Dream of the Red Chamber - Color Illustrations of Chinese Classical Novels (6 Books Set)

Author: (Qing) Sun Wen, (Qing) Sun Yunmo
Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-06-01
Features: The Dream of the Red Chamber is the most literary-accomplished classical literary masterpiece in China, the pinnacle of classical Chinese literary creation, and the finest long serial novel in the history of Chinese literature. It is a cultural treasure of humanity. Since its publication in the mid-18th century (around the 19th year of the Qianlong reign in the Qing Dynasty), it has had a broad and profound impact on the literary history of China. The author Cao Xueqin was one of the great literary figures in Chinese history, and his extraordinary thoughts, courage, and outstanding artistic talent were fully embodied in The Dream of the Red Chamber. Unfortunately, he was prematurely taken away by poverty, yet his creation, The Dream of the Red Chamber, was published thirty years after his death and became wildly popular across the nation.
The book The Dream of the Red Chamber portrays the rise and fall of the four great families—Jia, Shi, Wang, and Xue—thereby presenting a vast social life perspective, encompassing a myriad of phenomena and diverse secular human emotions. It is often called the "encyclopedia of the late feudal era," as it contains the historical capacity of an entire era. The structure of the novel is novel and ingenious. It begins with five chapter titles, starting with a mythological story that places the work in a mysterious fog, using the concept of "true and false" to claim a "dreamlike world," allowing the entire novel to unfold with a structure of "false as true," creating a "world of life."
In The Dream of the Red Chamber, in addition to the famous Twelve Beauties of Jinling, there are over 400 other named characters. These numerous figures are diverse and vivid, each with distinct personalities, covering all kinds of people in the world. Even in the portrayal of a single character, multiple aspects of their personality are revealed, which is truly remarkable. The content of The Dream of the Red Chamber is vast, with different characters being given different themes, as Wang Meng said: "It is its own universe, its own world—both rich and complex, deep and mysterious, both lifelike and infinitely meaningful."
The Dream of the Red Chamber is most notable for its successful portrayal of a large number of female characters. Among them, the Twelve Beauties of Jinling are the central figures, while many maids and servants are also involved. The fates of these women reflect those of the so-called "aristocratic families of poetry and rites," embodying the author's boundless sentiments and grief, making The Dream of the Red Chamber an invaluable artistic treasure in Chinese ancient culture.
When writing this book, Cao Xueqin used the technique of "homophonic symbolism." For example, he named the four sisters of the Jia family Yuanchun, Yingchun, Tanchun, and Xichun, which is a homophone for "Original Should Sigh." When Jia Baoyu travels in the realm of illusion, the Fairy of Dreams makes him drink tea called "A Thousand Red Blooms in One Cup," which is a homophone for "A Thousand Reds Weep," and also gives him wine named "All Beauties in One Cup," which is a homophone for "All Beauties Mourn." Such techniques are almost the entire book, allowing readers to savor them gradually.
In character development, the author not only focuses on portraying the main personalities of the characters but also reveals their complexity and multifaceted nature, making the characters more vivid and lifelike. For example, Wang Xifeng is beautiful, kind to others, and clever. Zhou Ruifang thinks she is harsh to subordinates, while Li Yun considers her "a crystal heart with shimmering waves, calculating everyone in the world." When Lin Daiyu arrives, her laughter is heard before she is seen. She is cheerful and beloved, yet feared, earning her the nickname "Feng Laozi." Yet she is also cruel, having caused the death of You Erni...