本文是一篇英语语言学论文，本文认为通过剖析本土族裔的身份困境，路易斯·厄德里克指出了印第安人受到的来自美国主流文化的压迫，并向读者展现文化身份建构的新途径，为同样无法适应多元文化潮流的其他民族提供借鉴。
Chapter I Introduction
1.1 Louise Erdrich and The Round House
Louise Erdrich(1954—),is a far-reaching figure in the history of contemporaryAmerican literature and one of the representatives of the Native American Renaissance.Erdrich grew up in North Dakota,which was the main creative backdrop for The RoundHouse.Her father was German-American,and her mother was of mixed Ojibwe descent.Theencouragement and support of her parents was the primary motivation for Erdrich’s to dreamof becoming a writer.In addition,the work and life experience in Boston allowed Erdrich tomeet many mixed-race Indians like her,and it was then that she realized the importance ofOjibwe culture in her life,which prompted her to embark on a creative journey about racialculture.As one of America’s most prolific contemporary writers,Erdrich has published 17novels and 13 other genres.These works have won Erdrich more than a dozen awards,including the American National Book Award,the Pulitzer Prize,and the O.Henry Award.
The Round House,part of Erdrich’s“Justice Trilogy”,won the 2012 American NationalBook Award.This is the first time that a Native American author has won this literary award.The novel depicts the life of contemporary Indians.It tells the story of an Indian boy whosemother is raped and injured,which makes the boy and those around him track down the killerand seek justice.In the face of contradictions between federal law and Indian law,the boyeventually achieves justice with violence.The novel’s open-ended ending is meaningful andsparks a wide range of discussion.The author reveals the historical trauma and survivaldilemma of the Indian people in the voice of a teenager.Fully demonstrating the author’sconcerns about the Indian culture and the future of the Indians.
1.2 Theoretical Basis of the Thesis
The theory of cultural memory could be traced back to the end of the Cold War,whenGerman academia began to focus on the problem of collective memory.Because of the strongpolitical nature of the memory and reminiscence of the Cold War,it became an urgent task for
Germans to construct a model of memory that would benefit future development.Moreover,as the number of survivors of World War II and the Holocaust decreased,thesetraumatic memories faded away.Therefore,it is essential to construct long-lasting memoriesand recall patterns.That’s where Jan Assmann’s cultural memory theory came into being.
“Cultural memory”is concerned with the external dimension of human memory.In the1920s,Maurice Halbwachs introduced the concepts of“individual memory”and“collectivememory.”Social factors constrain memory is the heart of Halbwachs’research.Assmann’stheory of cultural memory inherits and refines Halbwachs’theory of collective memory.Hedivides the latter into communicative memory and cultural memory.Communicative memoryincludes memories related to the recent past.It is a space of recollection based purely on theexperience of individual interaction,which exists and continues in a verbal way,so that itarises and disappears over time,or rather,with its carrier.There are two modes ofcommunicative memory:“foundational memory,”refers to the origin of the group,and“biographical memory,”refers to the individual.Foundational memory supports recall andpromotes identity through various“fixed objectifications”.Biographical memory reliesprimarily on social interaction.
Chapter II Identity Crisis Caused by the Loss ofCultural Memory
2.1 Representations of Cultural Cultural Identity Crisis
The first scholar to promote the theory of“cultural identity”to China should be TaoDongfeng.His 1998 book,Globalization,Cultural Identity,and Postcolonial Criticism,addresses the question of national identity and national identity(50-53).But the article doesnot provide a clear definition of identity.Then,many scholars equated cultural identity withidentity.It wasn’t until 2004 that Tao Jiajun pointed out
