Yan Fu And The Evolution Of Modern Literature

Yan Fu is the literary master in modern literary history due to his translation of non-literary works. Besides the description of the influence of his evolutionary theory, the present literary history normally focuses on Yan Fu's translational thoughts and the literary features in his translation, which does not fully present Yan Fu's unique position and influence in and upon modern literary history. Therefore, the dissertation attempts to explore Yan's literary notion, illustrate the relationship between Yan and modern literary evolution, and clarify his status and influence in literary history.Yan Fu influences modern literary revolution in the way of spreading modern thoughts to bring changes to Chinese traditional notions, so as to influence modern literary revolution as a whole. According to this concept, under the background of modern Chinese social and literary trend of thoughts, the present dissertation applies the combination of history and theory from the perspectives of history, culture, sociology, psychology and communication science, to analyze and inspect Yan's specific philosophic theory and literary notion, upon which the relationship between Yan Fu and modern literary evolution can be clarified.The body of this dissertation is divided into four chapters:In Chapter one, the paper combines the changes in modern Chinese society and the fights and efforts of the last generation of scholars, explores Yan's special experience in life and study, and concludes his contribution during the transformation of modern society. Yan Fu plays the role of"leadership"and"guard"in the spreading of evolutionary theory in China, and he integrated the Chinese traditional thoughts of transformation and several western evolutionary theories and formed an evolution theory of his own style: the philosophy of natural selection. The publication of Tianyan Lun symbolizes the come into being of his philosophy of natural selection. The philosophy of natural selection provides for people transforming from traditin to modern time a clear life guidance, this is, the general principle of oneself dealing with the objects, the others, and himself: the relation between oneself and the objects is applicable for the world view and methodology of"Natural Selection, the Survival of the Fittest"; the relation between oneself and the others is for the principle of"Freedom as the System, and Democracy as the Employment", and the self will surpass the others when there is conflict; and the relation between oneself is for the scientific concept and method. This phiosophy exerts enlightening function in modern social transformation.In Chapter two, the paper combines the social trends of national salvation to explore the formation and influence of Yan Fu's functional view on literature. While emphasing the function of literature in saving and enlightening, Yan affirmed"the use of the useless"of literary aesthetics as well. In the process of drawing lessons from the western criticism on Chineses traditional study, Yan Fu formed his comparatively evident academic thoughts of separating subjects, and thus provided theoretical basis for literature separating from other subjects, and his thoughts on"the Fine Arts"influenced the emerging of"Pure Literature"in modern time. The selection between function and aesthetics paved the way for Yan Fu's unique status and influence in the formation of modern pure literary notion.In Chapter three, under the background of development of modern literary refinement and popularity, the paper studies the status and function of Yan Fu's view on refinement and popularity in the development of modern literature. The tradition of refined literature as the major part in China, the identity anxiety of overseas students, and the influence of natural selection thought made Yan Fu adovate refinement and aviod popularity in his translation and creation of poetry. However, in the view of his relations with fictional revolution, literary revolution, and the May Fourth modern Chinese movement, although Yan Fu insisted refined literature subjectively, he objectively opened the way to the popularization of literature, and such a unique influence is due to his enligtening principle and the modern thoughts he spread.In Chapter four, in accordance with Yan Fu's philosophical thoughts and literary view, the paper studies the complicated relations between Yan Fu and modern literature evolution from the perspective of the appearance of literary revolution in the period of late Qing and early Republic of China, the formation of literary evolutional view, and the establishment of the view of"literature of man". Yan Fu's overall influence upon modern society naturally influences on the deveopment and evolution of modern literature, however, he stands aloof from and even rejects the literary revolution movement. His attitudes of"rationality"and"alienation"expresses the controversial feelings of traditional scholars while facing to modern thoughts, and also reflects the complicated process of evolution theory transforming revolutionary thoughts. Yan Fu was the earliest to figure out that evolutional theory can be applied to literary field and he promoted the formation of literary evolutionary concept, which not only impacts upon Chinese modern literature in transforming from mixed literary system to pure literary system, but also settles the tune for modern Chinese literary history. Yan Fu's thoughts of"encouraging the people's ability, educating the people's intelligence, and refreshing the people's virtue"provided the basis for the birth of the view of"literature of man".Either the theoretical rationality, or the superfical alienation, or the practical promotion, the complicated relationship between Yan Fu and modern literary evolution not only illustrates the painful efforts made by modern scholars in national salvation during the turn of cultural conflict between the old and the new, home and abroad, but it reflects the rough traces of modern literary transformation from tradition to modernization.