History Of Heart And Dream

Shen Cong-wen is a very complicated figure in modern Chinese literature. His complication is closely relates to his charming sense of solitude, which in effect results from what peculiar life education he received in his childhood and traditional folk culture. Later, his whole life was greatly influenced by the sceptical and refusing spirit as on externalization of this very solitude.Mr. Shell's sense of solitude is accounted for in that he is an out-and-out liberalist both in politics and art, making alliance with no party, sticking to his own indiriduality and living his own soligary life. As to the relationship of politices and art, Mr. Shen is quite definite in his idea, i.e, on one hand, he sets artistic pursuit against political mission, on the other, he lays great emphasis upon the ulititarian objective of art. His political attitude belongs to man of letters not statesmen. He is not in step with his time in literary attitude, literary concepts and ideals.Based on his profound understanding of life and Chinese reality, Mr. Shen shows great concern about the fate of people in Xiangxi and even the whole Chinese people, thus proposing that national morality be reconstructed. Through an analytical comparison and contrast between Xiangxi culture and city culture, Shen has offered his dialectical repudiation to both of them, aiming at formulating a new mode of national culture, whose accomplishment is only to be brought about under the guidance of a rational spirit, and with reference to the culture of Xiangxi.The re-construction of a culture and national moraltiy is ulimately that of human beings is that it is they who create and demonstrate that particular culture. Mr.Shen realizes a serious absence of original trueness in people either in countries or cities. When it comes to the re-construction of man,Mr.Shen proposes an ideal life mode after an experience and understanding of reality and meditations of solitude. It can be explained in the following aspects: life-will, life-force, abstract beauty and love, and life ideal, etc.Shen's sense of solitude is well reflected in his master-piece , "An Out -lying Town" .An average life is synecdoche through the descriptons of emotions, psychology and survival of the particular characters in the work. In so doing, the writer attempts to reveal the pessimistic fate suffered by an individual and national minority. The work also gives an expression to the writer's bewilderment of cultural selection and his anxiety about man's existential state.