A Study About Collective Writing In Modern Chinese Literature (1928-1976)

As another important thread, collective writing is parallel to individual writing in modern Chinese literature. Collective writing makes greater contributions to promote modern literature and build modern nations, but it also provides us with a lot of experience and lessons, which reveals itself to the development of rich and complex. Collective writing was introduced into China from the Soviet Union as a new method in the disputes about "revolutionary literature" in 1928, which became one symbol of the changing path about literature; and it came to an end in 1976, when influenced by April 5th Movement the radical line for literature and art was out of touch with the times. In other words, collective writing is connected with trends of thought in Left-politics, which determines its most important property of ideology, and it brings its initiative into full play. Judging from the forms, collective writing shows total trend from reality and concreteness to symbol and abstraction, and it measures up to extreme development by using a kind of ideological system or logical thinking with specific idea, implication and images to dispel contradiction and conflict from everyday life.The paper mainly makes use of train of thought according to political science and tendency. The former explores the occurrence and development of collective writing from social and political environment, explains the reasons why it become so popular in China and illustrates all kinds of forms. The latter lay stress on internal changes and synthesizes total feature. In this way, we can return to the essence of collective writing in different periods and reveal the complexity and plenty about modern Chinese literature.Except for the foreword, the paper includes four chapters. Because of the different social surroundings, collective writing shows different style, forms and skills and other aspects, however, they make a familiar effect each other. Actually, collective writing itself undergoes a formed, speeded, embedded, and solidified process gradually.Chapter 1:The embryonic and spread stage in left-wing period (1928-1937). Influenced by Soviet literature, collective writing positively carries out literary movement of the proletariat and grooms stringers as writers, which gradually makes a progress with Chinese reality. In soviet, by resorting Red-drama and Red-song movement, collective writing not only becomes purely literary action, but also can be mentioned with the legalization of national consciousness, which makes soviet extricate itself from a predicament. Collective writing plays a positive role and is advocated by Mao Zedong and Yang Shangkun.Chapter 2:The deeper stage in the warfare (1937-1949). In the beginning of war of Resistance against Japan (1937-1939), collective writing penetrates to liberated area, KMT-controlled area and enemy occupied area, and turns symbolic strength of anti-imperialism and anti-colonialism. After 1939, collective writing becomes most popular in liberated area. New-yangko movement, new-opera movement and old-opera movement and so on respond to the speech of literature and art symposium in Yan'an by Mao Zedong. In short, collective writing achieves the goal of uniting with friends and striving for victories, which signifies a new level between the artistic revolution and social revolution.Chapter 3:The upsurge stage in "17 years" (1949-1966). Collective writing depends on two kinds of resources, one is the tradition of Yan'an literature, and the other is the guarantee of sovereign country. Worker-peasant-soldier literature puts on makeup and goes on stage, which makes provisions for the mode of literary production. As a result, workers, peasants and soldiers constitute the principal body of creation, on the other hand, individual writing gradually knuckles under to collective writing. The close theory between realism and romanticism becomes fashionable for a long time, which means to resolve contradictions through symbol and images, and to establish ideal human society through the trend of romanticism.Chapter 4:The solidified stage in "Cultural Revolution" (1966-1976). Collective writing displays the will of clique and the group of writing comes into sight with a great fanfare, which strictly deprives individual of will-power and captures the rights of words. The theories of three-relation and three-stress completely lose contact with reality and goes to ideology. Model Peking Opera tries to hone skills to excellence in order to eliminate a pernicious influence, and the theme, figure, content, language and form are all solidified. Under the aesthetic theories of Model Peking Opera, the other writing becomes the products of collective writing.