The History and Spirit of Chinese Art: From the Song to the Qing Dynasty 1623201284, 9781623201289

Table of contents :
Cover
Contents
Chapter 4 The Artistic Mentality of the Song Dynasty
Chapter 5 The Artistic Interest of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties
Bibliography
Index

Citation preview

The History and Spirit of Chinese Art

The History and Spirit of Chinese Art Volume 2 From the Song to the Qing Dynasty

Zhang Fa

Published by Enrich Professional Publishing, Inc. Suite 208 Davies Pacific Center 841 Bishop Street Honolulu, HI, 96813 Website: www.enrichprofessional.com A Member of Enrich Culture Group Limited Hong Kong Head Office: 11/F, Benson Tower, 74 Hung To Road, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China China Office: Rm 309, Building A, Central Valley, 16 Haidian Middle Street, Haidian District, Beijing, China Singapore Office: 16L, Enterprise Road, Singapore 627660 Trademarks: SILKROAD PRESS and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of Enrich Professional Publishing, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Chinese original edition © 2003 China Renmin University Press By Zhang Fa English edition © 2016 by Enrich Professional Publishing, Inc. With the title The History and Spirit of Chinese Art Volume 2: From the Song to the Qing Dynasty Translated by Barbara Cao, Li Tong, Charlie Ng, Phoebe Poon, and Yu Lun Edited by Phoebe Poon All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without prior written permission from the Publisher. ISBN (Hardback) ISBN (pdf)

978-1-62320-127-2 978-1-62320-128-9

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Contents Chapter 4 The Artistic Mentality of the Song Dynasty.................................. 1 Chapter 5 The Artistic Interest of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties..... 75 Bibliography ............................................................................................................. 189

Index

............................................................................................................. 199

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Chapter

The Artistic Mentality of the Song Dynasty

The History and Spirit of Chinese Art VOLUME 2

The General Cultural Atmosphere and Four Artistic Sites

In the history of Chinese culture, the Song dynasty is the most enigmatic. As the key period of cultural transition, the practices and creations of the Song greatly influenced the progress of Chinese culture. This is a dynasty that cannot be pinned down by a particular set of theory or logic. The artistic activities and creations of the Song people were the organic constituents of the enigmas of the Song dynasty. First, the location of the capital of the Song dynasty at Bianjing (modernday Kaifeng) at the beginning of the regime was a peculiarity. Before the Song, Chang’an was the common stable capital of the Qin, Han, Sui, and Tang, while after, Beijing served stably as the capital of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing. Bianjing, as the capital of the Northern Song, was deliberately constructed but transient. As the capital moved to Lin’an 臨安 in the Southern Song era, what it had to offer was as the literal meaning of its name suggests: “provisional security.” Bianjing was structurally a deliberate construction. That the outer city wall, the inner city wall, and the palace at the center formed the three enclosures of the city was traditional for capital cities. What distinguished it from the other Chinese capitals was its size: the perimeter of the outer city wall was only 29,180 meters — three fifth that of Chang’an of the Tang and significantly shorter than Beijing of the Ming and Qing (32,700 meters); the total area of the palace was less than a twentieth that of the Taiji Palace of the Tang (1.92 square meters) and much smaller than the Forbidden City of the Ming and the Qing (0.7 square meters). Most importantly, however, was that despite its small size, the Song capital much exceeded Chang’an and Beijing in economic prosperity. By ending the separation between residential precincts (fang 坊) and marketplaces (shi 市), shops could be opened on any streets. The Song also lifted the time limit on commercial activities, so night markets were available. This structural difference of the capital city marks the watershed between the early and late periods of Chinese culture. The smallest in size but economically the most prosperous, Bianjing of the Northern Song dynasty became the capital model for later dynasties. Meng Yuanlao so describes Bianjing in his preface to the Dongjing meng Hua lu 東京夢華錄 (A Record of Dreaming of Hua Xu in the Eastern Capital): Peace stretched on day after day; people were many and all things were in abundance. Youths with trailing locks practiced naught but drumming and dancing, the aged with white speckled [hair] recognized neither shield nor spear. Season and festival followed one upon the other, each with its own sights to enjoy. Lamplit nights there were and moonlit eves, periods of snow and times of blossoming, beseeching skills and climbing heights, training reservoirs and gardens to roam in. Raise the eyes and there were green bowers and painted chambers,

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embroidered gates and pearly shades. Decorated chariots vied to park in the Heavenly Avenue and bejeweled horses competed to spur through the Imperial Street. Gold and kingfisher dazzled the eye, silky cloth and silken gauze let float their perfumes. New sounds and sly giggles were found in the willowy lanes and flowered paths, pipes were fingered and strings were harmonized in the tea districts and wine wards. The eight wilds strived to assembled [in Bianlang], the myriad states were all in communication [with the capital]. Gathered together were the valued and the rare from the four seas — all found their way to market for trade. Assembled were the rare flavors of the whole world — all were in the kitchens [of Bianliang]. The radiance of flowers filled the roads — what limit to spring excursions? Pipes and drums sounded in the empty air — night feasts in how many households? As for skills and crafts — they startled a person’s eyes and ears; as for the waste and extravagance — they prolonged a person’s spirit.1 Even Lin’an of the Southern Song was also a prosperous city. It is recorded in the Meng liang lu 夢粱錄 (Dreaming Over a Bowl of Millet): Generally Hangzhou was the location of the subsidiary capital where all things gathered. There were various industries and hundreds of markets. From the wooden barrack of the Gate of Harmony and Tranquility (Heningmen 和寧門) to the Bridge of Observation (Guanqiao 觀橋), not a single shop was not in business and the variety of industries was greater than ever…. Things rarely seen in the past were all available…. The weight of goods sold in the daily market was unknown.2 In the outer city of the city of Hangzhou, within dozens of li 里 on each of the four directions, the population proliferated and the wealth of the people thrived, while shops and stalls in the markets and on the streets abounded — they could not be walked through in several days! Each [community] was comparable to a small county in other circuits (lu 路) — the prosperity of Hangzhou is sufficiently evident.3

1. Meng, preface to Dongjing meng Hua lu; translation from West, “The Interpretation of a Dream: The Sources, Evaluation, and Influence of the Dongjing meng Hua lu,” 67–69.

2. Wu, Meng liang lu, scroll 13, “Tuanhang” 團行 [Associations and Guilts].

3. Ibid, scroll 19, “Tafang” 塌房 [Storage of Goods].

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The prosperity of the Song capitals was related to changes in the Song urban system. The population of Bianjing of the Northern Song was around 1.36 million. In addition to the capital, there were more than 20 cities with a population of more than 100,000 people. To draw a comparison with the Western world, the population of large cities such as Venice and Paris at that time was usually only around 100,000. Bianjing represented a departure from the politico-military type of capital cities up to the Tang dynasty with the development of a commercial-consumption dimension founded in an unprecedented expansion of economic power. To understand this expansion, let us first look at the changes in the mainstream economic mode: the rural economy. The root of the changes lied in the twotax system (liangshui fa 兩稅法) of the mid-Tang, which broke down the equalfield system (jun tian zhi 均田制) and state ownership of land, thereby enabling the commoner-landlord (shuzu dizhu 庶族地主) economy and peasant economy to flourish. With this, land ownership changed from inheritance to buying and selling. This structural change was completed in the Song dynasty, as a result of which the productivity of the nation was greatly enhanced. The agriculture of the Song was the most productive and technologically advanced in the world at that time, which made Song dynasty the richest agricultural regime.4 At the same time, The commodity economy was also developed significantly. Every year, the Northern Song minted more than three million strings (guan 貫) of coins. “Jiaozi” 交子, the earliest banknotes in the world, appeared during this period of time. The commerce of the Southern Song was even more prosperous. Banknotes became more common, with jiaozi and huizi 會子 widely used for circulation. More than 50 regions and countries established trade relationships with the Song. The annual revenue of the Department of Maritime Affairs was two million strings of coins, which made up 1/5 of the government’s annual revenue.5 The revenue of the Song court was unprecedentedly large. During the time of Emperor Taizong of Song 宋太宗, “the national revenue going into the court doubled that of the Tang.”6 During the prime time of the Southern Song, the annual revenue was “10 times that of the Han and 5 times that of the Tang.”7 Throughout 4. See Liu, China Turning Inward: Intellectual-Political Changes in the Early Twelfth Century. 5. Feng, He, and Zhou, Zhonghua wenhua shi, vol. 2, 704. 6. Li, Xu “Zizhi tongjian” changbian, scroll 37. 7. Zhang, “Qunshu kaosuo” xuji, scroll 45.

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Chinese history, the thriving development of agriculture and the social economy had always coincided with the formation of rural patriarchal communities, for family culture was the most entrenched tradition in Chinese culture. The Chinese patriarchal clan society had transformed from the political patriarchy of the Zhou to the noble patriarchy of the Latter Han, and following the crumbling of the noble patriarchy by the end of the Tang dynasty, a new kind of kinship-based patriarchal community was formed thanks to new economic development. This kind of community was an ethical hierarchical organization led by a patriarch who was the head of the clan. Spanning as far as 10 or 11 generations, a family in the clan system was just like a small town, making every patriarchal clan comparable to a small monarchy. The patriarch had “jurisdiction” over the whole clan which he chaired and commanded. In each clan were not only moral norms and ethical order but also mutual help and aid to the weak and the poor equivalent to modern social welfare schemes. It was precisely the prevalence of these patriarchal communities which provided the social cells of Confucian ethics and the social basis for the reconstruction of social ideology in the Song dynasty, giving rise to the emergence of the School of Principle (lixue 理學), a major school of Neo-Confucianism. Economic changes in agriculture, commerce, finance, and urbanization fostered cultural transformation, almost driving Chinese society towards commercialization. However, the existence of patriarchal communities as a condition for economic changes determined that the cultural transformation would develop in a traditional direction. While in retrospect, the economic achievements of the Song dynasty might appear transient, it would be no exaggeration to say that the technological innovations of the Song people led the world. Human inventions that casted a revolutionary impact on world history such as movable type printing, gunpowder, and navigation compasses were created during the Song dynasty. As the technique of movable type printing was spread to Europe, knowledge became popularized, eliciting decisive changes in the cultural realm of the West. Likewise, gunpowder changed the development of wars when it entered Europe, and navigation compasses laid the technological foundation for Christopher Columbus’s voyages and Europe’s foreign expansion and colonialism. Interestingly, in Song China, the inventors of the three great inventions did not enjoy a high social status, regarded at most as some smart craftsmen. We know that the inventor of movable type printing was Bi Sheng 畢昇 only because he is recorded in Shen Kuo’s Mengxi bitan 夢溪筆談 (Dream Pool Essays), and the other two inventors will likely remain anonymous forever because no one had bothered to make a serious record for them. Three important innovations that propelled significant changes in world

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history appeared in the Song dynasty. Although they did not have pioneering significance for Chinese culture, they represented the unique social, economic, and cultural atmosphere of the Song dynasty in which they emerged. One of the most obvious aspects of Song society was a culture formed among common city dwellers — a new class emerging from changes in the structure, factors, and population of Song metropolises. To analyze the population constitution of Song metropolises, using Lin’an as an example, among the 1.5 million people, government officials constituted 23 percent, men of letters in the cultural and educational sectors constituted 10 percent, those involved in the industrial and commercial sectors constituted 33 percent, and the remaining were soldiers and the floating population.8 In other words, apart from government officials and workers in the cultural and educational sectors, whom we can assume to be educated men, 67 percent of the people — that is, a million — living in the prosperous city were laymen. Not usually educated, these lay city dwellers would naturally explore ways of life and entertainment that corresponded with their cultural level. This gave rise to new urban entertainments. There was the inheritance of popular folk dance and acrobatics from previous eras, but the most significant phenomenon was the separation of shuohua 說話 (storytelling) and zaju 雜劇 (variety plays) from various types of Chinese drama to become part of everyday life pursuits. While shuohua and shuochang 說唱 (story-singing) of the Tang dynasty were mainly performed in temples and linked with religion, festivals, and regular markets, in Song metropolises, they were not restricted to mobile performances but were available in fixed venues: wazi 瓦子 (“tiles”) or goulan 勾欄 (“linked railings”) and teahouses and taverns. “Wazi” was a general term for entertainment venues for this purpose, while “goulan” refers to performance sites constructed with a railing commonly seen in a wazi. The Dongjing meng Hua lu contains descriptions of a list of wazi such as the New Gate (Xinmen 新門) Wazi, the Sang Family (Sangjia 桑家) Wazi, the Zhu Family Bridge (Zhujiaqiao 朱家橋) Wazi, the County West (Zhouxi 州西) Wazi, the Baokang Gate (Baokangmen) 保康門 Wazi, and the County North (Zhoubei) 州北 Wazi. Shuochang was the most important pastime for the regular urban dweller. The Xihu Laoren fansheng lu 西湖老人繁勝錄 (Record of Splendor by the Old Man of West Lake) records: “But the Northern wazi was the largest, containing 13 goulan. Usually two goulan were reserved for the telling of historical stories [by] Qiao the Wanjuan, Xu the Gongshi, and Zhang the Jieyuan.”9 Through concrete stories and 8. Feng, He, and Zhou, Zhonghua wenhua shi, vol. 2, 697.

9. “Wanjuan” 萬卷, “Gongshi” 貢士, and “Jieyuan” 解元 were typical nicknames for the

storytellers connoting their breadth of knowledge. “Wanjuan” literally means “ten

thousand scrolls,” while “gongshi” and “jieyuan” were ranks in the Imperial Examination

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characters, shuochang exhibits a kind of life experience and aesthetic taste different from those of past literature. The formation of the class of urban commoners and their associated culture should be attributed to the development of a new historical trend, although this is usually mistaken as the product of a prospering traditional society. The rise of urban folk culture had a great impact on the overall literary order of the Song dynasty. The literati class enjoyed the prosperity of the city but held contempt for the laymen’s taste as vulgar. In a way, to comprehend the literary trends of the Song dynasty, it is necessary to understand the pressure that the Song literati faced from urban folk culture. From prehistory up to the Song dynasty, cultural creations in China were engineered by the literati. In the Song dynasty, the literati’s function of social integration in state management was in fact reaching a pinnacle. The time when the literati class was dominated by the aristocracy during the Six Dynasties had long gone, as since the Tang dynasty, the Imperial Examination (keju 科舉) system had enabled more talented scholars to ascend the social ladder. The social coverage of the literati class had been expanding. The composition of the literati class in the latter phase of Chinese culture — with scholars from patriarchal clan communities entering the bureaucracy through the Imperial Examination — was established during the Song dynasty. At the very beginning of the regime, the Zhao monarchy emphasized that it would “rule the world with the scholar-officials.”10 Indeed, the Imperial Examination system formed in the Sui and Tang dynasties continued to develop, becoming more comprehensive and also fairer. As Feng, He, and Zhou explain: The Song emperors often hosted the examinations themselves, strictly maintaining the threshold of passing the examination so that descendants of influential families enjoyed no privilege. For example, Emperor Taizu of Song 宋太祖 instructed: “For families receiving official salaries, if there are those who passed the Imperial Examination, the Ministry of Rites (libu 禮部) should report all their names and require them to sit for another examination.” He also said: “In the past, ranks of the Imperial Examination had mostly been taken by influential families. I will invigilate the examination myself to eliminate such malpractices.” The court gave the green light to poor scholars attending the examination: providing them with financial system. In the Song dynasty, gongshi was awarded to those passing local examinations

whereas jieyuan was the one who ranked first in a local exam. — Ed. Xihu Laoren fansheng

lu, “Washi” 瓦市 [Tile Markets].

10. Li, Xu “Zizhi tongjian” changbian, scroll 221.

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aid, so that “fees from setting off to returning to their hometown were all given public [funds].” Moreover, the intake of scholars was increased; for example, in the late Northern Song, 800 scholars were selected at one time, which was more than the total number of scholars selected in the 29 years of the prime era of Kaiyuan 開元 of the Tang dynasty. In terms of the academy system, Song academies not only increased the intake of students but also relaxed the grade prerequisite for enrollment. For example, to enter the Imperial Academy (taixue 太學), it was stipulated in the Tang dynasty that only descendants of officials of the fifth rank or above were qualified to enroll. However, the stipulation in the Song dynasty was “descendants of officials of the eighth rank or below and talented ordinary people.” To study under the Directorate of Education (guozijian 國子監), students had to be descendants of officials of the third rank or above or noble families in the Tang dynasty, while in the Song dynasty, they could be “descendants of officials of the seventh rank or above.”11 It was a state policy of the Song dynasty to privilege scholar-officials. Compared to military officials, civil officials were better paid, enjoyed higher status, and held more power. Moreover, Emperor Taizu of Song also pronounced that Song emperors must not execute the death penalty on scholar-officials. In the Song dynasty, the literati faced no threat of decapitation. The Song period was the prime time for the scholar-official class in terms of both the exercise of social power and cultural creation. However, despite their political privilege, Song scholar-officials were confronted with two big challenges: repeated military defeats by the Western Xia, Liao, and Jin dynasties, and the perplexity vis-à-vis a strengthening commodity economy and “vulgar” urban folk culture. Puzzled about these two problematic aspects, the Song literati were driven to reengage with morality and virtues as well as promote the elegant taste of the literati. The former was manifested in the establishment of Neo-Confucianism while the latter was embodied in literati painting (wenren hua 文人畫). However, neither of these was free from the pressure of reality. As a result, ci 詞 lyric poetry, with its pensive and sorrowful mood, became the genre that most accurately reflected the mentality of the Song literati. Generally speaking, the landscape of Song art was constituted by four symbolic sites: the Imperial Painting Academy (huayuan 畫院), the scholarly academy (shuyuan 書院), the study of the literati (wenfang 文房), and the entertainment venue of wazi-goulan. We shall see that the four artistic sites were interconnected but at the same time mutually exclusive components of the comprehensive cultural scene 11. Feng, He, and Zhou, Zhonghua wenhua shi, vol. 2, 635–36.

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of the Song dynasty.

The Imperial Painting Academy

The Imperial Painting Academy was first established during the Southern Tang and Later Shu dynasties of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, and further developed during the Song dynasty. Representing the royal aesthetic taste, it had a profound influence on the rise and fall of the aesthetic standards and styles of the whole society. Since the standards set by the academy played a decisive role in the development of Song painting, changes in painting styles among the literati and society at large must be reflected at the academy, by which they attracted even more social attention. Technological development during the Song dynasty was reflected in two trends at the academy: the rise in status of architectural paintings (jiehua 界畫) and a new found interest in the meticulous representation of things. Thanks to these two trends, the Imperial Painting Academy became a hub of artistic techniques and crafts more than ever. On the other hand, the academy, as an imperial institution, was subject to imperial authority, its dominate style determined by the liking of the emperor and popularized in the country through state examinations. Ultimately, being an imperial and painting institution at the same time meant that the academy’s authority was manifested through the form of painting. Therefore, aesthetic discussions and changes in styles at the academy revealed the basic lanscape of Song art.

The scholarly academy

Scholarly academies were places for teaching operated by scholar-officials that were independent from official schools. Song academies evolved from the Buddhist monastic system of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Studies of various chronicles of the Song dynasty found that there were as many as 397 (or possibly 229) scholarly academies in the period,12 the most famous ones being the White Deer Grotto Academy (Bailudong Shuyuan 白鹿洞書院), the Stone Drum Academy (Shigu Shuyuan 石鼓書院), the Yuelu Acamdey 岳麓書院, the Songyang Academy 嵩陽書院, the Yingtianfu Academy 應天府書院, and the Maoshan Academy 茅山書院. The mission of these academies was to preach NeoConfucian ethics and cultivate people, especially the literati class. To achieve their aims, scholarly academies conducted a moral and personality education that was markedly different from the education of official academies (guanxue 官學, such as the Imperial Academy and the Directorate of Education). Zhu Xi 朱熹, one of 12. Chen, Yin, and Wang, Zhongguo gudai de shuyuan zhidu, 30.

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the founders of Neo-Confucianism, had lived in the Wuyi Mountains 武夷山 of Chong’an 崇安. At his Wuyi Refined Institute (Wuyi Jingshe 武夷精舍) and Cloud Valley Academy (Yungu 雲谷) of Jianyang 建陽 was a series of structures, such as the Hui’an Thatched Hall 晦庵草堂, Sounding Jade Pavilion (Huaixian Ting 鳴玉亭), Pavilion In Commemoration of the Saints (Huaixian Ting 懷仙亭), Waving Hands Terrace (Huishou Tai 揮手台), and Sunbeam Terrace (Hexi Tai 赫曦台). He lived in the Refined Institute of Cold Spring (Hanquan Jingshe 寒泉精舍) where he taught and conducted his studies. When he served at the court, he ordered the renovation of the White Deer Grotto Academy. In “Bailudong Shuyuan jieshi” 白鹿洞書院揭示 (Precepts of the White Deer Grotto Academy), Zhu writes: I personally observe that the purpose of past sages of teaching people was to enlighten them with principles and morals so that they could cultivate themselves and consider the situations of others as they would consider their own. It was not only about reciting sayings and writing poetry and prose so as to earn fame, money, or career success. Scholars nowadays have pursued the opposite. However, the method of teaching of the sages has been recorded in the classics. A person of noble aspirations should read them thoroughly, reflect on them deeply, and make inquiries and discernments.13 Lu Jiuyuan 陸九淵, albeit a philosophical opponent of Zhu, expressed a similar vision in his lecture given at the White Deer Grotto Academy: The aspiration of a scholar must be discerned. It has been a long time since government officials are chosen by the Imperial Examination. Famous scholars and respectful gentlemen have all been born out of it. Scholars nowadays doubtlessly cannot be exempt from this. However, whether one can succeed in the Imperial Examination or not depends on his [examination] skills and the likes and dislikes of the markers, which cannot serve to distinguish a true gentleman from a villain. Despite this, people nowadays elevate [the Imperial Examination] too much and become so immersed in it that they cannot be extricated. Therefore although what they are engaged in day after day are the books of the sages, the direction they aspire is divergent from that of the sages. Ascending [the social ladder], then, they are only preoccupied with whether their official position is high or low and whether their salaries are large or small. How can they concentrate their mind on the nation’s affairs and the 13. In Zhu, Hui’an xiansheng Zhu Wengong wenji, scroll 74.

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concerns of the people so that they live up to [the expectations of] the one who appointed them?14 The core of the teaching of the scholarly academies was the theoretical construction of Neo-Confucianism and character cultivation. On the other hand, same as the other dynasties throughout Chinese history, poetry and prose were also included in the curriculum as an essential part of the Chinese cultural ideology. Therefore, academies influenced the literary circle in two aspects. First, Neo-Confucians criticized the poetic and prose theories of literary writers. For instance, Cheng Yi 程頤 writes: Scholars in the past only focused on cultivating their character without learning other things. Men of letters nowadays focus particularly on [refining] sections and sentences to please the eyes and ears.… The sages expressed what was accumulated in their bosoms and prose essays came about naturally…. A poem by the ancients says: “To compose a line of five characters, / the mind energy of a lifetime is exhausted.” It is also said, “What a pity it is that the mind energy of a lifetime / is spent on five characters.” This is appropriately said…. Plus nowadays those who write poetry are no comparison to Du Fu; for example: “Deep, deep in the flowers butterflies can be seen. / Dragonflies stop and go, touching the surface of water.” What’s the use of this kind of empty words [anyway]?15 Zhu Xi also writes: I would say Old Su [Su Shi] 蘇軾 aspired to emulate the sounds of the words of the ancients and he was extremely meticulous. As he was as diligent as that, what he said cannot be attained by ordinary people. The peers of Han Tuizhi [i.e., Han Yu 韓愈] and Liu Zihou [i.e., Liu Zongyuan 柳宗元] were similar — from their “Da Li Xiang shu” 答李翔書 [Letter In Response to Li Xiang] and “Wei Zhongli shu” 韋 中立書 [Letter In Response to Wei Zhongli] it can be seen where their efforts lied. 14. Lu, “Bailudong Shuyuan jiangyi” 白鹿洞書院講義 [Lecture Notes from the White Deer Grotto Academy], in Lu, Xiangshan xiansheng quanji, scroll 23.

15. Zhu, comp., Er Cheng yulu, scroll 11. The first two pairs of poetry lines read: “吟成五个 字，用破一生心” and “可惜一生心，用在五字上.” The third pair, “穿花蛺蝶深深見，點

水蜻蜓款款飛” comes from the second of Du Fu’s “Qujiang liang shou” 曲江二首 [Two Poems on Qujiang]. Here the translation of Barnstone and Chou, The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry, 146 is used.

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However, they only aimed at writing good prose and gaining others’ appreciation. Had this anything to do with their own [good] after all? Yet they had spent so many months and wasted so much energy — that was a great pity.16 The second influence brought by the Neo-Confucians was that their promotion of the metaphysical spirit and rational reasoning constituted an ideological atmosphere. The first aspect was repudiated by Song literary writers but the second aspect affected the styles and appearance of Song poetry and prose to various degrees.

The study of the literati

In the Tang dynasty, Bai Juyi developed the landscape garden of the “middling hermit”; in the Song dynasty, scholar-officials, honored by the ruling court, were endowed with superior living conditions. The taste of the literati could be appropriately manifested by the study. Three types of high art: poetry, calligraphy, and painting were produced in the study. The four tools that were closely related to poetry, calligraphy, and painting — the so-called “Four Treasures of the Study” (wenfang sibao 文房四寶) — namely the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, became objects of artistic appreciation and systematic aesthetic standards were formed to grade them. The literati collected curios such as antique objects and metal and stone sculptures for their studies to show off their interest and taste. Ouyang Xiu 歐陽修, for example, was fond of collecting antique objects. He collected “the greatest treasures of the three dynasties — objects that [were] strange, magnificent, ingeniously crafted, and delightful.”17 Li Gonglin 李公麟 “was a polymath interested in antiquity. He was talented in poetry and knew many strange words. He was able to study and date the bells, tripods, and wine vessels passed down from the Xia and Shang dynasties, as well as distinguish their types and styles. When he discovered a wonderful piece [of curio], he did not hesitate to offer a handsome sum of gold.”18 If we say the artificial rock hills in Chinese landscape gardens symbolized the inclusion of the world in a limited space, then curios in the study would represent the inclusion of the past in the present. Tea tasting (pincha 品茶) was also a major pursuit in the study. Same as poetry, 16.  Zhu, “Cangzhou jingshe yu xuezhe” 滄州精舍諭學者 [Imparting Scholars at the Cangzhou Refined Institute], in Zhu, Hui’an xiansheng Zhu Wengong wenji, scroll 74.

17. Ouyang, “Jigu lumu xu” 集古錄目序 [Preface to the Catalog of the Collection of Antique Inscriptions], in Ouyang, Jushi ji, scroll 41.

18. Toqto’a et al., Songshi, scroll 444, “Li Gonglin” 李公麟.

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calligraphy, painting, chess games, and zither playing, tea connoisseurship was part of the training of an educated man. The taste of tea is light, but an aftertaste lingers on. Like the white porcelains of the Song, the nature of tea was representative of the aesthetic interest of the Song literati. The archetypal image of the study presaged the trends of literati painting and calligraphy.

The wazi-goulan

The fourth site was the wazi-goulan. As discussed earlier in the chapter, wazi and goulan were fixed venues for storytelling and different kinds of plays which represented the taste of urban commoners. Wazi-goulan were centers of oral literature, although this form of art went far beyond the fixed venues and penetrated into teahouses and taverns, open public spaces, streets, temples, villages, private mansions, and even the court. In fact, shuohua had become a popular pastime both in the court and among the masses. The court’s interest in popular tales is widely recorded in various literary sources. For example, Emperor Xiaozong of Song 宋孝 宗 is said to have ordered his subordinates to go among the commoners every day and return with anecdotes of strange events.19 Moreover, among the more than 80,000 titles compiled and edited by scholar officials under imperial commission at the Veneration of Literature (chongwen guan 崇文館) set up by Emperor Taizong were the Taiping yulan 太平御覽 (Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era), Wenyuan yinghua 文苑英華 (Finest Blossoms in the Garden of Literature), and Taiping guangji 太平廣記 (Extensive Records of the Taiping Era), which were filled with unofficial histories, biographies, short stories, tales of fairies and the supernatural, and tales of marvels (chuanqi 傳奇). The popularity of shuohua encouraged the growth of a group of professional storytellers and story script (huaben 話本) writers, who were usually buskers or scholars repeatedly frustrated in the Imperial Examination. According to Hu’s Huaben xiaoshuo gai lun 話本小說概論 (Survey of Short Stories and Fiction), the Dongjing meng Hua lu names 14 storytellers and five types of stories in the wazi-goulan of the Northern Song’s Bianjing, while the Xihu Laoren fansheng lu, Meng liang lu, Wulin jiushi 武林舊事 (Old Affairs of the Martial Grove), and other memoirs record a total of 110 storytellers who performed in wazi-goulan and the Lin’an court during the Southern Song. Since the Southern Song dynasty, writers who wrote scripts for storytellers and actors had begun to form their own unions — story writing societies (shuhui 書會). In Lin’an, professional unions for all kinds of folk arts sprang up, including the Red and Green Society (feilü she 緋 綠社) for zaju, the Painted Leather Society (huige she 繪革社) for yingxi 影戲 (shadow 19. Baoweng Laoren, preface to Jingu qiguan.

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plays), the Cloud Stilling Society (eyun she 遏雲社) for changzhuan 唱賺 (a kind of narrative singing accompanied by drums, woodblocks, and flutes), the Literary Society (tongwen she 同文社) for ci plays, the Pure Music Society (qingyin she 清音 社) for qingshang 清商 music, and the Eloquent Society (xiongbian she 雄辯社) for shuohua.20

Landscape Gardens between the Sagacious and the Mundane

The landscape garden of the “middling hermit” (zhongyin yuanlin 中隱園林) of the Tang dynasty, as explored in chapter 3, had emerged under the influence of the Chán school of Buddhism. There are three spiritual states according to Chán Buddhism: (1) the ascension from the mundane to the sagacious (you fan ru sheng 由凡入聖); (2) the descent from the sagacious to the mundane (you sheng ru fan 由聖入凡); (3) being neither sagacious nor mundane while both sagacious and mundane (fei sheng fei fan, yi sheng yi fan 非聖非凡，亦聖亦凡). To apply this categorization on the landscape gardens of the Chinese literati, the gardens of Tao Qian 陶潛 (Tao Yuanming 陶 淵明) and Wang Wei 王維, which represented a move from the metropolis to the mountains, would belong to the first state, while Bai Juyi 白居易’s gardening vision, which advocated a return from the mountains to the metropolis, would fall into the second state. The landscape gardens of the Song literati, developing in the direction of Bai’s idea of the “middling hermit” at both ideological and practical levels, would have entered the intriguing state of being neither sagacious nor mundane and both sagacious and mundane. As far as ideology is concerned, on the one hand, the Song literati generally agreed with concept of the “middling hermit.” For example, Zhang Quhua 張去華 and Gong Yuanzong 龔元宗 named the structures in their gardens the “Middling Hermit Hall” (Zhongyin Tang 中隱堂) and the “Middling Hermit Pavilion” (Zhongyin Ting 中隱亭), whereas Su Shi, Fan Chengda 范成大, and Zhang Xiaoxiang 張孝祥 wrote poems in the vision of the middling hermit. On the other hand, however, they did not elevate the middling hermit as much as to devaluate the so-called “great” and “petty” hermits (dayin 大隱 and xiaoyin 小 隱), who would either be able to continue with all the worldly pursuits and yet be unaffected in the mind, or rather live a completely reclusive life in order not to be moved by mundane preoccupations. Wang Anshi 王安石 explains this mentality in “Luyin” 祿隱 (Seclusion While Receiving Official Salaries): Aloofness attained by showing off starvation (exian 餓顯) or recession 20. Hu, Huaben xiaoshuo gai lun, 71–72.

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attained by being content with the official salary and unconcerned about official obligations (luyin 祿隱) are themselves deliberate pursuits. How can these be regarded as [acts of] the sages? Only when one is freed from entanglement with any deliberate pursuits can he be greater than ordinary people.21 Likewise, Su Shi expresses in “Lingbi Zhangshi yuanting ji” 靈壁張氏園亭記 (Note on the Garden of the Zhangs at Lingbi): Virtuous men of the past need not dedicate themselves to getting into the civil service or not getting into the civil service. If one is determined to get into the civil service, he loses his own self; but if one is determined not to get into the civil service, he forgets his emperor…. Now the ancestors of the Zhangs … built rooms and planted a garden in between the Bian River 汴 水 and the Si River 泗水 … so their descendants, [if they decided to] open the door and get into the civil service, could be in the court in a step or two, and [if they decided to] keep the doors shut and live a secluded life, could look up and down [at the scenery] beneath mountains and woods. Neither to cultivate one’s wellbeing and temperament nor to do righteousness and pursue aspirations is more or less desirable.22 All forms of reclusive life are of equal value; what matters is not to pursue them deliberately. While in the Jin dynasty, Tao Yuanming’s lines “The clouds aimlessly rise from the peaks, / The birds, weary of flying, know it is time to come home” indicate his determination to part with the mundane and live a reclusive and sagacious life among the mountains,23 Su Shi’s poem “Zeng Tanxiu” 贈曇秀 (For Tanxiu), which opens with the same images, expresses the typical Song mentality which was more amenable to fate and less constrained by attachment (zhizhuo 執著):24 White clouds rise above the mountains, thinking naught. For what would perching birds lose their hearts to the woods?

白雲出山初無心 棲鳥何必戀山林

21. In Wang, Linchuan xiansheng wenji, scroll 69. 22. In Su, Dongpo quanji, scroll 36.

23. “雲無心以出岫，鳥倦飛而知還。” Tao, “Gui qu lai xi ci bing xu” 歸去來兮辭並序 [The Return], in Tao Yuanming ji, scroll 5; Hightower, trans., “The Return. Poem by Tao Yuanming,” in Mair, ed., The Columbia Anthology of Traditional Chinese Literature, 436.

24. In Su, Dongpo quanji, scroll 26.

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The Daoist is at times fascinated by things among water and mountains. A bounce he makes, not knowing the depth of lakes and ridges.

道人偶愛山水故 縱步不知湖嶺深

For the Song literati, mountains and forests, busy streets, and the court, as well as the petty hermit, middling hermit, and great hermit were all deliberate constructs. Their take on the middling hermit was that if destiny allowed them to be a middling hermit, then be it. Therefore Su writes in the fifth of his five jueju poems “Liu yue ershiqi ri Wanghu lou zui shu” 六月二十七日望湖樓醉書 (Written over Wine at the Lake Viewing Tower on the 27th Day of the 6th Month): “Not yet a petty hermit I’d be a middling hermit for now, / This is permanent idling, much preferred to temporary relief.”25 Simply put, the Song literati lived as middling hermits without being too attached to such a state of mind. The result was a higher mental realm. Because of the forgoing of deliberate pursuit and strong attachment, although the middling hermit ideology was still the dominant trend and the placement of rocks, hills, water, and flowers was inherited from the Middle Tang, Song garden culture emphasized the role of the mind and the soul more. Su Shi famously writes in his “Ji Chengtian si ye you” 記 承天寺夜遊 (A Night Visit to Chengtian Temple): “Isn’t the moon always there at night, and aren’t bamboo and pine trees common to all places? The only difference is the absence of people at leisure like the two of us.”26 An enlightened mind was more important than the environment. Neo-Confucians believed that “if one can look at flowers in a different way from the ordinary man does, he will be able to see the wonder of nature.”27 Literary writers shared their vision: “A basin pond is small but clear and deep, / Clear and deep as impressed upon the mind.”28 This emphasis on mentality was what set post-Song landscape gardens apart from the “Heaven and Earth in a pot” (hu zhong tiandi 壺中天地) of the Middle Tang.

25. “未成小隱聊中隱，可得長閑勝暫閑。” In ibid, scroll 3.

26. “何夜無月？何處無竹柏？但少閑人如吾兩人耳！” In ibid, scroll 101; Hung, trans., “Su Shi: Dongpo’s Miscellaneous Records: Excerpts,” 126.

27. “看花異於常人，自可以觀造化之妙。” Cheng Hao, “You Mingdao xiansheng yu” 右明

道先生語 [Words of Master Mingdao], in Cheng and Cheng, Henan Chengshi wenji, scroll 11.

28. “盆池雖小亦清深，要看澄泓印此心。” Zhang Xiaoxiang, sixth of “He Duyun panyuan

yun: Zheji jishi” 和都運判院韻：輒記即事 [Following the Rhymes of the Supervisor of Capital Transportation: Immediate Records of What is Seen], in Zhang, Yuhu ji, scroll 10.

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In terms of external presentation, improvements in garden landscapes were mainly reflected in imperial gardens. From the imperial garden of the Northern Song, Genyue 艮岳 (Mountain of Stability), to the Jiuzhou Qingyan 九州清晏 (Tranquility and Peace of the Nine Provinces) in the Qing dynasty’s Yuanming Yuan 圓明園 (Garden of Perfect Brightness) Summer Palace, the elevated state of the inner mind was embodied by the literati’s new perceptions of the objects and activities in the garden. Surely, the mental realm of the literati was reflected in the landscape of the garden itself, through such features as the preference for white walls, blue roof tiles, and chestnut-brown window and door frames in conformity with the spirit of simplicity in elegance; the symbolic inclusion of lotuses, plum blossoms, bamboo, and orchids; and the practice of minimalism in literati paintings. But more importantly, garden landscapes and vegetation were considered an organic part of the soul; for instance, Zhou Dunyi 周敦頤 had a particular love for the lotus for the fact that it “rises from the mud yet remains unstained,”29 and Lin Bu 林逋 was fascinated by the plum blossom, whose “[s] ubtle fragrance floats beneath the moon of the yellow dusk.”30 Furthermore, pursuits of high culture, such as painting, calligraphy, poetry, music, collection of curios, tea tasting, and chess games, all deemed to be closely related to the soul, were internalized as indispensable components of a landscape garden. Among these interests, tea tasting and collection of curios were new elements of Chinese landscape gardens that emerged in the Song dynasty. Tea tastes light when first taken but leaves on the tongue a lasting aftertaste. Although tea had become a favorite of the literati since the Middle Tang, at the beginning, it was mostly used for its physiological effect. Bai Juyi, for example, found that a cup of tea in the afternoon could dissipate drowsiness and would drink the green Changming tea to quench his thirst.31 By the Song dynasty, however, tea had come to be included as an integral part of the landscape garden and more importantly, a constituting part of the spiritual formation of the literati, who would study the Chajing 茶經 (Classic of Tea) as frequently as the Xiangzhuan 29. “出淤泥而不染,” “Ai lian shuo” 愛蓮說 [On the Love of the Lotus], in Zhou, Zhou Lianxi xiansheng quanji, scroll 8.

30. “暗香浮動月黃昏,” Lin, second of “Shanyuan xiaomei” 山園小梅 [Young Plum Blossoms in a Mountain Garden], in Lin, Lin Hejing shi ji, scroll 2.

31. “午茶能散睡,” Bai, seventh of “Fu Xichi bei xinqi Shuizhai, jishi zhaobin, ou ti shiliu yun” 府西池北新葺水齋，即事招賓，偶題十六韻 [Water Study North of the Pool on the West of the Residence Newly Renovated, for Which Guests Were Invited, Compositions

in 16 Rhymes], in Peng et al., comp., Quan Tangshi, scroll 451; “渴嘗一碗綠昌明,” Bai, first of “Chun jin ri” 春盡日 [Days at the End of Spring], in ibid, scroll 459.

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香傳 (Book of Fragrances), a flower guide.32 It was in the Song dynasty when tea tasting was regarded on a par with other high arts. We can take a glimpse of the daily lives of the Song literati through their writings: Wen Tong 文同 writes in a poem, “I have my servant clean the wall and open Wu Daozi’s painting, / Retain my guest to taste the Yue tea by the windows,”33 while Lu You 陸游 “burned incense and boiled tea with colleagues amid books and bells and tripods.”34 Tea tasting was an elegant interest in the landscape garden and also a high spiritual realm of the cultured man in it. The Chinese literati’s interest in curios (wenwan 文玩) was largely about the appreciation of antiques. Like tea tasting, it did not become widespread among scholar-officials until the Song dynasty. Like Li Gonglin, whose abilities as a connoisseur of antiques have been quoted above, Ouyang Xiu was a dedicated collector. He was greatly attracted to “the washing basin of Tang 湯 [of Shang], the Confucian tripod, the drum from Qiyang 岐陽, the carved stones from Daishan 岱山, Zouyi 鄒邑, and Kuaiji 會稽”; “the tombstones, ceremonial vessels, poetry engravings, and preambles since the Han and Wei dynasties”; and “calligraphic works of various schools including the ancient script, large seal script, and clerical script,” all of which he regarded as “the greatest treasures since the first three dynasties” of China.35 Antique curios were so loved because they could provoke thoughts that transcend the present, demonstrate the knowledge of the collector, and embody the high taste of the literati. In the Chinese term “wenwan,” “wen” denotes an association with cultural cultivation, while “wan” means “to play.” The Chinese literati believed that curio appreciation could simultaneously serve the purposes of self-cultivation and entertainment. In fact, this “play” of antiques and cultural objects also describes the manner in which poetry, calligraphy, paintings, and music existed in a landscape garden. Wang Shen 王詵 was so learnt and erudite that his chess playing and painting were both ingenious. He drew hazy rivers and distant ravines, willows-shaded streams and entrances to fishing spots on the riverside, misty mountains under the sun and creeks under stiff cliffs, cold woods and deep valleys, 32. Liu Kezhuang, first of “Man jiang hong” 滿江紅 [Red Filling the River], in Liu, Houcun xiansheng daquan ji, scroll 189.

33. “喚人掃壁開吳畫，留客臨軒試越茶。” Wen, “Beizhai yu hou” 北齋雨後 [The Northern Study after the Rain], in Wen, Danyuan ji, scroll 14.

34. Lu, “Xinyuan tang ji” 心遠堂記 [Notes on the Xinyuan Hall], in Lu, Weinan wenji, scroll 21.

35. Ouyang, “Jigu lum xu,” in Ouyang, Jushi ji, scroll 41.

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peach blossom lands and reed villages — all scenes that were hard for lyric poets and men of ink to portray, and the ambience created under Shen’s pen almost reached the transcendent and carefree realm of the ancients. He was also well-versed in calligraphy, his regular, semi-cursive, cursive, and seal scripts exuding the charm of the seal script and Zhou 籀 graphs on ancient bells and tripods. His home was his study, named “Treasured Paintings” (Baohui 寶繪), storing calligraphic works and paintings from the past through the present. He had placed landscape paintings by the ancients on tables and walls, saying, “I have to travel lying down with a composed mind like Zongbing 宗炳.”36 For Wang Shen as for other members of the Song literati, artistic pursuits were sources of pleasure. All forms of high art were “played,” which endowed the landscape garden with a dynamic dimension and made it a mental garden (xinyuan 心園). In Song landscape gardens, the arrangement of concrete landscape components such as rocks, artificial hills, water, and flowers was fused with the elegance of poetry, calligraphy, paintings, music, tea tasting, and curio appreciation. The Song landscape garden enabled a new manifestation of the spirit of inclusiveness that had been at the heart of Chinese philosophy, by cultivating wellrounded men of letters who mastered poetry, prose, calligraphy, and painting all at once. Su Shi, Mi Fu 米黻, and Huang Tingjian 黃庭堅 were examples of such versatile writer-artists. This phenomenon was absent in the Tang dynasty. The idea of appreciation as play also affected the Song literati’s attitude towards artistic creation. Ouyang Xiu saw the “learning of calligraphy as pleasure,”37 while Mi Fu was known for his playful attitude towards ink (xi mo 戲墨). They considered literature a form of entertainment. Ouyang Xiu particularly appreciated Su Shunqin 蘇舜欽’s idea of “a pleasure in life” (rensheng yi lei 人生一樂) and expressed his consent in “Shi bi” 試筆 (Brush Experiments): Su Zimei 蘇子美 [style name of Su Shunqin] once said: “To have a bright window and a clean table, and brushes, inkstones, paper, and ink all of high quality is a pleasure of my life.” … I came to know this interest late, and regret that my handwriting is not neat, not being able to achieve the 36. Xuanhe huapu, scroll 12, “Wang Shen” 王詵. Zongbing was a lay disciple of the famous Buddhist monk Huiyuan 慧遠. — Ed.

37. “Learning of calligraphy as pleasure” (xue shu wei le 學書為樂) is a heading in Ouyang’s notes on calligraphy “Shibi” quoted in the next note. — Ed.

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excellence of my predecessors. But to have it for pleasure, it serves the purpose more than enough.38 In drawing characters it is important to be familiar [with the art]. With familiarity, the spirit feels full and abundant, and one can sit in tranquility, which is a pleasing thing to do.39 Likewise, Su Shi appreciated Shi Cangshu 石蒼舒’s “drunken ink” (zuimo 醉墨) calligraphic style, and he wrote a poem titled “Shi Cangshu Zuimo tang” 石蒼舒醉 墨堂 (Hall of Drunken Ink) for Shi’s new study, which reads in part:40 You tell me that in doing this you find a perfect joy, mind’s satisfaction, not distinct from spirit’s roaming free. Just recently you built a hall and named it “Drunken Ink,” comparing this art to drinking wine that melts anxieties.

自言其中有至樂 適意無意逍遙遊 近者作堂名醉墨 如飲美酒消百憂

The attitude of Ouyang Xiu and Su Shi represented the absorption of art into everyday life on the basis of the Song landscape garden, which in turn promoted the cultivation of an artistic aspect in everyday life. The idea of “play” and “pleasure” stemming from the landscape garden became the basic attitude of the Song literati for art and literature. Understanding it is essential for understanding the art of the Song literati. It is important to note that this pleasure was not sheer pleasure but one that was based in self-cultivation; it aspired to an elegant charm as opposed to vulgarity. The mental garden of the Song literati, compared to the landscape garden of the Six Dynasties and the Tang, represented a neither sagacious nor mundane state following the descent from the sagacious to the mundane. Compared to the taste of urban commoners, however, these educated men prided themselves on the pursuit

38. Ouyang, “Shibi” 試筆 [Brush Experiments], “Xue shu wei le,” in Ouyang, Za zhushu, scroll 16.

39. Ibid, “Zuo zi yao shu” 作字要熟 [Importance of Familiarity in Drawing Characters].

40. In Su, Dongpo quanji, scroll 2; Own, trans., An Anthology of Chinese Literature: Beginnings to 1911, 640–41.

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of virtues through elegant art which would enable them to “rise from the mud yet remain unstained.” It becomes intriguingly paradoxical, then, that although the Song literati aligned themselves with the Chán Buddhist idea of “nonattachment” in the choice between the mountains and the metropolis, their conscious distinction of their elegant interest from the mundane interest of folk culture in fact violated the idea of “nonattachment.” This double relationship embodied the very paradox in the cultural transformation across the two phases of ancient China.

Poetry and Prose in Search of a Plain Taste

The ambience of the poetry and prose of the early Song was inherited from the Late Tang and the Five Dynasties. In the arena of prose, the classical prose (guwen 古文) of Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan had declined greatly because of the inability of their successors. Once again, extravagant parallel prose (pianwen 駢文) rose to the mainstream in the literary circle. As for poetry, the shi 詩 (regular verse) of Li Shangyin 李商隱 and Du Mu 杜牧 echoed with the ci of Wen Tingyun 溫庭 筠 and Wei Zhuang 韋莊 in their ornate style, which gradually came to lead the literary trends. In the early Song, the ornate trend evolved into the Xikun 西昆 style chiefly practiced by Yang Yi 楊億, Qian Weiyan 錢惟演, and Liu Jun 劉筠. Their ci anthology, the Xikun chouchang ji 西昆酬唱集 (Anthology of Xikun Corresponsive Poems) was widely circulated throughout the country and keenly promoted the florid poetic style. The prose essays by Yang and Liu were also labeled the Kun style and were no less popular. The Xikun style dominated early Song literature for more than three decades. However, Song society was in fact not supportive of this inheritance of the decadent style of the Late Tang and the Five Dynasties. Since Liu Kai 柳開 began to promote Han Yu-style prose, advocates for the movement had been growing in number. Wang Yu 王禹 was a sympathetic contemporary of Liu Kai, who was to be joined by Mu Xiu 穆修, Fan Zhongyan 范仲淹, Zhang Jing 張景, Song Qi 宋祁, Yin Yuan 尹源, Yin Zhu 尹洙, Shi Jie 石 介, Su Shunyuan 蘇舜元, and Su Shunqin in later days. By the time of Ouyang Xiu, the New Classical Prose Movement (xin guwen yundong 新古文運動) had won a decisive victory. As for poetry, Wang Yucheng 王禹偁 was among the first poets who insisted on writing poems different from the Xikun style. Elegantly concise, his poems are fresh and easy to comprehend. Later, Mei Yaochen 梅堯臣 and Su Shunqin also consciously opposed the Xikun style. Their beliefs and writings were supported by Ouyang Xiu, who was greatly influential in both the political and literary circles. His writings evince the success of the poetry and prose reform of the Song dynasty. His prose was strikingly successful, although not until the time of Wang Anshi and Su Shi did the development of Song shi poems reach its peak.

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Insofar as ideology is concerned, Ouyang and Mei had laid down the theoretical basis for the ideal realm of Song poems, which was furthered in practice by their successors. In the movement to reform poetry and prose, as there had been countless poetic models since the Six Dynasties, the reform of poetry was smooth. For prose, however, although the essays of Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan were held as examples, the genre had yet to mature. The essays of Han themselves contain two layers of contradictions. First, the principle of using prose to convey the Confucian way (wen yi zai dao 文以載道) itself is ambiguous, leaving room for varied interpretations of the relationship between prose and dao. Second is the fundamental divergence between the emphasis on readability and the embracement of defamiliarization in the process of innovation. The two layers of contradictions set the course of the New Classical Prose Movement. Concerning the first issue, scholars like Liu Kai, Sun Fu 孫復, and Shi Jie denied the independent status of prose and proposed replacing the leading role of prose (wentong 文統) with the leading role of the way (daotong 道 統). The second of [Shi’s] “Guai Shuo” 怪說 (On Unfamiliarity) proposed opposing “the way of Yang Yi” with “the way of the Duke of Zhou 周公, Confucius, Mencius, Yang Zhu 楊朱, Wen Zhongzi 文中子, and Han Yu.” In fact, to oppose the prose of Yang Yi with the prose of Zhou, Confucius, Mencius, Yang, Wen, and Han was itself a failure to separate prose and the way in prose writing. To replace the leading role of prose with the leading role of the way actually was to integrate prose with the way, so that anything that violated the way would have to be repudiated.41 Ouyang Xiu opposed blurring the line between prose and the Confucian dao: “In ‘Song Xu Wudang nangui xu’ 送徐無黨南歸序 (Dedication Sent to Xu Wudang for His Return to the South), he uses Yan Yuan 顏淵 as an example to illustrate that virtuous men did not necessarily have achievements in prose; therefore, dao can enrich prose but cannot replace it.”42 Moreover, Ouyang believed that the Confucian dao should not be dogmatic but should be derived from everyday life, and prose should be the expression of one’s soul. Concerning the second issue, many essayists inherited Han’s defamiliarizing style, writing recondite and fragmented essays which were not readable. Ouyang resolutely opposed this aspect of Han’s writings and advocated the use of natural 41. Cai, Huang, and Cheng, Zhongguo wenxue lilun shi, vol. 2, 312–13. 42. Zhang, “Songdai sanwen jianlun,” 100.

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and fluent language, asserting that a good essay should convey dao in a way that is “easy to understand and possible to emulate,” and be written in language that is “easy to comprehend and possible to put into practice.”43 His voluminous prose essays established the role model of literary readability. Zhu Xi comments that the essays of Ouyang “simply convey morals in a simple and amiable way. Difficult synonyms are never used to replace ordinary words.”44 Similarly, Su Xun observes that Ouyang’s essays are “tactful and comprehensive with many turns, but the flow is smooth, unimpeded, and continuous. The writing ends where the energy stops. His ideas are conveyed with an argumentative force, but at the same time leisurely and at ease, not showing any trait of hard work or toil.”45 The former comment focuses on Ouyang’s writing style while the latter the logical flow of ideas. A commonality of both aspects is easiness. A Confucian master, leader of the literary circle, and great essayist dedicated to encouraging young scholars and prospective talent, Ouyang laid the foundation for the prose style of the Song dynasty. Literary masters of the age, Wang Anshi, Zeng Gong 曾鞏, and Su Shi were all his students, and Su revered his teacher as the Han Yu of the Song dynasty. We can say that whereas Han founded the genre of classical prose at large, Ouyang established the norm of this genre for the Song dynasty. Song prose aspired to be approachable, and Song shi poems showed a similar tendency. Considering that poetry has a higher standard of formal beauty, to look for an umbrella term to describe both genres during the Song, “plainness” may be a more appropriate word. This unadorned literary style corresponds with the cultural ambience of the Song dynasty and its historical dynamics on three levels: First, it corresponds with the writing style of the Song Neo-Confucians, who used a simple and almost colloquial analect style (yulu ti 語錄體). This was for explaining their teachings clearly to students. Valuing dao as well as the theoretical framework and logical flow in imparting dao, Neo-Confucians moved away from not only parallel prose but also classical prose, and adopted plain language that best facilitates the communication of thoughts. In this vein, Song poems in general, having defied the Xikun style, moved closer to enculturation, society, and everyday life, focusing more on imparting morals compared with Tang poems. In this way, the poems of Neo-Confucians rivaled the poems of literary scholars in the delivery of moral principles. 43. Ouyang, “Yu Zhang xiucai di er shu” 與張秀才第二書 [Second Letter to Xiucai Zhang], in Ouyang, Jushi waiji, scroll 16.

44. Zhu, Zhuzi yulei, scroll 139.

45.  Su, “Shang Ouyang neihan di yi shu” 上歐陽內翰第一書 [First Letter to Hanlin Academician Ouyang], in Su, Jiayou ji, scroll 12.

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Second, the plain literary style approximates the language of oral scripted (huaben) stories. Huahen stories, written in vernacular language, were widely listened to by urban commoners. The influence of huaben on Chinese society cannot be overlooked. The Classical Prose Movement of the Song dynasty began with emulating the style of Han Yu, but it strived to detach from the unfamiliar and obscure aspect of Han’s prose and expand the idea of fluency, resulting in the dominance of the plain style. The simplicity and comprehensibility of Song prose is stylistically similar to the colloquial narratives of huaben stories. It is undisputable that Song prose brought written language closer to colloquial language. As for Song poems, their development towards plainness suited to the insertion of poetry in huaben stories in important places such as the opening, the center, and the ending, usually to convey morals. To be comprehensible for the audience, these poems had to be either classic works or written in simple language. The plain style and didactic elements of Song poems correspond with the characteristics of huaben stories. Third, this style represented the general taste of the literati class. For them, the unadorned style was a life-long aesthetic pursuit, embodying a profound cultural tendency much like the distant and carefree ambience of contemporary paintings and antique simplicity of contemporary calligraphy. Close as it is to the language of huaben and theoretical essays, the plain literary style of poetry and prose belongs to a different realm. Rather than being approachable or clear, it is distinguished by a unique depth of meaning. Mei Yaochen expresses in poetry that “only plainness is difficult to create.”46 Aesthetic plainness suggests much more than the simplicity of everyday life. Wang Anshi expresses this difficulty in the lines “Looking ordinary, they are most outstanding, / Looking easy to write, they are indeed difficult to accomplish.”47 For poetry and prose to express an “ordinary” feel, it requires a lot of hard work. If we conceive three levels to grade literary works, namely “plain,” “difficult,” and “plain,” it will be the second “plain” rather than the first that is commendable according to the Song aesthetic. In the “Liu-yi shihua” 六一詩話 (Poetry Critique of Hermit Six-One), Ouyang 46. “唯造平淡難.” “Du Shao Buyi xueshi shijuan, Du Tingzhi hu lai, yin chushi zhi, qie fu gaozhi, zhe shu yishi zhi yu yi fengcheng” 讀邵不疑學士詩卷，杜挺之忽來，因出示之，

且伏高致，輒書一時之語以奉呈 [While Reading the Poetry Collection of Academician

Shao, Du Tingzhi Suddenly Came, So I Showed It to Him, and Submitting to Its Noble Taste, I Immediately Wrote Words of the Moment to Be Presented], in Wanling xian sheng wen ji, scroll 46.

47. “看似尋常最奇崛，成如容易卻艱辛。” Wang, “Ti Zhang siye shi” 題張司業詩 [Poem on Director of Studies Zhang], in Wang, Linchuan xiansheng wenji, scroll 31.

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Xiu quotes from Mei Yaochen to discuss plainness in poetry. The standards he considers are “to depict a scene that is difficult to portray as if it is just before the eyes, and contain endless meanings beyond words.”48 This not only elucidates the difficulty of literary plainness, but also implies the fundamental characteristic of prose and poetry written in the plain style: the inclusion of rich overtones. Su Shi has a description that can aptly explicate the Song literati’s idea of plainness: “express splendor in archaic simplicity, and connote the best flavor in lightness.”49 Apparent simplicity encompasses splendor and the best flavor; all splendors and flavors should be presented in a plain manner. This idea ties in with the teachings of Chán Buddhism, which distinguishes three levels of self-cultivation. In the first level, one sees mountains as mountains and water as water. In the second level, one sees something other than mountains and water in mountains and water. In the third level, one sees mountains as mountains and water as water again. Under the cultural conditions of the Song dynasty, its poetry and prose were both disposed towards an unadorned style. But when contextualized in the history of development of the respective genres, because poetry and prose were in different stages of development, the pursuit of the plain style in poetry and prose resulted in different outcomes.

The poetic battle to arrest decline

The challenge for Song shi poems was the high achievement of Tang poems. While Song poetry could be unique in conveying the sensibility, aspirations, and mentality of the Song literati, shi poetry as an art form had reached its climax in the Tang dynasty, with most possible facets explored and enhanced. By the Song dynasty, shi poetry had been inevitably on the decline. Further poetic innovation was very difficult. After Ouyang Xiu and Su Shi, by the time of Huang Tingjian, there emerged a group of poets identified as the Jiangxi school of poetry 江西詩派, who were determined to learn from and then surpass Tang poems. Lü Benzhong’s Jiangxi shishe zongpai tu 江西詩社宗派圖 (Genealogy of the Jiangxi Poetry Society) records 25 poets who were members of the Jiangxi school. To achieve their purpose, they studied Tang poems extensively in order to be familiar enough with them to make ingenious allusions and transformations. Here is a reflection by Huang Tingjian:

48. Ouyang, “Shihua” 詩話 [Poetry Critique], in Ouyang, Za zhushu, scroll 14.

49. “發纖穠於簡古，寄至味於澹泊。” Su, “Shu Huang Zisi Shiji hou” 書黃子思詩集後 [Afterword to The Collected Poems of Huang Zisi], in Su, Dongpo quanji, scroll 93.

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In Old Du [Fu]’s composition of poetry and [Han] Tuizhi’s composition of prose, there is not a word that does not have a provenance. It is only because people from later times have read little that they think Han and Du made up the expressions themselves. Those who were good at writing in the past could truly edify all creatures. Even though they adapted the old sayings of the ancients in their writings, it was as if a pill of elixir turned iron into gold.50 Huihong observes: Shan Gu said: “Poetic ambience is infinite but human talent is finite; to exhaust the infinite to pursue the finite, even [Tao] Yuanming and Shaoling [i.e., Du Fu] were incapable of doing so. To create new expressions without altering the ambience is called the method of ‘replacing the bones’ (huangu 換骨); to imitate the ambience and describe it is called the method of ‘seizing the embryo’ (duotai 奪胎)”.51 Simply put, Huang Tingjian’s poetics is to make new use of the works of the predecessors. His writings are filled with allusions from older literature and adaptations of lines of previous poets. This approach was not only adopted by Huang Tingjian and the Jiangxi school; most Song poets also followed the same practice. While Du Fu has the line “On the warm sandbank sleep mandarin ducks,”52 Wang Anshi adapts it into “In clear water fish take bait; / On warm sandbank herons forget to sleep.”53 Likewise, while Bai Juyi’s poem reads:54 Confronting the wind, late autumn trees; facing wine, a man of some years,

臨風杪秋樹 對酒長年人

50. Huang, “Da Hong Ju fu shu san shou” 答洪駒父書三首 [Three Letters In Response to Hong Ju’s Father], in Huang, Yuzhang Huang xiansheng wenji, scroll 19.

51. Huihong, Lengzhai yehua, scroll 1, “Huangu duotai fa” 換骨奪胎法 [The Methods of Replacing the Bones and Seizing the Embryo].

52. “沙暖睡鴛鴦,” Du, “Jueju er shou” 絕句二首 [Two Quatrains], in Peng et al., comp., Quan Tangshi, scroll 228.

53. “水明魚中餌，沙暖鷺忘眠。” Wang, “Zhou ye jishi” 舟夜即事 [A Night Boat Ride], in Wang, Linchuan xiansheng wenji, scroll 15.

54. Bai, “Zui zhong dui hongye” 醉中對紅葉 [Drunk, Facing Crimson Leaves], in Peng et al.,

comp., Quan Tangshi, scroll 440; Watson, trans., The Columbia Book of Chinese Poetry: From Early Times to the Thirteenth Century, 256.

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his drunken face like the frosty leaves, red enough, but not from a springtime glow.

醉貌如霜葉 雖紅不是春

Su Shi borrows the imagery and writes the lines:55 My young son is glad to find my face red. But I laugh — if only he knew that was from wine.

小兒誤喜朱顏在 一笑哪知是酒紅

And adaptation was not restricted to the works of writers of the past; the Song writers also borrowed ideas from their contemporaries. Wang Anshi once writes:56 Few can rival me in discussing strange characters — One would have to stumble on an unusual book like Wang Lang.

數能過我論奇字 當復令公見異書

and Su Shi twists them into:57 None has heard of you getting hold of any unusual book, or discussing strange characters with Yang Xiong.

未許中朗得異書 且共揚雄說奇字

55. Su, first of “Zhongbi san shou” 縱筆三首 [Three Unbridled Poems], in Su, Dongpo quanji, scroll 24.

56. Wang, “Guo Liu Quanmei suo ju” 過劉全美所居 [Going Over to Liu Quanmei’s Place], in Wang, Linchuan xiansheng wenji, scroll 29. Both lines contain historical allusions. The

first line alludes to an account from the Hanshu 漢書 [Book of the Han] in which Liu Fen 劉棻 studied strange characters after Yang Xiong 揚雄, and the second line the Hou Hanshu 後漢書 [Book of the Latter Han]’s account of how an official named Wang Lang

王朗 benefited from encountering Wang Chong 王充’s Lunheng 論衡 [Critical Essays] and improved his rhetoric a great deal. Note the correspondence in surnames in

the choice of allusions. The same allusions are repeated in Su’s lines quoted next. — Ed.

57.  Su, “Zhang Jingchen Youngkang Tang suo ju Wanjuan Tang” 張競辰永康所居萬卷

堂 [The Study of Thousands of Scrolls, Zhang Jingchen’s Home in Yongkang], in Su, Dongpo quanji, scroll 25.

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Modern writer Qian Zhongshu opines that Wang Anshi was the boldest “literary thief” among the Song literati: “Whenever he encountered great lines in others’ works, he would skillfully steal and boldly seize them, and then transform them completely. He would imitate them in myriad ways and make them his own. He might just copy the lines, or change some of the words, or reverse the meanings.”58 Huang Tingjian and the Jiangxi school were the pioneers who developed such “stealing” into a theory of adaptation. But despite their effort, it was impossible for them to really surpass their Tang predecessors. In the early Southern Song dynasty, the Four Great Poets of the age, Lu You, Yang Wanli 楊萬 里, Fan Chengda, and You Mao 尤袤 tried to depart from or violate the poetics of the Jiangxi style and compose in accordance with their own styles, emotions, and understanding of reality. Although their achievements should be recognized, they could never surpass the Tang poets either. Compared with Tang poems, Song shi poems can only be distinguished by a common interest in rational thinking (liqu 理趣). The lesser Song poems become insipid works because of this emphasis, but there are excellent works of this kind. Such are usually written in the form of jueju 絕句 (quatrains), whose limited poetic length necessitates the development of undertones and an aftertaste while conveying rational thinking, thereby greatly enhancing the poetic sense. For example, Su Shi’s “Ti Xilin bi” 題西林壁 (Brushed on the Wall of Xilin Temple) reads:59 From the side it is in a range; straight on, a peak. Far, near, high, low, it never looks the same. I can’t see Mount Lu’s true face because I’m on the mountain.

橫看成嶺側成峰 遠近高低無一同 不識廬山真面目 只緣身在此山中

The first of Zhu Xi’s “Guan shu you gan” 觀書有感 (Thoughts While Reading) also provokes philosophical musings:60 The mirror of the pond gleams, Half an acre in size.

半畝方塘一鑑開

58. Qian, Tan yi lu, 245.

59. In Su, Dongpo quanji, scroll 13; Barnstone and Chou, trans. and eds., The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry, 249.

60. In Zhu, Hui’an xiansheng Zhu Wengong wenji, scroll 2; Rexroth, trans., One Hundred Poems from the Chinese, 132.

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The splendor of the sky, And the whiteness of the clouds Are reflected back upon themselves. I ask the pond where I can find Anything else as pure and transparent. “Only in the springs of the water of life.”

天光雲影共徘徊

問渠那得清如許 為有源頭活水來

“Ti Lin’an di” 題臨安邸 (At an Inn in Hangzhou) by Lin Sheng 林升 subtly expresses political grievances by questioning the prosperous atmosphere of the capital:61 Beyond the hills blue hills, beyond the mansions mansions— To song and dance on the West Lake when will there be an end? Idlers fuddled on the fumes of the warm breeze Will turn Hangzhou that rises into Kaifeng that fell.

山外青山樓外樓 西湖歌舞幾時休 暖風熏得遊人醉 直把杭州作汴州

Ye Shaoweng 葉紹翁’s “You xiaoyuan buzhi” 遊小園不值 (On Visiting a Garden When Its Master is Absent) provides yet another example of philosophical imagery:62 It is proper to hate the marks of shoes on the green moss; Of ten that knock at his brushwood gate, nine cannot have it opened. Spring’s colors fill the garden but cannot all be contained, For one spray of red almond-blossom peeps out from the wall.

應憐屐齒印蒼苔 小扣柴扉久不開 春色滿園關不住 一枝紅杏出牆來

The heyday of classical prose

Unlike poetry, prose was still an area that allowed more explorations and 61. In Liu, Xie, and Wang, comp., scroll 3; Graham, trans., Poems of the West Lake, 35.

62. In Liu, Xie, and Wang, comp., scroll 3; Kotewall and Smith, trans., A Book of Chinese Verse, 184.

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enhancement in the Song dynasty. The prose essays of the Song were the outcome of writers’ effort to adapt to the needs of cultural transformation. When cultural transformation was expressed in the form of classical prose, there were two directions of development. The first was to reintegrate the complicated transitioning society with an “ancient spirit” centering on Confucianism, and this was associated with the emphasis on the Confucian dao. The second was to express the same ancient spirit by literary styles that would suit the present reality, that is, to emphasize the aspect of prose. The aspects of dao and prose are perfectly integrated in the essays of Ouyang Xiu. His success contributed to the rise of five other master essayists, whom along with Ouyang himself, Han Yu, and Liu Zongyuan, came to be regarded as the Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song (Tang Song ba da jia 唐宋八大家). With the addition of Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, Su Xun, Su Shi, Su Zhe, and Zeng Gong, the fundamentals of Chinese prose essays were established. In his Tang Song guwen ba jia gaishu 唐宋古文八家概述 (Survey of the Eight Prose Masters of the Tang and Song), Chinese classics scholar Wu Mengfu analyzes the styles of the six prose masters of the Song in detail. In sum: Ouyang Xiu’s works are friendly, fluid, gentle, and poetic, demonstrating tonal shifts and sophisticated diction. Wang Anshi is distinguished for his prompt and in-depth political critiques, limpid and perceptive treatises on learning, concise and powerful short argumentative essays, and well-structured biographies and treatises. Su Xun’s analyses are profound and subtle, his arguments naturally convincing, his morals reasonable and invincible, and his rhythm crisp and spirited. Zeng Gong’s style is generally soft and fine, but tactfully infused with strength. Sometimes couplets are inserted into his free prose. He manages to convey his message fully when discussing learning, provide necessary details in narrating events, and write succinct character portraits. For Su Shi, his more practical works are clear and direct, while his critiques are insightful and unequivocal. He is capable of poetically imparting morals and expressing emotions, and directly portraying (baimiao 白描) characters and events without relying on ornamental literary devices. Finally, Su Zhe, brother of Su Shi and son of Su Xun, writes argumentative essays that are full of twists and turns, scenic descriptions that are poetic, and character portraits that are lifelike. From this summary we can see that the six prose masters of the Song dynasty had their individual characteristics but also showed a common disposition. Compared with the magnificent and imposing tone of Han Yu’s essays, Song essays are softer and more gentle (this is also a difference between Tang shi and Song ci). Compared with the strong emotional effect of Han’s essays, Song essays are more approachable and limpid (this is also reflected in the difference between

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Tang chuanqi and Song huaben). In terms of the development of arguments, Song essays are thorough, detailed, and poetic. Ouyang Xiu’s “Zuiweng ting ji” 醉翁亭 記 (The Old Toper’s Pavilion) is an animated scenic portrait:63 On all sides of Chuzhou are mountains. The peaks to the south-west have the finest woods and gullies, and of these the one with the most thickly covered slopes and deepest ravines is Langya. Two or three miles up this mountain you begin to hear the plashing sound of water, and the spring that spills out from between two peaks is the Wine-brew Spring. Further along the path that winds up over ridges and brows towards the summit there is a pavilion jutting out like a raised wing over the spring, and it is the Old Toper’s Pavilion. 環滁皆山也。其西南諸峰，林壑尤美，望之蔚然而深秀者，琅玡也。山行六 七里，漸聞水聲潺潺，而瀉出於兩峰之間者，釀泉也。峰迴路轉，有亭翼然 而臨於泉上者，醉翁亭也。 It reads like a cinematic shot moving from the largest to the smallest, and from the outermost to the innermost. The lens follows a mountain path up the peaks to a spring, eventually arriving at the pavilion. Such clear layering, smooth movement, and graceful capturing are characteristic of scenic depictions in Song prose. Argumentative essays of the Song are extremely dense and full of surprises. They are typically propelled by careful logical reasoning. This can be seen in Wang Anshi’s “Du Mengchang jun zhuan” 讀孟嘗君傳 (After Reading the Biography of Prince Mengchang):64 All over the empire, Prince Mengchang was known for his ability to attract scholars by his patronage. It was said that for this reason they flocked to him and that through their effort, he was ultimately freed from the fierce domination of the state of Qin. 世皆稱孟嘗君能得士，士以故歸之。而卒賴其力以脫於虎豹之秦。 Alas, Prince Mengchang was merely the chieftain of those who crowed like cocks and stole like dogs! How could he be said to be capable of attracting scholars to his circle? 嗟呼！孟嘗君特雞狗盜之雄耳，豈足以言得士？ 63. In Ouyang, Jushi ji, scroll 39; Pollard, trans. and ed., The Chinese Essay, 50.

64. In Wang, Linchuan xiansheng wenji, scroll 71; Liu, trans., Chinese Classical Prose: The Eight Masters of the T’ang-Sung Period, 349, modified into pinyin.

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If he had been, given the prowess of Qi, he could have subdued Qin and become its master with the aid of a single scholar. Would it have been necessary to rely on the effort of men who crowed like cocks and stole like dogs? 不然，擅齊之強，得一士焉，宜可以南面而制秦，尚何取雞鳴狗盜之力哉？ The fact that those who crowed like cocks and stole like dogs came to his door explains why scholars failed to join him. 夫雞鳴狗盜之出其門，此士之所以不至也。 Narrative essays precisely record events for the higher purpose of imparting morals. Note the flow of Zeng Gong’s “Mochi ji” 墨池記 (The Ink Pond):65 There is a terrace concealed from view east of the city of Linchuan. It juts out onto a brook and is known as Xincheng. On top of Xincheng is a pond, which is deep and rectangular in shape and which, according to the Chronicles of Linchuan, by Xun Bozi, bore the name of “Wang Xizhi’s Ink Pond.” As he admired Zhang Zhi, Xizhi followed his example by practicing calligraphy on the banks of the pond until the water became wholly black. It is said that here is the site of the old pond. Can it be the truth? 臨川之城東，有地隱然而高，以臨於溪，曰新城。新城之上，有池窪然而方 以長，曰王羲之之墨池者，荀伯子《臨川記》云也。羲之嘗慕張芝，臨池學 書，池水盡黑，此為其故迹，豈信然邪？ Wang Xizhi refused to be pressed into the civil service; he journeyed to the east, reaching as far as the Gulf of Bohai, to amuse himself by frequenting mountains and rivers. Could it be that in the midst of his roaming he had some rest near this pond? 方羲之之不可強以仕，而嘗極東方，出滄海，以娛其意於山水之間，豈 有徜徉肆恣，而又嘗自休於此邪？ The calligraphy of Xizhi was not perfected until late in his life. In other words, instead of being a born calligrapher, he acquired his skill through the energetic pursuit of the art. But he has had no equal in subsequent generations. Could it be that they never equaled him in practicing? Indeed, 65. In Zeng, Yuanfeng leigao, scroll 17; Liu, trans., Chinese Classical Prose: The Eight Masters of the T’ang-Sung Period, 309, modified into pinyin.

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can practice ever be dispensed with, especially by those who are bent on cultivating their morality? 羲之之書晚乃善，則其所能，蓋亦以精力自致者，非天成也。然後世未 有能及者，豈其學不如彼邪？則學固豈可以少哉！況欲深造道德者邪？ Above the Ink Pond now stands the prefectural school. Teacher Wang, deeply apprehensive that the name might not be known, wrote the words: “Ink Pond of Youjun Wang of the Jin dynasty” and had them displayed over the pillars. “I hope,” he also said to me, “that you will put this incident in writing.” 墨池之上，今為州學舍。教授王君盛恐其不章也，書「晉王右軍墨池」 之六字於楹間以揭之，又告於鞏曰：「願有記。」 From what Mr. Wang had in mind, can it not be inferred that he loves skill in others so much that he does not wish to disregard even a single talent and that he wishes to extend this admiration even to the site of the old pond and apply Xizhi’s story to the practice of scholars? Since one single talent can arouse the admiration of later ages to this extent, how much more will the heritage left by benevolent and upright men, whose abiding thought is destined to influence rising generations? 推王君之心，豈愛人之善，雖一能不以廢，而因以及乎其跡邪？其亦欲 推其事以勉其學者邪？夫人之有一能，而使後人尚之如此，況仁人莊士之遺 風餘思，被於來世者何如哉！ Here is a blend of narration, description, and association. Yet all components boil down to a central moral message, each carrying its own significance. Thanks to their unassuming tone, morals lessons told through such narratives are engaging and down to earth. Sometimes, words can be spared while connoting deep meanings. A familiar incident can be given the most concise description and yet exude a lasting aftertaste. Su Shi’s “Ji Chengtian si ye you” exemplifies this plain and subtle aspect of Song prose:66 It was the twelfth day of the tenth month in the sixth year of Yuanfeng. After nightfall, I undressed and was ready to go to bed when I saw the moonlight come streaming into my room. Thereupon I went out gleefully. 66. In Su, Dongpo quanji, scroll 101; Hung, trans., “Su Shi: Dongpo’s Miscellaneous Records: Excerpts,” 126.

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Since there was no one with whom I could share my pleasure I went to Chengtian Temple to seek out Zhang Huaimin. Huaimin had not gone to bed either, and we walked about in the courtyard in each other’s company. The courtyard was as if flooded in water, it was so luminous, and in the water weeds intertwined with algae — they were the shadows of bamboo and pine trees. 元豐六年十月十二日，夜，解衣欲睡；月色入戶，欣然起行。念無與樂者， 遂至承天寺尋張懷民。懷民亦未寢，相與步於中庭。庭下如積水空明，水中 藻荇交橫，蓋竹柏影也。 Isn’t the moon always there at night, and aren’t bamboo and pine trees common to all places? The only difference is the absence of people at leisure like the two of us. 何夜無月？何處無竹柏？但少閑人如吾兩人耳！ Song prose, as the stage for the completion of the development of classical prose, completely replaced parallel prose as the main genre for expression of political views in the court as well as personal emotional expression. Stylistically closer to reality and the human soul than parallel prose, it could be used in different occasions to express one’s feelings, emotions, and thoughts. It is realistic in that it synchronized with a transforming society, and elegant in that it assimilated the general mentality of a transforming society into the basic Chinese spirit. In classical prose, depiction of concrete subjects and mental thoughts in reflection of reality must manifest profound insights, so as to bring the transitioning mentality in line with the fundamental (Confucian-based) Chinese spirit. It was the six great prose masters of the Song dynasty who established this basic philosophy that underpins Chinese classical prose and made it acceptable to the literary mainstream. For this reason, Song prose essays attained the zenith of the genre.

The Charisma of the Imperial Painting Academy

The Imperial Painting Academy of the Song dynasty was influential to Chinese art history. It was set up during the reign of Emperor Taizu of Song. Painters from the Western Shu (a.k.a. Qiao Shu) dynasty, such as Huang Jucai 黃居寀, Huang Keliang 黃克亮, Gao Wenjin 高文進, Gao Huaijie 高懷節, and Zhao Guangfu 趙光輔 joined the academy. Painters of the Southern Tang dynasty such as Cai Run 蔡潤, Dong Yu 董羽, and Xu Chongsi 徐崇嗣 also became members of the academy to serve the court afterwards. From then on, the Imperial Painting Academy became the prime hub for cultivating first-rate painters. The Imperial Painting Academy of the

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Song dynasty implemented formal specialization and professional training. It was responsible for making official paintings for the court. Early Song painting mainly consisted of the following types: flower-and-bird painting, Buddhist and Daoist painting, and architectural rule-lined painting (jiehua 界畫). By the Xining 熙寧 era of Emperor Shenzong 神宗, landscape painting (shanshui hua 山水畫) also became an important genre of court painting. During the Southern Song period, historical painting and genre painting (fengsu hua 風俗畫) attracted the interest of academy painters. Some masters such as Li Tang 李唐, Xiao Zhao 肖照, Su Hanchen 蘇漢臣, Li Hao 李蒿, and Liu Songnian 劉松年 had created masterworks of genre painting. These six types of academy painting basically covered all realms of Song painting and were greatly influential to Song art. Flower-and-bird paintings not only represented a high realm of artistic cultivation, but they were also used as interior decorations of palace and religious architecture. Flower-and-bird paintings from the Imperial Painting Academy were usually in the style of the Huang school 黃派 led by Huang Quan 黃筌, which were at the same time grandiose and leisurely elegant. The court valued Buddhist and Daoist paintings because the Song emperors were devoutly religious. At the construction of large official residences and temples, religious pictures were typically commissioned along with political propagandist ones. When Emperor Taizong of Song renovated the largest temple of Kaifeng, the Daxiangguo Temple 大相國寺, for instance, master painters of the Imperial Painting Academy, Gao Yi 高益, Gao Wenjin, Wang Daozhen 黃道真, Li Yonghe 李用和, and Li Xiangkun 李象 坤 participated in the creation of murals. Likewise, when Emperor Zhenzong 真宗 built the Yuqing Zhaoying Abbey 玉清昭應宮, 3,000 artisan painters were recruited to conduct large-scale mural painting led by academy painters. Architectural painting reached its peak in the Song dynasty. From a social perspective, this could be attributed to social transformation, the growing urban population, and the increase in their interest in technology. But from an institutional perspective, architectural painting was promoted by the Imperial Painting Academy. In the Xuanhe huapu 宣和畫譜 (Painting Manual of the Xuanhe Era), architectural painting is ranked third among 10 genres of painting, just after Buddhist and Daoist painting and portraits and before landscape and flower-andbird painting. In the “Xuanju zhi” 選舉志 (Treatise on State Examinations) of the Songshi 宋史 (History of the Song), architectural painting is also regarded as one of the four greatest genres of painting, together with portraits, flower-and-bird painting, and landscape painting. According to the “Jiaosi zhi” 郊祀志 (Treatise on Sacrifices) of the Hanshu 漢書 (Book of the Han), architectural painting appeared as early as the time of the Yellow Thearch, leaving behind a painting of his mingtang (Huangdi mingtang tu 黃帝明堂圖). Architectural paintings were usually produced

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by artisan painters. Gu Kaizhi comments that architectural paintings of “pavilions are technical. They are difficult to draw, although they are usually good when completed. They depend on excellent skills but not inspiration.”67 Architectural paintings are “difficult to draw” because it is not easy to use a brush to draw straight lines in exact proportions. This has to be assisted with a straight-edge ruler. Primarily technical and hence dependent on the structural beauty of the object painted rather than the use of strokes and colors, architectural painting was not traditionally as honored as some other genres. However, favored by the taste of the ordinary urban dweller, coupled with a general interest in technology, architectural painting showed a special charm during the Song dynasty. Given their technical nature, architectural paintings are best judged by an objective standard. Thus, in the Song dynasty, architectural painting became an important stream of study, and was included as one of the matriculation exam topics and compulsory subjects of the Imperial Painting Academy. It is said of architectural painting in the Xuanhe huapu written during the reign of Emperor Huizong of Song 宋徽宗: “From the Jin to the Song dynasty up to the Liang and the Sui dynasty, no one with [exceptional] skills had been heard. Past the Tang of three centuries, and from the Five Dynasties onwards, only Wei Xian 衞賢 has gained fame by drawing palaces. In our dynasty, now that Guo Zhongshu 郭忠恕 has emerged, comparable to the peers of Wei Xian, the rest are not worth mentioning.”68 In addition to Guo Zhongshu, famous architectural painters of the Song dynasty included Wang Shiyuan 王士元, Zhao Boju 趙伯駒 and his brother Zhao Bosu 趙伯驌, and Li Hao. Architectural painting of the Song dynasty demanded meticulous precision with exact measures and proper handling of layering. It was usually combined with “gold–blue green landscape” (jinbi shanshui 金碧山 水) painting techniques and sometimes used as the background of portraits. For example, the Zhao brothers were known for their paintings of pavilions using gold–blue green landscape and architectural painting techniques. Since architectural painting relies on techniques, making comparison convenient, it was regarded as the metonymy for academy-style painting. However, although this trend contributed to the development of a meticulous and objective painting style, unlike Western oil painting, which became a leading genre in the Renaissance, architectural painting has never attained a definitive position because it runs contrary to the basic Chinese cultural spirit. The Chinese spirit was to be expressed through more poetic styles of academy painting. More importantly, literati painting rose as an antagonistic force against architectural 67. Gu, “Lun hua” 論畫 [On Painting], quoted in Zhang, Lidai minghua ji, scroll 5.

68. Xuanhe huapu, scroll 8, “Gongshi xulun” 宮室敘論 [Introduction to Painting of Palaces].

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painting. In a way, the fate of architectural painting hints at the nature of Chinese cultural transformation much like that of Song technologies. Going back to the remaining popular genres of painting of the Song, landscape painting represented the cultivation and taste of the literati, while genre painting and historical painting were linked with the social reality of the time. The inclusion of these three genres of painting, especially genre painting, in the Imperial Painting Academy showed the openness of the institution. Fig. 4.1 “Reading the Memorial Stele” (Du bei ke shi tu 讀碑窠石圖 ), Li Cheng, Northern Song, hanging scroll, ink on silk, 126.2 x 104.9 cm, Osaka Municipal Museum of Art, Osaka

Throughout the time from the Five Dynasties to the early Song, famous landscape painting masters such as Jing Hao 荊浩, Guan Tong 關同, Fan Kuan 范 寬, Li Cheng 李成, Dong Yuan 董源, and Ju Ran 巨然 were not academy painters. Only in the eras of Xining and Yuanfeng 元豐, thanks to Emperor Shenzong’s appreciation of the landscape paintings of Li Cheng and his disciple Guo Xi 郭熙, did Li-style paintings enter and then dominate the court. It became the mission of Li Cheng (see Fig. 4.1) and Guo Xi, along with another painter named Fu Daoyin 符道隱, to decorate the walls of the courts and palaces. Emperor Shenzong favored Guo Xi’s paintings so much that they were hung all over all the walls of a palace hall. Guo Xi was appointed the examiner to invigilate all painting students and the person-in-charge to organize the imperial painting collection. It would not be hard to imagine his influence on the painting styles of the nation.

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But the interest of Guo’s paintings went beyond the royal taste. He did not paint gold–blue green landscapes which alluded to the splendor of the court. He did not even paint in the prevailing style of other masters such as Jing, Huan, Li, Fan, Dong, and Ju, who used mainly black ink plus a small amount of colors. He used only black ink. He did admire his predecessors, but was most devoted to representing the essence of nature himself. As he demonstrates, Mount Song 嵩山 has many nice rivulets. Mount Hua 華山 has many nice peaks. Mount Heng 衡山 has many nice individual crests. Mount Chang 常 山 has many nice group crests. Mount Tai 泰山 has many nice main peaks. Tiantai 天臺, Wuyi 武夷, Luhuo 廬霍, Yandang 雁蕩, Min’e 岷峨, Wuxia 巫 峽, Tiantan 天壇, Wangwu 王屋, Linlü 林慮, and Wudang 武當 are all famous mountains and towns of the world, where the treasures of Heaven and Earth come from and where the abodes of the early saints are hidden, full of wonder and divine elegance. It is impossible to exhaust their ingenuity. To capture the wonder of nature, there is no way to attain a divine level other than to take pleasure in it, no way to acquire expertise other than to work hard, and no way to portray its greatness other than to travel widely and sightsee extensively, so that [the scenes] are clearly aligned in the bosom, and the eyes will not see the painting cloth while the hand will not be aware of the brush and ink. [In this way,] the abundant and interlacing, and the vast and far-flung will be my paintings.69 This expresses a significant principle of Guo’s artistic creation. Guo was the authority of the Imperial Painting Academy. He provided in the Linquan gaozhi ji 林泉高致集 (Lofty Message of Forests and Streams) a classical summary for Chinese landscape painting, promoting an untrammeled style with discussions of theory and artworks. Similar to the pursuit of simplicity in the poetry and prose of Ouyang Xiu, Guo’s art also contributed to the fundamental atmosphere of Song aesthetics: light elegance. Wang Shizhen discusses the development of Chinese landscape painting: “Landscape painting experienced a change by the time of Senior and Junior Lis [Li Sixun 李思訓 and Li Zhaodao 李昭道], one more change by the time of Jing, Guan, Dong, and Ju, one more change by the time of Li Cheng and Fan Kuan, and one more change by the time of Li, Liu, Ma, and Xia.”70 The last four names refer to Li Tang, Liu Songnian, Ma Yuan 馬遠, and Xia Gui 夏珪, the four painting masters and academy 69. Guo, Linquan gaozhi ji, chap. 1.

70. Wang, Yiyuan zhiyan, annex 4.

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painters of the Southern Song. By their time, the locale of change for landscape painting had moved into the Imperial Painting Academy. Jing Hao, Guan Tong, Dong Yuan, and Ju Ran, as well as Li Tang and Fan Kuan were all known for their magnificent paintings of panoramic landscapes. Li originally learned from the style of Fan, but he had begun to deviate from Fan’s style even in the Northern Song period. After the Song court was relocated to the south, he adopted large axe-cut texture strokes (da fupi cun 大斧劈皴), which are more straight forward and bolder, instead of small axe-cut texture strokes (xiao fupi cun 小斧劈皴), and forsook complexity for simplicity, thus inaugurating a significant change in the style of Song landscape painting (see Fig. 4.2). Fig. 4.2 “Fishing by a Clear Stream” (Qingxi yu yin tu 清溪漁隱圖 ), Li Tang, Southern Song, handscroll, ink on silk, 25.2 x 144.7 cm, National Palace Museum, Taipei

For Liu Songnian, his major subjects were luxuriant forests, tall bamboo, and beautiful mountains and waters of Jiannan, painted with texture strokes similar to Li Tang’s large axe-cut texture strokes or Guo Xi’s cloud-head strokes (yun tou cun 雲頭皴), but in a simpler and more straightforward manner. His masterpiece, “Landscapes of the Four Seasons” (sijing shanshui tu 四景山水圖) (Fig. 4.3) signified the shift in interest from panoramic landscapes to partial landscapes, which prefigured the styles of Ma Yuan (see Fig. 4.4) and Xia Gui. Ma and Xia always painted landscapes in part, and yet were capable of conveying infinite meanings through finite representations. Compared to the panoramic landscapes of Jin, Guan, Dong, and Ju, the partial landscapes of Ma and Xia leave more space unfilled but connote deeper meanings. In the paintings of Jin, Guan, Dong, Ju, Li, and Fan, we can experience a sense of magnificence like that embodied in the lushi, while in the paintings of Ma and Xia we can taste a sense of wonder like that embodied in the jueju.

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Fig. 4.3 “Landscapes of the Four Seasons,” Liu Songnian, Southern Song, handscroll in four sections, ink and colors on silk, 40 x 69 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

From top left: spring, summer, autumn, winter

Fig. 4.4 “Plum Blossoms above Rocks and Wild Ducks” (Mei shi xi fu tu 梅石 溪鳧圖 ), Ma Yuan, Southern Song, album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 26.7 x 28.6 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

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Fig. 4.5 “Duke Wen of Jin Recovering His State,” Li Tang, Southern Song, handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 30.2 x 1242.2 cm, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Fig. 4.6 “The Knickknack Peddler,” Li Song, Southern Song, album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 25.8 x 27.6 cm, National Palace Museum, Taipei

Source: Editorial Committee, National Palace Museum, ed., Songdai shuhua ceye mingpin tezhan, 177, pl. 47.

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Fig. 4.7 “One Hundred Children Playing in the Spring,” Su Hanchen, Southern Song, album leaf, ink and colors on silk, 37.2 x 65 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Source: Zheng, Zhang, and Xu, ed., Songren huace, pl. 85.

Of the genres of the Imperial Painting Academy, landscape painting signified the communication between the court and the literati, while genre painting and historical painting signified the communication between the court and urban commoners. Among the academy’s famous genre paintings, Li Tang’s “Boyi and Shuqi Picking Ferns” (Boyi Shuqi cai wei tu 伯夷叔齊采薇圖) and “Duke Wen of Jin Recovering His State” (Jin Wengong fuguo tu 晋文公復國圖) (Fig. 4.5), Xiao Zhao’s “Auspicious Omens for Dynastic Revival” (Zhongxing ruiying tu 中興瑞應圖) and “Emperor Guangwu Crossing the River (光武渡河圖 Guangwu duhe tu), and Liu Songnian’s “Four Generals of Dynastic Revival” (Zhongxing si jiang 中興四將) express reflections on history and reality, while Li Song’s “The Knickknack Peddler” (Huolang tu 貨郎圖) (Fig. 4.6) shows a committed interest in village life. Moreover, Su Hanchen’s “One Hundred Children Playing in the Spring” (Baizi xichun tu 百子 嬉春圖) (Fig. 4.7), four scrolls of “Children” (Hai’er 孩兒), and “Catching Fish” (Buyu tu 捕魚圖) are similar in nature to New Year pictures.

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But the greatest masterpiece of Song academy genre painting is perhaps Zhang Zeduan 張擇端’s famous “Along the River during the Qingming Festival” (Qingming shanghe tu 清明上河圖) (Fig. 4.8) from the Northern Song era. A long scroll of 525 centimeters by length and 25.5 centimeters by width, “Along the River during the Qingming Festival” demonstrates the advantage of the cavalier perspective of Chinese painting in depicting grand scenes. The painting represents the prosperity of Bianjing by a panoramic view of the whole area from the city outskirts to the heart of the city at Baokang Gate 保康門, in the three sections of the outskirts, the Bian Canal 汴河, and city streets. The section of city outskirts serves as a prelude to the scroll, concisely revealing the basis of the city’s prosperity. From the riverside to the arch bridge comes the first climax, formed by interesting contrasts in the midst of hustle and bustle, festivity, and leisurely activities on and under the main bridge, on board and off the boats. Then, starting from the bridge and the tavern, the avenue leads directly into the heart of the city, which is filled with all an array of shops including teahouses, incense shops, bow shops, and pawnshops; and all walks of life from officials riding on horses, noble ladies in litters, and soldiers to merchants, craftsmen, street peddlers, coolies, servants, nuns, Daoist priests, traditional doctors, fortunetellers, and beggars — this constitutes the second climax. The painting ends at the second street of the city, leaving the audience with infinite room for imagination. The scenes of the bridge and the first street already provide a rich enough foundation for provoking imagination of the prosperity of the whole city. This room for imagination adds onto the artistic charisma of the painting. Fig. 4.8 “Along the River during the Qingming Festival,” Zhang Zeduan, Northern Song, handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 24.8 x 528.7 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

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The Imperial Painting Academy was, on the one hand, open to outside communication, but on the other hand, strictly disciplined and highly specialized. This was particularly true after Emperor Huizong set up an official School of Painting (huaxue 畫學) in 1104. Students had to attend an admission examination which required them to paint on a particular topic. The topics and assessment standards of the school showed that the Imperial Painting Academy most valued the correspondence between painting and poetry, emphasizing the poetic sense of paintings and the painter’s ability to convey meanings beyond the superficial image. The exam topics were often given in a poetic line. Say for the topic “A red spot on a young green twig — / Charming spring colors need not be many,71 candidates who really drew flowers would only be considered second rate; the one who came first painted a beauty leaning against a railing with her tiny red lips standing out against green willows in the background. Sometimes the topic might appear more concrete, such as “An ancient temple hidden among unruly hills.”72 Yet any composition that literally portrayed an ancient temple, even if it was just a small part of the temple, would be deemed mediocre. The work that ranked first simply had a banner pole, to connote the temple, erected among barren hills. In this sense, the academy embodied the philosophies of the literati. The integration of painting and poetry was achieved not only through a poetic approach to painting, but also the writing of an actual poem on the painting scroll — and thanks to this, painting involved calligraphy as well. We see in the unification of painting, poetry, and calligraphy in the paintings of Emperor Huizong of Song, born Zhao Ji 趙佶, the immense significance of the dominance of Guo Xi’s style in the court. At the Imperial Painting Academy, the pursuit of the poetic sense in painting was programmed by its curriculum, which included professional practical courses, creative courses, and compulsory cultural courses. The compulsory cultural courses were on the Shuowen jiezi 說文解字 (Explanation of Primary Graphs and Analysis of Characters), the Erya 爾雅 lexicon, and Chinese dialects, aiming to enhance students’ literary aptitude. The practical courses taught various genres of painting, including Buddhist and Daoist, portrait, landscape, bird-and-animal, flower-and-bamboo, and building-and-wood (i.e. architectural) painting. During the reign of Zhao Ji, the emperor himself was the principal of the academy and he taught personally in the academy, so his aesthetic standards 71. “嫩綠枝頭紅一點，動人春色不須多。” According to Chen, Menshi xinhua, vol. 1, scroll

1, “Huagong shan ti shiren zhi yi” 畫工善體詩人之意 [Painting Techniques to Express Poetic Meaning].

72. “亂山藏古寺.” According to Deng, Huaji, scroll 1, “Huizong huangdi” 徽宗皇帝 [Emperor Huizong].

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represented the standards of the academy. While the general aesthetic principle was to grasp the spirit and charm of the subject portrayed, objective standards were framed to assess students’ work; for example, the stamens, leaves, and branches of Chinese roses had to be depicted in such a way that the flowers looked different in different seasons and even changed throughout the day. In the practical lessons, students would have to draft their works and have them approved by the teachers before painting. Sometimes Zhao Ji the emperor would appear in the lessons and criticize students whose performance was not satisfactory. Academy standards were strictly implemented. Through the assessment criteria of the academy we will understand more about the highest rank in academy painting: the divine class (shenpin 神品). In the Lidai minghua ji 歷代名畫記 (Record of Celebrated Painters through the Ages), Tang art critic Zhang Yanyuan distinguished five classes of Chinese paintings: natural (ziran 自然), divine (shen 神), wonderful (miao 妙), precise (jing 精), and meticulous (jinxi 謹細). Also in the Tang dynasty, the Huapin 畫品 (Classification of Painters) by Zhang Huaiguan provided for three classes: divine, wonderful, and proficient (neng 能). Later, Zhu Jingxuan added the carefree class (yipin 逸品), but he did not explain its relationship with the other three. In the Song dynasty, critic Huang Xiufu placed the carefree class above the divine class in the Yizhou minghua lu 益州名畫錄 (Record of Celebrated Painters of Yizhou), thus forming the hierarchical sequence: carefree, divine, wonderful, and proficient. However, Zhao Ji reversed the order of the carefree and divine classes. This contest between the carefree and divine classes epitomized the rivalry between the literati and court aesthetics. So, what exactly is the divine class? Huang Xiufu defines the divine class as when paintings “resemble shapes in correspondence to things, so that the mysteries of nature are high in them and the thoughts conveyed are close to the spirit of things. They create new meanings and establish new forms which are ingeniously suitable for cultivating all creatures.”73 And what about the carefree class? “The carefree class of painting is the hardest to rival. The mediocre confine themselves to drawing precise squares and circles and the ordinary carefully study colors,” explains Huang. He continues to establish the characteristics of this class: “Shapes are created with simple strokes and obtained naturally, not following any models and exceeding expectations.”74 From these two definitive explanations, we can see that painters of the carefree class transcended the court and the mundane world, defied rules and precision altogether, and valued the representation of the 73. Huang, contents of Yizhou minghua lu. 74. Ibid.

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character or spirit (shen 神) of an object over its physical shape or form (xing 形). Comparatively, painters of the divine class portrayed the spirit of an object through its physical form, conforming to rules and precision yet transcending both. In other words, works of this class manifest both form and spirit, with form being a vehicle for expressing spirit; the object portrayed must be carefully depicted so as to resemble its physical model while at the same time being poetic. Such was Zhao Ji’s highest standard for painting. Apart from teaching the principles and techniques of painting, every 10 days he would allow two boxes of scroll paintings from the imperial collection to be sent to the Imperial Painting Academy for students to imitate. His “A Golden Pheasant Resting on Hibiscus Branch” (Furong jinji tu 芙蓉錦雞圖), “Autumn Evening in the Pond” (Chitang wanqiu tu 池塘晚秋圖), and “Listening to a Zither” (Ting qin tu 聽琴圖) are exemplary works of the divine class. Moreover, he collected masterpieces of the past and the present and compiled the Xuanhe ruilan ji 宣和睿覽集 (Imperial Review Collection of the Xuanhe Era), which consists of 100 books that contain 1,500 works classified into 14 categories, including famous works by master painters from Cao Buxing 曹不 興 of the Three Kingdoms period to Huang Jucai of the Song dynasty. He also commissioned the compilation of the Xuanhe shupu 宣和書譜 (Calligraphy Manuel of the Xuanhe Era) and the Xuanhe huapu, the latter of which consists of 20 books of 6,396 works by 231 painters. His contributions to the enrichment of Chinese painting styles and documentation of prior paintings are beyond doubt. Notwithstanding his contributions, Zhao’s superiority as emperor inevitably inhibited the development of extrainstitutional styles. From the perspective of cultural development, the rivalry between the divine and carefree classes to some extent embodied the opposition between Confucian and Daoist philosophies, as well as between the technical tendency of a transforming society and classical spiritual pursuit. From an institutional perspective, however, the elevation of the divine class over the carefree class was an attempt on the part of the court to suppress the literati’s standards while building objective standards. Under imperial supremacy, painters willy-nilly sold out to expediency. This is proven by changes in the authoritative styles at the Imperial Painting Academy throughout the Song dynasty. For more than a century in the early Song, when the emperors favored flower-and-bird paintings in the style of Huang Quan and his son, the Huang style had been regarded as the standard of the Imperial Painting Academy. Even the grandson of Xu Xi 徐熙, Xu Chongsi, had to give up his family’s style and adopt the Huang style for the sake of his career. During the eras of Xining and Yuanfeng, however, Emperor Shenzong favored the paintings of Guo Xi and Cui Bai 崔白, so their style trumped the Huang style. During the reign of Emperor Huizong, meticulous and poetic representation became the standard pursuit of

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painters. When the Imperial Painting Academy reopened in the Shaoxing 紹興 era of the Southern Song, Guo Xi’s style gradually declined, while the paintings of Ma Yuan and Xia Gui became models to imitate, as a result of which a large number of imitators only managed to mimic the masters’ style in appearance but not in essence and ended up producing second-rate works. That is to say, characteristics of Song academy paintings varied across time. To begin with, Huang-style flower-and-bird paintings from the first century of the Song dynasty manifest a noble aura (see Fig. 4.9). The subjects of these paintings are usually rare animals and propitious birds kept in the court, such as pigeons, pure white rabbits, young birds, peacocks, turtles, cranes, royal eagles, and propitious deer. This forms a stark contrast with the subject matters of the Xu Xi style, which are ordinary objects like vegetables, flowers, wild bamboos, and water birds. In terms of painting techniques, the Huang school, like the gold–blue green landscape paintings of the Lis of the Tang dynasty, emphasizes the use of colors. Shen Kuo describes: “The ingenuity of the Huangs’ drawing of flowers lies in the application of colors. The strokes are fresh and delicate. Marks of ink are invisible, but [the paintings] are dyed with light colors.”75 The rich colors and delicate strokes form another sharp contrast with the light tone of the ink wash painting of the school of Xu Xi. In order to create a sense of nobility, ink is not used in the Huang paintings — not even for outlining. The pictures are composed entirely of the five major colors. Fig. 4.9 “Birds, Insects, and Turtles” (Xiesheng zhenqin tu 寫生珍禽圖 ), Huang Quan, Later Shu of the Five Dynasties, handscroll, ink and colors on silk, 41.5 x 70.8 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

75. Shen, Mengxi bitan, scroll 17.

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As the literati’s taste became more influential within and outside the court, and Guo Xi’s landscape paintings became the mainstream of the Imperial Painting Academy, the style of court painting moved away from noble grandeur to acquire a poetic and leisurely ambience. In fact, even the Huang-style flower-and-bird paintings do have a tint of leisureliness on top of their nobility, but Guo stripped court paintings of the royal atmosphere so that they could reflect the unadorned leisurely taste of the literati. Guo explains the dilemma felt by the literati in the Linquan gaozhi ji: What is the reason that gentlemen love mountains and water? He often stays in a quiet garden and [places for] inner cultivation. He often finds happiness among fountains and rocks and in being untrammeled. He often feels comfortable in the secluded life of fishing and woodcutting. He often stays close to the crying of apes and the flying of cranes. It is human nature to be often annoyed by worldly issues and human restraints. It is human nature to want to see mists and clouds and immortals and sages often, yet men are unable to see them. But in days of peace and prosperity, when the desires to serve the king and the parents are both strong, if one recklessly relishes in personal purity by living a hermitic life, thinking this is pertinent to his moral character, then, must not all benevolent men live in recluse and travel to distant lands, behaving in ways entirely apart from the world, and seeking to acquire the same qualities as [that who retreated to] Jiying 箕穎 [i.e., Xu You 許由] or go down in history alongside Huang [Xia Huanggong 夏黃公] and Qi [Qili Ji 綺里季]? … Thus, although the aspiration to live among forests and springs and be in the company of mists and clouds remains an unforgettable dream barred from the ears and eyes, is it not a great pleasure to have it vividly created under deft hands, so that without having to get out of the house, one can infinitely [appreciate] the springs and gullies sitting down, with the cries of apes and singing of birds faintly audible at the ears, and the luster of the hills and color of the water brilliant and eye-catching?76 The Confucian thinking of conducting the “kingly way” (wangdao 王道) outwardly and cultivating personal virtues inwardly had been extended into a life attitude upheld by the Chinese literati. They fulfilled their duty for the court but also maintained a mental distance from worldly affairs. By recreating the leisurely environment of 76. Guo, Linquan gaozhi ji, chap. 1. Xu You, Xia Huanggong, and Qili Ji were all famous hermits. — Ed.

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nature through landscape paintings, the Song literati were able to satisfy their craving for nature escapes while continuing to fulfill their mundane obligations. Along with Guo’s plain landscapes (see Fig. 4.10), the works of Cui Bai, Cui Que 崔慤, and Wu Yuanyu 吳元瑜 also contributed to the displacement of the Huang style. Cui and his fellows favored paintings of sandbanks with reeds and wild geese, dismal scenes of autumn and winter, shores and riverbanks, and mandarin ducks in the snow in the style of Xu ink wash. This represented a rise in the status of the wild and leisurely style of the Xu school, but went beyond complete modelling on the Xu tradition. One significant principle running against Huang’s aesthetic was the emphasis on “sketching from life” (xiesheng 寫生), that is, realistic sketching, which is established in the works of Zhao Chang 趙昌, Yi Yuanji 易元吉, and Cui Bai. Contextualized in the opposition between the Huang school and the Xu school, the likes of Cui were indeed closer to the Xu school, but the aspect of sketching in their art approximates Zhao Ji’s meticulous and detailed style. Fig. 4.10 “Nest of Rocks on a Plain” (Keshi pingyuan tu 窠石平遠圖 ), Guo Xi, Northern Song, hanging scroll, ink and light colors on silk, 120.8 x 167.7 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

During the time of Emperor Zhao Ji, academy paintings sought meticulous and detailed portrayal of things. The paintings of Zhao Ji exhibit two distinctive styles. The first is a finely crafted and beautiful style after the Huang tradition, as demonstrated by “A Golden Pheasant Resting on Hibiscus Branch” (Fig. 4.11) and “Listening to a Zither.” The second is a light-color ink wash style after the tradition of Cui Bai and Wu Yuanyu, as in “Willow, Crows, Reed, and Wild Geese” (Liu ya lu yan tu 柳鴨蘆雁圖) (Fig. 4.12) and “Parrot Fighting” (Dou yingwu tu 鬥鸚 鵡圖). But whichever style he used, Zhao Ji was most concerned about the careful representation of things and would not tolerate mistakes with details such as postures, numbers, and seasons.

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Fig. 4.11 “A Golden Pheasant Resting on Hibiscus Branch,” Zhao Ji, Northern Song, hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 81.5 x 53.6 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Fig. 4.12 “Willow, Crows, Reed, and Wild Geese,” Zhao Ji, Northern Song, handscroll, ink and light colors on paper, 34 x 223 cm, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai

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Finally, one characteristic that existed throughout the Song dynasty was formalization. This was an inevitable outcome of the standardization of assessment criteria. To view from a broader perspective, we may conclude that among the four characteristics, the ambience of nobility represents the majesty of the imperial court, the leisurely and poetic atmosphere embodies the Song cultural spirit, and detailed portrayal and formalized paintings imply the technological context of the Song dynasty and the taste of urban commoners. The four characteristics exhibit the complexity of Chinese culture in transformation. The concern with careful representation of details was transient; it only reappeared in the Qing dynasty under the influence of Western painting. The leisurely and poetic atmosphere as the highest realm was significant for the development of Chinese painting, for it was closely connected with the taste of the literati who were the carriers of Chinese culture.

The Mentality of the Lyricists

Lyric poetry, or ci, became a specialized art of different classes of Song society, particularly the literati. Scholar-officials understood and mastered the characteristics of the ci, and sophisticatedly engaged in activities of ci composition. Although they did not value ci poetry as much as shi poetry and prose, the fact is that the ci was the art form that most aptly reflected the mentality of the Song people. Ci poetry originated in the Tang dynasty, beginning as lyrics written to folk tunes. According to their compiler Wang Chongmin, the Dunhuang song lyrics encompass “the groans of border travelers and rovers, the heroic words of loyal courtiers and righteous men, the pleasant temperaments and pleasing aspirations of hermitic gentlemen, the high hopes and disappointments of young students, and the praises of Buddhists as well as rhymed prescriptions of physicians.” “Those which discuss love in the boudoir and flowers and willows,” Wang continues, “do not even constitute a half.”77 Lyrics at that time have two features: first, they have long and short lines, which give them a softer feel than shi poems; second, the language and mentality underlying them are more popular, as they are simple and direct. See for example “Wang Jiangnan” 望江南 (Gazing to the South of the River) from the Dunhuang songs:78 77. Wang, preface to Dunhuang quzi ci ji.

78. In ibid, upper scroll; Owen, trans., The Late Tang: Chinese Poetry of the Mid-Ninth Century (827–860), 461.

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Don’t grab hold of me, grabbing me, the heart too carried away. I am a pond-side willow of Twisting River, this guy breaks me, that guy grabs. Their love lasts only a moment.

莫攀我 攀我太心偏 我是曲江臨池柳 這人折去那人攀 恩愛一時间

Following the social and cultural changes of the Middle and Late Tang, the ci entered the lives of the literati. However, the ci mainly represented the exuberant and erotic side of their lives, as a necessary part in banquets and night entertainments. The elegance embodied by the ci caused it to develop into a typical literati art. On the other hand, the ci also developed in a direction that suited its form and nature well: the expression of tender sentiments and feminine beauty. This latter aspect forms a stark contrast with the shi, especially the lüshi. Traditional Chinese poems are formally neat with lines of equal lines, and thus are suitable for expressing grandeur and solemnity. Comparatively, ci poems are composed of irregular lines, providing more freedom for the expression of lingering feelings and convoluted thoughts. An anecdote will aptly illustrate the difference between the shi and the ci as induced by line arrangements. Legend has it that an official meant to present to the emperor Wang Zhihuan 王之渙’s poem, “Chusai” 出塞 (Out the Frontier), which should read:79 The Yellow River ascends in the distance among the white clouds. A strip of a lonely town, mountains ten thousand feet — No need for the barbarian flute to complain about the willow trees, The spring wind does not cross Jade Gate Pass.

黃河遠上白雲間 一片孤城萬仞山 羌笛何須怨楊柳 春風不度玉門關

However, the story goes on, the official carelessly missed out the character “jian 間” (which roughly means “among”) in writing. Noting the odd number of characters, the emperor then asked what kind of poem that was, and recognizing his mistake, the official wittily responded that this was actually a lyric. As classical Chinese texts were presented with no punctuations or line breaks, he could immediately

79. In Sun, comp., Tangshi sanbai shou, scroll 11 (no. 319); translation from Yeh, “Ambiguity and the Female Voice in Hua-chien Songs,” 125.

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rearrange his “lyric” as follows:80 The Yellow River ascends in the distance, One strip of white cloud, A lonely town, ten thousand foot mountains No need for the barbarian flute to complain — Willow trees in the spring wind Do not cross Jade Gate Pass.

黃河遠上 白雲一片 孤城萬仞山 羌笛何須怨 楊柳春風 不度玉門關

Of course, a more refined adaptation of shi into ci would involve more changes in words and sentiments. Li Qingzhao 李清照 did a nice job with Han Wo 韓渥’s “Lan qi” 懶起 (Sluggish to Rise), which contains the following lines:81 Last night rain fell at the third watch, This morning a blast of chill struck. “Is the crab apple still there now?” Lying on my side, I rolled up the blinds to check.

昨夜三更雨 今朝一陣寒 海棠今在否 側臥捲簾看

Written to the tune of “Ru meng ling” 如夢令 (As in a Dream) by Li, they become:82 Last night the rain was scattered, the winds blustery, Even a deep sleep has not cleared my head of wine. I ask the girl who is rolling up the blinds, She answers: “The crab apple is the same as it was before.” Doesn’t she know? Doesn’t she know? She should’ve said: “The green is fatter, the red skinnier”!

昨夜雨疏風驟 濃睡不消殘酒 試問捲簾人 卻道海棠依舊 知否 知否 應是綠肥紅瘦

80. Translation from Yeh, “Ambiguity and the Female Voice in Hua-chien Songs,” 125. 81. In Peng et al., comp., Quan Tangshi, scroll 683.

82. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 6; Idema and Grant, trans., “To the Melody of ‘As in a Dream,’” in Idema and Grant, trans., The Red Brush: Writing Women of Imperial China, 228.

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The irregular line lengths of the ci facilitate the expression of complex human psychology, especially those contradictory, deep, and convoluted emotions that are hard to put into words. Line breaks are centric to the communication of poetic emotion in the ci. “Geng lou zi” 更漏子 (Song of the Water Clock), for example, opens with a 3-3-6 pattern that is followed throughout. A version of Wen Tingyun’s ci begins:83 Willow fronds long, spring rain fine, beyond the flowers the water clock’s sound in the distance.

柳絲長 春雨細 花外漏聲迢遞

It is as though one is unable to utter more than fragmented phrases until blurting out the gist of message after two failed attempts. On the contrary, The ending line arrangement of “Man jiang hong” 滿江紅 (Red Filling the River), with an extended eight-character line followed by a three-character last line, creates the opposite effect of one being lost for words after saying much. Look at Jiang Kui 姜 夔’s version:84 How could I remember we are in a small red tower, amid screen shadows?

又怎知人在小紅樓 簾影間

Another masterpiece of Li Qingzhao, composed to the tune of “Sheng sheng man” 聲聲慢 (Reduplications, Extended), deftly conveys the groans and mourning of a despaired woman with seven groups of repeated words:85 Seeking, seeking, searching, searching: Chilly, chilly, cheerless, cheerless, Dreary, dreary, dismal, dismal, wretched, wretched.

尋尋覓覓 冷冷清清 凄凄慘慘戚戚

83. Wen, “Geng lou zi” (I), in Zhao, comp., Huajian ji, scroll 1; Owen, trans., “To ‘Genglouzi’ (I),” in Owen, trans., The Late Tang: Chinese Poetry of the Mid-Ninth Century (827–860), 563.

84. In Jiang, Baishi daoren gequ, scroll 4.

85. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 6; Idema and Grant, trans., “To the Melody of ‘Reduplications, Extended,’” in Idema and Grant, trans., The Red Brush: Writing Women of Imperial China, 226.

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While line lengths in the ci seem irregular, they are not at all unruly. For lyrics written to shuangdiao 雙調 (double mode) melodies with more than one verse — which form the majority — line patterns often repeat across verses (que 闋), making the whole lyric a harmonious whole. For instance, when Su Shi adds a verse to “Jiang cheng zi” 江城子 (River Town), which is initially a dandiao (single mode) tune, he repeats the pattern of 7-3-3, 4-5-7-3-3 in the second verse, so that the two verses are entirely symmetrical. Likewise, “Ta suo xing” 踏莎行 (Treading on Grass) has the same 4-4-7-7 pattern in both verses. In some other cases, the two verses do not share an exact same line pattern, but similarity is maintained. Some examples are “Pusa man” 菩薩蠻 (Deva-like Barbarian), which has 7-7-5-5-5 for the first verse and 5-5-5-5 for the second verse; and “Yi Qin E” 憶秦娥 (Longing for Qin E), where the line patterns for the two verses are 3-7-3-4-4 and 7-7-3-4-4, respectively. In this way, enough variety is provided to allow for the expression of complex emotions without disrupting the harmony traditional to Chinese poetry. We can see from the line breaks of the ci the main principle that distinguishes the ci from the shi. A traditional distinction between the two genres is that “the shi articulates aspirations; the ci expresses sentiments” 詩言志，詞抒情. Here, aspirations refer to grand ambitions, while sentiments refer to lingering tender feelings. This is not to say that the shi does not convey feelings and the ci does not convey aspirations, but the feelings and aspirations communicated by the two genres are different. Li Dongqi explains, “The shi is solemn while the ci is charming; they are different in nature.”86 Solemnity implies magnanimity, while the charm in discussion, mei 媚, describes feminine charm. As regard the feminine façade of the ci, Zhang Yan writes lyrically in his Ci yuan 詞源 (Origins of Lyric Poetry): “Fiddling with gentle breeze and the moon [metaphors for romantic atmosphere and feelings], and appealing to natural sentiments, the ci is tenderer than the shi, for songs come out of the throats of orioles and tongues of swallows [metaphors for singing by women], and allow for more sentimental expression.”87 Wei Tangcao says: “The body of the ci is like a beautiful lady and the shi a strong man.”88 In addition to variety in line lengths, this feminine sensibility requires corresponding diction. Similar to shi poems, ci poems portray landscapes, vegetation, birds, animals, and architecture, yet the images in the ci are more delicate and sentimental: 86. “詩莊詞媚，其體元別。” Quoted in Wang, Gujin cilun, “Li Dongqi cilun” 李東琪詞論 [Lyric Theory of Li Dongqi].

87. “簸弄風月，陶寫性情，詞婉於詩。蓋聲出鶯吭燕舌間，稍近乎情可也。” yuan, scroll 2, “Fu qing” 賦情 [Composing to Express Sentiments].

Zhang,

Ci

88. “詞之為體如美人，而詩則壯士也。” Quoted in Tian, Xipu ci shuo, “Cao Xueshi lun ci” 曹 學士論詞 [Academician Cao on Lyrics].

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While both the writer of regular verse and the lyric poet embody human experience through imagery, while both use natural scenery and living things — animals, birds, plants and trees of all kinds — to create moods, the lyric poet will always choose the more ethereal and exquisite image. When describing the sky, he will prefer a faint rain 微雨, a solitary cloud 斷 雲, scattered stars 流星 and a pale moon 淡月. His landscape will tend to be one of distant peaks 遠峰, meandering banks 曲岸, misty isles 煙濤 and fishermen’s shoals 漁汀. For his creatures he will prefer the petrel 海燕, the flitting oriole 流鶯, the cold cicada 涼蟬 or newly-arrived geese 新雁. For vegetation, wilting blossoms 殘紅, floating catkins 飛絮, fragrant herbs 芳 草 and weeping willows 垂楊. His buildings will consist of painted ceilings 藻井, gilded halls 畫堂, fretted casements 綺疏 and carved portals 雕檻. His household objects will be such things as silver lamps 銀缸, golden censers 金鴨, phoenix screens 鳳屏 and jade goblets 玉鐘. When describing jewelry and clothes, he will imagine iridescent sleeves 彩袖, gauze apparel 羅衣, jasper hairpin 瑤簪 and kingfisher diadem 翠鈿. His preferred emotions will be groundless grief 閑愁, sweet musings 芳思, quiet enjoyment 俊賞, and feelings of seclusion 幽懷. Even the language used to describe the most ordinary setting will be exquisite and delicate. For instance, pavilion and hall are common enough things. But “windswept pavilion 風亭, moonlit hall 月榭” (from one of Liu Yung 柳永’s lyrics) are at once part of a more rarefied world. Again, flowers and willows are common enough. But “willows at dusk, flowers in the twilight” (from a lyric by Shi Ta-tsu 史達祖) evoke a very special atmosphere of quiet seclusion.89 Because of the inherent difference between the shi and the ci, even similar line and syntactical arrangements can create different moods. For example, compare the following couplets by Du Fu and Yan Shu 晏殊:90 無邊落木

瀟瀟

下

Boundless falling leaves

shower by shower

fall.

不盡長江

滾滾

來

The endless Yangtze

rolling and rolling

comes.

89. Miao, “Lun ci,” 56; Minford, trans., “The Chinese Lyric,” 30, Chinese characters added.

90. Du, “Denggao” 登高 [Climbing Up High], in Sun, comp., Tangshi sanbai shou, scroll 6 (no. 186); Yan, “Huan xi sha: Yi qu xin ci jiu yi bei” 浣溪沙：一曲新詞酒一杯 [Sand of SilkWashing Brook: A new lyric and a cup of wine], in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 3.

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無可奈何

花

落去

Nothing can be done that

flowers

are falling away.

似曾相識

燕

歸來

What a familiar sight that

swallows

are coming back.

In the Cilin jishi 詞林紀事 (Stories about the Lyric Poetry Circle), Zhang Zongxiao comments on Yan’s couplet: “the feeling expressed is genuine and touching, and the tonal effect is harmonious and elegant; these are the words of a lyricist. But if it was used in a heptasyllabic lüshi, it may sound too soft.”91 Since the basis for the ci is feminine sensibility and convoluted feelings, its core setting is unsurprisingly the boudoir. The works of the first writer who earned literary recognition for the genre, Wen Tingyun, are mainly set in the boudoir (guifang 閨房). According to Miu Yue, the ci has four characteristics: delicacy of language, lightness of substance, narrowness of range, and illusiveness of the lyric world.92 The boudoir setting can best embody these characteristics. Sentiments conveyed in the form of ci must be in some way tinted with feminine hues. Shen Yifu points out in the Yuefu zhimi 樂府指迷 (A Guide to Yuefu): “Writing ci is different from writing shi. Even when writing about flowers, one needs to solicit feelings somehow, or evoke the mood of the boudoir…. To praise flowers directly without using sensational vocabulary will not be like the style of lyricists.”93 In this sense, all kinds of settings can be read as variations of the boudoir setting. The boudoir and feminine sensibility had set the mood of the ci ever since the time of Wen Tingyun and Wei Zhuang; that is, ever since the genre gained recognition among the literati. With the works of Emperor Zhongzong of Tang 唐 中宗, Feng Yansi 馮延巳, and Li Yu 李煜, such femininity was stretched and much enriched. First read Wen’s lyric to “Pusa man”:94 On the many-leafed bedscreens, gold flickers and fades. Her cloudy locks threaten to shroud the fragrant snow of her cheeks.

小山重疊金明滅 鬢雲欲度香腮雪

91. Zhang, Cilin jishi, scroll 3, “Yan Shu” 晏殊.

92. Miao, “Lun ci,” 56–61; Minford, trans., “The Chinese Lyric,” 30–37.

93. Shen, Yuefu zhimi, “Yong huahui ji fu qing” 詠花卉及賦情 [Depicting Flowers and Composing about Sentiments].

94. Wen, “Pusa man” (I), in Zhao, comp., Huajian ji, scroll 1; Watson, trans., “Tune: ‘Deva-

like Barbarian,’” in Watson, trans. and ed., The Columbia Book of Chinese Poetry: From Early Times to the Thirteenth Century, 358.

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Lazily she rises, paints her moth eyebrows, fiddles over her makeup, endlessly combing and washing. She catches her flowery form in mirrors front and back, reflecting her flowery face now in one, now in the other. On her newly donned embroidered gauze jacket are pairs and pairs of golden partridges.

懶起畫娥眉 弄妝梳洗遲 照花前後鏡 花面相交映 新貼繡羅襦 雙雙金鷓鴣

In comparison, femininity appears less expressed in Li Yu’s “Lang tao sha” 浪淘沙 (Ripples Sifting Sand):95 Beyond the blind, the rain rattles down, spring moods fading away, yet the gauze coverlet can’t keep off the fifth watch cold. In dream I forget I’m a stranger here, clutching at happiness for a moment.

簾外雨潺潺 春意闌珊 羅衾不耐五更寒

Don’t lean on the railing all alone, before these endless rivers and mountains. Times of parting are easy to come by, times of meeting hard. Flowing water, fallen blossoms — spring has gone away now, as far as heaven from the land of man.

獨自莫憑欄 無限江山 別時容易見時難

夢裡不知身是客 一晌貪歡

流水落花春去也 天上人間

The persona of the former piece is a lady while that of the latter is a gentleman, but both works express a kind of feminine sensibility. The former work is set in a physical boudoir while the latter is not, but the atmosphere of a boudoir remains. Both works suggest an indoor setting, but Li’s conveys a desire to look outside; even so, it is with feminine sensibility that the persona looks out. By the Song dynasty, ci writing had become a general pastime of emperors and scholar-officials, only that 95. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 2; Watson, trans., “Tune: ‘Ripples Sifting Sand: A Song,’” in Watson, trans. and ed., The Columbia Book of Chinese Poetry: From Early Times to the Thirteenth Century, 362.

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expression of feminine sensibility was no longer restricted to the physical boudoir. Fan Zhongyan, who advocated the magnanimous vision that a scholar should “be troubled before the world is troubled and rejoice after the world rejoices,”96 also wrote lines like:97 The homesick soul is darkened chasing the thoughts of a traveler every night sleepless unless a good dream keeps him in sleep. Bright moon, high tower. Don’t stand there alone. When the wine pierces to an inner sorrow, it will rise as tears of love.

黯鄉魂 追旅思 夜夜除非 好夢留人睡 明月樓高休獨倚 酒入愁腸 化作相思淚

Ouyang Xiu, who was orthodox and learnt in disposition, also composed tender lyrics such as:98 Inches of aching heart, Lines of rough tears; In a high tower, don’t lean against the rail: Where the wild plain levels off, spring hills rise, And the traveler is farther beyond the spring hills.

寸寸柔腸 盈盈粉淚 樓高莫近危欄倚 平蕪盡處是春山 行人更在春山外

It is not difficult to recognize that lyric masters of the Northern Song dynasty, such as Zhang Xian 張先, Zhou Bangyan 周邦彥, Yan Shu, Yan Jidao 晏幾道, Song Qi 宋 祁, and He Zhu 賀鑄 all explored deep into the world of feminine language and sensibility. Note the pensive mood of Qin Guan’s “Wan xi sha,” for example:99 96. “先天下之憂而憂，後天下之樂而樂。” Fan, “Yueyang lou ji” 岳陽樓記 [On the Yueyang Tower], in Fan, Fan Wenzheng gong ji, scroll 7.

97. Fan, “Sumu zhe” 蘇幕遮, in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 3; Barnstone and Chou,

trans., “To the Tune of ‘Sumu Veil’,” in Barnstone and Chou, trans. and eds., The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry, 236.

98. Ouyang, “Ta suo xing” 踏莎行, in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 4; An-yang Tang, trans., “Tune: ‘Treading on Grass,’” in Liu and Lo, ed., Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry, 332.

99. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 4; Jiaosheng Wang, trans., “Tune: ‘Sand of Silk-

Washing Brook’ — A Spring Morning,” in Mair, ed., The Columbia Anthology of Traditional Chinese Literature, 329.

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A suggestion of chill pervades the little bower, The haze of dawn sulky as though it were deep autumn. On the painted screen, thin mist hovering over a running brook — A scene tranquil and serene.

漠漠輕寒上小樓 曉陰無賴似窮秋

Fallen petals flying at ease — ethereal like dreams; Mizzling rain an endless stream — fine as sorrow. The jeweled curtain hung up idly on a little hook of silver.

自在飛花輕似夢 無邊絲雨細如愁 寶簾閒挂小銀鉤

淡煙流水畫屏幽

Entering the Southern Song, the feminine tone persisted in the ci of Jiang Kui, Shi Dazu, and Wu Wenying 吳文英. For example, in Jiang’s “Dian jiang chun” 點絳唇 (Dotting Red Lips):100 Carefree wild geese soar with clouds over the west shore of Lake Tai. A few dismal peaks mull over an evening rain.

燕雁無心 太湖西畔隨雲去 數峰清苦 商略黃昏雨

Near the Fourth Bridge — I wish I could live there with Tiansuizi. But where now? I lean on the railing pondering on the past, only to see withering willows dance high and low.

第四橋邊 擬共天隨住 今何許 憑欄懷古 殘柳參差舞

And in Wu’s “Feng ru song” 風入松 (Wind Enters Pines):101 I listened to wind and listened to rain passing the Festival of Light, too sad to draft a eulogy for funerals of flowers.

聽風聽雨過清明 愁草瘞花銘

100. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 9. Tiansuizi is the art name of Lu Guimeng 陸龜 蒙, a reclusive poet of the Tang dynasty. — Ed.

101. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 10; Owen, trans., “To ‘Wind Enters Pines,’” in Owen, trans. and ed., An Anthology of Chinese Literature: Beginnings to 1911, 588–89.

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The green before my hall darkens the path where clasped hands parted, every inch of those willow fronds is an inch of tender passion. Then shivering at spring’s chill, the wine hits me, and warbling through my morning dream, orioles sing.

樓前綠暗分攜路

Day after day in the western park I sweep the pavilion in the grove and enjoy as ever the newly cleared skies. Orange bees often go batting against the rope of the swing where is printed the scent of her tiny hand from days gone by. Despair that those paired duck slippers do not come, and moss on the secret stairs grows all night long.

西園日日掃林亭

一絲柳 一寸柔情 料峭春寒中酒 交加曉夢啼鶯

依舊賞新晴 黃蜂頻撲鞦韆索 有當時　纖手香凝 惆悵雙鴛不到 幽階一夜苔生

These two ci poems are not spoken through female personae, but they are infused with a feminine quality. The settings of both pieces are variations of the boudoir motif. The feminine quality is obvious enough in Wu’s lyric and need not be explained. As for Jiang’s, the dismal peaks and anticipated evening rain in the first verse, as well as the withering and drifting willows in the second verse comply with feminine suppleness, while the departing wild geese and the helpless and nostalgic feeling evoked by meditating on the past also convey feminine sentimentality. While the boudoir is the central setting of Song ci, underpinning its prosody, diction, syntax, and atmospheres, the development of the genre did interact with and receive influence from other literary genres, especially the shi, prose, and huaben stories. To put it in another way, under the influence of these literary cultures, Song ci had to incorporate both the vulgar taste of the masses and the scholarly taste of the literati. As a result, the genre expanded in two directions: first, the vulgar direction as represented by the works of Liu Yong; second, the incorporation of elements from shi poetry and prose essays into ci poetry as advocated by Su Shi and Xin Qiji 辛棄疾, respectively. As pointed out in the section on Su Shi’s ci in the

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Siku quanshu zongmu tiyao 四庫全書總目提要 (Summary of the General Index to the Complete Library in Four Branches of Literature): Since the Late Tang and the Five Dynasties, melancholic elegance had been the central principle of the ci. By the time of Liu Yong this was changed, in the same way that the shi was changed by Bai Juyi. By the time of Su Shi, the ci was changed again, in the same way that the shi was changed by Han Yu. From then on the style of Xin Qiji of the Southern Song became more prevalent.… It developed along with the style of the Huajian 花間 (Anthology from Among Flowers).102 As regard Liu Yong’s style, by “vulgarity,” it means a substitution of direct and open confession for indirect and restrained expression. Metaphorical imagery is disposed of, as events and scenes are described without undertones as in oral stories. Gone is the elegant and charming ambience of boudoirs and quiet courtyards, which are replaced by plainer rooms of commoners’ housing. In this way, the taste of the common urban dweller enters ci poetry.103 This can be felt in Liu’s lyric to “Poluomen ling” 婆羅門令 (Brahman Song):104 Last night I slept in my clothes, Tonight again I sleep in my clothes. Home from a small party, Barely past the first watch, and I was reeling drunk. After midnight something woke me with a start. The frosty sky was cold, The whistling wind Struck the lattice window and set the lamp aflickering.

昨宵裡恁和衣睡 今宵裡又恁和衣睡 小飲歸來 初更過　醺醺醉 中夜後　何事還驚起 霜天冷 風細細 觸疏窗閃閃燈搖曳

102. Yong, Ji, et al, Siku quanshu zongmu tiyao, scroll 198.

103. For a discussion of the lay aspect of Liu’s ci, see Zeng, “Liu Yong ci de shimin wenxue tezheng.”

104. In Liu, Yuezhang ji, “Shuangdiao” 雙調 [Double Mode]; Hightower, trans., “To the Tune ‘Brahman Song,’” in Hightower, “The Songwriter Liu Yung,” 227.

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Tossing and turning in my empty bed, over and over I recall The rain and clouds dream That will not go on, however I lie. In one inch–heart a myriad threads, Nearby, yet a thousand miles away. Such a pretty scene, perfect weather — All in vain we yearn for one another With no way to make love together.

空床輾轉重追想 雲雨夢 任敧枕難繼 寸心萬緒 咫尺千里 好景良天 彼此空有相憐意 未有相憐計

and also his “Qiu ye yue” 秋夜月 (Autumn Evening Moon):105 Back then we met only to part And I told myself there was no way ever to see her face again. But the other day I met her unexpectedly at a party. While we were drinking she found a chance To draw her brows together and sigh, Rousing any number of old sorrows.

當初聚散 便喚作　無由再逢伊面

Her eyes brimming with tears, In my ear she whispered A thousand secret reproaches: “Too bad you had things in your heart There was no way to see.” I would like to believe she is telling the truth And has no other ties. Maybe I’d better just curb my fancy And go on with her forever.

盈盈淚眼 漫向我耳邊 作萬般幽怨 奈你自家心下 有事難見 待信真個 恁別無縈絆 不免收心 共伊長遠

近日來　不期而會重歡宴 向尊前　閑暇裏 斂著眉兒長歎 惹起舊愁無限

In fact, these works have wandered off the realm of ci and are approaching that of qu 曲 (arias). The ci of Lui Yong foreshadowed the transition from the ci to the qu in Chinese poetry. In an opposite direction to Liu’s, the lyrics of Su Shi and Xin Qiji brought the 105. In Liu, Yuezhang ji, “Shuangdiao” 雙調 [Double Mode]; Hightower, trans., “To the Tune ‘Autumn Evening Moon,’” in Hightower, “The Songwriter Liu Yung,” 227.

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genre closer to the realm of high culture. Su endowed his ci with the function of shi poetry, while Xin infuse into his the function of prose. To make it plain, Su used the ci to express aspirations while Xin used the ci to impart morals. Su’s and Xin’s styles are together known as the “heroic” school (haofang pai 豪放派) of ci. Hu Yin introduces in his foreword to a poetry collection: “Su Shi of Mei Shan disposed of the beautiful and fragrant manner and relieved himself from the sentimental and oblique style, inviting others to ascend to a high point and look afar, and to raise the head and sing aloud, so that the carefree mind and noble spirit transcended beyond dust and dirt.”106 In his Lianzi ju cihua 蓮子居詞話 (Lyric Critique from the Lotus Seed Study), Wu Hengzhao writes: “Xin Jiaxuan [Qiji’s art name] opened up an unprecedented realm, traversing past and present. He alluded to the Lunyu 論語 (Analects), the Mengzi 孟子 (Mencius), the Shi xiaoxu 詩小序 (Supplementary Preface to the Book of Songs), the Zuozhuan 左傳 (Commentary of Zuo), the Zhuangzi 莊子, “Li sao” 離騷 (On Encountering Trouble), the Shiji 史記 (Grand Scribe’s Records), the Hanshu, the Shishuo xinyu 世說新語 (A New Account of the Tales of the World), the Wenxuan 文選 (Selections of Refined Literature), and the poems of Li Bai and Du Fu freely. This shows the vigor of his pen.”107 In fact, the “heroic” school is such only relative to ci in the “restrained” school (wanyue 婉約派); the femininity of the latter makes the former appear comparatively masculine. When compared with heroic-style poems and prose, heroic-style ci are obviously tenderer. One of the most representative ci poems by Su Shi is “Niannu jiao” 念奴嬌 (Charms of Niannu):108 The Great River flows to the east: Its waves have washed away All the men of untrammeled spirit of a thousand ages. To the west of the ancient ramparts, they say, Is the Red Cliffs of young Zhou of the Three Kingdoms. Random rocks pierce the air, Startling billows slap the bank Rolling up a thousand heaps of snow. The river and the mountains are like a picture — At one time, how many heroes were there!

大江東去 浪淘盡 千古風流人物 故壘西邊　人道是 三國周郎赤壁 亂石穿空 驚濤拍岸 卷起千堆雪 江山如畫 一時多少豪傑

106. Hu, foreword to Jiubian ji.

107. Wu, Lianzi ju cihua, scroll 1, “Xin Qiji biekai tiandi” 辛棄疾別開天地 [Xin Qiji Opening a New Realm].

108. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 4; Liu, trans., “Recalling Antiquity at Red Cliff,” in Liu, Major Lyricists of the Northern Sung: 960–1126 A.D., 139–40, modified to pinyin.

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Imagine Lord Zhou as he was, so long ago, When the Younger Qiao had just married him: His brilliant wit and manly air! Feather fan in hand, silk-turbaned, amid talk and laughter He turned the powerful enemy into flying ashes and vanishing smoke. As my spirit wanders to the ancient kingdom, You may laugh at me for being so sentimental And growing grey hair so soon! Man’s life is like a dream — Still, let me pour a libation to the river moon!

遙想公瑾當年 小喬初嫁了 雄姿英發 羽扇綸巾　談笑間 強虜灰飛煙滅 故國神遊 多情應笑我 早生華髮 人間如夢 一樽還酹江月

This ci begins with a magnificent reflection about history and life. However, all of a sudden, the awe-inspiring atmosphere is disrupted by the appearance of the beauty of the time, the Younger Qiao, followed by the self-skepticism of being too sentimental and the lamentation about the transient nature of life — all this reveals the aura of ci. Superior ci in the heroic style will not lose the complex sentimentality typical of the genre albeit incorporating elements from shi poetry and prose. Even Su’s and Xin’s lesser works can be banal, let alone inferior attempts to model on the two masters. Qing dynasty ci scholar Chen Yanchao rightly comments that those who failed to learn the gist of Su’s and Xin’s works would be no difference from “squawking.”109 After all, lying somewhere between ci and shi, heroic-style ci poems are, as Su’s contemporary Chen Shidao notes, not the prototype of the genre.110 But to be regarded as lyric masters, Su and Xin not only raised the status of the ci by incorporating elements from two “higher” literary genres; more importantly, they were themselves true masters of the mainstream restrained-style ci. No less capable were they in handling the boudoir motif and feminine sensibility. Su’s “Jiang cheng zi” 江城子 (Song of the River Town) expresses his bitter yearning for his deceased wife, evoking the typical boudoir setting in the second verse:111 109. Chen, Baiyu zhai cihua, scroll 1, “Xin Jiaxuan: Ci zhong zhi long” 辛稼軒：詞中之龍 [Xin Jiaxuan: The Dragon among Lyricists].

110. Chen, Houshan shihua.

111. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 4; Barnstone and Chou, trans., “To the Tune

of ‘Song of the River Town,’ a Record of a Dream on the Night of the First Month, Twentieth Day, in the Eighth Year of the Xining Period (1705),” in Barnstone and Chou, trans. and eds., The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry, 250.

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For ten years we two, one live, one dead, have been lost in a vast mist. I don’t think always of you yet cannot forget. Your lonely tomb is a thousand miles away. I have no one to tell my sadness. Even if we could meet again you wouldn’t know me with my dusty face, my temples coated with frost.

十年生死兩茫茫

At night in a dark dream I suddenly found myself home. By the small window you were combing your hair. We looked at each other without words, just a thousand lines of tears. I know you’ll wait for me each year in that heartbreak place through nights of bright moon under dwarf pine by your mound.

夜來幽夢忽還鄉

不思量 自難忘 千里孤墳 無處話淒涼 縱使相逢應不識 塵滿面 鬢如霜

小軒窗 正梳妝 相顧無言 唯有淚千行 料得年年腸斷處 明月夜 短松岡

Xin’s “Zhu Yingtai jin” 祝英臺近 (Slow Song of Zhu Yingtai) is equally delicate and subtle, filled with feminine motifs such as hairpin, petals, and stroking the temple:112 Since we halved the hairpin At Peach-Leaves Ferry, Mist and willow have darkened the south bank. I dread to climb the upper story: Nine days in ten are filled with wind and rain. Swirling petals, one by one, rend my heart: They fall unnoticed. And who’s there to plead With orioles to still their song?

寶釵分 桃葉渡 煙雨暗南浦 怕上層樓 十日九風雨 斷腸點點飛紅 都無人管 更誰勸啼鶯聲住

112. In Xin, Jiaxuan changduan ju, scroll 7; Irving Y. Lo, trans., “Tune: ‘Slow Song of Chu Ying-t’ai’ — Late Spring,” in Liu and Lo eds., Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry, 396–97.

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My hand stroked my temple, Trying to divine the date of your return with petals; The hairpin once fastened, I recounted the petals. Lamplight nickers on the silk curtain; Words choke in my mouth as I wake from dream. “It is spring that has brought sorrow back! Then where does spring go when it leaves? But, no, spring does not care To take sorrow along when it goes away.”

鬢邊覷 應把花卜歸期 才箸又重數 羅帳燈昏 哽咽夢中語 是他春帶愁來 春歸何處 卻不解　將愁歸去

These two ci fully embrace the subtle and tender qualities of the genre. Similarly, Liu Yong was considered a lyric master not because of his development of the “vulgar” type of ci, but due to his adeptness at writing such famous lines as “Where will I be tonight when I sober up from the wine?/ — along a willow riverbank, in mooring breeze, under a leftover moon?”113 The vulgar and heroic types of ci are marginal and mixed genres. From the perspective of the evolution of literary genres, the vulgar style was pioneering as it presaged the emergence of the qu; it also bore a unique special function in Ming and Qing fiction. The heroic style, by adapting elements of shi poetry and prose, conformed to tradition within which it asserted a higher status for the ci; but thanks to this, the genres of ci and shi both acquired new temperaments. The significance of the ci as a representative art of the Song dynasty was chiefly dependent on its central feminine motif, which suited the politicohistorical context of the time. As the Chinese social hierarchy was primarily based on the Three Cardinal Guides (sangang 三綱), namely, the ruler guiding the subject, the father guiding the son, and the husband guiding the wife, women were passively submissive to the power of men — this contributed to the cultural fantasy of a movingly sullen and loyal female image. And women were not the only institutionalized victims under such a hierarchy: men, as subjects facing their all-powerful emperor, were in the same inferior position, especially when the ruler-courtier relationship was unsatisfactory. The victimized female image 113. “今宵酒醒何處？楊柳岸、曉風殘月。” Liu, “Yu lin ling” 雨霖鈴, in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 3; Barnstone and Chou, trans., “To the Tune of ‘Rain Hits a Bell,’” in Barnstone and Chou, trans. and eds., The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry, 234.

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thus provided a fitting analogy for the anguish scholar-official, whose resentment could not be expressed in public under the political and cultural expectation for absolute loyalty, ever since the time of Qu Yuan 屈原. This supple disposition to submit to the Confucian social order — deemed endorsed by Heaven — provided the environment for the emergence of the tenderly mournful genre of ci. The timing of its popularization has to be ascribed to the fact that the Song dynasty was a paradoxical time. As mentioned earlier, it was a time when scholarofficials enjoyed the highest status, but also when the imperial court was the most impotent vis-à-vis foreign enemies. More importantly, it was a time of cultural transformation. Educated men felt the currents of change strongly but were deeply perplexed by uncertainties, even feeling abandoned by Heaven in the course of history. Back in the Late Tang, grief over dynastic decline had caused Li He 李賀 to lament: “If heaven too had passions even heaven would grow old.”114 In the Song dynasty, Zhang Yuangan 張元幹 bemoaned: “The will of heaven is always high, beyond questioning.”115 A sense of abandonment is reflected in the plain ideal of poetry and prose, the unadorned style of calligraphy, and the untrammeled style of painting. It is even more so in the ci, which, borrowing the sentiments of a discarded, melancholic woman, best embodies the prevailing mentality of the Song literati. In the ci, such feminine sentimentality predominantly finds expression in two kinds of scenic motifs: grief over spring (shangchun 傷春) and melancholy of “ascending heights” (denggao 登高). In the Chinese cultural tradition, spring signified happiness while autumn connoted sadness. It was in the Chinese cultural mentality to “lament over falling leafs in ruthless autumn, and rejoice for supple sprigs in budding spring.”116 On the other hand, from a gendered perspective: “in spring, women are wistful, while in autumn, men are wistful, both affected by changes in things.”117 Compared with the image of falling leaves in autumn, 114. “天若有情天亦老,” Li, “Jintong xianren ci Han ge” 金銅仙人辭漢歌, in Peng et al., comp., Quan Tangshi, scroll 391; Graham, trans., “A Bronze Immortal Takes Leave of Han,” in Graham, trans., Poems of the Late T’ang, 106.

115. “天意從來高難問,” Zhang, “He xinlang: Song Hu Bangheng daizhi fu Xinzhou” 賀 新郎：送胡邦衡待制赴新州 [To Congratulate the Bride: Sending Edict Attendant Hu Bangheng to Xinzhou], in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 7.

116. “悲落葉於勁秋，喜柔條於芳春。” Lu Ji 陸機, “Wenfu” 文賦 [The Art of Writing], in Xiao, comp., Wenxuan, scroll 17.

117. “春女悲，秋士悲，感其物化也。” Mao Heng 毛亨, Maoshi guxun zhuan 毛詩故訓傳 [Mao’s Annotations to the Book of Songs], collected in Mao, Zheng, and Kong, Maoshi Zhengyi, scroll 8.1, “Qiyue” 七月 [The Seventh Month].

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falling petals in spring symbolize the withering of life in a gentler manner. As early as in the Shijing 詩經 (Book of Songs), grief over spring is quite a frequent motif. However, more often than not, grief is associated with the fading of spring and falling petals; only in the Song ci does it become paradigmatic for spring to be an embodiment of melancholy. Regardless of what time it is in spring, scenes of dusk, setting sun, drizzles, light haze, dawn chills, and mist are sentimentalized to create a wistful atmosphere. Vernal dreams and vernal tears are typically poured out over poetry writing and wine drinking. Lonesome swallows and wild geese jerk tears and evoke memories; if not, a climb up some tower or an outlook with some railing brings one to contemplate regrets. Based on these basic images, grief over spring is expressed in ci poems in all dimensions. Spring scenes themselves are a cause of sadness, as in “Fallen petals flying at ease — ethereal like dreams; / Mizzling rain in an endless stream — fine as sorrow.”118 The fading of spring is often met with a sense of helplessness or regret: “When will the westering sun come back? / Nothing can be done that flowers are falling away”;119 “Sent off, spring is gone — when will it return? / Facing the evening mirror, / I lament the fading scenes.”120 A deeper yearning for spring can be expressed in attempts to converse with spring: “Tearful eyes ask the flowers, but the flowers are silent”;121 or even to hunt down spring:122 Where has spring returned to? Quiet, desolate, no path to follow. If anyone knows where spring has gone, Call him back to live with us as our companion.

春歸何處 寂寞無行路 若有人知春去處 喚取歸來同住

118. Qin Guan, “Wan xi sha,” in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 4; Jiaosheng Wang,

trans., “Tune: ‘Sand of Silk-Washing Brook’ — A Spring Morning,” in Mair, ed., The Columbia Anthology of Traditional Chinese Literature, 329.

119. “夕陽西下幾時回，無可奈何花落去。” Yan Shu, “Huan xi sha: Yi qu xin ci jiu yi bei,” in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 3.

120. “送春春去幾時回？臨晚鏡，傷流景。” Zhang Xian 張先, “Tian xianzi” 天仙子 [Heavenly Immortal], in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 3.

121. “淚眼問花花不語,” Ouyang Xiu, “Die lian hua” 蝶戀花, in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 4; Li, trans., “Butterflies Lingering over Flowers,” in Li, Women’s Poetry of Late Imperial China: Transforming the Inner Chambers, 40.

122. Huang Tingjian, “Qingping yue” 清平樂, in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 5; James J. Y. Liu, trans., “Tune: ‘Pure Serene Music,’” in Liu and Lo, ed., Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry, 358.

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Such agony can also stretch one’s imagination, as in:123 When you look closely, These are not willow catkins, But, drop after drop, parted lovers’ tears.

細看來 不是楊花 點點是離人泪

To ascend a height and look afar is a unique Chinese aesthetic taste which combines joy and sorrow. At a high point, one gains a unique experience about the cosmos, as “the sky is high and the land is vast, [helping one] realize the infinity of the cosmos,” while on the other hand, “at the end of euphoria comes sorrow, [causing one to] understand that there is a law to the waxing and waning [of things].”124 Yet in this tradition, whether the experience of ascending a height is one of pure joy, pure sorrow, or a mix of both, it would always manifest a masculine spirit of unrestrained magnitude. Examples can be found in some Tang poems, such as Li Bai’s “Lushan yao ji Lu Shiyu Xuzhou” 廬山謠寄盧侍禦虛舟 (Song to Mount Lu — Sent to Censor Lu Xuzhou):125 Climbing up high the view is sublime, caught between earth and sky The huge expanse of the great river goes relentlessly on — For thousands of miles yellow clouds move where the wind blows While white waves flow in snowy crests along nine river paths.

登高壯觀天地間 大江茫茫去不還 黃雲萬里動風色 白波九道流雪山

It is an entirely different sight in Song ci, in which climbing high typically brings about a deep sense of sorrow. For example, in Liu Yong’s lyric to “Qu yu guan” 曲 123. Su Shi, “Shuilong yin: Ci yun Zhang Zhifu yanghua ci” 水龍吟：次韻章質夫楊花詞, in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 4; James J. Y. Liu, trans., “Tune: ‘Water Dragon’s Chant,’ After Chang Chi-fu’s Lyric on the Willow Catkin, Using the Same Rhyming

Words,” in Liu and Lo, ed., Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry, 350.

124. “Qiu ri deng Hong fu Tengwang ge jianbie xu” 秋日登洪府滕王閣餞別序 [Dedication

to the Tower of the Prince of Teng, Ascending the Hongs’ Residence in Autumn for Bidding Farewell], in Li, comp., Wenyuan yinghua, scroll 718.

125. In Sun, comp., Tangshi sanbai shou, scroll 3 (no. 53); Harris, trans., Three Hundred Tang Poems, 117.

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玉管 (Crooked Jade Flute):126 Clouds flying above lofty mountains, the sun setting into night by the riverside, misty water filling my sight — for long I’ve been leaning on the rail.

隴首雲飛 江邊日晚 煙波滿目憑欄久

I look about: how bleak is this vast territory, this deep autumn over hundreds of miles on which I force my gaze.

一望關河蕭索 千里清秋 忍凝眸

And in Chen Liang 陳亮’s “Shuilong yin: Chun hen” 水龍吟：春恨 (Water Dragon’s Chant: Loathsome Spring):127 In my loneliness I climb high and think afar — Toward the southern tower the honk of a returning wild goose.

寂寞憑高念遠 向南樓　一聲歸雁

In Song ci, the act of climbing up high and looking afar evokes the mood of a distressed beauty looking out the window from a boudoir. While looking out from chamber windows was not an exclusively feminine image in the Chinese poetic tradition, there was a fundamental difference in motive between men and women doing this act. For male scholars embracing the cosmos, windows allowed them to experience and communicate with nature without physically going outside; windows brought them closer to the heavens and faraway land. Unlike Faust, the Chinese did not aspire to attain infinity; rather, they endeavored to, in Mencius’s terms, “turn within to examine oneself and find that one is sincere.”128 They found great joy in waiting for the cosmos to “come in” through the windows of their homes or studies. See for example the following lines from Du Fu:129 126. In Liu, Yuezhang ji, “Dashi diao” 大石調 [Huangzhong-shang Mode].

127. In Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 8; Hellmut Wilhelm, trans., “Tune: ‘Water Dragon’s Chant,’ Loathsome Spring,” in Liu and Lo, ed., Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry, 401.

128. Mengzi, “Jin xin shang” 盡心上 [Fully Developing One’s Mind I]; Bloom, trans., and Ivanhoe, ed., Mencius, 144, 7A:4.

129. Du, third of “Jueju si shou” 絕句四首 [Four Quatrains], in Peng et al., comp., Quan Tangshi, scroll 228; based on Rexroth, trans., “Far up the River,” in Rexroth, trans., One Hundred Poems From the Chinese, 23, lines rearranged.

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The window frames the western mountains, white with the snows of a thousand years. Anchored to the pilings are boats from eastern Wu Three thousand miles from home.

窗含西嶺千秋雪 門泊東吳萬里船

For women in the boudoir, however, looking out connoted the departure of men; therefore from the Shijing onwards, the scene of a woman looking out the window has always been distressing. The atmosphere of Song ci in depicting ascending heights is equally lonesome. One might say that the mentality at work is a dread of climbing heights. For instance, Fan Zhongyan has the line “Bright moon, high tower. Don’t stand there alone”;130 Ouyang Xiu writes, “In a high tower, don’t lean against the rail”;131 and Liu Yong spells out the reason for the dread:132 I cannot bear to climb high and look far, For to gaze at my native land in the dim distance Would release endless homeward thoughts.

不忍登高臨遠 望故鄉渺邈 歸思難收

The highly developed economy, prosperity of metropolises, formation of urban folk communities, and technological innovation of the Song dynasty should have been comparable to the vitality of spring. However, caught in political uncertainties and social changes, the Song literati were perplexed, in a way similar to how the personae of Song ci are perturbed by the beauty of spring as they look out to the world. The literati had made great efforts to respond to their historical situation; for example, Wang Anshi launched a political reform, Sima Guang 司馬光 authored the Zizhi tongjian 資治通鑑 (Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance), and Zhu Xi established the School of Principle. Yet despite all this, they were unsure about how the course of future would develop. For this reason, the ci became 130. “明月樓高休獨倚,” Fan, “Sumu zhe,” in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 3;

Barnstone and Chou, trans., “To the Tune of ‘Sumu Veil’,” in Barnstone and Chou, trans. and eds., The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry, 236.

131. “樓高莫近危欄倚,” Ouyang, “Ta suo xing,” in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 4; An-yang Tang, trans., “Tune: ‘Treading on Grass,’” in Liu and Lo, ed., Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry, 332.

132. Liu, “Ba sheng Ganzhou,” 八聲甘州, in Zhu, comp., Songci sanbai shou, scroll 3; James

J. Y. Liu, trans., “Tune: ‘Eight Beats of Kan-chou Song,’” in Liu and Lo, ed., Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry, 322.

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the most appropriate medium in expressing their outlook, and hence the most representative form of Song art.

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Chapter

The Artistic Interest of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties

The History and Spirit of Chinese Art VOLUME 2

Three Defining Cultural Phenomena

We have seen that the Song dynasty was a significant landmark in the transformation of ancient Chinese culture. Moving towards the Yuan dynasty, Chinese history arrived at a plateau, displaying a new cultural panorama. Pioneering archeologist Su Bingqi points out that around 6,000 years ago, the Chinese cosmos was shared between agricultural and nomadic cultures,1 in a similar manner to that which the ancient Sumerians, Egyptians, Assyrians, and Hittites, and then the Greeks, Hebrews, Phoenicians, and Persians coexisted in the Mediterranean. On the surface, nomadic tribes kept invading agricultural communities, encroaching into agricultural cultures; yet at the same time, agricultural cultures subtly influenced and eventually assimilated nomadic cultures. Throughout Chinese history, at many critical moments, it was the relatively culturally backward wrestlers who won and took over the nation: the Qin, the Sui, the Yuan, and the Qing. Amid the routine of dynastic changes, the rise of the Yuan dynasty brought two unprecedented changes. First, the Mongol Empire conquered not only China but also the vast Eurasia, thereby really connecting China to the outside world. Short lived as it was, the dynasty brought to China Marco Polo who opened the door of external communication, foreboding the arrival of missionaries in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Second, its downfall led to the successful unification of the Qing, which gave China the broadest territories ever in its dynastic history. It would be no exaggeration to say that the Manchu marched out of Manchuria to claim the throne in Beijing much like village folks getting into a city for the first time, adapting to a whole world of “novelties.” From pre-Qin philosophies to the Neo-Confucianism of the Ming, from the earliest poetic tradition to the newer inventions of prose and fiction, and from the cultural artifacts of Fu Xi’s time to those of the Song dynasty, everything was popularized and rounded up. Culturally, the Qing could well have been an age of “conclusion.” At the watershed of the cultural transformation that was embarked upon in the Song dynasty, Chinese art experienced dramatic and innovative turns. Fiction and xiqu 戲曲 operas became the forms of art that came under the spotlight, bearing a new sense of aesthetics and new philosophies. At the same time, traditional forms of art went through quite some changes: shi poetry evolved into qu, classical prose evolved into xiaopin essays 小品文 (little prose essays), and literati paintings acquired a wild, classical, or mundane taste. The overall nature of Chinese society, however, stayed the same. On the surface, poetry and prose were still the dominant forms of art, and these traditional art forms, along with their associated 1. See Su, Zhongguo wenming qiyuan xintan.

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aesthetics, remained highly influential. Yet creations at the two ends of the artistic spectrum could not stand aloof from the influence of each other, and the line between new and old arts was increasingly blurred. It was the dichotomy of and paradoxical penetration between the old and the new that constituted the unique characteristics of the art of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing. So, how exactly did the new artistic traits of the three dynasties come about? How did the dynamics between the new and the old operate? Three sociocultural phenomena of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing will shed some light in these regards.

Reshuffle of artistic order

The Mongol Yuan dynasty marked an institutional reshuffle of the traditional artistic hierarchy. Due to the low cultural level of the ruling class, the literati suffered an unprecedented blow in social status. Scholars were only one class above beggars in the designated social ladder, where scholars were ranked the ninth and beggars the tenth. Under this circumstance, it became perplexingly proper for men of letters, with their lowly status, to write for xiqu operas, which had long been considered an inferior art. Paradoxically, the Mongols’ love of musical dances and operas raised the status of the xiqu above poetry and prose. The coincidence of the rise of the xiqu and the fall of the literati made it possible for the best writers to participate in playwriting, giving birth to great dramatists like Guan Hanqing 關漢卿, Wang Shipu 王實甫, Ma Zhiyuan 馬致遠, and Bai Pu 白樸, as well as their masterpieces such as Dou E yuan 竇娥冤 (The Injustice to Dou E) and Xixiang ji 西 廂記 (The Western Chamber). After the Ming dynasty, urban folk culture prospered even further, and iconoclastic thinkers represented by Li Zhi 李贄 unequivocally acknowledged fiction and the xiqu as the dominant forms of contemporary art. In Li’s words: Why must verse necessarily be [in the unregulated style of classical poetry like those in] the Selections of Refined Literature (Wenxuan)? Why must prose necessarily be [like that written in] the pre-Qin period? [Writing evolved through the ages and] became [the literature of] the Six Dynasties, changed and became the new regulated verse (jinti shi 近體詩) [of the Tang]. These changed again and developed into tales of marvels (chuanqi 傳奇), changed yet again and became play-scripts (yuanben 院本) which developed into [Yuan] variety plays (zaju), which in turn evolved into the Western Chamber (Xixiang ji) and the Water Margin (Shuihu zhuan 水滸傳), and now has become the essays of the candidates of the Imperial Examination [eight-

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legged essays] of today.2 The new artistic trends and taste not only drove a large group of talent, among them Tang Xianzu 湯顯祖 and Shen Jing 沈景, into playwriting, but also nurtured numerous novelists and short story writers including Luo Guanzhong 羅貫中, Wu Chengen 吳承恩, Lanling Xiaoxiao Sheng 蘭陵笑笑生 (literally “The Scoffing Scholar of Lanling”), Feng Menglong 馮夢龍, and Ling Mengchu 凌濛初, who, respectively, authored or compiled the classic Sanguo yanyi 三國演義 (Romance of the Three Kingdoms), Xiyou ji 西遊記 (Journey to the West), Shuihu zhuan, Jin ping mei 金瓶梅 (The Plum in the Golden Vase), and the short story collections known as Sanyan 三言 (Three Words) and Erpai 二拍 (Two Slaps).3 From then on, the Chinese art scene continued to be driven by masters in the arts of xiqu and fiction.

Rise of unorthodox thoughts

The philosophical rethink of cultural transformation that fostered the development of Neo-Confucianism in the Song dynasty continued. After the Lu-Wang School of Mind (xinxue 心學) spearheaded by Lu Jiuyuan 陸九淵 and Wang Yangming 王陽明 rose in opposition to the Cheng-Zhu School of Principle, towards the Ming dynasty, a more extreme, so-called “leftist” branch of the Lu-Wang school was popularized by Wang Ji 王艮 and Wang Gen 王畿. Under their influence, a stream of neither Daoist nor Buddhist thought was embraced by scholars like Li Zhi, Xu Wei 涂渭, Tang Xianzu, and the Three Yuan Brothers of Gong’an 公安 (Yuan Zongdao 袁宗 道, Yuan Hongdao 袁宏道, and Yuan Zhongdao 袁中道), who advocated a “childlike heart-mind,” honoring genuine emotions, spontaneity, and the soul. Their philosophy is best explicated in Li Zhi’s representative treatise, “Tongxin shuo” 童心說 (On the Child-like Heart-Mind). Li defines: “The child-like heart-mind is the genuine heart-mind…. The child-like heart-mind is free of all falsehood and entirely genuine; it is the original mind at the very beginning of the first thought.”4

2. Li, “Tongxin shuo” 童心說, in Li, Fenshu, scroll 3; based on Lee, trans., “On the Child-like Heart-Mind,” in Li Zhi, Confucianism, and the Virtue of Desire, 125. Square brackets are the

editor’s, added in comparison to the Chinese text, as Lee uses a free translation approach

here. Some words are modified for the sake of consistency or a more literal translation. — Ed.

3.  Sanyan refers to Feng’s Yushi mingyan 喻世明言 (Stories to Enlighten the World), Jingshi tongyan 警世通言 (Stories to Caution the World), and Xingshi Hengyan 醒世恒言 (Stories

to Awaken the World), while Erpai the two volumes of Paian jingqi 拍案驚奇 (Slapping the Table in Amazement) by Ling. — Ed.

4. Lee, trans., “On the Child-like Heart-Mind,” in Li Zhi, Confucianism, and the Virtue of

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To honor genuine emotions is to value human sentiments, feelings, desire, and impulse as those of a child before receiving any institutionalized education, and it was on this basis which the Li school conducted rational advocacy of true individual feelings. Contextualizing it in the cultural transformation from the Song dynasty onwards, we could view this stream of thought as an attempt to defy orthodox cultural norms by emphasizing spontaneous responses to present realities. The notion of child-like emotions was raised in opposition to the Principles of the Way (daoli; i.e., moral principles): “As long as the child-mind is constantly preserved, then the Principles of the Way which enter in through the eyes and the ears will not dominate.”5 Personality and innate sensibility (xingling 性靈), then, are opposed to convention and form (getao 格套), in accordance with Yuan Hongdao’s maxim “uniquely express [one’s] personality and innate sensibility without being restrained by convention and form.”6 This new stream of thought which encouraged spontaneous expression of the genuine self had support in the rising urban folk communities, as it necessarily approved of the everyday life of the urban common dweller. In other words, it represented a move towards the mundane. Li Zhi plainly says: “Dressing and eating are moral physics.”7 In one of his letters to Geng Dingxiang 耿定向, who did not share Li’s moral vision, Li defends the ordinary talk of the commoners: I feel that you are not the equal of peasants in the market place talking about what they do. Those who do business say it is business; those who do farm work say it is farm work. Their talk really has substance, words that are truly virtuous, so that when others hear them they forget their cares.8 The acknowledgement of genuine desire and mundane life echoed and encouraged folk arts which abided by a mundane aesthetic. The vision of “mundane” life as advocated by the Li school, however, had a fundamentally different element from Desire, 123.

5. Ibid, 124.

6.  “獨抒性靈，不拘格套。” Yuan, “Xu Xiaoxiu shi” 敘小修詩 [Preface to Xiaoxiu’s Poems], in Yuan, Yuan Zhonglang quanji, scroll 1; translation from Chou, Yüan Hung-tao and the Kung-an School, 44.

7.  “穿衣吃飯，就是人倫物理。” Li, “Da Deng Shiyang” 答鄧石陽 [In Response to Deng Shiyang], in Li, Fenshu, scroll 1.

8. Li, “Da Geng Sikou” 答耿司寇, in Li, Fenshu, scroll 3; Brook, trans., “Li Replies to Justice Minister Geng [1587],” in “A Selection of Correspondence between Li Zhi and Geng Dingxiang,” 10.

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the original meaning of the term despite much similarity. While mundaneness connotes to some extent a tendency to conform to the crowd, it was in the vision of the Li school to accentuate individuality and staying true to oneself. Yuan Hongdao demonstrates his idea of following one’s heart: Those who are foolish and untalented are close to qu 趣 [zest, gusto, interest] because they are of a low class. The lower one’s class is, the lower one’s pursuits are, perhaps wine and meat, perhaps sing-song girls — they follow their heart entirely, having no qualms. Thinking that they have no hope about the world, they care not if the whole world rebukes or mocks them. This is another kind of qu.9 And it was in the collision between this elevation of individuality and the orthodox moral principles governing society that contributed to the wild and bizarre aesthetics of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing. Against this backdrop, the wave of new thoughts not only contributed to the rise of low culture genres but also changed the overall art scene. Among the traditional art forms, poetry and prose both took on “mundane” factors. Through the times of Xu Wei, the Yuan Brothers, and Qing dynasty writer Yuan Mei 袁 枚, shi poems, which were traditionally used to express one’s aspirations, became a tool for “speaking” (shuohua 說話) — that is, to talk about daily life. Yuan Mei argues, “Walking, stopping, sitting, or lying down, anything that can be talked about is good poetry.”10 This was not the first time poems were used to discuss life; Du Fu did it quite often. The fundamental difference was the actual contents of the “life” discussed, which landed poetry in the mundane realm. This is seen in the inclusion of sensual and vulgar elements in the poems and lyrics embedded in xiqu operas and fiction to advance the plot, such as the use of shi, ci, and qu to depict sexual scenes and sexual pleasure. Moreover, the development of Chinese poetry from the shi of the Tang to the ci of the Song to the qu of the Yuan was itself a process of formal vulgarization, which will be elaborated later. As for prose, it changed from the elegant style of the Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song into xiaopin essays more closely related to everyday reality and more reflective of personal feelings. Philosophical development also affected painting, especially literati painting, a genre born out of the menace of cultural transformation felt by the Song literati. In 9.  Yuan, “Xu Chen Zhengfu huixin ji” 叙陳正甫會心集 [Preface to Cheng Zhengfu’s Intuitive Grasp Collection], in Yuan, Yuan Zhonglang quanji, scroll 1.

10. Yuan, Suiyuan shihua buyi, scroll 5, para. 20.

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the Ming dynasty, under the impact of the new stream of thought, literati painting developed in a wild and untrammeled direction. Xu Wei, who ridiculed himself by the couplet “Several houses which toppled to the east and west I’ve occupied; / A person with a mix of northern and southern accents I am,”11 brought Yuan dynasty painter Ni Zan 倪瓚’s carefree, nonrealistic style to a consummate level, revolutionizing painting techniques to allow free-wheeling expression through hearty splashing of ink. This style was picked up and expanded by the Four Monk Painters of the early Qing dynasty (Qing si seng 清四僧), Shitao 石濤, Zhu Da 朱 耷, Kuncan 髡殘, and Hongren 弘仁. On the other hand, the orthodox stream of literati painting continued to develop, perfecting traditional techniques, as was exemplified by the works of Dong Qichang 董其昌 of the Ming dynasty and the Four Wangs of the Qing, namely Wang Shimin 王時敏, Wang Jian 王鑒, Wang Hui 王翬, and Wang Yuanqi 王原祁. With the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou (Yangzhou ba guai 楊州八怪), literati painting was connected with rich aspects of everyday reality. Plants in their paintings range from symbolic pines, bamboo, plum trees, and orchids to ordinary edibles like garlic, taros, and lotus roots. More importantly, they exhibited an interest in ordinary objects unseen in court paintings, such as donkeys (instead of horses), baggers and buskers (instead of court ladies), and unappealing sights like broken trays, shabby walls, spiders, and ghosts. The influence of new thoughts on new art forms was even more salient. Xiqu operas from the “Four Dreams” (ximeng 四夢) — four plays that share the theme of dreams — by Tang Xianzu to Kong Shangren 孔尚任’s Taohua shan 桃花扇 (The Peach Blossom Fan), and fiction from Jin ping mei and the Sanyan erpai to Cao Xueqin 曹雪芹’s Honglou meng 紅樓夢 (A Dream of Red Mansions) all brought new reflection on society, life, human nature, and the cosmos. Closely associated with the two new genres were woodblock prints (banhua 版畫), which were propelled by technological innovation on top of philosophical evolution. Of note is that the unorthodox trend of thought was eventually inhibited by political factors. Its prime time of development was from the reign of Wanli 萬歷 (1572–1620) to Qianlong 乾隆 (1735–1796); but in fact once the Manchu founded the Qing dynasty and decided to rule the Central Kingdom by reviving Confucianism, unorthodox thoughts had begun to go downhill. By the end of the golden eras of Emperors Kangsi 康熙, Yongzheng 雍正, and Qianlong, literary inquisitions (wen zi yu 文字獄) had been firmly established to purge unorthodox thoughts. Yet even though the unorthodox trend had been sidelined, mundane and vulgar elements in art continued to thrive and was gradually assimilated into the cultural mainstream. 11. “幾間東倒西歪屋，一個南腔北調人。” The couplet is written on a painting of his study, “The Green Vine Study” (qingteng shuwu tu 青藤書屋圖), by Chen Hongshou. — Ed.

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Renewal of classical art forms

Due to the policy of the Qing, classical arts came to an all-round rejuvenation since the 1680s. The Qing dynasty bred great poets like Qian Qianyi 錢謙益, Wang Shizhen 王士禎, Shen Deqian 沈德潛, and Weng Fanggang 翁方綱. The Changzhou 常州 school had great achievements in reviving ci poetry, while classical prose flourished thanks to the Tongcheng 桐城 school. Parallel prose also gained strength. As for calligraphy, great masters were born from the traditional copybook school, or tiexue 帖學, and the rising stele school, or beixue 碑學, alike: Jin Nong 金農, Zheng Xie 鄭燮 (more commonly known by the name Zheng Banqiao 鄭板橋), Deng Shiru 鄧石如, Yi Bingshou 伊秉綬, and He Shaoji 何紹基. In terms of painting, in addition to more orthodox painters such as the Four Wangs, Wu Li 吳曆, and Yun Shouping 惲壽平, there were Jiao Bingzhen 焦秉貞, Leng Mei 冷枚, and Giuseppe Castiglione the Italian missionary to blend Chinese and Western styles. Newer forms of art, including woodblock prints, New Year prints, xiqu, and fiction prospered due to market demand, and they each found a niche in the new cultural framework. The unorthodox stream of thought that emerged in the late Ming period was primarily a product of vicissitudes within the cultural structure of classical society. Comparing all art forms, the xiqu and fiction were the most appropriate in reflecting this trend because they inherited elements from older forms of literature. Although the policy of the Qing inhibited further deviations from orthodox thoughts, socioeconomic changes continued and were absorbed by the two arts. As a result, the xiqu and fiction incorporated classical ideas and elements of change. It was this complex cultural environment that made the xiqu and fiction the iconic art forms most representative of the aesthetic interest of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties.

Qu: Poetry of the Mundane and Vulgar

Starting with the Shijing and Chuci 楚辭 (Songs of the South), the development of Chinese poetry reached a climax in the Tang dynasty with Tang shi poems. Then, in the Song dynasty, the ci replaced the shi as the dominant poetic form, while in the Yuan dynasty there came a new archetype known as qu 曲 (songs or arias). The qu includes two main genres, sanqu 散曲 (scattered arias) and zaju 雜劇 (variety plays). The sanqu, consisting of the subgenres of xiaoling 小令 (little tunes), daiguoqu 帶過曲 (transitional arias), and santao 散套 (scattered suites), is a vernacular form of poetry that emerged in northern China in the Yuan dynasty, and it soon gained the favor of both the upper and lower classes. The qu is an important component of xiqu operas. From a historical perspective, Yuan qu marked the nexus in the transition of Chinese literature from expressive poetry to narrative operas, but

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it was also a new manifestation of poetry per se. As for why the ci evolved into the qu, a leading factor was the change in aesthetic taste as induced by cultural transformation. Prior to the Song dynasty, the dominating artistic tendency was the pursuit of elegance. In Confucian understanding, “the style which is defined as elegant and graceful models itself after the classical forms and adopts the Confucian principles.”12 For the Daoists, elegance is associated with such images as “a jade kettle with a purchase of spring,” “a shower on the thatched hut / Wherein sits a gentle scholar, / With tall bamboos growing right and left,” and a man “placid, like a chrysanthemum.”13 Despite the divergence in the definition of elegance, “elegance” is a vision shared by the two schools. Likewise, both philosophies have a disdain for the mundane. While Tao Yuanming, influenced by both Confucian and Daoist thoughts, has the lines “My youth felt no comfort in common things, / by my nature I clung to the mountains and hills,”14 Sikong Tu, in his Daoist belief, writes, “Sharing the nature of dao, / It shuns the limits of mortality.”15 Before the Song dynasty, the mundane represented novelties and trivialities among commoners, or rigid customs. Starting from the Song dynasty, it became a synonym of urban folk culture. The rivalry between the elegance and mundane was fierce. Yan Yu gave the following instruction about shi poetry writing: “To learn poetry [writing], it is necessary to first remove five kinds of vulgarity: first, vulgarity in form (ti 體); second, vulgarity in meaning (yi意); third, vulgarity in lines (ju 句); fourth, vulgarity in words (zhi 字); fifth, vulgarity in rhymes (yun 韻)”16 Zhang Yan and his student Lu Fuzhi advocated elegance in the appreciation of ci poetry. Likewise, Yuan dynasty painter Huang Gongwang maintains, “The principles of painting are to get rid of the unorthodox (xie 邪), palatable (tian 甜), vulgar (su 俗), and dependent (lai 賴).”17 Song art placed particular emphasis on “charm” (yun 韻),

12. Liu, Wenxin diaolong, scroll 6, “ti xing” 體性 [Style and Nature]; Shih, trans., The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, 159.

13. “玉壺買春，賞雨茅屋。坐中佳士，左右修竹……人淡如菊,” translation from Giles, A History of Chinese Literature, 181.

Sikong,

Ershisi

shipin;

14. “少無適俗韻，性本愛丘山。” Tao, first of “Gui yuantian ju liu shou” 歸園田居六首 [Six Poems on Returning to Dwell in Gardens and Fields], in Tao, Tao Yuanming ji, scroll 2; Owen, trans., An Anthology of Chinese Literature: Beginnings to 1911, 316.

15. “少有道契，終與俗違。” Sikong, Ershisi shipin, no. 21; translation from Giles, A History of Chinese Literature, 187.

16. Yan, Canglang shihua, chap. 3.

17. Quoted in Huang, Xie shanshui jue.

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which means “not vulgar.”18 Fan Wen elaborates on this: “Vulgarity is the first of all evils while charm is the supreme state of beauty.”19 The transition from masculine beauty of the shi to feminine beauty of the ci never altered the elegant nature of poetry. The evolution of the ci into the qu, however, shifted the poetic taste from an elegant to a mundane or vulgar one. While the difference between the shi and the ci can be easily seen from their line arrangements, the qu is chiefly distinguished from the ci by diction. Look at the following examples from Guan Hanqing’s Guan Dawang dufu dandao hui 關大 王獨赴單刀會 (Lord Guan Goes to the Feast), written to the tunes of “Xinshui ling” 新水令 (New Water Tune) and “Zhuma ting” 駐馬聽 (Halting the Horse to Listen), respectively:20 A thousand billows flow eastwards, A few dozen rowers are with me in this small craft; I go to no nine-storied dragon-and-phoenix palace. But a lair, ten thousand feet deep, of tigers and wolves. A stout fellow is never afraid, I go to this feast as if to a country fair.

大江東去浪千疊 引著這數十人駕著這 小舟一葉 又不比九重龍鳳闕

Wave upon wave, hill after hill — Where is young Zhou Yu today? He has turned to dust! General Huang Gai suffered much; The warships that conquered Cao Cao are no more! Yet the waves are still warm from past battles — This wrings my heart! This is no river water, But the blood of heroes Shed for these twenty years.

水湧山疊 年少周郎何去也 不覺得灰飛煙滅 可憐黃蓋轉傷嗟 破曹的檣櫓一時絕

可正是千丈虎狼穴 大丈夫心別 我覷這單刀會似賽 村社

鏖兵的江水由然熱 好教我情慘切 這也不是江水 二十年流不盡的英雄血

18. Wang Dingguan 王定觀’s comment, quoted in Fan, Qianxi shiyan, chap. 29. 19. Fan, ibid.

20. Act 4; Yang and Yang, trans., Selected Plays of Guan Hanqing, 227, spellings modified.

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The above two songs basically adopt the imagery of Su Shi’s “Niannu jiao” (see chapter 4). Some phrases are even directly copied from Su’s ci. Yet the overall diction is evidently colloquial, and the qu is much laxer in terms of line length, allowing the insertion of “filler words” chenzi 襯字. These filler words are added partly to enable better fits to the music, but more importantly, they make the lines sound more colloquial. The diction of the qu combines both elegant and vulgar elements. Sometimes elegant vocabulary might lead one to mistake a qu for a ci at first glance, but going a few lines further, readers would soon identify its vernacular facet. For example, Zhang Yanghao 張養浩’s “Tongguan huaigu” 潼關懷古 (Thoughts on the Past at Tong Pass), written to the tune of “Shanpo yang” 山坡羊 (Sheep on Mountain Slope), opens:21 Peaks as if massed, Waves that look angry, Along the mountains and the river lies the road to Tong Pass. I look to the West Capital My thoughts unsettled. Here, where the Qin and Han armies passed, I lament

峰巒如聚 波濤如怒 山河表裡潼關路 望西都 意躊躇 傷心秦漢經行處

Up to now, the diction is largely similar to that of ci poetry. The shift comes in the next line: The ten thousand palaces, all turned to dust. Kingdoms rise, The people suffer; Kingdoms fall, The people suffer.

宮闕萬間都做了土 興 百姓苦 亡 百姓苦

The expression “all turned to dust” is mundane and colloquial. When written as components of Chinese operas, qu are dramatic lyrics to be sung by the characters, and when the character does not belong to the upper class, the words are particularly colloquial and vulgar suiting his or her social background. Since it was mostly the lower class that enjoyed xiqu operas, which 21. In Sui, ed., Quan Yuan sanqu, 437; Cyril, trans., “T’ung Pass,” in Cyril, comp. and ed., Anthology of Chinese Literature, vol. 2, 18, modified to pinyin.

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accordingly reflected the interest of their audience, qu works are necessarily down to earth and close to commoners’ daily lives. Therefore vulgarity is not only inevitable but also appropriate. Qu are characteristically explicit, unreserved, and pungent. For example, in depicting chivalry, Yan Zhongji 嚴忠濟 writes:22 I’d rather live ten years shorter than go about one day without power — just luck is not with the true man. One day when Heaven followed the will of man, I’d rival Tian Wen in keeping three thousand guests.

寧可少活十年 休得一日無權 大丈夫時乖命蹇 有朝一日天隨人願 賽田文養客三千

There are countless examples of Tang shi and Song ci describing romantic love in elegant language and imagery. In qu, however, the same emotion is given much more vulgar and colloquial treatment. The groans by a lonely woman under the pen of Zhang Kejiu 張可久 read:23 Loose as clouds, the curled hair; Fragrant and warm, the mandarin-duck quilt; One feels: the bedroom conceals spring and sleep damages spring. Willow catkins fly, The handsome little maiden Feels propitious under the snowflakes of her voice And wakes up from her dream of lovers’ reunion. Who Is in a bad mood? Well, Nobody but you!

雲松螺髻 香溫鴛被 掩春閨一覺傷春睡 柳花飛 小瓊姬 一聲雪下呈祥瑞 團圓夢兒生喚起 誰 不做美 嚇 卻是你

These examples show how the qu has an opposite aesthetic to the ci. While the 22. “Tian jing sha” 天淨沙 [Sky-Clear Sand], in Sui, ed., Quan Yuan sanqu, 70.

23. “Shanpo yang: Guisi” 山坡羊：閨思, in ibid, 912; Hellmut Wilhelm, trans., “Sheep on

Mountain Slope: Boudoir Thoughts,” Liu and Lo, ed., Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry, 426.

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ci is generally subtle and succinct, the qu is explicit and lengthy in the expression of feeling. The ci and qu are both delicate, but the former is exquisite while the latter is vulgar. The qu is also distinguished from the shi and the ci by the pervasiveness of extensive elaboration, which brings to mind the Han fu 漢賦 (rhapsody). Yet unlike the Han fu, which stresses the spatial dimension in elaboration and exhibits an expansive ambition (see chapter 2), the qu uses parallel constructions to deepen the portrayal of a single matter. Thus the elaboration of the Han fu is showy and outward, but that of the qu is local and inward. The following excerpt from Zhu taishou fengxue yuqiao ji 朱太守風雪漁樵記 (Governor Zhu Fishing and Woodcutting in the Wind and Snow) demonstrates this unique feature of the qu:24 To wait for you to become an official! I’ll have to wait till the sun is not red, the moon turns black, the stars blink their eyes, and the Northern Dipper yawns; Till snakes give out three shouts and dogs pull carts, mosquitoes wear those spiky boots, ants put on wide-brimmed felt hats, and Queen Mother of the West sells cake ingredients! To wait for you to become an official! I’ll have to wait till pits nod, men wag tails, mice stomp their feet in agitation or laugh, camels go up on racks, squirrels carry goose eggs, and wooden dolls give birth to babies! But even then you won’t become an official!

投到你做官 直等的那日頭不紅 月明帶黑 星宿　眼 北斗打呵欠 直等的蛇叫三聲狗拽車 蚊子穿著兀刺靴 蟻子戴著煙氈帽 王母娘娘賣餅料 投到你做官 直等的炕點頭 人擺尾 老鼠跌腳笑 駱駝上架兒 麻雀抱鵝蛋 木伴哥生娃娃 那其間你還不得做官哩

As seen, the myriad metaphors are laid out to convey but a single message: “You won’t become an official no matter what!” The elaboration is entirely communicated in vernacular language, the mockery piquantly folkish. To be fair, such piling up of poetic emotion is not completely absent in shi and ci poetry, but it is in the qu where it becomes commonplace and acquires a vulgar taste. While most qu are mundane and vulgar, this is not always the case. In fact, 24. Act 2.

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we can categorize qu into four types. The first type is those elegant qu that are almost undisguisable from ci unless by the type of tunes. They are similar to ci lyrics in terms of diction, line breaks, and ambience. An example of this type is Ma Zhiyuan’s “Qiusi” 秋思 (Autumn Thoughts), written to the tune of “Tian jing sha” 天淨沙 (Sky-Clear Sand):25 Withered vines, old trees, ravens at dusk. A small bridge, a flowing brook, a cottage. Ancient roads, west wind, and a lean horse. The evening sun dies west. A broken man at the sky’s edge.

枯藤老樹昏鴉 小橋流水人家 古道西風瘦馬 夕陽西下 斷腸人在天涯

The second type consists of qu that are mildly elegant. Unlike the first type, these are works featuring extensive elaborations typical of the qu, which make them unmistakably qu. Look at this piece written for Jia Baoyu 賈寶玉 in Honglou meng:26 Like drops of blood fall endless tears of longing, By painted pavilion grow willows and flowers untold; Sleepless at night when wind and rain lash gauze windows, She cannot forget her sorrows new and old; Choking on rice like jade and wine like gold, She turns from her wan reflection in the glass; Nothing can smooth away her frown, It seems that the long night will never pass; Like the shadow of peaks, her grief is never gone; Like the green stream it flows for ever on.

滴不盡相思血淚拋紅豆 開不完春柳春花滿畫樓 睡不穩紗窗風雨黃昏後 忘不了新愁與舊愁 嚥不下玉粒金波噎滿喉 照不盡菱花鏡裡形容瘦 展不開的眉頭 捱不明的更漏 呀　恰似遮不住的青山 隱隱 流不斷的綠水悠悠

The last two types constitute the vast majority and thus are the mainstream of qu, the third type blending elegant and vulgar elements, and the fourth dominated by 25. In Sui, ed., Quan Yuan sanqu, 242; Barnstone and Chou, trans., “Autumn Thoughts, To the Tune of ‘Sky-Clear Sand,’” in Barnstone and Chou, trans. and eds., The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry, 292–93.

26. Cao, Honglou meng, chap. 28; Yang and Yang, trans., A Dream of Red Mansions, 558.

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vulgar phrases and imagery. Overall, as the last form of classical Chinese poetry, the emergence of the qu signified the vulgarization of poetry. More importantly, in the evolution of Chinese art history at large, the qu is crucial as a product of the effort to enhance to overall effect of xiqu operas.

Xiaopin Essays: Everyday Life Writings

Compared with poetry, prose is a more direct medium for expression of ideas. In classical Chinese literature, there are three types of prose essays: parallel prose, classical prose, and xiaopin essays. It can be said that in the transformation of ancient Chinese culture, the transition from parallel prose to classical prose was backed by Confucian and Chán Buddhist ideologies and expressed through the elegant aesthetic of a literati class constituted by scholar-officials. The second transition towards xiaopin essays was set off in the late Ming by the Gong’an school of the Thee Yuan Brothers, carried on by the Jingling 竟陵 school headed by Zhong Xing 鍾惺, and joined by other writers such as Wang Siren 王思任, Qi Biaojia 祁彪佳, and Zhang Dai 張岱. Into the Qing dynasty, masters of this type of writing included Li Yu 李漁, Liao Yan 廖燕, Lu Cishan 陸次山, and Zhou Gongliang 周工亮 of the early period, Yuan Mei, Shi Zhenlin 史震林, Zhang Chao 張潮, Shen Fu沈復, and Zheng Banqiao of the middle period, and Gong Zizhen 龔自珍 of the late period. While the radical trends of thought in the late Ming promoted new personal temperaments and a new lifestyle, a conciliatory outlook held by some across the Ming and Qing dynasties resulted in a yet more profound, novel, and complex taste of life which sought to integrate high culture with the fast emerging urban culture, and which encouraged the expression of true personal feelings while refraining from resisting the cultural mainstream. Xiaopin essays were the outcome of the interaction between the radical thoughts of the late Ming and the conciliatory mentality of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Xiaopin essays certainly had roots in earlier forms of prose. The genre’s origins can be traced back to as early as the Lunyu, and later, the anecdotes and character sketches in the Shishuo xinyu 世說新語 (A New Account of the Tales of the World) of the Jin dynasty. In the Song dynasty, Su Shi’s jocular and sarcastic random notes (suibi 隨筆) and Huang Tingjian’s playful short essays can be seen as early forms of xiaopin essays, and this was grounded in the rise of urban folk culture. Early Ming pioneers of the genre Tang Shunzhi 唐順之 and Gui Youguang 歸有光 were both orthodox Confucians living in a time when the Ming court zealously promoted orthodox Confucianism. However, as it was in the late Ming and Qing when xiopin essays really took off, the characteristics of the genre have to be analyzed taking into account the context of the Ming and Qing dynasties.

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Enjoying equal standings, parallel prose, classical prose, and xiaopin essays each shine in their own ways. The strength of parallel prose lies in structural beauty, as achieved by parallel syntax, fancy vocabulary, and harmonious rhymes, whereas classical prose is primarily a medium for imparting morals, which makes all artistic elements subject to the central moral message to be conveyed. As a product of cultural transformation, classical prose is close to life in the sense that it aspires to enlighten life; the “classical” element in classical prose refers to the solemn and graceful language of the past sages and magnanimous philosophers, as opposed to the florid language of parallel prose writers or the vernacular language of commoners. Xiaopin essays too are close to reality. Yet their focus is more on genuine and spontaneous feelings about life than morals. What matters is whether the writer has actually experienced and felt what he writes. Because xiopin essays center on real life experience and personal feelings, they can, fulfilling Yuan Hongdao’s vision, “uniquely express [one’s] personality and innate sensibility without being restrained by convention and form.”27 Thus, they can be fanciful or classically elegant in accordance with the writer’s experience, and there is no need to evade mundaneness, vulgarity, superficiality, explicitness, addictions, and desire. Yuan praises works that “allow personal dispositions to freely develop (renxing fazhan 任性發展) and still manage to perceive human happiness and sorrow, anger and joy, and wishes and desires” as “delightful.”28 The breakthrough here is not about the expression of happiness and sorrow and anger and joy, which have always been subject matters of Chinese writings, but that of wishes and desires. To writers of xiaopin essays, there is nothing that does not deserve their attention. The fact that xiaopin essays do not avoid mundane and vulgar subjects clearly distinguishes them from parallel prose and classical prose. Inspired by real life encounters, xiaopin essays are often sketches and random thoughts, making “little” (xiao) a distinctive feature of these short writings. Moreover, as they value neither aesthetics nor morals but a fresh and lively representation of real life, they have unique features in subject matter, sentence building, diction, depiction of objects, and narrative. For this purpose, xiaopin essayists sought a break from the traditional connotations of classical metaphors and symbolism. For instance, pines, bamboo, chrysanthemums, and plums had long been symbols of purity and nobility, yet in the Youmeng ying 幽夢影 (Dream Shadows), Zhang Chao represents plants as they are experienced anew, thereby 27. Yuan, “Xu Xiaoxiu shi,” in Yuan, Yuan Zhonglang quanji, scroll 1; translation from Chou, Yüan Hung-tao and the Kung-an School, 44.

28. Yuan, “Xu Xiaoxiu shi,” in Yuan, Yuan Zhonglang quanji, scroll 1; cf. Chou’s quote in Yüan Hung-tao and the Kung-an School, 49.

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eliminating the influence of clichéd symbolism. For example, a paragraph reads:29 Flowers which are both pretty and have a good smell are the plum, the chrysanthemum, the [Chinese] orchid, the Choloranthus inconspicua, the banksia rose, the rose, and the winter sweet. The others are all for the eye. 花之宜於目而復宜於鼻者，梅也，菊也，蘭也，水仙也，珠蘭也，木香也， 玫瑰也，蠟梅也。餘則皆宜於目者也。 This paragraph is written not from the perspective of how classical culture has defined these flowers, but how the flowers appeal to the senses. Transcending traditional symbolism, the writer confers new meaning onto objects in the environment. Look at another paragraph in the same book:30 One does not live in vain if there is one in this world who truly understands oneself. Not only for men, but objects also have those who truly understand themselves. The chrysanthemum sees [Tao] Yuanming as one who truly understands itself, the plum sees [Lin] Hejing as such, the bamboo sees [Wang] Ziyou as such, the lotus sees [Zhou] Lianxi as such, the peach blossom sees the one who evaded the Qin as such, the apricot tree sees Dong Feng as such, stones see Mi the Eccentric as such, the lychee sees [Yang] Taizhen as such…. 天下有一人知己可以不恨。不獨人也，物亦有之。如：菊以淵明為知己，梅 以和靖為知己，竹以子猷為知己，蓮以濂溪為知己，桃以避秦人為知己，杏 以董奉為知己，石以米顛為知己，荔枝以太真為知己…… The value of the objects lies not in their moral connotations but their significance as bosom friends of human beings. Xiaopin essays present a fresh perspective of appreciating objects which came from the Ming and Qing taste for sensuous beauty. Yuan Mei describes his passions in “Suohao xuan ji” 所好軒記 (Notes on the Pavilion of My Fondness): “Yuan is fond of food, fond of beauties, fond of thatched pavilions, fond of travelling, fond 29. Youmeng ying, para. 56; Lin., trans., Dream Shadows, 95.

30. Youmeng ying, para. 4; first sentence from Lin, trans., Dream Shadows, 71. Lin omits the rest of the paragraph in his translation. The persons mentioned in the text, apart from

Tao Yuanming and Dong Feng 董奉, are more commonly known by the names Lin Fu 林

逋, Wang Huizhi 王徽之, Zhou Dunyi 周敦頤, Mi Fu 米黻, and Consort Yang Guifei 楊貴

妃. “The one who evaded the Qin” is taken from Tao Yuanming’s Taohuayuan ji 桃花源記 (The Peach Blossom Spring) — Ed.

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of friends, fond of flowers, bamboo, springs, and stones, fond of jade and wine vessels and paintings and calligraphy by celebrities, and also fond of books.”31 The aesthetical taste of the Ming and Qing sought to satisfy sensuous and sensual pleasure from all sources available. It was universal and human to encompass both elegant interests like calligraphy, painting, curios, and landscape gardens as well as urban commoners’ interests like food, beauties, travelling, and friends. According to Yan Hongdao’s “Gong Weichang xiansheng” 龔惟長先生 (To Master Gong Weichang), there are five layers of joy:32 To see with one’s eyes all the most sensuous sights of the world, to hear with one’s ears all its most beauteous sounds, to taste all the world’s greatest delicacies and to join in all the most interesting conversations; this is the first of the true joys afforded us. Within one’s hall, to have food-laden vessels arrayed in the front and music being played in the background; to have one’s tables crowded with guests and the shoes of men and women scattered everywhere; for the smoke of the lanterns to rise to the heavens and for jewelry to be strewn across the floor; when one’s money is exhausted one sells off one’s fields; this is the second joy. 目極世間之色，耳極世間之聲，身極世間之安，口極世間之譚，一快活也。 堂前列鼎，堂後度曲，賓客滿席，男女交舄，燭氣熏天，珠翠委地，皓魄入 惟，花影流衣，二快活也。 To have secreted in one’s book trunks ten thousand volumes, all of which are rare and precious; to have a studio built besides one’s residence and to invite into this studio a dozen or so true friends and to appoint as master of them someone with the extraordinary insight of a Sima Qian, a Luo Guanzhong or a Guan Hanqing; to then divide them into groups and to have each group compose a book, the prose of which will be far removed from the faults perpetrated by those pedantic Confucian scholars of the Tang and Song dynasties and to have recently completed some masterpiece of the age; this is the third joy. 匣中藏萬卷書，書皆珍异。宅畔置一館，館中約真正同心人十餘人，人 中立一識見極高，如司馬遷、羅貫中、關漢卿者為主，分曹部署，各成一 書，遠文唐宋酸儒之陋，近完一代未竟之篇，三快活也。 31. In Yuan, Xiaocang shanfang shiwen ji, scroll 29.

32. In Yuan, Yuan Zhonglang quanji, scroll 20; Campell, trans., “To Master Gong Zhongqing,”

in “The Epistolary World of a Reluctant 17th Century Chinese Magistrate: Yuan Hongdao in Suzhou,” 173–74.

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To buy a junk worth a thousand taels; to invite on to this junk a musical troupe along with a courtesan and a concubine or two and a couple of idle travelers; to have a floating home and mansions afloat; to be able to forget the approach of old age; this is the fourth joy. 千金買一舟，舟中置鼓吹一部，妓妾數人，游閑數人，泛家浮宅，不知 老之將至，四快活也。 If one were to indulge oneself in this manner and to this degree, however, before a decade had passed by one would find one’s money exhausted and one’s fields sold. But then, in a state of total penury and living hand to mouth, to ply the brothels with one’s begging bowl in hand, to share one’s meals with the orphaned and the infirm, to live off the favor of one’s friends and relatives, all without the slightest pang of shame; this is the fifth great joy. 然人生受用至此，不及十年，家資田地蕩盡矣。然後一身狼狽，朝不謀夕， 托鉢歌妓之院，分餐孤老之盤，往來鄉親，恬不知恥，五快活也。 In short, the five joys come from the satisfaction of the senses, boisterous and sumptuous banquets, spiritual communication with learnt friends; extravagant travels, and the experience of poverty and roaming about. Each and every of them involves extreme experiences which no noble man would ever contemplate doing and which no ordinary man would dare imagine. To one upholding orthodox morals, it would be outrageous to read Yuan’s conclusion of his five joys: “For a Man of Letters to experience just one of these joys is to be able to live without shame and die without regret,”33 for traditional Chinese culture views “establishing virtues” (lide 立德), “establishing accomplishments” (ligong 立功), and “establishing words” (liyan 立言) as milestones of immortality. One telling feature of xiaopin essays is the extensive use of beautiful women and men as analogies of everything visually appealing, in correspondence with the genre’s emphasis on the sensuous. In these short essays, natural scenery loses the sense of divinity rooted in the Shijing and the Chuci, the philosophical implications dominant in the Six Dynasties, and the moral connotations inferred in the classical prose of the Tang and Song. It is stripped of all overtones and appreciated purely for its sensuous beauty; thus, the soft and gentle West Lake (Xihe 西湖) is compared to Xi Shi 西施 the beauty while the magnificent Mount Taihe 太和山 a charming man. Look at Yuan Zhongdao’s passage on Mount Taihe:34 33. “士有此一者，生可無愧，死可不朽矣。”Campell, trans., “To Master Gong Zhongqing,” in

“The Epistolary World of a Reluctant 17th Century Chinese Magistrate: Yuan Hongdao in Suzhou,” 174.

34. Yuan, “You Taihe ji” 遊太和記 [On Travel to Taihe], in Yuan, Kexue zhai jinji, scroll 1.

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The great mountain, Mount Taihe is a charming man. From Encountering the Truth to Flat Terrace is his toes, sheltered by bamboo and delimited by springs, its paths most splendid. From Flat Terrace to Purple Cloud is his belly, visiting clouds and piercing into the Milky Way, its pines and cypresses the most antique. From Purple Cloud to Heavenly Gate is his chest, where sands are green and colorful, displaying rocks in the hills in the greatest proximity. From Heavenly Gate to Heavenly Column is his head, where clouds run and fogs dash, exhibiting the entire terrain of the mountain at the greatest distance. All this forms his torso. 大岳太和山，一美丈夫也。從遇真至平台為趾，竹蔭泉界，其徑路最妍；從 平台至紫宵為腹，謁雲入漢，其杉檜最古；從紫宵至天門為臆，砂翠斑斕， 以觀山骨，為最親；從天們至天柱為顱，雲奔霧駛，以窮山勢，為最遠，此 其軀幹也。 Descending on the left, one arrives at the Southern Cliff, which, nestled among wrinkled smoke and mottled mist, stands out by its airy ambience. Descending further, one arrives at the Five Dragons, which, setting off the sky and the sun, stands out by its depth. Descending yet further, one arrives at the Jade Void Palace, which, distant from the villages and close to the woods, stands out by its wide expanse. All these belong to the left arm of the mountain. Descending on the right, one arrives at three [monasteries] on the Jade Terrace, which, reclining against hills and creeks, stand out by their gentleness. Descending further, one crosses the Candle Creek, which, with pebbles revolving and thunder rushing about, stands out by its roaring magnificence. Descending yet further, one arrives at the Jade Void Rock, which, rising above the clouds and stretching wide, stands out with its quaintness. All these belong to the right arm. All parts together make the whole body of the mountain. The rest are hair and nails, and assorted jades and ornamental straps. 左降而得南岩，皺煙駁霞，以巧幻勝。又降而得五龍，分天隔日，以幽 邃勝。又降而得玉虛宮，近村遠林，以寬曠勝。皆隸於山之左臂。右降而得 三瓊台，依山旁澗，以淹潤勝。又降而過蠟燭澗，轉石奔雷，以澎湃勝。又 降而玉虛岩，凌虛嵌空，以蒼古勝。皆隸於山之右臂。合之，山之全體具 焉。其餘皆一髮一甲，雜佩奢帶類也。 Natural landscapes are compared to beautiful women and men, so are writings. For example, Yuan Mei writes:35 35. Yuan, Suiyuan shihua buyi, scroll 6, para. 9.

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The creation of ideas and use of the brush in poetry and prose are like the hair, skin, and smiles of a beauty, which are inborn. The drawing of references from other texts or use of classical sources in poetry and prose are like the garments and ornaments of a beauty, which are artificial. 詩文之作意用筆，如美人之髮膚巧笑，先天也；詩文之徵文用典，如美人之 衣裳首飾，後天也。 While parallel prose and classical prose writers wrote about beauties, often as metaphors to communicate more profound messages, xiaopin essayists regarded prose pieces themselves as beauties. By seeing beauties as no more than beauties, xiaopin essayists wrote about their personal experience as perceived by the senses, rejecting clichés and high-sounding talk. This attitude is seen in Wu Congxian’s comments about reading in his Xiaochuang ziji 小窗自紀 (Personal Notes of Xiaochuang):36 It is best to read histories under the brilliance of snow, so as to illuminate the abstruse. It is best to read philosophy books under the moon, so as to find sustenance in their profound charm. It is best to read Buddhist books facing a beauty, so as to arrest oneself from falling into illusive emptiness. It is best to read the Shanhaijing 山海經 (Classic of Mountains and Seas), the Shuijing 水經 (Water Classic), series, and little histories by sparse flowers, lean bamboo, cold rocks, and chilly mosses, so as to limit boundless travels and restrain undiscernible theories. It is best to read biographies of heroes playing the sheng and drums, so as to spread their fragrance. It is best to read accounts of villains waving a sword and clasping [a cup of] wine, so as to dissipate anger. It is best to read “Li sao” 離騷 (On Encountering Trouble) howling melancholically in empty mountains, which will startle the gullies. It is best to read rhapsodies yelling eccentrically, indulging in water, which will swirl the winds. It is best to read poems and lyrics with a boy-singer tapping the rhythms, and best to read about deities, ghosts, and spirits with candles burning to smash hell. As everyone encounters a different scenario, [the perception of] charm varies. 讀史宜映雪，以瑩玄鑑；讀子宜伴月，以寄遠神；讀佛書宜對美人，以 挽墮空；讀《山海經》、《水經》、叢書、小史，宜倚疏花瘦竹、冷石寒 苔，以收無垠之遊而約縹緲之論；讀忠烈傳宜吹笙鼓瑟以揚芳；讀奸佞論 宜擊劍捉酒以銷憤；讀《騷》宜空山悲號，可以驚壑；讀賦宜縱水狂呼， 可以旋風；讀詩詞宜歌童按拍；讀神鬼雜靈宜燒燭破幽。他則遇境既殊， 36. Wu, “Shuxian” 書憲 [Methods of Reading], in Wu, Xiaochuang ziji, scroll 2, no. 2.

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標韻不一。 All kinds of books are worth reading, just that different manners will suit different kinds of reading, and this depends on personal experience. Zheng Banqiao is even franker in discussing his feelings about painting:37 When I write calligraphy and paint all day without getting a rest, I feel like cursing, but when I haven’t painted for three days, I want to grasp a piece of paper to let off the boring air — this is the lowly character of the likes of me. Today I got up and had nothing to do except sweeping the floor, burning incense, boiling tea, and washing my inkstone, and all of a sudden paper from an old friend arrived. Gladly I picked up my brush and drew a few shoots of orchids, a few rods of bamboo, and a few pieces of stones, which felt free and fresh. Was that good timing for getting the brush? When one makes me paint I won’t paint at all; when no one makes me paint I willfully paint — I must be totally incomprehensible. But here someone discerning simply smiled as he listened. 終日作字作畫，不得休息，便要罵人。三日不動筆，又想一幅紙來，以舒其 沉悶之氣，此亦吾曹之賤相也。今日晨起無事，掃地焚香，烹茶洗硯，而故 人之紙忽至。欣然命筆，作數箭蘭、數竿竹、數塊石，頗有灑然清脫之趣。 其得時得筆之候乎？索我畫偏不畫，不索我畫偏要畫，極是不可解處。然解 人於此，但笑而聽之。 This can only come under the pen of someone as idiosyncratic as Zheng. The most random thoughts about ordinary experience are also worth jotting down. For example, on the Qixi Festival 七夕 Chen Jiru 陳繼儒 writes:38 Today past noon, I compelled Brother [i.e., Wang Xianzhong] to spend the Qixi Festival together. In early autumn it is cool at night, and therefore never too hot. There are no small stars apart from the [weaver] girl, and therefore no rivalries or jealousy. [The occasion] takes place only once a year, and therefore will not be aged. It is thus bearable to laugh over cups of wine. 今日午後，屈兄過七夕，因思牛女之會。當新秋晚凉，故不熱；女之外無小 星，故不爭亦不妒；一年一度，故不老。容把杯共笑也。 37. Zheng, first of “Jin Qiutian suohua” 靳秋田索畫 [Jin Qiutian Exacted Paintings from Me], in Zheng, Banqiao ji, part 5.

38. Chen, Chen Meigong chidu, scroll 1.

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What matters are one’s true feelings about everyday lives, not moral lessons. Such was the Ming and Qing outlook on life, which was most preoccupied with the expression of personal character and innate sensibility.

Woodblock Prints across High and Low Cultures

Banhua, literally “block pictures,” are pictures produced from woodblock printing. Technically, nianhua, or New Year prints, are a kind of woodblock prints, but functionally banhua are illustrations in books while nianhua are, as the name implies, New Year decorations. More importantly, in the history of Chinese art, banhua were popularized in the Ming dynasty and were intertwined with the development of new thoughts, whereas nianhua hit their prime time in the Qing dynasty and had a clear niche among the commoners.

Early development of woodblock prints

The origins of Chinese woodblock prints went back much further than the Ming dynasty. Performed by knives, the techniques of woodblock printing can be remotely associated with those of stone reliefs of the Han dynasty and pictorial seals. The invention of woodblock printing technology provided the technological foundation for the creation of woodblock prints. Classical documents suggest that woodblock prints might date back to the Sui and even the Jin dynasty; however, the earliest woodblock print discovered so far is the frontispiece of the Diamond Sutra dated to the ninth year of Xiantong 咸通 of the Tang dynasty (868AD), which measures 0.28 meters by 0.244 meters. Depicting the Buddha teaching his disciples at Jetavana Vihara, this is an example of illustrative woodprints in Buddhist sutras. Since Buddhism was introduced into China, the Mahayana school had won much favor with the lower class thanks to its vision of delivering all creatures. Just like shuochang literature, adding woodcut illustrations into Buddhist sutras was a means to popularize Buddhism. This explains why the majority of Tang dynasty woodprints found are Buddhist works. From the Song to the early Ming dynasty, woodblock prints gained wider usage along with the diversification of popular books and readers, widely existing in various gazetteers and other practical books than sutras. Examples include the Queli zhi 闕里志 (Gazetteer of Queli), Shihu zhi 石湖志 (Gazetteer of Stone Lake), Liquan Xian zhi 醴泉縣志 (Gazetteer of Liquan County), Chajing 茶經 (Classic of Tea) and Nongshu 農書 (Treatise on Agriculture). What is more, woodblock prints began playing a big part as illustrations in fiction and scripts of xiqu operas. During this period, woodblock prints did not experience any consequential breakthrough as

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an art form. The only significant development was that they evolved from mere propagandist materials into commodities. This process of commercialization brought forth the natural products of diversification and major production bases. In the Song dynasty, centers of woodblock printing included Bianliang, Hangzhou, Meishan of Sichuan, and Jianyang of Fujian. In the Ming Dynasty, Jianyang continued to be a printing center, along with Jinling of Jiangsu and Xin’an of Anhui. Large workshops emerged, leading to continual improvements in production methods. A division of labor was carried out along the line of drawing and woodcutting, followed by the development of multicolor printing technology. In 1620, the assembled block printing (douban 餖版) technique was invented, bringing multicolor printing to the next level. Commercialization was facilitated by the rise of urban folk culture, as fiction and xiqu operas created huge demand for illustrations. The Ming dynasty produced an impressive number of woodcut illustrations. The chuanqi stories carved by the Jinling Funchun Tang 金陵富春堂 alone amounted to more than 10 sets, each of which consisted of 10 titles, meaning that there would have been over 100 titles. The number of illustrations in each title varied from three or four to 30 or 40, sometimes going up to a hundred or so. Making a conservative estimate based on an average of 10 illustrations per title, the Jinling Funchun Tang would have carved a thousand woodblocks of chuanqi illustrations. The diverse subjects of fiction and operas widened the artistic scope of woodblock printing. As fiction and operas center on human activities, associated illustrations are necessarily dominated by human subjects. Woodblock prints of the Ming dynasty thus form a stark contrast with the elegant paintings of landscapes and flowers and birds by court painters and the literati. After the fashion of fiction and xiqu operas, woodblock prints are folkish and mundane. In historical fiction such as Sanguo yanyi, woodblock prints illustrate the palaces and residences of emperors and nobles. In chivalric epics like Shuihu zhuan, dramatic, boisterous, and interesting scenes are depicted. Fiction about gifted scholars and beautiful ladies such as Xixiang ji contains pictures of romantic and affectionate scenes, while erotic fiction like Jin ping mei features illustrations of half-naked and naked women (see Fig. 5.1), and even sex scenes. The liberal atmosphere of the Ming dynasty allowed graphic porn which had in the past remained behind the doors of adult chambers to become available to the public in woodblock prints. These graphics were mostly printed in Jiangsu and sponsored by art pursuers in the Nanjing area. Famous painters took the lead in the creation of such pictures, which were modelled on by their emulators.

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Fig. 5.1 Woodblock print in erotic fiction

The glorious age of banhua

In the late Ming dynasty, urban folk culture and the new urban taste rose to a great height, coinciding with the high tides of the new streams of thought in the intellectual scene. From the Wanli period onwards, woodblock prints flourished more than ever before. The boom has to be ascribed to, apart from the diverse subject matters of novels and operas, the participation of renowned painters who belonged to the class of scholar-officials. Tang Ying 唐寅, a venerated painter of the Wu school, illustrated for Xixiang ji, whereas Qiu Ying 仇英, a master of genre painting, drafted the illustrations of Lienü zhuan 列女傳 (Biographies of Exemplary Women). Chen Hongshou 陳洪綬 devoted himself to the art of banhua, creating celebrated illustrations for the game card collections (yezi 葉子) Bogu yezi 博古葉 子 (Venerating Antiquity Game Cards) and Suihu yezi 水滸葉子 (Water Margins Game Cards) as well as “Li sao.” Moreover, the Mingshan tu 名山圖 (Pictures of Great Mountains) was participated by master painters including Zheng Qianli 鄭 千里, Zhao Wendu 趙文度, Liu Shukuan 劉叔寬, and Lan Tianshu 藍田叔, and the illustrations of the Yuzan Ji 玉簪記 (Jade Hairpin) were the joint work of Liu Mingsu 劉明素, Cai Yuanxun 蔡元勛, and Zhao Bi 趙壁. There are countless examples that can demonstrate the passion of Ming painters in woodblock prints.39 While the association of woodblock prints with fictional and operatic illustrations 39. Wang, Zhongguo banhua shi, 60.

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played a part in broadening and vulgarizing their themes, the participation of scholar-officials introduced elegant elements into the art. Simply put, woodblock prints took on elements of literati painting in terms of composition of pictures, drawing techniques, and artistic conception. Chen Hongshou’s “Qu Yuan Sang while Walking” (Quzi xing yin 屈子行吟) and “The Lord of the East” (Dongjun 東 君) exhibit a firm grasp of the treatment of blank spaces and nuances of character traits. Exemplary of the integration of human figures and background is “Peeping into a Letter” (Kuijian 窺柬) in the 1639 edition of Xixiang ji published by Zhang Shenzhi 張深之 (Fig. 5.2) and “Secret Meeting” (Youhui 幽會) in chuanqi Tou tao ji 投桃記 (Tossing Peaches), which demonstrate harmonious picture compositions, delicate and tasteful strokes, and a graceful style. “Night Market of the Northern Gate” (Beiguan yeshi 北關夜市) in the album Hainei qiguan 海內奇觀 (Strange Views Within the Four Seas) and the illustration for the chapter “A Powerful Family Blocks Its Gate In Order To Enjoy Fireworks” (Cheng Haohua menqian fang yanhuo 逞豪華門前放煙火) in Jin ping mei (Fig. 5.3) closely rival “Along the River during the Qingming Festival” in the depiction of grand scenes. Some woodblock pictures, such as the illustration to “In the sky autumn shades tint the Milky Way, / Down the sparse shadows of parasol trees the Cowherd Star hangs”40 in the Qinglou yunyu 青樓韻語 (Rhymes from the Green Bower) and pictures in the Shi yu huapu 詩餘畫譜 (Manual of Illustrating Lyric Poems), attain the ambience of landscape paintings. In short, as time went by, woodblock prints absorbed the features and approached the standards of literati paintings. Fig. 5.2 “Peeping into a Letter” in Xixiang ji (Zhang Shenzhi edition), by Chen Hongshou

40. “天上銀河一色秋，梧桐疏影掛牽牛” Jing Bianbian 景翩翩, “Qiu ji Zhang Xiaolian” 秋

夜寄張孝廉 [To Zhang Xiaolian on an Autumn Night], in Zhang, comp., and Zhu, ed., Qinglou yunyu, scroll 3.

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Fig. 5.3 “A Powerful Family Blocks Its Gate In Order To Enjoy Fireworks” in Jin ping mei (Ming dynasty Chongzhen edition), chap.42

In the other way round, woodblock printing technology contributed to the dissemination of painting techniques, giving birth to a large array of printed painting manuals (huapu 畫譜) which contain masterpieces that could be referred to when painting. They also served as reference books to woodblock illustrations, thereby facilitating mass production of woodblock prints. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, printed painting manuals proliferated. There were the Gaosong huapu 高松畫譜 (Painting Manual of Gaosong), Gushi huapu 顧氏畫譜 (Painting Manual of Gu), Jiya zhai huapu 集雅齋畫譜 (Painting Manual of the Jiya Study), Shiyu huapu, Shizhu zhai huapu 十竹齋畫譜 (Painting Manual of the Ten Bamboo Study) (see Fig. 5.4), and Jiezi yuan huapu 芥子園畫譜 (Painting Manual of the Mustard Seed Garden), to name a few. Among them, the Gushi huapu is a collection of copies after the works of painting masters from the Eastern Jin to the Ming, while the Shiyu huapu is made up of illustrations of elegant scenes in ci poems following the styles of revered painters. The majority of the painting manuals, however, provide models and formulae for different painting motifs, such as human characters, hills and rocks, flowers and birds, and vegetation. For example, regarding the painting of plums, the plum manual in the Shizhu zhai huapu contains 20 paintings of plums in different contexts, and the Xuehu meipu 雪湖梅譜 (Plum Painting Manual of Xuehu) demonstrates 24 looks of plums on vine.

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Fig. 5.4 A page in Shizhu zhai huapu (1633 Nanjing Hushi color edition)

Woodblock prints of the Ming dynasty show an all-encompassing magnanimity amid their folkish aura. Like folk paintings, woodblock prints generally feature a dense composition which is yet markedly distinct from the stone reliefs of the Han, although the participation of literati painters contributed to simpler, more airy alternatives like the vegetation in the Shizhu zhai huapu, the figures by Chen Hongshou, and the illustrations of Xixiang ji. Nor are they similar to the decorative New Year prints of the Qing. Take for example the illustration “Azure Cloud Tower On Fire” (Huoshao Cuiyun lou 火燒翠雲樓) of Shuihu zhuan in Fig. 5.5. It is a grand sight filled with houses and human figures, yet the houses are drawn along irregular lines to match the chaotic theme of the picture. There are people fighting in and out of every house, but as individual scenes are separated by walls and houses, there is some kind of order out of chaos. To the left bottom corner, the Liangshan heroes are rushing with knives into the city gate, while to the top left corner, the defending officer Li Cheng is seen dragging away Liang Zhongshu inside the city wall; there remains no ambiguity to the result of the combat. This picture demonstrates superb mastery of the cavalier perspective and principle of “portraying the small through the big” (yi da guan xiao 以大觀小) of traditional Chinese painting in a manner comparable to landscape paintings. Moreover, given that banhua are mostly illustrations, human characters are a dominant motif. Figure illustrations in woodblock prints are unique in that unlike the times from Gu Kaizhi 顧愷之 to Yan Liben 閻立本, the figures are all in the same size regardless of their social status and the composition of the picture is entirely dependent on the story. This change evinced how art had started to reflect reality as perceived by the common urban dweller since the Song dynasty.

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Fig. 5.5 “Azure Cloud Tower On Fire” in Shuihu zhuan, chap. 66

Nianhua — Woodblock prints in a new face

The pinnacle of development of banhua largely coincided with the rise of unorthodox thoughts from the Wanli to the Qianlong period, providing a new glimpse into future developments of Chinese visual art. As woodblock illustrations became increasingly uniform and hackneyed into the Kangsi period, it was the turn of woodblock printed New Year pictures, or nianhua, to bloom and shine. As festive decorations, New Year prints were posted on walls to express well wishes against calamities. Legends from prehistory show that the practice of putting up portraits of gods on doors and outer walls to keep off evil spirits had been customary since early times. Portraits posted inside the house, on the other hand, were mostly used in seek of blessings, with examples such as the “Portraits of the Four Beauties” (Si mei tu 四美圖) from the Yuan dynasty and the “Portrait of the God of Longevity” (Shouxing tu 壽星圖) from the Ming dynasty. New Year prints for outdoor usage generally followed fixed formulae. It was for the indoor type which varied more in terms of content and style that consumer demand was created. Thanks to economic prosperity, population boom, ideological control, and general stability, Qing society provided New Year prints with the perfect environment to thrive. Centers of New Year print production popped up all over the country. The most

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famous ones were Yangliuqing 楊柳青 in Tianjin in the north and Taohuawu 桃花 塢 in Jiangsu in the south, both of which were large in scale. In these districts, the New Year print business was by no means confined to the town itself. In the area surrounding Yangliuqing, for example, it was participated by all walks of life in some 30 villages, some engaging in the business full time, others part time, and everyone having different specialisms.41 During the reign of Emperor Qianlong, the annual output of Dai Lianzeng 戴廉增, a major New Year print family workshop, reached 1,000,000 copies. Compared with the banhua of the Ming, the nianhua of the Qing were more firmly oriented towards the populace. They catered to the taste of the commoners, and this customer base determined their main themes, including: • Portraits of deities. Most of these are door gods (menschen 門神) believed to have the ability to keep out evil spirits, from the earliest Shenshu 神荼 and Yulü 鬱壘 in command of the demons according to the Shanhaijing, the tiger (which devours demons), and the rooster (which exorcises evils), to Qin Qiong 秦瓊 and Yuchi Gong 尉遲恭 of the Tang, to the later additions of Zhong Kui 鍾馗, the Celestial Masters of Zhengyi Dao (Zhang tianshi 張 天師), and Lü Shang 呂尚. There are also deities believed to bring blessings, such as the Kitchen God (Zaoshen 灶神), God of Barn (Cangshen 倉神), God of Wealth (Caishen 財神), God of Wine (Jiushen 酒神), God of Happiness (Xishen 喜神), Goddess of Fertility (Zisun Niangniang 子孫娘娘), and King of Medicine (Yaowang Shen 藥王神). • Beauties and children. This theme expresses the mundane desires of patriarchal society: having beautiful wives — for pleasure — and chubby sons — for procreation. For New Year prints of beauties, some feature anonymous ladies drawn according to cultural models and others are portraits of famous beauties in history, such as the Four Great Beauties (si da meiren 四大美人) in the “Portraits of the Four Beauties” and the Twelve Beauties of Jinling (Jinling shier chai 金陵十二釵). Typical New Year prints of children include Yangliuqing’s “Lian sheng gui zi” 蓮生貴子 with a lotus 蓮 and a child (the title being a homophonic pun for the expression “連生貴 子” — “successive birth of noble sons”), “Lian nian you yu” 蓮年有魚 with a lotus, a fish 魚, and a child (the title being a homophonic pun for “連年有餘” — “superabundance in the successive years”) (Fig. 5.6), and “Huantianxidi” 歡天喜地 (literally “joy in the sky and happiness on the ground”; i.e., to be wild with joy) with frolicking children. There are also some New Year 41. Zhang and Lan, Zhongguo hua de yishu yu jiqiao, 284.

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prints that feature both beauties and children, such as Yangliuqing’s “Fu shan ji qing” 福善吉慶 (“blessings, kindness, auspices, and celebrations”), “Jin yu man tang” 金玉滿堂 (“gold and jade fill the hall”), “Liu kai bai zi” 榴 開百子 (“hundreds of sons out of an open pomegranate”), and “Qilin song zi” 麒麟送子 (“the Qilin delivers a son”). • Auspicious flowers and birds. Unlike those in literati paintings, the flowers and birds in New Year prints are colorful, jolly, and festive. Moreover, their symbolic connotations (often by puns) suggest mundane happiness, not transcendent values. For example, Taohuawu’s “Flowers in a Vase” (Ping hua tu 瓶花圖) plays on the homophonic pun of 瓶 (vase) and 平 (“peace” and “wellbeing”); and “Carp” (Liyu tu 鯉魚圖), like “Lian nian you yu,” draws on the pun between “fish” 魚 and “superabundance” 餘. • Familiar fictional and operatic scenes. Appealing to a population dominated by xiqu audiences, these New Year prints aimed to recreate the visual experience of stage plays by following stage configurations of costumes, accessories, backgrounds, and so on. Landscapes, buildings, and transportations are realistically portrayed, differing greatly from the banhua illustrations of the Ming. Successful examples of such include Yangliuqing’s “Stealing Lingzhi” (Dao lingzhi cao 盜靈芝草) from Baishezhuan 白蛇傳 (The Legend of the White Snake), “Eight Immortals Cross the Sea” (Baxian guohai 八仙過海), and “Zhao Yun Saves His Young Master SingleHandedly” (Zhao Zilong danji jiuzhu 趙子龍單騎救主) from Sanguo yanyi. Fig. 5.6 “Lian nian you yu” by Yangliuqing

The stylistic features of New Year prints are shaped by their nature as commodities, together with their mundane concerns and major themes. First, being New Year decorations, they are demonstrative and ornamental. Contributing to the festive ambience are dense compositions, an emphasis on symmetry, and internal harmony among the depicted objects. Note the eye gestures, fighting postures, and

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layout in the picture inspired by the opera Sancha kou 三岔口 (Fight at the Crossroad Inn) (Fig. 5.7). Second is the use of intense and bright colors. Red and green are used at the main spots, and costumes and complexions of the human figures are colored according to stage principles. Third, everything is drawn according to standard formulae. We can see that the Four Beauties are always similar in looks, with a standard eye size and an exceedingly similar eye gesture, nose, mouth, and face shape. Heroes look alike, and so do children. What New Year prints represent is not individual, but collective experience. Fig. 5.7 “Sancha kou” by Yangliuqing

Fiction: Beyond the Marvelous World of Oral Literature

In the Ming and Qing dynasty, Chinese fiction had completely risen above the oral tradition in which it first developed in the Song dynasty. With the landmarks of the Four Great Classical Novels (si da ming zhu 四大名著) — namely, Honglou meng, Shuihu zhuan, Sanguo yanyi, and Xi you ji — and Sanyan erpai, Chinese novels and short stories established a firm niche in written literature, signifying fundamental changes in the aesthetic culture of China. First, the popularization of written fiction changed fiction from an entertainment at wazi-goulan into a universal literary culture. While the reach of oral stories was restricted by time and space, novels and short story collections could enter all levels

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of society, including the upper class and scholar-officials. This gave fiction the universality needed for every art to be considered mainstream. Oral storytelling is purely entertaining, the speed determined by the storyteller; it is a one-off activity. Reading, on the other hand, allows readers to enjoy the story at their own pace, pausing and thinking as one desires; it is an activity in which language provokes imagination and thinking. Second, the transition from story listening to reading was a change from a collective activity into an individual activity. The influence of immediate response from the live audience subjected oral storytelling to the collective taste. Comparatively, the more remote market of written fiction freed it from the direct control of interacting audience members. Rather than catering to small audiences, fiction writers faced the whole society and expanded their concern to universal reception. At the same time, freed from the pressure of on-the-spot effects, they had more room to appeal to all kinds of personal desires. Thus, fiction provided an arena for the bold expression, collision, and integration of ideas, emotions, and desires by all walks of life, making it the most popular and tolerant form of art during cultural transformation. Third, the transformation of fiction into written literature signaled a change in Chinese narrative literature. Traditionally, the narrative device was used in philosophy books to enhance arguments, as in the texts by pre-Qin thinkers. In these works, narratives are not derived from but are constituents of arguments. Another traditional use of the narrative form in China was the writing of history. Narratives in histories also contain implicit moral principles, although they have to reflect historical events more truthfully and moral judgments are communicated in comments. In either uses, narratives are succinct. In the fiction of the Ming and Qing, however, the narrative form gains new traits: narratives become entirely fictional and greater in detail. They are brought into settings which allow for all kinds of possibilities and given more flexibility to encompass various ideas and interests of the transforming society. Last was a formal change. Stories were lengthened and short stories were outweighed by “linked-chapter novels” (zhanghui xiaoshuo 章回小說) with a comprehensive structure.

Major fictional worlds

Since the Song dynasty, Chinese society experienced tremendous changes in outlook on life, and Ming and Qing fiction, proliferating throughout the age, explored and exhibited the worldviews of this conflicting time. An analysis of the major types of fictional worlds will help understand the complex worldviews of the Ming and Qing.

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The epic world

Sanguo yanyi, along with other historical novels, introduces an enigmatic historical world. From the Zhou dynasty, which inspired not only Sanguo yanyi but also the earlier Wuwang fa Zhou pinghua 武王伐紂平話 (King Wu’s Expedition Against Zhou) from the Song and Yuan and Dongzhou lieguo zhi 東周列國志 (Chronicle of the Eastern Zhou States) from the Qing dynasty, up to the contemporary world of the Ming and Qing, the ups and downs of the dynastic empire provided plenty of materials for reflection and story development. After the golden ages of the Han and Tang, Central China had been perturbed by invasions of neighboring regimes. The Song constantly wrestled with the Khitan Liao, Tangut Western Xia, and Jurchen Jin. The Ming dynasty, ever since its middle phase, suffered frequent disturbances at the frontier; the Mongols once struck into the capital and captivated Emperor Yingzong of Ming 明英宗, and later the Ming had to withstand military threats in Liaodong. In the Yuan and Qing dynasties, the Mongols and Manchus, respectively, ruled China proper as ethnic minorities. All this formed the backgrounds of historical novels. Sanguo yanyi portrays Shu Han as the rightful power headed by a benevolent ruler, Liu Bei 劉備, and assisted by number one advisor Zhuge Liang 諸葛亮 and valorous generals like Guan Yu 關羽 and Zhang Fei 張飛, making the eventual defeat of the regime among the Three Kingdoms a distressing ending, which fittingly reflects the perplexed psychology of the time. There is no doubt Sanguo yanyi attains the state of the art, but the story itself is puzzling. It faintly echoes the newly emerged stream of thought, but constrained by historical facts, it has limited room for further venting of frustrations. Thus the historical world gave birth to two associated worlds — of family generals and of heroes. The world of family generals (jiajiang 家將) is more firmly rooted in history, while the legend-filled world of heroes contains more fantasies of the contemporary world. The world of family generals was developed under the dual influence of historical fiction like Sanguo yanyi and hero fiction like Shuihu zhuan. In this world, heroes are put into a real historical context, their fate determined by the time in which they live. From this perspective, stories of family generals share the effect of historical fiction in provoking reflection of history and fate. The famous Generals of the Yang Family 楊家將 belong to this valorous world. Among the Ming and Qing fiction of this type, Shuo Yue quanchuan 說岳全傳 (The Complete Story of General Yue Fei) is the most superior. It epitomizes the historical mentality of the Ming and Qing. The first half of the story is derived from history, telling the sorrowful fate of Yue Fei 岳飛, the heroic archetype who was doomed by villainous officials and who died without fulfilling his grand ambition. Up to this point, the novel questions reality in the same way as Sanguo yanyi. Yet the second half of it

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is completely fictional. Through conceived posthumous developments such as the vindication of Yue by the court’s establishment of a memorial shrine, the recovery of northern territories by Yue’s son, and the death of Wanyan Wushu 完顏兀術 of the Jurchen Jin dynasty after being captured, the novel gives vent to anger over injustices. Sanguo yanyi of the Ming questions history, while Shuo Yue quanchuan provides a fictional answer to questions about history. The storylines of both historical fiction and fiction of family generals revolve around politico-military power struggles, emphasizing the binary oppositions between the legitimate and the illegitimate, the aggressor and the defender, the just and the unjust, and the heroes and the villains in presenting history. Hero legends too have their historical basis, but they focus on society. The greatest masterpiece of this type is Shuihu zhuan. It depicts the diverse backgrounds of 108 heroes from different social classes and tells how they gather at Liangshan to rebel against the government, surrender to the court, take part in fighting against external enemies and quenching domestic disturbances, and eventually die or become scattered. The darkness of society constitutes a legitimate basis for the rise of heroes; the fact that they are forced onto the road of rebellion is illustrated in the stories of Lin Chong, Song Jiang, and Chai Jin. In the world of heroes, rebellion is the necessary recourse of heroes willy-nilly, and these heroes glorify “righteousness” as defined by their jianghu 江湖 community much over state laws and social morals. Yet despite its fantastic elements, Shihu zhuan also conveys the kind of puzzlement seen in Sanguo yanyi. The Liangshan heroes are heartening, but they remain outlaws, and will never be legitimized by the Mandate of Heaven. Soon, they have to submit to authority and turn their sight from righteousness to loyalty, as Song Jiang leads his fellows to accept the court’s pacification and serve as legitimate officials. The most perplexing part is yet in spite of their brilliant contributions to the state, apart from a dozen or so who manage to flee to a reclusive life, all of them end up in painful deaths, some poisoned and some forced to commit suicide. Shuihu houzhuan 水滸 後傳 (Sequel to Water Margin) was an attempt to resolve this perplexity by giving more positive endings to the offspring of the Liangshan heroes. Some family general novels can also be seen as responses to this query: the Generals of the Yang Family and the Generals of the Yue Family both suffer persecutions, but in the fictional world they secure official positions in the end and go down in history fulfilling both righteousness and loyalty. Only in the world of wuxia 武俠 (martial heroes, gallants) are heroes allowed to shine forever in the jianghu. The concept of gallants (xia 俠) had long existed in Chinese society. Cao Mo 曹沫, Zhuan Zhu 專諸, Yu Rang 豫讓, Nie Zheng 聶政, and Jing Ke 荊軻 from the Warring States period were all famous historical heroes. The chuanqi of the Tang dynasty consisted of many chivalric tales. In the Yuan and

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Ming dynasties, vernacular wuxia fiction 武俠小說 started to emerge. But it was the Qing dynasty that was the glorious time for the genre of wuxia fiction. The world of wuxia was formed by a large array of works: San xia wu yi 三俠五義 (The Three Heroes and Five Gallants), Ernü yingxiong zhuan 兒女英雄傳 (The Legend of Heroic Sons and Daughters), Xiao wu yi 小五義 (Five Little Heroes), Shigong an 施 公案 (The Cases of Lord Shi), Penggong an 彭公案 (The Cases of Lord Peng), Qi jian shisan xia 七劍十三俠 (Thirteen Heroes with Seven Swords), Lü mudan 綠牡丹 (Green Peony)… In the world of wuxia fiction, gallants obey the laws of the jianghu instead of state laws. They are the incarnation of justice, helping the poor and the needy, punishing the evil, and taking revenge and showing gratitude where appropriate. The darker society is and the more unjust government officials are, the more admirable their acts appear. As the jianghu has its own code, gallants are completely above the law. This implies the possibility of heroes turning into villains, creating dramatic tension between the good and the bad in the martial world. On the other hand, in countering evils, gallants are not always opposed to the government, but they align themselves with honest officials; therefore gallants always cooperate with upright judges in crime fiction, such as the Three Heroes and Five Gallants with Bao Zheng 包拯. Acting as a supplementary institution, the chivalric world of wuxia provides the final resolution to the perplexing problem demonstrated in the heroic world of Shuihu zhuan of the Ming.

The mundane world

With the development of low culture, fiction necessarily embraced mundane concerns. The short stories in Sanyan erpai already exhibit the glamour of the mundane world. As for novels, two masterpieces, Jin ping mei and Honglou meng, thoroughly penetrate the mundane world by portraying the ups and downs of a big family. The former is developed upon a new-style, less cultured merchant family which belonged to the lower class, while the latter revolves around a traditional, bureaucratic, educated, upper-class family. Both kinds of families were prototypical in contemporary society. The fictional families’ state of existence, social connections, development, and doomed fate were indicative of what was happening in transforming society. Jin ping mei tells the story of the clan of Ximen Qing. At the beginning, Ximen seems to be a powerful man on all fronts: at home he has a wife and six concubines (and the maid Pang Chunmei); in business he accumulates tremendous wealth from his monopoly on salt, fragrant candles, and antiquities; socially he has 10 sworn brothers; and he even manages to climb up the official ladder through bribery — but of course all these “achievements” are secured by money. In the story, all relationships are built and maintained by money, and all man-woman

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relationships are based on lust. Even Li Ping’er, a relatively more positive figure in the story, deserts his husband and marries Ximen Qing chiefly for his sexual potency. Ximen Qing embodies money and lust. He craves for money, and ends up losing all his wealth; he craves for lust, and dies for it. In the end, his family is disintegrated. All members in this family who live for lust follow in his footsteps. Jin ping mei boldly and graphically depicts the moral degeneration, unrestrained desires, and greed that characterized contemporary society, warning it of the outcome of such a mentality. Honglou meng centers on the Jia clan. While Jin ping mei presents a parvenu’s clan and thus does not include a single positive character, Honglou meng, depicting a traditional noble clan well-versed in classical literature, does have more commendable characters. Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu are models of faithful lovers, and there is the capable Jia Tanchun who is good at managing the house. These characters, however, are unable to arrest the family from decline. The Jias are punished for the same sins as the Ximens’: lust and greed. The fall of the Xias is foreshadowed from the very beginning by the incest of Jia Zhen, revealed in the cause of the confiscation of the family’s Grand View Garden — an embroidered pornographic pouch — and triggered by the lust of Jia She. Moreover, were it not for her greed for money, Wang Xifeng, as the principle lady of the Jia clan, would have the resource to hold the family together. For money, she stirs hostilities within the family and engages in power struggles outside it. Coupled with other weaknesses in her character, she is eventually left to her own devices. If Jin ping mei illustrates moral degeneration in the aspects of wealth and lust, then Honglou meng presents an even bleaker worldview, with decadence in all aspects from wealth and lust to power and culture, for the Jia clan is closely associated with three other powerful families and is a highly educated hereditarily noble clan. In Jin ping mei and Honglou meng alike, there are no larger-than-life heroes, but only normal people living ordinary lives. New or traditional, the featured clans move downhill as the stories unfold, degrading amid daily activities. Such is symbolic of the transforming society at that time. Jia Baoyu of Honglou meng is a resolute opponent of the Imperial Examination. This brings forth another façade of the mundane world: the world of the Imperial Examination, which is explored in greater detail in Rulin waishi 儒林外史 (The Scholars). The novel ironically portrays the fate of various scholar-prototypes who try to start an official career through the Imperial Examination. There are such miserable die-hard believers in the examination system as Zhou Jin and Fan Jin, who are ruined by the eight-legged essay and become self-derogatory, rigid, numb, obtuse, narrow in knowledge, and destitute. Also depicted are arty characters including bogus masters like Lou the Third and Lou the Fourth and poets in the

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clique of Zhao Xuezhai, who spend their days building alliances, flattering each other, grabbing public attention, befriending learnt men, and rubbing shoulders with the nobility. Archetypal villains also include rotten bureaucrats like Wang Hui and County Magistrate Tang who have nothing but money in their eyes, and shameless swindlers like Yan Gongsheng (gongsheng being a title earned through the Imperial Examination) who pretend to be gentlemen. Having depicted all these villains, the novel does leave room for presenting some sort of ideal vision. Thus in later parts, Du Shaoqing heads an enthusiastic team to the Taibo Shrine to make sacrifices as well as learn traditional rites; Cao Yunxian improves the irrigation system, promotes agriculture, and runs schools; and Tang Zhentai defends the borders against invaders and robbers. However, none of them have much success. The story ends with four masters focusing on their own business, concluding that the world of scholar-officials is corrupt and good men must stay away from it. The fictional discourse of the mundane world is not limited to the three masterpieces. The theme of lust of Jin ping mei is echoed in many erotic stories which typically relate a male protagonist engaging in many sexual affairs but finally being redeemed, such as Rouputuan 肉蒲團 (The Carnal Prayer Mat). The romantic love in Honglou meng and the exposure of the corrupt face of the Imperial Examination in Rulin waishi are major themes in talent and beauty (caizi jiaren 才 子佳人) fiction. The likes of Haoqiu zhuan 好逑傳 (The Fortunate Union), Yujiao li 玉嬌梨 (The Two Fair Cousins), and Pingshan lengyan 平山冷燕 (Flat Mountains and Cold Swallows) are aesthetic comedies in which the hero and heroine choose their desirable partner, persevere through oppositions and obstacles, see the hero surmount the challenge of the Imperial Examination, and are happily married.

The mysterious world

What remain are the surreal worlds of legends and ghosts and werewolves, which are nonetheless closely linked with reality. The world of legends is more related to the epic world, while the world of ghosts and werewolves leans towards the mundane. The world of legends is constituted by such works as Xi you ji, Fengshen yanyi 封神演義 (Investiture of the Gods), and Dong you ji 東遊記 (Journey to the East). The most famous Xi you ji is divided into three parts: the story of Monkey King Sun Wukong (chapters 1 to 7); the story of Monk Xuanzang (chapters 8 to 12); the pilgrimage to the West (chapters 13 to 100). The third part is the main body, covering the recruitment of Xuanzang’s three helpers Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing, the experience of 81 ordeals in which the team subjugates numerous monsters and demons, and their successful return to the East. Sun Wukong’s rebellion against the Celestial Palace in the first part recalls the spirit of the Liangshan outlaws of Shuihu zhuan. His defeat and taming of the monsters and

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demons in the last part also resemble the Liangshan heroes’ military operations after they accept official pacification, except that one’s imagination is stretched much further. Removed from realistic constraints, the pilgrims successfully complete their mission. Most vividly constructing the world of ghosts and werewolves is Pu Songling 蒲松齡’s Liaozhai zhiyi 聊齋志異 (Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio). Pu’s fictional world encompasses the full gamut of mundane affairs covered earlier, from the fidelity between talented scholars and beauties and erotic love between lustful men and women, to the social life of merchants and nobles and villainous acts of derided characters. It is a fantastic realm in which no barriers exist between life and death and Heaven, Earth, and Hell, yet events proceed as they would in the realistic human world. But as werewolves, immortals, ghosts, and spirits can freely interact with humans, the stories become more fascinating and mundane relationships are given freer and more beautiful representation. Wrongs in reality can be vindicated in Hades, and werewolf and ghost girls appear more attractive than ladies in real life. On the other hand, however, injustices in the human world continue to find expression as corruption in Heaven and Hell, while harms inflicted by men can be transformed into evil plots of the spirits.

Common concerns

A few common concerns can be identified from the fictional worlds of the Ming and Qing. To begin with, all types of fiction during the period problematize the existing institutions. Sanguo yanyi criticizes history by emphasizing the unseemly character of the winners — Cao Cao 曹操 as a treacherous militarist and the Sima 司馬 clan as scheming careerists. Similarly, fiction of family generals like Shuo Yue quanchuan highlights the collaboration between malicious and corrupt officials and fatuous sovereigns. Wuxia fiction expresses mistrust for the political institution by resorting to extrainsitutional forces in safeguarding social justice. In Jin ping mei and Honglou meng, bureaucratic corruption has become a commonplace. Rulin waishi exposes the grave harm of the Imperial Examination system. Almost all stories about marriage exhibit the tragedy of arranged marriage to the couple and their families. In Xiyou ji, the mightiness and omnipresence of demons are juxtaposed with the impotence of the good gods. Associated is the legitimization and extolment of rebellions. The inherent problems of the existing institutions provide a solid basis for rebellious activities. Rebels are the most impressive and beloved characters of Ming and Qing fiction. Sun Wukong would be no difference from any heroes in Fengshen yanyi if all he does are tame and crush demons on the Western pilgrimage; he only beats all other

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mythical heroes because he has rebelled against and caused havoc in the Celestial Palace. Shuihu zhuan becomes the masterpiece that it is thanks to the stories about the Liangshan outlaws in its first half. What makes the love stories between talented scholars and beauties, and humans and ghosts or werewolves moving is the protagonists’ defiance of their parents’ order as prescribed by Confucian rites in defense of their true love. It is this rebellious spirit in Ming and Qing fiction that most fascinated the readers of the transforming society then. On top of reflecting the social, conceptual, and artistic changes during cultural transformation, Ming and Qing fiction also shows attempts to reconcile problematic institutions and rebellions. It has come to be recognized as part of classical literature because of its success in integrating rebellious thoughts into the cultural mainstream, and this is as much an ideological as it is an aesthetic question. On a formal level, the reconciliation is carried out through the design of characters and the plot. In terms of characters, this depends on the inclusion or exclusion of ideal figures, and the role of such figures in the story. The inclusion of central ideal figures shows the author’s optimism in reconciliation. To give some examples, in talent and beauty fiction, the heroes and heroines are usually virtuous and chaste (as opposed to the chaotic and lustful love in erotic fiction), and in the end they typically come under rites. In wuxia fiction, upright officials and righteous gallants usually take center stage, triumphing over evil powers. In the same vein, Liu Bei in Sanguo yanyi (as opposed to Cao Cao), Song Jiang in Shuihu zhuan (compared with Chao Gai, Lin Chong, and Li Kui), and loyal generals in family general fiction (juxtaposed with fatuous emperors, corrupt officials, and foreign enemies) are established as central figures. On the contrary, Jin ping mei, Honglou meng, and Rulin waishi lack ideal figures, having no more than relatively good supporting characters, such as Wu Yueniang in Jin ping mei, Ping’er in Honglou meng, and the likes of Du Shaoqing in Rulin waishi. Ambiguity is heightened by the inclusion of deceptive characters in the latter two novels: Jia Zheng appears to be moral but is not, and the phony gentlemen in Rulin waishi have already been discussed. In terms of plot, positive reconciliation would rationalize rebellions and allow the rebellious to return to the moral way by the end of the story. A talent-and-beauty couple who fall in love against traditional rites would eventually be accepted by their parents, with the husband excelling in the Imperial Examination or having a career success. To show that the good will always win over the evil, the heroes of family general fiction would be honored by history as the emperor comes to his senses, while honest officials would necessarily win over corrupt officials in wuxia fiction. This explains why the Liangshan outlaws would be pacified and contribute

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to the state, and Sun Wukong would assist in Xuanzang’s mission after havocking the Celestial Palace. The tragic ending of Honglou meng shows a failure to reconcile the two visions, but Gao E 高鶚 puts things right by writing a sequel. Sanguo yanyi and Rulin waishi do not manage to achieve the reconciliation in this respect either; more efforts will be revealed in the discussion below. Of note is successful reconciliation, in terms of character designs, depends on not only whether righteous characters are placed at the center of the plot, but also whether such characters are brought to life and able to serve as artistic archetypes. Likewise, in terms of plot, it depends not so much on whether the storyline leads back to the fulfilment of rites as on whether this development is ingeniously crafted. We can say that talented scholars and beauties, gallants, and Bao Zheng are more successful than Liu Bei of Sanguo yanyi and Song Jiang of Shuihu zhuan, while the positive characters in Rulin waishi are utter failures. The plot of Xiyou ji is a great success, for the encounters during the pilgrimage are fascinating, but that of Shuihu zhuan is much less successful, as the storyline following the pacification of the heroes is banal. It is much more important, however, to look into the underlying structures of these fictional works, where reconciliation is most effectively at work. First is the emphatic role of the narrator. A narrator exists and plays a more important part in Ming and Qing fiction than in fiction from other cultures and Chinese fiction of any other periods. Apart from starting and ending the story, the narrator often interrupts to explain and comment on the story and the characters’ actions, sometimes even to teach moral lessons. In other words, the narrator typically bears an orthodox role, controlling the plot and bringing controversial story developments and complex characters back under the orthodox framework through comment and preaching. Second, we shall turn to the number patterns in the stories, which are deeply rooted in Chinese metaphysics. Based on Yang Ximei’s study of the Yijing 易經 (Book of Changes)’s explanations of hexagrams, Xiao analyzes the number symbolism in ancient Chinese culture, especially Chinese classical fiction. His findings can be summarized as follows: Table 5.1 Number symbolism in Ming and Qing fiction No

Origins

Examples/Usage

3

Three powers of Heaven,

Three sworn brothers of the oath of the Peach Garden

number of Heaven

(SHZ), three entrances into the Rongguo Mansion

Earth, and man; the

(SGYY), three assaults of the Zhu Family Village (HLM), three attempts to borrow the banana leaf fan (XYJ)

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(Cont’d) No

Origins

Examples/Usage

4

Four cardinal directions;

Four Heavenly Kings (Buddhist tradition), four

the number of Earth

families of Jia, Wang, Shi, and Xue (HLM), four enforcers of Bao Zheng, four pilgrims (XYJ)

5

Five Phases (wuxing)

Five Tiger Generals (SGYY), Five Gallants, Little Five

6

Multiple of three; the

Six Ding and Six Jia divinities (Daoist tradition), six

7

Seven

Gallants

highest yin number stars

of

campaigns from Mount Qi (SGYY), six realms of samsara (Buddhist tradition), six gods (ancient beliefs)

the Seven heroes, seven swords, Seven Fairies (Daoist

Northern Dipper; seven tradition), gathering of the seven stars (SHZ), seven planets

captures and releases of Meng Huo (SGYY)

8

Eight cardinal directions;

Eight hammers of the Yue family generals, Eight Great

9

Highest single-digit

Multiplied into 18, 36, 72, 91, 108

eight trigrams

number; square of three;

Kings (LZZY), Eight Immortals (Daoist tradition)

the highest yang number 10

10 fingers; decimal

Symbol of perfection: 10 beauties (Shimei tu zhuan 十

12

Number of months,

Gods of the 12 zodiac signs, Twelve Beauties of Jinling

numerical system

美圖傳 [The Paintings of Ten Beauties]) (HLM)

Source: Xiao, “Zhongguo gudian xiaoshuo de dianxing qun,” 32–33.

Note: HLM = Honglou meng; LZZY = Liaozhai zhiyi; SGYY = Sanguo yanyi; SHZ = Shuihu zhuan; XYJ = Xiyou ji

While the origins and exact symbolic meanings of the numbers may be debatable, the role of numbers in fiction is beyond doubt. From a macroscopic perspective, number patterns provide underlying structures for Ming and Qing fiction in three main ways: the number of chapters; numbers in character groupings; numbers in the narrative rhythm. Usually, the total number of chapters is a number suggesting completion. For example, Xiyou ji, Jin ping mei, and Shuihu zhuan consist of 100 chapters, while Honglou meng, Sanguo yanyi, and another version of Shuihu zhuan contain 120 chapters. When a work is composed of a special number of chapters, it would have been so for a reason. The original version of Honglou meng has 108 chapters instead of 120, and an abridged version of Shuihu zhuan has 72 chapters only, both numbers being a multiple of 9. Rulin waishi is composed of 55 chapters, the number related to wuxing.

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Number patterns in character groupings have been briefly presented in Table 5.1. In addition to the mentioned groups, we may take note of the 108 Liangshan heroes in Shuihu zhuan. As Xiao points out, the characters in these groupings often share the same destiny, as in the three sworn brothers in Sanguo yanyi, the Liangshan heroes, the four families in Houlou meng, and Ximen Qing plus his seven women (which makes eight persons). The narrative rhythm is commonly controlled by numbers. The attack of the Zhu Family Village and the borrowing of the banana leaf fan are achieved after three attempts, while the three entrances into the Rongguo Mansion mark the tipping point of the main family towards decline. In Rulin waishi, five major gatherings trace the development of the world of the literati from its heyday to its dissipation. Sinologist Andrew H. Plaks famously analyzes that Xiyou ji and Jin ping mei are divided into 10-chapter units, with “contrived symmetries between the first and second halves of the texts.”42 Overall, the reference to traditional number patterns can be interpreted as an intended attempt to reconcile all rebellious stories, events, and characters with a comprehensible cosmic order. Working hand in hand with number patterns is the third underlying structure: predestination. While number patterns work on an abstract level, predestination provides a more concrete structure to the plot by allowing all kinds of developments to be ascribed to fate. At the opening of Shuihu zhuan, for example, we are told that Marshal Hong mistakenly releases a total of 108 imprisoned demons — 36 Heavenly Spirits and 72 Earthly Fiends — who escape to the human world and end up becoming the 108 Liangshan outlaws. Likewise, in Honglou meng, Jia Baoyu is designed as the reincarnation of a piece of sentient stone, and his fate, together with that of the Twelve Beauties of Jinling, is predetermined and prescribed in the record of a Dreamland. Whether such explicit overall attribution to fate as in the two novels is present, in almost all fictional works of this period, the narrator constantly comments on characters and events based on beliefs in predestination as the story proceeds. Expressions like “Such is his destiny.” (ming gai ruci 命該如 此), “This doom is inescapable.” (nan tao ci jie 難逃此劫), and “It is destined that something will happen.” (hedang youshi 合當有事) are commonplaces. In this way, predestination integrates all changes and new things into the old framework, so that they become components of the old cultural system. Finally is retribution and rewards. Story development is typically guided by the principle of “What goes around comes around,” so as to provide the ultimate rational answer to all puzzling questions about the past and the present. This is especially useful in dealing with menacing new factors in the narratives. Therefore, 42. See Plaks, The Four Masterworks of the Ming Novel: Ssu ta ch’i-shu, esp. 497–98.

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in Xiyou ji, Sun Wukong is punished for wreaking mayhem in the Celestial Palace by being imprisoned for five centuries, and when he returns to the moral track, he is rewarded with Buddhahood. In Sanguo yanyi, the aggressive Cao father and son get what they deserve under the rule of the Sima clan. History is shown to abide by retributive justice. For the same reason, Jin ping mei, as a portrait of decaying society, must develop towards a tragic ending. In Ming and Qing fiction, retribution is an important tool of cultural reconciliation. All kinds of rebellious and unorthodox behavior are given either of two outcomes: one, repentance and redemption; two, impenitence and retribution. It is only a matter of time before justice is done.

Artistic features

The central role of poetry

Poetry had always been held with the highest regard in Chinese classical literature. Influenced by this tradition, Ming and Qing fiction writers habitually incorporated poetry in their narrative discourse. Not only so, but in fact poetry assumes a central position in these fictional works. Almost all of them are opened by a poem, which is often used to bring out the theme of the story. Key scenes and critical moments are related by shi, ci, or qu poetry, and sometimes references are made to poetry to highlight the significance of an incident. Chapter titles and headings are written in poetic couplets. Moreover, as poems are used in turning points and the conclusion, they connote predestination.

Diverse structures, common spirit

Plot structures in Ming and Qing fiction vary, but according to Sun, there are five structural types.43 The first is what he calls the “strung bead linear structure,” referring to a longer work made up by largely self-contained, yet somewhat connected episodes, much like how independent beads are strung on wooden rods on an abacus. Exemplary of this type is Shuihu zhuan. The second type is the “sectorshaped structure,” as demonstrated by Sanguo yanyi. In this multilayered novel covering a wide time span and myriad characters, Shu Han occupies the center of the sector, while Cao Wei and Eastern Wu sit at the two ends. It is only a sector, not a whole circle because the story focuses on military power struggles and has not ventured into other aspects of life at that time. The third is the “double-phi (Φ) structure,” with two groups of stories sometimes connected by the main character, as in the case of Xiyou ji. The story’s plot is linear, but it is composed of two main parts instead of a series of independent stories: Sun Wukong’s disturbances in 43. Sun, Ming Qing xiaoshuo lungao, 51–56.

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the Celestial Palace and the pilgrimage to the West; and Sun Wukong is the axis connecting the two parts. In most short stories as well as huaben stories consisting of an introductory story (rihua gushi 入話故事) and a main story (zhenghua gushi 正 話故事), however, the two parts are connected by the same message or lesson rather than a character. Fourth is the “circular web structure,” which is seen in Jin ping mei and Honglou meng. Take for example Honglou meng: The vicissitudes of the Jia clan form the principal vertical axis of the whole story, with the clan’s connections with different social classes being longitudes, while the life and fate of Jia Baoyu and the Twelve Beauties of Jinling constitute the horizontal axis, with the destiny of other characters being latitudes. Interwoven, all lines compose a circular web. Finally is the “frame-shaped patchwork structure” of Rulin waishi, which has neither a leading role nor a leading event, but multiple characters and stories fitted into a large frame. As Sun explains, the novel “can be opened or closed. If it is closed, it becomes a small folded rectangular frame. Its basic shape is that of a frame, not a line, but compared with many structural forms which contain numerous parallel stories in a frame, it is a big step forward.”44 Simply put, this “frame” is an abstract conceptual axis steering the plot. Without concrete central characters or events, the individual stories of Rulin waishi are glued by a conceptual theme, just like, as Lu Xun comments, “a patchwork quilt of silk.”45 And notwithstanding their diversities, these plot structures all hold on to the circular and symmetrical spirit of Chinese culture. Sanguo yanyi begins with the disintegration of the state and ends with its reunification, demonstrating the circularity of history. Jin ping mei, by the pleasure brought by money and lust at the start and the sorrow caused by the same desires at the close, demonstrates the circularity of fate. Xiyou ji shows a clear symmetry between the two main parts of the plot. Shuihu zhuan sees through the reincarnation of 108 demons and the final demise of the demon-turned heroes, with the rebellions in the first half forming a symmetry with the post-pacification second half. The subtle tension between the diverse plot structures and the common circular spirit enriches Ming and Qing novels with a unique interest.

Idiosyncratic realism

The predestination mindset so prevalent in Ming and Qing fiction does not mean that these works are all made out of the same mode. On the contrary, Ming and Qing fiction is unique in its rich content of details about real life and characters. 44. Ibid, 56.

45. Lu, A Brief History of Chinese Fiction, 274.

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The depiction of social networks and human relationships in Honglou meng is unparalleled. In character portrayal, while Sanguo yanyi from an earlier time represents type characters, the later creation of Honglou meng focuses on the idiosyncrasies of its characters, demonstrating a shift of balance from reconciliation to acknowledging transformation. Moreover, to bring characters to life, writers must temporarily put aside their moral judgment and step into the shoes of their characters. The graphic depictions of the behavior of lesser characters like thieves and whores, for example, especially in erotic fiction, add to the flavor of Ming and Qing fiction. The inclusion of details for artistic purposes beyond moral concerns has a countering effect on the underlying predestination structure, and conflicts as such enhance the aesthetic appeal of these works.

Chinese Opera: An Epitome of Formal Beauty

The Qing dynasty has been commonly conceived as a concluding dynasty. In terms of art, Chinese xiqu opera, as a popular art form during the Ming and Qing dynasties, has a concluding significance: it exemplifies a kind of formal beauty that condenses and embodies the richness of Chinese culture.

Origins and development

The development of Chinese opera was the most prosperous in the Ming and Qing dynasties. However, Chinese theater has a much longer history than that. From the primitive rituals of ancient times through the baixi 百戲 (an ancient form of gymnastics) of the Han dynasty, to the music and dance of the Tang dynasty and the zaju of the Song dynasty, we can see the prototypes of Chinese opera in previous dramatic forms. During the late years of the Northern Song dynasty, because of political and cultural geographical changes, Song zaju developed into Jin yuanben 金院本 (court text of the Jurchen Jin) in the north and nanxi 南戲 (southern drama) in the south. After the Mongols defeated the Jin dynasty, Yuan plays were composed on the basis of Song zaju and Jin yuanben. It has been discussed in the session on qu that because of the special political and cultural atmosphere of the Yuan dynasty, literary talent entered the realm of Chinese opera and composed excellent works of Yuan zaju. Representative writers of Yuan zaju included, in addition to Guan Hanqing, Wang Shifu, Bai Pu, and Ma Zhiyuan, Kang Jinzhi 康 進之, Gao Wenxiu 高文秀, Ji Qunxiang 紀群祥, Yang Xianzhi 楊顯之, Shi Qunbao 石 群寶, Shang Zhongxian 尚仲賢, Li Haogu 李好古, Li Zhifu 李直夫, Zhang Guobin 張國賓, Li Qianfu 李潛夫, Zheng Guangzu 鄭光祖, Gong Tianting 宮天挺, and Qin Jianfu 秦簡夫. Exemplary works such as Dou E yuan, Zhao Pan’er yanyue jiu fengchen 趙盼兒煙月救風塵 (usually abbreviated Jiu fengchen; In Mist and Moonlight Zhao

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Pan’er Rescues Her from the Windblown Dust), Guiyuan jiaren Baiyue ting 閨怨佳 人拜月亭 (usually abbreviated Baiyue ting; The Pavilion of Moon Worship), Xixiang ji, Qiangtou mashang 牆頭馬上 (On Horseback and Over the Garden Wall), Wutong yu 梧桐雨 (Rain on the Wutong Tree), Hangong qiu 漢宮秋 (The Sorrow of Han), Li Kui fujing 李逵負荊 (Li Kui of Liangshanbo Shoulders Thorns), Zhaoshi gu’er 趙氏孤 兒 (The Orphan of Zhao), Xiaoxiang yu 瀟湘雨 (Rain on the Xiaoxiang River), Liu Yi chuanshu 柳毅傳書 (Liu Yi Transmits a Letter), and Qiannü lihun 倩女離魂 (Qiannü Leaves Her Spirit) formed the aesthetic paradigm of Yuan zaju. With the demise of the Yuan and the rise of the Ming, Zhu Yuanzhang 朱元璋 established the capital of the Ming dynasty in Nanjing, and northern-style zaju declined as it moved to the south. On the basis of nanxi, the chuanqi of the Ming and Qing assimilated elements of beiqu 北曲 and became the dominant form of Chinese opera. In the early Ming dynasty, being endorsed by the emperor, Pipa ji 琵琶記 (The Story of the Lute) and the Four Model Operas — Jingchai ji 荊釵記 (The Story of the Vitex Hairpin), Liu Zhiyuan baitu ji 劉知遠白兔記 (The White Rabbit: the Tale of Liu Zhiyuan of the Five Dynasties Period), Baiyue ting, and Shagou ji 殺狗記 (Killing the Dog) — became widely popular. After they spread to different regions, adopting various dialects and mixing with local folk arts, four types of shengqiang 聲腔 (characteristic melodies) were formed. Among these variants, the styles of Yuyao 余姚, Haiyan 海鹽, Yiyang 弋陽, and Kunshan 昆山 were the most influential. The Yiyang and Kun (Kunshan) styles became even more dominant since the Jiaqing 嘉 慶 period of the Ming dynasty, rising as the representative melodies of the chuanqi of the Ming and Qing dynasties. By then the form of Chinese opera had basically taken shape, with systematization in five aspects. First, systematic and flexible gongdiao 宮調 (modes) and qupai 曲牌 (tune labels) had been developed. Examples include jiegong 借宮 (tunes borrowing neighboring gong modes), jiqu 集曲 (synthesized tunes), and nanbei hetao 南北合套 (mix of northern and southern tunes in a suite) in Kun melodies, and bangqiang 幫腔 (vocally accompanied tunes) and jieyong xiangyu 借用 鄉語 (tunes adapted for dialects) in Yiyang melodies. Second, branches of roles had become systematic, such as the “12 roles of the jianghu” (jianghu shi’er jiaose 江湖十 二腳色) in Kun opera. Third, musical instruments for accompaniment had been classified. For example, Kun opera classified wind, strings, and percussion, while Yiyang opera only used percussion instruments, which foregrounded its wild and bright character. Fourth, the fundamentals of stage art had been formed. Fifth, opera troupes had obtained fixed personnel and regular performing venues. There were three kinds of performances: The first kind was domestic troupes. During the Ming and Qing dynasties,

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almost all rich families employed Chinese opera troupes to show their wealth and taste. By the time of late Ming and early Qing, the scholarofficial class in Beijing, Nanjing, Suzhou, Yangzhou, and Hangzhou watched Chinese opera almost every day. Domestic performing troupes mainly served their masters. In times of celebrations and banquets, a large red carpet would be placed in the courtyard, and performances would take place on the carpet. In some larger courtyards and official residences, special stages were even built for the performance of domestic troupes. The second kind was professional troupes. They mainly performed in theaters, teahouses, temple fairs, plazas, and also ancestral temples and community halls that had operatic stages. They sometimes performed for rich and noble families as well. In rural villages, Yiyang troupes were more common. The third kind was court performing troupes. Since the reign of Qinlong of the Qing dynasty, Chinese opera was not only a constituting part of imperial everyday life but also a necessary program in national celebrations. Thanks to the financial support of the imperial court, the scale of these performances was unprecedented.46 In the mid-Qing, Chinese opera began to develop in two directions. Those Kun and jingqiang 京腔 (capital melody; the branch of Jiyang opera that was popular in the capital) operas that entered the court became more elegant, while those Kun and Yiyang operas that were circulated in the public became regionalized and assimilated into emerging regional opera genres, forming myriad forms of Chinese theater. In terms of genres, Chinese opera at that time can roughly be classified into three big groups: first, large genres with comprehensive formal configurations, such as Kun opera, Peking opera (Jingju 京劇), Han opera (Hanju 漢劇), Sichuan opera (Chuanju 川劇), Jiangxi opera (Ganju 贛劇), Shanxi opera (Jinju 晉劇), Henan opera (Yuju 豫劇), and Hebei clapper opera (Hebei bangzi 河北梆子); second, genres developed on the basis of folksongs and dance, such as flower drum opera (huagu xi 花鼓戲), tea picking opera (caicha xi 採茶戲), lantern opera (huadeng xi 花燈戲), and Huangmei opera 黃梅戲; third, genres developed on the basis of folk shuochang, such as Gangsu opera (Longju 隴劇), Daoist opera (daoju 道 劇), Jiangsu opera (Suju 蘇劇), and liuqin opera 柳琴戲.

Drama as literature

Chinese opera is a comprehensive art that contains elements of literature, painting, 46. Liu, ed., Zhongguo xiqu yishu jiaocheng, 32.

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sculpture, dance, and music. Adapted for the opera form, they also contribute to the formal beauty of the art. Chinese opera has two main literary aspects: narrative and poetry. The primary function of Chinese opera is the dramatization of stories, and to put a story on stage, it is necessary to break it down into parts. In Yuan zaju, these divisions are called “zhe” 折, and each opera has four zhe in addition to a xiezi 楔子 (prelude). In nanxi of the Song and Yuan dynasties and chuangqi of the Ming and Qing dynasties, a division is called a “chu” 出, and an opera can have as many as 40 or 50 chu. Zhe and chu may be comparable to “acts” in Western drama, but in Chinese opera, a zhe, chu, or chang 場 (scene) is not conceived as a point of visual focus on a fixed place. Instead, each of them contains temporally flexible linear episodes, tying in with the pursuit of entirety in Chinese art. To illustrate with an example, in a scene in the Peking opera Kongchengji 空城計 (The Empty City Stratagem), Ma Su appears and says that he has received an order to guard Jieting but does not know who the deputy general is. Then Wang Ping appears and says he is the deputy general. They both then order: “Send troops to Jieting!” And they leave the stage. This scene constitutes a complete episode. Following this, Sima Yi appears and orders Zhang Xia to lead the troops to take over Jieting. Then all actors exit as Sima closes the door. In the next scene, Ma Su and Wang Ping have an argument over where to set their camp sites, and Ma makes the decision.47 The three scenes altogether last for only about 10 minutes and take place in three different settings, but the performance is uninterrupted on stage in a linear form. If each chu has too much to convey, it can be subdivided into sections (duan 段). For example, the chu titled “Jingmeng” 驚夢 (A Startling Dream) in the Kun opera Mudan ting 牡丹亭 (The Peony Pavilion) is further divided into “Yaoyuan” 遊 園 (Travelling the Garden), “Duihua” 堆花 (A Heap of Flowers), and “Jingmeng.” Also, in “Zuo gong” 坐宮 (Sitting in the Palace) in Silang tanmu 四郎探母 (Silang’s Visit to His Mother), a Peking opera, after Yang Yanhui finishes singing a long song to express his homesickness, the section ends. As the princess appears, the setting does not change but another section begins. On the one hand, each section has a clear subject, indicating the structural aspect of an opera; on the other hand, the connections between divisions show a kind of linear beauty comparable to the cavalier perspective of Chinese painting. This performance style presents a linear continuation of points like the flow of clouds and water, showing a sense of dynamic beauty. Lines have rich connotations in Chinese calligraphy and painting, but these connotations can be briefly summarized as the fusion of strength and softness. In Chinese opera, linear beauty is realized by the antithesis as well as mutual complementation of yin and yang. Let’s look at Zhu’s analysis of Xixiang ji: 47. Zhu, Gudian xiqu bianju liulun, 123.

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Observing the large episodes, it is mainly composed of four parts. The first part covers Zhang Sheng’s visit to the temple, to Madame [Cui]’s breach of her promise to marry her daughter…. The central message is to show the development of the love between Zhang Sheng and Yingying towards marriage, and the obstruction to the marriage. The second part moves from their secret letter correspondence to their secret meetings and the interrogation of Hongniang, aiming at describing the secret cohabitation of Cui and Zhang which violates the social code and which is discovered. The third part goes from the farewell at the Long Pavilion to Zhang Sheng’s glorious return from his success in the Imperial Examination, mainly aiming at expressing the sorrow and bitterness of separation. The fourth part tells how Zhang Sheng defeats his rival, Zheng Heng, and the couple reunites. The structure of the whole opera is composed of the four parts of sorrow, joy, separation, and reunion.48 Zhu has another detailed analysis of Pipa ji which can illustrate the interaction between yin and yang in Chinese opera: The second chu, “Gaotang qingshou” 高堂慶壽 (The Birthday Celebration of the Parents) describes the reunion of the Cai family, reflecting the everyday life of the common people. (According to the format of chuanqi, the plot only begins in the second chu.) The third chu, “Niushi guinü” 牛氏規奴 (Lady Niu Rebukes the Maid) tells the strict ethical codes in the prime minister’s home. The two chu initiate the whole plot of the opera by pinpointing the juxtaposition between commoners and officials. Following this is the development of the two lines of the plot: first with two chu on the Cai family, “Caigong bishi” 蔡公逼試 (Caigong Forces His Son to Attend the Imperial Examination) and “Nanpu libie” 南浦離別 (Nanpu Farewell), which describe Cai Bojie attending the Imperial Examination; and then “Chengxiang jiaonü” 丞相教女 (The Prime Minister Teaches His Daughter) on the Niu family, which portrays the imposing manner of the prime minister’s house. Afterwards, the plot becomes more engaging as the arrangement of the chu begins to show an intertwining pattern of the positive and negative characters. “Caijun dengcheng” 才俊登程 (The Success of the Talented) and “Wenchang xuanshi” 文場選士 (Selection of Scholars) describe how Cai Bojie becomes the champion in the Imperial Examination and the happiness of the success. The following chu, “Linzhuang gantan” 臨妝感歎 (Lament in 48. Ibid, 138.

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Front of the Makeup Mirror) describes Zhao Wuniang’s sadness of missing her husband, which forms a big contrast with the happiness of Cai. Then, “Xingyuan chunyan” 杏園春宴 (The Spring Banquet in Xingyuan) tells of Cai Bojie attending a banquet and his parade on the street, followed by “Caimu jie’er” 蔡母嗟兒 (Cai’s Mother Sighs for Her Missing Son). After the contrast between the happiness and sadness of husband and wife, here presents the contrast between the happiness and sadness of son and mother. A turn of the plot comes next, describing how Cai Bojie rejects the emperor’s verdict that orders him to marry the prime minister’s daughter and take up an official position in the court. A total of five chu are used to communicate what can be seen as a unit of episodes. The arrangement of the five chu also shows an alternation between the positive and the negative…. In “Danbi chenqing” 丹陛陳情 (Telling the Truth to the Emperor), Cai’s rejection is turned down by the emperor and he is forced to marry the prime minister’s daughter…. It is a moving contrast that as Cai is preparing for his marriage and assuming his official post, “Yicang zhenji” 義倉賑濟 (The Aid from the Charitable Granary) depicts the famine in the hometown of Zhao Wuniang.49 The opera goes on with more chu that portray sadness and happiness alternatively. While one chu tells how Cai Bojie climbs up the social ladder by succeeding in the Imperial Examination and becoming the son-in-law of the prime minister, another reveals the suffering of Zhao Wuniang through the depiction of famine, hunger, the death of Zhao’s mother-in-law, and Zhao’s travel to the capital to look for her husband. The alternation between happiness and bitterness creates the dramatic effect of the opera.50 The linearity of the plots of Chinese opera is created by various oppositions, ups and downs, and twists that turn back and forth. We can say that the linear beauty of these stories embodies the interaction between yin and yang. Chinese opera is also similar to Chinese painting in that it presents the connections between points through the cavalier perspective and at the same time portrays the small through the big, which enables the audience to see the entirety. Long scenes are used to depict contradictions and conflicts, while short scenes are used to introduce the plot and pave the way for long scenes. Sometimes there is no speech from the actors in transitional scenes: “Through the length and scale of the narrative events … such as the intersecting changes in scenes — long scenes, short scenes, transitional scenes, round-up scenes, and joining scenes, changes 49. Ibid, 131–33. 50. Ibid.

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of rhythms are created.”51 For most of the time, all conflicts are resolved and the drama closes with a happy ending. As with other Chinese arts, circularity is the overall spirit of Chinese drama. By now, we can sum up Chinese drama by three geometric features: “line,” “curve,” and “circle.” On top of the plot structure, the lines, curves, and circles in Chinese drama are achieved through the four elements of singing (chang 唱), acting (zuo 做), speech (nian 唸), and acrobatics (da 打). Among these four elements, singing is the most important. The songs (i.e., qu) in Chinese opera are in poetic form. As a performing art, Chinese opera has a strong visual appeal, but in essence, its emotional aspect is even more significant. Important scenes are always sung. Chinese opera is about the human psyche, and lyrical expression is conveyed through poetry singing. The central role of singing in Chinese opera is seen by the fact that genre classification is carried out along the line of changqiang 唱腔 (vocal melodic style). We can say that by the combination of poetry and singing, poetry, as the most highly regarded form of Chinese art, becomes the soul of Chinese opera. For poetry to be dramatized, it has to adapt to the narrative mode in presenting the idiosyncrasies of the characters; in an opera, it also has to adapt to the musical requirements of the stage. But more importantly, dramatic stories are poeticized, so even unsung speeches acquire a poetic rhythm and tone. For example, a monolog by Xiang Yu in Bawang bieji 霸王別姬 (Farewell My Concubine) reads: Ah, my lady! Since I started commanding troops More than 70 battles I have fought. Never have I failed any invasion Nor have I lost any battle. But now I am trapped in Gaixia, With no more food within, And no reinforcement without. What face do I have left to see my fathers and elders at home again? As I see it, Today will be the day that we part!

呵呀妃子 想孤出兵以來 大小七十余戰 攻無不取 戰無不勝 如今被困垓下 內無糧草 外無救兵 孤日後有何臉面再見江東 父老 據孤看來 今日是你我分別之日了

As Liu comments, in this monolog, “through alternation between stressed and unstressed intonations, mutual displacement between high and low [pitches], long and short [lines], light and heavy [accents], and fast and slow [paces], and the 51. Lan, Zhongxi xiju bijiao lungao, 450–51.

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opposition and synthesis of level and oblique tones, the linguistic rhythm, from inner emotions to the external form, is presented in undulating and harmonic rise and fall.”52 The poetization of speech in Chinese opera is mainly actualized by the actors’ musical recitation, especially the manipulation of grammatical particles. For example, both Yuji’s line in Bawang bieji: “Thinking about it, I feel really sorrowful” (思想起來，好不感傷人也), and Yang Guifei’s line in Taizhen waichuan 太真外傳 (The Informal Biography of Taizhen): “Looking over to the palace walls from afar, I feel really sorrowful” (遙望宮牆，好不感傷人也) end with the particle “也,” which is articulated in a long tone, creating an effect of poetic infinity.

Drama as visual art

Painting as an element of Chinese opera comes down to two aspects: stage designs and the characters’ costume and makeup, especially the masks. Regarding the stage, “in the early days the norm was to have one whole back curtain. Later it was split into three pieces: the large middle piece was hung on the wall board with two smaller ones hung on the side doors.”53 In other words, in traditional Chinese opera, doors, curtains, a platform, and a tent already constitute the stage. The stage is empty with a blank backdrop that does not specify a definite setting, and it is precisely because of this blankness that the stage can accommodate any time and place, just like the connotative white space in Chinese painting. The time and place are established once the characters appear on stage, and once they exit, the time and place change accordingly. Temporal and spatial changes can even be conveyed through the singing, acting, speech, and acrobatics of the characters even without their exit. The blank backdrop of the Chinese opera stage provides for the flexibility of temporal and spatial changes during the performance. Since the goulan theater of the Song dynasty (see chapter 4), the stage of Chinese opera has been a thrust stage. The division of the stage is designed “with the center of the carpet as the middle point where the vertical and horizontal axes are drawn and intersect with the diagonal axes.” With this, the stage is divided into seven zones, as demonstrated in Fig. 5.8: middle (A), middle front (B), right middle (C), left middle (D), middle back (E), right middle back (F), and left middle back (G).54 The division of the stage is derived from the cross-grids of Chinese calligraphy, in which any character can be written with the regulation of the grid lines. Observing 52. Ibid, 484.

53. Liu, Zhongguo xiqu yishu jiaocheng, 306.

54. Lan, Zhongguo xiju bijiao lungao, 357.

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Fig. 5.8 Traditional division of the stage

F

G E A

B C

D

Source: Lan, Zhongxi xiju bijiao lungao. 357.

Fig. 5.9 Paradigmatic movement paths

Closing lotus

Sneaking into a smoking pipe

Two dragons coming out of water

A dragon wagging its tail

Digging a door

Head of a sparrowhawk

Source: Lan, Zhongxi xiju bijiao lungao. 360.

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from the middle point, the grid lines extend in the eight directions, just like the eight trigrams that encompass everything. The emptiness of the stage and the implicit laws in stage division regulate the variety and aesthetic effects of stage performance: “For example, stage directions for walking, chasing, confrontation, and fighting are given in pictorial patterns, such as ‘nei hehua’ 內荷花 (closing lotus), ‘zuan yantong’ 鑽 煙筒 (sneaking into a smoking pipe), ‘erlong chushui’ 二龍出水 (two dragons coming out of water), ‘long baiwei’ 龍擺尾 (a dragon wagging its tail), ‘wamen’ 挖門 (digging a door), and ‘yaor tou’ 鷂兒頭 (head of a sparrowhawk). Even the routes for entrance and exit are designed in ‘S’ curves like a dragon wagging its tail for aesthetic effects” (see Fig. 5.9).55 Usually, a table and two chairs are the only set props on the Chinese opera stage. The table is a generic prop whose function will change in accordance with the need of the plot: “When drinking tea, it serves as a tea table. When a few wine cups are put on it, it is a dining table. When brushes and an inkstone are displayed, it becomes a study desk. When an official seal is placed on it, it is a judge’s desk. When only an incense burner is put on it, it is the emperor’s desk at an imperial audience.…”56 The table can also be conceived as a mountain, a tower, a bridge, or a boat. For the chairs, in addition to serving as seats for the characters in different contexts, they can also represent other things just like the table: When a chair is inverted (called an “inverted chair”), it is an earth platform or a rock. It can also be used as a prison gate (as in Dou E yuan). When the characters have to climb over a wall, ascend to a high place, or draw water from a well … a chair is used to represent the wall, the short wall, and the well platform. When two chairs are put together, they can represent a bed. The positions of the actors and the rough distance between them as designated by different paradigms of the table and chairs … can be used to indicate the characters’ relative status, the features of the environment, and even the characters’ psychological changes. For example, in Sanjizhang 三擊掌 (The Three Claps), when Wang Yun converses with his daughter in the living room, “small seat and single side chair” (xiaozuo dan kuayi” 小座單跨椅) is used, but when the two characters have a dispute over the daughter’s marriage, the “side chair” is moved to be a “door chair” (menyi 門椅), signifying the psychological distance between them.57 55. Ibid, 361.

56. Research Institute of Chinese Opera, Chinese National Academy of Arts, ed., Zhongguo xiqu lilun yanjiu wenxuan, vol. 2, 44–45.

57. Liu, Zhongguo xiqu yishu jiaocheng, 311. In what translates as “small seat and single side

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The doors, curtains, platform, tent, table, and chairs on the stage constitute the almost empty but connotative set of Chinese opera. Once the characters enter, the empty stage is enlivened and substantialized. Grabbing attention with their unique face masks and costumes, which indicate their identities and personalities, they immediately bring the audience to a particular time and space. After a long period of evolution, Chinese opera masks matured greatly over the period from the mid-Ming to the mid-Qing, becoming more diversified and refined thereafter. Peking opera has the most abundant and influential varieties of masks, including zhenglian 整臉 (whole face), suilian 碎臉 (fragmented face), wailian 歪臉 (distorted face), laolian 老臉 (old face), polian 破臉 (broken face), yuanbao lian 元寶臉 (ingot face), liufen lian 六分臉 (six tenth face), fenbai lian 粉白臉 (white powder face), san kuai wa 三塊瓦 (three tiles), shizi men 十字門 (cross door), and doufukuai lian 豆腐塊臉 (tofu face). Gu explains: Zhenglian is to have the whole face painted in one color, and then outline the eyebrows, eyes, nose, mouth, and facial texture on it, as is applied to Guan Yu in Dandao hui and Bao Zheng in Zha Mei An 鍘美案 (The Case of the Decapitation of Mei). For suilian, besides outlining the eyebrows and eyes, facial patterns are painted in a major color, and auxiliary colors are applied on other parts to create fragmented patterns; examples are Yang Qilang in Jinshatan 金沙灘 (The Golden Beach) and Shan Xiongxin in Suowulong 鎖 五龍 (Execution of Xiongxin). Wailian refers to distorted depiction of facial features, such as a crooked mouth and squinted eyes. This is usually used in portraying ferocious or ugly men, such as Li Qi in Shen Qi changting 審七 長亭 (The Case of Li Qi and Wang Liang) and Zheng En in Dagua yuan 打瓜 園 (Stealing a melon). Laolian has drooping eyes with two white eyebrows that hang down to the ears. This is applied to old characters, such as Huang Gai in Qunying hui 群英會 (The Gathering of Heroes) and Xu Yanzhao in Er jin gong 二進宮 (Entering the Palace Twice). Polian refers to adding some patterns to a zhenglian to break its wholeness. It is usually applied to villains or dubious heroes, such as Jiang Wei in Tianshui guan 天水關 (The Sky Water Pass). Yuanbao lian is also known as banjie lian 半截臉 (half face). The forehead is not painted, while the part of the face below the eyebrows and eyes is rendered into a hualian 花臉 (painted face) in the shape of a yuanbao, as with Wang Dong in Ehu cun 惡虎村 (The Ferocious Tiger Village) and Ma Han in Zha Mei An. For liufen lian, the facial pattern is drawn at a chair,” “small seat” means that a chair is placed before the table, and “single side chair” one chair is placed on a side of the table. — Ed.

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lower level than usual, only occupying six tenths of the face; an example is Weichi Gong in Jingde zhuangfeng 敬德裝瘋 (Jingde Pretends to be Crazy). Fenbai lian refers to coloring the whole face in white powder and painting the features and texture with black ink. It is used on treacherous characters such as Yan Song in Da Yan Song 打嚴嵩 (Beating Yan Song) and Gao Qiu in Yezhu lin 野豬林 (Wild Boar Forest). San kuai wa means highlighting the eyebrows, eyes, and nose on the basis of a zhenglian so that the major color on the forehead and the two cheeks appear as flat as three tiles. This mask is usually applied to heroes and warriors, such as Zhuan Zhu in Ci wang Liao 刺王僚 (The Assassination of King Liao) and Guan Sheng in Shou Guan Sheng 收關勝 (Conquer Guan Sheng). Shizi men is also known as hudie lian 蝴蝶臉 (butterfly face). A long line is drawn from the forehead to the tip of the nose, and a horizontal line is drawn above the eyes to form a cross to serve as the backbone of the composition of the mask. Yao Qi in Caoqiao guan 草橋關 (The Grass Bridge Pass) is an example. Doufukuai lian refers to painting a rectangular area by white powder, and it is so called because the area is shaped like a piece of tofu. It is applied on clown roles (choujue 丑角), such as Jiang Gan in Qunying hui.58 Chinese opera masks are a technique of exaggeration that turns the face into paradigmatic visual symbols for specific moral qualities and personality traits. Different colors represent different traits; for example, red for loyalty, purple for filial piety, black for righteousness, pink for old age, watery white for treachery, oily white for arrogance, yellow for ruthlessness, grey for greed, blue for brutality, and gold and silver for deities and supernatural beings. By this, the audience can tell the basic nature of the characters right away. Costumes are also governed by paradigmatic symbolism. The court robe (mang 蟒), for instance, already has nearly 20 types. The performance of Chinese opera proceeds in a continuous manner from the beginning to the end. In order to give the audience a better grasp of the flow of the story, pausing devices including liangxiang 亮相 (stylized posing, literally “to reveal one’s face”) and dingxing 定型 (freeze posing), are common. This constitutes a sculpting effect for Chinese opera. Similar to opera masks and costumes, liangxiang and dingxing also convey symbolic meanings and serve decorative purposes, which are present in Chinese sculpture. The sculpting aspect is also seen in the still standing pose of minor characters when the main character is singing. This was particularly conspicuous when Chinese opera transformed from Yuan opera 58. Gu, “Lianpu yishu lüelun,” 65–66.

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to Kun opera and singing obtained a central role.

Dramatized dance and martial arts

In addition to singing and speech, acting and acrobatics are also important components of Chinese opera. They witness the dramatization of two forms of long-existing Chinese art: dance and martial art. Acting, or zuo, refers to changes in voice, movements, and facial expressions, while acrobatics, or da, refers to scenes of martial art or vigorous movements such as somersaults, pouncing, tumbling, and turning. Acrobatics mainly concerns plot actions. Comparatively, acting includes both plot actions — such as opening and closing the door, going upstairs and downstairs, horse-riding and boating, writing, and doing embroidery — and emotional expression — such as through helmet feather skills (lingzi gong 翎子功) in which the pair of pheasant tail feathers on the warrior’ helmet (i.e., lingzi) are swayed to convey different emotions: happiness by making them spin-dance like a bat, anxiety by making them bend like dragonflies touching the water surface, and thoughtfulness by stirring them in the manner of two dragons playing a ball.59 Acting also conveys the character of characters through beard skills (nian ran gong 捻髯功): “A character that wears a three-part beard (san ran 三髯) twists the tip of the long beard by the cheeks and poses as if in deep thinking. Jiang Gan in Daoshu 盜書 (Stealing the Letter) wears a ‘bazidiao’ 八字吊 beard [an inverted v-shaped beard with a small strand handing down from the tip of the “v”], his twisting of the beard indicating his complacence…. Martial clowns (wuchou 武丑) such as Zhu Guangzu twists his ‘ertiao’ 二挑 beard [a v-shaped beard] and rolls his eyes to show his wit and smartness.”60 Acting and acrobatics in Chinese opera make use of everything available to assist the performance, in sync with the cultural magnanimity of the Chinese mind. Body parts such as beards, hair, teeth, and eyes; costumes such as hat flaps, ribbons, pleats, water sleeves, and helmet feathers; props such as fans, flags, horse whips, and weapons; and natural phenomena such as fire, clouds, and water are brought in to enrich acting movements: “Xuanzi 旋子 (turn) is derived from the flying movements of bats, hutiao 虎跳 (jumping tiger), puhu 撲虎 (advancing tiger), and daochahu 倒插虎 (handstanding advancing tiger) are derived from the jumping movements of tigers. Imaginary movements of dragons include wulong jiaozhu 烏龍 絞柱 (black dragon coiling around a pillar) and erlong xizhu 二龍戲珠 (two dragons playing with a ball).”61 The elaborate formulae of actions have to be in line with 59. Dong and Qu, Xiqu biaoyan de shishua jiqiao, 4. 60. Ibid, 31. 61. Ibid, 97.

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the plot and demonstrate the character traits and inner emotions of the characters. Observe the actions of Kuang Zhong the judge in Shiwu guan 十五貫 (Fifteen Strings of Cash), who is caught in a mental dilemma as he, knowing that the defendant is innocent but finding himself powerless to alter the course, is about to announce a death sentence nonetheless: He holds the brush high above the paper, his hand quivering and the brush shaking. Amid the sounding of drums and gongs, he slowly lowers the brush, and when the brush tip approaches the paper, he shouts all of a sudden: “Injustice!” A loud sound from the gong follows, and he holds up the brush again. This set of actions is repeated for several times, so that the brush appears as if it weighs a thousand pounds. His hesitation is vividly and emphatically represented through the movement of a brush.62 Another example is the playboy Gao Yanei in Yanyang lou 豔陽樓 (Tower of the Bright Sun), whose “punches and kicking are unique in style and manner, but are flighty instead of skillful, especially the three times of getting on a horse. Depending on different contexts, the mastery of skills, rhythms, and scales differs. In the later fighting scenes, ordinary martial art instruments such as stone barbells and stone locks and gaudy, springy, and handsome-looking moves consistent with the character’s role and character are employed.”63 The acting and acrobatics of Chinese opera show features of lines, curves, and circles in terms of dance principles. The pathways of dance movements are regulated by lines as discussed in the part on stage directions. Curves are conspicuous in the dance formulations of acting and acrobatics: When posing shanbang 山膀 (hill-shaped upper arms), the dancer raises his arms to the shoulder level and bends his wrists forward forcefully. Because of this bending, the forearms become curved. Tijin 提襟 (raising garment front), which is also known as tijia 提甲 (raising an armour), refers to holding the front of the garment and making it shaped like an amour by raising the arms horizontally so that each hand, forearm, and upper arm form a curve. The two curves formed by the two arms, together with the shoulders, make another half circle that surrounds the body. Tijin and shanbang sometimes are combined to become tijin shanbang, which means one arm is posed as tijin and the other arm is posed as shanbang. These three actions are the commonest poses for liangxiang in Chinese opera…. “Curve” is also 62. Zhu, Gudian xiqu bianju liulun, 16.

63. Liu, Zhongguo xiqu yishu jiaocheng, 143.

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presented in poses that involve movements of the lower part of the body…. Jinji duli 金雞獨立 (golden rooster standing on one leg), that is, duantui 端腿 (raised leg), means one leg standing straight and the other leg raised horizontally and bending in an acute angle at the knee. The ankle also bends inward to form another curve…. For chaotiandeng 朝天蹬 (extending the sole skyward), … the dancer raises a leg vertically with the sole facing up, expressing imposing dignity. The leg that points upward should look straight and strong, showing the power of the dancer. But even then the ankle has to be bent backward and supported by a curved arm. Moreover, the raised leg has to be held horizontally at the waist level and bent at the knee so as to be raised up. The action in the process still creates an impression of a curve. Compared to “curve,” “circle” is a more common and inclusive feature. Classical dancer Su Zuqian summarizes the experience of Chinese opera performers and remarks that the “circle” has layers of connotations in classical dance. For example, the trajectories of the movements of the limbs and the body on stage have to be circular or curved. Poses ask for the smoothness and roundness of body lines. Moreover, classical Chinese dance emphasizes that body movements … follow the principle of starting a pose from the direction opposite to that which is desired, so that poses are connected by curved trajectories of body movements, creating an impression of smooth and fluid spatial dynamism. As regard body movements on stage, walking in a circle is the most prominent circular act. When walking in a circle, the body, especially the legs, is subtly controlled with force, contracting inward. During the forward movement, the sole of a foot follows the heel of the other foot closely on a circular, horizontal “8”-shaped, or snake-shaped path. In order to solidify the circular sense of the trajectory of advancement, the dancer’s body leans towards the circle center as if there is a centripetal force. For gestures that focus on the movements of the upper limbs, the poses of shanbang and tijin turn the arms into curves or bow-shaped lines, while yunshou 雲手 (cloud hands), xiaowuhua 小五花 (little five pattern), and dadaohua 大刀花 (large knife pattern) require the dancer to move his arms in a series of curves or horizontal “8”-shaped lines…. For gestures that focus on the movements of the lower limbs, piantui 蹁 腿 (splaying leg) and gaitui 蓋腿 (covering leg), feijiao 飛腳 (flying legs), and xuanzi are examples of circular movements. Piantui requires the dancer to kick out a leg and have it draw a half circle in the air from the inside to the outside, whereas gaitui demands the kicked-up leg to draw a half circle in the air from the outside to the inside. If the two are combined, so that the

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dancer kicks out a leg and has it draw a half circle from inside to outside, and kicks out the other and has it draw a half circle from the outside to the inside while the body leaps in the air, with a hand striking the sole of the gaitui, it becomes feijiao. When performing xuanzi, the dancer twists his waist and holds his trunk horizontally in the air whilst his legs draw curves in the air alternatively.64 Playwright Ouyang Yuqian summarizes: “All dance movements of Peking opera are circular…. It has inherited from Kun opera the art of circle drawing.”65 Under the context of Chinese culture, it is not difficult to recognize that the square and quiet stage of Chinese opera symbolizes Earth while the circular and dynamic dance performance of acting and acrobatics symbolizes Heaven. Chinese opera performance encompasses the interaction between Heaven and Earth in Chinese philosophy. The lines, curves, and circles of acting and acrobatics in Chinese opera correspond with those of the plot, both manifesting the Chinese cultural spirit.

Music in theater

Music connects all aspects of Chinese opera to form a complete performance. The music of Chinese opera can be classified from different perspectives. In terms of shengqiang, four shengqiang are formed in the development of Chinese opera: Kunqiang, gaoqiang 高腔 (high-pitched melody), bangziqiang 梆子腔 (clapper melody), and pihuangqiang 皮黃腔 (xipi-erhuang melody). The same shengqiang can be used in different dramatic genres; for example, Kunqiang is used in Kun opera, Peking opera, Sichuan opera, and Hunan opera (Xiangju 湘劇). On the other hand, different shengqiang can be used in the same genre; for example, xipi, erhuang, gaobozi 高撥 子, and chuiqiang 吹腔 (flute-accompanied melody) are used in Peking opera. In terms of musical structure, two systems can be distinguished: qupai liantao ti 曲 牌聯套體 (tune label aggregate system) and banshi bianhua ti 板式變化體 (rhythm variation system). The former refers to the composition of a set of opera music by choosing from numerous qupai a group of tunes in accordance with the needs of the plot, while the latter refers to musical arrangements made out of variations in rhythm, melody, and tempo to paradigmatic tunes or shengqiang. In terms of musical constitution, opera music is made up of vocal and instrumental music. In Chinese opera, vocal music is the principal part because of the superiority of singing and speech. Vocal music is classified according to roles (e.g. laosheng 老 64. Xie, Renti wenhua: gudianwu shijie li de Zhongguo yu xifang, 98–103.

65. Ouyang, “Wo zenyang xuehuile yan jingxi: 1951–1959 nian yishu lunwen xuan,” 212.

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生 [older male roles], xiaosheng 小生 [younger male roles], hualian 花臉 [paintedface roles], qingyi 青衣 [virtuous female roles], and huadan 花旦 [vivacious female roles]): “Different roles not only perform different tunes and rhythm types in terms of their changqiang, but their singing also varies in style in aspects such as vocal register and singing style because of differences in the rhythm and sounding of melodic progression. Sometimes in order to suit the enunciation of different roles, corresponding customs and principles are formed for the wording of the lyrics.”66 The function of instrumental music in Chinese opera is mainly for accompanying the singing and the acting, creating the atmosphere, and controlling the pace of the performance: “A vigorous suona 嗩吶 [a double-reed woodwind instrument] tune, such as “Shuilong yin,” can heighten the solemnity of the general’s tent, whereas an elegant huqin 胡琴 [a spike fiddle] tune, such as “Liu Qingliang” 柳青娘, can enliven the everyday life of the boudoir of Sun Yujiao. Sometimes even a light strike of a small gong can mimic the sound of wind and create a chilly sense for the spartan home of Zhu Maichen.”67 For controlling the pace of the performance, percussion instruments are the most important: “Although operatic gongs and drums can only create contrasts in rhythm and timbre but not melodic changes, their function can be fully exerted with their abundant tonal and rhythmic variations. They also have a comprehensive and well-designed system of combinations, making them very performative.”68 Percussion music controls the pace of the whole dramatic performance and connects transitions and changqiang, simultaneously coordinating and guiding actions and emotions. Its “guiding” role implies its central status in the instrumental part of Chinese opera music. A strike of the drum at an accurate timing can signal the actor to enter the designated setting. When a huadan enters with the accompaniment of small gongs, the action looks lively and delightful. With a series of chaotic strikes, we can feel the anxiety of the characters. In Liuyue xue 六月雪 (June Snow), a Peking opera, the county official exits with his yamen runner over the percussion style “jiji feng” 急急風 (gusty wind), which is followed by the slow and solemn “zhuang jinzhong” 撞金鐘 (striking golden bells), and Dou E is brought onto the stage by two executors. The accompanying percussion creates a chilly atmosphere. In the Kun opera Lankeshan 爛柯山 (Lanke Mountain), when Zhu Maichen becomes a high official at last, the souna accompanies his singing of “Xinshui ling” along with large gongs, constituting the imposing manner of the parade. Chinese opera is the perfect combination of drama and music. The dramatic aspect (that is, the story) is performed through costumes and props, 66. Liu, Zhongguo xiqu yishu jiaocheng, 240. 67. Ibid, 241. 68. Ibid, 245.

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singing, speech, acting, and acrobatics on the stage, while the music of drums and gongs unifies the whole performance. Chinese opera encompasses the principles of all forms of Chinese art. In theoretical terms, this kind of formal aesthetic is manifested through formularization and virtualization. The classification of roles is formularized: sheng (male roles), dan (female roles), jing 淨 (painted-face roles), and chou (clown roles). Each basic role has its subcategories; for example, sheng can be categorized into laosheng, xiaosheng, and wusheng 武生 (martial art males), and under xiaosheng, there are further subtypes such as zhongsheng 中生 (middle-age males), guansheng 冠生 (crown-wearing males, including kings, nobles, and officials), and qiongsheng 窮生 (poor males). Based on the role system, masks and costumes are also formularized, as well as singing and speech. For singing styles, laosheng use the modal voice, a bright and loud chest voice, or “yun zhe yue” 雲遮月 (“cloud covering the moon,” metaphor for a type of voice that sounds dry at the beginning but increasingly mellow as it goes on), while xiaosheng use both the modal voice and falsetto, with martial art roles singing in a strong and powerful voice and civil (wen 文) roles shifting flexibly between tough and soft voices. Older dan roles use the modal voice and a bright and loud chest voice, qingyi use a mellow and bright falsetto, and guimendan 閨門旦 (female roles in the boudoir) use a greener, more delicate falsetto. Jing roles use the modal voice, those who have a high social status have a sonorously deep and mighty voice, and chou roles rarely sing but usually express themselves by speeches and actions. Likewise, acrobatics movements are always formularized. One purpose of formularization is to create constantly identifiable types for easy association. Another purpose is to communicate temporal and spatial transitions through programmed movements of the actors, thereby creating virtual time and space. From indoor to outdoor, and from one place to another, the audience can imagine the details of the scenes by recognizing formulated actions on the sparse stage; for example, whipping indicates horse-riding and paddling suggests a boat ride. As virtual stage performance depends heavily on formulated actions, formularization contributes to the formal beauty and cultural significance of Chinese opera.

Literati Painting: Myriad Manifestations of Individuality

Literati painting, or wenren hua, represents the highest level of Chinese painting. Formulated in the Northern Song period, popularized in the Yuan dynasty, and dominating the painting circle of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing, it also encompasses

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the rich implications of the second phase of ancient Chinese culture. The coming into being of this art form has to be ascribed to the literati’s independent selfawareness in a period of cultural transformation. As one of the most representative figures of these independent-minded scholars, Su Shi opposed the florid style of prose writing and brought classical prose to a new height, developed heroic-style ci poetry amid the prevailing restrained trend, and pioneered prose sketches which prefigured the xiaopin essays of the Ming and Qing while classical prose was still in the mainstream. But most importantly, he was an iconic figure in literati painting who laid the theoretical and formal foundation for the development of the painting genre that best fitted the literati. And this theoretical foundation was not only aesthetically profound but also culturally inclusive — a quality that enabled literati painting to expand in multiple directions. In the Yuan dynasty there emerged the idiosyncratic landscape style of the Four Masters of the Yuan dynasty (Yuan si jia 元四家), Huang Gongwang 黃公望, Wu Zhen 吳鎮, Ni Zan, and Wang Meng 王蒙, which developed over time into the untrammeled, wild style of late Ming and early Qing painters like Xu Wei and the Four Monk Painters, especially Zhu Da. Meanwhile, on the other hand, the classical style represented by Dong Qichang and the Four Wangs drew equal attention. Past the mid-Qing period, the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou inherited the wild style while blending it with Shitao’s attention to daily life objects. The varied styles of literati painting contain convergent and divergent layers of aesthetic significance. If qu, xiaopin essays, woodblock prints, fiction, and xiqu are novel and vulgar art forms that assimilate new thoughts and taste into old aesthetics, then literati painting will be differentiated as a classical form that advocates old ideologies on top of expressing new concepts. In this sense, literati painting will provide a thought-provoking conclusion to the social, ideological, and cultural complexities of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasty. To take a long view, mainstream Chinese painting styles followed the evolutionary trajectories of figure painting to landscape painting, color-andink painting to ink wash painting, and court painting to literati painting. In the Song dynasty, the latter two styles reflected two important dispositions in cultural transformation: court painting demonstrated the emphasis on skills and realism against the backdrop of scientific and technological development, whereas literati painting embodied the spiritual dimension in the context of philosophical development. Thus the triumph of literati painting in assuming the seat of mainstream painting genre revealed a broad cultural significance that went beyond its own art form.

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The pivotal role of Zhao Mengfu

A key person in this historic transition was Zhao Mengfu 趙孟頫 of the late Song and early Yuan. It is said that “literati painting was kicked off by Dongpo [i.e., Su Shi], its door wide open by the time of Songxue [i.e., Zhao Mengfu].”69 While Su established the framework for the development of literati painting with his comprehensive grasp of Chinese art, Zhao, with equal versatility, was the one who realized the crystallization of literati painting theories. Three theoretical aspects were clarified:

Incorporation of the calligraphic spirit

Since the time of Gu Kaizhi of the Eastern Jin, Chinese painters had valued the relationship between calligraphy and painting; however, this association had not been brought into painting works until the Song dynasty, when the literati began considering calligraphic inscriptions an element in picture compositions. In this, Zhao Mengfu was instrumental because he stepped up to make this incorporation a basic rule of painting and set down the links between the two arts in theoretical terms. This is established in the oft-quoted colophon to his “Outstanding Rocks and Sparse Grove” (Xiushi shulin tu 秀石疏林圖), which is written in the form of jueju: Rocks are like the flying-white, trees are like the large seal; Drawing bamboo goes back to mastering the eight-part method. If people understand this, They will know calligraphy and painting come from the same root.

石如飛白木如籀 寫竹還於八法通 若也有人能會此 方知書畫本來同

Here, “flying-white” (baimu 白木) and “large seal” (Zhou 籀) are calligraphic scripts, and “eight-part method” refers to “bafen” 八分, a style of the seal script. In other words, Chinese painting and calligraphy share the same techniques. Zhao’s greatest contribution was yet not his succinct summation of this link, but his tactful application of the theory. “Outstanding Rocks and Sparse Grove” (Fig. 5.10) totally lives up to its mission of epitomizing the inscription: Rocks are drawn by the slanted tip (cefeng 側鋒) and a flying brush, with folded-strap texture strokes (zhedai cun 折帶皴) impressing the eye. Several branches of thorns and twigs are treated with dark ink and the centered tip 69. Wang, Yiyuan zhiyan, scroll 4.

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(zhongfeng 中鋒) of the large seal script, quaint and vigorous. Bamboo and bushes are rendered with the eight-part method, giving optimal expression to the interest of calligraphy and ink. Ink and blank space intersect as if dancing; painting and calligraphic techniques are seamlessly blended.70 Zhao’s combination of calligraphy with painting enhanced the cultural depth of literati painting and differentiated the genre from other “lower” types of painting. On the most basic level, this required that literati painters master calligraphic techniques. To go one step further, they would also have to grasp the artistic contact points of calligraphy and painting. Most importantly is yet the aesthetic, conceptual influence of adopting the calligraphic approach to painting: realistic objective representation would have to give way to impressionistic capturing of the spirit of things. Thanks to Zhao, the disregard of form or shape (xing) became a fundamental principle of literati painting in the Song dynasty. Fig. 5.10 “Outstanding Rocks and Sparse Grove,” Zhao Mengfu, Yuan, handscroll, ink on paper, 27.5 x 62.8 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Thematic and stylistic broadening

Zhao demonstrated his painting theories in his own works, attempting at and exceling in a wide range of themes, such as landscapes, human figures, flowers and birds, bamboo and rocks, and horses. His painting styles and techniques also proved to be versatile: the realistic gongbi 工筆 (“meticulous brush”) and the expressive xieyi 寫意 (“sketching thoughts”), ink and colors and ink alone, airy and dense — he was a master of them all. His diverse portfolio perfectly demonstrates the inclusiveness of literati painting. It can be said that Zhao harbingered the 70. Li, Zhongguo meishu shi, vol. 2, 214.

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expansive development of literati painting in the upcoming Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties.

Advocacy of simple spontaneity, archaism, and naïve crudeness

Among Zhao’s diverse styles, simple spontaneity, archaism, and naïve crudeness were the most consequential. His simple composition is best exhibited by “Landscape of Wuxing” (Wuxing qingyuan tu 吳興清遠圖) (Fig. 5.11), while “Water Village” (Shuicun tu 水村圖) (Fig. 5.12) exemplifies plain brushwork. Simplicity manifests a carefree spirit, whereas spontaneity suggests an emphasis on the individual mind and soul. Simple spontaneity was to become a hallmark of literati painting; it is also a state that is notoriously difficult to achieve. The works of the most venerated literati painter of the Yuan dynasty, Ni Zan, are characterized by simple spontaneity. Zhao’s archaism is telling in his “Training the Horse” (Tiaoliang tu 調良圖) (Fig. 5.13), which is drawn with brushstrokes inspired by Tang dynasty paintings. Just as simple spontaneity, archaism highlights the artistic aspect of painting as opposed to realism, thus elevating the value of the soul in art. Fig. 5.11 “Landscape of Wuxing,” Zhao Mengfu, Yuan, handscroll, ink on silk, 25 x 660 cm, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai

Fig. 5.12 “Water Village,” Zhao Mengfu, Yuan, handscroll, ink on paper, 24.9 x 120.5 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

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Fig. 5.13 “Training the Horse,” Zhao Mengfu, Yuan, album leaf, ink on paper, 22.7 x 49 cm, National Palace Museum, Taipei

Fig. 5.14 “Autumn Colors on the Que and Hua Mountains,” Zhao Mengfu, Yuan, handscroll, ink and color on paper, 28.4 x 90.2 cm, National Palace Museum, Taipei

“Autumn Colors on the Que and Hua Mountains” (Que Hua qiuse tu 鵲華秋色 圖) (Fig. 5.14) illustrates naïve crudeness both in composition and brushwork. On the right side of the painting is Mount Hua and on the left Mount Que, both of which are drawn in an intentionally crude manner. Likewise, the texture of the hills, shoals, and trees seems to suggest the work of a child rather than a painting master. In terms of composition, two distant mountains are depicted as if they are close by. The principle of naïve crudeness departs from realism even more than simple spontaneity and therefore further accentuates the activity of the artist. Considering simple spontaneity, archaism, and naïve crudeness altogether, the

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former two emphatically address the relationship between art and reality, while naïve crudeness also pinpoints the relationship between art and tradition, and both of these relationships explain the orientation of literati painters away from realistic representation since the Yuan dynasty. The accentuation of individuality would be seen in the works of Xu Wei and the Four Monk Painters, and Zhao Mengfu’s maneuvering of tradition was furthered by the Four Wangs.

Literati painting of the Yuan

The emphasis on individuality and the activity of the individual mind is reflected in two dominant themes in Yuan literati painting: the “Four Gentlemen” symbolism and reclusive landscapes.

The “Four Gentlemen”

The so-called “Four Gentlemen” (si junzi 四君子) refer to the plum blossom, the orchid, the bamboo, and the chrysanthemum as symbols of the qualities of a noble gentleman. According to the Tuhui baojian 圖繪寶鑑 (Precious Mirror of Painting), two thirds of the 178 painters of the Yuan dynasty were good at painting the Four Gentlemen. Among the four plants, the bamboo had been the symbol for nobility and purity since the Wei and Jin dynasties, while the chrysanthemum was made a popular symbol for reclusion by Tao Yuanming of the Jin. However, in the Song dynasty, it was the lotus, which “rises from the mud yet remains unstained,”71 that befitted the mentality of literati in the pleasure-seeking metropolis and thus won the highest acclaim, although the bamboo was commended for its connotation of nobility and purity. The plum blossom was also well liked largely thanks to the charm of its iconic promoter Lin Bu on top of its respected fragrance in chilly winter. Only the chrysanthemum went into oblivion because of its association with reclusion. In the Yuan dynasty, political changes reshuffled the status of the symbolic plants. Under Mongol rule, the lotus that “rises from the mud yet remains unstained” was apparently unsuitable, for the literati would no longer bother to stand among the mud, so it was precluded from the subject list of the Yuan painters. On the contrary, reclusive ideology resurged, bringing a revival to the chrysanthemum. Among the four “gentlemen”, the plum blossom has the highest presence in Yuan paintings, and then comes the orchid. To exude delicate fragrance in the chill had a special significance for the Yuan literati subjugated by foreign rule. 71. “出淤泥而不染,” Zhou, “Ai lian shuo” 愛蓮說 [On the Love of the Lotus], in Zhou, Zhou Lianxi xiansheng quanji, scroll 8.

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Therefore almost every great painter of the Yuan dynasty painted plum blossoms, and Wang Mian 王冕 was the most respectable master in this. He expresses in his autobiography: “I am aloof and noble by temperament, hating to mix with the wealthy and powerful, and defending myself in bitterness and agony.”72 A poem inscribed on one of his paintings on ink plum blossoms (momei tu 墨梅圖) (Fig. 5.15) reads: On the tree by the inkstone washing pond at home Every single flower buds with light ink hues. They desire not men’s praise for brilliant colors But that their pure fragrance will fill Heaven and Earth.

吾家洗硯池頭樹 個個花開淡墨痕 不要人誇好顏色 只流清氣滿乾坤

Fig. 5.15 “Ink Plum Blossoms,” Wang Mian, Yuan, handscroll, ink on paper, 31.9 x 50.9 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Unlike the other three “gentlemen” which had prior links with the Chinese literati, the orchid had not been made an artistic symbol until the Yuan dynasty. The first orchid painters were Zhao Mengjian 趙孟堅 of the late Song and Zheng Sixiao 鄭思肖 of the early Yuan. The chrysanthemum, the plum blossom, and the bamboo share the characteristic of blooming in a season when other plants have withered, their nobility derived from a specific time. The commendable character of the orchid, however, lies in its everyday qualities. The love of the orchid by the Yuan literati, then, reflected the deep influence of the daily life ideology of the 72. Wang, “Mei xiansheng zhuan” 梅先生傳 [Autobiography of Master Plum Blossoms], in Wang, Zhuzhai ji, scroll 7.

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Chán Buddhist tradition. The characteristics of the orchid that made it reflective of the psychology of the Yuan literati are as elaborated by Wu Hai: The orchid has three strengths. First, its fragrance tops the nation; second, it lives in seclusion; third, it will not stop exuding its fragrance because there is no one around. To have a fragrance that tops the nation is the most ideal; to live in seclusion is to ask for disregard, and to not stop exuding fragrance because there is no one around, [the fragrance] will hold out and deepen. These three [qualities] complete the virtues of gentlemen.73

Hermitic landscape painting and the Four Masters of the Yuan

The Four Masters of the Yuan dynasty — Huang Gongwang, Wu Zhen, Ni Zan, and Wang Meng — altogether opened a golden age of landscape painting with diverse interests, attaining the highest level of painting of the Yuan dynasty. The artistic realm of their works embodies the Yuan literati’s insistence on upholding their moral integrity under foreign rule, reveals landmark changes in the connotations of landscape paintings in the Yuan dynasty, and demonstrates the Yuan painters’ unique outlooks on landscapes. Among the four masters, Huang and Wang were masters of panoramas while Wu and Ni favored painting mountains in part. We can see from Huang’s “Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains” (Fuchun shanju tu 富春山居圖) (Fig. 5.16) and Wang’s “Mount Taibai” (Taibai shan tu 太白山圖) an imposing ambience that reflects the holistic cosmic concerns of the Yuan literati. In comparison, Wu’s “River Scene on a Spring Dawn” (Qingjiang chunxiao tu 清江春曉圖) (Fig. 5.17) and Ni’s “A Secluded Forest after Rain” (Yuhou konglin tu 雨後空林圖) show close appreciation to the actual physical natural environment. In terms of composition, the wide landscapes created by Wang are inclusive, dense, and commanding (see Fig. 5.18), while Huang’s panoramas combine sparseness and density by leaving out blank space in places like water, paths, and clouds (see Fig. 5.19). Wu’s landscapes are often characterized by a three-part structure of close mountains, rivers among mountains, and distant mountains that gives the impression that farther landscapes are taller, as in “Fisherman” (Yufu tu 漁父圖) (Fig. 5.20) and “Hermit Fisherman on Lake Dongting” (Dongting yuyin tu 洞庭漁隱圖). Striking a balance between emptiness and fullness, his works have more blank space than Huang’s but less than Ni’s. Ni, compared with the rest three, cared most about “emptiness” (see Fig. 5.21). His works are distinguished by close slopes with sparsely planted trees, vast expanses of placid water, and distant mountains outlined by a few 73. Wu, “Youlan xuan ji,” 友蘭軒記 [Orchid Friendly Mansion], in Wu, Wenguo zhai ji, scroll 3.

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sketches. The four masters interpreted the relationship between yin and yang, the space between having and nothingness, and the mutual generation of emptiness and fullness in their own way, resulting in different types of ambience. Fig. 5.16 “Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains: The Master Wuyong Scroll,” Huang Gongwang, Yuan, handscroll, ink on paper, 33 x 636.9 cm, National Palace Museum, Taipei

Note: The handscroll was burnt into two pieces in 1650. The first section, which is smaller and measures 51.4 cm long, is known as “The Remaining Mountain” (Sheng shan tu 剩山

圖) and kept at the Zhejiang Provincial Museum, Hanzhou. What has come to be known

as “The Master Wuyong Scroll” (Wuyong shi juan 無用師卷) is the longer second half that makes up one-seventh of the painting. Here shows part of this section.

Fig. 5.17 “River Scene on a Spring Dawn,” Wu Zhen, Yuan, hanging scroll, ink and light colors on silk, 114.7 x 100.6 cm, National Palace Museum, Taipei

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Fig. 5.18 “Ge Zhichuan Moving to the Mountains” (Ge Zhichuan yiju tu 葛稚 川移居圖 ), Wang Meng, Yuan, hanging scroll, ink and color on paper, 139.5 x 58 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Fig. 5.19 “Nine Pearly Peaks in Green” (Jiu zhu feng cui tu 九珠峰翠圖 ), Huang Gongwang, Yuan, hanging scroll, ink on damask, 79.6 x 58.5 cm, National Palace Museum, Taipei

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Fig. 5.20 “Fisherman,” Wu Zhen, Yuan, hanging scroll, ink on skill, 84.7 x 29.7 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Fig. 5.21 “Six Gentlemen” (Liu junzi tu 六君子圖 ), Ni Zan, Yuan, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 61.9 x 33.3 cm, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai

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To focus on artistic emotion, the richness, fullness, diversity, and harmony in Huang’s paintings exude a kind of inner composure that is obtained by harboring the whole landscape in the bosom. Ni’s landscapes, being simple and sparse if not barren and desolate, convey the pervasive solitariness that is felt about the cosmos when engrossed in the tranquility of nature. Wu’s works, though generally peaceful, often contain emotional ripples, as revealed by the crooked pine branch and rapid current in “Pine and Spring” (Songquan tu 松泉圖). Wang’s paintings are as dynamic as symphonic music, his mountains, rivers, springs, rocks, and vegetation displaying a flowing rhythm suggestive of lighthearted singing. Traces of human life can be found in the works of Wang, Wu, and Huang. Wang’s paintings are enlivened by humans in cottages or among mountains. In Wu’s works, men are usually on seen boats, giving natural landscapes a spirited charm. Huang hints at the presence of humans by the inclusion of cottages or mountain paths, subtly portraying liveliness. But Ni’s landscapes are unpeopled, with no path or house and no more than an empty pavilion, hence a solitary environment. As far as techniques are concerned, Huang, Ni, and Wang emphasized the use of the brush, adopting mainly dry brush texture strokes (ganbi cunca 乾筆皴擦). Wu paid exceptional emphasis on ink, and his characteristic wet brush endows the fishermen, peaks, and mountains in his paintings with a tearful aura. Yet Wu aligned with Huang and Ni in their preference for ink and light colors in the majority of their works, whereas Wang also explored new ways of applying colors. Huang is distinguished by his almost emotionless brushwork, inking, and coloring, which contribute to the absolute calm of his landscapes, as idiosyncratic emotional tendencies can be observed in the strokes, ink washes, and colors of his three counterparts. With Wang and Ni representing the two extremities of denseness and sparseness, predecessors benefit by emulating the visible, diverse, and comprehensive techniques in Wang’s works and mulling over the connotative interest of Ni’s works. In historical terms, the Four Masters of the Yuan integrated the majestic glamour of Jing Hao, Guan Tong, Fan Kuan, and Li Cheng with the sleekness of Dong Yuan and Ju Ran, encompassed these six ancestors’ panoramic approach and the segmental treatment of Xia Gui and Ma Yuan, and undertook aesthetic reorganization of artistic meaning and painting techniques with the spontaneous individualism of literati painting, opening a new realm that suited the psyche of the Yuan literati. If the formation of the symbolic system of the Four Gentlemen reflected a preoccupation with moral integrity, the development of the new realm of landscapes would demonstrate idiosyncratic hermitic mentalities. The generous ease in Huang’s landscapes expresses a sense of pride and self-sufficiency. The desolation of Ni’s landscapes shows deep solitude. Wu’s wet and bizarre landscapes

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reveal a bitter and perturbed mind. Wang’s vibrant and grand landscapes suggest pleasure in self-amusement. The association of morality with reclusion constituted the unique character substances of the Yuan literati. Recognizing the resurgence of the reclusive attitude is significant in grasping the key difference in the artistic mentality and aesthetic of the Yuan and Qing compared with those of the Song and Ming. From the Jin to the High Tang, the hermitic attitude was framed in terms of the relationship between the scholar-officials and the court, and expressed artistically in landscape poems and Tao Qian-style landscape gardens. From the Middle Tang to the Song, Bai Juyi’s middling hermit mentality brought scholar-officials back to the metropolis, finally evolving into the mental garden of the urban literati of the Song. In the Yuan dynasty, Mongol rule revived the reclusive mindset and added to it a new meaning within an alien political relationship with the court — a meaning associated with the moral integrity (jieqi 節氣) advocated by Song Neo-Confucianism. Therefore, mountains and forests were significant no longer as a source of inspiration about the cosmic order. Instead, literati painters were motivated by a desire to express their soul according to their innate sensibility. There were two prime times of hermitic philosophy in the history of dynastic China: the Six Dynasties and the Yuan and Qing dynasties, and in both periods, being a hermit implied going back to nature. Yet while it was in the hermitic ideals of the Six Dynasties to present the harmony of nature in terms of cosmology and philosophy, the hermitic mentality of the Yuan and Qing dynasties was a sociopolitical outlook. And from the Yuan to the Qing, the literati rose from bitterness in seek of a noble character. Simply put, for literati painters of the Yuan and Qing, landscapes were more than objects for glorification of natural beauty; they were inspirations for expressing the mind. Thus in Yuan landscape paintings, all representations are artistic and subjective; landscape paintings are literati paintings that borrow landscapes as a subject for expressing the scholarpainter’s mind.

Literati painting of the Ming and Qing

Because of the elevation of the mind and soul, landscapes were no longer the only theme of landscape paintings, which now included subjects from other painting genres like flowers and birds and human figures. The categorization of landscape painting following the Yuan became more psychological than thematic. From this angle, we can look at the development of Ming and Qing landscape painting in the following stages: 1.

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2. 3.

4.

(Ming si jia 明四家) — also known as the Four Masters of Wu (Wu men si jia 吳門四家) due to their place of origin — Shen Zhou 沈周, Wen Zhengming 文徵明, Tang Yin, and Qiu Ying took after the tradition of the Four Masters of the Yuan. Xu Wei marked the point of transformation of literati painting in sync with the radical thoughts of the late Ming. After the Qing took over the nation, the Four Monk Painters (Shitao, Zhu Da, Kuncan, and Hongren) made artistic advances and changes in meaning to Xu Wei’s style. With the consolidation of the power of the Qing, literati painting evolved in three directions: (a) the pursuit of classical beauty by the Four Wangs (Wang Shimin, Wang Jian, Wang Hui, and Wang Yuanqi); (b) the pursuit of modern beauty by the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou, as represented by Zheng Banqiao; (c) the diverse development of the Eight Masters of Jinling (Jinling bajia 金陵八家), as represented by Gong Xian 龔賢.

Grouping them by aesthetic concerns, we can identify three streams of emphasis: the promotion of the mind and soul by Xu Wei and the Four Monk Painters; the classical elegance of the Four Wangs; the everyday life interest of the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou.

Xu Wei and the transformation of literati painting

A prolific painter, Xu Wei of the Ming dynasty brought the elevation of the soul and individuality to a new height. Later, the Four Monk Painters would bloom on the artistic plateau that Xu had established. Xu’s role was decisive because although the Yuan painters had developed the Four Gentlemen symbolism to represent their noble mind, the true representation of individual minds and souls cannot be achieved by fixed imagery. Xu expanded the objects for mental representation from the Four Gentlemen to other plants including the peony, the daffodil, the Confederate rose, the osmanthus, the fragrant plantain lily, the Asiatic apple, the lotus, and the orange daylily; fruit trees like banana trees, grape trees, and pomegranate trees; vegetables including the Chinese radish and various kinds of melons and gourds, and beans and peas; and seafood such as fish and crabs. More importantly, even in painting traditional symbolic plants, he did not confine himself to established connotations. For instance, his bamboo is not so much a symbol for noble and poised hermits as it is a representation of the realistic concerns and resentful spirit of the late Ming. This mentality is explained in a

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colophonic poem:74 The snow-shrouded bamboo I’ve painted is just too bleak, They try to hide its moral character, bury its purity, break its nice branch tips. But there is one thing it is quite like me: Rising to this height its rage will hardly cool.

畫成雪竹太蕭騷 掩節埋清折好梢 獨有一般差似我 積高千丈恨難消

Likewise, his peonies deviate from the Tang and Song tradition which accentuated the opulent grace of the flower, painted not with colors but with ink alone to express a wild and freewheeling mind. For objects that did not already bear customary connotations, Wu endowed them with personal meaning. His poem for “Grapes” (Mo putao tu 墨葡萄圖) reads:75 Downhearted for half of my life and now an old man, Alone I stand in my study howling in the evening wind. The pearls under my brush I have nowhere to sell, Idly I throw, idly I dump, them among wild vines.

半生落魄已成翁 獨立書齋嘯晚風 筆底明珠無處賣 閑拋閑擲野藤中

Here, he compares his destitute and unfulfilling life to the fate of grapes deserted among wild vines. For him, painting was about expressing his own feelings and he could relate any objects to his sentiments; the natural, physical properties of the objects were not a concern. Therefore, his paintings see not only a weakening of the natural characteristics of the objects, but also a disassociation between the objects and their natural environment. This tells why the lotus, a summer flower, can blossom in winter in “The Lotus in Snow” (Xue li hehua tu 雪裡荷花圖). On this unrealistic representation he gives a sarcastic explanation in its colophonic poem:76 74. Xu, third of “Xue zhu” 雪竹 [Bamboo in the Snow], in Xu, Xu Wenchang yigao, scroll 8. 75. In Xu, Xu Wenchang sanji, scroll 11.

76. According to Zhang Guotai 張國泰, “Yu you shu,” 與友書 [Letter to a Friend], quoted in

Li, Xu Wei, 428. The first two lines are derived from the Yuan opera Dou E yuan, where Dou E’s resentful cursing is eventually answered by the abnormal phenomenon of snow

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Snow was flying on the third of the sixth month — Heaven did it for the strange injustice to Dou E. If these days even Heaven’s Way can be bent, Don’t blame me for the mistake under my brush.

六月初三大雪飛 碧翁卻為竇娥奇 近來天道也私曲 莫怪筆底有差池

Artistic expression of one’s mind completely overrides natural objectivism. Xu especially selected suitable techniques to dilute the realistic impression of objects, among them backlighting. In the backlight, the details and parts of objects are flattened into dark shadows while the objects as a whole are compressed into the background; thus images are presented in their entirety. The wholeness of mental sentiments finds expression in the unity of cosmic objects, in the end condensing into an art form. Xu’s strokes are unbridled and continuous, flying all over the paper without interruption. They are coarse and bold rather than refined and detailed, exuding an overpowering sense of freedom. The unrestrained mind utilizes all kinds of techniques and yet transcends every one of them. Xu’s brushwork is varied. He used “centered-tipped (zhongfeng 中鋒) lines to present leaves of chrysanthemum, Asiatic apples, lotuses, and bananas; sharp and round points, with the brush tip facing inward, to present peony petals; centered- and outward-tipped (chufeng 出鋒) strokes to present bamboo stems and reed leaves; round points to present petals of plum and apricot flowers; and thick horizontal brushstrokes to present hills and rocks.”77 His inking techniques are even more interesting, spanning the whole spectrum of ink dipping (zhanmo 蘸墨), layered ink (jimo 積墨), splashed ink (pomo 破墨), sticky ink (jiaomo 膠墨), and ink joining (jiemo 接墨). Ink has a particularly great significance in his paintings, for it echoes the concept of a cosmos of yin and yang being a colorless entity, is used to create shadows in the backlighting approach, and falls in with the intensity of emotional fluctuations. In his brushwork and ink washes, mental sentiments find the ever strongest resonance in an art form. Sometimes energetic strokes and ink patches create an imposing aura, sometimes apparently broken but essentially connected strokes capture the spirit of the object, and sometimes certain features of the object are exaggerated; but either way brush and ink are vigorously lined up, promoting a natural state where form is created upon the application of brush and ink. Xu’s works give full play to both individuality and art. His “Grapes” (Fig. 5.22), for example, sharply exhibits his sullen and wild personality by a heavily unbalanced composition, unsettling lines, and pungent ink washes, as well as epitomizes an art form developed on the expression of unrestrained individuality. in the sixth month. — Ed.

77. Ibid, 219.

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In Xu’s world, painting was a pure artistic language serving the individual soul independent of the objective image of things. Xu led the trend of expressing frustrations, grievances, and puzzlement by painting. His achievement has to be ascribed to three factors. First, he himself was a contributor of the new stream of thought in the late Ming alongside Li Zhi, Tang Xianzu, and the Three Yuan Brothers of Gong’an. Second, emerging in the Song dynasty, literati painting had been seeking out its new path since the beginning of the Yuan dynasty, and Xu was situated in a time of transition. Third, an unbounded mind necessarily asks for an outlet of artistic expression. In the early Qing, although the Four Monk Painters did not share Xu’s ideology, similarity in terms of artistic context and psyche drove them to follow and develop Xu’s artistic vision. Fig. 5.22 “Grapes,” Xu Wei, Ming, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 165.4 x 64.5 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Individuality of the Four Monk Painters

Among the four monks, the styles of Hongren and Zhu Da are distinctively idiosyncratic, while the personalities of Shitao and Kuncan are conveyed subtly in more conventional images. Let us first look at Kuncan, whose style is arguably less radical than those of his three counterparts (see Fig. 5.23). Tough and unyielding by temperament, he was staunchly patriotic, deeply distressed about the fall of his country to Manchu rule, and obstinately loyal to the Ming. The characteristics of

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his paintings emanated from his concern for the fate of the country, passion for the natural beauty of his country’s land, and admiration for the works of Wang Meng: His composition is complex, composed of strange and mysterious scenes and distant landscapes that are deep and serene, all so fascinating and absorbing. His brushstrokes and ink washes are thoughtless, sophistically vigorous, and thick. He was well-versed in using a worn and dry brush (tubi kemo 禿筆渴墨), and generally would not create the impression of thick and lush vegetation by accumulating multiple layers of ink. Nor would he create dreary scenes by applying light ink washes. Instead he mainly used thick dots and short lines as well as dense yet loose strokes to portray vigorous, understated, aged, or piquant points of interest. His style is peculiarly magnificent, forthright, plain, and coarse, … manifesting strong vitality.78 Fig. 5.23 “Greens Soaring Up the Sky” (Cangcui lingtian tu 蒼翠凌天圖 ), Kuncan, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 85 x 40.5 cm, Nanjing Museum, Nanjing

We may say that despite his fervent and hasty character, Kuncan was not troubled by the perplexity that Xu experienced. Thus, his art is formally divergent 78. Xue and Du, Qingdai huihua shi, 33.

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from Xu’s albeit revealing the same sense of pride. Comparatively, Hongren, Zhuda, and Shitao are more conspicuous archetypes of the Xu Wei model and will provide a clearer picture of the cultural transformation in discussion and throw light on how Xu-style individuality was furthered in the Qing dynasty. Hongren’s landscapes are strongly idiosyncratic, carrying the awe-inspiring grandeur of their Northern Song counterparts simultaneously with a reclusive charm. They are vast, tall, steep, and solid, but nonetheless reminiscent of Ni Zan’s solitary serenity. This interesting convergence of the passion for the realistic world as embodied in the panoramic landscapes of the Song and the musings about the fathomless universe as expressed by Ni, coupled with Hongren’s own experience travelling among the Wuyi Mountains and Huangshan, results in “artistically rendered ‘mountains beyond mountains’ from the painter’s mind,” an “ideal realm that seems insulated from reality.”79 The mountains in his paintings are usually tall, deep, magnificent, peculiar, and above all, characteristically rocky, lacking soil and trees (see Fig. 5.24). Even when trees do exist, they are generally bald. Leaves are included sparingly in order to accentuate the branches, in the same manner that trees are kept to a minimum so as to emphasize the rocks. Such a treatment conveys a sense of toughness which alludes to the steadfast mind of a confirmed recluse of a subjugated people. Rocky mountains need not rely on clouds and mist to create an illusion of depth, as a continuous expanse of rocks will already look tall and deep, exuding a confident sense of ease that is tastefully solid. The hallmark of Hongren’s paintings is yet the composition of rocks from rectangular planes. Rectangular shapes connote an upright character and make the mountains exceptionally clean, placid, and bizarre. The majority of his landscape hanging scrolls feature such idiosyncratically shaped mountains, and even in works where the rectangular constitution is less obvious, such as “Dwelling with Elegance” (Xiyuan zuoyu tu 西園坐雨圖) and “Mount Piyun” (Piyunfeng tu 披雲峰圖), regular planes still play a decisive part. Just like Ni Zan’s, Hongren’s works are usually devoid of human presence. The cottages in his “Willows after the Rain” (Yuyu liuse tu 雨餘柳色圖) (Fig. 5.24) are empty, as are the pavilions and boats in his other paintings, showing complete calm and composure among empty mountains. But thanks to the rectangular constitution of the mountains, Hongren’s kind of “emptiness” appears less desolate than Ni’s, with tranquility viewed through a leisurely lens. While Ni was drawn towards the empty charm of a simple and solitary cosmic entity, Hongren sought to derive ideal imagery from reality. Thus some of his paintings do contain human traits. “Mount Piyun,” for instance, has a mountain man walking on the bridge 79. Ibid, 28.

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above the river. Although Hongren looked on the ambience of Northern Song landscape paintings and the ethereal state of Ni Zan’s works as his artistic axes, he also drew inspirations from predecessors up to the Jin and Tang periods, especially learning from the Four Masters of the Yuan. Symbolically, his “Landscape in Three Sections” (shanshui san duan tu 山水三段圖) was painted emulating Ni’s style in the first section, and then the styles of Huang Gongwang and Wang Meng in the second and third sections, respectively. It was based on Ni and referencing Huang, Wang, and, in supplementation, the Song painters that Hongren developed his own style according to his personal temperament. His paintings can be associated with two cultural traditions: literati paintings’ tradition of expressing one’s personality and innate sensibility, and the hermitic tradition that resurged in the Yuan dynasty. His invention of the unique rectangular-plane style to suit his mind and soul fell within the first tradition. But at the same time it was also closely related to the hermitic tradition, thereby belonging to a long-existing ideological system; his style was even deemed a yardstick of aesthetic elegance by the southerners. The tension and mutual interference of the two traditions gave his paintings multiple layers of significance. Fig. 5.24 “Willows after the Rain,” Hongren, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 84.4 x 45.3 cm, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai

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Most directly extending the pathway of Xu Wei was Zhu Da, also known as Bada Shanren 八大山人 (literally “Mountain Man of the Eight Greats”). A descendant of the Ming royal family, he went into monkhood after the Manchu invasion. The ups and downs that he had been through drove him physically and psychologically eccentric; he possibly suffered from a mental disorder. In retrospect, the political upheaval at the inauguration of the Qing dynasty was more than a dynastic change and an ethnic power shuffle; it amounted to an unprecedented shock since the start of cultural transformation in the Song dynasty. Together with Xu Wei, Zhu Da was the embodiment of a complex eccentric psyche resulting from the impact of personal, dynastic, ethnical, and cultural changes in a tumultuous time. While Xu’s splashed ink technique brought his works to the critical point before leaving the classical tradition, Zhu advanced past that point and flourished in a new realm. Hu sums up the transformation of Zhu’s artistic styles in a temporal dimension: from molding shapes to simplification to exaggeration to distortion.80 Interestingly, this process of personal artistic maturation mirrored the development of Chinese painting at large. The progression from molding shapes to simplification corresponded to the transition from court painting to literati painting in the Song; that from simplification to exaggeration the development from Song literati painting to Xu Wei’s style; and that from exaggeration to distortion the leap from Xu’s style to Zhu’s. Accommodating features of the previous stages, distortion is an artistic model in itself. By creating a novel art form based on Xu’s mentality, Zhu took literati painting to a stylistic peak. Zhu Da is distinguished for his unsettling composition. In “Pomegranates” (Shiliu tu 石榴圖) (Fig. 5.25), two large round pomegranates hanging down a thin twig have snapped and dropped to the ground on the bottom left corner. The enormous weight on the bottom left forms a stark contrast with the scanty broken branches on the top right, highlighting the violence of the rupture. Visually, the disproportionate size of the pomegranates is the painter’s subjective representation, and it alludes to an unyielding spirit vis-à-vis the fall. A similar sentiment can be seen in one of the painter’s landscapes after Dong Yuan’s style (Fang Dong Beiyuan shanshui tu 仿董北苑山水圖) (Fig. 5.26), in which the hilly area, occupying two-thirds of the right side from the top, appears to be losing its balance. The trees on it are either lopsided or facing down, while the plateau on the mountaintop is slanting, as if going to fall. Several cottages stand near the cliff, reinforcing the precarious feel. When blank space is included in Zhu’s works, as in the case of this particular piece, it is not used to evoke the ethereal atmosphere common in the works of the predecessors, but to create a sense of crisis or pressure. 80. See Hu, Bada Shanren, 73–74.

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Extremely distorted objects are another feature of Zhu Da’s painting. In “Peony, Pine, and Rock” (Mudan songshi tu 牡丹松石圖) (Fig. 5.27), the pine is heavy headed with several lifeless branches sagging downward, while the adjacent rock is in an oval shape — both are grotesque in form. As paintings are subjective representations of mental images, extremely distorted objects suggest an abnormal state of living. In Zhu’s painting we see birds with bulging stomachs and hunched backs, as in “Lotus, Rocks, and Waterfowls” (He shi shuiqin tu 荷石水禽圖) and “Crested myna” (Babaniao tu 叭叭鳥圖) from the An wan tie 安晚帖 (Album for Peaceful Late Years) (Fig. 5.28). This abnormal state of living is also conveyed by adding barriers in composition. For instance, in “Wild Geese” (Lu yan tu 蘆雁圖) (Fig. 5.29), two wild geese on the ground are separated from a wild goose in the sky by a thin strip of reeds, creating a sense of ambiguity as to the spatial distance between them. In “Lotus and Birds” (Hehua cuiniao tu 荷花翠鳥圖) (Fig. 5.30), two birds are perching on two different cliffs separated by a blank river in between. Judging from the size of the two creatures, they seem close to each other, but considering the size of the lotus flowers, they appear to exist in different spaces. The fact that the cliff in the middle ground looks larger than that in the foreground shows that the spatial composition is totally subjective, even emotional. Zhu employed such peculiar elements as precarious space, distorted objects, and abnormal states of being as his devices of subjective expression. Further than Xu Wei who projected intense emotions on objective reality through presenting the objective world in an unruly manner, Zhu directly portrayed his frenetic subjective world. This subjective schema was a huge breakthrough after Xu. And this subjective emotional schema will help understand a most idiosyncratic symbol in Zhu Da’s paintings: the eyes. Eyes take various shapes in his works: square-shaped bird eyes, spot-shaped duck eyes, inverted V-shaped cat eyes… These eyes are, first of all, richly expressive: “some look sleepy, some look smiling, some appear to be gazing, some appear frightened, and some are disdainful stares.”81 Second, the whites of the eyes are exceptionally large, suggesting contemptuous looks. This may relate to a poet and composer living in the Late Eastern Han and Three Kingdom periods named Ruan Ji 阮籍, who would show the whites of his eyes to unwelcomed visitors as a statement of his maverick character, but it can also be taken more broadly as a symbol of the subjective artistic schema. Seeing the world with a particular pair of eyes, everything takes on a new look and in turn crystallizes into a new artistic image. Zhu’s stylized writing of his pseudonym “Bada Shanren 八大山人” in signing his paintings, which looks like the Chinese characters for “laugh” (xiao 笑) and “cry” (ku 哭) at the same time (see 81. Ibid, 96.

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Fig. 5.31), was a figurative manifestation of his confused state of mind as well as a succinct annotation to his connotative, all-encompassing, and symbolic artistic style. Comparing Zhu’s style with the Four Wangs will show that he had diverged from his time; yet considering that Chinese culture had evolved in the past seven centuries to a critical point, it would paradoxically be his style that was most emblematic of his time. Fig. 5.25 “Pomegranates,” Zhu Da, Qing, album leaf, ink on paper, 32.5 x 25.9 cm, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai

Fig. 5.26 “Landscape after Dong Yuan’s Style,” Zhu Da, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 114 x 52 cm, Rong Bao Zhai, Beijing

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Fig. 5.27 “Peony, Pine, and Rock,” Zhu Da, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and light colors on paper, 180.2 x 95.5 cm, Lushun Museum, Dalian

Fig. 5.28 “Crested myna,” An wan tie (leaf 8), Zhu Da, Qing, album leaf, Senoku Hakuko Kan, Kyoto

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Fig. 5.29 “Wild Geese,” Zhu Da, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 221.5 x 114.2 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Fig. 5.30 “Lotus and Birds,” Zhu Da, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 121 x 66 cm, private collection

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Fig. 5.31 Stylized signature of Bada Shanren

To focus on the Four Monk Painters alone without contrasting them with their preceding and ensuing counterparts, each of them had a unique niche. Kuncan’s works do display some personality, yet this personality is embedded in the traditional framework. Hongren’s works are still remotely linked with tradition, but are unique enough to expand tradition in a way that echoes the transforming culture. Zhu Da’s paintings exhibit the most extreme facet of the cultural transformation in the most radical manner. Their distinctive personalities had all been shaped by dynastic changes compounded by ethnic hostilities, but they were drawn by the current of cultural transformation to different extents. In spite of that, Kuncan, Hongren, and Zhu Da were like-minded as unwavering loyalists to the Ming court and die-hard believers in the ideal of Han-Chinese dominated kingdom; their artistic character was similarly governed by single-minded purism. The remaining monk painter, Shitao, however, was a far more complex personality. Shitao, born Zhu Ruoji 朱若極, was a Ming royal descendent like Zhu Da. Aware of his royal lineage, he mocked himself as “a bitter gourd” and paid homage to the Ming mausoleum several times, but on the other hand, political ambitions caused him to court favor with dignitaries of the Qing court. He became a Buddhist monk after the collapse of the Ming, but converted to Daoism in his old age. As a monk and then a priest, he was supposed to lead a secluded life, but he maintained active contact with the mundane world and befriended wealthy merchants. His alignment with the complexity of the age enabled him to surpass the other three monk painters and become the best epitome of his time. While both Shitao and Zhu Da would qualify as the most prominent representatives of the transforming culture in the early Qing, Zhu Da stood for extremist purism and Shitao cultural complexity and diversity. Thus Zhu Da’s divergence from tradition can be spotted

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out at first glance, but in Shitao, differences are revealed within tradition. Looking at the paintings of Zhu Da, one will be startled, but viewing Shitao’s works, one will be impressed by their profound meaning and novel charm. Shitao’s paintings are as diverse as his personality traits. Kuncan, Hongren, and Zhu Da each excelled in a particular genre, with the former two adept in landscape painting and Zhu flower-and-bird. Shitao, however, was well-versed in all genres. Unlike those of his three counterparts, which carry a distinctive hallmark that makes them recognizable outright, Shitao’s paintings are disparate in style. Xue and Du comment that his paintings can be robust and unrestrained, or serene and delicate, or solemn and vast, or handsome and carefree, or turbulent in all dimensions, or spacious and deep, or piquant and valorous, or fresh and elegant, or complicated and meticulous, or simple and light, changing unexpectedly in accordance with the interest of the scene depicted. His brush and ink techniques are also diverse and not confined to any one style: a dry brush with texture strokes, or large strokes with ink splashing. He manipulated whichever he found convenient with consummate ease, totally unbridled and natural. In wielding the brush, he mastered all kinds of strokes be they broad, lean, angular, round, curved, straight, sharp, bald, soft, hard, bright, hairy, horizontal, slanting, smooth, or reverse. As for the application of ink, he made use of everything including dry, wet, thick, thin, withered, moist, void, solid, dark, and light washes…. He was also extremely expert in the use of dots, sometimes not using one dot, while other times filling the whole page with dots. His texturing methods were just as unrestricted by convention, demonstrating optimal capability in variation.82 Chen generalizes Shitao’s later works into seven types after considering their general style, brushstrokes, and composition: (1) willful and spontaneous style, as in his splashed ink landscapes; (2) complicated moss dots with dense texture strokes, as in “Most Spectacular Peaks” (Sou jin qifeng tu 搜盡奇峰圖) (Fig. 5.32); (3) vigorous and elegant style, as in “Music of Mountains and Waters” (Shanshui qingyin tu 山水清音圖) (Fig. 5.33); (4) elegant ambience created by refined but forceful strokes, as in “Banana Tree and Chrysanthemum” (Jiao ju tu 蕉菊圖); (5) concise style achieved by simple strokes, as when he painted a fishing boat on a pool, or by succinct composition, as when he painted willows on a river bank in autumn; (6) rich and intricate style, as in his paintings of the scenery of Mount 82. Xue and Du, Qingdai huihua shi, 44.

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Hua; (7) truncated composition, as in “Beautiful Cliff and Deep Valley” (Danya juhe tu 丹崖巨壑圖).83 Fig. 5.32 “Most Spectacular Peaks,” Shitao, Qing, handscroll, ink on paper, 42.8 x 285.5 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Fig. 5.33 “Music of Mountains and Waters,” Shitao, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 103 x 42.5 cm, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai

This is a nice effort of summation; however, as the works of the great painter are very hard to be categorized, it may not be very helpful. This is because for Shitao, 83. Chen, Shanshui hua shi hua, 166-67.

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inspirations of painting were derived from the intangible dao of the universe; and although this dao has to be concretized in painting, the painting will not be the dao itself. Thus, it is perhaps better to understand Shitao’s paintings by learning about his cosmic worldview than through analysis. The same logic also applies to the painter in relation to his paintings. He had a unique ego. As he declared, “The reason I am myself is that there is a real self present.”84 His ego can be variously manifested as a loyal descendent of the Ming court, a monk-subject (chenseng 臣僧, as he presented himself before the Qing authority) of the Qing period, a Buddhist monk, a Daoist elder, a valued guest of prominent dignitaries, a good friend of merchants, or a confidant of artists — all these identities are linked to his ego but none of them equals it. His ego had penetrated into every aspect of the age via various concrete representations. Similarly, his painter’s ego, which is repeatedly alluded to in his Huayu lu 畫語錄 (Treatise on the Philosophy of Painting), crystallized in his stylistically varied works from different times and space. The Huayu lu opens: In remote, ancient days there were no principles. The primordial pu 樸 [or state of uncarved block] had not been dispersed. As soon as the primordial pu was dispersed, principles emerged. How did these principles emerge? They were founded upon the oneness of strokes. This oneness of strokes is the origin of all beings, the root of myriad forms. It is revealed through spiritual reality, and is innate in man. However, man in the world does not realize this. I was the first to discover the principle of oneness of strokes. The principle of oneness of strokes is such that from no-method method originates; from one method, all methods harmonize.85 Embracing the broader cultural dao, Shitao manifested a cosmic magnanimity and spirit of cultural wholeness, as do his paintings — this is a conventional cultural framework. The cultural dao, however, must be embodied by a concrete self — this is a new element in cultural transformation. This self originates from dao and in turn builds principles for dao. The glorification of the self was consistent with the historical trend since the cultural transformation of the Song dynasty, particularly the late Ming. Xu Wei and Zhu Da were preoccupied with the new 84.  “我之為我，自有我在。” Shitao, Huayu lu, chap. 3; Coleman, trans., Philosophy of Painting by Shih-T’ao: A Translation and Exposition of His Hua-P’u (Treatise on the Philosophy of Painting), 118.

85.  Shitao, Huayu lu, chap. 1; Coleman, trans., Philosophy of Painting by Shih-T’ao: A Translation

and Exposition of His Hua-P’u (Treatise on the Philosophy of Painting), 115, modified to pinyin.

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element of seeking out their ego and defied anything apart from the ego, leading to an eccentric elevation of idiosyncrasies in radical confrontation with reality. On the contrary, Shitao integrated his self into the unity of the essence of the universe and the diversity of the age, carving out a new path for literati painting. In his worldview, the self influences and changes the world while being established in the wider framework of the cosmos and the age. Therefore, the essence of his ego and paintings lies not in the identity he took on at a particular time or the particular styles and technique he adopted, and not even the above factors combined, but rather the complex dialectic relationships among the cosmos, the age, and the self. By observing the connection between his paintings and literati paintings as a whole, one will see that his varied painting styles and techniques are not adorned by ostentatious frills. This connection with the wider tradition of literati painting constitutes the most instantly identified aesthetic feature of his paintings, which encompasses the richness and complexity of the cosmos, the age, and a vibrant personality. But examining them closely will reveal uniqueness in the details. Note his unique approach to individual objects, such as the remote mountains in the upper part of “Studying by a Mountain Window” (Shan chuang yandu tu 山窗 研讀圖), the spring in “Listening to the Spring in Eastern Mount Lu” (Dong lu ting quan tu 東廬聽泉圖) (Fig. 5.34), the pine trees in “Dripping Dew from Pines” (Kai Kan songlu di shen 看松露滴身) (Fig. 5.35), the trees in the fifth of his “Huangshan Travels” (Huangshan youzong 黃山遊蹤), and the stones in leaf 2 of the Huangshan tuce 黃山圖冊 (Album of Huangshan). These are vivid manifestations of Shitao’s unbounded personality. His unique approach to every object makes a source of endless charm and another aesthetic feature of his works. The final aesthetic feature pertains the way in which such uniquely treated individual objects are placed in a painting to form a harmonious whole in the painter’s personal style. It is this intricate compositional relationship which underlies Shitao’s connections to the age, history, and culture, and hence the aesthetical and cultural significance of his paintings. Different from Zhu Da who established the individuality of objects by an outlandish aesthetic that highlights their contrast with the whole, Shitao expressed individuality through objects’ interaction with the whole. Because of Shitao’s individualized treatment of objects, some of his objects are almost identical to what can be found in Zhu’s works, such as the overhead hanging pine in leaf 13 of the Huangshan tuce, the banana leaves in the lower half of leaf 2 of the Huahui ce 花卉冊 (Album of Flowers), and the falling rocks erupted from the cliff peak in “Listening to the Spring in Eastern Mount Lu” (Fig. 5.34). However, due to the difference in overall composition, they are idiosyncratic without the fiery passion and eccentricity typical of Zhu. Having understood Shitao’s approach of

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expressing individuality and its connection with cultural whole, we can identify three common characteristics in his paintings. Fig. 5.34 “Listening to the Spring in Eastern Mount Lu,” Shitao, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 90 x 85.6 cm, Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, Beijing

Fig. 5.35 “Dripping Dew from Pines,” Shitao, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 105 x 38.5 cm, private collection

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First, profound compositional polylines. For example, in “Supreme Lushan” (Zhuoran Lu tu 卓然廬圖) (Fig. 5.36), the portion from the rocks at the bottom of the slope leading up to the lower reach of the hills can be seen as the first segment of the polyline, continued by the second segment which extends towards the hilltops, and then the third which stretches to the remote peaks at the midline of the whole picture. This polyline constitutes the center of the painting. Similar use of polylines is hidden in the winding brook in leaf 10 of the Jinshan longyou si tuce 金山龍游寺圖冊 (Album of Longyou Tample in Jinshan), the rocks in the foreground and background of “Shadows of Old Trees” (Gumu chuiyin tu 古木垂 蔭圖) (Fig. 5.37), the bamboo in “Bamboo in the Wind” (Linfeng changxiao tu 臨風長 嘯圖), the meandering stream in leaf 9 of the Shuhua hebi ce 書畫合璧冊 (Album of Paintings and Calligraphy), and the winding path in leaf 8 of the same album. The repeated occurrence of polylines, sometimes more conspicuous than other times, existing in a single object or connecting multiple objects, may be interpreted as an unconscious expression of individuality. Shitao’s polyline brings to mind the traditional S-shaped curve symbolic of the cosmos as explained in chapter 1, but it is harder and more angular, sharing the vigor of Zhu Da’s brushwork. It may be read as a variation of the S-shaped curve, a symbol of cultural transformation. Second, ambiguous stability. The mountain scene in the middle ground of leaf 4 of the Shuhua zace 書畫雜冊 (Mixed Album of Calligraphy and Paintings) appears to be a single mountain at first glance, but with a second look, it seems to be composed of two or three mountains. With a single mountain, it shows a stable triangular structure; but with two or three mountains, the structure becomes seemingly stable yet in fact inherently conflicting. The same kind of ambiguity is also found in “Shadows of Old Trees” (Fig. 5.37), where the three mountains facing each other together form a stable structure, but not so if viewed separately. Third, implicit balance. In leaf 2 of the 10-leaf Shanshui tu 山水圖 (Album of Landscapes), the dense lower half with hills and a man, and the spacious upper half with sketchy remote mountains form a striking visual imbalance. From an ontological point of view, however, form is emptiness and emptiness is form; emptiness and substance are mutually generating. The painting then contains an implicit balance. To give another example, in leaf 6 of the same album, a visual imbalance is seen between the top left, which is filled with trees, mountains, and a boat, and the blank river on the bottom right. Yet considering that the blank space denotes tangible water, the picture is implicitly balanced. In a word, Shitao’s paintings are always lying somewhere in between: between symbols of tradition and transformation, stability and instability, and balance and imbalance, tallying with the painter’s complex personalities as well as mirroring the intricacy in Chinese cultural transformation. This intrinsic inclusiveness allows

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Shitao to bridge two schools of Qing literati painting: the Four Monk Painters and the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou, who represented two avant-garde schools of literati painting, the former elegant and strong, and the latter vulgar and tender. Arguably, Shitao was stylistically closer to the Eight Eccentrics, one of whom, namely, Gao Xiang 高翔, was his student. Despite considerable differences in style, Shitao and the Eight Eccentrics shared the same pursuit of distinctiveness on the basis of acknowledging cosmic wholeness. And in this regard, Shitao is even more closely related to the Four Wangs. When Wang Shimin praised Shitao’s paintings as “No. 1 of Jiangnan,” he would probably have noticed their quintessential similarity. Fig. 5.36 “Supreme Lushan,” Shitao, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 127.8 x 55.1 cm, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai

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Fig. 5.37 “Shadow of Old Trees,” Shitao, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 175 x 50.7 cm, Liaoning Provincial Museum, Shenyang

The classical conclusiveness of the Four Wangs

If the Four Monk Painters and the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou were forerunners of change in literati painting, then the Four Wangs would conclude that phase of historical transformation by looking into the past. Whereas the former groups

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represented the latest developments in the transformation of a complex culture, the Four Wangs demonstrated more holistic, conclusive rethink of the cultural cosmos. In fact, the Four Wangs themselves were the making of history. Their reflection has to be traced back to Ming painter Dong Qichang’s classification of painting into the Northern and Southern schools along the Chán Buddhist tradition, which demonstrates a close link between painting and culture in itself. What Dong classified as the “Southern school” of painting was equivalent to literati painting, beginning with Wang Wei and Zhang Zao 張璪 of the Tang, followed by Jing Hao and Guan Tong of the Five Dynasties, Guo Zhongshu, Dong Yuan, Ju Ran, Mi Fu, and his son Mi Youren 米友仁 of the Song, and the Four Masters of the Yuan.86 This “Southern school” of painting was intertwined with the Southern school of Chán in aspects of insight, morale, and interest in nature. As the Southern school of Chán was deemed orthodox, to relate literati painting to it was to recognize it as the orthodox school and backbone of Chinese painting since then. Dong considered Wang Wei the founder of this new orthodox painting tradition for his contribution to the fundamental artistic tone of Chinese painting. Based on Dong’s classification, the Four Wangs systematized Chinese painting styles through artistic imitation and theoretical discussion, reviewing a painting tradition that spanned almost 1,000 years starting from the Tang dynasty. But as it was Dong Yuan and Ju Ran of the Five Dynasties and Northern Song who provided the technical paradigms of the art, they marked the starting point of a new phase from which a seven-century tradition can be observed. To add to their significance, the times of Dong Yuan and Ju Ran precisely coincided with the beginning of ancient Chinese cultural transformation. The development of literati painting was a reflection of this cultural transition in the literati class and high culture. From the very beginning, it was Wang Wei rather than Bai Juyi who was credited with setting the artistic tone, implying the elevation of the literati’s pursuit of the poetic state (yijing 意境) in painting over Bai’s mundane disposition. Meanwhile, to recognize Dong and Ju’s techniques as prototypical was to advocate a magnanimous cosmic vision (through panoramic landscape paintings) and a tender touch (through the application of ink). These two concepts were in tune with the mainstream thinking of the literati at the crossroad of cultural transformation: cosmic magnanimity paralleled the macroscopic worldview whereas tenderness facilitated the synthesis of opposing aspects. Thus, by the time the Four Wangs reviewed the Chinese painting tradition, what they had to study were not only the artistic fundamentals built upon seven centuries of

86. The Northern school comprises Li Sixun and his son Li Zhaodao of the Tang, and Zhao Gan 趙干, Zhao Boju, Ma Yuan, and Xia Gui of the Song.

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experimentation since the times of Dong and Ju but also the mainstream mentality of the literati during the cultural transformation embedded in these artistic fundamentals. The attempt of the Four Wangs was carried out under the banner of returning to the past. Contemporaneously, a similar movement took place in the arena of poetry and prose, but it turned out to be a farce in literature history. The success of the Four Wangs in turning a new page of painting history owed directly to the nature of literati painting. As discussed, the vision of literati painting, pioneered by Su Shi and Mi Fu, was to create a new art form befitting the subjective mind rather than objective matters. The mind of the man of letter in cultural transformation was a subjective mind, making literati painting the most suitable art form for expressing the mentality of the literati. Although this art form only found its basic shape through the styles of the Four Masters of the Yuan, it had roots in Dong Yuan and Ju Ran in terms of brushwork and ink wash techniques, and Wang Wei in terms of aesthetic spirit. Hence, the effort of the Four Wangs in sorting out the tradition of literati painting is significant in pinpointing the gist of a major Chinese painting tradition as much as the mainstream ideology of the literati in the Qing amid cultural transformation. Among the Four Wangs, Wang Shimin and Wang Jian were the seniors. They were born into distinguished families and stayed away from officialdom, albeit shepherding a multitude of pupils. Wang Yuanqi and Wang Hui, who were Wang Shimin’s grandson and student, respectively, were the juniors. They held high official positions and thus exerted a great influence on the painters’ circle. Two recluses and two officials, the Four Wangs interacted with and complemented each other, dictating the world of painting over a long period in the Qing dynasty. Their effort to review their predecessors’ styles started with Wang Shimin’s meticulous copying of the works of early masters. He selected 24 ancient paintings which he considered both skillful and exquisite to be included in his handbook of reduced copies for ready imitation. Likewise, Wang Jian also made an album called Fang Song Yuan shanshui tu 仿宋元山水圖 (Landscapes after the Styles of Song and Yuan Masters), which collects his creative imitations (i.e., fang 仿) of ancient masters such as Dong Yuan, Ju Ran, Zhao Qianli, Chen Weiyun, Zhao Mengfu, Ni Zan, Wu Zhen, Wang Meng, Huang Gongwang, and Dong Qichang. Wang Yuanqi’s Lutai tihua gao 麓臺題畫稿 (Lutai’s Colophons on Paintings) contains 53 principles on imitating ancient styles. A good imitator, as Wang Shimin puts it, always “follows a master totally when imitating that master without fusing one stroke from others.”87 On the other hand, 87. Wang, Xilu huaba.

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however, he must be flexible. Wang Yuanqi opines that one must “learn from the ancients but not be rigid in following the ancients.”88 Emulating the ancients is by no means to stick rigidly to the external form of their paintings, but to grasp their mindset in order to capture the ingenuity and vivid appeal of their works. After all, the ultimate aim is to integrate all styles and techniques of literati painting. The art of literati painting took off in the Song with Dong Yuan and Ju Ran establishing the fundamental techniques; and with the Four Masters of the Yuan, it was distinguished with unique interest and charm. The expansion from Dong and Ju, who were mainly concerned with the landscapes of Jiangnan, to the Yuan masters, who took an interest in natural scenery all over the country, meant that imitation entailed learning not only from Dong and Ju but also landscape painting masters of the Northern Song including Jing Hao, Guan Tong, Li Cheng, and Fan Kuan. Therefore, Wang Yuanqi argues that “to imitate the strokes of the Yuan, one has to penetrate the techniques of the Song. With any inadequacy in penetrating the techniques of the Song, the interest of the Yuan will fail to emanate.”89 Wang Hui’s observation is even more conclusive: “Using the brush and ink [techniques] of the Yuan to transmit the hills and gullies of the Song and having them enriched with the artistic charm of the Tang — such is a great accomplishment.”90 In short, there are three fundamental elements in literati painting: the technical formulae of the Yuan; the spatial composition of the Song; the artistic pursuit of the Tang. From Su Shi and Mi Fu to Dong Qichang and the Four Wangs, a common consensus was that painting was primarily not about objective representation but subjective expression of mental images, which were to be crystalized into a set of painting techniques. Art is a kind of formal beauty corresponding to the overall cultural psyche. The purpose of the Four Wangs in imitating the styles of masters spanning the Song to the Yuan was to surmount the boundary of time and hence, in the words of Wang Shimin, “breathe through the nostrils of the ancients,”91 or in the words of Wang Yuanqi, obtain “a bit of the sweat of the feet” of the ancients,92 ultimately creating a universally applicable art form out of a cultural essence condensed across times. This goal was attained by Wang Hui. As Wang Shimin commends, “His brushwork and inking are so close [to the masters’], resembling them in both form and spirit, capturing the ancients within one-chi scrolls and gathering all the meritorious under the brush. This has never been seen in the 88. Wang, Lutai tihua gao. 89. Ibid.

90. Wang, Qinghui huaba. 91. Wang, Xilu huaba.

92. Wang, Lutai tihua gao.

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past five centuries, except in Shigu [style name of Wang Hui] of our time.”93 In integrating the overall spirit, ambience, and brush and ink techniques of the Tang, Song, and Yuan, the Four Wangs found Huang Gongwang and Wang Meng most representative. The former is characterized by his moderate expression, generous spirit, and harmonious composition, whereas the latter is distinguished by his grand vision, rich techniques, and profound insight. Among the Four Wangs, Wang Shimin and Wang Yuanqi were especially after Huang Gongwang while Wang Jian mainly emulated Wang Meng. These two branches constituted the basic framework by which they systematized the painting tradition leading up to the early Qing. The Four Wangs found their artistic vision in panoramic landscape paintings. Wang Shimin’s “Greenery Deposited on the Southern Mountain” (Nanshan jicui tu 南山積翠圖) (Fig. 5.38), Wang Jian’s landscapes after Zhao Mengfu’s style, Wang Yuanqi’s “Bamboo, Stream, Pines, and Mountain Ridges” (Zhu xi song ling tu 竹溪 松嶺圖) (Fig. 5.39), and Wang Hui’s “Summer Chill after Ju Ran’s Style” (Fang Ju Ran xiahan tu 仿巨然夏寒圖) are all infused with a sense of all-embracing magnanimity. The paintings of the Four Wangs are more profound and refined than those of the Song, more magnificent than those of the Yuan, and more elegant than those of the Ming, demonstrating an integration of generosity and harmony. In terms of composition, their works show the following general features: First, the foreground is usually composed of hillslopes and trees among rocks. The trees are presented in a lofty, upright, and graceful manner, distinct from the wild and desolate style of the Four Monk Painters or the vulgar and sentimental approach of the Eight Eccentrics. Second, in the foreground there are also usually water and paths snaking into the depths of the mountains, an approach learned from the Song and Yuan masters with added emphasis on spatial thickness from near to far, giving the impression of greater depth, diversity, and richness. The mountains’ contours in the middle ground are depicted as less and less distinct from bottom to top to echo the nearto-far transition in the foreground. The trees in the middle ground are notably smaller, reinforcing the spatial depth. Third, the mountains in the middle ground stretch upward in an orderly manner along undulating ridges and peaks embellished with variously shaped rocks, curvaceous trees, and secluded cottages, exhibiting a vibrant sight. Fourth, in the background, the mountains rise in height rather than depth, concluding the scene with a grand, magnificent, exotic, or fascinating touch. This can be illustrated by Wang Shimin’s “Flying Waterfall over Summer Mountains” 93. Wang, Xilu huaba.

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(Xiashan feipu tu 夏山飛瀑圖), Wang Jian’s “Tall Pines and Reclusive Huts after Wang Meng’s Style” (Fang Shuming changsong xianguan tu 仿叔明長松仙館圖) (Fig. 5.40), Wang Yuanqi’s “Mountain Huts by Pines and Streams after Wang Meng’s Style” (Fang Wang Meng songxi shanguan tu 仿王蒙松溪山館圖), and Wang Hui’s “Hermit in a Waterside Pavilion” (Shuige youren tu 水閣幽人圖) (Fig. 5.41). Fifth, light ink is applied to the lower edge of mountaintops to create a sense of profound, infinite meaning beyond the scene. Fig. 5.38 “Greenery Deposited on the Southern Mountain,” Wang Shimin, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, 147.1 x 66.4 cm, Liaoning Provincial Museum, Shenyang

Fig. 5.39 “Bamboo, Stream, Pines, and Mountain Ridges,” Wang Yuanqi, Qing, handscroll, ink on paper, 26.8 x 471.7 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

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Fig. 5.40 “Tall Pines and Reclusive Huts after Wang Meng’s Style,” Wang Jian, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and light colors on paper, 138.2 x 54.5 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Fig. 5.41 “Hermit in a Waterside Pavilion,” Wang Hui, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 115 x 37.5 cm, Tianjin Art Museum, Tianjin

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On the whole, their paintings manifest three aspects of richness: they contain all kinds of objects from mountains, waters, rocks, springs, trees, roads, and cottages to people; create rich spatial dimensions through transitions from near to distant, contrasts between high and low, and a sense of depth; and display diverse brush and ink techniques such as outlining, texturing, shading, dotting, and dyeing. The combination of these three aspects turns the paintings of the Four Wangs into a melodious universe composed of the principles of yin-yang and wuxing, symbolizing the inclusiveness of Chinese culture. It will be apt to say that their paintings’ rich contents demonstrate the diversity of nature, rich spatial dimensions mirror the vastness of the cosmos, and varied brush and ink techniques exhibit the profundity of art. Wang Shimin compares the brushwork of Wang Hui to the way every single word in Du Fu’s poems and Han Yu’s prose has an identifiable provenance.94 If the literary masters represented Chinese culture in its entirety through poetry and prose, then the Four Wangs would do so through painting. Yet the cultural whole as captured by these painters was built upon the specific context of the golden age of the Qing amid cultural transformation. Therefore, their landscapes appear to be dignified, graceful, elegant, and modest when juxtaposed with the radicalism of the Four Monk Painters and the worldliness of the Eight Eccentrics. Moreover, they were far from mere imitators of their predecessors. They added simplicity to Jing Hao and Guan Tong’s style, enriched Dong Yuan and Ju Ran’s style with a touch of magnificence, reinterpreted Wang Meng’s complex composition with a simplified charm, and strengthened the elegance of Wu Zhen’s wet ink washes. While Ni Zan achieved a leisurely mood by simple composition, the Four Wangs managed to convey simplicity amid compositional density, thereby creating an elegantly carefree ambience without embracing desolation. Because they did not pursue the progressive direction of the Four Monk Painters and the Eight Eccentrics, the Four Wangs attained a kind of graceful magnanimity that is in line with the cultural whole.

The eccentricity of the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou

It is comparatively easy to spell out the significance and achievements of the Four Monk Painters and the Four Wangs — the former were pioneers and the latter carriers of tradition. The case of the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou is more complicated. To begin with, there is no consensus regarding who the Eight Eccentrics actually were, as at least 15 potential artists can be gleaned from contemporary literature, namely, Li Shan 李觶, Li Mian 李葂, Li Fangying 李方膺, Zheng Xie, Jin Nong 金農, Gao Fenghan 94. Wang, Xilu huaba.

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高鳳翰, Huang Shen 黃慎, Bian Shoumin 邊壽民, Yang Fa 楊法, Luo Pin 羅聘, Gao Xiang 高翔, Wang Shishen 汪士慎, Hua Yan 華喦, Chen Zhuan 陳撰, and Min Zhen 閔 貞. If so, why are they not called the “Fifteen Eccentrics”? This is because in Chinese culture, the number eight is a connotative figure alluding to a multitude of things. It can be used symbolically in association with some theoretical construct, bearing certain cultural significance. For this reason, even though more than eight persons were deemed “eccentrics,” they have been referred to as a group of eight. The “eccentricity” of the Eight Eccentrics lies in the impossibility to interpret their styles with preexisting theories or logic. In the Qing dynasty, Yangzhou was a prosperous commercial center with unprecedented material affluence and a vibrant urban culture. There, painting, as with many other fields, had started to show elements of change, and the contrast, interaction, and tension between the old and the new resulted in bizarre phenomena. The so-called Eight Eccentrics came from three social groups: first, real men of letters such as Zheng Xie, Li Fangying, and Gao Fenghan, who were resigned scholar-officials making a living by painting in Yangzhou; second, professional painters by trade such as Hua Yan, Huang Shen, and Luo Pin, who studied classics, history, poetry, and calligraphy and became cultivated painters; third, descendants of eminent families such as Wang Shishen, Jin Nong, and Gao Xiang, who received decent education but were either unable or unwilling to enter officialdom and ended up selling paintings for a living. But no matter what, they all fell into the category of “intellectual professional painters,” which is an abnormality in itself. Only with the double identities of “literatus” — from a 2,000-year intellectual tradition — and “professional painter” — a new possibility in the rising commercial town — could they be qualified as an “eccentric.” Understanding this, we will see that the “eccentricity” of the Eight Eccentrics was the manifestation of three elements in one: the wider cultural tradition; the individual mind and soul in literati painting integrating cultural tradition and cultural transformation; mundane traits from cultural transformation. This can be seen in the following three aspects: First, changes in traditional plant symbols. As mentioned, the most notable cultural symbols in the Yuan dynasty were the Four Gentlemen — the plum blossom, the orchid, the bamboo, and the chrysanthemum. The inclusion of the chrysanthemum into the symbolic system evinced the importance of reclusion in the mainstream ideology. However, the Eight Eccentrics highlighted the plum blossom, the orchid, and the bamboo in their paintings, and almost precluded the chrysanthemum. This choice can be interpreted as a deliberate rejection of reclusion despite recognition of the mainstream ideology and cultural consensus. Nobility for the Eight Eccentrics was not to resort to reclusion, but to demonstrate an otherworldly character, which is explicitly manifested in Wang Shishen’s

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“Scents Mingling in Spring Breeze” (Chunfeng xiangguo tu 春風香國圖) (Fig. 5.42). In the painting, a full-bloomed peony is encompassed by orchids, bamboo, and plum blossoms. The peony appears to be particularly pure, elegant, and fragrant in the accompaniment of the three “gentlemen,” which in the other way round look more pleasant, cheerful, and beautiful because of the peony. The noble spirit of the Eight Eccentrics, then, both inherited and changed tradition, as befitted the most prosperous city during the cultural transition. Even for the three “gentlemen” plants, changes can be seen in the way they are portrayed and their symbolic meanings. For instance, one of the bamboo paintings by Zheng Xie conveys neither reclusion nor elegance, but is infused with realistic concerns. Its colophon reads:95 In my office I lie listening to rustling bamboo, wondering if I’m hearing the people moaning. I may be humble as a small county clerk, but I worry over every leaf and stem.

衙齋臥聽蕭蕭竹 疑是民間疾苦聲 些小吾曹州縣吏 一枝一葉總關情

In short, the Eight Eccentrics expanded the analogy of the plant symbols based on the core quality of moral integrity and uprightness, so that they could better reflect reality and their painter’s mindset. Fig. 5.42 “Scents Mingling in Spring Breeze,” Wang Shishen, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 95 x 60.2 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

95. Zheng, “Weixian shu zhong hua zhu cheng nianbo Bao Dazhong cengkuo” 濰縣署中 畫竹呈年伯包大中丞括 [On Painting Bamboo for Governor Bao from the Magistrate’s

Residence in Wei County], in Zheng, Banqiao ji, part 5; Barnstone and Chou, trans., “On Painting Bamboo for Governor Bao in My Office in Wei County,” in Barnstone and Chou, trans. and ed., The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry, 333.

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Second, changes in the function of painting. For the Yangzhou eccentrics, painting was linked not only to the cultural value system and their personal character, but also to marketability. The originality of their image shaping resulted in part from conscious branding effort. This is best demonstrated by the success of Luo Pin, who was a latecomer among the Eight Eccentrics. Though a genius painter, he unfortunately found his business opportunities restricted by his elder contemporaries who had already established their market niche by the time he started his career. Deeply understanding the importance of brand building, Luo opted to venture into the untouched territory of “ghosts” (see Fig. 5.43) at the age of 39. At that time, a batch of supernatural fiction such as Pu Songling’s Liaozhai zhiyi, Yuan Mei’s Zi buyu 子不語 (What the Master Would not Discuss), and Ji Xiaolan 紀 曉嵐’s Yuewei caotang biji 閱微草堂筆記 (Fantastic Tales) had just emerged, promising a lucrative market. As a result, his ghost paintings were an instant success. Coming up with a great variety of ghost images — “tailing ghosts, flattering ghosts, ghosts serving wine, greedy ghosts, ghosts striking up conversations, ghosts in a hurry, and ghosts on the run — he suddenly rose to fame as a ghost painter in Yangzhou. Legend even has it that Luo Pin’s pupils were green, as if he was really a sorcerer subduing demons and exorcizing ghosts.”96 Very often, the Eight Eccentrics found inspiration from daily life objects, and the genre paintings of Li Shan serve as the best example in this respect. The weeds and autumn insects in his Zahua ce 雜畫冊 (Album of Miscellaneous Paintings) are true to life, ordinary but captivating. The album also contains vegetables like pak choi and taros which can be found in the kitchen of the ordinary people. He inscribes on a painting on scallions, ginger, and fish (Fig. 5.44) from the same album:97 Scallions and tender ginger, fish with wide mouths and fine scales I always taste. Who is with the painter Li Futang?

大官葱　嫩芽姜 巨口細鱗時新嘗 誰與畫者李復堂

Despite the everyday life motifs and folk interest exhibited in their paintings, the Eight Eccentrics are distinguished from other professional painters in Yangzhou for lifting ordinary objects to the aesthetic level of men of letters. The eccentricity of these painters will be accentuated if we juxtapose the market principles and daily life interest of their works with such traditional symbols as the Four Gentlemen, 96. Zhou, Yangzhou Baguai huazhuan, 183.

97. Li Futang is the style name of Li Shan. — Ed.

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which also caught their attention. In a subtle way, the painting market brought daily life interest to a higher cultural realm. Fig. 5.43 “Drunken Zhong Kui” (Zui Zhong Kui tu 醉鐘馗圖 ), Luo Pin, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 57 x 39 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Note: Zhong Kui is a mythical figure believed to be a vanquisher of ghosts and demons.

Fig. 5.44 “Scallions, Ginger, and Fish,” Zahua ce, Li Shan, album leaf, ink and colors on paper, 28.2 x 36.4 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

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Third, changes in the substance of literati painting. The substance of literati painting is to lift painting to the realm of high culture by connecting prose, poetry, calligraphy and painting. High culture in Yangzhou during the Qing dynasty, however, was itself caught in the intricacies of cultural transformation. The eccentricity of the Eight Eccentrics exactly embodied this complex relationship between literati painting and the transforming culture. Zheng Xie points out in a letter to his brother, “Calligraphy and painting are considered fine arts, but are also vulgar occupations. Is it not a vulgar thing for a man who cannot do some service to the country and improve the life of the people to occupy himself with pen and ink for the amusement of other people?”98 The Eight Eccentrics had to exchange their paintings for money in the market, making their art inevitably worldly. Recognizing this, Zheng Xie candidly drew up a price list titled “Banqiao renge” 板橋潤格 (Banqiao’s Scale of Charges). It says: A large hanging scroll costs six taels, A medium-sized one is four, A small scroll costs two; Couplets and streamers are one tael a pair, while album leaves and fans are half a tael each. Those who bring gifts and food are certainly not as welcome as those who come with white silver, because what you give is not necessarily what I desire. If you come with hard cash, my heart will be filled with joy, so that both painting and calligraphy will be excellent. Gifts cause nothing but trouble, not to mention deferred payment that is most unreliable, like bad credit. Furthermore, my body gets tired in my old age; therefore, please excuse me from accompanying you gentlemen in unprofitable conversations.99 The mundane side of literati painting was inevitable, but the elegant taste must be preserved for literati painting to continue as such. Therefore, what was of equal importance was to reconcile the elegant taste with worldly concerns. Formally speaking, the paintings of the Eight Eccentrics remain a mixture of poetry, calligraphy, and painting, yet under the impact of cultural transformation, 98. Zheng, “Weixian shu zhong yu she di di wu shu” 濰縣署中與舍弟第五書 [Fifth Letter to

Brother Mo, from the Magistrate’s Residence in Wei County]; Lin, trans., Family Letters of

a Chinese Poet, 17.

99. In Zheng Banqiao ji, 184; translation from Hsu, A Bushel of Pearls: Painting for sale in Eighteenth-century Yangchow, 146.

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there were two noticeable changes. First, the colophon was no longer restricted to the classical verse form; it could be written in vernacular language or in the style of sanqu. Second, calligraphy took on new styles. These changes have definitely affected the way in which their paintings are positioned and appreciated. For example, Jin Nong’s inscription to a butterfly-orchid painting in his Huahui ce 花卉冊 (Album on Flowers) simply reads: “A wild flower and little grass — this scene is from Shen’s garden. By Jin Nong at the age of 75.” In terms of calligraphy, Jin Nong blended the clerical and seal scripts to invent a new calligraphic style known as “lacquer script” (qishu 漆書), drawing a connection between calligraphy and applying lacquer. Due to its unstable structure, the lacquer script gives off a sense of peculiarity. Its strokes are stiff as though carved by a knife, producing a childlike touch. The calligraphy of Zheng Banqiao (see Fig. 5.45), as another example, is completely idiosyncratic. It is a mutated regular script built with a strong influence from the clerical script and further tinged with elements from the cursive and seal scripts. To describe it in “elegant” terms, it can be called, as Zheng ridiculed his own invention, a “six-and-a-half part script” (liu fen ban shu 六分半書), relative to the “eight-part script” that is the standard seal script. In “vulgar” terms, it may well be compared to “random stones paving the street.” It is as elegant as it is vulgar, queer and quaint, and pristine and naive. Zheng’s paintings also show the possibility of variety in the placement of the calligraphic inscription. In the works of the Eight Eccentrics, the inscription can be placed at any corner of the painting, even in a flower pot, on a cliff, and among some bushes. Hence, calligraphy is beyond an expression of thoughts and penmanship, but has truly become an integral part of the painting. Following the tradition of literati painting, the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou blended calligraphic skills into painting. For example, Zheng Xie borrowed the techniques of the cursive and seal scripts to draw bamboo, and Huang Shen incorporated cursive script strokes into figure painting (see Fig. 5.46). Their inventive integration of calligraphy and painting testified to their cultivated temperament on top of artistic mastery, while their unusual brushstrokes and substitution of vernacular prose for poetry revealed momentum of change during cultural transformation. Furthermore, while literati painting stresses the artistic expression of objective reality, the Eight Eccentrics took this further by attaching personal emotions to artistic images, thereby heightening the presentation of the individual mind and soul of the scholar-painter. The Eight Eccentrics exposed their eccentric spirit through novel image conception. For instance, the Buddhist image in Jin Nong’s “Banana Tree and Buddhist Image” (Bajiao foxiang tu 芭蕉佛像圖) (Fig. 5.47) is not the Buddha but Bodhidharma. The clothes on Bodhidharma are painted like the trunk of a banana tree, which is solid outside but hollow inside. Surrounding

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The Artistic Interest of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties

Bodhidharma are banana leaves, giving the impression that the guru and the tree are united into one. Ingenious as the idea is, the imagery is startlingly grotesque. As unconventional is Li Fangying’s “Potted Orchids” (Penlan tu 盆蘭圖) (Fig. 5.48), which depicts two vertically aligned pots of orchids, the pot on the top broken and that on the bottom slightly asymmetrical, both rather unsightly. Another work by him, “Waving Bamboo in the Wind” (Xiaoxiang fengzhu tu 瀟湘風竹圖) is a wild sight of bamboo leaves blown upward by a gust (Fig. 5.49). The Buddha is conventionally a solemn image in figure painting, so are orchids and bamboo in plant painting, but in the works of the Eight Eccentrics, they become wild, odd, ugly, or worldly. Behind all these bizarre images, the most important is the distinctive mentality that underlay them. Fig. 5.45 “Bamboo and Rock” (Zhushi tu 竹石圖 ), Zheng Xie, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 217.4 x 120.6 cm, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai

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Fig. 5.46 “Shushi holding an Ink Stone” (Shushi pengyan tu 漱石捧硯圖 ), Huang Shen, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 85.2 x 35.8 cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

Fig. 5.47 “Banana Tree and Buddhist Image,” Jin Nong, Qing, hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 78.5 x 30.7 cm, Nanjing Museum, Nanjing

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Fig. 5.48 “Potted Orchids,” Li Fangying, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 116.8 x 38.6 cm, Yangzhou Museum, Yangzhou

Fig. 5.49 “Waving Bamboo in the Wind,” Li Fangying, Qing, hanging scroll, ink on paper, 168.3x 67.7 cm, Nanjing Museum

187

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English materials:

Yeh, Florence Chia-ying. “Ambiguity and the Female Voice in Hua-chien Songs.” In Studies in Chinese Poetry, by James R. Hightower and Florence Chia-ying Yeh. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Asia Center, 1998. Hightower, James R. “The Songwriter Liu Yung.” In Studies in Chinese Poetry, by James R. Hightower and Florence Chia-ying Yeh. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Asia Center, 1998. West, Stephen H. “The Interpretation of a Dream: The Sources, Evaluation, and Influence of the Dongjing Meng Hua Lu.” T’oung Pao 71 (1): 63–108. Liu, James T. C. China Turning Inward: Intellectual-Political Changes in the Early Twelfth Century. Cambridge, Mass.: Council on East Asian Studies, Harvard University, 1988. Liu, James J. Y. Major Lyricists of the Northern Sung: 960–1126 A.D. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1974. Li Xiaorong. Women’s Poetry of Late Imperial China: Transforming the Inner Chambers. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2012. Lee, Pauline C. Li Zhi, Confucianism, and the Virtue of Desire. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2012. Chou Chih-P’ing. Yüan Hung-tao and the Kung-an School. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988. Giles, Herbert A. A History of Chinese Literature. Rutland, Vt.: Charles E. Tuttle Co., 1973. Hsu, Ginger Cheng-Chi. A Bushel of Pearls: Painting for Sale in Eighteenth-Century Yangchow. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 2001. Plaks, Andrew. The Four Masterworks of the Ming Novel: Ssu ta ch’i-shu. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1987. Translated materials: Barnstone, Tony, and Chou Ping, trans. and eds. The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry. New York: Anchor Books, 2004. Birch, Cyril, comp. and ed. Anthology of Chinese Literature. Vol. 2, From the Fourteenth Century to the Present Day. New York: Grove Press, 1972.

195

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Bloom, Irene, trans., and Philip J. Ivanhoe, ed. Mencius, by Mencius. New York: Columbia University Press, 2009. Brook, Timothy. “A Selection of Correspondence between Li Zhi and Geng Dingxiang,” by Li Zhi. Course reading, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, n.d. Access December 4, 2015. http://www.history.ubc.ca/ sites/default/files/documents/readings/li-geng_letters_0_0.pdf. Campell, Duncan, trans. “The Epistolary World of a Reluctant 17th Century Chinese Magistrate: Yuan Hongdao in Suzhou.” Translation of letters by Yuan Hongdao with an introduction. In New Zealand Journal of Asian Studies 4, (1) (2002): 159–93. Coleman, Earle Jerome, trans. Philosophy of Painting by Shih-T’ao: A Translation and Exposition of His Hua-P’u (Treatise on the Philosophy of Painting). The Hague: Mouton, 1978. Graham, A. C., trans. Poems of the Late T’ang. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1965. ———, trans. Poems of the West Lake. London: Wellsweep, 1990. Harris, Peter, trans. Three Hundred Tang Poems. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. Hung, Eva. “Su Shi: Dongpo’s Miscellaneous Records: Excerpts,” by Su Shi. In Renditions: A Chinese-English Translation Magazine, (33–34) (1990): 123–40. Idema, Wilt, and Beata Grant, trans. The Red Brush: Writing Women of Imperial China. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Asia Center, 2004. Kotewall, R. H., and N. L. Smith, trans. A Book of Chinese Verse, edited by A. R. Davis. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 1990. Lin Yutang, trans. Dream Shadows, by Zhang Chao. Lin Yutang Chinese-English Bilingual Edition. Taipei: Cheng Chung Book Store, 2002. ———, trans. Family Letters of a Chinese Poet, by Zheng Xie. Lin Yutang ChineseEnglish Bilingual Edition. Taipei: Cheng Chung Book, 2009. Liu Shih Shun, trans. Chinese Classical Prose: The Eight Masters of the T’ang-Sung Period. Hong Kong: Chinese University Press, 1979. Liu Wu-chi, and Irving Yucheng Lo, ed. Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1975. Lu Hsun. A Brief History of Chinese Fiction, translated by Yang Hsien-Yi and Gladys Yang, from Zhongguo xiaoshuo shilüe 中國小說史略. Beijing: Foregin Languages Press, 2009. Mair, Victor H., ed. The Columbia Anthology of Traditional Chinese Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 1994. Minford, John, trans. “The Chinese Lyric,” by Miao Yue. In Renditions: A ChineseEnglish Translation Magazine, (11–12) (1979): 25–44. Owen, Stephen, trans. and ed. An Anthology of Chinese Literature: Beginnings to 1911.

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New York: Norton, 1996. ———, trans. The Late Tang: Chinese Poetry of the Mid-Ninth Century (827–860). Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Asia Center; Harvard University Press, 2006. Pollard, David E., trans. and ed. The Chinese Essay. Hong Kong: Chinese University of Hong Kong, Research Centre for Translation, 1999. Rexroth, Kenneth, trans. One Hundred Poems from the Chinese. New York: New Directions, 132. Shih, Vincent Yu-chung, trans. The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, by Liu Xie. New York: Columbia University Press, 1959. Watson, Burton, trans. and ed. The Columbia Book of Chinese Poetry: From Early Times to the Thirteenth Century. New York: Columbia University Press, 1984. Yang Xiangyi, and Gladys Yang, trans. A Dream of Red Mansions, by Cao Xueqin and Gao E. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 1994. ———, trans. Selected Plays of Guan Hanqing, by Guan Hanqing. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 2001.

197

Index academies, scholarly 8–9, 11 Academy, Imperial Painting 8–9, 34–39, 42, 44–48 Bada Shanren, see Zhu Da Bai Juyi 12, 14, 17, 26, 62, 150, 172 bamboo 16–17, 34, 81, 90–92, 94, 96, 139– 40, 143, 151–52, 169, 175–76, 179–80, 184–85 banhua, see woodblock printing Bawang bieji 126–27 Bianjing 2, 4, 43 Buddhism, Chán 14, 21, 25, 89, 145, 172 calligraphy 12–13, 17–19, 32, 44, 68, 82, 92, 96, 139–40, 169, 179, 183–84 Cao Xueqin 81 cavalier perspective 43, 102, 123, 125 Chen Hongshou 81, 99–100, 102 Chen Jiru 96 Chen Liang 71 child-like heart-mind 78–79 chrysanthemum 83, 90–91, 143–44, 153, 164, 179 chuanqi 13, 77, 109, 121, 124 commerce 4–5, 98 Confucianism 22, 30, 78 cosmos 70–71, 81, 149, 153, 167, 169, 178 Cui Bai 46, 49 curios 12, 17–19, 92 Dong Qichang 81, 138, 172–74 Dong Yuan 37, 39, 149, 158, 160, 172–74, 178 Dou E yuan 77, 120, 129, 136, 152–53 Du Fu 11, 26, 64, 71, 80, 178 Dunhuang songs 51

Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou 81, 138, 151, 170–171, 175, 178–81, 183–85 Eight Prose Masters of the Tang and Song 30, 34, see also individual names elegance 8, 17–21, 34–35, 52, 57, 62, 80, 83– 86, 88, 178, 180, 183 Emperor Huizong of Song, see Zhao Ji Emperor Shenzong of Song 35, 37, 46 Emperor Taizu of Song 7–8, 34 Fan Kuan 37–39, 149, 174 Fan Zhongyan 21, 59, 72 Feng Menglong 78 Fengshen yanyi 112–13 fiction erotic 98–99, 114, 120 of family generals 108, 113 historical 6, 98, 108–9 legendary 112 talent and beauty 112–14 wuxia 38, 109–10, 113–14 folk culture, urban 7–8, 77, 83, 89, 98–99 Four Gentlemen (plants) 143, see also individual names Four Great Classical Novels 106, see also individual names Four Masters of the Yuan Dynasty 138, 145, 149, 151, 157, 172–74, see also individual names Four Monk Painters 81, 138, 143, 151, 154, 163, 170–171, 175, 178, see also individual names Four Wangs 81–82, 138, 143, 151, 160, 170– 175, 178, see also individual names Gao E 115 Gu Kaizhi 36, 102, 139 Guan Hanqing 77, 84, 92, 120 Guan Tong 37–39, 149, 172, 174, 178

199

Index

Guo Xi 37–38 Guo Zhongshu 36, 172 Han Yu 11, 21–24, 30, 62, 178 Hangzhou 3, 29, 98, 122 Honglou meng 81, 88, 106, 110–117, 119–20 Hongren 81, 151, 154, 156–57, 163–64 Huang Gongwang 83, 138, 145–47, 149, 157, 173, 175 Huang Quan 35, 46–49 Huang Shen 179, 184, 186 Huang Tingjian 19, 25–26, 28, 69, 89 Imperial Examination 6–7, 10, 13, 77, 111– 12, 114, 124–25 innate sensibility (xingling) 79, 90, 97, 150, 157 Jiang Kui 54, 60 jianghu 109–10, 121 Jin Nong 82, 178–79, 184, 186 Jin ping mei 78, 81, 100–101, 110–114, 116, 118–19 Jing Hao 37–39, 149, 174 Ju Ran 37, 39, 149, 172–75, 178 Kongchengji 123 Kuncan 81, 151, 154–55, 163–64 landscape gardens 12, 14, 17–20, 92 Lanling Xiaoxiao Sheng 78 Li Cheng 37, 149, 174 Li Fangying 178–79, 185, 187 Li Qingzhao 53–54 Li Shan 178, 181–82 Li Song 41–42 Li Tang 38 Li Yu 57–58, 89 Li Zhi 77–80, 154

200

Liaozhai zhiyi 113, 116, 181 Lin Sheng 29 Lin’an 2, 6, 13 Ling Mengchu 78 Liu Kai 21–22 Liu Songnian 35, 38–40, 42 Liu Yong 61–63, 67, 70, 72 Liu Zongyuan 11, 21–22, 30 lotus 17, 91, 104, 128–29, 143, 151–52, 159 Lu Jiuyuan 10, 78 Luo Guanzhong 78, 92 Luo Pin 179, 181–82 lyrics (ci) boudoir motif 51, 57–59, 61–62, 65, 71–72, 136–37 feminine sentimentality 53, 55, 57–59, 64– 65, 68, 152 heroic-style 64–65, 138 restrained-style 62, 64–65, 138 Ma Yuan 38–40, 47, 149, 172 Ma Zhiyuan 77, 88, 120 Mei Yaochen 21, 24–25 Mi Fu 19, 91, 172–74 Mudan ting 123–25 mundaneness 14–15, 20, 45, 79–85, 87, 90, 98, 104–5, 110–112, 163, see also vulgarity Neo-Confucianism 5, 8, 10–12, 16, 23, 76, 78 New Year prints (nianhua) 42, 82, 97, 103–6 Ni Zan 81, 138, 141, 145, 148–49, 156–57, 173, 178 nianhua, see New Year prints opera, Chinese acrobatics 126–27, 132–33, 135, 137 acting 126–27, 132–33, 135–37 changqiang 126, 136

Index

costumes 105–6, 127, 130–132, 136–37 Kunshan 121–22, 132, 135 masks 130–131 music 14, 17–19, 85, 120, 123, 135–37 Peking 122–23, 130, 135–36 shengqiang 121, 135 stage 127, 129 oral literature 6–7, 13–14, 24, 61, 80, 106, 119 orchid 17, 81, 91, 96, 143–45, 179–80, 185 Ouyang Xiu 12, 18–23, 30–31, 38, 59, 69, 72 painters, artisan 35–36 painting architectural (jiehua) 9, 35–37 Buddhist and Daoist 35, 44 court 35, 48, 81, 138, 158 flower-and-bird 35, 46 genre 35, 37, 42–43, 99, 181 landscape 19, 35, 37–39, 42, 44, 47–49, 56, 98, 100, 102, 105, 138, 145, 149–50, 172–75 manuals 35, 101 Pipa ji 121, 124 plum blossom 17, 40, 78, 90–91, 101, 143–44, 153, 179–80 poetry (shi) Jiangxi school of 25–26, 28 Xikun school of 21, 23 Qin Guan 59, 69 reclusion 14–16, 109, 143, 150, 179–80 Rulin waishi 111, 114–17, 119 Sanguo yanyi 98, 105–6, 108–9, 113–14, 116–20 sanqu 82, 184 Sanyan erpai 78, 106, 110 Shitao 81, 151, 154, 156, 163–71

Shuihu zhuan 77–78, 98, 102–3, 106, 108– 10, 112, 114–19 Silang tanmu 123 speech 125–27, 132, 135, 137 study of the literati (wenfang) 8, 12–13 Su Hanchen 35, 42 Su Shi 11, 14–16, 19–20, 23, 25, 27–28, 30, 33, 55, 61–64, 70, 85, 89, 138–39, 173– 74 Su Shunqin 19, 21 Su Xun 23, 30 Su Zhe 30 Tang Xianzu 78, 154 Tao Qian (Yuanming) 14–15, 26, 83, 91, 143 Taohuawu 104–5 tea tasting 12–13, 17–19, 97, 122 Three Yuan Brothers of Gong’an 78, 80, 89, 154, see also individual names transformation, cultural 5, 21, 30, 37, 51, 76, 78–80, 89–90, 138, 163, 166, 169, 172– 73, 178–79, 183–84 variety play (zaju) 6, 13, 77, 82, 120–121, 123 vernacular language 24, 85, 87, 90, 184 vulgarity 7–8, 20, 62, 67, 80–88, 90, 170, 175, 183–84, see also mundaneness Wang Anshi 14, 23–24, 26–28, 30–31, 72 Wang Hui 81, 151, 173–78 Wang Jian 81, 151, 173, 175–77 Wang Meng 138, 145, 147, 149, 155, 157, 173, 176–77 Wang Shen 18–19 Wang Shimin 81, 151, 170, 173–76, 178 Wang Shishen 179–80 Wang Wei 14, 172–73 Wang Yuanqi 81, 151, 173–76 wazi-goulan 6, 8, 13, 106

201

Index

Wei Zhuang 21, 57 Wen Tingyun 21, 54, 57 woodblock printing (banhua) 14, 81–82, 97–104, 138 Wu Chengen 78 Wu Congxian 95 Wu Wenying 60 Wu Zhen 138, 145–46, 148–49, 173, 178 Xia Gui 38–39, 47, 149, 172 Xin Qiji 61–64 xiqu, see under opera, Chinese Xixiang ji 77, 98–100, 102, 121, 123 Xiyou ji 78, 113, 115–16, 118–19 Xu Wei 78, 80–81, 138, 143, 151–52, 154, 156, 158–59 Xu Xi 46–47, 49 Yan Shu 57, 59, 69 Yan Zhongji 86 Yangliuqing 104–6 Yangzhou 122, 179, 181, 183, 187 Ye Shaoweng 29 Yuan Hongdao 78–80, 90, 93 Yuan Mei 80, 89, 91, 94, 181 Yuan Zhongdao 78, 93 Yuan Zongdao 78 Zeng Gong 23, 30, 32 Zhang Chao 89–90 Zhang Kejiu 86 Zhang Yanghao 85 Zhang Zeduan 43 Zhao Ji 44–46, 49–50 Zhao Mengfu 139–43, 173, 175 Zheng Xie (Banqiao) 82, 89, 96, 151, 178–80, 183–85 Zhu Da (Bada Shanren) 81, 138, 151, 154, 158–64, 167, 169

202

Zhu Xi 28

A Journey Through the Arts of Dynastic China Art is always a product of cultural evolution. For the old civilization of China, its unique art forms were born out of and constantly shaped by a cultural ethos embedded in the political ebb and flow of a dynastic empire. In The History and Spirit of Chinese Art, aesthetics expert Zhang Fa analyzes the most definitive art forms of each historical period, tracing a consistent, though not constant, Chinese metaphysical worldview from time-specific works of visual art, architecture, dance and music, calligraphy, and literature. In two volumes, The History and Spirit of Chinese Art reveals how sovereigns had manipulated art to legitimize rule, men of letters had coped with the vicissitudes of life through aesthetic outlets, and commoners’ folk art had unwittingly influenced the artistic mainstream. Volume 2 looks at the development of Chinese art in light of the cultural transformation that gained strength in the Song dynasty, starting from when “mundane,” “vulgar” art forms increasingly made their way into the realm of high culture, challenging as well as diversifying the aesthetic taste of the literati. It concludes with a detail investigation into the “literati painting” of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing periods, which epitomizes the response of independent-minded scholarofficials to the currents of change.

Zhang Fa is Professor of the School of Art and President of the Institute of

Aesthetic Research, Renmin University of China, and has been a Visiting Fellow of Harvard University (1996–1997) as well as the University of Toronto (2002–

2003). He currently sits on the Board of the Chinese Association for Aesthetics

and Chinese Comparative Literature Association. He has published influential research papers and books on aesthetics and Chinese art, including The Elements of Aesthetics (1999), A History of Chinese Aesthetics (2000), and Art, Literature,

and the Modernity of China (2002).

Chinese Art Studies