Abstract: Taking Wang Guowei’s study of drama for example,this paper explores the transform and historical circumstances of academic thinking of modern China.The pivot of the paper is what Wang Guowei mentioned in his The History of Drama of Song and Yuan Dynasties:“The study of drama begins from me”,which later is widely accepted as the beginning of the study of drama in China,namely,the beginning of modern transform of the study of drama.Three aspects are discussed in this paper on how Wang Guowei’s remarks came into existence.In part one of the paper,one of the changes of academic system in the late 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century is discussed:the growing influence of newspapers and periodicals to academic thinking and academic exchange.Consideration to this system will help us understand the change of Wang Guowei’s drama thought.At the same time,Wang Guowei himself also gave a theoretical account to the change of academic situation of that time.Part two mainly illustrates “Universal academic”-Wang Guowei’s early academic thought.Part three focuses on the development of Wang Guowei’s drama study and the formation of its authoritativeness under the cultural circumstances in the capital.A conclusion is drawn that while he was trying to make dialogue with the world under the new circumstances of academic exchange,and was devoting himself to “Universal Academic”,what he encountered in the 1910’s showed that the foreign academic world was also trying to find an authoritative voice from China.This search played a key role in determining the academic position of Wang guowei’s drama study.

Key words: modern China, academic thinking, transform, historical circumstances