The Modernist Controversy Research In The 1980s

The dissertation combines history with theory, taking history as the fundamental element, basing on the 1980s’mainstream periodical journals and magazine such as Foreign Literature Reports, Foreign Literature’s Trend, Literary and Art, Foreign Fiterature,etc. It has Broadly analyzed and interpreted the revolution and controversy of the 1980s’literary concepts which are based on five fundamental theories that are living philosophy, aesthetic pursuit, class consciousness, creating principles and form exploring. Generally speaking, in the 1980s, history restarted a new stage, and China trialed the implementation of the reform and opening-up policy. In this era, to get rid of the old for the new, there are arguments everywhere, including humanitarian arguments, literary subjectivity’s arguments. Those arguments provide a broad platform for various literary perspectives’mutual confrontation and collision, undoubtedly becoming a brilliant access to research literary perspectives’revolution. Commonly, common knowledge such as a sort of literature gets through the struggle of the 1980s’ "the dispelling politicalization", and transfers into the 1990s’consumption of literature are widely agreed by academic circles. Meanwhile, comprehensions for most of those arguments are basically stayed on the opposite between transform and convention, modernization and tradition. However, the hardship for this kind of "the dispelling politicalization" and more possibilities outside the opposition are the emphasis of this dissertation.This dissertation consists of nine chapters. In the first chapter, it will mainly explain the original reason for picking topic and it gives you an overview of the modernist controversy around the 1980s. This chapter will make a conclusive statement, mainly dividing research status into three categories, presenting the drawback and advantages of the modernist school’s disputes. In the second chapter, it emphasizes on concepts’ rearrangements and historical descriptions. This chapter will organize those concepts which are corresponded with this article further, including some fundamental concepts such as the western modernism, the modernist school etc, some historical stages of the western happened in the west and China, and some representative modernist school’s arguments stages happened before the 1980s modernism controversy. In the third chapter, this dissertation extends its contents around the 1980s’ modernism controversial process. We’ll divide the arguments into several different stages, which are the arguments during 1979-1982,1982-1985, and arguments between the modernist school and "pseudo modernist" after 1988. It was the constantly developing arguments that motivated the transform of the 1985’s literary creative area, great amount of works with modernist style got published and entered into mainstream literary circle.However, the emerge of "Pseudo modernist" arguments in 1988 symbolized that the arguments started to enter into the inside of Enlightened intellectuals. Casting off the enforcing, the literature comes into the discussion of literature itself. In the fourth chapter, it mainly interprets the historical context, ideological context, and literary context. This dissertation links the times’ background, ideological context and literary controversy of the 1980s, trying hard to get back to "historical true sites". The primary purpose of this chapter is to pave the way for extending specific theoretical issues. In the fifth chapter, this part mainly interprets the research of specific theoretical issues’arguments. According to the theory of existence philosophy, this chapter does internal research of modernist controversy from the opposite of the irrationalism and the traditional rationalism. Firstly, this chapter runs through the connection between modernist literature and non rationalism such as existentialism, psychoanalysis and the process of non rationalism’s introduction spreading into China, etc. The two points above are the historical context and theory basis of researching the confrontation and conflicts between 1980s’ non rationalism and the traditional rationalism in modernist arguments. Secondly, this chapter discusses the confrontations between rationalism and non rationalism in the 1980s’ modernist arguments, inquiring into the hesitation of scholars who hold different opinions between classicalism and modernism, the reform and conservation. The sixth chapter is mainly around the aesthetic principle. It is revolved around the aesthetic arguments in the twentieth century, the confrontations of aesthetic in the 1980s’ modernism arguments and the multi-existent tendency of aesthetic which develop from the modernism arguments.It is mainly around class consciousness in chapter 7. In the first place, this part will illustrate the issue that the theory of class suppressing the human nature. To research the confrontations of bourgeoisie and proletariat, the author laid the foundation with the method of unifying logic and history. Secondly, by analyzing the controversy, the contest and confrontations which are between classicalism and modernism, reformation and conservatism will be analyzed deeply around the contestation. In chapter 8, the confrontation between modernism and realism starts from the creation principle, is mainly discusses from the real view of literature and the realism’s disadvantage, so that the complicated relationship can be inquired into deeply. At last, the chapter extends the research circumstance of literary formalism in literary traditions, the confrontations between rationalism and formalism, and the final stage of formalism.In general, some latent factors behind binary opposition come out from the surface by finishing quantities of modernist controversy data. That is to say, whether for or against modernism, too much meaning and connotation are involved in their speech. For example, the people who are in favor don’t show the support obviously. There also exists the hesitation whether being for or not. Nevertheless, opponents are also prudent to select their method of expression, especially be worried to be considered as "the laggards". In a word, in the 1980s’modernist schools’ arguments, the fight was peaceful outside but fierce inside between classicalism and modernism, reformation and conservatism. Being different from some "return to 1980s" researchers who attempt to simplify the confrontation, I would like to analyse the complex behind the arguments by means of some issues’ confrontations between which are irrationalism and rationalism,the aesthetic and ugliness,the modernism and realism, the formalism and rationalism, by means of combination of logic and history. And now, no matter the irrationalism, ugliness or the modernism and bourgeoisie, it’s hard for them to be accepted by the mainstream, showing a different prospect with "the Honeymoon Period" in the 1980s’literature and politics. Otherwise, some factors pointing at the modernity and post-modernity may blend in the main literary circles and make a profound difference after the discuss. And the controversy is important for changing realism’s disadvantages and promoting anthors’ creations, such as Mo Yan and Yu Hua.