People's Daily (October 26, 2015, 12th edition)

"Online literature and art are full of vitality and have great potential for development. The "Opinions of the Central Committee on the Prosperity and Development of Socialist Literature and Art" was released a few days ago, which clearly proposed that it is necessary to vigorously develop online literature and art. This has encouraged many creators, enthusiasts and researchers of online literature.

Around the same time, a seminar on "Internet Literature from the Perspective of Culture" was held at Shandong Normal University. Topics such as "how to view online literature in the changing situation of literature", "the mainstreaming of online literature and its prospects", "online literature and technological progress", "existing problems in online literature", and "whether online literature can become an important force for the progress of the times" have become hot topics and focuses.

fiery

In East Asia, Chinese online literature has become a popular culture style on a par with Korean dramas and Japanese anime

"The prosperity of online literature is due to the convenience, speed and popularization of online media, the support of capital and the promotion of commercial writing mechanisms, as well as the support and correct orientation of the government. Professor Zhou Zhixiong, director of the Internet Literature Research Center of Shandong Normal University, said that this is in line with the people's pastime, entertainment and cultural needs in the process of China's rapid economic development, and in line with the requirements of the national cultural soft power development strategy.

Since 2004, Shanda has successively acquired literary websites such as Starting Point, Red Sleeves and Fragrance, Under the Banyan Tree, Jinjiang and **********. Since 2013, Tencent Literature, Baidu Literature, Ali Literature and other companies have been established one after another. The separation and combination of capital, the exodus and entry of the "great gods", and various evolutions, what remains unchanged is the ambition and ambition of the major commercial literary giants to build a three-dimensional commercial chain of online literature reading, publishing, film and television, games, and cultural products.

According to incomplete statistics, from 2011 to 2014, a total of 161 works of online literature were sold for film and television copyrights, and from 2012 to 2014, more than 50 works were converted into game products, and the output value of online literature is expected to exceed 7 billion yuan in 2015.

At the same time, online literature began to go abroad. Websites such as Qidian and Jinjiang Literature City have launched Chinese online novels to many Asian countries; "Ghost Blows the Lantern" and "Those Things in the Ming Dynasty" have been sold well in Japan, "The Flower of Xianxia: A Thousand Bone" has been sold out as soon as it was released in Thailand; Vietnam has introduced 617 varieties of Chinese online literature in the past five years; "Step by Step" has become a bestseller in South Korea; and the 3D online game "Zhu Xian" has been exported to many Asian countries and regions...... It can be said that China's online literature has become a unique literary landscape in the world, and has become a popular culture style in East Asia that can be compared with Korean TV dramas and Japanese anime.

"The rise of online literature has brought great changes to literature, which is beyond our imagination and experience. Bai Ye, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that online literature is not just a spontaneous writing with the Internet as a platform, but also builds many new literary relationships, such as literature and network media, literature and information technology, literature and industry, literature and capital, and so on.

"How to improve the quality of online literature itself, whether the 'reader's fantasy' created by commercial capital can create IP (intellectual property) that affects the world, and whether online literature can undertake the mission of cultural dissemination in a great era are the challenges to the development of online literature. Zhou Zhixiong said.

wary

Online literature is often criticized for following trends and similarities in order to cater to consumers, but in fact, these cruxes are also rejected by readers

Since the birth of online literature, questioning has never stopped. There are three points of criticism: first, the overall quality is low, and the mud and sand are all down, second, it is over-typical, and third, the relationship between the recipient and the creator is misplaced, and the phenomenon of patchwork plagiarism is serious. Sun Shuwen, a professor at Shandong Normal University, said that some scholars attributed it to the fact that science and technology have dissipated the humanistic nature of online literature and art, commercialization has corroded the transcendence of literature, and popularization has lowered the taste of art. This analysis is both reasonable and biased.

Many scholars have called for vigilance against the tendency of online literature to be commercialized and "co-opted". Some scholars have pointed out that the commercialization of online literature is an obstacle to its mainstreaming, and the "Frankfurt School" once believed that once literary works cater to the goal of consumption, they will lose their purity.

Ma Ji, deputy editor-in-chief of the Chinese Writers Network of the China Writers Association, said: "The above views should indeed be taken seriously, and there are a large number of follow-ups, similarities, and even plagiarism in online literature, which are all commercialized and worthy of vigilance." However, from the perspective of mass media, commerciality needs a certain amount of time to be relieved, and from the perspective of mass demand, the crux of the existence of online literature is basically rejected by the majority of readers. ”

"Online literature does have the weakness of being mixed with fish and dragons. Li Yeping, vice chairman of the Shandong Writers Association, said, "We should not avoid this, let alone directly shift the criticism paradigm of traditional literature to attack online literature with a rude attitude." We urgently need to establish an effective paradigm of online literary criticism to better promote the healthy development of online literature. ”

"How to get out of the traditional mindset and face the new literary style of online literature is an unavoidable topic. He Shaojun, a professor at Shenyang Normal University, said that the study of online literature from the thinking system of traditional literature has a certain validity, but it may obscure the new quality and characteristics of online literature.

With such an objective and rational attitude, there is a basic consensus on the discussion of the entry of online literature into history.

"Whether it is creative practice or reading practice, online novels will enter the history of contemporary Chinese literature. Tang Zhesheng, a professor at Soochow University, believes that as far as popular literature is concerned, the first period is ancient Chinese popular novels, the second period is modern Chinese popular novels, and online novels are the third period of popular literature, which is both consistent and innovative.

Expectations

Undertake the mission of creating a new Chinese discourse, telling a new Chinese story, and shaping a new image of China, and become a force for the progress of the times

The Mao Dun Literature Award is a national-level elite award, while online novels are popular literature. Is it possible for the two to collide with each other?

It is understood that in 2011, in the selection of the 8th Mao Dun Literature Award, there were 7 online novels to participate in the evaluation, and after 6 rounds of voting, 3 novels stood out from 178 works and entered the first round, they are "Wolf Smoke Everywhere", "From Breath to Voice" and "Qingguo".

In the selection of the 9th Mao Award in 2015, 5 online novels participated, which were submitted for review by websites such as , but no works passed the first round.

"Although the participating online novels may not represent the highest level of online literature today, it means that a national award has opened the door to online literature. Ouyang Youquan, a professor at Central South University, said.

"What the evaluation of the Mao Award requires is the perfect unity of ideology and artistry, to cut into the social and people's livelihood, to have historical responsibility and the warmth of human nature, and to have the refinement and innovation of artistic aesthetics, which may be difficult to achieve for a while for online literature. Ouyang Youquan believes that the strength of online literature is not in refinement, but in the market, in the readers, in the grassroots, and in the extensive participation. The comparison between the two shows their respective short and long.

"In order to win the hearts of the people and win the recognition of the majority of the people, any kind of literary and artistic style must stand the test of the times in terms of its values and aesthetics. Ma Ji said that the new mainstream literature must undertake the historical mission of creating a new Chinese discourse, telling a new Chinese story, and shaping a new image of China. This is exactly what people expect in the future of online literature.

Editor-in-chief Yang Chen said when talking about "the necessity of setting standards for online literature and the urgency of breaking the shackles", online literature could have walked on two legs, but now it has lame. At present, online literature is dominated by fantasy themes, and realistic themes are gradually declining. This has a lot to do with the lack and ambiguity of relevant standards, which leads to authors not daring to write, websites not daring to publish, and the more the main theme, the more they dare not touch it. Although the website has the will to support, it cannot really be effective. ”

At present, the state has formed a strategic thinking at the cultural level, "vigorously developing online literature and art", including support, guidance and management for the development of online literature. It is understood that in recent years, the Chinese Writers Association and other institutions have made certain explorations in the development of the online literature industry, the cultivation of writers, the research and promotion of works, and the training of practitioners. Zhejiang, Shanghai, Beijing, and other places have successively established online literature organizations. Peking University, Shandong Normal University and many other universities have successively set up academic research platforms for online literature.

"Online literature is an emerging social undertaking, and it requires the joint efforts of all parties to ensure its healthy growth and vigorous development. We are in the Internet era, and the prosperity and development of online literature and online literature will be an important force for the progress of the times. Ma Ji said.