Method of Proofreading Ancient Chinese Historical Records -- Reprinting of Key Academic Works of the 20th Century

Author: Zhang Shunhui
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2004-11-01
Features: Zhang Shunhui (1911–1992) was a renowned modern historian and scholar of historical documents. He authored over twenty works, including Chinese Documentary Studies, Comprehensive Treatise on Textual Criticism, Commentary on the Bibliography of the Han Dynasty, A Concise Commentary on the Shuowen Jiezi, Collected Works on Zheng Studies, Explorations in the Daoist Thought of the Zhou and Qin Dynasties, Commentary on Three Books of Historiography, Biography of Qing Dynasty Scholars, Separate Records of Qing Dynasty Literary Collections, Annotations on Qing Scholars' Notes, and Preserving the Old Learning. Methods of Reading Ancient Historical Texts was first published by the Shanghai Editorial Department of the Zhonghua Book Company in 1962. After minor revisions in 1980, a new edition was published by the Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House. When discussing the content of reading history that is the same or similar in several comprehensive studies, and when emphasizing the importance of diligent annotation rather than hastily composing treatises, the book cites various critiques by Qing Dynasty scholars on the practices of combined annotations and compiled excerpts as examples. As shown in the table of contents, the book is divided into four chapters: 1) On the Basic Conditions for Reading Ancient Historical Texts, 2) On Textual Criticism, 3) On Reading, and 4) On Authenticity and Compilation. All the problems encountered when reading ancient texts and the aspects that should be noted are addressed in the book. Among contemporary scholars, Zhang Shunhui's diligence in reading and breadth of knowledge are widely acknowledged. In his early years, he followed the academic path of Qing Dynasty scholars, starting with the study of philology and then expanding into Confucian classics, followed by extensive reading of the Four Books, Five Classics, the Canon of History, and the works of various dynasties. He devoted ten years to reading the entire Twenty-Four Histories, demonstrating profound erudition and a comprehensive understanding. Scholars of this caliber are rare today, but it is precisely such scholars who are best suited to write on the methods of reading historical texts. To put it more bluntly, it is only scholars of this caliber who truly have the qualifications to teach, set an example, and produce works on the methods of reading historical texts that can be trusted.