| It has been a hundred years since the introduction of Ibsen’s works into China.Exerting an impact beyond the level of dramatic literature,Ibsen’s works played a special role during the May Fourth period as well as a major role in the construction of modern Chinese ideological concepts and the creation of cultural fields.In modern Chinese intellectual history and literary history,Ibsen and his theatrical works are an inescapable presence,with their dissemination and acceptance linked to China’s turbulent historical evolution and cultural patterns in a century.Hence,it is of great significance to explore and advance research on “Ibsen’s transmission,reception,and influence in China”.This thesis tries to reproduce the historical site,focuses on sorting out the historical context of Ibsen’s dissemination and reception in China from 1891 to 1927,and discusses the complex motives and historical impact behind the phenomenon of “Ibsen’s dissemination and reception in China” during this period.Based on the research background and status of “Ibsen in China” and relevant materials available to the author,the thesis is divided into four chapters.Chapter 1focuses on reviewing the new historical materials discovered from The North-China Herald and Supreme Court & Consular Gazette and The North-China Daily News and traces the earliest dissemination of Ibsen in China.On the one hand,the thesis aims to confirm the facts and describe the earliest phenomena of Ibsen’s dissemination in China as objectively and detailedly as possible.On the other hand,the thesis probes into the motives behind these phenomena,their historical impact,and the various cultural issues wrapped up in them.Chapter 2 reviews the historical process of the discovery and introduction of Ibsen by Chinese intellectuals in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China.This chapter focuses on the breadth and depth of the selection and reception of Ibsen in the early stage of the introduction as well as different aspects emphasized.Then,this chapter delves into the reasons for the selection and translation of Ibsen’s works and the characteristics of Ibsen’s reception by Chinese people during this period and clarifies the influence and value of Ibsen in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China.Chapter 3 focuses on translation study activities of Ibsen’s works in the journal New Youth during the New Culture Movement.Firstly,this chapter centers around Hu Shih and traces the causes and background of the launch of the “Ibsen issue” in New Youth.On the one hand,this chapter tries to clarify the history of this literary event.On the other hand,it aims to discuss Hu Shih’s view of Ibsen,thus revealing the relationship between literary translation and literary revolution as well as the ideological dimension of the introduction of foreign literature by Chinese intellectuals behind this literary event.In addition,this chapter focuses on the issues highlighted and emphasized in the commentary based on the debate on “Ibsen” in New Youth.Moreover,this chapter reflects on the complex motives behind the interpretation of Ibsen and his dramas by New Youth and analyzes Ibsen’s role in the construction of ideological concepts and the creation of new cultural fields during the May Fourth New Culture Movement.Based on the context of the time and detailed historical materials,Chapter 4reviews the translation,performance,and commentary of Ibsen’s dramas during the May Fourth Movement as comprehensively as possible and explores the overall reception of Ibsen during the May Fourth period and the issue reflected by it from these three perspectives. |
