canconceal hershortcoming ofilliteracy.Killing theseJews wasnot herintention.When shewas askedto choosefemale prisonersand sentthem toAuschwitz ConcentrationCamp,she didnoteven doubtor challengethe reasonablenessof theorder.During thetrial,otherwise thanthe otherprisoners,Hanna hadnttried to escape fromwhat she had done.She iseven willingto become a scapegoatbecause shewould rathergo tojail thanlet anyoneknow abouthersecret.In The Reader,Schlink usedwords like“isolated”and helpless“to describeHannas situation.Hannaalso pouredout to Michael:I alwayshad the feeling that nooneunderstood meanyway,thatnoone knewwhoI wasand whatmade medo hisor that.And youknow,when noone understandsyou,then noone canblameyou.Schlink,1997:

198.However,we didntsee howmuch Hannatriedto make herselfunderstood.Instead,we sawthat in orderto preserveher self-esteem,she walkedaway fromthe crowdstep bystep andwent toautism.All her life shehad been aprudent woman.Her desperationbehaviors ofmaintaining herdignity areunconscious,potentialand nonlogic ofmental activities.Her fearof beingnoticed asan illiteracymadeherbecome extremelysensitiveand nervous.Just likeMichael recalled,That waswhy she had peopleread to her.That waswhy shehadlet medo allthe writingand readingon ourbicycle tripand why she hadlost controlthat morningin thehotelwhen shefound mynote,realized I would assumeshe knewwhat itsaid,and wasafraid shedbe exposed.That waswhy shehad avoidedbeing promotedby thestreetcar company;asaconductor shecould concealherweakness,butitwould havebecome obviouswhenshewas beingtrained to becomeadriver.That wasalsowhy shehad refusedthe promotion atSiemensand becomeaguard.That waswhyshehad admittedwriting thereportin ordertoescapea confrontationwith anexperfXSchlink,1997:

132.It is too latefor Michaelto realizethat Hanna struggleda lottomaintainher inferiority.

4.3Hannas suicide and herthird tragedyPeoplewho belongto thelist of shame culturewould doeverything to cover uptheir shortcomingsand topreservetheir dignity.Thats exactlywhat Hannadid during thetrial.Even sentencedto lifeimprisonment,Hannawasnot sorryfor what she did.She stillregard what she did as herduty atwork.That leadsto herthirdtragedy.

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3.1Hannas repentanceMichaelstarted sendingHanna tapeswith hisrecording ofstories aftershewassent tojail.Thats thethirdpart of the novel.Hanna receivedtapes fromtime totime in prison and she learnedhow toread andwrite withthe tapes.But eventhough manyyears hadpassed,Michael stillbrood overHannas attitudetowards herownsins.Thats why Hanna stayed in prisonfor almost20years,but Michaelstill couldntmake uphis mindtoforgive her.Thats whyhed nevervisit her.She was too stiffand stubbornto realizethat shewas wrongandguilty becauseshehad done suchruthless thingsand wasway indifferentto letthe victimsdie in thechurch.By the time theysaw eachother again,the firstquestion Michaelthrew toHanna iswhatshehad learnedinprison.Hanna answeredthat shedlearn toread.It madeMichael disappointed atherso heleft earlyafterseveral words of asmall talk.

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3.2Hannas suicideMichaelthought that Hanna had to confessto hersin.But whenhe figuredout thatwhat Hanna had donewasjust aimingto protectthe factof herbeing an illiteracy,he startedto understandHanna.To quoteMichaels words,but whatother peoplein mysocial environmenthad done,and theirguilt,were in any casea lotless badthan whatHannahaddone.I hadto pointatHanna.But thefinger Ipointedatherturned backto me.I hadloved her.Not onlyhad I loved her,I hadchosen her.I triedto tellmyself thatI hadknownnothing ofwhatshehaddonewhen Ichose hef^Schlink,1997:

170.Michaefs concealmentmay beconsidered a shieldfor protectingHanna butit wasout of his selfishness.He wouldntbe willingto letanyone elseknow that he isrelevant toNazi.He didnotwantto facethat piece ofhistory.But the inner guiltfeelings have been huntinghim allthetime.Finally hedecided toread forHanna inordertowinhimself redemption.At theend of thestory,Hanna hangedherself inher cell.Hanna spenther wholelife justtrying topreserveher dignity.She is a tragicfigure who was worthysympathized with.

5.ConclusionPeoples choicesand decisionsare monitoredbytheposition they are at.When Hannabecame theguard oftheconcentration camp,she thoughtasaguard,she didasaguard.Even Hannaherself hasnot realizedthat herignoranceof the world camefromtheinner avoidancefor recognitionmeans carrying.As timewent by,theavoidance hadbecometheso-called truththat shebelieved in.As amatter offact,Hannas illiteracyhas beenasecret of Michael,too.Summing up,shame is the motivatorbehind ourtoxic behaviors:the compulsion,co-dependency,addiction anddrive tosuper-achieve thatbreaks downthe familyand destroyspersonal lives.For Hanna,shame feelingshavebeencontrolling hermind.Her extremepride madeherlifewas definedby twothings,oneis beinganilliteracy,the otheristohide herilliteracy.Through theimage-building ofHanna,The Readershared aphilosophical issuewith peopleall aroundtheworld,that is,how touphold thedignity ofindividuals andhow todeal withit whenthe measuresare runningcountertothepurpose.This questionwas showedbetween thewordsof the novel.We cannothave peoplelikeHanna nailedtotheshame columnof history.We cannotget thisthrough untilwe removethe prejudicefromour mindin orderto preventsimilar tragediesfrom happeningagain.ReferencesAlison,J.

2006.The ThirdVictim inBernhard SchlinksDer Vorleser|J|.Germanic ReviewLiterature CultureTheory.Arendt,H.

2006.Eichmann inJerusalem:A Reporton theBanality ofEvz7[M].London:Penguin Classics.Benedict,R.

1989.The Chrysanthemumand theSword[M].London:Mariner Books.Birtchnell,J.

1997.The Psychologyof Shame:Theory andTreatment ofShame-Based Syndromes!J].PersonalityIndividual Differences.Boll,H.

1978.Wb Warstdu,Adam[M].Munich:DTV.Brooks,D.

2016.The ShameCulture[J].New YorkTimesDarwin,C.

1890.The Expressionof theEmotions inMan andAnimaIs[M].Oxford:Cambridge UniversityPress.Havari,EPeracchi,F.

2016.Growing Upin Wartime:Evidence fromthe Eraof TwoWorld Wars|J].EconomicsHuman Biology.Macionis,JGeber,L.

2011.Sociology[M].Toronto:Pearson PrenticeHall.Schlink,B.

1995.The Reader\^A\.Zurich:Diogenes VerlagAG.丁建弘，《战后德国的分裂与统一》北京人民出版社1997,[M]丁一平，中华传统耻感文化形成的根源探析《河南师范大学学报》，第二期2015,[J],郭聪惠，论耻感文化的道德教育价值《前沿》，第九期2008,[J],李茂增，论大屠杀与个体罪责《外国文学》，第一期2009,[J],刘燕青，论洛克观念发生学说中蕴含的主体创新性思想中央音乐学院党校，第九期2010,[J],南楠，《朗读者》一一德国反思文学的承前启后之作《沈阳大学学报》，第六期2014,[J],钱定平，《朗读者》南京译林出版社2009,[M]钱逊，《论语汇编》北京中华书局2018,[M]王晓广，论耻感文化的道德功能《学术交流》，第十二期2015,[J],肖复兴，反思比回忆更重要《人民日报》，第二十四期2015,[J],张悦，朗读者爱情寓言与人性审判《艺术百家》，第一期2009,[J],朱光潜，《悲剧心理学》南京江苏文艺出版社2009,[M]AcknowledgementsI wouldlike toextend mysincere appreciationto mysupervisor WangXiangfeng forhis patienceandinsightful suggestionsto meduring mycomposition ofthis thesis.He isof greathelp tomy choosingtheproposition,gathering referencematerials andwriting.His profoundlearning,patient proofreading,acutecriticism andconstructive suggestionsare crucialtotheaccomplishment ofthis thesis.His painstakingeffortshave madethis thesisa betterone thanI couldever possiblymake.Besides,Iwouldlike toexpress myheartfelt gratitudeto allthe teachersin theEnglish Department.Fromtheir wonderfullectures andwarm help,I haveobtained abasic knowledgeof theEnglish language,Englishand Americanliterature.Iloveyou all.My heartalso goesto allmy friendsfrom whomI havereceived muchhelp,support andconfidence togoon with the writing.Last of all,I feelindebted tothe supportof myfamily.Without theirsupport Icould nothave completedmythesis andcarried throughmy graduatestudy.《朗读者》是德国法学家兼作家本哈德•施林克的著名作品之一第二次世界大战是全世界人民都无法磨灭的记忆战争没有胜利者，小人物更是战争洪流里的受害者小说讲述了男女主人公之间一段发生在二战后德国的非同寻常的爱情故事，将普通人的爱恨纠葛与历史、人性等多重主题结合到一起，展现了对历史罪责、现实矛盾以及人性脆弱、苦难的独到思考，是德国战后反思文学的经典作品小说的女主人公汉娜是一例典型的矛盾主体，她对未成年的男主人公的感情、她对自己文盲身份的认知、她所做出的选择和由她体现出来的人性的弱点都是值得探讨的话题本文主要以汉娜所处的时代的大背景为切入点，借助部分已有的研究，从耻感文化角度入手，对女主人公汉娜的悲剧命运做出进一步的详细分析，使读者能够对汉娜悲剧命运的成因有更深的认识，对德国的战后反思文学有进一步的、更客观的了解，同时也旨在教育人们应为自己的抉择负起责任关键词耻感文化；朗读者；汉娜；悲剧命运；二战;AbstractThe Readeris oneof themost famousnovels ofGerman writerBernhard-Schlink.Thesecond world war isa painfulmemory thatevery singleindividual of the worldcannot forget.Awar hasno winnerso thatevery personof thatgeneration issubjected.The Readerisastoryabout loveand about history aswell.The noveltells theunusual love story betweenMichael andHannaafter WWII.It constitutesa mixtureof love,hatred,history andhumanity.It showstheunique optionof thehistorical guilty,the realitycontradiction,the vulnerabilityand sufferingofhuman nature.We canask ourselvesa questionafter readingit,that is,how farwouldyougo tokeepsomething asecret Theprotagonist Hanna is anobvious exampleof inwardconflict.Thefeelings betweenher andMichael,her awarenessof herilliteracy,the weaknessof humanracereflected inherand the choicesshehadmade areall worthexploring anddiscussing.This thesisaimsto explorethis novelby analyzing thetragic fateofHanna fromtheperspectiveof shameculture.We areable toknow muchmore aboutintrospection literatureandtolearn thatweshould takeour responsibilityfor whatwe havedone.Key words:Shame culture;The Reader;Hanna;tragic fate;WW IIContents

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121.IntroductionThe Reader,a Germannovel,isasuccessful masterpieceof introspection literature,which waspopulararound theworld andwon numerousliterary awards.Its successhas benefitedfrom Bernhard Schlinksprofound thoughtsand extraordinarywriting techniques.Xiao Fuxing,a famousChinese writer,gave highpraiseto this novel andcalled itan allegoryof thecontemporary generationof Germanyand hesaid thatintrospectionis moreimportant thanrecallingXiao Fuxing,2015:

24.As Goethehas said,“The notionof secrecyis centralto Westernliterature,you maysay thewhole ideaofcharacter holdingspecific information,which forvarious reasons,sometimes perverse,sometimes noble,theyare determinednot todisclose”Schlink,1997:59,secrecy hasbeen themost vitalelement inWesterncountries.The Readerisalove storywhose backgroundhas moretodowiththe second worldwar.This novelpresentsseveral themes such as love,guilt andwar.Its basicallya50-year-old lawprofessor MichaelBergsmemoir oflife.The storywas toldbythe first personnarrator.In1958,Germany asa conqueredcountry helda sceneof devastation.A fifteen-year-old boycalledMichael Berggot hepatitis,which startedinthefall andlasted untilspring.Once on his wayback homehecant helpthrow up,at thatmoment,Hanna showedup.As atotal stranger,Hanna tookcare ofhim andwalkedhim home.Thats thebeginning of their May-December romance.They fellin lovewith eachother.Hannaappeared to beabook lover.She alwaysasked Michaeltoreadthe booksthat helearned atschool for her.Suddenly,one day,Hanna disappearedfrom Michaelslife.Eight yearslater,although Michael had beentrying toget overHanna,the relationshipbetween themhasalways beenhis sweetestmemories.He wasan internat thelaw school.Once hetook part inthehearing of aNazi warcriminal trialbefore hegraduated,he metHanna again.But itwas unexpectedtoMichaelthat Hannasat there asa criminal.She wasguilty forshe usedtobeaguardofaconcentrationcamp.All ofa sudden,Michael cameup withthereasonwhyHannawould ratherbear allconsequences thanshow herhandwriting tothejudge.She wasa illiteracyandshesaw itas herdefect.This novelshowed severalthemessuch aslove,guilt andwar.Shame isa complexconcept fromthe fieldof psychology.It ishiding on the edgeof humanmind.Shameculture isonespecificperspective toobserve thepsychological connectionbetween Hannaand herchoice.Would peoplelet thisfeeling winwhen ittries tocontrol theirmind andtheir behaviorsThisessay aimsto explorethisnovelmeticulously byanalyzingthetragicfateofHannafrom theperspectiveof shame cultureand then wewould beable toknow muchmore aboutintrospection literatureandlearn thatwe shouldbe responsiblefor whatwe havedone.

2.Background informationEverynovel ishighly relevant to itssocial background.Background decidesthe directionsof thenoveland willgive peoplemore invisibleinformation tolet themknow muchabout the social condition.

2.1Social backgroundAsis knownto allofus,war isthe conductofastate leadersorder forthe sakeof hiscountry9s owninterestswhich wouldcause millionsof murders.In September1939,the Europeanbattlefield witnessedthefirst appearanceof gunshotof theentire war.A varietyof datashowed that thesecond worldwarwas theworstworld warfor ithad causedthe biggestloss.German,although as the initiatorofevil,was badlyweakened aswell.Based on the complexsocial background,The Reader,wrote byBernhard Schlink,was meanttobeacomplicated novel.It isabouthistory,individual,love,desire,moral and guilty.All of the elementswerepressed onthe shoulderofMichaelBerg,a hostage of history,,isthemost properphrase todescribe him.As athesismentioned,“We documentthe associationbetween war-related shocksin childhoodand adultoutcomesfor Europeansbom duringthe firsthalf ofthe twentiethcentury.Asforthelong-term consequencesofmortality shocksonthesurvivors,we findlittle evidenceof increasedadult mortalityfor people born duringWWI andWWII,but someevidence forpeoplebornduringtheSpanish Flu,especially,in Englandand Wales,France andItaly^CHavariPeracchi,2016:

5.Individual canbe regardedasthehostageofhistory andknowledge,hijacked bythe presentandthefuture,especially thisperiod ofhistory isrelevanttoour parentsandlovers.During aninterview,Schlink said,“The themes of TheReader aresomething thatkept grabbingmyattention andthoughts.Those themestend tobethethemes ofmy generation,,Qian Dingping,2009:

27.TheReaders publicationaimed athelping peoplediscover whatkind ofscars the history hadleft forthe countryandhow guiltythewarmade peopleofthe next generationfeel.Nowadays,thefactis thatthefeelingof guilthasbeen fadingaway astime goesby.The youngergeneration thinksmore aboutwhat disastersand injuriesthethird empirehad broughttotheJews andtheir neighboringcountries.Besides,theyaretrying tofigure outhowto treatthe descendantsofthevictims ina respectfuland decentmanner.

2.2Introspection literatureIn thefaceofthefierce war,human lifeis sofragile andso small.Death isthe director indirectconsequenceof warso thatlife anddeath havebecome twoeternal themesof literaryworks.The word“introspection firstappeared inthe writingsof JohnLocke,a Britishphilosopher.He regardedtheperception oftheinneractivities ofthe mind“as introspectionLiuYanqing,2010:33,it referstosomething thatmakes youfeel emotionallyuncomfortable.German introspectionliterature isa varietyof worksaiming atexposing and criticizing the crimes offascismand opposingthe warNanNan,2014:

2.German writersnever ceasedtheir introspectionabout thehistoryof WorldWar II.After thewar,German writersoftheprevious eraregarded ittheir responsibilitytoexpose andintrospect thefascist crimein theirliterary creation.After thesecondworldwar,intellectuals shoulderedthe responsibilityof reawakeningthe conscienceofGerman towardsthewar.Literature andphilosophy are two primaryfields ofintrospection.Heinrich Boll,a〃famous Germanwriter,left somany excellentworks such as WoWarst DuAda21978to whaleaway atwar.His theoriesdidagreat jobat inspiringGerman peopleto shoulderthe consequencesofthewar insteadofrunning awayfrom it.“On theone hand,TheReaderis closelyrelated tothe Germanintrospectionliterature^CNan Nan,2014:

2.It isa quietand deeplovestoryonthesurface.From anotherpointofview,it isalso apieceofsharpmonologue ontheGermanview ofguilt andcrime aswell.The noveltakes theordinary individualslike MikeandHanna asits protagonists,it alsoinvolves thethemesofWorldWarII,Jewish sufferingsand escapewiththe purpose of exposingthecrimeof fascismandcriticizingthe crueltyofthewar,it has aroused peoplesreflectionon historyand guilt.Bernhard Schlinkproposed thatthe initialpurposeofhis writingwastogive morepeople thechance toshareand examinethehistoryand he didnotmean toavoid ortocoveruptheNazi history.He believesthatevery generationshould knowthatthehappy lifethey havetoday doesnot comeout ofnowhere.This isthecontemporary historythat allGermans cantavoidQian Dingping,2009:

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2.3A briefintroduction toThe ReaderTheReader{Der Vorleserisanovel publishedin1995wrote byBernhardSchlink.The storyisaparable,dealing withthe difficultiesthat post-war Germangenerations havehadtocomprehend theHolocaust.TheReader exploreshow thepost-war generationsshould approachthe generationthat tookpartin,or witnessed,the atrocities.These arethe issuesattheheart ofHolocaust literatureinthelate20th andearly21st century,asthe victimsand witnessesdie andliving memoryfades.After15-year-old Michaelsbecoming illonhisway home,Hanna asa conductresshelped himout andseeshim safelyhome.He spendsthenextthree monthsbattling hepatitisand forthatheabsents himselffromschool.He visitsHanna tothank her forherhelp andrealizes thathe isattracted to her.After theirrelationshipbegins,Hanna issometimes physicallyand verballyabusive toMichael.Months intothe relationship,shesuddenly leaveswithout atrace.The distancebetween themhadbeengrowing asMichaelhadbeen spendingmoretime with his schoolfriends;he feelsguilty andbelieves itwas somethinghedidthat causedherdeparture.The memoryof hertaints allhis otherrelationships withwomen.Eight yearslater,while attendinglaw school,Michael isoneofthe spectatorsofthewarcrimestrial.Agroup ofmiddle-aged womenwho hadserved asSS guardsat asatellite ofAuschwitz inoccupied Polandarebeing triedfor allowing300Jewish womenunder theirostensible protectionto dieinafire lockedinachurchthat hadbeen bombedduringtheevacuation ofthe camp.Michael isstunned tosee thatHanna sitsbeside thedefendants.This scenesends himonaroller coasterofcomplex emotions.He feelsguilty becausehe lovedherforawhile andhe stilldoes.Firstly,she deniesall thecrimesthat shehadbeencharged.Then inpanic sheadmits itinordernot tohavetoprovide asample ofherhandwriting.Michael,horrified,realizes thenthatHannahas asecret thatshe refuses to revealat anycost—thatsheis illiterate.This explainsmany ofHannas actions:her refusalofthepromotion thatwould haveremovedher fromthe obligationof supervisingthese women.During thetrial,it transpiresthatshetook inthe weak,sickly womenand hadthem readto herbefore theyweresent tothe gaschambers.Michael isuncertain ifshe wantedtomaketheir lastdays bearableor ifshe sentthemaway sothey wouldnot reveal her secret.She isfound guiltyand sentencedto lifeimprisonment whilethe otherwomen receiveonly minorsentences.After muchdeliberation,he optsnot torevealhersecret,which couldhave savedher fromher lifesentence,as theirrelationship wasa forbiddenone.Years hadpassed.Michael isdivorced andhasadaughter fromhis shortmarriage.He istrying tocome totermswithhisfeelings forHanna,and beginstape-reading andsending themtoherwithout anycorrespondencewhile sheis inprison.Hanna beginsto teachherselftoread,andthenwrite ina childlikeway,by borrowingthe booksfromtheprison libraryand followingthetapesalong withthe text.She writestoMichael,but hecannot bringhimself toreply.After18years,Hannaisintheprocess ofbeing released,so heagreesafter hesitationto findheraplace tostay andemployment,visiting herinprison.On theday ofherrelease in1983,she commitssuicideandMichael isheartbroken.Michael learnsfromthewarden thatshe hadbeenreading booksby manyprominent Holocaustsurvivors,such asElie Wiesel,Primo Levi,TadeuszBorowski,and historyofthecamps.Hanna lefthim anassignment:give allher moneytothesurvivor ofthechurch fire.While hestayedinthe U.S.,Michael travelsto NewYork tovisit theJewish womanwhowasa witnessatthe trial,andwhowrote thebook about the winterdeath marchfrom Auschwitz.She cansee histerribleconflict ofemotions andhe finallytells ofhis youthfulrelationship withHanna.The unspokendamage sheleftto thepeople aroundher hangsintheair.He revealshis short,cold marriage,and hisdistant relationshipwithhis daughter.The womanunderstands,but nonethelessrefusestotake thesavings Hannahad askedMichael toconveytoher,saying,“I canttake itfor grantedSchlink,1997:

208.Michael donatedthose moneyinHannas name.Returning toGermany,and witha letterof thanksfbr thedonation madeinHannasname,

3.Shame CultureMichaelvisits Hannasgrave forthefirstand onlytime.Shame cultureandguiltculture aretwo oppositeconcepts.Sin culture represents thewestern countriesforits religioustheories oforiginal sinwhile shame culture representsthe easternfor itssense of shame is moreobvious.

3.1CultureCulture isconsideredacentral conceptin anthropology,encompassing therange ofphenomena thataretransmitted throughsocial learningin humansocieties”Macionis,JGeber,L.2011:

17.Some aspectsofhuman behavior,social practicessuch asculture,expressive formssuchasart,music,dance,ritual,religion,and technologiessuchastool usage,cooking,shelter andclothing aresaid tobe culturaluniversals,found inallhuman societies.In simpleterms,cultureisa learnedset ofshared interpretationsabout beliefs,values andnorms,which influencethe behaviorofarelatively largegroup ofpeople.

3.2Shame cultureAccordingtoabook calledThe ChrysanthemumandtheSword byRuth Benedict,shame cultureand guiltculturearetwoopposite conceptsBenedict,1989:

12.Ruth dividedtheworldculture intotwo parts:one isshame culture,theotheris guiltculture.It isan efficientway toanalyze differenthistorical conceptionsbetweenthe Eastandthe West inthe aspectsof twodifferent culturalstates ofsenses ofguilt andshame.Guiltculture representstheWestfor itstheory oforiginal sinwhile shame culturerepresentsthe Eastfor itssense ofshame ismoreobvious.Before talkingabout shameculture,weshouldknow somethingaboutthesense of shame.Shame isapainful,social emotionthat canbe seenas resultingfrom comparison ofthe selfs actionwiththeselfs standardsbutwhich mayequally stemfrom acomparisonoftheselfsstate ofbeing withthe idealsocial contextsstandard.The rootsoftheword shameare thoughtto derivefrom anolder wordmeaning tocover;as such,coveringoneself,literally orfiguratively,isanatural expressionofshame.Nineteenth-century scientistCharles Darwindescribedshame affectas consistingof blushing,confusion ofmind,downward casteyes,slack posture,andlowered head,andhenoted observationsofshameaffect inhuman populationsworldwide.As DavidBrooks wrotein oneofhispapers,“Crouch notesthat thisshamecultureis differentfrom thetraditionalshame cultures,the onesin Asia,for example.In traditionalshame cultures,the oppositeof shamewashonor orface------------------------------being knownasadignified andupstanding citizen.Inthenewshame culture,the oppositeofshameis celebrity---------tobeattraction-grabbing andaggressively uniqueonsome mediaplatform.On thepositive side,this newshameculturemight rebindthesocialand communalfabric.It mightreverse,a bit,the individualistic,atomizing thrustofthepast50years^CBrooks,2016:3,astate ofshameisassigned internallyfrom beinga victimof environmentwhere thesense ofselfisstigmatizedlike beingdenigrated bycaregivers.In culturalanthropology,a shamesociety,also calledshamecultureor honour-shameculture,isasocietyin whichthe primarydevice forgaining controlover childrenand maintainingsocial orderistheinculcation ofshameandthecomplementary threatof ostracism.A shamesociety iscontrasted witha。