20th-century Western literary theory: What is literature?

Western literature in the 20th century underwent many major changes and developments. The following are some of the important features: 1. Realist tendency: Western literature in the 20th century was generally influenced by the tendency of realism. The descriptions were more realistic, and the discussion of social issues was more profound. 2. The rise of modern literature: The 20th century was the period of the rise of modern literature, language, theme and other deeper issues. The characteristics of modern literature were the pursuit of innovation, uniqueness, and transcendence. It challenged and reformed traditional literary forms and languages. The 20th century was the rise of the feminism movement. Women began to fight for their rights and status to create a more equal, respectful and inclusive social environment. The end of romanticism: the decline of romantic literature in the mid-20th century explored deeper and more complex topics. The rise of superhero literature: In the second half of the 20th century, superhero literature began to rise to describe more grand and complex worldviews and storylines. 6. The widespread use of psychological descriptions and streams of consciousness: The descriptions in the 20th century were more detailed and in-depth, allowing readers to understand the character's heart and thoughts more deeply. Literature became global in the late 20th century, and literary exchanges and cooperation between different countries and cultures became more frequent and close..

Harry Potter was a 20th-century Western literary classic created by K Rowling of the United Kingdom. It was a fantasy adventure story between the magical world and the real world, loved by readers all over the world.

The 20th-century literary trends in the West mainly included realism, modernism, post-modernism, culturalism, feminism, surrealism, post-colonization, and other schools. Among them, realism and modernism were the most common and important literary trends. Realism emphasized that literature should reflect social life and human nature, and opposed fiction and fantasy. In the 20th century, the trend of realism in literature had been widely developed and flourished, such as France, Dickens, Mao Passant, Tolstoy, etc. Their works deeply reflected the various problems of the society at that time and became important representatives in the history of Western literature. The modern literary trend of thought emphasized that literature should express the inner world and psychological state of the individual, opposing the traditional narrative mode. In the 20th century, the trend of thought in modernist literature was mainly divided into two directions, one was romanticism and the other was modernism. Romanticism emphasized personal feelings and experiences, while modernism emphasized the inner world and psychological structure of individuals. Austin, America, Faulkner, etc. The post-modern literary trend of thought emphasized that literature should criticize and reflect on history and tradition and re-examine modern culture. In the 20th century, the post-modern literary trend developed rapidly and formed many schools such as culturalism, surrealism, post-colonization, etc. The representatives of post-modern literature, America, and England. In addition, feminism, surrealism, post-colonization and other literary trends were also important components of the 20th-century literature in the west. They made unique contributions to literature.

The influence of western literary theory on Chinese literature is mainly reflected in two aspects: literary criticism and literary creation. 1. In the aspect of literary criticism, Western literary theory has influenced the way of criticism of Chinese literature. In the traditional Chinese literary criticism, the critics often emphasize it, while the western literary theory pays more attention to it. This kind of criticism had influenced the study and creation of Chinese literature to a certain extent. The influence of western literary theory on literary creation is also reflected in the exploration of literary forms and styles. Chinese literature usually focuses on traditional narrative methods and emotional expressions, while Western literary theory pays more attention to modern literary forms such as modernness and expressionism. The exploration of this literary form had an impact on the creation of Chinese literature, which prompted Chinese literature to explore a broader field of literature. It should be noted that the influence of Western literary theory on Chinese literature is two-way and has also produced some negative effects. For example, the influence of Western literary theory made Chinese literature pay more attention to form and technique and ignore it.

The influence of Western literary theory on Chinese literature was mainly reflected in the following aspects: 1. Regarding the literature creation's method, the western literature theory emphasized the sociality and history of art, believing that art was a mirror that reflected society and history. This method had a profound impact on the creation of Chinese literature, and many Chinese literature thus better expressed human nature and social phenomena. 2. On the theoretical basis of literary creation: Western literary theory puts forward that literature is a reflection of human nature and human nature, and literature is an aesthetic activity. This theoretical basis had a profound impact on Chinese literary creation. Many Chinese literature, emotions, philosophy of life and other topics were better expressed in human emotions and inner world. 3. On the style and form of literary creation: Western literary theories emphasize the variety and innovation of art, and believe that different art forms should learn from each other and integrate. The influence of this style and form is also reflected in the creation of Chinese literature. Many Chinese literature can better express emotions and thoughts. Western literary theories have influenced Chinese literature in many ways. They have not only promoted the development and progress of Chinese literature, but also influenced the literary creation and aesthetic concept of Chinese literature.

The common characteristics of the 20th century Western traditional literature in terms of the theme of thought mainly included the following aspects: 1. Reflection on power and order: In the 20th century, western traditional literature generally paid attention to the problems of power and order. It deeply reflected on political, social and moral issues and discussed the nature of power, the relationship between power and the consequences of power abuse. 2. Exploration of human nature: In the 20th century, traditional western literature actively explored the issue of human nature, emphasizing human dignity and value, and explored the nature of human beings, human emotions, human behavior, human desires and other issues. The pursuit of freedom: the 20th century western traditional literature generally emphasized the importance of freedom, the definition of freedom, the value of freedom, the restrictions of freedom and other issues were deeply discussed to express the pursuit and yearning for freedom. 4. The importance of cultural variety: In the 20th century, Western traditional literature generally paid attention to the issue of cultural variety. It discussed cultural variety, cultural inheritance, cultural innovation and other issues, emphasizing the importance of respecting cultural variety. 5. The importance of humanitarianismThe 20th century Western traditional literature generally paid attention to the issue of humanitarianismThe definition of humanitarianismThe value of humanitarianismThe limitations of humanitarianismThe literature carried out a profound discussion to express the pursuit and yearning for humanitarianismThe western traditional literature in the 20th century paid close attention to the issue of humanitarianismThe western traditional literature in the 20th century paid close attention to humanitarianismThe western traditional literature in the 20th century paid close attention to humanitarianismThe western traditional literature in the 20th century paid close attention to the definition of humanitarianismThe western traditional literature in the 20th century paid close attention to humanitarianismThe western traditional literature expressed their pursuit and yearning for humanitarianismThe western traditional literature in the 20th century.

Since the 19th century, the literary achievements of Western Europe have been very significant. There have been many outstanding ones, and the following are some of them: 1 Victor Hugo: As one of the representatives of French romantic literature, Hugo's works cover poetry, novels, plays and many other literary forms. His most famous works include "Notre-Dame de Paris" and "Miserables". 2 Stephen King: As an American horror novel, Stephen King's works are based on horror and horror, including The Shawshank Redemption, The Shining, and so on. 3. George Orwell: As a British social critic, Orwell's works have dystopia as the theme, including 1984, Animal Manor, etc. 4 Margaret Atwood (Margaret Atwood): As an American, Atwood's works are based on feminism and racialism, including Gone with the Wind, Dream of the Red Chamber, etc. 5. William F. Buckley: As an American, Faulkner's works are based on science fiction and reasoning, including The Sound and the Fury, The Red Dragon, and so on. These works played an important role in Western European literature in the latter half of the 19th century, leaving a precious cultural heritage for future generations.

The 17th century literature was an important period in the history of European literature, also known as Baroque literature or decorative literature. The literary works of this period were usually gorgeous, exaggerated, rich in details, and decorative. Unlike classical literature, they paid more attention to expressing personal feelings and desires and emphasized social class and social status differences. The representative works of 17th century literature included the plays of Hamlet, King Lear, Macwhite, etc. by William shakespeare, the plays of Faust by Goethe, the literary works of Dickens, Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, etc., and Daniel Defoe's Crusoe. The 17th century literature had a profound influence on later generations of literature. Many works were adapted into movies, television dramas, music, paintings and other forms, becoming an important part of cultural heritage and culture.

American literature in the 19th and 20th centuries covered many different schools and some famous works are listed below: 19th century: - The Adventures of Tom sawyer by Mark Twain - Owen's The Jeff Bezos Story - Oliver Twist by Dickens - Jane Austen's Pride and Predict - The creator of the Harry Potter series, JK Rowling 20th century: - The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemmingway - Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury - Márquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude - Nabokov's Lolita - Maugham's The Moon and Sixpence - Lao She's Teahouse In addition to the works listed above, there are many other famous American literary works such as Ernest Hemmingway's The Sun Also Rises, Wilson's War and Peace, Calvino's One Hundred Years of Solitude, etc.