本文是一篇英语语言学论文，笔者认为暴露小说的虚构性本质，展现小说的自反性，体现出元小说自我意识的后现代主义特征；同时也反映出斯帕克作为作家和评论家对于对文学创作的反思，回应了盛行一时的英国小说存亡问题。
Chapter One The Frame Consciousness in Loiteringwith Intent
1.1 The Construction of the Frame
“In metafiction,obvious framing devices range from stories within stories...”(Waugh,1984:30)“Stories within stories”is also called“fiction within fiction”or“Chinese box”structures.Loitering with Intent tells the story of a successful novelist’s description of hercreative life and her thoughts of the relationship between art and life.The protagonist FleurTalbot recounts her experiences during a period from the autumn of 1949 to the summer of1950 from a more mature perspective.The author intentionally leads readers to adopt the protagonist’s perspective by using the first-person narration.Outwardly,it seems to be asimple autobiographical novel,but it has the complicated“stories within stories”actually.As everyone knows,multi-level novel structure is the main feature of metafiction.Altogether,it is comprised of three levels of stories.Firstly,in the construction part,thereare two levels of frames,which break the traditional narrative rules and aim to arousepeople’s awareness of frame.
1.1.1 External Autobiographical Narrative Frame
The first is external autobiographical narrative frame,which forms the outer layer ofthis novel.It is about Fleur’s experiences after she escapes from an organization namedAutobiographical Association headed by Sir Quentin.In this frame story,the protagonistFleur as the first-person“I”.It opens with Fleur’s own recollections of a day when she sitson a gravestone,writing a poem.“One day in the middle of the twentieth century I sat in agraveyard which had not yet been demolished,in the Kensington area of London…”(Spark,1981:7)This day is viewed by Fleur as“the last day of a whole chunk of my life”.“But I didn’t know that at the time.I sat on the stone slab of some Victorian grave writingmy poem as long as the sun lasted.”(Spark,1981:7)“At that time…I was close onpenniless but my spirits were all the more high because I had recently escaped from theAutobiographical Association(non-profit-making).”
1.2 The Breaking of the Frame
There are two functions of metafiction.The first one is in order to break thefundamental structure.“The alternation of frame and frame-break(or the construction ofan illusion through the imperceptibility of the frame and the shattering of illusion throughthe constant exposure of the frame)provides the essential deconstructive method ofmetafiction.”(Waugh,1984:31)Loitering with Intent consists of three levels of story andthis thesis has discussed the first two levels of the construction of frame above.In this part,it will mainly study how the third level of story deconstructs the frame.At the same time,Spark’s manipulation of narrative time further breaks the traditional narrative frame.The above two ways effectively deconstruct traditional frame,which shows author’s reflectionon the structure of the fiction.And this exposure of the frame uncovers the process of theconstruction of this novel,which shakes the reader’s conviction about the relative status of“truth”and“fiction”.In short,the breakdown of spatial and temporal organization ofnarrative strengthens the reader’s frame consciousness,and makes them more deeplyunderstand the importance of the frame from multiple angles.
Chapter Two The Game Consciousness In Loiteringwith Intent
2.1 The Combination of Autobiography and Fiction
As mentioned above,metafiction constructs the playfulness and carnivalization of thetext through the game of language and form.Autobiography and fiction belongs todifferent genres,but metafiction often combines them in the same text.The fictionaldescription is inserted behind the autobiographical narrative,and the truth and fiction areinterpenetrated,which further ponders the relationship between autobiography and fictionand embodies the game consciousness.Larry McCaffery has said that“Metafictions oftenpresent themselv
