In vernacular novels, there are many rhymes as the "first language" to describe the background and image, but in novels before the Tang Dynasty, there is almost no rhyme function. Except for a few works (such as "The Story of Hanwu", which used a long space to describe the scene of the meeting between Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and the Queen Mother of the West), the novels of the pre-Qin and Han Dynasties often only made a very simple narrative when it came to the environment and objects. After Wei and Jin Dynasties, due to the development of aesthetic consciousness, rhetoric and embellishment were emphasized, but those rhetorical embellishments were only descriptive sentences, and at most they were parallel prose without rhyme. The reason why this happens is probably related to the narrative tradition of the ancients. Liu Zhiji's Story of Stone 23 summarizes the ancient traditional narrative cloud: "The narrator should give priority to simplicity", and scoff at "adding vanity" and "lightly carving color" as "praising style and part of speech"; Mr. Qian Zhongshu once said that China's historical biography "is more important than skill and lighter than background, just like a stage, only seeing the role but not the background" (Guan Zui Bian, p. 303). He also saw that the narrative tradition in ancient China did not attach importance to the description of the background. Of course, we can't equate pre-Tang novels with historical biographies, but we should see that these novels are mainly influenced by historical biographies in narrative tradition. Most pre-Tang novels are even classified as miscellaneous histories and biographies in history books. In this case, the description of the background and objects in novels before the Tang Dynasty is naturally rare. Even for the description and description of parallel prose, there will be ridicule of "excellent genre of poetry". If they use rhyme to "practice decoration" and "carve color", it will be difficult to be accommodated by the narrative tradition at that time.
In fact, there is rhyme in historical biography, and the rhyme in historical biography mainly comes from the mouth of the characters, that is to say, it belongs to the "second language" Taking Historical Records as an example, Jing Ke's image is "though it has survived for thousands of years". Needless to say, this passage of Num's farewell played a great role. Didn't that passage make readers feel his wonderful feelings through the scene of Jing Ke's generous elegy? Liu Bang's Song of the Wind, Xiang Yu's Song of Beggars, and Betty Wong's song when he was imprisoned are also famous sentences in historical records. In addition, Princess Wusun's Elegy in Hanshu, Lady Huarong's Song, Hanshu and Xuhanshu all predicted Dong Zhuo's demise. The nursery rhyme "Ten Days Without Life" is often quoted as an allusion by later poems. Due to the limited space, I won't list the rhymes in historical biographies before the Tang Dynasty. It should be pointed out that, as mentioned above, because the novels before the Tang Dynasty are closely related to historical biographies, their rhymes basically come from the mouths of the characters in the works and belong to the "second language".
"The second language is the language of the characters in the novel. There are many ways to describe and express the characters in the novel, to show their personality and express their feelings. They can describe their portrait characteristics, their external behavior and internal psychology in the' first language', and they can also express their personalities in the characters' own language, so that the characters can express their emotions and motives. There is no doubt that "the second language" plays an important role in shaping characters "(Rhetoric and Language of Novels by Todorov). In terms of "character language", some anecdote novels and character novels before the Tang Dynasty were quite successful, especially novels with character themes, which created characters through extremely short but personalized "character language" and achieved vivid, fresh and meaningful artistic effects. However, it should be noted that there are not many characters' languages in the strange novels before the Tang Dynasty, and the personalized characteristics are not obvious. To some extent, it is the verse as a "second language" that makes up for this defect to some extent.
China had a cultural psychology of "expressing ambition with poetry" for a long time. For example, Yao Dian in Shangshu clearly stated that "poetry expresses ambition", and Preface to Mao Shi in the Book of Rites also said that "where ambition comes, poetry is deep" and "where ambition lies". There are countless examples of these statements being used by future generations. The ancients also often inferred the author's honor and disgrace from the way poetry was written. For example, when Xue Tao was eight or nine years old, he continued two poems to his father, "Branches greet birds in the north and south, leaves send breeze." Her father was not satisfied with his daughter's quick thinking, but "lost time" because he concluded from these two poems that his daughter would become a musician in the future. There is also a passage in Yang Shiqi's Preface to Poems of Jiangsha Village Building in Ming Dynasty-"It is a day when the snow falls and they get drunk, so that they can sing downstream and give each other small poems as a token of their hearts. Meng Jie said to him,' After ten years of hard work, I am interested in Bai Yutang. I'm waiting for the fragrant wind and willow, and the red chamber is vying for the green dress. "The scenery at that time was very interesting. He said,' Stop drinking at the beginning of the snow, and step on Qiong Yao in the depths of the mountain'. I don't think cold invades people's bones, and people are greedy to see plum blossoms crossing the wild bridge. Therefore, people conclude from their poems that Meng Jie will be a "romantic scholar" and Yang Shiqi will be a "Taiping Prime Minister". Of course, we don't understand the relationship between poetry and people in this way now, but we might as well say that in some strange novels before the Tang Dynasty, the protagonist's personality and image were highlighted because of the role of "poetry expressing ambition". Isn't it? Reading "Purple Jade" (Su (16)), "Nanshan has weapons, and Beishan has plans. What can I do if I fly high? To obey you, you are afraid of rumors. Sadness becomes a disease, it will kill you. What's unfair if you don't make a life? The length of the feather family is called the phoenix. A day's loss is three years' sorrow. Although there are many birds, they are not a pair. So when you see a contemptuous gesture, you will shine when you meet a gentleman. I am far from my heart, but I have never forgotten it. Isn't the image of a woman who is loyal to love and deeply depressed on the paper?
Before the Tang Dynasty, there were many examples of using rhymes written by characters to describe characters and express their personalities. It can be said that whether it is Han Ping's wife (search (1 1), clever mother Cai Sang (Yin Yun's novel) or Qingxi Temple God (Ji).
It is worth noting that in the novels before the Tang Dynasty, the rhymes as a "second language" were mostly oral "songs". Some of these songs are apprentices' songs, such as Purple in Search, Baiyun Ballad in Mu Legend, Fisherman's Song in Wu Yue Chun Qiu, Maid Song of the Queen Mother in Hanwu Biography, Zhao Songjuan in Liexian Biography and Liexian Biography. Accompanied by songs, such as Song of Huang Li in Tales Collection, Song of Di Zi, Song of Huainan Cao in Search, Song of Guo Changsheng, Song of Chen Arden, Charm Song of Fangshan Pavilion, Song of Underwater String, Song of Fox Fairy in You, etc. Whether accompanied or unaccompanied, because it is sung, "singing" provides quite aesthetic details in many cases. Is Yu Zi's image of "watching her neck while singing" not beautiful? Moreover, when I read "When I finished singing, I cried", although the singing in the text had stopped, the echo of "Purple Jade Song" seemed to still reverberate in the readers' ears. Shao Hao in Notes and Novels, Qingxi Temple God in Qi Xie Story, Fei Sheng and Chen Arden in Youming Road are all very simple. However, because the hero and heroine are either "playing the piano on the Tongfeng Peak", playing the pipa or singing solo.
Although Zhiren's novels are not long, they can "see the spirit in the details" and have some wonderful details with aesthetic value, although they have not got rid of the essence of "small talk". In Shi Shuo Xin Yu, Wang Lantian's impatience is shown by the details of eating eggs, and his command is shown by Xie An's voice and smile when playing chess. Needless to say, these details are very successful. However, many pre-Tang novels are only sketchy, with the defect of "no mention of beautiful things, minimal" (Preface to Immortals by Ge Hong) and lack of vivid details. It can be seen that because the above poem is sung, "singing" provides some details with considerable aesthetic value, which can make up for that defect to some extent.
Some ghosts in Youming Road sing interesting songs. They often introduce themselves in the songs. For example, "Guo Changsheng Song"-"Quiet night, clear, flute statement, ring. If you want to know me, my name is Guo Jiao ",and for example" Ode to Chen "-"There are vines on the vine, one after another? . If you want to know my name, my last name is Chen Arden. " The former also has the nature of argot when introducing himself: "Guo" is a rooster-like sound, and "Longevity" and "Long Sound" are in harmony. Some novels in the Tang Dynasty, such as You, Dongyang Nightmare, etc., also use argot to give their names, and the conception of these novels may be inspired by the above rhymes in You.
In the novels of the early Tang Dynasty, rhyme, as a "second language", also enhanced the lyricism of the works. The expression of "emotion" and "emotion" greatly improved the aesthetic taste of novels before Tang Dynasty.
In The Legend of the Immortal, Zheng Jiaofu expressed his love by writing poems. In the process of searching for gods, immortal couples often compose a poem (such as Lu Chong, Xian Chao, Du Fu, etc. ) When they meet and leave. If we take out the rhymes in these novels, what we see is only a very simple narrative, and the attraction of these narratives is just bizarre things. However, the effect of rhyming is different. Those rhymes are the carrier of the hero's expression in the works, which can shift the reader's aesthetic object from "things" to "feelings", and make the reader shift from appreciating the wonder of things to appreciating the beauty of feelings, and the aesthetic interest will also shift from "pleasing to the eye" to "pleasing to the eye".
Compared with "writing" poems, "singing" poems sometimes have unique lyrical effects. Taking Xu Tiejiu as an example, this work tells a story: Xu Tiejiu was abused to death by his stepmother, and later, his ghost returned to his hometown for revenge. When Xu Tiejiu got home, he sang such a song-"Peach blossoms and plum blossoms are fragrant. What can I do with severe frost?" Peach and plum, the frost has fallen. "It is conceivable that in the novel, singing a sad song by a ghost is very sad, even scary, and the effect is very strong. It can well express Xu Tiejiu's' self-pity' and arouse people's sympathy for Xu Tiejiu's unfortunate fate.
In addition, the rhyme of "singing" may not be well thought out in the choice of words and sentences, but it is often "from sadness to joy", which is more direct and natural in expressing emotions. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sang "Mourning for Three Cicadas" because he missed Li Furen-"Luo Mei is silent, the jade is covered with dust, the empty room is cold and silent, and the leaves are heavy. Peter's beautiful daughter is happy, and she feels uneasy "(Notes, Volume 5)! Words can't be described as gorgeous, of course, but Emperor Wu's attachment to Li Furen is well reflected in this poem. The "Ding Ge" in "The Postscript of Seeking God" is simply a vernacular-"There are birds and Ding, and they will return home in a thousand years. The battlements are still people's fault. Why not learn from the immortal tombs? " However, this is natural, although it is also to persuade people to learn immortality. The psychological basis of inducing people to study immortals is the profound feeling that things have changed, which is easy to attract people's attention and even become an allusion, often cited by future generations. For example, Bai Juyi once wrote a poem, "I often sigh when Zheng Niu can read and when he can sing." Wang Wei and Ceng Yun also said, "As a crane in Liaocheng, fairy songs make you smell it."
Volume 2 of Chen's Collection of Books quotes Zhang Heng as saying: "? Confused as the star of law enforcement, its essence is Fengbo's teacher, or children's songs and operas ","Book of Jin Tian Wenzhi "says:" Where the five-star surplus shrinks out of position, its essence falls to the ground as a human being. ..... easily confused into a child, playing nursery rhymes. ..... good or bad, just say it. " In the eyes of the ancients, folk songs can often indicate good or bad luck, which is very auspicious. Xiao Qi's collected works said: "Children's rhymes are spring and autumn letters, and prophecies are annoying at the end of the Han Dynasty." Even in historical biographies, there are many songs that predict good or bad, so it is not surprising that there are such songs in novels. In the novels before the Tang Dynasty, such rhymes are found in Stories, novels by Su, You and Yin Yun, and most of them reflect superstitious thoughts, so it is unnecessary to say more. It should be pointed out that some novels of later generations are organized with this type of verse as a clue. Take the legendary Pei Hang as an example. At the beginning of this novel, a poem by Mrs. Fan was mentioned: "If you drink nectar, you will feel everything and see clouds." Blue Bridge is a fairy house, so why only go to Yujing ",which implies the future ending of Pei Hang. In the following pages, the work revolves around this suggestive prophecy, arranging the plot and organizational structure. There are countless similar examples in ancient novels, and they are simply too numerous to mention.
"History of the Five Elements of Han Dynasty" said: "The monarch is arrogant and tyrannical, and the minister is afraid of punishment, so the anger of hatred and slander comes from rumors." There are many ballads expressing "the spirit of slander" in the novels before the Tang Dynasty. For example, "Qin Shihuang, He Liangqiang, opened my house, drank my wine, took care of my bed, spat my pulp, and fed me, thinking that food on the sand dunes would perish" in "Different Gardens" is a tyrant; After describing the strange thing that sealed Shao Huahu, there is another ballad-"If you don't seal the monarch, the people will die and eat the people", which makes the previous narrative no longer a strange thing that only satisfies curiosity, but has the function of satirizing and whipping, showing the theme of "tyranny is fiercer than tigers". Of course, there are also some songs of praise in the novels before the Tang Dynasty, such as "New Preface", which praised corporal Wei Wenhou's courtesy-"My gentleman is kind and upright, and Duan Ganmu respects him. I am loyal, and the dry wood period is long. " In Shuo Yuan, there is another ballad praising Yin-"Wen Zi House, which violates the national law, is interpreted by the court, and refuses to listen, and is merciful and aboveboard." These ballads are given after narration, which not only shows the attitude of praise and criticism, but also helps to read because of their easy-to-understand and catchy form.
To sum up, rhyme as a "second language" in novels before the Tang Dynasty is not groundless, but partly makes up for the lack of characters' language and vivid details in novels. Some enhance the lyricism of the works, produce the aesthetic effect of moving people with emotion outside the narrative, and improve the aesthetic taste of the novels; Some witty remarks, summing up the praise narrative; Some of them are catchy, so that deeds can be better circulated ... Their functions can not be ignored and deserve our study.
① In Rhetoric and Language of Novels, Todorov once divided the language in novels into three levels: the first language, the second language and the third language. The so-called "first language" refers to "narration, description and discussion outside the language of characters" and "second language" refers to "the language of characters in novels". In Todorov's view, "character language" is a broad concept, which includes not only monologues and dialogues of characters in novels, but also poems and letters of characters in novels. "The third language" refers to "the language quoted by characters in novels". The first language, the second language and the third language have different characteristics and functions.