Pei And Chinese Literary Theory In The Modern Transformation

In the end of 19th century and early 20th century, there was a special historical period of academic and cultural transformation. With the backgroud of cultural conflict between China and the West, ancient and modern, there had been some new changes for Chinese literature theory. As a renowned scholar who had deep traditional and Western knowledge, Liu Shi-pei's literary theory was unique. Due to Liu shi-pei was a traitor, and his culture perspective was conservative, the academic research about Liu shi-pei's literary theory is relatively few. It is necessary to enrich the history of literature theory that we study shi-pei's literature theory and discuss some transforming characteristics in his literature theory.This study uses the method that pays great attention to the subject about culture modernization and discusses shi-pei's literary theory in the background of transformation from the traditional to the modern, and tries to understand true culture text in the history's circumstances. In order to embody the extension of history and the individual of his theory, the paper not only comments on shi-pei's literary theory, but also to compare with other scholar's perspective in the course of writing. At the same time we show the complex and zigzag of the transformation. The paper has a logic and history evaluation about shi-pei's literature theory, not only pointing out achievements and shortcomings of the theory itself, but also judging it in the sense of historical development.In addition to introduction and conclusion, this doctoral dissertation is divided into four chapters.Chapter one describes and evaluates Liu Shi-pei's paths of the life. Liu Shi-pei is famous variety in the modern history of China. Especially his betrayal not only confused the people then, but also become a puzzle for us. This paper divides his life into four stages as the evolution of his thinking and describes his changing life. The paper discusses Liu Shi-pei's betrayal from the perspective of cultural ideals beyond the political realities. The paper shows the difficulty that Liu Shi-pei struggled in a transformation era. We also discuss Liu Shi-pei's characters and the fierce mentality and the nature of the scholar. I hope the Well-learned and changing historical figure be more true.Chapter Two is entitled "Liu Shi-pei's Literary Concept". This chapter analyzes the Liu Shi-pei's literary concept resources from the disputes between TongCheng and PianWen in the late of Qing dynasty. Liu Shi-pei's literary concept is the basis on PianWen represented Ruan Yuan, but melted modern aesthetic ideas. Especially, he had a conclusion that "wen" including "bi" and "bi" not including "wen", which based on Ruan Yuan"s "wen and bi". That conclusion was a distinguishing basis between pure and miscellaneous literary concepts in the modern transformation. In the western aesthetic perspective, there had a changing course in Liu Shi-pei's literary concept. Liu Shi-pei transformed the literary concept of PianWen that focused on diction beauty into modern concept. He transformed the defining traditional literary forms into thinking literary nature. Liu Shi-pei had been beyond the literary concept of "hanxue" and expanded living space of traditional literature theory in the context of modern. This chapter has a comparison of Liu Shi-pei's literary concept and Zhang Tai-Yan's literary concept. As the "hanxue" scholar, Zhang and Liu stressed that literature based on "understand characters" and "know characters". In the face of Western "literature" as a modern subject introduced into China, they had wide differences about defining the concept of "literature". All the words written materials were literature that is Zhang Tai-Yan's definition. This definition focused on the "characters". While, Liu Shi-pei's literary concept established on the "aesthetic". Liu Shi-pei used the "sound science" to establish a link between the primary and literature. Zhang and Liu's different definition about literature had different experiences in the period of modern transformation. However, it should be noted, Zhang and Liu had the consensus developing the national culture in behind of the two literary concepts.Chapter There is entitled "The Theory and Practice about Liu Shi-pei Literary Criticism". It is an indisputable fact that the classics' had been dominating the traditional literary criticism explicitly or implicitly.Traditionally, the literary criticism maintained highly depended on political and ethical life, the literary criticism in the internal structure and formation mode had been affected by "classics' center". Liu Shi-pei revealed the traditional classics' modes of literary criticism from three in the transition period: The first, in the literary model, Liu Shi-pei broke the traditional "following classics'" literary criticism model, and the term "following Li Sao" was established as the principle of criticism by him. The second, in style genealogy, Liu Shi-pei expanded traditional "literature rooted the classics" into "literature rooted the classics and Zi". The third, in the perspective of freedom of thought and individuality, Liu Shi-pei appraised the literature and art in Wei-Jin, and there had free spirit publicity of the literary individual. In the new historical conditions, it is of great significance that Liu Shi-pei changed the literature model, adjusted style genealogy and showed the spirit of free. Those reflected traditional values adjustment and structural change in the recent period of transformation. It embodied the study of literature gained independence in the cultural significance. Liu Shi-pei tried to reconstruct the academic of the Chinese depending on Zhu-zi. Liu Shi-pei's criticism about classics mainly directed at classics as hegemony, which detained the freedom of academic study. Liu Shi-pei thought that the classics were valued as a form of academic resources or knowledge. In the perspective of aesthetic and style, Liu Shi-pei inherited the reasonable factors in classics.Chapter Four is Entitled "Liu Shi-pei Literature Research Methodology Sense." Improving methods is an important condition for the modern transformation of academic research. In the perspective of western scientific methods and concepts, Liu Shi-pei re-evaluated the traditional "kao ju" method of classic in the perspective of western scientific spirit. Then he use it in the study of literature extensively. Furthermore, Liu Shi-pei expanded the traditional study of literature by applying to the western evolutionary and sociological. Liu Shi-pei verified the literary origins using western social origin and evolutionary. Liu Shi-pei believed that literature was original witchcraft and practice. Comparing with the traditional Chinese literary-oriented idea that literature existed as cultural norms, Liu Shi-pei concerned literary occurred in the history. To some extent, Liu Shi-pei's research opened the way studying the literature from a sociological perspective. Cultural geography study is mainly embodied in the "South-North literary commentators", Liu Shi-pei applied the West geographical determinism into literary research. But he also believed that the literary forms is not static based on the geographical environment in different, and Literary the literary forms would change with authors migrating and the times changing. In the course of different culture exchanging, the authors absorb some different factors and promote the development of art. But the main style rooted physical environment will not change. We can know Liu Shi-pei's cultural view from this idea. The paper compares Liu Shi-pei with Liang Qi-chao. Then underlines the unique nature of Liu Shi-pei's literature evolutionary concept. The paper point out that Liu Shi-pei was cautious when he applied into literary studies. He used it as a method not concept in the literature historical development. In fact Liu's idea was a modern expression of the traditional Chinese literary theory "literature changing with times". Liang used it in the significance of progression. In the study of traditional Chinese literature, Liu Shi-pei is rational in applying to western theories and methods.We should affirm Liu Shi-pei'S contribution and status in the transformation of literature research. His literature theory shows the track of transformation from the traditional to the modern. His literature theory not only is full of deep concern about the reality and strong awareness of commitment to the cultural, but also has the expertise of academic quality and design of the theoretical component. However, there are a few biased idea and self-contradictory and self-attack phenomenon in his theory. These are due to the quality of his individuals, but also to the times, which gives us a useful thought.