論文名稱：大衛．辛波尋友記：對比研究
校所組別：國立中山大學外國語文研究所文學組
研究生：應芳瑜 　指導教授：田偉文教授

論文提要：
莎拉．費爾丁的小說《大衛．辛波尋友記》中充滿著大量的對比，本篇論文主旨是檢視並分析這本小說中的對比。主題之中有對比，成對的主角之間有對比，上集與下集之間亦有對比。作者將小說中的男主角大衛．辛波塑造成異常善良的人。大衛的不尋常之處在於他對友情的執著。他在虔誠信奉上帝、純真、唯心、感性、以及善良等方面都是極端主義者。他在追尋友情的過程中，果真遇到了同好之友，在志趣相同的情況之下，自然而然組成了類似烏托邦的小團體，之後，由原來的四人衍生為十一人，到最後，卻只剩下兩位女性成員存活。大衛烏托邦的毀滅丟給讀者一個難題——好人不見得有好報。針對此一難題，本篇論文要以封建制度和資本主義來闡明大衛烏托邦的衰敗，藉由分析大衛與歐葛爾先生之間主客關係的消長來探討「毀滅」背後真正的寓意。
本篇論文共分成四章。第一章為概論，簡述各家對這本小說的評論並介紹另外三章的主旨。第二章剖析這本小說的主題架構。主要的主題是基督教精神、友情、及忌妒。次要的主題包含主題性對比：純真與世故、唯心與唯物、感性與理性、以及善良與邪惡。第三章分析辛喜雅和歐葛爾夫人之間的相似處，藉此証明本人的論點——辛喜雅和歐葛爾夫人在性情、智慧、及固執方面都是旗鼓相當。第四章探討大衛和歐葛爾先生兩人對「快樂」之截然不同的對比性看法。大衛與歐葛爾先生之間的對比主要在於這五個方面：虔誠信奉上帝與世俗自給自足、純真與世故、唯心與唯物、感性與理性、以及善良與邪惡。針對「快樂」的對比分析可以推論出大衛和歐葛爾先生兩人在凡世間皆有得到世俗且虛幻之曇花一現的快樂，但只有善良的大衛在故事的結尾以堅定的信仰受到上帝的啟示，而得到神聖且永恆的快樂。「死亡」只是通往永恆快樂的門檻，而「行善」幫助大衛超脫世俗快樂並抵達永恆快樂的門檻。

Abstract
This thesis proposes to scrutinize and analyze the contrasts that abound in Sarah Fielding’s novel, The Adventures of David Simple. Contrasts pervade the novel because they exist in the themes, between the paired protagonists, and between part one and part two. The hero, David Simple, is characterized by his extreme benevolence that rarely exists among us. He seems uncommon by prioritizing friendship over anything else. He is an extremist in point of godliness, innocence, spirituality, sentimentality, and benevolence. With like-minded friends, David sets up a utopian community that grows from four to eleven members, but at last only two female members survive. The annihilation of David’s secluded utopia brings about the enigma that good seems to go unrewarded. This thesis attempts to draw on feudalism and capitalism to explain the decline of David’s utopia by analyzing the patron-client relationship that evolves between David Simple and Mr. Orgueil. Chapter one gives an overview of this novel, mentions the novel’s reception by major critics, and introduces each chapter that follows. Chapter two delineates the thematic structure of the novel. Major themes are Christian spirit, friendship, and envy. Sub-themes are composed of thematic contrasts between innocence and sophistication, spirituality and materialism, sentimentality and rationality, and benevolence and malevolence. Chapter three analyzes parallels in the contrasts between Cynthia and Mrs. Orgueil in order to prove my hypothesis that Cynthia equals Mrs. Orgueil in temperament, in intelligence, and in persistence. Chapter four explores the contrasting notions of happiness between David and Mr. Orgueil. These contrasts are those between godliness and worldliness, innocence and sophistication, spirituality and materialism, sentimentality and rationality, and benevolence and malevolence. This analysis of contrasting notions of happiness will lead me to conclude that both David and Mr. Orgueil attain transient and earthly happiness when they are alive, but only David attains eternal and heavenly happiness at the end of the novel. To sum up, the threshold of heavenly happiness is death. The prerequisite for an approach to that threshold of permanent happiness is benevolence, which avails to transcend sublunary happiness.

Table of Contents

Page
Chapter One Introduction 1
Chapter Two An Overview of Thematic Structure in David Simple 14
Chapter Three A Study of Parallels in the Contrasts between Cynthia and Mrs. Orgueil 40
Chapter Four A Study of Happiness in the Contrasts between David and Mr. Orgueil 61
Conclusion 84
Works Cited 86

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