The modernity enlightenment of Chinese literature, as a process of practice, not only can be found throughout the history of Chinese modern literature, but also is an unfinished topic which involves different perspectives and contents.Enlightenment is the rational aspect of the modernity of Chinese literature and is an important approach to the realization of modernity. The modernity of Chinese New Literature, which is more labeled as the "national imagination" of "enlightenment" "seeking strength" and "salvation", is closely integrated with the modernization process of China's contemporary and modern society in a mutualsupport and mutualneed "nonconfrontational" way. The "aesthetic modernity" of the New Literature is consistent with the historical process of China's social modernization and becomes an effective component of the latter.
Originating from the enlightenment path of "brews during the late Qing Dynasty", the modernity enlightenment of New Literature, after China's encountering western modernity, entered the modern stage. By contrasting Chinese and Western cultures, a number of people with lofty ideals started the enlightenment which featured the overthrow of the monarchy and the vigorous development of science and democracy. With unprecedented momentum, the May Fourth New Culture Movement opened up the curtain of social ideological enlightenment of China, through which it tried to comprehensively transform the social culture and national psyche. The intention lay in the gradual realization of the nation's modernization, in which the country is prosperous and people are strong, featuring national salvation, selfimprovement, revitalization, etc. At the same time, the May Fourth New Culture Movement also pushed the New Literature to embark on the historic journey of pursuing and developing modernity.
The practice pattern of new literary creation is the important carrier of modernity of Chinese literature.It carries both the modern thought and the modern manifestation, which are interdependent, jointly bearing the task of modernity enlightenment and promoting the development of New Literature. Since the New Culture Movement, holding highly the banner of "literary revolution" in a mutative way, the leaders of Chinese modern literature have actively advocated and written the practical course of the development of Chinese literature modernity in such fields as the creation of the "new form" of modern novels, the new poetry traditional trials of modern poetry, the evolution of texts of modern proses, and the modern practice of modern dramas, etc.
In the practice of the criticism theory of New Literary, in the face of a series of specific problems encountered in the process of modernity enlightenment of Chinese literature, there appear two schools of problem criticism and aesthetic criticism.The problem criticism has a practical attribute of instrumental rationality. It directly confronts the practical problems in the process of social and historical development, and perseveres in the problem focus and the problem solving of the rational principle.Therefore it gradually becomes a kind of literary practice that occupies the dominant position in terms of modernity enlightenment, giving full play and exerting its infinite positive energy. Thus it constitutes a major driving force for the modern society progress. Aesthetic criticism is also a kind of theoretical practice relating to the modernity enlightenment of literature. It is more from the perspectives of the life meaning and life experience neglected by the question criticism or instrumental rationality.Mostly through the selfconsciousness, subjective spirit or spiritual experience of the criticizing subject to reflect the social life and to comment literature phenomena, and through the subject consciousness which has the characteristics of subjectivity and impression, it ushers the literature and literary criticism to a personal and aesthetic literary space filled with emotion and imagination. This emotional criticism forms and question criticism are both opposite and complementary to each other, which jointly construct the dynamic structure in the development process of modernity enlightenment of Chinese literature.
