Communications in Humanities Research ISSN: 2753-7072
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Research Article

“Disinterested” and Critical: A Comparative Study of the Social Implications of Miu Fenglin and Matthew Arnold’s Literary Thinking

Shenhao BaiSchool of Arts and Humanities, Royal College of Art, London, SW11 4AY, United Kingdom*

* Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

According to previous scholarship, China’s Xueheng literary school in the early 20th century is an antagonist to the then prevalent New Culture Movement as the former is claimed to insist on a conservation of traditional thoughts. Matthew Arnold’s thinking is a major source of one representative figure of the Xueheng school, Miu Fenglin. A comparative analysis of the literary thinking of Matthew Arnold and Miu Fenglin suggests that both thinkers have actually shed light on how literature should be relevant to its time and transcend it with a pursuit of truth. With references to the thinkers’ respective social backgrounds, the paper contends that their literary thoughts offer critical perspectives into the societies. By bringing in the cases of Miu Fenglin and Matthew Arnold, the paper also intends to further the discussion of the role of literature in the society.

Keywords: Matthew Arnold; Miu Fenglin; function of literature; modern China
Published: February 28, 2023
DOI: 10.54254/2753-7064/2/20220644
Volume: CHR Vol.2
pp. 218-224
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