Modern and contemporary Chinese literature is divided into two periods:
1. Modern literature period?
Modern literature in vernacular. The literary revolution that occurred in early 1917 set a clear boundary in the history of Chinese literature, marking the end of classical literature expressed in classical Chinese and the beginning of modern literature. After the May 4th Movement, patriotic student groups in various places followed the example of "New Youth" and "Weekly Review" and founded vernacular newspapers. In 1919 alone, more than 400 kinds were published.
Chen Hengzhe wrote the vernacular short story "One Day" in 1917 and published it in "Students Studying in America Quarterly" under the pseudonym "Shafei". This is the first vernacular novel in the history of modern Chinese literature. However, the impact is small. Most Chinese writers regard Lu Xun's "Diary of a Madman" as their first vernacular work, and "Diary of a Madman" is also Lu Xun's first short story in vernacular.
It was published in the "New Youth" magazine, Volume 4, Issue 5, published on May 15, 1918, and was later included in "The Scream". The modern features of its content and form became the beginning of modern Chinese novels. , opened up a new era in the development of Chinese literature (novel).
After the May 4th Movement, Chinese short stories were probably about the emergence of new intellectuals. The emergence of vernacular Chinese has changed the form of literary creation and provided a new expression method for the future development of Chinese literature.
2. Contemporary literary period?
Literature before the "Cultural Revolution". In July 1949, the National Congress of Literary and Art Workers of China was held, officially establishing the new direction of Chinese literature and art stipulated in Mao Zedong's "Speech at the Yan'an Forum on Literature and Art" as the direction of national literary and art work. Among them, folk tale literature is developing. For example, in 1958, Tian Han adapted the most successful drama "Guan Hanqing", which created the image of an intellectual hero.
But during this period, only workers, peasants and soldiers could be the "ideal heroes" at the center. Observed from the language of Chinese literary criticism, words full of war mentality are almost visible. Under the control of war cultural psychology, it has had a profound impact on the mainstream of contemporary literary creation and criticism. ?
Literature from the beginning of the "Cultural Revolution" to 1978. The "Cultural Revolution" brought unprecedented disaster to literature. It took literature and art as its main field of criticism. Most scholars from all walks of life were regarded as left-wingers and were imprisoned in "cowsheds" to accept criticism and engage in forced labor. Criticism of Hu Shi and other literati negated the liberal tradition of the “May 4th” generation of intellectuals.
With the development of the economy and the continuous spread of information, the 1990s seemed to be a world in fragments. Writers wrote from different standpoints and gradually got rid of the influence of the Cultural Revolution. Writers created their own stylistic styles in a relaxed and free environment and wrote many excellent works.
For example, Zhu Sujin’s novel “Drunken Peace” emphasizes the personal desires of the characters themselves, Qu Yongming’s “Women’s Poems” promotes women, folk religion and ideals “The Waning Moon”, and personal reflections on the times “Uncle’s Story” "wait.
With the arrival of the 21st century, many different literary forms have emerged in China, such as Qiong Yao’s love novels, Han Han’s realistic novels, online novels, etc., which are now being accepted by the majority of literature lovers. Various forms of literary communication are also increasingly updated, such as websites, newspapers, TV stations, radio, magazines and other media communication forms. ?
Extended information:
The "going global" social trend that emerged in the 1980s has aroused the academic consciousness of people with insight in this field. They have learned from Western academic trends. Find theoretical basis and explore the construction of a new theoretical system.
For example, Fu Xuancong's adoption of the "Three Elements" theory of Dana's "Philosophy of Art", Yuan Xingpei's attempt to analyze the art of Chinese poetry using the concept of imagery and artistic conception, Luo Zongqiang's analysis of the mediating role of literati's mentality and the connotation of literary thought, etc. This gradually promoted the formation of a situation of cross-integration between ancient literature and other disciplines such as history, psychology, aesthetics, literature and art, sociology, etc., and its influence continues to this day.
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Reference materials:
Baidu Encyclopedia—Contemporary Literature
Baidu Encyclopedia—Modern Chinese Literature