History of Chinese Literature (Volume 3)

Author: Chief Editor: Yuan Xingpei
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-06-01
Features: Excerpt: The fate of the nation and its people. He titled his collected works "Small Cattle Materials," indicating his aspiration to "benefit the world" (). Secondly, Wang Yuge was dissatisfied with the frivolous literary style of the late Tang and Five Dynasties period, once saying: "Since the Xiantong era, poetry and prose have not been competitive. To reform the faults and restore the old ways, it is appropriate to have fame." In "Preface to Sun He," his prose was substantial, elegant, and clear, standing alone on the literary scene of the early Song Dynasty. For example, in "Record of the Newly Built Bamboo Tower in Huangzhou," one section describing the scenery reads: "Distantly, it devours the light of the mountains; levelly, it places the waves of the river. Secluded and vast, it cannot be fully described. In summer, it suits a sudden rain, with the sound of waterfalls. In winter, it suits dense snow, with the sound of fragments. It suits playing the lute, with harmonious and flowing tones. It suits reciting poetry, with clear and exquisite rhymes. It suits playing Go, with the sound of pawns clinking. It suits throwing a gourd, with a sudden release of tension. All these are aided by the bamboo tower. In the leisure after official duties, he would wear a crane feather robe, a Huayan hat, and hold a volume of the "Book of Changes," burning incense and sitting in silence, dispelling worldly worries. Beyond the mountains and rivers, only the sails of ships are seen. Sandbars, smoke, clouds, and bamboo trees are all. The combination of elegance and simplicity, it has the openness and fluency of classical prose, yet does not abandon the advantages of parallelism and tonal control of prose. This section's praise for leisurely pleasures and the preceding section's lament over a life complement each other, further enhancing the lyrical quality of the entire text, making it a precursor to the prose of Ou and Su. Additionally, Wang Yuge's argumentative prose, such as "Record of the Waiting Hall," and his narrative prose, such as "The Tale of the Woman from Tanghe Store," are all excellent classical prose pieces that inherit the tradition of Han and Liu while using relatively simple language, showing the emergence of a new literary style. Among the early Song literati who clearly proposed the advocacy of restoration in literary theory, the first was Liu Kai (948–1001). Liu Kai, in "Response to Criticism," said: "My way is the way of Confucius, Mencius, Yang Xiong, and Han Yu. My literature is the literature of Confucius, Mencius, Yang Xiong, and Han Yu." This view of combining the tradition of thought and the tradition of literature had a profound influence on later classical prose writers and Confucian scholars, and it was meaningful at the time. Liu Kai also regarded literature as a tool for clarifying the way and thus opposed ornate styles. He said: "Literature is the vessel of the way; can it be created arbitrarily? If the vessel is not good, it leads to loss. A woman dislikes her appearance being too thick with virtue, and a tree dislikes its virtue being too thick with appearance. Literature dislikes words being too ornate with reason, but not reason being too ornate with words." In "Letter to Wang Xuezi, Third Letter," this theory should have played a role in correcting the flamboyant literary style of the late Five Dynasties in the early Song. However, Liu Kai emphasized the importance of the way too much while neglecting literary art, and the "way" he spoke of was merely the "way of the sages," making it easy for literature to become a subservient to the tradition of thought. Moreover, Liu Kai was rough and unrestrained, and his writings were difficult to read, so despite his loud calls, few responded, and he had no actual impact on the literary scene.
Early Song Literature
In 960, the Northern Song Dynasty was established, ending a century of division, chaos, and frequent warfare. From the beginning of its founding, the Northern Song rulers adopted a policy of promoting culture and suppressing martial arts, giving due attention to cultural development while also working to improve the economy. However, cultural development requires a process of nurturing and accumulation, and it cannot be achieved overnight. Su Wu said: "Since the rise of the dynasty seventy or so years, the people have not known of war, and they are enriched and educated, reaching the height of Tiansheng and Jingxin. Yet this culture still falls short of the ancient standards." In the preface to "The Collection of Master Six-One," the "seventy or so years" refers to the early period of the three reigns of Emperor Taizu, Emperor Taizong, and Emperor Zhenzong, as well as the early reign of Emperor Renzong, which is the "early Song" discussed in this chapter. During this time, Song literature had not yet achieved accomplishments comparable to previous dynasties, but it continued the literary style of the Five Dynasties while also showing some new trends, with certain aspects indicating the direction of Song literature's development.
Early Song Prose and the Restoration Movement
The prose of Wang Yuge and others, the restorationist thinkers of Liu Kai and Mu Xiu, and the early Song literati mostly came from the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. For example, Li Fang and Tao Gu were originally courtiers of the Later Zhou, while Xu Qin and Diao Heng were originally courtiers of the Southern Tang. After entering the Song court, their prose remained mostly in parallel style, with flamboyant styles similar to those of the Five Dynasties. Later, although Liu Kai and Li Zhouhan promoted classical prose and opposed parallel style, they did not achieve corresponding creative results. Among the early Song prose writers with higher achievements was Wang Yuge. Wang Yuge (954–1001) was born into poverty and was frequently after entering official service. This made his attitude toward life and his literary thought different from those of the court literati. First, Wang Yuge believed in the political ideals of Confucianism,