Historical Traces And Value Reflections On Chinese Literature Education

Great emphasis is placed on literature education all along, but the comprehension of its value lacks justice. Especially under the control of Confucianism regarded as orthodoxy in China, the knowledge of literature education is mainly started from the political ethics, and the focused on moral education and political function, thus not comprehensive. This thesis, based on the idea of gaining reference from history, through the historical traces and value reflection on Chinese literature education, tries to establish the contemporary guidance of its spiritual value while its function of moral education and social benefits are brought into full play.In Chapter 1, 2 and 3, the development of Chinese literature education is mainly demonstrated. Although the educational value of literature bears different forms in various periods, and even it faces the crisis of decomposition, what its function displays is the inclination of application. On one hand, the literature education has always performed the task of moral education till the task is highly ideologically fulfilled and becomes the carrier of political education in the contemporary era. On the other, the social benefits of literature education are paid great attention to, and viewed as the ways of governmental control. Furthermore, this function is strengthened as the nation is in danger. Meanwhile, the instrumental function is expressed in literature education. It is considered as instrumental education and becomes the method of understanding and changing the world, and even a crucial weapon in political conflicts and anti-enemy wars.The consideration and reflection is put on the fact that the Chinese literature education emphasizes the idea of application. The thesis argues that among Chinese tradition,"idealism"is always combined with"literature", and the theory of equipping the literature with idealism is founded, beginning with the idea of expressing thoughts in poems. The theory became the leading issue in ancient Chinese literature, and the tradition affects the literature education in depth. Moreover, under the influence of the theory of knowledge and reflection, the inclination of rational ideas still exist in literature education, which leads to the result that Chinese literature education pays much attention to moral education and social function. Under the guidance of such ideas, the knowledge of the value of literature education drifts off literature itself, which makes literature a tool in education. Consequently, literature education ought to return to literature itself and receive itself. Only in this way, the literature value can be brought into full play. At the same time, Taoism, as a non-official theory, achieving no leading status, however, develops in Chinese culture all the time. Taoism pursues the plain original lifestyle, the equal circumstances between human and other creatures in the world, and the spiritual state of free mind, which may be a great inspiration to us while comprehending literature education.In Chapter 5, we attempt to take human's spiritual existence as the starting point, revert to the spiritual standpoint of literature, and consider the contemporary guidance of literature education as its spiritual value, expounding its function of spiritual construction to humans. Certainly, this thesis also believes the reasonableness of literature's practical value. Moral education, ideological education, social functions are some aspects of literature education. It played such roles in the past, so will it in the future, but it's not the whole story. Literature instruction has other values, including cultivating emotion, forming character, shaping personality and promoting life state. As a symbol of human spiritual living, literature education is bound to provide a field for people's spiritual existence. Establishing its contemporary guidance at spiritual level is not only literature's mission, but the time's urgent calling. At present, when human is suffering from spiritual crisis, it is critical for literature education to revert to the spiritual level.Only back to its spiritual stand can it approach its origin, undertake the mission of human spiritual relief and construction, and provide the essential support for man's spiritual existence.