On October 22, The Power of Literature: The 5th Beijing Literature Summit Forum was held at Beijing Fun at the Zhengyang Gate. Sponsored by Beijing Federation of Literature and Art and Beijing Publishing Group and organized by Beijing Writers Association and Beijing October Literature and Art Publishing House, it is one of the core activities of Beijing October Literature Month. Leaders presenting at the forum included: Wang Yefei, deputy head of the Publicity Department of the Beijing Municipal Party Committee and director of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Press and Publication; Chen Ning, party secretary and executive chairman of Beijing Federation of Literature and Art; Liu Kaiyang, member of the Party Committee and vice chairman of Beijing Federation of Literature and Art; Qu Zhong, general manager of Beijing Publishing Group and dean of the October Literature Institute, etc. Renowned writers and critics attending the event included Chen Jiangong, Cao Wenxuan, He Shaojun, Li Er, Zhang Qinghua, Ning Ken, Chen Fumin, Shi Yifeng, Fu Xiuying, Liu Daxian, and etc. At the forum the participants conducted in-depth discussions on three themes: the time-honored cultural heritage: a review of literary peaks; Beijing literature and its brilliant achievements; and follow the tradition and forge ahead: the future-oriented classic works. The discussions aimed to pay respects to the classics, carry on the past traditions and forge ahead, perceive the power of literature, create a group image of Beijing writers in a new era, and promote a new peak of literary creation in Beijing.

The forum was hosted by He Shaojun, a well-known critic, director of Beijing Writers Association, vice president of the Chinese Contemporary Literature Research Association, and winner of the Lu Xun Literature Award.

The time-honored cultural heritage: a review of literary peaks

The famous writer Cao Wenxuan drew on Mr. Wang Zengqi's creative techniques and put forward his understanding of "the nourishment of ancient literature to contemporary literature” from the perspectives of the genre painting description, the aesthetic view of “being sentimental but not distressing”, the aesthetic perception of delicate beauty, narration attitudes etc. Cao Wenxuan is a professor of the Department of Chinese Language and Literature of Peking University, vice chairman of Beijing Writers Association, member of Chinese Writers Association, and winner of Hans Christian Andersen Award. He also put forward that contemporary Chinese writers, who are nourished by the Chinese literary tradition lasting several thousand years, had the responsibility to create the premium spiritual wealth for mankind together with writers all

Li Er, a well-known writer, deputy curator of National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature and winner of the Mao Dun Literature Prize, cited the phenomenon that A Dream of Red Mansions, which used to be regarded as “lacking literary value”, was gradually recognized as a classic work. Begin with this pointcut, he compared this masterpiece with western classic literary works and carried an in-depth interpretation of the canonization process of A Dream of Red Mansions. He believed that "the inheritance of classics is actually in the process of continuous creation. Cultural exchanges between China and the West must be based on a broader understanding and recognition of world’s culture, so that the intrinsic value of our classics can be continuously manifested."

Zhang Qinghua, a well-known critic, professor of the School of Chinese Language and Literature of Beijing Normal University and executive director of the International Writing Center, started with "Zheng Feng•Wild Grass" in the Book of Songs. He expounded on the influence of traditional Chinese literature on poetry since modern times. He mentioned that there had been a resurgence of traditional charm in the works of modern poets such as Li Jinfa and Dai Wangshu. The traditional elements were also found in the poems of Yu Guangzhong and Zheng Chouyu in themes, artistic conceptions, words, tastes, techniques, and etc. Among contemporary poets, Ouyang Jianghe, Xi Chuan, Zhang Zao engage in interactive writing with traditional poetry by using intertextuality, embedding, derivation and other methods.

Beijing literature and its brilliant achievements