A History of Ancient Chinese Literature (Volume 2)

Author: Guo Yingde, Guo Changbao
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-08-01
Features: This book is a research outcome of the project "Ancient Chinese Cultural Concepts and Awareness of Literary Genre Classification" funded by the Ministry of Education. Its characteristics are as follows:
1. It explicitly takes the shift in the aesthetic features of literature itself as the fundamental basis for dividing literary history. The book is divided into four volumes and thirteen sections. This division of literary history breaks the traditional practice of dividing the development of Chinese literature into periods and stages according to the chronological changes of dynasties in the 20th century, showcasing distinct innovative features. The chapters in this book, on one hand, describe the evolution of literary styles during that historical period vertically, providing corresponding historical positioning for some major literary phenomena of that stage; on the other hand, they describe the intricate interconnections among the social customs, elite consciousness, social psychology, and literary activities of that historical period.
2. When interpreting the cultural connotations and aesthetic value of works, the book not only explains the social significance they contain but also emphasizes the philosophical meaning of the works, as well as the life experiences they permeate.