Social Sciences in China (Chinese Edition)

No.5, 2021

“The Theory of Intention and Method:” The Starting Point for Setting off Anew in Chinese Literary Studies

(Abstract)

Zhang Bowei

“The theory of intention and method” is an important concept and critical method in traditional Chinese literary criticism. Although it appeared under the Ming and evolved in the early Qing from a theory of writing to a theory of criticism, its development had a solid foundation in the interpretation of Confucian and Buddhist classics and the perennial discussion of “methods” in the history of Chinese literary criticism. “Intention” in a work means the signified, and the “method” means the form carried by the signifier. Its purpose is that in terms of writing, the author should present the “intention” perfectly through the “method,” and in terms of criticism, the reader should grasp the signified from the signifier. But the “theory of intention and method” of the critical tradition is still at an incomplete stage. Only its basic principles have been established; its connotations and meanings await our continuing theoretical elaboration and practical improvement. Through an analysis oriented toward text, technique, and the humanist spirit, we attempt to blend the trinity of “theory, intention and method,” and establish a dynamic equilibrium in research practice that will enable it to withstand the tests and the challenges of the many critical models that have appeared from the 20th century on. The theory will thus be able to face squarely the manifold evils and shortcomings of today’s literary studies and will ultimately become a starting point for setting off anew in Chinese literary studies.