Contemporary Foreign Languages Studies ›› 2022, Vol. 22 ›› Issue (2): 13-22.doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1674-8921.2022.02.002

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The “New” and “Old” in Foreign Literatures: Reflections on the Waves of the New Humanities

YIN Qiping()   

  • Online:2022-04-28 Published:2022-03-28

Abstract:

What are the implications of “the new humanities”? How should we evaluate novelty? What is implied by the word “cross” when we talk about “the new humanities”, which emphasizes crossing various boundaries of academic disciplines. In what way can “crossovers” be materialized? Invaluable inspirations can be drawn if we approach the origin and trend of “the new humanities” by inquiring into the above-mentioned questions. A clear line of history, which will help us reflect on the waves of “the new humanities”, can be traced from the consensus among the 18th century British literati through “the two cultures” to Terry Eagleton’s incisive judgment regarding the “new” and “old”. If we perceive the shoals and reefs hidden in the naming of “the new humanities”, we can perhaps reach a consensus, namely the recognition of pleasure as the way to “cross”.

Key words: the new humanities, implications, evaluation, pleasure, the way to “cross”

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