The Renaissance(xinchao), Suspended Between Renaissance And Fashion

The Renaissance(Xinchao)(Jan,1919—Mar,1922),the publication of the press of the same name formed by the students of Beijing University in the May 4th Era published three volumes( 12 periods) in all. Supported by Chen Duxiu, Li Dazhao and Lu Xun, it, altogether with the other progressive publications such as New Youth, made great contribution to the development of the New Culture Movement and exerted a far-reaching influence.As a sample for the students in Beijing University to think over the relationship between the tradition and the modernity, the publication was characterized by the features of that age in the cultural collision. From the standpoint of the complexity that The Renaissance showed in the conflicts between the traditional cultural and the modern culture, this paper studies the thinking of the intellectuals encouraged by the western culture, the generation and development of the Chinese modern culture and literature, so as to evaluate its position and contribution to the Chinese modern history. It consists of the five parts:Introduction section makes a brief introduction to the monthly publication, laying a foundation for the outspread of this paper. It also discusses the history and present condition of the study, the significance and the writing thought.Chapter one mainly expounds the complexity that The Renaissance showed in the conflicts between the traditional cultural and the modern culture. Under the influence of the western culture and with the accumulation of the traditional culture, the members of the press not only recognized the progressiveness of the western culture but also knew the special value of the traditional culture. In the process of thinking over the relationship between the tradition and the modernity, they attempted to combine the study of the western culture with the preservation of the traditional culutural perfectly.Chapter two analyzes its propositions and features of translation. By means of statistical data, it counts up the number of the translated works and literary thought that were published by it, thus expounding the great contribution it made in the process of the translation and the spreading of the western culture and literature in the May 4th Era. It is in this way that the members of the club translated the progressive western thinking and culture so as to transform the traditional culture, which resulted from the collision between the 2 different cultures and led to the further cultural development from a tradition one to a modern one.Chapter 3 expounds its two propositions, that is,'saving the country by literature'and'sorting the national cultural heritage', thus embodying the thinking over the relationship between the tradition and the modernity. The members recognized it was impossible to separate the tradition from the modernity, hoping the dream of establishing a new Chinese cultural society, suspended between the east and the west, between the tradition and the modernity, came true.Conclusion section elaborates the significance of studying the publication(The Renaissance )and makes an objective appraisal on its position and its contribution to the Chinese modern history.