What does literature refer to" is always a problem that literary circles show great concern upon and try to solve. Nevertheless,
this problem sees different meanings and significances in the fields of
literary research and the research o literary history respectively. In literary research, to promote the development literary thoughts, people should focus on theoretical innovation and be
encouraged to give a bold answer to "What does literature refer to". By contrast, the research should be based on the principle of seeking truth from facts, and "what is literature" should be carefully investigated that an ultimate expression of the original outlook of literary developments could be found. Some concerned experiences on literary research give us much enlightenment. The research of literature and literary history more or less exchange their own subjects mutually so that the literary research lacks theoretical innovation and the latter is streaked with some subjective biases. Academic researches in literary field will take on a new look if some suitable work on subjects and researching methods has been sorted out. And also, the literary researchers are encouraged to do bold innovations not only to explain the predecessors.Meanwhile, the historians are encouraged to respect ancients instead of imposing their opinion on their own..