The Promotion and Development of May 4th New Literature by Anti-Japanese War Literature

Rather than impeding literary progress, Anti-Japanese War literature played a crucial role in guiding May 4th New Literature to overcome its inherent predicaments and thereby advance its development. Through extending the May 4th literary value"discovery of the individual" to a higher stage of the "development of the individual, " Anti- Japanese War literature contributed to the formation of a new, action-oriented social and historical subject in modern China-one that not only "bears responsibility" but also possesses the capacity to create its own renewal. Furthermore, the internal dilemma of the nationalist Enlightenment movement, which had sought to "awaken the people's intellect" from the late Qing through the May 4th period yet remained unresolved, found a new solution through the emphasis on "discovery of the masses"in Anti-Japanese War literature. Moreover, the scientism vigorously advocated during the May 4th period but never fully realized, finally acquired its historical form within Anti-Japanese War literature, and became an intrinsic element of New Literature itself.