Postcolonial Interpretation of Antoinette’s Identity Crisis in Wide Sargasso Sea

Abstract

Wide Sargasso Sea is written by the British novelist Jane Rhys. Jane Rhys and the heroine in this novel have similar origins, and both of them experiences identity crises. This article aims to explore Antoinette's identity crisis, and analyzes the novel Wide Sargasso Sea from a post-colonial perspective. First of all, this article introduces the author's growth experience and the content of Wide Sargasso Sea. Secondly, postcolonial theory is briefly introduced. Thirdly, through the analysis of the performance of Antoinette's identity crisis, that is, the main analysis is that Antoinette's identity is affected by racial conflict and patriarchy, so as to reveal the crisis of Antoinette's identity. Finally, the conclusion of this paper is that the author in Wide Sargasso Sea shows that Antoinette completely losts her identity, and does not know who she is or where she belongs. Just because of her own ethnic origin, she is always rejected and despised by others. In the end, she collapses in despair, and sets fire in an attempt to burn down the world that has made her desperate, and she also dies in the sea of fire. The tragic life of Antoinette also reflects the pain caused by the background of her time.