In the room, memories of words

Author: Mao Xiang, Shen Fu, Chen Peizi, Jiang Tan, Yu Qiqiang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-02-01
Features: Ancient Chinese literary works. Due to the constraints of Confucian ethics, love stories between men and women were difficult to be considered refined literature. Moreover, men's elegies for their deceased wives or concubines, which gently express intimate moments in private life and the trivialities of household expenses, were even harder to be included in written works. Occasionally, such pieces were circulated in the market, but in recent decades, they have nearly vanished. This book encompasses the pioneering work (Mao Xiang's "Yingmei'an Yiyu"), the pinnacle of the genre (Shen Fu's "Fusheng Liuji"), and the final masterpiece of the Yiyu prose style (Yu Qiqiang's "Jixin Suoyu"). It also includes currently rare and more poignant masterpieces (Chen Peizi's "Xiangwanlou Yiyu" and Jiang Tan's "Qiudeng Suoyi"), collecting all the most typical, outstanding, and moving Yiyu prose in Chinese literary history. These five renowned works revolve around scholars and beauties, as well as daily necessities like rice, oil, and salt. Whether in remembrance or reflection, they vividly depict scenes that are passionate yet not frivolous, sorrowful yet not overly so, deeply moving the readers. It is believed that when readers obtain this book, they will feel as described in "Jixin Suoyu": "To suddenly come across it, half joy and half surprise."