Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Author: Luo Guanzhong, Liu Shide, Zheng Ming
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-04-01
Features: Romance of the Three Kingdoms is the pioneering work of the long, serial narrative novel in ancient China. The Three Kingdoms stories were highly popular in ancient Chinese folklore. They were adapted into stage plays as early as the Song and Yuan dynasties, with over 30 different titles performed during the Jin and Yuan periods. During the Zhizheng era of the Yuan Dynasty, The Complete Illustrated Story of the Three Kingdoms was published by the Xian'an Yu family. In the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty, Luo Guanzhong synthesized folk tales, operas, and storytelling, combining historical records from Chen Shou's Records of the Three Kingdoms and Pei Songzhi's annotations, along with his personal insights into society and life, to create Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The earliest extant edition is the Ming Jiajing edition, commonly known as the "Jiajing edition," which consists of 24 volumes. During the Kangxi era of the Qing Dynasty, Mao Run and Mao Zonggang father and son corrected historical inaccuracies, revised and edited the text, and transformed it into the 120-chapter edition of Romance of the Three Kingdoms that is widely used today.
Luo Guanzhong (1330–1400), also known as Ben, styled Haohai Sanren, was a popular fiction writer of the Ming Dynasty. His native place is uncertain, with some sources claiming Taiyuan (modern Shanxi) and others claiming Qiantang (modern Hangzhou, Zhejiang). According to legend, Luo Guanzhong served as a counselor to Zhang Shicheng, a leader of the late Yuan peasant uprising. In addition to Romance of the Three Kingdoms, he also wrote other popular novels such as Chronicles of Sui and Tang and plays like The Dragon and Tiger Meeting of Zhao Taizu.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms depicts nearly a century of historical turmoil from the late Eastern Han Dynasty to the early Western Jin Dynasty. The entire work reflects the political and military struggles of the Three Kingdoms era, the interplay and transformation of various social conflicts, and the dramatic historical changes of that time. It also portrays a host of heroic figures who left a mark on history. In his portrayal of the Three Kingdoms, the author shows a clear preference for Liu Bei and opposition to Cao Cao, centering the narrative on Liu Bei's faction while praising its key figures and harshly condemning Cao Cao. Today, we should view the author's pro-Liu Bei, anti-Cao Cao bias dialectically. This preference for Liu Bei and opposition to Cao Cao reflects the mainstream tendency of folk legends and, in Luo Guanzhong's time, embodied the people's hope for the revival of the Han ethnicity.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms portrays nearly 200 characters, with the most successful being Zhuge Liang, Cao Cao, Guan Yu, and Liu Bei. Zhuge Liang is the embodiment of the author's ideal "wise minister," embodying the virtues of "dedicating oneself to the cause until death" and harboring the ambition to restore peace and prosperity to the realm. The author also grants him supernatural abilities, such as controlling the winds and rains and possessing extraordinary strategic prowess. Cao Cao is a cunning and ruthless figure, whose life motto is "Let me betray the world, but never let the world betray me." He is both a visionary and a cruel, treacherous political schemer, differing greatly from the historical Cao Cao. Guan Yu is described as "fierce, resolute, and righteous," with a sense of loyalty that is based on personal grievances rather than national or ethnic principles. Liu Bei is portrayed as a benevolent and wise ruler who loves his people, respects talented individuals, and knows how to use people effectively.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms depicts numerous battles, with grand and diverse storytelling techniques that vividly bring to life scenes of (glowing swords and bloody shadows). Battles like the Battle of Guandu and the Battle of Red Cliffs are portrayed with dramatic twists and turns, leaving readers on the edge of their seats. The language of the entire work is neither overly profound nor overly vulgar—it is concise, clear, and full of vigor, lively and spirited.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms sparked a wave of historical fiction writing in China, and the characters it created have become household names throughout the country. There are many versions of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, with the main ones being: the Ming Hongzhi edition of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which has rough text and simple content; and the Qing Mao Zonggang edition of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which was revised and annotated around the early Kangxi era and is the most widely circulated version. The People's Literature Publishing House has reprinted and published it many times.