SURVEY OF CHINESE LITERATURE

Geography

Livable with hard work

Confucius

Philosopher, not writer Compiler of “Five Chinese Classics” Disciples wrote down The Analects

Thoughts on marriage, music, death, etc. Morality fixed in nature, not divine God Morality & Government are one.

Five Chinese Classical Text

The Book of Changes Text for divination

The Book of History Records, history, announcements from rulers

Book of Songs 300 poems

Book of Rites Centers on rules of everyday life

Spring and Autumn annals Commentaries of events up to fifth century BCE

The Book of Changes

No epic survives Earliest work: Book of

Changes Interprets the universe Cryptic symbols predict

future Order derived from

balance between: Four seasons Five elements Five powers of creation

Diagrams symbolize cosmic unity

Poetry

Realist and Allegorical

Many authors; compiled by Confucius

From Yellow River area (China proper)

Sung

Folk, imaginative One author (Qu

Yuan) From Yangtze

River (South)

Book of Songs The Song of Chu

Zhou Literature

The Book of Songs 305 poems From 10th Century to 600 BCE Three sections:

Feng – Folk Songs (106 of 305) Inspired DuFu

Ya – Court poems (105 of 305) Inspired LiBo

Song – Odes (40) Read “We Have in Hand” Hymns used in dynastic rituals

Addressing deified sprits of King Wen

Zhou Literature

“Fishhawk” First poem in the Classic of Poetry Shows absence of jealousy, perfect

harmony is royal household

Qin Literature

Not much Legalist state

Dissemination of laws Uniform Chinese

language Unreadable today

Bamboo book binding

Han Literature

China’s classical age “Children of Han”

Restored Confucianism

Silk scrolls replaced bamboo strips Advantages?

Easier to transport Learning became

“mobile” Reading became a rule Stories written instead

of retold

Han Poetry

Written Hymns and ritual songs

No heroic epics Personal & intimate Humanism & common sense A lot of female poets

Han Prose

History Detailed record of

rulers Sima Qian

Shi JI (Records of the Grand Historian

Historical romance Ban Zhao

Lessons for Women Female historian

“The Peach Blossom Spring” T’ao Ch’ien (365 – 427)

Utopia : An imagined

perfect place or state of things

Describe your Utopia

“The Peach Blossom Spring

What’s so desirable about this place? Why can’t anyone find it again? How does the Peach Blossom Spring

compare to the utopia imagined by you? To Utopians by Western philosophers?

Tang Literature

Non-Fiction: Treatises:

A formal written work that deals with a subject systematically and extensively. History Religion Economics Architecture Botany and zoology

Essays Encyclopedias

Fiction: Drama Lyric poetry Opera

A drama set to music and making use of vocal pieces with orchestral accompaniment

Novel An extended fictional

prose narrative Romance of the Three

Kingdoms

Tang Poetry

“Golden Age of Chinese Poetry” Characteristics:

Monosyllabic language Many words rhymed

Restrained and sophisticated Occasional Poems

Written and used in a particular social exchange

Parting Poems

Two Greatest Poets

Li Bo (701-762) Member of court, removed

for poor behavior Arrested for treason,

pardoned, died shortly after Part of “counter-culture” Poet of fantasy

“The Old Airs V” Poems of the common

man: "Drinking Alone by

Moonlight" "Summer Day in the

Mountains" Rising Drunk on a Spring

Day, Telling My Intent"

Du Fu (712-770) “Greatest Chinese Poet?”

Immense variety Classical tradition

Reflect history of the time Occasional poems more

stylized than we've seen "Boating on the

reservoir West of the City"

Wrote historical poems about the An-Lu shan rebellion He was behind enemy

lines "The View in Spring"

Tang and Song Literature

Lyrics Follow specific rhyme and meter. Include:

Party songs Songs of romance

Blurred lines of reality and fiction

Classical prose Non-fiction:

Essay, letters, accounts. Fiction not “legitimate” until late

Yuan & Ming Literature

Preserved past Dictionaries encyclopedias 36 volume anthology of

Chinese classics Novels flourished

The Dream of the Red Chamber

Da-du (Beijing) cosmopolitan Vernacular Songs

flourished Counter-culture

Drama Opera Variety Plays