Ancient Chinese Reader (Volume 1 and 2)

Author: Zhang Wenguo et al.
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-01-01
Features: This book is a summary of the authors' many years of teaching ancient Chinese. It has the following characteristics:
1. Practical. The book is written from the perspective of a single viewpoint, while also listing the different opinions of current popular ancient Chinese textbooks in the form of footnotes. This way, reading this book is equivalent to reading several books, giving readers a general understanding of the current state of research on ancient Chinese. The main ancient Chinese textbooks mentioned in the footnotes include: Wang Li (ed.), Ancient Chinese; Guo Xiliang, He Jiuying, and others (eds.), Outline of Ancient Chinese; Zhu Zhenjia (ed.), Ancient Chinese; Zhang Zhiqiang (ed.), Ancient Chinese; Hong Chengyu (ed.), Ancient Chinese Tutorial; Zhang Shilu (ed.), Ancient Chinese Tutorial; Xie Huiquan (ed.), Ancient Chinese Tutorial, and others.
2. Concise. During the writing process, the book strives for brevity and clarity, which is inseparable from its practical purpose. Although it covers a wide range of content, the book focuses on key points, avoids unnecessary (research), lengthy discussions, and excessive examples, aiming to include as much knowledge as possible in the smallest possible space.
3. Comprehensive. The main body of the book remains the five parts: textual analysis, vocabulary, grammar, rhetoric, and phonology. However, it also includes four additional sections: "Pronunciation of Ancient Books," "Punctuation of Ancient Books," and "Basic Knowledge of Classical Literature." Especially the section "Basic Knowledge of Classical Literature" briefly introduces the evolution of book formats, the composition of the Four Divisions of Classics (Jing, Shi, Zi, Ji), the editions of ancient books, the collation of ancient texts, the explanations of ancient books, and the avoidance of taboo words, giving readers a general understanding of the basics of classical Chinese literature. After the four parts of textual analysis, vocabulary, grammar, and phonology, there is a section titled "Introduction to Major Works," which not only helps readers become familiar with ancient linguistic literature but also deepens their understanding of the ancient Chinese theories they have learned.
4. Scientific. The main text of the book is very cautious in its selection of viewpoints, the choice of examples, and the arrangement of the format. For example, it only includes widely accepted opinions, while controversial views are listed in the footnotes. Each section is preceded by a "Key Learning Points" section, which can serve as an outline for studying that section, achieving twice the result with half the effort.