Historical Stories of the Records of the Grand Historian (Upper, Middle, and Lower)

Author: Liu Shuzhen, Wang Sumin, Zhao Deyun, Lin Dong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: In the history of Chinese culture, Shiji stands as an unattainable pinnacle for later generations. Sima Qian devoted almost his entire life to completing this monumental work. He chronicled history from the Five Emperors to the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, spanning over three thousand years. He read countless books, traveled extensively, roamed the world, poured his heart and soul into his work, and pioneered the genre of comprehensive historical records. Shiji is not only a significant summary of pre-Qin culture but also a primary source for the social, political, and economic life of the Western Han Dynasty. Mr. Lu Xun highly praised the cultural value of Shiji, calling it "the peerless song of historians, an unrhymed Li Sao."
The magnificent Shiji is comprehensive in content, complete in structure, and grand in scale. It represents the highest achievement of Han Dynasty prose in ancient China, becoming a model for prose through the ages and the origin of Chinese biographical literature. It has recorded countless historical and cultural relics for later generations and radiated the brilliance of Sima Qian as a cultural master of his time. His spirit of seeking truth from facts, his progressive historical, national, and economic perspectives, as well as his views on life, values, literature, and aesthetics, are all clearly reflected in this great work. Subsequent studies of Shiji have become a specialized field, attracting countless scholars and experts to delve into and contemplate its profound and rich content.