A Popular History of Literature (Rare Works Series from the Republic of China Era)

Author: Hu Shi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: Hu Shi asserted that all valuable literature must be vernacular literature; classical literature holds no value. Therefore, he believed that China had only "dead literature" for two thousand years. This book defines the history of Chinese literature after the Han Dynasty as a history of the struggle and mutual decline between classical and vernacular literature. On the surface, it appears to uphold classical literature as the orthodox tradition, but in reality, vernacular literature continuously overcomes classical literature. Thus, this history is the story of vernacular literature constantly overcoming obstacles and ultimately winning the status of "orthodoxy" and "authority." Overturning the "orthodoxy" and "authority" of classical literature and re-establishing the "orthodoxy" and "authority" in the history of Chinese literature is the mission of this book. Hu Shi regarded this as a "Copernican revolution."
Reviews of this book can be divided into two aspects. Those who praise it consider it a "monumental work with significant influence," "a decisive force in the replacement of classical literature with vernacular literature as a vital tool for modern Chinese thought and communication," "a highly reputable literary theory work in the 20th-century history of Chinese literature that had a profound impact on the development of contemporary literature," "a groundbreaking work that marked an epoch," "whose significance lies not in the perfection of its arguments but in the exemplary model it provides," "a pioneer in comparative literature in China," "contributing more to the exploration of comparative literature than Chen Duxiu and Li Dazhao," "not only equipped with a theoretical foundation but also set an example by practicing it," "a foundational work," "unearthing nearly a thousand years of Chinese vernacular literary tradition and connecting the May Fourth vernacular literary movement to China's nearly thousand-year vernacular literary tradition," "the pioneer of the vernacular literary movement," "a vibrant and creative segment of literary history in Chinese literature that represents the era," "a new classic passed down to posterity," "historical perspective and scientific research," "a leader in shaping the main trends of literary history," "an important work in the history of modern Chinese academia," "a typical narrative of literary history," "a symbol of the transfer of power in the discourse of academia," "a unique voice supported by a 'doctrine,' and indeed, he had a 'theory' to back it up," "a monumental and pioneering work with immense influence."
Those who criticize it, however, argue that the book "is deeply biased," "goes to extremes," "has already ceased to be scholarship," "forces a theory that lacks coherence," "cannot be compared to Lu Xun's Outline of the History of Chinese Fiction," "has set a very bad precedent," "deliberately belittles and even erases two thousand years of literary works by scholars," "leaves much to be desired," "as a 'paradigm' in the history of academic thought, it is outdated," "the definitions are confusing, and the selections are subjective," "there is no clear line in its choices," "the result is that the boundary between classical and vernacular literature becomes even more blurred," "perhaps no one but himself would agree," "like Outlines of the History of Chinese Philosophy, only the first volume was completed, so Hu Shi was mocked by Huang Kan as a 'blueberry author,' always writing books that were 'the last of their kind.'"
Before writing this book, two History of Chinese Literature works by Chinese authors had already been published. One was Lin Chuanjia's History of Chinese Literature in 1904, which was compiled according to the scope of literary history in the then-Qing imperial university curriculum. It covered topics such as writing, phonology, etymology, rhetoric, literary styles, the relationship between literature and the state, geography, archaeology, and diplomacy, as well as the cultivation of moral learning through literature. The other was Xie Wuliang's History of Great Chinese Literature in 1924, influenced by Pao Keshi's History of English Literature, which proposed a distinction between "broad literature" and "narrow literature." In 1897, a Japanese-authored History of Chinese Literature caused great shock to the Chinese. Lin Chuanjia's History of Chinese Literature was born under such circumstances and was "written in just one hundred days." Almost simultaneously, works like Huang Ren's History of Chinese Literature and Dou Jingfan's History of Literature of Each Dynasty were also "quickly drafted." The prototype of Hu Shi's book is said to be his lecture notes from the 1921 Education Ministry's National Language Institute, but it was actually completed in 1927 and published by the New Moon Press in 1928. The plan was to write it in three volumes, but only the first volume was completed.
Guided by the Western "theory of literary evolution," the book argues that "the history of vernacular literature is the central part of the history of Chinese literature" and reorganizes the development of Chinese literature over a thousand years. It is considered a "popular literary award."
This book is recommended for the following readers:
- Scholars or enthusiasts of modern Chinese academia
- Scholars or enthusiasts of the history of modern Chinese literature
- Scholars or critics of Hu Shi
- Scholars or enthusiasts of the history of modern Chinese thought
- High school and college students