Modern Chinese Literature, Lin Shu and the Reformist Movement

This Pivot reconsiders the controversial literary figure of Lin Shu and the debate surrounding his place in the history of Modern Chinese Literature. Although recent Chinese mainland research has recognized some of the innovations introduced by Lin Shu, he has often been labeled a 'rightist reformer' in contrast to 'leftist reformers' such as Chen Duxiu and the new wave scholars of the May Fourth Movement. This book provides a well-documented account of his place in the different polemics between these two circles ('conservatives' and 'reformers') and provides a more nuanced account of the different literary movements of the time. Notably, it argues that these differences were neither in content nor in politics, but in the methodological approach of both parties. Examining Lin Shu and the 'conservatives' advocated coexistence of both traditional and modern thought, the book provides background to the major changes occurring in the intellectual landscape of Modern China.

César Guarde-Paz holds a Ph.D. in Chinese Philosophy from the University of Barcelona, Spain. He is a Research Fellow at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Barcelona, in Spain, and was awarded a government scholarship in 2012 to continue his studies at Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou. His research interests include Early Confucianism, Late Qing and Early Republican Chinese Literature and Chinese Linguistics, but also Western Philosophy and notably the Prussian philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.