Lin Yu-tang and Theories on Modern Chinese Prose Modernity

The modernity of Chinese prose theories is,in one sense,an essential extension of modernity of modern Chinese culture.Foreshadowed by the revolution in literary circles in late Qing Dynasty,modern Chinese prose theories have derived their own conception of modernity during literary revolution of May Fourth Movement.Therefore,the subjectivity dominated by concept of human and modeled on values of human,individual and individual persons has become theoretic essence of modernity.Lin Yu-tang,a major advocator of prose modernity theories,has further clarified basic feature of prose modernity theories as starting point with self as center while leisureliness and as style,that is,guided by spirit of independence and freedom for literature upheld by subjectivity theory,leisureliness and comfort can be hailed as an aesthetic pursuit with an attempt to prevent cultural criticality enhanced by prose in cultural enlightenment movement from degenerating into practicality and instrumentality.