In Taiwanese literature, as in many other national literatures, realism is a term which has been used to serve many aims. Aesthetic and narrative aspects contribute to realism as much as poliical, ideological and/or social convictions. In Taiwam, it has been used as a label by almost all literary groups and schools since the first wave of native literature (xiangtu wenxue) in the 1920s in order to describe and ligitimize their respective literary and - frequently - political claims. Over time, the very meaning of the term "realism" had been subject to multiple changes, thus turning "realism" into an almost empty signifier that needed to be further framed. Realism increasingly tended to be accompanied by an explanatory adjunct, specifying what kind of realism was indicated. The article re-evaluates epistemological issues connected to the use of realism among Taiwan´s modernists and nativists in the 1960s and 1970s. It argues that the struggle between both groups is primarily in relation to the appropriate adjunct to be attached to realism. Both movements illustrate how realism has grown into a meta-term of modernity, while its aesthetics, subject matter, and ethical impact have became increasingly vague.