After the reform and opening up, cultural exchanges between the East and the West increased, and cultural heterogeneity became apparent. Western literary theories such as colonialism, feminism, deconstructionism, etc. quickly entered China. Zhang Longxi proposed that in the era of globalization, Chinese literary theory should break free from isolation and engage in cross-cultural dialogue with heterogeneous literary theory. Chinese scholars face the important task of excavating the treasures of ancient literary theory, achieving modern transformation, and finding new methods and paths. There is a crisis in the development of comparative literature, as Weilek pointed out, comparative literature has stagnated in terms of methodology and methodology. The comparative literature field in China developed rapidly after the 1980s, but also faced various problems.

1. Problems in Comparative Literature

In the context of globalization, the comparative literature community in China is facing challenges in updating theoretical connotations and research methods, with three major problems: unclear comparability connotations, forced interpretation issues, and literary aphasia. The issue of comparability has led to a proliferation of X+Y style research and a lack of exploration into deeper issues. The comparability theories of the French and American schools have flaws, leading to a crisis in comparative literature. The comparability connotation of comparative literature research in China is vague, lacking clear disciplinary positioning and boundaries. The problem of forced interpretation manifests as researchers ignoring the differences between Chinese and Western literature, using Western theories to forcibly interpret Chinese literature, resulting in the silence of Chinese literary theory. The influx of Western literary theory and the fragmentation of traditional culture have led to a lack of theoretical framework in the contemporary Chinese literary theory community. Cao Shunqing proposed the study of comparative literature variation, aiming to correct the bias of Western centrism and construct a comparative literature research path with Chinese characteristics.

The Development Process of Comparative Literature Variation Studies

Introduced the development process of comparative literary variation studies. Variology was proposed by Cao Shunqing in 2005, mainly studying the variation state of literary phenomena in different countries and civilizations in influencing communication and mutual interpretation, and exploring the laws of variation. The focus of variation studies is to seek comparability of "differences", covering aspects such as cross-border, interlingual, cross-cultural, and cross-cultural variation research. Cao Shunqing published a series of articles exploring the theory of variation and published the English book "Comparative Literature Variation". Domestic variation studies mainly focus on theoretical applications, with less emphasis on theoretical construction. Variology has been questioned in its development, such as comparability foundations and research methods, but theoretical maturity needs to be achieved through debate. Wang Chao's monograph "Comparative Literature Variation Studies" systematically expounds the theory of variation studies and proposes the rules and limitations of variation studies, redefining the practical field. The book "Comparative Literature Variation Studies" co authored by Cao Shunqing and Wang Chao has made innovations in the theoretical foundation, practical methods, and case interpretation of the discipline, promoting the maturity and improvement of variation studies.

The Value and Significance of Comparative Literature Variation Studies

The value and significance of the study of variation in the field of comparative literature are reflected in the respect for distortions, changes, and misinterpretations that arise in transmission and interpretation, without making value judgments, but focusing on the study and description of variation facts. This study addresses the shortcomings of comparative literature theory, particularly in terms of cross civilization and heterogeneity, by addressing the issue of confusing comparability. The comparative literary variation of the Chinese school clarifies the boundaries and content of comparability issues, emphasizes the importance of cross civilization and heterogeneity in literary transmission and interpretation, thus filling the theoretical gaps of the French and American schools, and paying attention to the laws of variation.

4 Conclusion

The study of variation is inspired by Ye Weilian's "model theory" and based on Xie Tianzhen's translation studies and the "change" thinking in the Book of Changes. It focuses on the coexistence of differences and dialects, and respects the heterogeneity of civilizations. In the context of globalization and cross-cultural postmodernism, variation studies focus on cross-cultural, cross-cultural, and heterogeneous research, which has a global demand.