7/26 Vickey
The Concepts of Classicism and Romanticism By Chi, Ch’iu-lang
I. Definitions of romance and romanticism in the west.
A. The ideas of romance and romanticism in the west should basically involve “free, emotional, creative, individual and imaginative” essences.
1. Hobbes( 235): “The word romantic is air; it meaneth what quality we will.
2. August Wilhelm von Schlegel: It is the opposeit e of classical.
3. Lovejoy(236): Its ideas were “sometimes essentially antithetic to one another
in their implications.
4. Rene Wellek: It is a reply to this influential historian of ideas; to show that by
unity, sameness in the literal sense or literal identity exclusive of all
individuality.
5. Barzun: It is the urge to create a new world on the ruins of the old.
6. Mario Praz: It is an approximate term
7. Remak: It is a relativistic concept, appeals much more strongly to our common
sense.
B. Romanticism and classicism are relativistic concepts and approximate terms.(237)
C. The terms “classical (古典的) and romantic(浪漫的)” can also be applied to Chinese literature.
II. The term “classic (古典)” in Chinese work was originally the same as western’s which meant “writing of lasting value”, although it changed later.
A. West: The term “classical” refers to the literature of Greece and Rome(238)
B. Chinese: Classicism can be separated into three parts- old books, new prose and the decaying period.
1. Definition, ideas and the idea style(238)
a. Classic (古典) meant literally “an old book or writing of lasting value.”
b. Classicism is written for inspiration, study and imitation.
c. The ideal style is “classical grace”典雅; the classical ideas such as restraint, simplicity, balance, unity, proportion, objectivity, dignity and decorum. (238)
2. Three parts of Chinese Classicism
a. Old Books(238)
(1) Pre-Chin(先秦): classics of the philosophers such as Confuscian canon and poetry as Shih Ching(詩經), Ch’u Tz’u (楚辭)
(2) Han-Wei (漢魏), and Six Dynasties(六朝): the five word, old style verse(五言古詩)
(3) T’ang(唐): seven old style verse(七言古詩), new style verse(近體詩)
b. New prose(古文): the neoclassical movement in prose, to oppose 駢文 in Six Dynasties(六朝)
(1) T’ang(唐) p.239
[a] Han Yu(韓愈): Restore Confucianism to supremacy against the
influx of Buddhism and Taoism.( demands: 3 points)
[b] Liu Zongyuan(柳宗元): supports Han’s idea (2 points)
(2) Sung (宋): Ouyang xiu(歐陽修)
(3) Nanchao Liang(南朝梁): Hiu xie (劉勰)—tao is very similar to Pope’s concept of “Nature”, “the rules of old” (240)
3. Decay of classicism.(242)
a. Sung(宋): Ci (詞) in northern Sung period was rather romantic, and in
southern’s just became classical in practice.
b. Ming and Qing(明清): The authors just aped the past masters.
C. Conclusion: The idea of “classicism” in Chinese is quite different from the
west.
1. Chinese: insist upon the play of mind upon life
2. West: stress restraint at the expense of freedom.
III. The term “Romanticism” hadn’t been used in Chinese works before the introduction of western literary theory. However, there are still some general characteristics of romantic essence in Chinese works.
A. Definition
1. Saito Takeshi: an emotional longing fro the infinite; the rise of emotion and free spirit against the restriction of reason and rules; emphasis on individuality and imagination and an effort directed to the overthrow or departure from ,the restraints of classical norms. (243)
2. George Rowly: an assertive ego, an active emotion of revolt, a longing for the unusual, and a psychology of escapism; the assertion of creative freedom, the free play of imagination and originality; love of nature, passion of strange beauty. (244)
B. The chronological development of the concept of classicism in Chinese
literature can be separated into five parts-- Han (漢), Wei and Chin(魏晉), Tang(唐), Late Ming(晚明), and Contemporary Chinese.
1. Han (漢): Qu Yuan(屈原)’s Li Sao(離騷) [from Chu Ci (楚辭)] (244)
2. Wei and Chin(魏晉): naturalism and escapism. Escapism enhanced the
production of nature poetry. (245)
a. Lao Tzu (老子)and Chung Tzu (莊子): Taoist and Buddhist doctrines
b. Tao Qian (陶潛): Escapism brought the production of naturalism.
3. Tang(唐): naturalism and Zen, giving expression to their vital energy and their
intense emotion in extraordinary circumstances. (245)
a. Wang Wei (王維) and Meng Haoran (孟浩然) school: naturalists.
b. Li ai(李白): The most gifted, and the most representative of all Chinese
Romantic poets. He loves chivalry and the Taoist ways of living; being a
hedonist and iconoclast.
4. Late Ming(晚明):Wang Yangming(王陽明) disobeyed mechanical imitations and fettering rules in the neoclassical ideas. (247)
5.Contemporary Chinese: The Literary Revolution from Hu Shih(胡適)was to refuse to follow the past rules and its colloquialism.(247)
E. Conclusion: We can’t judge the contemporary Chinese literature as romanticism
just because of the influence of western literature. (248)
The Concepts of Classicism and Romanticism By Chi, Ch’iu-lang
I. Definitions of romance and romanticism in the west.
A. The ideas of romance and romanticism in the west should basically involve “free, emotional, creative, individual and imaginative” essences.
1. Hobbes( 235): “The word romantic is air; it meaneth what quality we will.
2. August Wilhelm von Schlegel: It is the opposeit e of classical.
3. Lovejoy(236): Its ideas were “sometimes essentially antithetic to one another
in their implications.
4. Rene Wellek: It is a reply to this influential historian of ideas; to show that by
unity, sameness in the literal sense or literal identity exclusive of all
individuality.
5. Barzun: It is the urge to create a new world on the ruins of the old.
6. Mario Praz: It is an approximate term
7. Remak: It is a relativistic concept, appeals much more strongly to our common
sense.
B. Romanticism and classicism are relativistic concepts and approximate terms.(237)
C. The terms “classical (古典的) and romantic(浪漫的)” can also be applied to Chinese literature.
II. The term “classic (古典)” in Chinese work was originally the same as western’s which meant “writing of lasting value”, although it changed later.
A. West: The term “classical” refers to the literature of Greece and Rome(238)
B. Chinese: Classicism can be separated into three parts- old books, new prose and the decaying period.
1. Definition, ideas and the idea style(238)
a. Classic (古典) meant literally “an old book or writing of lasting value.”
b. Classicism is written for inspiration, study and imitation.
c. The ideal style is “classical grace”典雅; the classical ideas such as restraint, simplicity, balance, unity, proportion, objectivity, dignity and decorum. (238)
2. Three parts of Chinese Classicism
a. Old Books(238)
(1) Pre-Chin(先秦): classics of the philosophers such as Confuscian canon and poetry as Shih Ching(詩經), Ch’u Tz’u (楚辭)
(2) Han-Wei (漢魏), and Six Dynasties(六朝): the five word, old style verse(五言古詩)
(3) T’ang(唐): seven old style verse(七言古詩), new style verse(近體詩)
b. New prose(古文): the neoclassical movement in prose, to oppose 駢文 in Six Dynasties(六朝)
(1) T’ang(唐) p.239
[a] Han Yu(韓愈): Restore Confucianism to supremacy against the
influx of Buddhism and Taoism.( demands: 3 points)
[b] Liu Zongyuan(柳宗元): supports Han’s idea (2 points)
(2) Sung (宋): Ouyang xiu(歐陽修)
(3) Nanchao Liang(南朝梁): Hiu xie (劉勰)—tao is very similar to Pope’s concept of “Nature”, “the rules of old” (240)
3. Decay of classicism.(242)
a. Sung(宋): Ci (詞) in northern Sung period was rather romantic, and in
southern’s just became classical in practice.
b. Ming and Qing(明清): The authors just aped the past masters.
C. Conclusion: The idea of “classicism” in Chinese is quite different from the
west.
1. Chinese: insist upon the play of mind upon life
2. West: stress restraint at the expense of freedom.
III. The term “Romanticism” hadn’t been used in Chinese works before the introduction of western literary theory. However, there are still some general characteristics of romantic essence in Chinese works.
A. Definition
1. Saito Takeshi: an emotional longing fro the infinite; the rise of emotion and free spirit against the restriction of reason and rules; emphasis on individuality and imagination and an effort directed to the overthrow or departure from ,the restraints of classical norms. (243)
2. George Rowly: an assertive ego, an active emotion of revolt, a longing for the unusual, and a psychology of escapism; the assertion of creative freedom, the free play of imagination and originality; love of nature, passion of strange beauty. (244)
B. The chronological development of the concept of classicism in Chinese
literature can be separated into five parts-- Han (漢), Wei and Chin(魏晉), Tang(唐), Late Ming(晚明), and Contemporary Chinese.
1. Han (漢): Qu Yuan(屈原)’s Li Sao(離騷) [from Chu Ci (楚辭)] (244)
2. Wei and Chin(魏晉): naturalism and escapism. Escapism enhanced the
production of nature poetry. (245)
a. Lao Tzu (老子)and Chung Tzu (莊子): Taoist and Buddhist doctrines
b. Tao Qian (陶潛): Escapism brought the production of naturalism.
3. Tang(唐): naturalism and Zen, giving expression to their vital energy and their
intense emotion in extraordinary circumstances. (245)
a. Wang Wei (王維) and Meng Haoran (孟浩然) school: naturalists.
b. Li ai(李白): The most gifted, and the most representative of all Chinese
Romantic poets. He loves chivalry and the Taoist ways of living; being a
hedonist and iconoclast.
4. Late Ming(晚明):Wang Yangming(王陽明) disobeyed mechanical imitations and fettering rules in the neoclassical ideas. (247)
5.Contemporary Chinese: The Literary Revolution from Hu Shih(胡適)was to refuse to follow the past rules and its colloquialism.(247)
E. Conclusion: We can’t judge the contemporary Chinese literature as romanticism
just because of the influence of western literature. (248)
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