| dc.description.abstract | Abstract
In the short stories of Maupassant, lots of themes turn around the hunting and country life. We can find the presence of numerous animals in these scenes. In the first chapter, we will study the function and role of these animals in the description and narration. When the animal is a leading or supporting role, it inevitably develops many kinds of relationships with humans, but from the very beginning, they seem to be destined for misery. Apparently, Maupassant reflects on human violence by giving his animals a miserable destiny. Therefore, in the second chapter, we will study the stories centered on the suffering of animals imposed by men. In these works, Maupassant often humanizes those animals that are mistreated by men. They brutalise animals as if they brutalise their fellow men. Curiously, these tortured animals become more human. In fact, in addition to the humanization of animals, Maupassant also animalizes his characters so as to blur the distinction between humanity and animality. In the third chapter, our research analyses these animalized characters. Man is classified as mammal and conserves the animal characteristics he inherits from his wild ancestors. Without doubt, the beast lives inside all of us. But if man absolutely submits to his instinct and drive that constitute animal nature, the human relationship will become brutal. Human race subjects to instinct or drive, so much so that he kills his own kind to satisfy his aggressive tendencies. However, in order to justify his violent act, the aggressor often devalues the other’s value and emphasizes his racial superiority through dehumanization. Maupassant uses the dehumanization to distinguish people from other animals. Human violence is deliberate and extreme. It is completely different from hunting behaviour of animals which is a struggle for existence and survival. | en_US |