Research on the Annotations of Dream of the Red Chamber

Author: Liu Jibao
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-09-01
Features: The annotations of Dream of the Red Chamber are not only numerous but also diverse in form. In previous research, people's interest has primarily focused on the Zhi comments, while overlooking the annotations by others after the He edition. This is not surprising, as the discovery of the Zhi comments occurred as early as the 1920s. Compared to the numerous printed editions with annotations that have long been circulating, the Zhi comments are undoubtedly a new discovery and a new topic, naturally attracting new attention and interest. More importantly, the Zhi comments themselves are too complex and special. Their rich content and the vast amount of information they provide are all intertwined with issues such as the author of Dream of the Red Chamber, its composition, its editions, and even its ideological and artistic aspects, making researchers unable to overlook them. At the same time, there are indeed puzzling mysteries in the Zhi comments, including the identities of the Zhi Yan Zhai and others, which remain unresolved to this day. Therefore, although there are still many unclear and unresolved issues in the Zhi comments, their overall academic value undoubtedly holds a strong "appeal" for researchers, leading to the situation where "discussing Dream of the Red Chamber inevitably involves the Zhi comments" for many years.