Abstract: Carson McCullers is one of the most important writers of American Southern Literature in the 20th century. Her representative works include The Heart is A Lonely Hunter, The Ballad of Sad Cafe, The Clock without Hands and so on. Carson always depicts lonely people in her works. The theme of loneliness and spiritual isolation finds expression in all her works, and is seared into her own life. The Ballad of Sad Cafe is the best example of Carson’s portrait of loneliness. This paper aims to study on the loneliness of the novel by observing her description of the environment, analyzing the different characters, exploring their minds and combining Carson’s personal experience. Finally, this paper concludes why Carson’s works are always full of loneliness.

Key words: Carson McCullers; The Ballad of Sad Cafe; loneliness

CONTENTS

Abstract

摘要

1. Introduction6

  1.1 The Introduction of Carson McCullers

  1.2 The Introduction of The Ballad of Sad Cafe

  1.3 Literature Review

2. Loneliness in The Ballad of Sad Cafe10

  2.1 Loneliness Created by Environment

  2.2 Loneliness Reflected in Characters

    2.2.1 Amelia’s Loneliness—Human Nature Alienation

    2.2.2 Lymon’s Loneliness—The Absurd Love

    2.2.3 Macy’s Loneliness—The Hopeless Love

3. Reasons for Loneliness in Carson’s Works13

  3.1 Influence of the Southern Literature

  3.2 Influence of Her Personal Experiences

4. Conclusion15

Bibliography

Acknowledgements