These works shifted the focus of literature in Taiwan from mainland China, the setting of most earlier novels such as Weiyang Song and The Green and the Black, to Taiwan itself and the blood, sweat and tears of ordinary people here. The effects of the movement were deep and far-reaching.
和早年《未央歌》、《藍與黑》等愛國小說不同的是，鄉土文學將關注的對象，從遙遠的大中國落實到眼前這片土地，及土地上小人物的辛酸甘苦。