Theoretical Studies on Ancient Literature (Volume 21)

Author: Compiled by: Xu Zhongyu, Guo Yushi
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-12-01
Features: Lu Yun and his brother Lu Ji were renowned writers of the Jin Dynasty. The two Lu brothers' literary works were celebrated, and at the end of the Taikang era of Emperor Wu of Jin, they entered Luoyang and gained great fame, even earning the praise of the distinguished scholar Zhang Hua, who said, "The campaign against Wu brought great benefits by acquiring two outstanding talents." (Record of the Jin, Biography of Lu Ji). Although the two Lu brothers were equally famous in their time, their fortunes in later generations were quite different. When discussing literary theory works of the Jin Dynasty, people praise Lu Ji's Wen Fu, also note Zhi Yu's Lun Wen Liu Bie Lun and Li Chong's Han Lin Lun, but Lu Ji's Letter to His Brother Pingyuan is rarely mentioned. Indeed, these scattered short letters cannot be said to be deeply thought-out or theoretically profound compared to Lu Ji's Wen Fu, but they are also "sifting through sand to find gold, often revealing treasures." Especially, Lu Yun's aesthetic view of literature, which "prefers simplicity and conciseness," should not be ignored in the history of Chinese aesthetics.
II. Compiling Collections of Fu Poems Centered Around the Imperial Examination System and Critiques of Regulated Fu Poems
Around the Qing Dynasty's examination system for regulated fu poems, the practice of compiling collections of fu poems surpassed ancient times and reached its peak, while critiques of regulated fu poems were also centered around the compilation of such collections. The collections compiled by Qing people included many individual collections, but in terms of their overall situation and value, they should be considered as collections of fu poems and selected collections as the key. From the perspective of the types of fu poems, the compilation of fu collections during that time could be divided into three categories:
1. Those that included both ancient fu poems and regulated fu poems, such as Chen Yuanlong's Collected Fu Poems of All Dynasties, Wang Xiuyu's Models of Fu Poems from All Dynasties, Lu Zhen's Models of Fu Poems from All Dynasties, Zhang Weicheng's Collection of Fu Studies: The Peacock's Claws, Guan Huai's Classified Collection of the Sea of Fu Poems, Yu Bingzhao's Annotated Introduction to Fu Studies, Li Yuandu's Correct Collection of Fu Studies, and the compiler of Hongbaozhai's Grand Collection of the Sea of Fu Poems. However, after the Tang Dynasty, regulated fu poems accounted for a larger proportion, which stemmed from the practical orientation of examining fu poems.
2. Those that focused on ancient styles, such as Zhang Huizhen's Seventy Collections of Fu Poems, Wang Qijun's Small Record of Ancient Fu Poems, and Liang Kuipu's Selected Ancient Fu Poems. Such collections were relatively fewer in number but reflected the choices of those who held a view of literary restoration during that time.
3. Those that focused solely on regulated styles, which were directly serving the imperial examination system for fu poems (especially the examination at the Hanlin Academy). This category was the most numerous. If further classified, there were two subtypes:
- Selected collections of regulated fu poems: such as Tang Pin (Jiacang)'s Balance of Regulated Fu Poems, Gu Chen (Nanya)'s Regulated Fu Poems Must Be Collected, Pan Shien's Authentic Collection of Regulated Fu Poems, Zhu Yifeng's Selected Gold of Regulated Fu Poems, Jin Rang'en's Self-Held Collection of Regulated Fu Poems, Gu Yu's Flourishing Collection of Regulated Fu Poems, Ruan Heng's Field of Regulated Fu Poems, Ye Qichang's Standard of Regulated Fu Poems, Ren Zhen San's Selected Green of Regulated Fu Poems, Su You's Classified Collection of Regulated Fu Poems, Sun Li's New Mechanism of Regulated Fu Poems, and Zhao Yi's New Collection of Regulated Fu Poems.
- Imperial academy collections: such as Fa Shishan's Collected Fu Poems of the Same Academy from Thirty Examinations, Jiang Youxian's Essence of Regulated Fu Poems from the Same Academy, Song Xiang's Collected Fu Poems from the Same Academy, Zhu Jiushan's Collected Fu Poems from the Same Academy, Wang Jiaxiang's Collected Fu Poems from the Same Academy, and Sun Qianang's Recent Nine Collections of Fu Poems from the Same Academy.
From the perspective of the critical forms included in the compilation of fu collections, there were mainly three aspects: "Selection Philosophy of Fu Poems," "Prefaces, Postfaces, and Annotations," and "Appendix Critiques." Regarding the selection philosophy of fu poems, the three forms of Qing Dynasty fu collections mentioned above have been discussed. Although each type of fu selection or each individual selection had its own criteria, they were generally centered around the creation of regulated fu poems for the imperial examinations, reflecting the Qing people's reverence for Tang regulations and emphasis on contemporary works. This is clearly stated in the "General Principles" of many fu collections. For example, Zhao Yi and Zhao Lin's Annotations and Examples of the New Collection of Regulated Fu Poems.