Social Sciences in China

Vol. 35, No. 3, 2014

Three Paradigms in Lu Xun Research and Contemporary Value Options

(Abstract)

Zhang Fugui

Research on Lu Xun is never simply the analysis of an individual writer, but constitutes an understanding of the cultural attributes represented by Lu Xun himself and his writings. Likewise, the evaluation of research on Lu Xun is never a simple evaluation of academic history, but rather a social evaluation associated with the value orientations of those times. At present, with the return of academic logic and the growing tendency toward private research, a noteworthy divergence of standpoints and evaluations of Lu Xun research has emerged. At the same time, as a prominent discipline that has been over-interpreted, research on Lu Xun is demonstrating a tendency toward redundancy and triviality. Three fundamental paradigms are commonly employed in research on Lu Xun: historical research that attempts to explore historical materials; academic research that focuses on knowledge interpretation and aesthetic evaluation; and contemporary research that pursues the contemporary meaning and values of Lu Xun’s ideas. Each paradigm offers an insight into and understanding of Lu Xun’s rich and complex spiritual world; each presents a paradox of one kind or the other; and each performs different value functions.