Qian Jibo And His Modern Chinese Literature

As a historical narrative for national literature, the writing of the Chinese literature history undertakes a glorious task to re-experience the outline of native culture and re-model the ideal figure of state. That is why there is a new tide of writing the literature history in academic circles when Chinese society transforms from traditional times to modern times between the end of Qing dynasty and the beginning of the Republic China. In the course of writing, the writers, works, schools of literature, trends of thought in literature, political situation, customs and habits are recollected, reviewed, and recorded, and the national literature comes to realize itself. The writing ways of literature history contain rich in academic thought, Modern Chinese Literature History, written by Qian Jibo, is the first one in the name of the "modern". There are 3 characteristics in the writing ways: 1. His thought is different from the radical thoughts of the May 4^th Movement of 1919, for he upholds the modern literature history view—the writer must possess a wide knowledge of things ancient and modern-erudite and informed, and the text can carry forward the cause and forge ahead into the future; and criticizes the modern writers' shortcomings and mistakes—they ingratiate the people with the manner of fighting against the tradition; 2. Mr. Qian adheres to principle of academic independence, and evaluates the writers and their works from his own viewpoint, though the history he wrote is a contemporary history. Certainly, the review is distinctive, since he also combines tradition with modern times. 3. It is the writing manners of historical criticism, biographical criticism and comparative criticism that make the narrating reasonable, sensible, and be a wholeness. Because the term "literature" in Modern Chinese Literature History is used in a broad sense, it is possible to make the mentioned above characteristics more outstanding, and make me study the some questions, such as the modern writers how to expound their ideas in writing; the modern intellectuals how to use their power of opinion on public affairs; the relation between classical Chinese and vernacular; today how to study culture heritage, etc. This article bases itself on text study, through which I not only can make a thorough inquiry into the writing ways in Modern Chinese Literature History systematically, but also could go a step further to inquiry into the background of social transformation from tradition to modern times. On the one hand, the study can respond with the voice of revising the literature history from academic circles. On the other hand, I want to be of some help to contemporary Chinese social transformation.