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Chinese Literature edited docx

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Chinese Literature

Chinese literature has contrasted with its earlier literary traditions for the last century in

both form and content. Most of the renowned modern Chinese writers have heavily relied on the

subject matter, forms, literary concepts, and writing techniques of the West. They have viewed

the traditional past with an attitude of either rejection or criticism. This is evident in the writers

of the May Fourth Movement from 1917-21 and those who were active in the People’s Republic

(Odell). However, in the early 1950s, some writers in the People's Republic began a process of

trying to reconcile with the past. Therefore, the modern Chinese writers could not escape

referencing the traditional beliefs, ideologies, literary forms, and poetic connotations of the past,

no matter how much they try to renounce it.

It is important to note that the Chinese people themselves view their past with an attitude

of renunciation because of the humiliation China suffered after clashing with the West. At the

time, China was grappling with a cultural superiority complex, which led to its defeat by Western

and Japanese powers between 1842 and World War II (Odell). Therefore, the Chinese writers of

the May Fourth Movement reacted to this by fully rejecting the traditional values of the West.

Major journals published in the May Fourth Movement fiercely attacked the Confucian

ethics. In the two decades after the May Fourth Movement, writers used literature to castigate

evils of the past. Lu Xun started exploring renunciation of the traditional values as a major theme

in his literary works, particularly “Father of Modern Chinese Literature” (Yang 43). In his

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novels, essays, and short stories, Xun emotionally attacked the corruption, cruelty, and blindness

of feudalism, as he witnessed in the first three decades. Xun denied the past in his popular short

story, “ A Madman’s Diary,” where he described it as “four thousand years of man-eating

history” (Odell). Such a magnitude of renunciation of the past had never been witnessed in

Chinese literature.

Despite the negative attitude the May Fourth Movement instilled against the past, the

traditional literary forms continue to feature in present Chinese literature. Several popular writers

such as Chin Yung, Huang Zunxian, and Su Man-Shu pursued literature in the classical novel

form. Several female and male writers emerged and started incorporating Chinese classical

literature in their fiction (Odell). For instance, Feng Yuanjun “The Journey” expresses the

concerns women writers had at the time in a male-dominated art field. Her story depicts a

poignant conflict between the desires of modernity and strong attachment to family and tradition.

She was hesitant to express a desire for modernity since male ideas dominated it.

San wen (prose) was a common form of modern Chinese literature after the May Fourth

Movement. The literary writing technique constitutes lyric prose or essay with a unique artistic

unity. Apart from the vernacular language of the literary form, the success of this artistic

technique was due to traditional rather than Western literary influence (Ning). The classical

literature background prompted writers to embark on polishing these prose writings with a view

to attracting the full attention of the readers (Odell). While it is not possible to mix traditional

Chinese beliefs with modern ones, traditional literature continues to largely influence the modern

Chinese literature since the Cultural Revolution.

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Surname 1 Student’s Name Professor’s Name Course Date Chinese Literature Chinese literature has contrasted with its earlier literary traditions for the last century in both form and content. Most of the renowned modern Chinese writers have heavily relied on the subject matter, forms, literary concepts, and writing techniques of the West. They have viewed the traditional past with an attitude of either rejection or criticism. This is evident in the writers of the May Fourth Movement from 1917-21 and those who were active in the People’s Republic (Odell). However, in the early 1950s, some writers in the People's Republic began a process of trying to reconcile with the past. Therefore, the modern Chinese writers could not escape referencing the traditional beliefs, ideologies, literary forms, and poetic connotations of the past, no matter how much they try to renounce it. It is import ...
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