According to the unearthed Oracle Bone Inscriptions and related research by experts, China's letters originated in Shang Dynasty. The 43rd1piece, 5th12 piece and 5th13 piece of Oracle bones unearthed in Yin Ruins are engraved with words reflecting the enemy's invasion of the border area between Yin and Shang Dynasties at that time. Archaeologist Guo Moruo used this picture to research the geographical position of China. This textual research also tells us a problem: the fifth13 Oracle bone is a "border newspaper" that spread from the Yin border to Kyoto. Archaeologists Wu Ruhao and Pan You also asserted after textual research on the 5th12 Oracle bones: "This was the announcement of the invasion of China by the Song Dynasty and the generals." It can be seen that since the Shang Dynasty, China began to transmit military information in the form of words. This epoch-making pioneering work has opened a glorious chapter in the development of China literature.
During the Spring and Autumn Period, disputes among countries continued and diplomatic activities surged. At the same time, special envoy diplomacy is often accompanied by letter diplomacy. With the help of diplomatic activities, letters entered a period of development. As Liu Xie described in "Wen Xin Diao Long Shang Shu": "Three generations of political leisure, Wen Han is quite sparse; In the Spring and Autumn Period, we recruited talents and filled books. "
During the Warring States period, a hundred schools of thought contended, and it was difficult to argue and refute, which became the trend of a generation. The letters in this period are full of witty remarks, which have a high art of argument, affecting future generations and shining today.
The old and new systems of letters in the Han Dynasty opened a new era for the development of letters. The appearance of Sima Qian's Letters to Liang Wang in Prison, Letters to Ren An and Letters to Sun Shu marked the liberation of China's letters from official letters and truly became a tool for expressing personal feelings. In essence, the letters before the Han Dynasty are not letters in the true sense. "The people who write letters are all business, and what they say is open." (Xu Tongxin's History of Official Letters) has no personal feelings, but some cliché s of "managing government affairs into the monarch". These three letters resolutely break the old rules, boldly "hold your heart and let go of your feelings" and express your personal feelings to the fullest, making them truly "heartfelt rewards". From then on, it destroyed the monopoly of princes and nobles and opened up a broad world for the further development of writing.
Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties were the golden age of writing prosperity. Letters in this period gained unprecedented popularity and penetrated into all fields of life. There are not only greeting books, congratulations books, mourning books, begging books, breaking up books, talking about Zen books, talking books, but also a letter accidentally written in the story to express feelings and talk to friends. La' call letters have also become a way of etiquette in people's communication. For example, a popular "monthly etiquette post" at that time was a monthly letter between friends to exchange questions, communicate feelings, enhance friendship and close relationship. Being good at writing letters was particularly valued at that time, and Cao Pi praised "Yuan Yu's secretary is charming, which made him very happy". In < br/> letter writing, people attach great importance to artistry. The writer not only considers application, but also regards creation as a work of art; In language, elegant and neat antithesis make letters an article style comparable to poetry.
The period of Tang and Song Dynasties is the maturity of letters. Letters in this period not only developed in breadth, but also penetrated in depth, and letters became an indispensable part of people's lives. For example, Du Fu, when he didn't receive a letter from home for three months, sighed that "after three months of war, a letter from home is worth a ton of gold". Letters not only play a role in interpersonal communication, but also many progressive literati's letters relate their joys and sorrows to the changes of the political situation at that time, dare to touch the disadvantages of the times, and make letters a weapon to expose darkness and irony. In writing, he overcame the grandiose style of writing formed in the Six Dynasties, freed himself from carving words, and integrated narrative, reasoning and lyricism, which made the writing art of letters reach a perfect realm. In particular, the letters of the "Eight Masters of Tang and Song Dynasties" have become well-known essays, and even today, they are examples for us to learn.
During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the policy of political autocracy and cultural terrorism cast a shadow over the development of writing and fell into a low tide. But the letters from home in that period added a touch of spring to the cold letter season. Zheng Banqiao's letters from home, in particular, are unique in thought and style, and are unique in feudal society. What is more worth mentioning is that this period made an indelible contribution to the sorting and printing of predecessors' letters. For example, Zhong Xing in Ming Dynasty wrote Big Letters and Complete Works of Literary Letters, Shen Jia wrote Essentials of Ancient Celebrity Letters, Wang Shizhen in Qing Dynasty wrote Ming Letters and Ancient Celebrity Letters, and Wang Hubang wrote Classified Letters and Ancient Celebrity Letters.
The May 4th New Culture Movement is the spring of literature development. The emergence of vernacular letters is a milestone in the popularization of letters.
At present, with the in-depth development of reform and opening up, the letter fever is quietly rising. A large number of selected letters have been published, and knowledgeable person, the Complete Works of Practical Letters, and the Dictionary of Letters Appreciation have been published one after another. Its characteristic is that letters are not only favored as a tool to communicate feelings, but also become a fashionable cultural phenomenon. In the Series of Campus Culture published by Beijing Normal University Press and Higher Education Press, there is an album about letters. It can be seen that letters have also become a hot spot in campus culture.
Throughout history, no matter how modern the communication tools are in the future, letters, a unique form of interpersonal communication, will be favored by people with their unique charm. In the long process of development, predecessors gave letters various interesting nicknames, which also constituted a major feature of China letters.
At first, letters were called "books", and Zuo Zhuan: "Zheng Zijia sent letters and used them to write". This ancient name has been handed down to this day. After Qin Shihuang unified China, he called the letters displayed by the emperor "system" and "imperial edict": the system of life and day, and the imperial edict of the day. Divide courtiers' letters into chapters, tables, plays and refutations. In the later period, there were discouragement, enlightenment, strategy, dismissal and folding, all of which referred to public trust. There are different names according to different written materials. What is written on wood chips is called a ruler, what is written on bamboo chips is called a simple book, what is written on silk books is called a ruler, and what is written on paper is called a note. The earliest envelopes were made of two boards. One board had a cover at the bottom and a slot for writing at the bottom. Then, the cover was closed and sealed for easy delivery. Because this kind of envelope looks like a box, some people call it letter. Because this envelope is carved into the shape of a fish, people give it a romantic color: double carp. According to the relevant records in Biography of Wu, people also call letters "Hongyan". Stationery used to be divided into eight rows with vertical lines. In addition, poets in the Tang Dynasty often refer to letters as "eight-line books", such as Bai Juyi's "Meeting and Sending Poems": "I wrote eight-line books and still met for no reason." Han Jue's "Poverty Alleviation": "The hand style shows eight lines, and the eyes are looking for nine maps." Thus, "eight-part essay" became another name for letters. There are other colorful names, such as Jin Shu, Jin, Hua Tuo, Yu Han, Yao Han, Hua Jian, Cai Jian, Shoubi, Shouzha and so on.
When did the "letter" or "letter" we are talking about today come into being? There have always been different opinions. Some say it's the Tang Dynasty and some say it's the Jin Dynasty, but according to historical records, it should be the Jin Dynasty. In the official documents before the Jin Dynasty, "letter" refers to envoys, such as the biography of Han Sima Xiangru: "Therefore, the emissary tells the people" and "The History of the Three Kingdoms Wei Shuwu Diji": "Chao Jun sent a letter to Weinan to discuss the peace of Hexi". According to expert research, the "letter" here refers to the messenger. But the "letter" in Wang Jinshu Ruizhuan refers to letters. Wang Rui wrote an excuse: "When I went to Sanshan, I saw the muddy army on the north shore, sent books to the minister, and came temporarily. * * * discussed ... "Wang Rong said" send books "before, so it can be seen that" send letters "means" send books ",letters and letters. Another example is the Biography of Gan Zhuo in the Book of Jin: "Wang Dun called his soldiers and sent an envoy to tell Zhuo. Zhuo is open-minded, but his heart is different. " When you don't know what to do, you should think about the changes in the future, and learn to bear hardships when sending troops. Tao Rong wanted to go back to London because he said he had attacked it. Zhuo does not escape, it depends. "Send troops Luo Ying to Guangzhou, and Tao Kan grams period". "Tao Kan was convinced, so he sent Gao Bao to join the army and led his troops south." The word "De" in "De Zhuo Xin" means "De" and "De", and its transitive word should be things, not people (messengers), so the word "Xin" here also refers to letters. In the Jin Dynasty, not only the letters were called "Xin", but also the letters together were called "Xin". Biography of Lu Jin: "At the beginning, there was a handsome dog named Huang Er in the machine, and I liked it very much. Being locked up in the capital for a long time, I have nothing to ask. Laughing at the dog day:' There is no letter at home. "Can you get information from the book?" "
Thus, the Jin Dynasty was the beginning of the naming of "Xin" and "Xin".