Abstract: The modernism of Cao Yus plays created in 1930s shows his reference and learning on two kinds of western aesthetic ideology “empiricism”and “expressionism”. This is based on his poetic temperament and poetic character contained in Chinese culture. The plays present the epitome of culture type in the 1930s. Meantime, the formation of his realism of poetization is not only the internalization of western modernism in Chinas cultural tradition of poetry, but also a transitional product of Chinese modern drama from expressionism in the 1920s to realism in the 1940s, which has special significance to the history of modern Chinese literature and modern Chinese theatre.

Key words: Cao Yu’s dramatic works in the 1930s, expressionism, empiricism, realismof poetization