Spatial Dimensions Of Comparative Poetics

Time and space are two topics with the ultimate meaning explored by humanbeings. In modern society, there is always an exploration on time and space either inhumanilities like philosophy, aesthetics and literature or in natural sciences. Space isalso a powerful dimension for theoretical communication in the horizon ofSino-Western poetics. As an individual person, we are always inseparable from spaceand time. Modern comparative poetics is founded on the isomorphic heterogeneity ofculture. As an emissary of literary theory communication between Chinese andWestern culture, comparative poetics need to stand on a different spatial vision inmultiple construction of culture, due to its across-language, across languages, acrossborders, across cultures, across ethnic attributes.Besides introduction and conclusion, this paper consists of three chapters. Thefirst chapter is about space and its concept. Readers can clearly look through thedevelopment of the space, space theory origin and background. After the introductionof the three types of space,this chapter analzes Bachelard’s The Poetics of Space toprovide the theoretical basis for the following after explanation on the Bachelard’shome, and introduce a common topic between Chinese and Western literary theory.The second chapter analyzes the cause of the differences between Chinese andWestern way of thinking, demonstrates and summarizes the spatial characteristics ofpoetry, pointes out that the spatial feature of the traditional Chinese and westernpoetics. Since space is an essential condition of poetry, the methodology ofcomparative poetics between China and western countries can be divided into threemain research methods like "two-way method","category method", and "culturalroots, the mold method".So there is the feasibility in the research on space.The third chapter compares the Heidegger’s human survival and Tao Yuanming’sgarden poetry based on Heidegger and Tao Yuanming’s Home. It tries to combinethe two through the Home’s space, to find a way of conversation under the differentbackground between Chinese and Western culture. It’s one of theory practice on thespace poetics in this paper.