An Analysis of The Loons from the Perspective of Ecofeminism从生态女性主义视角解读《潜水鸟》开题报告

1. 研究目的与意义（文献综述包含参考文献）

1. introduction1.1 research backgroundmargaret laurence (1926-1987), a canadian novelist and short story writer, is one of the most prestigious novelists and short story writers in canada. she is twice the recipient of the governor generals literary award for her novels a jest of god (1966) and the diviners (1974). she has established herself as one of the most controversial contemporary women novelists and mother of canadian literature in the literary world by focusing on the fate of women (coger, 1990: 228). lawrence writes extensively throughout her life, including novels, essays and childrens stories, but her main achievement and reputation rest on her manawaka novels. the experience of growing up in a small prairie town has a lifelong influence on laurences writing. she bases her fictionalized western prairie town on the town of neepawa where she is born and raised, and uses neepawa as the backdrop to create manawaka series of novels and short stories. liu (2002) remarks that lawrences vernacular novels mark a new facet of the canadian literary scene in the late 1960s and showcase canadas living history of pioneering. in manawaka novels, laurence uses a unique feminine writing style to portray a group of women who are full of courage and resilience and resolutely struggle for independent values and persistently explore the meaning of existence. the exploration of the inextricable and delicate relationship between women and nature through symbolic depictions of natural objects expresses laurences concern over the survival and independence of women. a bird in the house (1970/1993) is a must-have in the series, which grace considers a small masterpiece and perhaps her best work (1977: 329). it is composed of eight interconnected short stories narrated by a white girl named vanessa macleod who matures from a child into a young woman, revealing much about the adult world. the loons, collected in a bird in the house, tells the tragic life of a mtis girl piquette from the perspective of the first-person narrator vanessa. growing up in abject poverty and discrimination, my classmate piquette suffers from tuberculosis. my father is her doctor and takes her on a holiday to diamond lake with our family. soon piquette drops out of school. four years later when i run across her in a caf, she tells me with excitement her coming marriage with a young white man. finally, i learn that after being abandoned, she returns to the town of manawaka, where she and her two young children accidentally perish in the flames. the story is set in manawaka, a fictional town in canadian province of manitoba, and the time is set after the second red river rebellion. in history, the trigger of the red river rebellion was that in 1869 the canadian government bought ruperts land from hudsons bay company after the mtis had acquired the land in the mid-19th century. the mtis was the aboriginal people of canada who had been enjoying their traditional life long before large numbers of european immigrants invaded. the european immigrants not only massacred the aboriginal peoples but also drove them into so-called reservations. the mtis joined forces to stand up for their rights under the leadership of louis riel, a mtis who was formally educated. they wanted to protect their traditional ways of life against the aggressive and distant anglo-canadian government and its local colonizing agents. after riel was executed, the revolt ended in suppression. two years after the second red river rebellion, the federal government met some of the mtis demands. not until the 1982 were the mtis recognized as one of the three aboriginal peoples of canada. today, the mtis enjoy some special benefits as an indigenous group, but this group remains to be one of the poorest, least employed and educated groups in canada. in the loons, the mtis, like the north american indians, are displaced and left in a miserable state: they endure racist taunts and are unable to assimilate into the dominant culture as a result of a national policy of assimilation and repression. as a metis girl, the heroine piquette becomes a victim of prejudice, discrimination and neglect from the white society. the investigation as to what causes the tragedy of piquette, or the tragedy of a woman from the ethnic minority, can definitely arouse ecofeminists concern over gender, patriarchy and race, which will be the focus of this study.the thesis is to interpret the loons from the perspective of ecofeminism, a relatively new part of the second rise of the feminist movement that evolves from political activism since the 1970s. ecofeminism is a cultural trend in the contemporary west, formed by the convergence of the environmental movement and the feminist movement. a range of theoretical positions have emerged from ecofeminism with the assumption that there are critical connections between mans domination of nature and mens oppression of women. writers from different countries express their concern with nature, environment, women, animals and other issues, which has expanded the horizons of ecofeminism, making the theory and its criticism blossom and flourish ever since.1.2 literature review according to researchgate, there are three essays researching into the loons abroad as far as the author of this thesis collects. these essays, wares (1998), murrays (2007) and stovels (2010), all place emphasis on racial discrimination and oppression. ware (1998) makes a comparison between the loons and hugh garners one-two-three little indians, accounting for the resemblances of the white representation of the indigenous peoples. she points out the stereotype imposed on piquette: the native people are always regarded as the victims of white civilization. in contrast, garner exposes racism without reducing his protagonist to the category of the other. murray focuses on the negotiating loss and otherness, especially the aesthetic merit which lies in the storys treatment of loss and in the central role of the father in the symbolics of this particular knot of meaning (2007: 1). as ware shows the phenomenon of ethnic stereotypes, stovel (2010) reveals the literary stereotypes in the story then explains their functions, and regards the loons as an example of antiracist product. meanwhile, stovel analyzes the role of the protagonists in three novels in the collection: the loons, horses of the night and the half-husky. they walk into the narrators life as triggers for her maturation in anti-racialism, which allows her to change perception of outsiders. as it is collected in the textbook of advanced english for undergraduates of english majors in china, the loons has roused great concern of both critics and readers. over the past ten years, chinese scholars have focused on the short story from its characters (zhou, 2009; chen, 2011), symbols (xu zhan, 2011), post-colonialist feminism (li, 2007), thinking style (ma sun, 2008) and space narrative art (xu, 2016). there are five essays studying the loons from the perspective of ecofeminism. among them, cai (2008) emphasizes the ideological and cultural roots embodied in the discrimination and oppression of women, minorities and vulnerable cultures. chapter 4 of this thesis aims to combine with the mtiss real situation in the 1960s and further explains the power structures in western patriarchal cultures. additionally, cai highlights mtiss particular ethnic cultural identity and calls for the establishment of a virtuous ecological society to achieve social justice and equal coexistence of diverse cultures. li (2009) conducts a study under the guidance of ecofeminism and post-colonial theory. he uses the concept of aphasia in the post-colonial theory to show that nature, women and ethnic minorities are silenced or sidelined as their cries of pain and pleas always go unheard. he then draws the conclusion that care sensitive ethics is the best solution to the crisis which will be detailed in chapter 5 of the thesis. wen (2009, 2011) interprets both the internal and external connections between nature and women. this thesis also includes these two points but will delve into the underlying reasons rather than merely scratch the surface of the phenomenon. wang (2015) further expounds the notion and characteristics of the identity of otherness, implying laurances value orientation of eliminating racial prejudice and gender discrimination in the short story.domestic research from the ecofeminist perspective has revealed that women and nature are aggrieved by common oppression and extortion and has pointed out the ideological roots: patriarchy based on dualism. however, some problems still deserve further study. most of the studies are phenomenon-oriented and lack a thorough exploration on the explanation of varied causes. as far as the author of this thesis can figure out, no scholar has studied the causes respectively from economic, cultural and ideological angles. therefore, this thesis aims to interpret the loons based on the theory of ecofeminism and demonstrate multiple reasons behind the phenomena. finally, these essays do not propose a possible solution to women and nature issues. there lies inadequacy, which is an emphasis of this thesis, that is, to ideologically address women and nature problems.1.3 need of the studythis thesis, following the logical sequence from phenomena to causes and then to solutions, interprets the loons from the perspective of ecofeminism. it exhibits the identical predicaments shared by women and nature, then excavates a number of causes behind them and finally seeks feasible ways of constructing a harmonious world. as to the need of analyzing the loons under the guidance of ecofeminism, this thesis explores the intimate women-nature correlation and further explains the significance of combining ecological movement with feminist movement through cases in the story, which can provide a convincing research sample for the theoretical development of ecofeminism. the study is also of practical importance. on one hand, it contributes to meeting the needs of ecological protection. nowadays, it seems self-evident that man welcomes the technological path towards evolution at the price of ecological damage and environmental pollution. this thesis is aimed to raise peoples ecological consciousness and galvanize them into action of nature protection and reconstruction of ecological environment. on the other hand, it contributes to acquiring equal rights for women. laurence articulates womens struggle by uttering the truth of their lives, urging people to face the shackles on women from patriarchy, and calling for gender equality in the vivid portrait of vanessa and the mtis girl piquette.2. the theory of ecofeminism2.1 rise and definitionecofeminism is developed on the basis of ecological philosophy and the second wave of feminist movement. ecological philosophy can be traced back to the serious ecological crisis in the early 20th century. american conservationist and eco-literary writer rachel carsons epoch-making work silent spring (1962/2011) triggers a large-scale ecological movement in the public and awakens peoples awareness of environmental protection. later, the publishing of ecological writings, such as the population bomb (1971) and blueprint for survival (1972), ignites unprecedented environmental anxiety and prompts people to deal with the ecological crisis which threatens the survival of mankind. thus, the environmental philosophy makes its appearance. meanwhile, the second wave of feminist movement resurfaces. with the practice and development of feminism, feminists realize that female issues are inextricably linked to other social issues. feminism must be integrated with other theories such as ecological philosophy to help resist oppression universally. the interplay of these two social movements inspires feminists to explore the root causes of the ecological crisis, female discrimination, and some deeper connections between them, thus giving birth to ecofeminism. scholars have constantly enriched the study of ecofeminism and given it different definitions since its appearance. king (1990) believes that ecofeminism is a global movement on the common theoretical basis, opposing all forms of violence and oppression. starhawk (1990) defines it from the point of natural theology as a spiritual movement which opposes all relations of domination and works to change the power structure. birkeland politically puts forward the concept as a value system, a social movement and a practice but offers a political analysis that explores the links between androcentrism and environmental destruction (1993:18). spretnak (1997) considers ecofeminism to be a radical nonduality. chinese scholars also contribute their efforts. jin (2004) defines ecofeminism as an ideology, emphasizing the close relationship between oppression of nature and mens attitudes toward women and other racial cultures. this thesis is to adopt warrens definition of ecofeminism: an umbrella term which captures a variety of multicultural perspectives on the nature of connections within social systems of domination between those humans in subdominant or subordinate positions, particularly women, and the domination of nonhuman nature (1994:1).2.2 developmentit is generally accepted that the landmark of the birth of ecofeminism is the publication of francoise deaubonnes le feminisme ou la mort (feminism or death) in 1974 in which she clearly points out that patriarchy is the fundamental cause of the ecological crisis. since then, an increasing number of scholars have devoted themselves to the theory and practice of ecofeminism from different perspectives and in different fields. griffin (1978/2015) explores the connection between women and nature and affirms the unique value of women and their connection to nature, with an orientation to care ethics. apart from emphasizing the links between women and nature, starhawk (1979) believes that there is a close link between the current environmental degradation and the western christian beliefs that god has given man the right to rule over the earth. therefore, she attempts to revive the ancient goddess worship based on the reverence for nature and to restore the partnership. the two cultural ecofeminists griffin and starhawk emphasize the biological differences between men and women and the spiritual roots of the oppression of women and nature.merchant (1980) links natural oppression to female oppression and places them in the historical context of socio-political and economic rights. king, one of the organizers of the first ecofeminist conference women and life on earth: a conference on ecofeminism in the eighties in1981, contends that ecofeminism is about connectedness and wholeness of theory and practice which asserts the special strength and integrity of every living thing. caldecott leland (1983) edit the first collected works for ecofeminism reclaim the earth: women speak out for life on earth and briefly introduce many issues of women such as the relationship between ecofeminism and the anti-nuclear movements. shiva (1989) from india provides a third-world perspective for ecofeminist theoretical research, promoting the further development of the third-world ecological movement. she criticizes the profound critique of the western colonial model guided by science and development with the pursuit of linear progress as its aim. later, ecofeminists begin to analyze and critique the concept of womens connection to nature from philosophical, ethical, theological and political perspectives. ruther (1992) delves into the relationship between human domination over women and domination over nature from the perspectives of religious belief, theology, philosophy, and anthropology. through a critique of sexism and anthropocentrism, she proposes that transcending dualism is the conceptual basis of social domination. plumwood (1994) is philosophically critical of male chauvinism based on patriarchal and dualistic thinking and advocates a connected, pluralistic and holistic way of thinking. she supposes that rationalist tradition since ancient greece has constructed a western patriarchal framework that has led to a dichotomy between masculinity and femininity and a devaluation of femininity. spretnak (1997) discusses the philosophical foundations of ecofeminism. according to her, the philosophical foundation of ecofeminism should be a radical nonduality, a critique of modern dualistic ways of thinking. warren (2000) analyzes the relation between women and nature from ideological perspective and makes progress in the ecofeminist ethics. some chinese scholars also put forward their own views on ecofeminism. ecofeminism as an academic term first appeared in china in 1996 in guans article a review of western ecofeminist studies. then, wei (2003) and jin (2004) summarize and detail the development and viewpoints of ecofeminism as a kind of theory of literary criticism. after that, domestic research on ecofeminism is on gradual increase. in the early stage, they mainly focus on the introduction of ecofeminism and examine the emergence and development of it in the west. many early scholars begin their studies with examination and introduction of the emergence as well as the development of ecofeminism. dai (2015) studies the development of ecofeminism and distinguishes it from postmodernism. wei (2012) analyzes the transformation from ecocriticism to ecofeminist criticism. fang shi (2015) mention the theoretical criticism and dilemma of ecofeminism and show that caring ethics can be a solution. localized ecofeminism researches also emerge. li zhao (2008) link up ecofeminism and traditional chinese culture to analyze its commonality. wei (2017) combines the domestic practice of ecofeminism and emphasizes the need of localized reconstruction of the theory. meanwhile, a large number of scholars use ecofeminism to interpret literary texts and integrate it with other disciplines. wang shen（2019) propose that gender and ecological imbalances are rooted in patriarchal and anthropocentric ideologies. consequently, ecofeminism has been gradually recognized in china. wei (2020) introduces a theory of intersectionality to substantiate ecofeminisms critique of systems of oppression or the logic of domination in a broader sense.2.3 major schoolszheng (2005) proposes the criteria for dividing the different schools of ecofeminism: whether womens connection to nature is primarily biological, psychological, or social and cultural, and whether womens connection to nature should be emphasized or not or even reconstructed or deconstructed. there is an overlap between cultural ecofeminism and spiritual ecofeminism, and between social ecofeminism and socialist ecofeminism defined by zheng. therefore, the author combines zhengs (2005) classification with many other scholars, especially guans (1996). the author divides ecofeminism into cultural ecofeminism, social ecofeminism and philosophical ecofeminism. 2.3.1 cultural ecofeminismcultural ecofeminism, often considered radical, derives from radical feminism and cultural feminism. cultural ecofeminism argues that male rulers place women and nature in a subordinate position of suppression and degradation, resulting in their exclusion from the patriarchal culture. therefore, cultural ecofeminists advocate a reexamination of the value of women and nature and call for the construction and promotion of women culture including their particular principles. this cultural reconstruction is regarded as a fundamental way to solve the ecological crisis and achieve womens liberation (zheng, 2005). as the figurehead, susan griffin elaborates her theory in women and nature: the roaring inside her. firstly, she reveals the internal logic that women are treated as objects. the dualistic mode of thinking results in the devaluation of the concept of matter and all things associated with matter, including women, nature, primordial, and emotions. it is decided that matter as well as what originates from matter is passive and inert. for example, the nature of woman is passive, that she is a vessel waiting to be filled (1978/2015: 20). then, she reveals the reason why men equate nature with women. men use the affinity as an excuse to escape the fact that humans are dependent on nature to achieve the goal of conquering women and nature (griffin, 1978/2015). griffin also argues that women and nature are similar in their nurturing roles. she uses animals to refer to women, especially cows whose image are the most graphic and realistic portrayal of women. after giving birth to a calf, cows are no longer valuable for breeding. in the eyes of men, womens maximum value is procreation as well. as the author of this thesis collects, no scholar has interpreted the text from this point of view. their affinity in reproduction will be discussed in chapter 3 of the thesis.2.3.3 social ecofeminismsocial ecofeminism denies that women were born with caring and reproductive characteristics, emphasizing that womens femininity is a product of cultural adaptation or socialization and that women are close to nature through the social roles they have performed for a long time. scholars of this school place greater emphasis on the socio-political and economic roots of oppression of women and nature, and view changes in the political and economic systems of society as the fundamental way to achieve the dual emancipation of women and nature. merchant and shiva are important figures of this school.chapter 4 of the thesis is to adopt carolyn merchants theory to explain that industrialization, change of morality and faith toward women can deepen the common oppression of women and nature. merchant chronologically examines in the death of nature the changes of women and nature in human thinking, from primitive to the later renaissance and the emergence of the capitalist mode of production and industrial civilization, and finds that women and nature have gradually been exploited. in the primitive civilization stage, productivity is low and people are in awe of nature. at this time women nurture offspring, and perform gathering labor, therefore they are well respected for their vital roles in production and life. the division of labor led by industrialization has made mens role tower above womens, so the revered status of women is transited to men. as to nature, the increase in productivity and the use of machines have greatly increased human capability in manipulating nature. consequently, humans have become more and more dominant over nature. their reverence for nature disappears. the metaphor that nature is a nurturing mother: a kind and benevolent female who provided for the needs of mankind in an ordered, planned universe (1990:2) no longer exists. the metaphor serves as a cultural constrict, restricting mans exploitation of nature because one cannot bear doing harm to mother. however, the image of mother nature becomes that of a witch and stepmother who hides and conceals the resources and make them unavailable to humans (merchant, 1990). that encourages men to plunder resources of nature and improve living standards by means of science and technology. merchant points out that the mechanical view of nature replaces the organic one that exists since ancient times, aggravating the persecution of nature by humans. in the past, people live in daily immediate organic relation with nature, which means they regard nature as an organic whole where man and nature are integrated (merchant, 1990:1). with the scientific resolution, man worships science and technology and considers the earths natural resources to be at the mercy of them. moreover, against anthropocentric ethics, merchant puts forward partnership ethics which integrates the rights of human beings and the rights of nature, and integrates the equal relationship between human beings and other things in nature. it is necessary to recognize human beings are like other living beings, dependent on nature and that each being has its own meaning of existence. humans should neither take too much from nature nor plunder other beings, but love and respect anything in nature so that they can live in equality and harmony. lv wang (2020) explores the implications of partnership ethics for the construction of ecological civilization in china. for example, people should cultivate full awareness of the complex existential relationship between man and nature so that they are independent and closely linked. there should be more nature advocates to speak out for nature.mose (2011) shows within the framework of merchants theory in one hundred years of solitude that only by recognizing the intimate relationship with nature and overcoming our desire for domination and dominance can humans return to and integrate with nature. gao (2011) interprets mansfields short stories according to the women-nature metaphors, which shows that women live in harmony with nature and feel a sense of identification and affection for nature.2.3.5 philosophical ecofeminism this school analyzes the interconnection between the dual domination of women and nature at the conceptual level, arguing that human behaviors are governed by ideas, and that both the control of women and nature are determined by a common conceptual structure. in liberating women and nature, the most important thing is to break this conceptual structure. its main representatives are warren, plumwood and spretnak. just as karren warren argues, any feminist theory and any environmental ethic which fails to take seriously the interconnected dominations of women and nature is simply inadequate (1990:125). she explores ecofeminist thoughts from a philosophical perspective and develops a deep understanding of some key concepts.first of all, she puts forward the concept of oppressive conceptual framework. an oppressive conceptual framework justifies and maintains relationships of domination and subordination (warren, 1990). there are three common features of an oppressive conceptual framework：(1) valuehierarchical thinking; (2) value dualisms; (3) the logic of domination (1990: 128). according to warren, dualisms are interrelated and all depend on the logic of domination in which superiority justifies subordination (2000: 47). for example, if x is morally superior to y, it is morally justified for y to rule over x (warren, 1990). therefore, humans are morally justified in subordinating both nature and women. the two forms of oppression toward women and nature are conceptually maintained by a patriarchal oppressive conceptual framework characterized by a logic of domination.then, warren supplements and innovates the traditional environmental ethics and puts forward care sensitive ethics. she indicates that an ecofeminist ethic must be opposed to any ism that presupposes or advances a logic of domination (2000: 99). the first feature of care sensitive ethics is care. ecofeminism puts a high value on care, love, friendship, trust and appropriate reciprocity. warren strongly opposes kantians moral theory and advocates replacing it with a pluralism that emphasizes relationship, feeling, and attitude. rational intelligence without emotional intelligence is inadequate for ethical decision-making and ethical practice. emotional intelligence is necessary in dealing with the relationship between men and women, man and nature, etc.xu zhou (2011) interpret the ballad of the sad caf within warrens oppressive conceptual framework. they suppose that the patriarchal hierarchy leads to the distortion and destruction of femininity. the protagonist struggles not to fit herself into the pattern set by the patriarchal culture and wants to escape the inferiority of her gender but fails. the combination of these different schools of ecofeminism will achieve a relatively comprehensive literary interpretation of a certain text. through the interpretation of the loons from perspective of ecofeminism, this thesis aims to probe into the correlation between women and nature which can definitely provide a new dimension for the research into lawrences manawaka novels. it helps to search for solutions to building a harmonious and equal relationship between man and nature as well as men and women.referencesbirkeland, j. (1993), ecofeminism: linking theory and practice. in g. gaard. (ed.), ecofeminism: women, animals, nature. philadelphia: temple university press.caldecott, l. leland, s. (eds). (1983). reclaim the earth: women speak out for life on earth. london: womens press.carson, r. (1962/2011). silent spring. boston: houghton mifflin harcourt.coger, g. m. k. (1990). margaret laurences manawaka. in c. nicholson (ed.), critical approaches to the fiction of margaret laurence. basingstroke: palgrave macmillan uk.deaubonne, f. (1974/1981). feminism or death. in e. marks i. courtivron (eds.), new french feminism: an anthology. new york: shocken books.ehrlich, p. r. (1971). the population bomb. new york: ballantine books.goldsmith, e. (1972). a blueprint for survival. london: ecosystems ltd.grace, s. e. (1977). crossing jordan: time and memory in the fiction of margaret laurence. world literature written in english, 16, 328-339.griffin, s. (1978/2015). woman and nature: the roaring inside her. new york: y open road integrated media.king, y. (1990). healing the wound: feminism, ecology, and the nature/culture dualism. in a. m. jaggar, s. bordo (eds.), gender/body/knowledge: feminist reconstructions of being and knowing. new brunswick: rutgers university press.laurence, m. (1970/1993). a bird in the house. chicago: university of chicago press. merchant, c. (1980). the death of nature: women, ecology, and the scientific revolution. san francisco: harper row. murray, j. (2007). negotiating loss and otherness in margaret laurences the loons. journal of the short story in english, 48, 71-80.plumwood, v. (1994). feminism and the mastery of nature. london: routledge.ruther, r.r. (1992). gaia and god: an ecofeminist theology of earth healing. new york: harpercollins. shiva, v. (1989). staying alive: women, ecology and development. london: zed books ltd.spretnak, c. (1997). radical nonduality in ecofeminist philosophy. in k. j. warren (ed.), ecofeminism: women, culture, nature. bloomington: indiana university press.starhawk. (1979). the spiral dance: a rebirth of the ancient religion of the great goddess. new york: harpercollins.starhawk. (1990). power, authority and mystery：ecofeminism and earth-based spirituality. in i. diamond g.f. orenstein (eds.), reweaving the world: the emergence of ecofeminism. san francisco：sierra club books.stovel, n. f. (2010). reading beyond race in margaret laurences the loons from a bird in the house. international journal of canadian studies, 41, 213-230.ware, t. (1998). race and conflict in garners one-two-three little indians and laurences the loons. studies in canadian literature, 23 (2), 71-84.warren, k.j. (1994). ecological feminism. london: routledge.warren, k. j. (1990). the power and promise of ecological feminism. environmental ethics, 12, 125-146.warren, k. j. (2000). ecofeminist philosophy: a western perspective on what it is and why it matters. lanham, md.: rowman littlefield publishers.蔡奂（2008），对《潜鸟》的生态女性主义解读，《云南民族大学学报》(哲学社会科学版)，2：131-134。

陈海燕（2011），《潜水鸟》中皮格特人物形象建构的语用视角，《名作欣赏》，9：79-81。

戴桂玉（2015），生态女性主义：超越后现代主义，《四川外语学院学报》，4，16-21。

2. 研究的基本内容、问题解决措施及方案

1. Research Topic First, this thesis is to introduce the basic information of The Loons and its author--- Margaret Laurence. Then it will systematically review on the theory of ecofeminism, including its rise, definition, development, and different schools. Within the framework of ecofeminism, this thesis is to analyze the affinity between women and nature in Chapter 3, which will show the women-nature affinity in terms of their similarity of low status in the relationship with men, submissive role in the society and function in reproduction. It represents the oppression suffered by Piquette from the white supremacy society and from the family. Meanwhile, it reveals the oppression of nature, especially the deteriorating living situation of the loons and the commercialization of Diamond Lake. Chapter 4 explores three causes of the common plights both women and nature face: industrialization, loss of morality and faith as well as philosophy of dualism. Chapter 5 will provide enlightenments of creating a harmonious world from the perspectives of partnership ethics, organic view of nature and care sensitive ethics. 2. Research MethodsThe thesis will use the following five major methods:Documentary research. In the first two chapters, documentary research will be the major method of providing the background information of The Loons and ecofeminism.Combination of theory and text. In Chapter 4, the thesis will apply Merchants and Warrens theories to probe into the causes of affinity between women and nature respectively from industrialization, morality and faith as well as philosophy. Chapter 5 will explore how to achieve the balance and harmony between man and nature, between men and women.Close reading. On the foundation of reading The Loons, Chapter 3 will expound the affinity between women and nature in detail.Comparison. This thesis will compare similar oppression and exploitation of women and nature and states the significance of combination of the two to figure out a possible cure for both issues.Enumeration. This thesis lists three main schools of ecofeminism and applies the respective theories to interpret the text. It also lists three causes of the affinity between women and nature.