The Flood Motif Of Chinese Modern Literature

Flood is a cultural concept with rich connotations. For a long time, the studies on flood motif have never been suspended. In its writing Motif Index of Folk Literature, American folklorist Stith Thompson numbered flood motif as A1010. Nearly every corner of the world possesses flood-related legends and records, which indicates that flood motif is undoubtedly a worldwide one.Modern literature was born in the collision of Chinese and Western cultures and developed in the mutual game and running-in of different cultures, making its complexity and richness self-evident. Modern China has gone through a turbulent historical period. This chaotic social form of confusing right and wrong virtually mapped the ancient prehistoric flood era, while modern writers’memories of floods are also reawakened under this unconscious state. The cultural symbols of "floods" gain a new life in modern society. Modern literature has abundant flood-related works, such as LU Xun’s Patching the Sky and Water Management, GUO Moruo’s Flood Era, DING Ling’s Water, JIN Yi’s Flood Current and TIAN Han’s Flood, to name just a few.Modern writers’ writings of floods constitute the flood motif of modern literature. As is known to all, the core of modern literature is "human discovery", and humanity has replaced events and become the focus of writers. This is a change in literature for thousands of years. However, it was also in this kind of great cultural background that the flood motif in modern literature got rid of political speech, feudal superstition, God discipline, cultural heroes and other old cultural connotations and become synonymous with suffering and awakening and gained new cultural connotations like enlightenment, revolution and resistance. Not only was the flood spirit in ancient prehistoric era revived, but also the flood motif was injected the blood of the new era by modern society. Flood connotations clearly exhibited three typical motif prototypes of disaster, resistance and revolution in modern literature, formed a narrative mode with its own characteristics and bore the diversity and complexity of human nature. The distinctive enlightenment dawn, humanitarian spirit and faith in resistance and revolution in the flood motif all reached new heights and gained new life.However, on the other hand, we should also see that, although the memories about ancient floods are awakened, flood connotations still have not been fully reflected due to political and ethical factors, and they are still a bit suppressed and withered in modern writers’ works. It can be seen that the connotations of flood motif still need to be further explored and performed and that there is still much room for contemporary flood writings.