A Study Of The Literature-Art Consumption

Since the problem of "the literature-art consumption" is unavoidable in contemporary literature and art theories, the fundamental study is therefore necessary. It is suggested by this thesis that the attitude of this study should be some kind of peaceful, historical, dialectical and constructive thinking; should take this consumption as a synchronic complicate system consisting of many mutually activating factors and as the dynamic process of history; and should be both calm, analytical and open, constructive. The consumption of literature and art is not merely a literature-art theory problem, it requires the synthesizing study including the knowledge of literature-art theory, aesthetics, economics, culture study, psychology, sociology, ecology and more. We can not conduct this consumption simply among the theories of literature-art creation and appreciation, nor from the traditional plain point of view and the frame of reference. It is because comparing with literature-art appreciation, the literature-art consumption needs more open field of vision and thinking, we therefore need to take a more synthesizing and integrating study. The integrating study paradigm which is popular among culture-sociology, mass culture study, culture-economics, ecology critique and cultural diffusion may be helpful, the integration method developed by philosophy and science also supply the weapon in the field of methodology. In view of the analyzing thought emphasizing in details but breaking the integration down into fragments, some theories like organism, structuralism, system theory, the field theory used byBourdieu, constructive post-modernist ecology turn to a kind of integrative methodology. The literature-art consumption study should organize its thought as well in order to study with integrative organism instead of mechanist reductionism, and should use integrative methodology to contain the latest methods in order to penetrate the mystery of the problems in literature-art consumption.Chapter 1 defines the literature-art consumption by comparing it with commercial consumption, culture consumption, culture industry, literature-art appreciation, literature-art accept, literature-art reading and literature-art collection, and points out that the literature-art consumption is the category which contains much more than material consumption and commercial consumption. The literature-art consumption is a complicated term that represents different meanings under different frame of reference. We can't take one of the stages, categories or meanings for all, can't make it exaggerated, unconditioned or universalized. Instead of these, we should construct the concept of literature-art consumption with constructive, theoretic and open attitude, and make it more practice-guided and realistic.Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 discuss the subject and the object of literature-art consumption. At the beginning, it reviews the necessary history of subject and object. From the diachronic point of view, the concept of subject includes intricate conversions of from non-subject to subject, from collective subject to individual subject, from single subject to interacting subject, multisubject, intersubject, from subject to post-subject; from the synchronic point of view, the individual subject, various kinds of collective subjects, social subject, human subject or even ecological subject always live in the same high modernized culture context. Though the subject of literature-art consumption also experiences the conversion from non-subject to subject and to post-subject, the real situation is more complicated. In prehistoric times, literature-art production and literature-art consumption are of one; while in the enlighten age, the literature-art consumption divides into two opposite parts: elegant to profane, first to second, high to low. In the industrial civilized age, literature and art are getting more commercialized with thegrowing up of citizenry class, the secularizing of literature and art and the fest development of science-technology promoted by industrial production, and fall into a mufti-existing-and intricate situation. All of these lay the foundaflon of citizenry becoming the literature-art consumption subject. The ideal relationship between subject and object set by traditional literature-art appreciation knowledge is simple and clear; the subject is thought to be self-evident and absolute, while under the circumstances of market society, this simplicity and absolute do not exist at all. In the market society, the mass literature-art consumption field is built up by commercial publishing and issuing, internet sellings critique mechanism, mass media, various kinds of literature-art institutions, various types of consuming colony. In a tumult consuming field, only the interacting subjects can be found. The literature-art consuming appears more like some compromised, negotiated result. The field of literature-art consumption also has different layers and systems. In each layer, system or frame of reference, the consumer's subjectivity accordingly can be variously different. The situations of subjects vary a lot in the commercial-economic system, the literature-art consumption as commercial consumption system, the culture communication and the culture acceptance system, and the literature-art consumption as culture consumption system. And the subjects and their appearances vary a lot also in the mass literature-art consumption, the elite literature-art consumption, and the official literature-art consumption. The roles that the subjects play and the concrete situations subjects are in are different because of different layers of the frame of reference. Besides, the situations of subjects are different when the consumers are in their different consuming phrases. The easy and effortless attitude that the modern treat their consuming along with the interests and the fashion the literature-art consumption chasing reveal nothing but the reinforcing of subjectivity. With the growth of consuming, at the same time, the consumers will fmd their new prospect in their reflections.The objects are in relationships within a certain system, which is generated and change in a dynamic flow. To keep with the change of system, the objects in thecertain relationships have to take its corresponding change. The objects of literature-art consumption also can be divided into three parts, they are the object in itself, potential object and realistic object, each of them changes along with the change of the system of the relationships. The object of literature-art consumption is a kind of synthetic object which has multiple characteristics. It can be understood both from microscopic view and macroscopic view. Though the literature-art consumption as commercial consumption and the literature-art consumption as literature-art acceptance have different connotation and different functional principles, they must have very close relationship. The objects of theses two are accordingly quite different. The other complexity of the literature-art consumption object is that, when the literature-art products change in the processes of production, spreading and communicating the appearances of objects sometimes stay the same. In the traditional ideal literature-art appreciation theory, the subject-object relationship is simple and clear, but this clearness does not exist in real life. The actual objects of literature-art consumption can't simply equal to the literature-art products. The needs of consumption and the object of consumption are two categories that are different to and connected with each other.The relation between the literature-art consumption and cultural transition is explicated in chapter four, in which it points out it is the cultural transformation which makes appearance of the considerable peculiar taste of the literature-art consumption in the different cultural context. Pre-modern cultural consumption of art and literature which has close relation to public life possesses positive social cultural function. The literature-art consumption in prehistoric era adhere to the shared and equal standards. The hierarchy consumption is regarded reasonable consumption situation due to the ancient society pyramidal restriction of social power structure and the consumption- shortage. In the meantime , literature and art is the essential means to defend and reproduce the special cultural as well as ethical order. In accordance with the pyramidal structure of social politics and the stable sluggish of social productivity and slowness of social life pace and the stabilizationof social culture structure and the unchanging of people's social position, the aesthetic attitude of calm observation and worship is admired more easily. As a matter of fact, the opposition of refinement and popular is a result of divided culture of special phase in history. The spiritual esthetic characteristic of ancient art and literature has certain relation with the lower consumption in ancient society. The literature-art consumption in modern sense which can't be divided from modernity is a problem of modernity of culture and aesthetic. In modem society the literature and art is becoming consumption of pastime. However, just in an era of most utility and pragmatism and vulgar, the estheticism become popular which has something to do with the culture of modernity. The culture division of modernity brought the appearance of aesthetic and the popularity of aestheticism and the self-discipline of literature-art aesthetic and self-discipline of literature-art and secular life desire have inherent adherence. Aesthetic and self-discipline of literature-art actually bring sense foundation and modern possibility. Talent and originality have some relation with science and knowledge and rationality and talent and exploration and the emphasis of originality, they all have something to do with the sense of instrumentalism which regards the nature as a meaning of making profit. Thence, the relation between the consumption of literature and art and material wealth has formed an exchange ties and conversion. Judging by appearance, aesthetic independence and self-discipline of literature and art which put an emphasis on the speciality and secularism and perceptiveness of art and literature absolutely conflict with rationalism and science . the aesthetic transcendence definitely conflict with the emphasis of instance and present and artistic secularization. But actually they have deeply inner relation and contradiction as well as cohe: sion, they are bred in modern culture. The appearance of top modernity and ideology of consumption is absolute result of modernity culture and the transition of the production of capitalism. In modern society of top modernity and consumption, information and consumption goes hand in hand. The production in current society consumption has more abstract. All the art entertainment is put into consumption system which is subjected to capital logistic.Creativity is becoming a fashion in the art produce at present. The art which caters to the vulgar tastes is becoming mainstream of modern art consumption and the boundary of art and society is getting faint. There is a lot of reasons which have more relation with the total transference of consumption of the society consumption, completely eradication of the transcend foundation of moral and the logic of complete ;and with the replacement of traditional hierarchy society and the economy of special rights by public society and credit economy and market democracy system as well as commercial culture, and with the operation mechanism of the emphasis of the image strategy in consumption context and information of consumption society.The relation between the consumption and ecological build of literature and art is explicated in the end in which indicates the deformed ecological structure of culture which usually causes the ecological variation of ecology system of literature and art. Many things often lead to the structural deformity of consumption of literature and art which consist of the production departmentalism in modern society, the exacerbation of existing pressure, the sub-healthy station of spirit and psychology. The inequality of national culture, the poorness of spiritual culture of the social marginal group, the structural disequilibrium, and so on. They obstruct the internally increasing demand in the consumption of literature and art. It is to push the healthy development of the consumption of literature and art, to strengthen the ecological construction of art and literature, to optimize the ecological environment of literature and art that significant topic which faces the current consumption of literature and art. It is needed to handle the ties among macro and micro consumption and social and individual consumption to deal with the coordination of relation of every factor about the whole consumption system. We must handle the ties of many forms and requirement of consumption, and make it normally develop, virtual interact and restore the balance between spirit and material. We also ought to pay more attention to ecological build of literature and art in consumption of literature and art, to protect species of literature and art consciously, to safeguard the diversity of the consumption of literature and art and the coexistence as well ascoordination of various forms of art and literature, to stop the proportional disorder and structural deficiency. To build ecology of right-and-interest. It is needed to exert the functions of the subjects of nation and market and the producer of literature and art (or organization) consumer and protection organization of consumer's rights and interests; it is also needed to exert the functions of the ability of self-adjust of the literature and art market and the consumption system of the literature and art. It is also needed to improve the right-and-interest sense of consumer, to strengthen the right-and-interest of the consumers, to build and develop the protection system of right-and-interest.