Abstract:In An American Tragedy, Clyde’s tragedy is an inevitability in American social environment. The author not only vividly presents readers the whole process of the formation of the hero’s tragic fate, but also uses naturalism to depict various aspects of American society . The author feels sorry for Clyde’s destroying himself, and at the same time, reveals the darkness and the corruption of capitalist society. This paper aims to probe into the various causes of Clyde’s tragic fate by analyzing Clyde's personalities, family background and social environment. Due to the dual effects of his personal moral defects and American economic prosperity, Clyde has fond hopes of making a fortune overnight. In order to satisfy his own desire, he is reduced to a murderer and eventually becomes a victim of the American dream.

Keywords: tragedy; character weakness; family background; social environment

CONTENTS

摘要

Abstract

1. Introduction .1

2. Clyde’s Tragedy .1

  2.1 His Falling in Love with Roberta

  2.2 His Desire to Pursue Sondra

  2.3 His Murdering Roberta

  2.4 His Being Sentenced to Death

3. The Internal Causes of Clyde’s Tragedy.  3

  3.1 His Weakness in Character

  3.2 His Unrealistic Desire

4. The External Causes of Clyde’s Tragedy5

  4.1 Family Background

  4.2 Social Environment

5. Conclusion8

Bibliography. 9

Acknowledgment .10