A Comprehensive History of Chinese Rhetoric: Volume of the Pre-Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties

Author: Chen Guanglei
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1998-11-01
Features: The multi-volume Comprehensive History of Chinese Rhetoric edited by the renowned rhetoric scholars Zheng Ziyou and Zong Tinghu has recently been completed by Jilin Education Press. The book is divided into five volumes: "Pre-Qin, Han, Wei-Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties," "Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, Jin, Yuan," "Ming and Qing," "Modern and Contemporary," and "Contemporary." The entire work spans over 2.12 million words, making it a magnificent and monumental work in the history of Chinese rhetoric studies. This monumental work summarizes and reviews the vast and rich theoretical foundations of Chinese rhetoric, analyzing and depicting the historical trajectory of the development of ancient, modern, and contemporary Chinese rhetoric. Its publication holds significant importance for the advancement of Chinese rhetoric studies, and it is truly a cause for celebration. After thoroughly reading the book, I believe it has the following prominent features:
1. Rich and Comprehensive Historical Materials: The book covers a broad scope with rich and detailed historical materials. From the Pre-Qin and Han periods to the modern and contemporary era, it involves over 400 ancient and modern scholars who discussed rhetoric, and it reviews more than 250 ancient and modern rhetorical works. Many previously unknown materials have been unearthed and introduced, greatly expanding the field of this historical study.
2. Comprehensive and Detailed Analysis: In terms of compilation, the ancient and modern sections focus on rhetorical studies of various literary forms such as essays and poems, with scholars and works as subheadings for introduction. The modern and contemporary sections, however, organize the content around the key aspects of rhetoric, with scholars and their works as subheadings for analysis. The book adheres to the principle of unifying viewpoints with materials, combining macro and micro perspectives to highlight key points, integrate general and specific aspects, and present a well-organized summary and review. In some volumes, based on the need, a comprehensive and multi-angle analysis of rhetorical studies during that period is provided.
3. Insightful and Innovative Critiques: The "Introduction" sections of each volume offer insightful analyses of the main characteristics of rhetorical studies during that historical period and their significance in the history of rhetoric. The book also provides a summary of modern rhetorical research methods and an analysis of the major trends in contemporary rhetoric, all of which are highly innovative. Additionally, the division of periods in the history of modern, contemporary, and contemporary rhetoric is also full of originality.
Given these points, we believe this "Comprehensive History" can be considered a monumental work in the current field of Chinese rhetoric studies. The book is divided into three parts:
The first part covers the rhetoric of the Pre-Qin period, including chapters such as Exploring the Rhetorical Awareness of Ancient People, Confucian Rhetoric, Mohist Rhetoric, Daoist Rhetoric, Legalist Rhetoric, Logician and Sophist Rhetoric, Diplomatist Rhetoric, and Rhetoric in Pre-Qin Classics.
The second part covers the rhetoric of the Han period, including chapters such as Western Han Rhetoric and Eastern Han Rhetoric.
The third part covers the rhetoric of the Wei-Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties, including chapters such as Wei-Jin Rhetoric, Northern and Southern Dynasties Rhetoric, Rhetoric in Buddhist Translation and Nominalism and Metaphysics, and Liu Xie's The Art of Rhetoric.