David Wang: On Modern Chinese Literary Thought

Описание: Professor David der-wei Wang's second Humanitas lecture, 'The Lyrical in Epic Time: On Modern Chinese Literary Thought', delivered as part of his Humanitas Visiting Professorship in Chinese Studies at the University of Cambridge, May 2014.

Professor Wang's second lecture, 'The Lyrical in Epic Time: On Modern Chinese Literary Thought', proposed that we rethink the critical paradigm of modern Chinese literature in terms of "literary thought" or wenlun. As opposed to "literary theory" or lilun, which derives its conceptual and rhetorical thrust primarily from Western discourse, Chinese literary thought refers to a group of diverse texts, which in turn belong to distinct genres, occasions, and purposes. It tries to "explain the role literature plays in a civilization and to describe literature and literary works in terms that have resonance in other areas of intellectual and social life."
The lecture introduced the lyrical in epic time as an exemplary case of modern Chinese literary thought. It critiques the conventional wisdom that associates lyrical representation with romantic escapade and sentimental solipsism, calling attention instead to modern writers' and critics' reappraisal as well as invention of the "lyrical tradition" of China. In particular, it features the engagements undertaken by intellectuals such as Shen Congwen (1902-1988), Chen Shixiang (1912 -1971) and Jaroslav Průšek (1906-1980) in the mid-twentieth century, a time often regarded as the "epic." As such, the lyrical in epic time constitutes a significant part of modern lyrical discourse which includes articulations from Heidegger to Benjamin, Adorno, Brooks and de Man.

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Humanitas is a series of Visiting Professorships at Oxford and Cambridge designed to bring leading academics, practitioners and scholars to both universities to address major themes in the arts, social sciences and humanities. Created by Lord Weidenfeld, the programme is managed and funded by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue and co-ordinated in Cambridge by the Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (CRASSH) and in Oxford by the Research Centre for the Humanities (TORCH).