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1、A Tentative Study of the Multiple Standard of Literary Criticism【Abstract】ThepaperoffersamultiplestandardofliterarycriticismafterageneralintroductionofthemaintrendsinwesternliterarycriticismfromPlato,Aristotle,HoracetoHaroldBloomsAnxietyofInfluence.【Keywords】literarycriticism;Horace;Longinus;Thestud
2、yandresearchconcerningwithliterarycriticismhasoccupiedgenerationsofwritersandcriticsalike;differentapproacheshavebeenadopted,oldtermsprunedandnewonescoined,yetthereisnoconsensusmade.Tobeabletorecitethesetermsisfarfromenoughtobecountedasknowingliteratureorliterarycriticism.Besides,thehugeamountofterm
3、srequiresanexcessdegreeofperusalanderudition.Someoftheseareparadoxicalandself-contradictoryandothersmightloadtheirtheorieswithseeminglyirrelevantideasandnever-endingconclusions.WhatIamtryingtomakehereisabriefintroductiontosomeofthebasicideasalmostallliterarycriticismaregrapplingwith,beitGreekschoolo
4、rRenaissance,NewCriticismorCulturalPoetics.Andthentheconclusionisthattointerpretworksofliterature,wemustdelveintoasmanytheoriesaspossibletofindasmanymeaningsaspossible,henceamultiplestandardofliterarycriticism.Tobeginwith,wehavetostandinfrontofPlato,aseveryotherliterarypeopledid,tojustifyourselvesin
5、ordernottogetkickedoutofthelandwenowlive.AlthoughPlatohascursedthepoetsasthriceremovedawayfromtruthandthattheirworksareunsuitableandruinoustothehearers,healsomadehisduecontributiontotheliteraryworld,i.e.allliteraryworksareimitation.Hisgreatpupil,Aristotletookitscueandproducedthefirstsystematicanalys
6、isofliterarygenres.Herankedliteraturehigherthanhistorywhenheclaimedthat“probableimpossibilitiesaretobepreferredtoimprobablepossibilitiesand“aconvincingimpossibilityispreferabletoanunconvincingpossibility.Poetry,therefore,isahigherthingthanhistory,forpoetswriteofwhatcouldhappenaccordingtothelawofprob
7、abilitytoexpresstheuniversal,whilehistoryonlydealwiththeparticular.Afterbequeathedsuchahighhonor,latercriticsdevotedthemselvestounveilingwhatsspecialaboutliteraturetojustifyitshighrank.Hencewecometothepurposeofliterature.Horaceisthefirsttospeakofliteraturesultimateaimas“tobesweetanduseful.Thebestwri
8、tings,heargues,bothteachanddelight.RobertFrosthastoadmithisindebtednesstoHoracewhenhesaidpoetryshouldfirstentertain,andthenenlighten.Horacealsodefinedsomecharacteristicsofgoodwriter.Hisdecorumprinciplereferstothe“fittingnessofdictionandstyle.InHoracesthinking,toomuchoriginalityisundesirable,andthe“m
9、adpoetisheldupforderision.Astothemaximofimitation,Horacestatesthatapartfromimitatingnature,weshouldalsoimitateotherpoets,whichIthinkofferssomeinspirationwhenT.S.Eliotstartstowritehis“TraditionandtheIndividualTalent.Tainealsoassertsthat“notextiswritteninavacuum,butisinsteadtheresultofitshistory.Thewr
10、iterssincethenbasicallyagreewiththatexcepttheschoolof“artforartssake,whodenouncedthedidacticismofliteratureandembracedtheideathatarthasnothingtodowithmoralsorethics.OscarWildeevenpraisesevilcharactersinliteraryworksbecausetheystandforcolor,changeandcuriosityfromanartisticpointofview.Whilebenevolentp
11、eopleonlyappealstoourreason;eviloneswillinstigateourimagination.Butheisgoingsofarinseparatingtheformandcontentanddismissingthecontentashavinnouseatall.ThenwhatisitaboutliteraturethatmakesWildesoconfidentoftheindependenceofartwithoutanyotherornaments?TheanswercanbefoundinLonginusworkOnSublimity.Longi
12、nusmainlydealswithelevatedorgrandlanguagethataffectstheaudiencetoecstasyorrapture.Theeffectofelevatedlanguageis“nottopersuadethehearers,buttoentrancethem.Whattransportsuswithwonderismoretellingthatwhatmerelypersuadesorgratifiesus.Heconsidersgrandeuraccompaniedbyafewflawsclearlysuperiortomediocrecorr
13、ectness.SoLonginusinawayencouragesthewritersofAestheticismandintuitionismtowriteunreasonablyandself-consciouslytoimpressreadersbytheiraudacity.Moreover,Longinusisthefirstcriticevertotakethereadersresponseintoconsideration.Heappealedtothesympatheticintrospectionofhisreaderswhilecomposing.Thisideaofhi
14、ghtasteandsublimethinkinghasitsinfluencerevealedinthewritingofRussianformalistsaswellasMathewArnold.The“highseriousnessadvocatedbyArnoldisthemostimportantcriteriontojudgeanypoetry.ForArnold,poetry,otherthanreligion,science,orphilosophy,ishumankindscrowningactivity.Henotes,“Moreandmorehumankindwilldi
15、scoverthatwehavetoturntopoetrytointerpretlifeforus,toconsoleus,tosustainus.VictorShklovskyexpressedthesameideawhenhesaid,“artisawayofexpressingtheartfulnessofanobject;theobjectisnotimportant.Sofarwevelookedatseveralfundamentalliteraryideasinhistory;someoftheirideasoverlapeachotherandsomeareinconflic
16、t.Thereasoniswhatwecall“anxietyofinfluence,whichreferstoapoetssenseofthecrushingweightofpoetictraditionwhichhehastoresistandchallengeinordertomakeroomforhisownoriginalvision.Thefeelingwehavefortheworksofourpredecessorsisoneofadmirationandawe-stricken.Itseemsthattheyhaveexpressedwhatthereistosay,leavingusnothingtosay.ItrepresentsthedevelopmentofpoetictraditionasamasculinebattleofwillsmodeledonFreudsconceptoftheOedipuscomplex:the“belatedpoetfearstheemasculatingdominan