中國的新文學從一九一七年正式提出「文學革命」口號算起，迄今只不過七十多年的歷史。以往任何時期的文學，都不可能像新文學這樣同波瀾壯闊的現實生活緊密地聯繫在一起，和人民大眾共同著命運，並且文學樣式和種類也空前發展了，而更重要的是短短幾十年的時間裡，產生了一大批傑出的詩人。胡適為代表的「五四」新詩運動正式選擇了梁啟超後退之處，做為理論出發點與進行方向。他說「新文學的語言是白話的，新文學的文體是自由的，是不拘格律的」。五四新文學時期，穩定了新詩的社會地位的詩人中，郭沫若、徐志摩、聞一多三位的影響最大。如果說，新文學因為有眾多傑出的詩人可謂是群星燦爛，郭沫若和徐志摩及聞一多是這群星中，最耀眼的三大巨星。新舊交替的五四時代，他們三人都衝破了封建儒家詩教的束縛，自由地追求心中的詩藝，無拘無束地抒寫他們的生趣和情懷，充分地顯示了主體意識的高度自覺性。他們在詩歌內容的抒寫上都有著極大的自由性，而在詩歌藝術形式的創造上就走了不同的路。本論文主要探討郭沫若、徐志摩、聞一多三大詩人的詩歌和理論為範圍，對五四新文學的影響加以整理，分析其意義和價值。
本論文共分六章。
第一章〈緒論〉說明研究的動機與目的，研究的方法與範圍。
第二章〈郭沫若的詩和詩論〉論述對於郭沫若文學的起源、本質、創作過程以及詩論與劇論在文學理論上的見解；他新詩的主題和其形式美。
第三章〈徐志摩的詩和詩論〉透過徐志摩的生平，更進一步的了解他的文學背景；他透過文學的方式，認真地追求現實的理想和性靈自由；對詩的形式和技巧表現手法上，幾乎都是體制的輸入和試驗。
第四章〈聞一多的詩和詩論〉詩人兼學者的聞一多，立足於中國文學精神去篩選西方詩藝漢詩學，使之中國化；他的美學體系，並不是只有唯美主義的傾向，他從自己的經驗，把他過濾後，在結合上理論和實踐；他對新詩格律化的倡導，無疑是積極的，並具有了相對規範的形式，鞏固了新詩的地位。
第五章〈三大詩人的作品與其理論比較〉郭沫若和徐志摩、徐志摩和聞一多、聞一多和郭沫若三大詩人的詩歌與其理論的連環比較。
第六章〈結論〉綜合前面的研究，分析對三大詩人的詩歌展現的意義，以及其對未來新詩的流變和啟發。

The history of Chinese new literature, which begins with 1917''s "Literary Revolution" propaganda, is merely of seventy-something years. New literature differentiates itself from literature of previous times not only in its distinct style and genre, but also in its close connection to practical life and its partaking of ordinary people''s fate. What is more important, however, is the fact that its short history has never refrained itself from begetting a group of great poets, which is no small in number.
The May Fourth Movement of new poetry, led by Hu Shih, formally paved the way for Liang Ch''i-ch''ao to recede, which became the theoretical starting point and the direction of development. Hu Shih said, "The language of new literature is the word-of-mouth, the style of new literature is free, not being confined to any formalities." During the time of May Fourth Movement of new literature, there appeared three most influential poets among many who helped the new poetry to gain a social status, namely: Guo Mo-ruo, Hsu Chih-mo, and Wen I-to. If one is to portray the new literature as a sky full of stars, Guo Mo-ruo, Hsu Chih-mo, and Wen I-to must be illustrated as "the stars of the night." At the intersection of the old and the new, the three poets on the one hand unfettered themselves from the feudal Confucian teachings of poetry, and on the other hand freely pursued their poetic inspiration, ruthfully writing their heartfelt concerns and regards, which altogether reveals their high-degree of subjective consciousness. The content of their poetry retains a remarkably liberal spirit, which in turn induced to create a poetic form of wholly unconventional style and approaches.
With some backdrop discussion of the May Fourth Movement of new literature, this dissertation shall focus on the poetry and the theory of Guo Mo-ruo, Hsu Chih-mo, and Wen I-to, analyzing their value and significance.
It is divided into six chapters as follows:
The first chapter, "Introduction," explains the motive and the aim of writing the dissertation, the method of research, and the boundary of subject.
The second chapter, "The Poem and Poetry-Theory of Guo Mo-ruo," discusses the origin and essence of Guo Mo-ruo''s literature, his creative writing process and his perspective on poetry-theory and drama-theory in the theory of literature. It shall also discuss the subject of his poetry and its formal aesthetics.
The third chapter, "The Poem and Poetry-Theory of Hsu Chih-mo," first examines the life of Hsu Chih-mo, in order to understand the background of his literature. It will be revealed that, Hsu Chih-mo, via the method of literature, seriously pursued practical ideal and spiritual freedom. As to his poetic form and
expressive skill, they almost seem to be an introduction and experimentation of a new system.
The fourth chapter, "The Poem and Poetry-Theory of Wen I-to," shall describe how Wen I-to, who was a poet at the same time a scholar, standing firm on the spirit of Chinese literature, chose Western poetic art-form and teaching of poetry, integrating them into parts of Chinese literature. His system of aesthetics not merely reveals his fondness of aestheticism; by reflecting on his own experience, he successfully combined the theory and practice. As to setting-the-style of new poetry, his contribution was undoubtedly a positive one; his poems employ a style that is relatively regular in form, which freshly affirmed the status of new poetry.
The fifth chapter, "The Comparison of Works and Theory of Three Major Poets," shall investigate the similarities and differences among the three major poets, viz., Guo Mo-ruo, Hsu Chih-mo, and Wen I-to.
The sixth chapter, "Conclusion," sums up the previous outcomes of research. It analyzes the significance of delineating the poetry of the three major poets, and discusses their influence on the trend and insight of later poets who succeeded the spirit of new poetry.