Water Margin

Author: Shi Nai'an
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-05-10
Features: The Water Margin is a long historical novel that was finally completed after hundreds of years of brewing and accumulation during the Song and Yuan dynasties. The Water Margin successfully portrays characters with different personalities. Among the 108 heroes in the book, more than 30 possess distinct personalities, with Lin Chong, Li Kui, Lu Zhishen, Song Jiang, and Wu Song being particularly vividly depicted. The author portrays Li Kui as being loyal to the revolutionary cause and having radical revolutionary thoughts; Song Jiang, while leading the revolution, always shows wavering tendencies. He is both an important factor in promoting and flourishing the peasant uprising and a key cause of its degeneration and collapse. These two contradictory qualities are unified in his character. The author depicts Lu Zhishen's bravery and altruism, Lin Chong's loyalty, upright nature, and simplicity; Wu Song's righteousness and fierce nature; Shi Xiu's sharpness and agility; and the Ruan brothers' courageous hearts and outstanding martial arts skills. These characters are vivid and leave a deep impression. The Water Margin creates a group of legendary heroes with distinct personalities and brilliant charm: the bold and fierce Wu Song, the brave and blunt Li Kui, the rough and simple Lu Zhishen, the brave and clever Shi Xiu, and the righteous and capable Song Jiang, among others. The Water Margin inherits the tradition of Song and Yuan storytelling, using Northern dialect as its foundation. Through thousands of refinements, it creates vivid, highly expressive, and exceptionally rich literary language, truly reaching a level of perfection.