On October 15, 2014, the general secretary emphasized in his important speech at the symposium on literary and artistic work: "We must take Marxist literary and artistic theory as the guide, inherit and innovate the excellent heritage of ancient Chinese literary and artistic criticism theory, criticize and learn from modern Western literary and artistic theory, polish the 'sharp weapon' of criticism, take the steering wheel of literary and artistic criticism, use historical, people's, artistic, and aesthetic viewpoints to judge and appreciate works, dare to seek truth from facts in terms of artistic quality and level, and be sensitive to all kinds of bad literary and artistic works, phenomena, The trend of thought dares to express its attitude, dares to take a stand on major issues of right and wrong, advocates telling the truth and reasoning, and creates a good atmosphere for literary and artistic criticism. In this exposition, the general secretary clearly put forward the "historical, people, artistic, and aesthetic" criteria for literary and artistic criticism. These standards have always been contained in Marxist literary and artistic thought, and the general secretary extracted them, enriched and concretized them, which is not only the inheritance of Marxist literary and artistic criticism standards, but also the new development of Marxist literary and artistic criticism standards in the specific context of China in the new era, and it is necessary to study them in depth.
Historical standards.
The criterion of history requires us to respect history above all. Respecting history means respecting facts and not distorting history. In 2014, at the ceremony to commemorate the 77th anniversary of the outbreak of the National War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the general secretary of the ** General Secretary delivered an important speech pointing out that history is history, facts are facts, and it is impossible for anyone to change history and facts. Responsible literary and artistic workers should excavate and get as close to the historical truth as possible, and should not arbitrarily distort history and stay away from the historical truth. Respecting history also means understanding and grasping history from the viewpoint of historical materialism. "Deeply grasp the historical law of human development, draw wisdom from in-depth thinking about history, and move towards the future. "While expressing history, literature and art should grasp the laws of historical development, draw lessons from history, and promote the healthy development of society.
In addition to respecting history, the standard of history also requires that literary and artistic workers correctly reflect and lead the times. **The general secretary attaches great importance to the leading role of literature and art, emphasizing that "at every major historical juncture of human development, literature and art can be the forerunner of the times, the pioneer of society, and the precedent of wisdom, and become the forerunner of the changes of the times and social changes". The prophet of Chunjiang plumbing duck, literary and artistic workers live among the people, with their high sense of responsibility and keen perception, feel the pulse of the times, and reflect it vividly, so as to assume the responsibility of truly reflecting reality and leading the times. "It is impossible for writers and artists to completely restore the truth of history, but they have the responsibility to tell people the true history and the most valuable things in history. "Only in this way can we create excellent works that are in line with the direction of historical development and have historical depth.
** The "historical standard" put forward by the general secretary has its own relevance to the times. This kind of targeted subject is reflected in two aspects: one is the lack of cultural self-confidence, and the other is historical nothingness. China has a history of more than 5,000 years of civilization and rich cultural heritage. However, the development of modern China has indeed lagged behind, coupled with the criticism and reflection on traditional culture for more than 100 years since the end of the Qing Dynasty, there is indeed a lack of self-confidence in traditional culture. In response to this phenomenon, the general secretary put forward the issue of cultural self-confidence: "Cultural self-confidence is a more basic, broader and deeper self-confidence, and a more basic, deeper and more lasting force. Strengthening cultural self-confidence is a major issue related to the rise and fall of the country's fortunes, cultural security, and national spiritual independence. Without cultural self-confidence, it is impossible to write works with backbone, personality and spirit. "Historical nihilism is closely related to the lack of cultural self-confidence, and the general secretary has taken a clear stand against historical nihilism and demanded respect for history and a correct treatment of history. Only in this way can excellent literary and artistic works be created.
The people's standards.
From the perspective of historical materialism, the so-called history is the history of the people. History is created by the people and promoted by the people, and this is an unbreakable truth of Marxism. **The general secretary inherited and developed this tradition, clearly pointing out: "Originating from the people, for the people, and belonging to the people is the fundamental position of socialist literature and art, and it is also the driving force for the prosperity and development of socialist literature and art." He stressed: "All theories that are divorced from the people are pale and powerless, and all theories that do not benefit the people are lifeless." To uphold the people-oriented approach in literary and artistic criticism, it is necessary to put the "people" at the core of the criterion of criticism.
The "people's standard" of literary and artistic criticism in the new era can be understood from the following two aspects.
On the one hand, it adheres to the people-centered creative orientation. In 2014, the general secretary proposed to "adhere to the people-centered creative orientation" at the symposium on literary and artistic work; Since then, he has repeatedly emphasized this important assertion and systematically elaborated it under the general requirements. For example, under the title of "adhering to the people-centered creative orientation", the general secretary further elaborated on the three subheadings of "the people need literature and art", "literature and art need the people", and "literature and art must love the people". Through these expositions, he thoroughly expounded why literature and art should be "people-centered", how to "people-centered", and what characteristics and qualities should be "people-centered" literature and art, providing a clear direction and guide for literary and artistic activities in the new era.
To adhere to the people-centered creative orientation, we must regard the people as the main body of literary and artistic expression, and insist on literature and art to write for the people, express lyrics for the people, and express nostalgia for the people. "The people are the creators of history and the creators of the times. In the magnificent struggle of the people, the fiery chapters of creating history are dancing everywhere, and the convergence is a people's epic. And "all the literary and artistic works that caused a sensation at that time and passed on to future generations reflect the requirements of the times and the voice of the people." Only when literary and artistic works are based on the people and express the people's demands and aspirations, life and spirit, can they succeed and be passed on for a long time.
On the other hand, to adhere to the people-centered creative orientation, it is also necessary to regard serving the people as the duty of literary and artistic workers, and "regard the people as connoisseurs and judges of literary and artistic aesthetics." The people have always been the most authoritative judges of whether literary and artistic works are qualified. It is often said that literature and art must withstand the test of history and time, and the main body of this test is the people in the final analysis. To stand the test of the future, in the final analysis, is to stand the test of the people of the future. Therefore, in the final analysis, the people are the ultimate judges of literary and artistic works.
The "People's Standard" requires adherence to a creative approach rooted in the people. Literature and art take root among the people, and first of all, literary and artistic workers are required to go deep into the people and into their lives. Literary and artistic workers go deep into the people, "not only to 'enter the body', but also to 'enter the heart' and 'enter the feelings'". Literary and artistic workers "must go into the depths of life, understand the essence of life among the people, and thoroughly understand the essence of life." Only when life is chewed thoroughly and completely digested can it be turned into a profound plot and a moving image, and the created works can stir people's hearts", which is "immersion". The premise and key of "body entry" is "heart entry" and "emotional entry". It is necessary to consciously "put the people in the highest position in our hearts" and "consciously breathe with the people, share the same fate, be heart-to-heart, rejoice in the people's joys, and worry about the people's sorrows." Only by achieving the "three entrances" can literary and artistic workers truly go deep into the people, be familiar with the people, understand the people, and create literary and artistic works that the people affirm and love.
Literature and art take root among the people, and secondly, literary and artistic workers need to have the ability to refine life. Literary and artistic workers are familiar with and understand life, but they are unable to refine the touching people and things in life to form an image, so they still have not truly taken root in the people. Literary and artistic workers should be good at "starting from the most real life, discovering greatness from the ordinary, and discovering the sublime from simplicity, so as to deeply refine life, vividly express life, and show life in a panoramic way". To achieve this goal, a certain amount of artistic skills is required, and more importantly, it depends on the degree of effort of literary and artistic workers to truly take root in the people.
The standard of art.
Literary and artistic works must reflect the requirements of the times and the voice of the people, and must have their artistic and formal requirements. **The general secretary attaches great importance to the artistry of literary and artistic works. The report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China pointed out: "Material and spiritual prosperity are the fundamental requirements of socialist modernization. Material poverty is not socialism, and spiritual poverty is not socialism", and it is required to adhere to the "people-centered creative orientation, and launch more excellent works that enhance the spiritual strength of the people". * The general secretary pointed out: "The vast number of literary and artistic workers must have the artistic determination to 'sit on the bench for ten years', and have the persistent pursuit of 'not being shocking and dying', so that they can come up with masterpieces, masterpieces that have been handed down to the world, and works that are immortal." * The General Secretary's important exposition includes both ideological and artistic aspects, but the emphasis is still on art. "The persistent pursuit of 'not surprising words' is more of an artistic pursuit. Only by attaching importance to the artistry of literary and artistic works ideologically and striving for perfection in form can it be possible to create excellent works that are popular among the people.
**The artistic standards proposed by the general secretary have a clear realistic relevance. After entering the new era, China's economic development has entered a new stage, but the development of the commodity economy has also caused some drawbacks. Emphasizing the artistry and artistic standards of literary and artistic works is precisely to correct the problems of looking at money in art, plagiarism and imitation, uniformity, ridicule of the sublime, distortion of classics, subversion of history, shoddy production, kitsch conformity, detachment from the public, detachment from reality, and lack of emphasis on artistic quality in the commodity society.
In an important speech at the symposium on literary and artistic work, the general secretary pointed out: "The reason why high-quality products are 'fine' is that they are profound, artistic, and well-made. Luo Shugang, then Minister of Culture and Tourism, believed that "the 'Three Essences' pointed out a high degree of artistic standards, conveyed the correct value orientation, and emphasized the artistic realm." In a sense, the "three essences" can be used as the specific connotation of the art standard of literary and artistic criticism proposed by the general secretary.
The thought is profound, and it is more about the content. Thought itself has a certain form, and thought needs to be expressed through a certain form. From this point of view, profound thought itself also has a form, which is a matter of artistry. Whether or not the form of the thought itself can be well organized, and at the same time the thought can be expressed in the most appropriate form, is by no means something that can be solved by the thought itself, and will inevitably involve the problem of the art form.
Artistic virtuosity includes not only the art form, but also the artistic conception and artistic image. **The general secretary has a rich discussion on the artistry of literary and artistic works. He pointed out that classic works "contain a deep flow of spiritual world and a fresh and full true life through thematic connotation, character building, emotional construction, artistic conception creation, language rhetoric, etc., including the connotation of history, culture and human nature, and have the penetrating power of thought, aesthetic insight and formal creativity". He stressed that it is necessary to shape typical models and emphasize that literary and artistic works should reflect reality, and that "all valuable and meaningful literary and artistic creations and academic research should reflect and observe reality, and should be conducive to solving practical problems and answering practical topics." * These important expositions of the general secretary are rich in content, profound in insight, and cover a wide range of topics. From the representation of reality to the shaping of typical, from character shaping to language rhetoric, the external form, the inner artistic conception, and the fullness of life not only involve the specific requirements of artistic exquisiteness, but also point out the effective way to achieve artistic exquisiteness.
Well-made refers to the refinement of the material form of literary and artistic works. The material form of a work of art is not optional to a work of art, it is an important part of the process of creating a work of art. Whether the texture of the material form is good, whether the production is exquisite, and whether it is in harmony with the artistic image it carries will inevitably affect the quality of the work of art itself. This is particularly evident in non-verbal art works. Although the requirements for material form are lower for linguistic works of art, the material form is not insignificant. All these show that the material form of literary and artistic works is directly related to whether literary and artistic works are excellent or not. **The general secretary stressed that well-made products are very important for the creation of literary and artistic masterpieces.
Literary and artistic creation is arduous creative work. Cultivating a high level of art is not an overnight effort, but requires concentration, diligence, and long-term work. "The "Three Essences" literature and art are not achieved overnight, it requires the hard work and long-term accumulation of artists.
Aesthetic standards.
The standards of aesthetics are related to those of art, but there are also certain differences. The standard of art is mainly concerned with the formal aspect of art, while the standard of aesthetics is not only concerned with form, but also with content; The standard of art focuses on the formal level of art, and the standard of aesthetics focuses on the spiritual level of art. From the perspective of reality, the standards of art are mainly aimed at the phenomenon of "commercial standards" replacing "artistic standards" in the field of art, and the standards of aesthetics are mainly aimed at the phenomena of "ugliness as beauty" and "respect for foreigners" in the field of literature and art.
The scope of beauty is very wide, and it can be roughly divided into three aspects: artistic beauty, social beauty, and spiritual beauty. We can understand the aesthetic standards of the general secretary's literary criticism from these three aspects.
There is a certain intersection between artistic beauty and artistic standards, but each has a different emphasis. Artistic standards emphasize the artistry of literary and artistic works, and emphasize the delicacy and perfection of the form of works. Artistic beauty, as one of the aesthetic standards, focuses more on the harmony and perfection of content and form. The English critic Ruskin said that a maiden could sing of her lost love, but Scrooge could not sing of his lost treasure. Why? Because the former emotion is beautiful, but the latter emotion is ugly, art should express something beautiful. ** The general secretary pointed out: "All creative techniques and means are ultimately in the service of content, and they are all for a clearer, more unique, and more thorough way to tell people and reason." "Artistic beauty involves the relationship between content and form, between the work and the creator, and so on. Only by following the laws of beauty in these aspects can we reach the realm of art and create beautiful results.
Social beauty has a wide range of implications. In the social field, beauty is linked to truth and goodness, and things that are true and good are often beautiful, and beautiful things often have the characteristics of truth and goodness. This is because social beauty is not primarily a form of beauty, but a kind of content beauty, which involves specific social factors, specific people and things, and has a certain utilitarian nature. In this case, social beauty cannot be won by form alone, but must have a certain content, so social beauty cannot be separated from truth and goodness. **The general secretary attaches great importance to truth, goodness and beauty in the social field. He demanded that "the vast number of literary and artistic workers should improve their ability to read and live, be good at discovering beauty in subtle places, and see light in the shadows," and "we should persist in using light to dispel darkness and defeat falsehood, evil and ugliness with truth, goodness, and beauty that the people deeply hate." Only by seeing, excavating, extracting, extracting, and writing the truth, goodness and beauty from the intricate social phenomena can we create beautiful works.
Spiritual beauty refers to the beauty produced by people's ideology, spiritual realm, moral quality, emotional orientation, civilized etiquette and other subjective factors. Spiritual beauty is one of the important objects of beauty in literary works and one of the important objects of expression in literary works. For Chinese, the core of spiritual beauty is the core values of socialism. **The general secretary attaches great importance to the core values of socialism, and requires the majority of literary and artistic workers to "vividly and vividly embody the core values of socialism in literary and artistic creation, and use vivid images of works to tell people what should be affirmed and praised, and what must be opposed and denied, so that the spring breeze and rain can be moisturized silently." The core values of socialism include the three levels of the state, society, and citizens, and they must ultimately be implemented in the main consciousness of citizens. From this point of view, it is also an important connotation and importance of spiritual beauty. Practicing the core values of socialism, building a beautiful soul and expressing it in literary and artistic works is an inevitable requirement of aesthetic standards.
The standard of aesthetics also includes the inheritance and promotion of the spirit of Chinese aesthetics. ** The general secretary pointed out: "Chinese aesthetics emphasizes the support of things and words, allegorical feelings, conciseness and moderation, emphasis on both form and spirit, far-reaching artistic conception, emphasizing the unity of knowledge, feelings, intentions and deeds", stressing that "we must persist in not forgetting the original, absorbing foreigners, facing the future, transforming in inheritance, surpassing in learning, and creating more excellent works that reflect the essence of Chinese culture, reflect the aesthetic pursuit of Chinese, spread contemporary Chinese values, and conform to the trend of world progress, so that China's literature and art can be characterized by distinctive Chinese characteristics, Chinese style and Chinese style stand tall in the world. "The spirit of Chinese aesthetics has been formed and developed by the Chinese nation in its common life for thousands of years, and has become an important part of Chinese culture, Chinese literature and art, and the subjectivity of the Chinese nation. Expressing the spirit of Chinese aesthetics is conducive to consolidating and carrying forward the close ties between Chinese literature and art and the Chinese people, promoting and developing the aesthetic traditions, aesthetic pursuits and aesthetic tastes of Chinese literature and art and the Chinese nation, so that Chinese literature and art are in a leading position in the world's literature and art.
To inherit and carry forward the excellent traditional Chinese culture and aesthetic spirit, "we must conscientiously study and learn from the excellent literature and art created by the people of all countries in the world." Only by insisting on using the West for Chinese purposes, pioneering and innovating, and achieving the combination of Chinese and Western cultures, can China's literature and art develop and prosper better." "The past is for the present, the foreign is for China, dialectical trade-offs, pushing through the old to bring forth the new, abandoning negative factors, inheriting positive ideas" is the consistent principle of Chinese Marxist literary and artistic thought, and only by adhering to this principle can Chinese culture and Chinese literature and art develop healthily.
Author: Zhao Yanqiu, professor at the School of Liberal Arts, Hunan Normal University).
Review: Yin Shubo.
*: China Social Science Network-China Social Science Daily.