砂糖與砒霜： 酷兒化雪莉・傑克森《從此，我們過著幸福快樂的日子》中的巫術與日常生活

Abstract

雪莉・傑克森在她第一本小說的作者介紹中被描述為「當代作家中唯一的業餘女巫」。眾多學者相信傑克森對超自然力量的興趣成為她在壓抑的生活中獲取力量的方式。作者生前最後一本小說，《從此，我們過著幸福快樂的日子》充滿易被判定為巫術的儀式描繪。然而，這些巫術般的儀式在故事中卻面臨失效。前例研究甚少處理儀式的失敗，也未能解釋此失敗與賦權意象共存的矛盾情形。本論文旨在透過酷兒理論與女巫、巫術，及獵巫相關的歷史研究詮釋此現象。文中分析將導向儀式並未失敗的結論，並論證故事中的儀式仍具有轉化力量，且此力量源於主角非傳統的日常生活實踐而非超自然神力。引言將介紹文本背景並進行文獻回顧。第一章建立文本、北美女巫歷史，及1950年代美國社會之間的關聯。同時，以歷史事件為引，本章節將以酷兒情動理論（queer affects）檢視“常模”（the norms）的霸權地位。第二章將探討巫術的力量源頭與家庭生活之連結。透過酷用（queer use） 理論，本章將女巫般的日常生活形塑為魔法儀式的力量泉源，並以此抵禦常模。第三章將藉由酷兒負面性（queer negativity）的視角討論小說結局，並將之建構為在對抗常模的戰爭中所取得的勝利。而酷兒時間性(queer temporality) 也將作為分析工具，討論顛覆常模的後續事件發展。最後，結論總結研究發現，並列舉本論文未竟之處及未來尚待探討之議題。

Shirley Jackson was described as “the only contemporary writer who is a practicing amateur witch” in the author biography of her first novel. Most critics perceive this passion for the supernatural as Jackson’s way of seizing power in a repressive life. Her last novel, We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1962) is filled with explicit descriptions of rituals that could be identified as witchcraft. Nevertheless, these witchcraft-like rituals fail in the story. Precedent studies rarely address this failure and have not yet directly explained the paradoxical existence of failure and empowerment. This thesis aims to unravel this complicated situation, drawing inspiration from queer theory and historical studies of witches, witchcraft, and witch hunts. My analysis leads to the conclusion that the magical rituals have not failed; instead, the transformative power exists and arises from the protagonists’ nonconventional daily practices rather than from supernatural force. Introduction will first present a background and literature review of the subject matter. It will also make explicit the research question and explain how the chosen methodologies will contribute to the discussion. Chapter I establishes the connection between the novel, the history of witches in North America, and American society in the 1950s. Drawing on historical events, it then examines “the norms” as a hegemony to be challenged by queer affects. Chapter II will explore the power of witchcraft and the links between witches and domesticity. Under the framework of queer use, the chapter will establish living a witchy everyday life as the true power in magical practices capable of resisting norms. Chapter III interprets the bewildering ending of the novel through the lens of queer negativity and asserts the denouement as a triumph over societal norms. Queer temporality will also be introduced as an analytic tool for addressing what could happen following the subversion. Finally, Conclusion summarizes the findings and highlights questions that await further exploration in future studies.