A Critical History of Contemporary Chinese Fiction

This book studies the history of contemporary Chinese fiction criticism, highlighting the role of critics in shaping contemporary literary history. The author divides the history of contemporary Chinese fiction criticism into three periods: 1949-1976, 1977-1991, and 1992-2015. The first period saw the emergence of the circle of critics who insisted on judging literary works by political standards. The second period brought the rise of the Beijing Critics' Circle and the Shanghai Critics' Circle. The former advocated "artistic standards" in judging works, while the latter introduced contemporary Western literary theories into literary criticism. The third period marked the emergence of "Scholarly Criticism," "Criticism of Women's Fiction," and "Post-1960s Fiction Criticism," reflecting critics' attitudes toward history and philosophy. Drawing on historical materials, this study illuminates contemporary literary trends and the contributions of key writers and critics. It also relates literary criticism to the social environment, underlining the simultaneous relationship between contemporary fiction criticism and social ideology. This book will be invaluable to scholars and students of Chinese literature and literary criticism, especially those interested in the diverse landscape of contemporary Chinese culture.

Cheng Guangwei is a professor at Renmin University of China and currently serves as the Vice President of the China Contemporary Literature Research Association. His research primarily focuses on the study of contemporary Chinese literary history.

1. Introduction: "Critics Circles" in Contemporary Chinese Literature Part 1: Redraw the Map of Times (1949-1976) 2. The Intention of Fiction Criticism 3. The Rise and Fall of the Criticism on Zhao Shuli 4. Rural Fiction 5. Revolutionary War Fiction 6. Other Subgenres of Fiction 7. The Dalian Conference and the "Theory of Middle Character" 8. Fiction Criticism during the Cultural Revolution Part 2: Swirl of History (1977-1991) 9. Fiction Criticism during the New Period 10. The Critics during the Exploratory Craze of Fiction Part 3: Move Forward with Adjustment (1992-2018) 11. Fiction Criticism during the Social Transformations in the 1990s 12. Literary Criticism in the 1990s 13. Criticism on Full-Length Novels 14. Fiction Criticism since the Start of the 21st Century