A Study Of River Imagery In Novels About Zhi Qing

The imagery of rivers is a prominent creative phenomenon in the novels about Zhi Qing.On the one hand,Chinese civilization originated from rivers,which not only provide the conditions for human survival,but also carry the complex spiritual connotation of human beings,nourish the body and mind,and become what is necessary for life,where love and thought goes.On the other hand,the mass movement of Zhi Qing in the “going to the mountains and the countryside” movement provides the possibility to shape the river imagery.In the place of “the countryside”,the river is the working object and living space for Zhi Qing.The close intertwining of survival and rivers has given Zhi Qing an unusually rich sensibility for rivers with traditional cultural and psychological deposits.People are the products of society,and the unique literary environment has influenced the creative psychology of the youth writers.The imagery research fever in the1980 s,the writers’ excavation of national cultural traditions and aesthetic traditions,and the literary trend of nature worship have all influenced the selection and shaping of river imagery by Zhi Qing writers.The Zhi Qing generation has a “unique” life experience and generally confused and lost psychologically,so the river imagery in novels about Zhi Qing shows unique types that are different from the traditional ones.Firstly,the river of power,in which Zhi Qing subject “sees things as I see them”,externalizes his own power in the river,and draws strength and wisdom from the river.Secondly,the unique flow of the river,Zhi Qing often pay attention to the two extremes of flowing water,namely,the flood that annihilates everything and the near-stagnant current,which contains the unique experience of survival of Zhi Qing.Thirdly,the river is hard to cross,just like the river blocks the crossing from this bank to the other bank,the river not only becomes the boundary river that Zhi Qing love but can’t get,but also hinders the spiritual communication between people.The river imagery in novels about Zhi Qing carries deep spiritual meaning.The previous novels about Zhi Qing were written for political purposes,highlighting the spiritual “summoning” and “pilgrimage” of the“Yan he” imagery as a function of political belief.After the mid-1980 s,the river imagery in novels about the intellectuals showed more thoughts and discussions about fate,society,and history.For Zhi Qing who are in a weak position in the countryside,the cleansing function of the river meets their desire to cleanse themselves of filth,and the hidden connection between the flowing water and life triggers their expectation of life after death.In addition,the river imagery also carries the value of the intellectual writers’ thoughts about the ideal living situation of human beings and the kind of living situation in which the true soul can be restored.The pursuit and shaping of the rivers in the novels of Zhi Qing transcends the field of view of Zhi Qing and connects them with the eternal proposition of human pursuit,making them shine with the light of intellectual thinking and imply profound human values.The exploration of artistic forms by Zhi Qing writers is also striking,and the shaping of river imagery shows the writers’ conscious aesthetic construction.The imagery is an image of meaning,and the river imagery carries the emotional experiences of the protagonists in different situations,presenting aesthetic styles that are either plain,rigid,soft,or intellectual.As the “eyes of the text”,river imagery unlocks the narrative work’s lineage and awakens the spirit of the story with its own profound meaning,uniting the thematic meaning of the work.River imagery also participates in the shaping of characters,highlighting the character aspects of the protagonists and even participating in the whole process of character creation.The imagery of rivers in novels about Zhi Qing is unique because of the “unique” experience of the writer’s subject,which make it the river of Zhi Qing.At the same time,it relates to the path of human existence and the value of existence and becomes the river of “human beings”.The river imagery in the novels about Zhi Qing has gained profound research value in these two aspects,which is worth further exploration.