20世纪美国艺术批评家格林伯格所写的《走向更新的拉奥孔》反映了他对德国美学家莱辛的文艺理论的思考与革新。这一文本标题中的“拉奥孔”就来自于莱辛的美学批评著作《拉奥孔》, 其中莱辛在阐述“诗画分界”的观点时, 他对于诗画区别的探讨, 尤其是对诗在媒介方面的差异的见解与格林伯格的艺术观点不谋而合。然而, 格林伯格并没有直接引用莱辛的诗画分界说, 而是结合现代艺术的实际情况“更新”了莱辛的学说。虽然两者都强调了各门艺术之间的差异性, 但是其中仍然存在许多和而不同之处, 这也是“更新的拉奥孔”的意义与启示所在。

The 20th century American art critic Greenberg' s “Towards a Newer Laocoon” mainly showed his reflection and innovation on the literary theory of German aesthetician Lessing. The term “Laocoon”, in the title of the text of came from Lessing’s aesthetic criticism work Laocoon. Lessing’s exploration of the “boundaries between poetry and painting”, especially in terms of the difference between poetry and painting in media, coincides with Greenberg’s artistic ideas when elaborating on the concept of the “boundaries between poetry and painting”. However, Greenberg did not directly quote Lessing’s theory, he “updated” Lessing’s theory based on the actual situation of modern art. Although they both emphasized the differences between various kinds of art, there are still certain views reflect harmony in diversity, which are also the significance and inspiration of the “Newer Laocoon”.