Okay, here is the translation following your instructions: Western and Eastern Cultural Clash and Modern Literature

Author: Guo Yanli
Editor: Zhu Xiaochen
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-04-01
Features: Excerpt: The Change in Literary Concepts, Part II: The Prejudice of Self-Esteem in Chinese Literature Was Altered, and Conscious Efforts Were Made to Take Western and Japanese Literature as Models for Literary Innovation. After the Opium War, the scholar-officials witnessed the Qing Dynasty's military defeat and had to acknowledge the superiority of Western naval and artillery technology. From the perspective of the prevailing cultural mindset of the scholar-officials, their understanding of the West was gradual. Initially, they believed that Western advancements lay solely in natural sciences such as sound, light, electricity, and machine manufacturing. Later, they recognized the superiority of Western political systems and democratic doctrines. However, regarding Western literature, they deemed it insignificant. Manchu (Liang Qixun) said: "Although our motherland's political and legal systems fall short of those of others, as for literature and ideals, I am reluctant to impose the customs of foreign races upon our Chinese lineage."① Feng Ping, a poet of the Nan She Society, wrote in the preface to Dream of the Lotus Pavilion Collection of Poems: "Since the Eastern influx of European culture, scholars and literati have devoted themselves to left-to-right writing, becoming intoxicated with Byron's poetry, Shakespeare's songs, and Voltaire's verses, believing that our motherland has no match. Alas, how narrow-minded! In terms of science, we are indeed inferior, but when it comes to literature, we may well be the best in the world. Byron, Shakespeare, and Voltaire are far inferior to our ancient sages such as Du Fu, Li Bai, Jia Xin, and Jiang Bi (Jiang Kui)."② This still reflected the old notion of cultural self-esteem of Chinese intellectuals in a closed environment. They were aware only of Sima Qian, Han Yu, Li Bai, Du Fu, Cao Xueqin, and Pu Songling. The vast majority of Chinese intellectuals at the time were unfamiliar with foreign literature and lacked research into its ideological content and aesthetic value. As a result, they failed to recognize the advanced ideas and outstanding artistic techniques of Western literature, leading to a mindset of "self-sufficiency and superiority over the barbarians." Ultimately, this was due to the limited knowledge structure and artistic horizons of intellectuals living in a closed state. Because they did not truly understand the essence of Western literature. As is well known, few intellectuals at that time could read original foreign literature. Early literary translations focused solely on narrating plotlines, leaving out vast amounts of artistic essence (such as psychological descriptions, depictions of natural scenery, and portraiture). Even such mistranslated and abridged works were not accessible to all, and many readers, influenced by traditional aesthetic tastes and habits, were unable to appreciate their artistic subtleties. In short, intellectuals at the time had little understanding of Western literature. With the introduction of Western culture, especially the rise of translated literature, Chinese intellectuals began to break free from their closed cultural environment and broaden their horizons to world literature. They gradually recognized the ideological brilliance and artistic power of Western literature and began to realize that it had advantages over Chinese literature. Among the earliest to recognize this were figures such as Liang Qichao, Lin Shu, and Zhou Guisheng.