Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Author: Luo Guanzhong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-04-01
Features: Romance of the Three Kingdoms is the pioneering work of Chinese ancient long serial novels. The Three Kingdoms stories were highly popular in ancient Chinese folklore. They were adapted into stage plays during the Song and Yuan dynasties, with over 30 different titles performed during the Jin and Yuan periods. In the Zhizhi era of the Yuan Dynasty, the Complete Illustrated Three Kingdoms was published by the Xuan family of Xin'an. During 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, and infused his personal insights into society and life to create Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The earliest surviving edition is the Jiajing edition from the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty, commonly known as the "Jiajing edition," with 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-capter edition of Romance of the Three Kingdoms that is widely used today.
Luo Guanzhong lived between 1330 and 1400, with the name Ben and the title Huahai Sanren. He was a popular fiction writer of the Ming Dynasty. His place of origin 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. It reflects the political and military struggles of the Three Kingdoms era, the interplay of various social conflicts, and the dramatic changes of the time, while also shaping a gallery of heroic figures. In his handling of the Three Kingdoms history, the author shows a clear preference for the Eastern Han (Liu Bei's faction) over the Wei (Cao Cao's faction), centering the narrative on Liu Bei's group and praising its key figures while harshly condemning Cao Cao. Today, we should view this pro-Liu Bei, anti-Cao Cao bias dialectically. The preference for Liu Bei over Cao Cao was a dominant trend in folk tales, reflecting the people's hope for the revival of the Han ethnicity during Luo Guanzhong's time.
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 "virtuous minister," embodying the virtues of "dedicating oneself to duty until death" and harboring the ambition to restore peace and prosperity. The author also grants him supernatural abilities, such as commanding the winds and rains and possessing brilliant strategic skills. Cao Cao is a cunning and ruthless figure, adhering to the principle of "let the world betray me, but never let me betray the world." He is both a visionary and a political schemer, distinct from the historical Cao Cao. Guan Yu is "fierce, resolute, and deeply loyal," but his loyalty is based on personal grievances rather than national or ethnic ideals. Liu Bei is portrayed as a benevolent ruler who loves his people, respects talented individuals, and knows how to use people wisely.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms depicts numerous battles, with grand and diverse storytelling that vividly portrays the bloody scenes of war. Battles like the Battle of Guandu and the Battle of Red Cliffs are described in thrilling, dynamic detail. The language is neither overly profound nor overly colloquial, yet it is concise, lively, and full of vigor.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms sparked a wave of historical fiction writing in China, and its characters have become household names. There are many editions 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, which was revised, annotated, and widely circulated in the early Kangxi era. The People's Literature Publishing House has reprinted and published it many times.