Selected Prose Works of Zeng Gong

Author: Bao Jingdi
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1997-01-01
Features: Zeng Gong, styled ZiGu, was a significant figure in the classical prose movement of the Song Dynasty. His scholarship and writings were already renowned during his lifetime, and his fame continued to grow after his death. At the age of twenty, he gained the respect of Ouyang Xiu. He traveled extensively and read countless books, excelling in Confucian classics, history, and literature. Wang Anshi praised him as "Zeng Gong's prose is rare in the world, like the stars in the Yangtze and Han rivers, or the in the heavens." Zeng Gong's prose is grounded in the classics and expresses his thoughts fully. He skillfully selects materials with the perspective of a historian, narrates in detail with appropriate emphasis, avoids digressions, and writes with concise, refined language. His style alternates between narration and commentary, conveying profound meaning in simple words. His brushwork is gentle, and his writing is winding and meandering, blending emotion and literature to the fullest, as if singing and reciting poetry. This book collects thirty of Zeng Gong's prose pieces, each accompanied by detailed analysis, annotations, and translations. Zeng Gong's prose has rarely been annotated, and there has been no colloquial translation of it before. This book is truly a rare and excellent selection.