Traditional literary criticism is losing its position in the age of social networks.

The scientific conference “Theory and criticism of Vietnamese literature from the 1986 Renovation to the present: Current status and development orientation” organized by the Institute of Literature (Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences) on October 29, in Hanoi, raised many concerns about reading culture and the role of criticism in the era of social networks.

Scene of the scientific conference "Theory and criticism of Vietnamese literature from the 1986 Renovation to the present: Current status and development orientation"

At the conference, Professor Phong Le raised a thought-provoking reality: While literary criticism is at its most professional, creative life is at its most chaotic. Countless competitions have been held, countless poems, stories, novels, criticisms, essays, etc. have been printed. Many are printed, but how many reach the readers?

According to him, reading culture currently exists in fierce competition with listening, viewing and social media culture. “Maybe we will have to get used to the fact that many young people spend millions of dong to watch performances by “stars” but hesitate to spend 50,000 dong to buy a book,” he said.

Professor Phong Le believes that reading culture is facing fierce competition with listening, viewing and social media culture. People are now abandoning pen and paper to access the “flat world ” through the keyboard, causing the culture of criticism in the classical sense to gradually narrow. He believes that the reason is not because critics lack talent or poor writing, but because the young generation of writers has many channels to reach the public quickly and widely thanks to technology and online media. “If criticism no longer plays the guiding role as before, it must change to adapt, becoming a close friendship between writers and readers,” Professor Phong Le affirmed.

Dr. Dang Xuan Thanh, Vice President of the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, affirmed that theory and criticism are still important parts that accompany creation and the public, contributing to orienting ideology, aesthetics and building a social spiritual foundation. However, he said that in order not to fall behind, researchers and critics need to proactively apply digital technology , expand academic space, promote dialogue and connect with contemporary life.

Dr. Vu Thi Thu Ha, Head of the research project, emphasized the need to “re-establish the relationship between theory, criticism, creation and the public” in the context of globalization and digital transformation. According to her, over the past 40 years, Vietnamese literary criticism has absorbed many achievements of world theory, but there is still a lack of systematic and highly generalized works, while the influence of social networks is changing reception habits and aesthetic tastes.

The workshop attracted more than 30 presentations from scientists, focusing on analyzing the current situation, causes and solutions for developing literary theory and criticism in the new period. Opinions agreed that, to restore its position, criticism must both maintain its academic nature and flexibly adapt to the language, space and pace of life of the digital age.

MAI AN

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/phe-binh-van-hoc-truyen-thong-mat-dan-vi-the-giua-thoi-mang-xa-hoi-post820621.html