Generally speaking, the characteristics of pre-Qin literature are mainly manifested in the following three aspects:
1. The subject of literary creation has experienced the evolution from group to individual.
2. The form of pre-Qin literature, on the one hand, is the distinction between literature, history and philosophy, on the other hand, it is the combination of poetry, music and dance, which has become a major landscape of pre-Qin literature.
3. The development of pre-Qin literature and social culture.
Let's elaborate on it in detail.
1. The subject of pre-Qin literary creation experienced the evolution from group to individual, and the identity of individual also changed with the changes of the times.
According to the literature records and the comments of famous writers in previous dynasties, we can see the evolution track of the subject of literary creation in the pre-Qin period:
1, the group creation period, mainly appeared before the appearance of characters, characterized by group singing. Its main works should be labor music songs (including agricultural sacrifices and dances), and its basic aesthetic trend is practicality.
2. At the beginning of Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties, with primitive religious culture as the background, wizards began to appear as individual literary creators, and rhymes created for witchcraft were the main works at that time.
3. From Shang and Zhou Dynasties to the Spring and Autumn Period, historians broke away from primitive religions and became representatives of new cultures. At that time, the important works were mainly essays written by historians to remember people, observe celestial phenomena and record old classics.
4. During the Spring and Autumn Period of the Western Zhou Dynasty, nobles became the main creators of literature in this period, and their poems were the most intact works in this period.
5. From the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period to the end of the Warring States Period, the "scholar" class, which rose between the nobility and Shu Ren, became the main undertaker of cultural activities, forming a grand occasion of "a hundred schools of thought contend", and Prose of various schools of thought was the most distinctive literary work in this period.
In a word, the identity of pre-Qin writers changed constantly with the development of society, from laborers to witches, from historians to nobles, and then to literati, and their evolution process was consistent with the trend of literary prosperity. The diversity of authorship makes literature rich in genre, theme and style.
Second, the literary form of the pre-Qin period, on the one hand, is the distinction between literature, history and philosophy, on the other hand, is the combination of poetry, music and dance.
There is no distinction between literature, history and philosophy, which mainly includes the works listed in Shangshu, the essays written by historians in Zuoshi Biography in the Spring and Autumn Period, Guoyu and Warring States Policy, and the essays of various philosophical schools in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, such as Zhuangzi and Mencius. Their creative purpose is clear and pragmatic. Although simple or literary, many works have high literary value, and some have done it.
The works of early poetry are full of scenes, backgrounds and performances. The Preface to Poetry (the general preface of Mao Zedong's poetry anthology) says that "if there are not enough words, you will sing, and if there are not enough songs, you will not know how to dance", which shows the characteristics of pre-Qin poetry literature, that is, the combination of poetry, song and dance. Poetry only recites without dancing, which should first appear in the five-character poems of literati and the folk songs of Longlefu in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, while the era of reciting without singing should first appear in the conscious era of reciting literature-Wei and Jin Dynasties.
Thirdly, the development of pre-Qin literature is in the same strain as the development of pre-Qin society, especially culture, and it shows its own characteristics in different stages, which can be roughly divided into three periods: Xia and Shang Dynasties, Western Zhou, Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period.
1, Xia-Shang culture has the same background and witch culture is the most representative, so Xia-Shang literature is closely related to primitive religion in content.
2. Since the Western Zhou Dynasty, China has entered a stage of rational civilization marked by rites and music, and the spirit of the times has changed from reverence for ghosts and gods to respect for morality, so the literature of the Zhou Dynasty pays more attention to history, society and life. For example, historical prose uses history to express concern for reality.
3. From the content point of view, although a hundred schools of thought contend, the literature in the Warring States period all showed the characteristics of being based on reality and focusing on reality, and rarely mentioned the popular concept of "destiny" in the Spring and Autumn Period. From the artistic point of view, it presents a situation of "a hundred flowers blossom", resulting in prose and poetry with different styles, which is different from the previous generation.