Hero Legend

Author: Ning Dewei
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1996-07-01
Features: Popular fiction has always originated from the common people and circulated in the streets, finding it difficult to gain entry into the halls of high culture. However, The Legend of the Heroes (Liè Yīng Zhuàn) came from the Ming Dynasty court and was a product of Guo Xun, a prince of the Ming court, who sought to please the emperor and manipulate public opinion to fulfill his personal political ambitions. The Legend of the Heroes portrayed the history of the founding of the dynasty by its own rulers as a novel, opening up a forbidden area for the creation of historical fiction in the Ming Dynasty. Since Guo Xun set this precedent, other works followed in quick succession. It can be said that The Legend of the Heroes pioneered the trend of Ming Dynasty writers composing novels about their own dynasty's history, making a significant contribution to the history of Chinese fiction. The Legend of the Heroes officially represents the general level of historical fiction in the Ming Dynasty before the mid-period. It was slightly refined during the Wanli era, but there was no significant progress in its artistic development. It is like an uncut jade, uncarved, and if it had been carefully polished and skillfully carved by masters such as Feng Menglong or Chu Renhuo, it would have become a dazzling gem.