Literary Master 1978

“…its rise is not only a reflection of the transformation of social thought in a special historical period, but also an urgent appeal from the bottom of people’s hearts for historical truth, human dignity and reflection on suffering.

After a decade of turmoil, writers began to face the pain of the past, touching those obscured and forgotten corners of history with their pens, and awakening people’s deep thinking about historical justice and social progress by revealing the scars of history and the tragic fate of individuals.

In many scar literature works, we see many common characteristics, most of which are in-depth exploration of the life changes and spiritual trauma of ordinary people under historical events, with Realism depicts people's confusion and pain, struggle and awakening under the current social changes, as well as their adherence to and pursuit of humanity, morality and truth.

It can be said that scar literature not only records the painful page of history, but also promotes the liberation of social thought and the diversified development of literature and art with its powerful critical power.

From these perspectives, the rise of scar literature has its inevitable historical reasons and mission..."

The sound diffused by the microphone echoed in the huge dining hall. Under the work of the diffuser, Lin Chaoyang's voice was slightly distorted, but it revealed a resounding certainty.

His analysis of the rise of scar literature can be said to be incisive and won the heartfelt recognition of many listeners in the dining hall.

Most of these listeners on the scene have experienced ten years of turmoil, and they naturally understand what scar literature means to ordinary readers.

"Don't look at this Xu Lingjun who looks average, I think he talks about scar literature better than Professor Han."

Under the rostrum, Wu Yingfang stared at the stage and whispered to Tao Yushu.

Her words were first derogatory and then praising, but in Tao Yushu's ears, he only heard the words "he looks average".

How can he look average? Are you good-looking?

"Alas! What a pity, if he really looks like Xu Lingjun, he would be perfect!" Wu Yingfang sighed again.

You are so beautiful, but it has nothing to do with you if he looks like Xu Lingjun.

Tao Yushu complained in his heart when his friend said it, and then persuaded himself.

Forget it, ignorance is not a crime.

Not far from the two, Wang Xiaoping and Cha Jianying also gathered together.

"He is quite eloquent." Cha Jianying said sourly.

"Didn't he just refuse an assignment from Today?"

"I didn't say anything."

Wang Xiaoping said contemptuously: "What he said is so good, all of which are true insights, don't always wear tinted glasses."

Cha Jianying was too lazy to argue with Wang Xiaoping. Wang Xiaoping always said that she admired Zhao Zhenkai, and wasn't she the same? My eyes almost pierced the stage.

Lin Chaoyang was giving a speech on the stage, and the students below would occasionally communicate with their classmates and friends around them, verifying each other's ideas and opinions on the content of the speech.

When the speech entered the middle, no one noticed that a middle-aged man with a kind face walked into the dining hall.

Liu Xinwu felt a black screen as soon as he entered the door. Because too many people were crammed in, the air in the dining hall was turbid, and it was mixed with all kinds of sweat and body odor, which was hard to describe.

But at this moment, everyone's energy was deeply attracted by the speaker on the stage, and they were not distracted.

Liu Xinwu didn't expect Lin Chaoyang's speech to be so popular. Then he thought of the scenes of himself going to various places to participate in activities over the past year. In fact, it was similar to today. This is the magic of scar literature.

Yesterday he just finished reading Lin Chaoyang's newly published novella "Little Shoes". This story was told by Lin Chaoyang himself when he asked Lin Chaoyang to write the manuscript.

Facts have proved that words are far more moving than oral narration.

He shed tears several times while reading the novel, but he didn't think the text was overly sentimental.

He is engaged in writing work, and he can clearly see that Lin Chaoyang has maintained great restraint in dealing with the plot and characters.

But as a reader, Liu Xinwu still couldn't help but feel emotional when reading it, which can only show that the quality of this novel itself is outstanding.

Its freshness and timelessness make people unforgettable, and its positive sunshine makes people feel warm.

The fresh and unconventional style of "Little Shoes" is unique in the Chinese literary world.

Although he felt that Lin Chaoyang's work must be right at the beginning, Liu Xinwu still fell into a state of regret after reading the novel.

If he had known that the finished product was so outstanding, he would have pulled this novel over no matter what.

Liu Xinwu recalled the scene in his mind when Lin Chaoyang asked him to increase the price at that time, and he couldn't help but have an idea in his mind.

If I really raised the price for him at that time, maybe he would really give this novel to "October".

That was just a reason for others to refuse, how can I take it seriously?

With a wry smile, Liu Xinwu threw away the unrealistic thoughts in his mind and focused on the speech. Although he could not see the situation in front of him clearly, he could hear the voice clearly.

He also became famous in the literary world for scar literature. He wanted to hear what scar literature in Lin Chaoyang's mind was like.

"... As I said before, the rise of scar literature is largely in response to the call of the times and the change of social atmosphere.

In December last year, the country just made the decision to reform and open up. We should see that the country is entering a new historical stage.

With the passage of time and the changes in the social environment, the soil on which scar literature originally relied for survival is disintegrating, and its creative themes and forms of expression are also facing transformation pressure.

In this regard, the emergence of reflective literature is the best evidence.

We have to see that changes in the social environment have made it no longer possible to simply expose scars and accuse history of meeting the deep cultural needs of readers; on the other hand, with the deepening of economic reform, the literary world is also beginning to turn to a broader focus areas and problems of social life.

From my humble understanding, scar literature is a product of a specific historical stage, and its spiritual core and humanistic care are self-evident to Chinese literature.

But we have to admit that many of its literary concepts and creative techniques have great limitations. I think it is inevitable that scar literature will gradually fade out of mainstream literature in the near future.

Its prosperity is also booming, and its demise is also sudden.

The rise of scar literature is accompanied by the pain, cry and reflection of a generation, so its decline will inevitably be accompanied by the growth, development and confusion of a generation..."

Lin Chaoyang's talk about the decline of scar literature is not a prophetic prediction. In fact, many knowledgeable people in the literary world have already realized the shortcomings and limitations of scar literature.

It’s just that the surge of scar literature in the past two years has been too overwhelming, setting off the most spectacular cultural phenomenon since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in the mainstream literary world, causing many people’s rational voices to be drowned in the blooming flowers.

When Lin Chaoyang entered the second half of his speech, in which he would elaborate on the inevitable decline of scar literature, some subtle changes occurred in the atmosphere in the dining room.

A low but harsh buzz gradually rose up in the originally quiet venue. In the second half of the discussion, Lin Chaoyang categorically stated the inevitable decline of scar literature, and this buzz reached its peak.

Many students present showed dissatisfaction and seemed to disagree with Lin Chaoyang's views. But more people looked thoughtful, wondering whether the content of Lin Chaoyang's speech was worthy of scrutiny.

Lin Chaoyang did not care about the voices in the audience. He stood firmly on the stage, his face was like a flat lake, and he stated calmly.

"Zhenkai, do you think his analysis is correct?" Mangke looked at his friend beside him.

Zhao Zhenkai looked serious and said, "There is a certain truth. In the final analysis, scar literature is a product of the times, but his conclusion is a bit arbitrary. Since ancient times, which genre of poetry, lyrics, and poetry has not dominated an era? Although it declined in the end, those classics Isn’t his work praised by future generations?”

Mangke reminded: "That's why he said decline, not destruction!"

Being reminded by his friend, Zhao Zhenkai laughed and said, "I almost fell into a misunderstanding of my own thinking. Indeed, if he follows this line of thinking, his idea is not wrong."

When the two of them were talking, no one noticed that an old man with a broad forehead was listening to their conversation.

After listening to what the two people said, the old man smiled slightly and looked at the young man on the stage, full of appreciation but also hiding a bit of pride.

“The emergence of scar literature tells us that literature cannot avoid the scars of history. Only by facing and reflecting on the scars of the past can we better heal and move forward.

But at the same time, it is not advisable to dwell on the sufferings of the past and feel sorry for yourself.

Literature is a very broad concept. When we smartly add a qualifier in front of it, it also means that we have put shackles on ourselves.

Literature is the crystallization of human spiritual civilization. It should expose the darkness and praise the noble. History and times will not stop and wait because of personal will. Our creators' perspective should not be fixed in a certain corner, but should record and reflect from the height of history, so as to provide future generations with a way to understand Chinese culture and Historical platform. "

At this point in his speech, Lin Chaoyang paused and glanced around the audience with a smile on his face.

"The above are some of my personal thoughts and brief analysis on scar literature. Thank you all for listening."

After he said this, he put the microphone back on the table, and the audience burst into applause.

There were a conservative estimate of two thousand people in the large dining room today. Even if some of them did not agree with Lin Chaoyang's ideas, it did not prevent most people from applauding with appreciation and admiration.

The tsunami-like applause lasted for more than a minute, and shouts from some enthusiastic audiences came from time to time. Lin Chaoyang bowed to the audience several times to express his gratitude.

Judging from the audience's reaction, this was undoubtedly a very successful speech.

After a while, Zhang Youhua, who was in charge of the show, came on stage to guide readers to ask questions.

He pointed to a frail young man in the front row. This man looked frail, but he asked questions in a very aggressive tone.

"Comrade Xu Lingjun, you just mentioned that scar literature has limitations of specific eras and groups of people. I have some different views on this.

Looking at the literary works at home and abroad in ancient and modern times, which work does not have the imprint of that era?

Which work doesn’t have what you call limitations?

My opinion is exactly the opposite of yours. Although scar literature has only been around for two or three years, it is still developing and changing.

With the iteration of creative content, it is possible to expand its own boundaries and accommodate all kinds of diversity. After continuous screening over time, in the end, a large number of classic works will inevitably be left behind to be passed down to future generations! "

The frail young man objected to Lin Chaoyang's views eloquently, and after talking about his own thoughts, he looked at Lin Chaoyang with burning eyes, as if waiting for his counterattack.

Lin Chaoyang was not impatient because of the aggression shown by the weak young man. He looked calm and pondered for a moment.

"This classmate is right. Any literary genre or subject matter may undergo fission under the impetus of time. I agree with what you said. Scar literature is likely to continue to develop and continue to embrace all rivers.

But..."

At this point, a smile appeared on his face, "If this is the case, we can remove the word 'scars', wouldn't it be better?"

Remove "scars", isn't it "literature"?

The weak young man was slightly stunned, and then understood what Lin Chaoyang meant.

Literature is all rivers, why do we need scar literature to pull a big cart?

Under literature, it is a bit far-fetched to force scar literature to be all-inclusive.

At this time, the audience below also understood what Lin Chaoyang meant, and a burst of laughter broke out in the dining hall.

The weak young man wanted to fight back unwillingly, but Zhang Youhua pointed to a female student who raised her hand the highest in the crowd.

"Xu...Hello, Comrade Lin Chaoyang. I am from the Philosophy Department of Renmin University. I just finished reading your Little Shoes two days ago. The novel is very well written, but I have a question about the concept revealed in the novel.

In your novel, it seems that you trust human nature too much, especially the rural society, which seems to be always warm and affectionate.

But based on my life experience, the fact does not seem to be so.

When we look at the works of Chinese writers after the May Fourth Movement, including those of Mark Twain, Faulkner, Dickens, and Hugo, they are all full of touching and profound ideas.

In comparison, works such as Little Shoes seem to be a bit thin in the core of thought."

The girl's tone was not as strong as the weak boy just now, but the content was very sharp. In one sentence, she pointed out the most criticized part of the novel Little Shoes by contemporary readers.

The readers of their generation grew up reading Lu Xun and Ba Jin, and they firmly believe in the evil of human nature and the inferiority of human beings. The warmth and sunshine shown in Little Shoes are incompatible with the development direction of Chinese literature in recent decades.

"The creation of writers is based on personal life experience. If you were Xiangzi, you might find it difficult to understand Tagore's state of mind when he wrote Stray Birds.

The core of Little Shoes is positive and sunny. Such stories may not be common in real life, but they are definitely not absent. Just like when you look at Kong Yiji, you know that there must be such people in the world, but not all people are like this.

Whether it is Eastern literature or Western literature, there are works that focus on describing human nature and exposing darkness, and there should also be works that pursue light and praise truth, goodness and beauty."

When Lin Chaoyang said this, the girl's expression seemed dissatisfied and she was about to open her mouth to refute.

At this time, Lin Chaoyang said: "In fact, the world is so big, there are more than just the east and the west. The same is true for literature."

As soon as these words came out, the pattern was fully revealed.

The audience applauded!