Discuss the Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Illustrated Edition)

Author: Chen Jiangong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: As the saying goes, "A word from a wise man is worth more than ten years of reading." It is no exaggeration to say that listening to scholars debate in the Literature Museum is like holding a volume of essence, saving countless hours. Taking "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" as an example, the great scholar Liu Shide begins by breaking the topic: the formal, accurate, and scientific name of this book should be "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." Why? This involves the understanding of the term "Romance." In today's language, "romance" means to elaborate, present, introduce, develop, and so on, while "meaning" refers to the content, ideas, and plot of the book. "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" naturally refers to Chen Shou's "Records of the Three Kingdoms" in the Twenty-Four Histories. The so-called "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" means, in simpler terms, "to elaborate the meaning of the Three Kingdoms Records." Therefore, the character "Record" cannot be missing. Next, the short biography, place of origin, birth and death years of Luo Guanzhong, and whether he left behind other works besides "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," are all. When Liu Shide spoke of "Water Margin," he used an vivid analogy that still seems fresh to me today: materials are like cloth for making clothes, while works are like beautiful clothes. Cloth is scattered and piecemeal. Even if piled together, it cannot become a dress. It must be skillfully cut and sewn by a tailor to transform the scattered cloth into a beautiful dress. Cloth is like materials, and clothes are like works. The tailor, in this analogy, is the writer. Great works are inevitably the product of great writers. Without great writers, great works cannot be created. No great work is the result of "accumulation." Any great work is created by a genius of mind and hand. Moreover, such creation must be a creative labor. Without the creative labor of a writer, it is impossible to create outstanding or great works. Liu Shide repeatedly emphasized this point when speaking of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," only to illustrate one thing: like "Water Margin," "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is also an outstanding and great work. Luo Guanzhong was a great writer. "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was presented to readers through Luo Guanzhong's creative labor. It was absolutely not an "accumulative" work. Great works, outstanding works, and great works are not achieved through "accumulation." Great works, outstanding works, and great works are written by the writer's mind and hand. In his speech "From Historical Legends to Classic Romances—How Luo Guanzhong Created 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms'," Hou Hui cited numerous vivid and interesting examples to support this view. "Discussing the Three Kingdoms" is divided into fifteen lectures, each with its own highlights. Whether it is Duan Qiming's discussion of the "three kingdoms' ministers who served wise rulers" on political strategy or Zhang Jun's analysis of the "Five Tiger Generals" and the "Eight Cao Generals" on the loyalty and bravery of military commanders, all highlight the wisdom and spiritual essence of the Three Kingdoms as a book of wisdom. When Liu Shide speaks of the complex version issues of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," he truly excels at it, bringing life to a dry topic and demonstrating extraordinary expertise through solid research. Zhou Siyuan, who has written novels, analyzes it skillfully from the perspective of creation. Since the purpose of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is "supporting Liu against Cao," why isn't Liu the main character? Zhou Yuan's "injustice" is the result of Luo Guanzhong making him sacrifice for art. Zhou Xianjin concisely summarizes the characteristics and achievements of the war descriptions in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" in six words: rich, profound, and vivid. "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is what kind of book, and what does it aim to express? Duan Qiming summarizes it in eight words: "praising benevolent governance and human strategy," which is the theme of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." In his view, "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is undoubtedly Confucian. But it undoubtedly has Taoist elements as well, such as Zhuge Liang's external image—wearing Taoist robes, holding a feather fan, practicing the Bagua, controlling the winds and rains, and the mysterious atmosphere of Longzhong, giving the characters a Taoist flavor. These are merely artistic means in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," portraying Zhuge Liang as ethereal and otherworldly to highlight his wisdom and foresight. But all of this relies on the successful artistic portrayal of characters. Take Cao Cao as an example. As Guo Yingde said, while Luo Guanzhong depicted Cao Cao's cunning and cruelty, he did not shy away from it but vividly showed his other side as an outstanding statesman and military strategist. In other words, in the author's portrayal, Cao Cao, though a villain, still retains the essence of a hero. As a prominent example of his heroic nature, the author pays great attention to depicting Cao Cao's strategic genius and political foresight. When he discussed heroes with Liu Bei in "Boiling Wine to Discuss Heroes," he said: "A hero is one who has great ambitions, possesses wise strategies, and has the ability to encompass the universe and dominate the earth." It is his kingly temperament, political wisdom, and ambitious nature that make him a "remarkable figure among the cunning heroes of all time." In terms of character portrayal alone, I think Cao Cao is one of the most complex, rich, realistic, and believable artistic figures in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." Listening to or reading high-quality academic lectures is, after all, a shortcut to learning and seeking knowledge, because lectures are scholars' colloquial expressions after accumulating extensive knowledge in their studies. Compared to academic books that are intimidating, stern, and rigidly formal, lectures are more accessible, concise, and easier for the general public to understand. Of course, when lecture recordings are compiled into printed text, the on-site sense is lost, but the vividness of the moment is immediately lost, and the knowledge that steps out of the study becomes lively. Even the words seem to carry the speaker's expressions. Especially when the audience attending the lecture reads it again, they are as if they are immersed in it once more, recalling the speaker's gaze and gestures at that moment, and find it deeply satisfying. I am like that. Precisely for this reason, over the past four years of hosting "Lectures at the Literature Museum," I have always felt fortunate to be able to use the platform of the Literature Museum to build a bridge of communication and interaction between scholars and the public, and to meet many respected academic predecessors.