Free verse was a pioneer in the field of vernacular literature, and its emergence can be regarded as a sign of the beginning of the May 4th New Literature and the May 4th Literary Revolution. Before the May 4th Movement, the decay of the old-style poems was the most obvious, which was reflected in the ideological content. Formally, they cling to the stale and unchanging rules. To this end, Hu Shi clearly pointed out: the bondage of form prevents the spirit from developing freely and the good content from being fully expressed ...... The five-seven-word-eight-sentence rhyme must not contain rich materials, the 28-word quatrains must not be written with precise observation, and the seven-word-five words with a certain length must not euphemistically express profound ideals and complex feelings. ...... The recent occurrence of new poetry not only broke the poetic style of seven words and five words, but also overthrew all kinds of constraints of tune and music, which are not formal, flat, flat or long, whatever the topic, what poetry should be done (Hu Shi's "Talking about New Poetry"). This proposition became the classic theory of vernacular poetry creation later.
Free verse is born out of the shackles of the old-style poetry meter, and strives for liberation in style, syllable and language, showing new characteristics:
First, it breaks the rigid and trite classical Chinese and adds lines of poetry in vernacular Chinese. In particular, it advocates replacing the difficult cliches of classical Chinese with simple and friendly common words and sayings close to the common spoken language, writing about the social situation, and expressing sincere feelings and brand-new ideas.
Secondly, in syllable rhythm, we should get rid of the rigid constraints of the old-style poetry, such as the rhyme and meter, the parallel allusion, etc., and pay attention to the natural music without being confined to the rhyme (Kang Baiqing's My Opinion on New Poetry). The syllables of the poetry should be prioritized and cadenced only to meet the natural ups and downs of the poet's own emotions and the natural rhythm of the tone.
In addition, I intentionally pursue an unrestrained and free expression in the style. Without being bound by meter and rhyme, the poem pours out what is in the heart without scruple, and it neither branches nor rhymes, even if the branches are arranged randomly according to the content of the work, thus forming the main characteristics of the artistic form of free verse. The most striking feature of free verse in ideological content is that it shows deep sympathy and concern for the tragic fate of the oppressed and enslaved lower class workers and peasants. Unprecedented in a lot of space, it shows their real life sufferings, so as to reveal the sharp opposition between the rich and the poor and the essential characteristics of feudal autocracy in the old society.