상해의 특수성과 상업적 근대문학의 조기출현 배경

Abstract

Modern social order is based on Capitalism. Even literature has been changed from the conventional type where production and consumption and distribution process was added. Now the profit pursuit became a very important thing in the literature. Therefore the modern literature system such as production->distribution->consumption was born. However, the traditional Chinese thinking that degraded profit and discriminated against the commerce acted adversely to the literature development. In particular this perception was generalized among the nobilities who should be responsible for the literature production and slowed down the modern system composition. However, several characteristics of the Shanghai region since modern times gave opportunities for the literature to be commercialized. First, the neighborhood of Shanghai had social experiences of commercialization even though it was not in full in Ming and Qing Dynasty directly and indirectly, because the region was governed by the nobles who were not cooperative ethnic dynasty. They experienced partial commercialization. Second, because of the political freedom and economic benefits that they could enjoy in the concession area, more people came to Shanghai. These new comers included nobles and merchants. Therefore there was a market for literature where the production and consumption of the literature might be available. Third, as foreigners and Chinese lived together in the same area, the critical thinking against the western culture was diluted and weakened. Therefore the people in Shanghai could open their mind to the foreign culture. As they introduced foreign cultures and printing industry developed further, literature came to be one of the member of the market.