Flowers of Literature Series -- Selected Prose Collection of Cao Jinghua

Author: Cao Jinghua Sun Sun Compiler
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-09-01
Features: Millions of essays, millions of life attitudes, embodying the emotions of masters as they contemplate nature and experience life and death. Life is like the four seasons, with flowers blooming and fading, yet the truths within these chapters will be etched forever. Reading this book, immerse yourself in the works of renowned authors, savor the love of family and the care of friends. A force of goodness will nourish the parched soul and invigorate the withered life. Together, we enjoy the exquisite and immortal works, feeling the beauty through the pen of the masters. The moment you open this book becomes a part of your life, enjoying the joy of reading, the joy of perception, and the joy of life. The selected essays are all mouthwatering masterpieces, truly works of linguistic and literary brilliance. Throughout history, how many exquisite essays have shone like pearls! The "Hundred Flowers Series of Essays" may not claim to have strung them all into a necklace, but here they are no longer scattered pearls but more accessible for reading and appreciation. The selected chapters focus on lyrical and narrative essays; their themes range from society and life to parting and flowers. The styles are both grand and unrestrained, as well as subtle and reserved. The series is comprehensive and inclusive. Though the "Hundred Flowers Series of Essays" may not be called a "Gathering of Treasures," the works collected still radiate brilliance and offer valuable lessons. The "Hundred Flowers Series of Essays" includes the "Ancient Essays Series," "Modern Essays Series," and "Contemporary Essays Series," all published in separate volumes, each featuring essays by different authors. Ancient Chinese essays have a long and profound history, with deep roots and lush branches. Like poetry, they are one of the most important and distinctive literary forms in ancient Chinese literature, as well as a splendid cultural treasure trove in the history of human civilization. To promote the excellent culture of the Chinese nation, inherit the fine traditions of ancient essays, and foster the prosperity and improvement of contemporary essay writing, as well as provide readers with references and enjoyment, this "Ancient Chinese Essays Series" has been compiled as a part of the "Hundred Flowers Series of Essays." The scope of the essay genre has evolved over time, differing between ancient and modern eras. The selected essays in this series are primarily those with strong literary qualities, such as lyrical and descriptive essays. The selected authors range from the pre-Qin period to the Qing Dynasty, with each volume dedicated to a different author. The arrangement of essays in each book follows the chronological order of their composition, allowing readers to trace the development and evolution of essay writing. Each book in the series consists of two parts: one is an essay on the author, which includes a brief introduction to the author's life and literary activities, with a focus on analyzing and reviewing their essay writing philosophy, especially their artistic characteristics, the development of their essay writing, and its influence. The other part is the essays themselves, each accompanied by a title explanation and annotations. The essay on the author aims to complement and enhance the understanding of the selected essays, helping readers achieve a rational understanding of the essays while deepening their emotional connection through the selected works. This dual approach not only makes the series a collection of excellent essays for reading but also, to some extent, serves as a critical study of the author and an exploration of the history of ancient Chinese essays, setting it apart from general essay collections and traditional histories of ancient essays. Each selected essay in the series, in addition to the author's representative masterpieces, also includes essays from different periods, themes, and styles to reflect the author's development in essay writing. The title explanations not only clarify relevant terms, specialized terminology, and provide information on the writing time and sources but also offer concise reviews of the background, ideological value, artistic characteristics, and techniques of the works. The annotations primarily focus on explaining difficult words, phrases, allusions, official titles, artifacts, names, and places. For important or uniquely used terms, references or examples are provided to help readers understand not only "what" but also "why." The selected essays in this book are 36 in total, all of which are major works by the author. We often ask ourselves: why do people write poetry and essays? In exploring this question, we can find several common patterns, but for individual authors, the reasons are varied. The literary world is shaped by such diversity. Some may dislike or refuse to acknowledge that writing poetry and essays is "for a purpose," yet the history of literature, there are endless debates about "for this" and "for that." For life, for art, for the masses, for oneself, for friends, for enemies, for immortality, for filling one's pockets—various motivations and driving forces will give rise to literature. Interestingly, this "purpose" is not purely subjective or predetermined but stems from one's life experiences and is determined by the broader context of life. This is especially true for essays, which are fundamentally characterized by expressing the author's genuine emotions and feelings. Cao Jinghua's essay writing can be traced back to his early years. During the May Fourth Movement era, while still in high school, he had already written some reflective and casual articles, which, in a broad sense, can be seen as early attempts at essay writing. From the 1930s to the 1950s, he also wrote travelogues, travel essays, and commemorative writings, some of which were excellent essays, such as "How Long Was 1935?" reflecting on the people of Ruijin longing for Chairman Mao, "Eulogy for Qiu Bai and Remembrance of Lu Xun Before the Luohang Ridge," and "A Few Words About the Past." However, the number was small, and he only wrote them occasionally. At that time, not only did the world still know him only as a great translator, but even he seemed to have no particular intention of pursuing essay writing. Entering the 1960s, Cao Jinghua was already in his sixties, but at this time, he created a notable literary phenomenon. Starting with the publication of "Flowers" in the People's Daily on March 1961, Cao Jinghua continuously published new essays in newspapers and magazines such as the People's Literature and World Literature. These works primarily focused on remembering Lu Xun, along with other revolutionary leaders and writers, which became the fundamental theme and the rest of his life in essay writing. In the two or three years following 1962, he wrote about contemporary topics, including the famous "Yunnan Lyrical" trilogy, "Guangxi Lyrical" trilogy, and other travel essays like "Fujian Lyrical." Undoubtedly, this period marked the peak of this elderly writer's career, with the main product being essays. Unfortunately, the Cultural Revolution interrupted his thoughts and blocked his writing.