Wenxin Diao Long Zaji (Shiji Wenyu)

Author: Huang Kan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-04-01
Features: Huang Kan (1886-1935), styled Ji Gang, styled Liang Shou Jushi, was born into a scholarly family and read extensively in classical texts from a young age. In his youth, influenced by revolutionary ideas, he joined the Tongmenghui and actively participated in the New Culture Movement. In 1914, Huang Kan was appointed as a lecturer at Peking University, where he taught Rizhangxue (Rhetoric and Literary Criticism) and the History of Chinese Literature. Later, he taught at Wuchang Higher Normal School and Beijing Normal University. Huang Kan had a strong personality, enjoyed debates, drank frequently, and slept little, ultimately passing away at a young age. In his limited life, he devoted himself to scholarship and was widely recognized as a renowned scholar who bridged the gap between ancient and modern Chinese academia. At the age of twenty-eight, Ji Gang was already in his prime when he succeeded Zhang Taiyan in teaching The Art of Rhetoric (Wenxin Diaolong). Later, he compiled his lecture notes into the book Notes on The Art of Rhetoric. This book is Huang Kan’s lecture notes from his time teaching Rizhangxue and the History of Chinese Literature at Peking University. It provides a meticulous and in-depth analysis of The Art of Rhetoric, one of the most important literary theory works in ancient China, and holds significant importance in the study of Chinese literary history. Most researchers believe that the establishment of the modern discipline of ancient Chinese literary criticism was marked by Huang Kan’s teaching of The Art of Rhetoric at Peking University and his eventual completion of Notes on The Art of Rhetoric.