Chinese Journal of Literary Criticism

No.1, 2025 

Toward a New Form of Contemporary Chinese Literature—Taking the “Chinese Spirit” as a Perspective

(Abstract)

Wang Yichuan

To recognize and understand the “Chinese” identity or character in the development of contemporary Chinese literature, it is necessary to return to the concept of the “Chinese spirit” mentioned by General Secretary Xi Jinping in his speech at the Forum on Literary and Art ten years ago. From this perspective, we can observe a series of new changes and emerging forms in contemporary Chinese literature over the past decade. These include: The maturation of mental realism as a framework for the Sinicization of realism, the creation of a number of gentlemanly civilian figures, the shift in the portrayal of typical characters toward reconstruction, the emergence of a style that blends elements of tragedy and comedy, and the growing tendency for literature to guide the arts, while also being enriched and expanded by the arts, particularly through the intermingling of literature and film.