Literature theory is a field of study that analyses and explains literary works. It usually involves the analysis of the historical, cultural, social, political, and other backgrounds of literary works, as well as the discussion of abstract concepts such as the theme, emotions, ideas, and values expressed in literary works. The purpose of literary theory is to provide readers with a deeper understanding and appreciation of literary works. Through the study of literary works, literary theory can help us better understand the development of human culture, explore the deep meaning of human thoughts and emotions, and reflect on the reality of society and human existence. The theory of literature involved not only academic research but also literary criticism and creative practice. In the study of literary theory, literary critics analyze and discuss literary works with the methods of analysis, induction and deduction. Through the study of literary theory, we can better understand the meaning and extension of literary works, and provide a deeper foundation and theoretical basis for the development and criticism of literature.
In the history of Chinese literary theory and criticism, the first literary theory book with a strict system was Wen Xin Diao Long.
Literature theory is a systematic theory that analyses and studies literary works. It aims to explore the laws and principles behind literary creation, as well as the theme, thoughts, emotions, and symbolic meanings expressed in literary works. Literature theory usually included the following aspects: The origin and history of literature: to explore the origin, development, evolution and changes of literature, as well as the characteristics and development trends of literature in different cultural backgrounds. 2. The genre and structure of literature: analyze various literary genres and structures such as novels, poems, plays, essays, etc., as well as their characteristics and basic structures. 3. The ideology and symbolic meaning of literature: to explore the ideology, emotion and symbolic meaning expressed by literary works, as well as the origin and meaning of these meanings. 4. Evaluation and appreciation of literature: analyze the value and evaluation of literary works, as well as the readers 'understanding and reaction to literary works. The role of literary theory in literary research is very important. It can help researchers better understand the meaning and extension of literary works and improve the scientific and systematic nature of literary research.
The first systematic work on literary and artistic theory in the West was written by the French philosopher Jean-Jacques Russell, the author of The Art Philosopher. This book was a summary of the history of human culture. He believed that art was a unique cultural phenomenon in human society and an important way to express emotions, thoughts, and values. The book put forward Russell's "naturalism" thought that art should reflect the essence of nature and human nature rather than cater to the needs of society.
China's first literary theory and commentary book was An Introduction to Literature. This book was written in 1924 by Professor Wang Guowei of Peking University and others. It was the first book in the history of Chinese literature that systematically elaborated on literary theory and criticism methods. The book systematically analyzed the origin, development, characteristics of literature and its relationship with other disciplines. It put forward many important theories and perspectives, which had a profound impact on Chinese literary research and literary creation.
The theory of literary essence pointed out that the essence of literature was the way to express human emotions and thoughts. Its purpose was to convey human emotions and thoughts through words. The essence of literature was an eternal art that was not limited by time, place, or cultural background. The theory of literary development refers to the historical development of literature as a process of constant evolution. Every era has its own literary tradition and literary form. The development of literature is related to the times, society, politics, culture and other factors, and is also influenced by the characteristics of literature itself. The development of literature was not isolated but intertwined with history, philosophy, art, and other fields.
The first systematic ancient literary theory work in China was Wen Xin Diao Long.
Modern literary theory refers to a kind of literary criticism and literary research model that rose from the early 20th century to World War II. It emphasized the relationship between literature and society, politics, and culture, emphasized the subjective nature and variety of literature, and opposed the central and scientific nature of traditional literary theory. The main representatives of modern literary theory included Germany's Max Weber, France's Francois Lefort, America's Faulkner, and England's Austin. These theories proposed a series of important ideas about the relationship between literature and society, politics and culture, such as the realism principle of literature, the fiction and symbolism of literature, the multiple interpretation and symbolic meaning of literary works, the audience groups and cultural background of literary works, etc. Modern literary theory had a profound influence on the later literary research and literary creation, which promoted the pluralization and specialization of literary criticism and the development of literary globe.
The significance of the existence of literary theory lies in the systematic and comprehensive study of literary creation to provide theoretical guidance and practical reference for literary creation. Literature theory can help us better understand the meaning and extension of literary works, analyze the thoughts, emotions, and artistic features of the works, and thus better appreciate and evaluate the works. Literature theory could also guide literary creation, provide ideas and directions for literary creation, and provide theoretical support for literary creation. For example, literary theory could guide the creation of distinct characters to express profound ideas. It can also help us better understand the development and evolution of literary history, and better understand the literary works of different periods and schools. Therefore, literary theory plays an important role in the study of literary history and is of great significance to the development and progress of literature.
Literature theory is a field of theoretical analysis and evaluation of literary works. It usually involves in-depth research on the text structure, language use, ideology, cultural significance, and other aspects of literary works. It also uses history, philosophy, psychology, and other disciplines to analyze. The goal of literary theory is to provide theoretical support and guidance for literary creation, and to evaluate the value and significance of literary works in order to promote the development and prosperity of literature. The research fields of literary theory include novels, poems, plays, essays, literary theory, and so on. The literary theorist usually uses various theories and analytical methods to study literary works, such as analyzing the structure, theme, plot, and characters of the works, discussing the meaning and extension of the works, comparing the differences and similarities between different literary works, criticizing and evaluating literary works, etc.
The theory of literature is a subject that studies the phenomena and laws of literature. It includes the analysis and discussion of the process of literary creation, literary works and their characteristics, as well as the exploration of the cultural, social, historical and other factors behind literary works. The development of literary theory can be traced back to ancient Greece, such as the "Republic" of Plato and the "Rhetoric" of aristotle. With the change of times, literary theory gradually evolved into a variety of disciplines, including literary criticism and literary history research. In the study of literary theory, classical literary works such as the plays of shakespeare, the epics of homer, the poetry of the renaissance, the music of baroque and romanticism were regarded as important research objects. At the same time, literary theory would also pay attention to contemporary literary phenomena such as modernism, post-modernism, literature in the era of globe, etc. The theory of literature is a broad subject that involves many fields such as language, philosophy, history, psychology, and so on. It provides important theoretical support and guidance for literary creation and literary research, and also helps us better understand culture and society.