Chapter 3 Pre-Qin Narrative Prose
Section 1 The Germination of Prose
1. The Yin Ruins inscriptions can be said to be the germ of Pre-Qin prose. The book briefly records the divination words of the Yin and Shang Dynasties. It is the earliest extant writing of words and events in our country, and it is also the germ of written literature.
"Shangshu" is my country's first collection of prose and it is a collection of ancient historical documents. "Zuo Zhuan" and other texts quoted from "Shang Shu" were called "Yu Shu", "Xia Shu", "Shang Shu", and "Zhou Shu" respectively. During the Warring States Period, they were collectively called "Shu", and the Han people renamed it "Shang Shu", which means "Shang Shu". The Book of the Ancient Emperors" ("Lunheng·Zhengshuo Chapter"). The authenticity, gathering and dispersion of "Shang Shu" are extremely complicated and tortuous. Han people say that there are 100 "Books" in the pre-Qin Dynasty, including 20 "Yu Xia Shu", 40 each "Shang Shu" and "Zhou Shu", each of which is in order and titled as compiled by Confucius. "Historical Records: The Family of Confucius" also mentions that Confucius revised the "Book". However, most modern scholars believe that "Shang Shu" was compiled during the Warring States Period. After Qin Shihuang burned the books, many of the "Books" were incomplete. The present "Preface to the Book" is quoted in "Historical Records" and was probably written by Confucian scholars during the Warring States Period. In the early Han Dynasty, there were 29 chapters in "Shangshu", which were passed down by Fu Sheng, a doctor of Qin Dynasty. They were copied in the official script of the Han Dynasty and were called "Jinwen Shangshu". In the early Western Han Dynasty, it is said that King Lu Gong demolished a section of the wall of Confucius' former residence and discovered another "Shangshu", which was written in the Six Kingdoms script of the Pre-Qin Dynasty, so it was called "Guwen Shangshu". It has 16 more chapters than "Jinwen Shangshu". Kong Anguo read it and presented it to the royal family. Because it was not listed among the academic officials, the "Gu Wen Shangshu" could not be circulated. During the reign of Emperor Yuan of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Meiyi, the internal historian of Yuzhang, presented the forged "Gu Wen Shangshu" and Kong Anguo's "Shang Shu Zhuan". This "Guwen Shangshu" has 25 more chapters than "Jinwen Shangshu", and is divided into 5 more chapters from "Jinwen Shangshu". However, the "Qin Oath" chapter in the modern text has been lost, so the pseudo-ancient text and the modern text are different. Total 58 articles. During the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, Kong Yingda was ordered to write "Shang Shu Zhengyi", which was a mixture of ancient and modern texts. After Zhu Xi of the Southern Song Dynasty, there was considerable doubt about its authenticity. In the Ming Dynasty, Mei Ji wrote "A Study of the Documents on Documents" and in the Qing Dynasty, Yan Ruochu wrote "The Documents on Documents in Documents", etc. Only then did they confirm that "The Documents in Classical Documents" and Kong Anguo's "Biography of Documents in Documents" were forgeries.
It is recorded in "Shangshu" and includes documents such as canons, mos, instructions, edicts, oaths, and orders of the Yu, Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties. Among them, some documents from the Yu, Xia and Shang dynasties were written based on rumors and are not entirely reliable. Since the Han Dynasty, "Shangshu" has been regarded as a classic of political philosophy in China's feudal society. It is not only a textbook for emperors, but also a "great classic and great law" that noble children and scholar-bureaucrats must follow. It is very influential in history.
As far as literature is concerned, "Shang Shu" is a symbol of the formation of ancient Chinese prose. According to records in "Zuo Zhuan" and other books, before "Shang Shu", there were "Three Tombs", "Five Codes", "Ba Suo" and "Jiu Qiu", but none of these books have been handed down. "Hanshu Yiwenzhi" No longer recorded. The narration of pre-Qin prose should begin with Shangshu. The structure of the articles in the book is gradually becoming more complete and has a certain level. Attention has been paid to the chapter on destiny and planning. Later, the rise of prose in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period was its inheritance and development. After the Qin and Han Dynasties, the imperial edicts, edicts, and memorials of various dynasties were obviously influenced by it. Liu Xie's "Wen Xin Diao Long" also traces its origins to "Shang Shu" when discussing the literary styles such as "Edicts", "Exhortations", "Zhang Biao", "Zou Qi", "Yi Dui", and "Secretary". Some chapters in "Shangshu" have a certain literary talent and a certain mood. For example, Chapter 3 of "Pangeng" is Pangeng's precepts to mobilize his subjects to move to Yin. The tone is firm and decisive, showing Pangeng's far-sighted vision. Metaphor: "If a fire burns in the original place, it cannot go far" to describe the "floating words" that incite the masses, and "If you take a boat, you will not be able to help, but the smell will be carried" to describe the ministers sitting back and watching the decline of the country, both are more vivid. . Although the language of "Shang Shu" is considered by later generations to be "obvious" (Han Yu's "Jinxue Jie"), archaic and difficult to read, in fact, essayists of all ages have drawn certain lessons from it.
There have always been many works that annotate and study "Shang Shu", including "Shang Shu Zhengyi" by Kong Yingda of the Tang Dynasty, "Shu Ji Zhuan" by Cai Shen of the Song Dynasty, and "Commentaries on Modern and Ancient Texts of Shangshu" by Sun Xingyan of the Qing Dynasty. The 20-volume edition of "Shang Shu Zhengyi" produced by the Tea and Salt Department of Zhejiang East Road in the Song Dynasty is now in the Beijing Library. Zeng Yunqian's "Shangshu Zhengdu" and Mou Ting's "Tongwen Shangshu" are also available for our reference.
"Spring and Autumn" is the first chronicle in Chinese history. The Spring and Autumn Annals, which appeared in the late Spring and Autumn Period and the early Warring States Period, are the chronological history of the Lu State compiled and revised by Lu State historians. It mainly records the historical events of the Lu State, and also covers the Zhou royal family and other princes. Both Mencius and Sima Qian said it was written by Confucius, but "Zuo Zhuan·The Second Year of Zhaogong" records: Jin Dynasty official Han Qi hired Lu, "Looking at the book of Taishi, see "Yi Xiang" and "Lu Chunqiu"." The "Lu Chunqiu" here should be the original version of the current "Spring and Autumn". This year was 540 BC, and Confucius was only more than ten years old. It is possible that Confucius had deleted and revised the Spring and Autumn Annals. The original author of the Spring and Autumn Annals might have been the historian of the Lu State from generation to generation. Belongs to the record body.
The main content of "Spring and Autumn" is to record the major events that occurred in the Lu Kingdom and the dynasty and other princes from the first year of Lu Yin (722 BC) to the fourteenth year of Lu Aigong (481 BC). Important ceremonies, alliance meetings, the succession and funeral of kings, exchanges and visits between princes, and a large number of records related to military operations.
The records in "Spring and Autumn" are basically written in the format of a certain year, a certain month, a certain day, a certain place, and something happened to a certain person. The record is in outline form, but it is clear and concise.
In the first year of Ruyin: "In the fifth month of the summer, Zheng Beke came to Yan." It is narrated in the order of natural events, and the whole book is about 16,500 words.
Spring and Autumn Writing Technique: Due to the close relationship between Confucius and the Spring and Autumn Annals, it is generally believed that "The Spring and Autumn Annals pick up the good and criticize the evil" ("Historical Records Taishi Gong's Preface") expresses Confucius's political opinions, that is, Oppose the annexation of princes, oppose usurping the throne and seizing power, and committing rebellion against superiors. In fact, this is also the ideological proposition of the Lu historian. It was impossible for Confucius to revise all the records in the Spring and Autumn Annals. He just thought: "The empty words I want to record are not as profound and clear as seeing them in action." (ibid.) This kind of "seeing things in action" is also called "civilization" The way of writing "Bi Shi" is the Spring and Autumn style of writing. Zhu Xi: "If you write down the facts directly, you will see what is good and what is evil." (Zhu Xi quoted in Zhu Yizun's "The Study of Classics and Meanings")
Section 2 "Zuo Zhuan"
1. "Zuo Zhuan" "The author of "Zuo Zhuan"
There are different opinions on the author of "Zuo Zhuan". The more reliable one is Zuo Qiuming of Lu State. When Kong Anguo annotated the Analects of Confucius, he said: "Zuo Qiuming is also the Taishi of Lu." This Lu historian probably encountered some misfortune in the second half of his life and became blind and became a blind historian. Sima Qian's "Tai Shi Gong's Preface" said: "Zuo Qiu was blind, and he had "Guoyu"." Liu Xiang's "Bie Lu" said: "Zuo Qiu Mingzong taught Zeng Shen." (Kong Yingda's "Du Yu's "Spring and Autumn Preface" quoted" Shen was the son of Zeng Shen, a disciple of Confucius. According to this, Zuo Qiuming should be a junior of Confucius, but Confucius respected Zuo Qiuming very much and regarded him as a like-minded person. To be respectful, Zuo Qiu Ming is ashamed of him, and Qiu is also ashamed of him; to hide his grudges and be friendly to others, Zuo Qiu Ming is ashamed of him, and Qiu is also ashamed of him." This is the virtue of a good historian possessed by Zuo Qiu Ming, who wrote "Zuo's Family". The subjective conditions for the success of "Spring and Autumn" In addition, Zuo Qiuming also had objective conditions for writing history books. The state of Lu where he lived was originally the fiefdom of Bo Qin, the son of Duke of Zhou. It was known as a state of ritual and music and had relatively complete records of the Zhou Dynasty. "As a national historian, he must read the records carefully and remember them extensively and prepare remarks." ("Preface to the Anthology of Spring and Autumn Classics") In order to expand his knowledge horizons, he went to the Eastern Zhou Dynasty with Confucius to view relevant historical materials, and returned to Lu Empress Taking the "Chun Qiu" revised by Confucius as the outline and following its style, a detailed history book "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" was written.
2. The relationship between "Chun Qiu" and "Zuo Zhuan"
Ban Gu believed that "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu", like "Gongyang Zhuan" and "Gu Liang Zhuan", were written to explain the "Chun Qiu", so he called "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" "Zuo Shi Chuan", which is the so-called "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu". "Three Biographies of Spring and Autumn". "Gongyang Zhuan" and "Gu Liang Zhuan" use the form of questions and answers to explain the "minor meaning" of the scriptures layer by layer. Although the words are carefully selected and the expressions are concise, they have never been used as explanations because they only focus on exegesis and interpretation. Historiography and literary researchers attach great importance to it.
There has always been great disagreement about whether "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" is a work of exegesis. We believe that "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" is not a work of exegesis, but a work of interpretation. A systematic historical work. The reasons are:
1. If it is an exegesis, it must be consistent with what is not included in the scriptures, and it cannot be added at will. There are also unbiographical scriptures. For example, in the eighteenth year of Duke Wen, there are nine incidents recorded in the scriptures, two of which are "Qin Bo Feng died" and "Jisun Xingfu Ru Qi" is not recorded in the biographies. Two of them, "Qi Yigong's revenge on Bing Zha and his son" and "Song Wen Gong's attack on Wu family", are not included in the scriptures. It can be seen that "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" has its own writing content.
2. "Spring and Autumn". The records are based on the state of Lu. Although "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" refers to Lu as "I", the most narrated events are the events of Jin and Chu, followed by Lu. The other countries of Qi, Zheng, Song, Wei, and Qin also have their own affairs. There are records. It can be seen that "Chunqiu" is mainly based on Lu's "Chunqiu", while "Zuo Shi Chunqiu" refers to Jin's "Cheng" and Chu's "梼杌", and also draws on various ancient and contemporary historical records and Historical legends are compiled by cutting out the complex and simplifying it. It has its own compilation principles.
3. "Spring and Autumn" has less than 17,000 words, and the recorded events are limited to the 242 years of the Spring and Autumn Period. "Zuo Shi Chunqiu" has 180,273 words. Through dialogue, many old historical relics are displayed, which can be traced back to the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, and some historical materials of that historical period are preserved down to the 27th year of Lu Aigong, which is 13 years longer than the lower limit of "Spring and Autumn". Have your own writing style.
4. "Spring and Autumn" covers political and military events, while "Zuo Shi Chunqiu" expands the scope of records and reflects the entire society. Regarding the changes since the Spring and Autumn Period, the thoughts and feelings revealed in "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" are also different from those in "Spring and Autumn Period". "Spring and Autumn" upholds Zhou rites and opposes "committing rebellion"; "Zuo Shi Chunqiu" sometimes expresses sympathy for the people and things condemned in "Spring and Autumn". For example, in the second year of Lu Xuangong's reign, the "Spring and Autumn Annals" wrote: "Zhao Dun killed his king", while the "Zuo Shi Chunqiu" wrote "Jin Linggong was not the king". "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" has its own ideological stance.
"Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" was not originally written as an exegesis of scriptures. Of course, it would not be appropriate to say that it has nothing to do with "Chun Qiu". It can be said that without "Spring and Autumn" there would be no "Zuo's Spring and Autumn". "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" adopts the chronological style of "Chun Qiu", and generally constructs its own framework based on the records of "Chun Qiu" and the order of Lu Jun's life listed in "Chun Qiu". But the valuable thing about "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" is that he made huge creations on the basis of inheritance.
3. The literary achievements of "Zuo Zhuan"
1. As a chronicle, the narrative art of "Zuo Zhuan" has reached a high artistic achievement.
Jin Fan Ning's "Preface to the Anthology of Gu Liang Zhuan" says: "Zuo Zhuan is gorgeous and rich", and its "bright and rich" characteristics are specifically reflected in:
"Zuo Zhuan" vividly It displays colorful historical scrolls from the Spring and Autumn Period. The author not only records the changes in the throne of various countries, the power grabs of the rulers, the ups and downs of politicians, the strife and conflagrations within the nobility, the fraud and plunder between princes, the fighting and fighting of thousands of troops on the vast battlefield, and the dark corners. People's conspiracies and plans, all kinds of conflicts, large and small turmoils, and all kinds of changes are all included. Moreover, the author collected a large number of historical legends, folk stories, and even customs, nursery rhymes, and folk songs. Through careful organization and arrangement, these materials have greatly enriched the content of "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu".
"Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" was compiled based on extensive collection of various written and oral materials. From the standards of modern chronology, it appears to be messy, indicating that historical science is still in its infancy. However, it is this characteristic that further embodies the characteristics of Chinese historical and biographical literature. The author of "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" is good at selecting and trimming complex information. The history recorded in the book is sketchy at the beginning and detailed at the later stage. The latter is more detailed about Duke Xiang and Duke Zhao. The two Dukes reigned for 63 years, which is less than one-third of the whole book. , but the two chapters are nearly half of the whole book. As for the princes of each country, they also have their own emphasis. The Jin Dynasty is the most detailed, and the records account for a quarter of the whole book. The events of the Jin Dynasty highlight the key points, and record the rise and fall of Jin Wengong's hegemony in detail. For countries whose records are relatively brief, the use of pen and ink is uneven. For example, the records of Zheng Guo include about 15,000 words, mostly focusing on Zheng Zhuanggong and Zichan. The issue of Zichan being the prime minister takes up a lot of space. Anything that can vividly reflect the chaos, rise and fall of a country, and vividly display the characteristics of various representative figures in society is "excellent", otherwise it is "abandoned". "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" has its own detailed standards, which profoundly, vividly and vividly reflect the social life at that time.
"Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" is not satisfied with the historical writing style of "Spring and Autumn" that simply states historical events. It wants to show the entire process of that turbulent historical era and show the various historical figures in the story. It abandons the "Spring and Autumn Writing Technique" of one-word praise and criticism, and creates a method of displaying various characters and mentality and expressing the author's views and positions on the basis of vividly describing historical events.
The author attaches great importance to the complete grasp of events. Sometimes he can give a concentrated narrative on the occurrence, development and ending of events, breaking through the boundaries of chronology and giving the narrative of events the element of chronicling the story. It also gives the characterization a biographical meaning.
The narrative of "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" often pays great attention to the complete description of the process and causal relationship of events, and the narrative of war is particularly exciting. The war description in "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" fully reflects the narrative characteristics of "Zuo Zhuan". The book "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" records hundreds of wars, large and small. The descriptions of battles such as the Battle of Chengpu, the Battle of Yao, the Battle of Bi, the Battle of Tarn, and the Battle of Yanling have always been praised by people. The brewing and origin of the war, the military and diplomatic strategies before the war, the deployment of troops and horses, the fierce fighting during the war, the changes in the battle situation, the advance and retreat of both sides, the outcome of the post-war victory or defeat, the reactions of all parties, the processing of understanding, etc., are all The performance is circuitous and thoughtful, and the writing is vigorous and horizontal. For example, in the 32nd year of Duke Xi, "Qi Zi came from Zheng as an envoy to report to Qin." Through Uncle Jian's opposition to sending troops to attack far away places, it introduced the situation and dynamics of Qin, Zheng, and Jin before the War of Yao, and through Uncle Jian's cry This detail of the division foreshadows the inevitable defeat of the Qin army.
In the description of war, the war process itself is often written relatively briefly, but "sparse but not exhaustive, frugal but not limited." The author often selects key figures who determine the course of the war to focus on the description to show The course of the war. The words and actions of these characters on the battlefield are often used to reflect the mentality and posture of thousands of troops in fierce battles. For example, "The Battle of Ta" in the second year of Chenggong:
But Ke was injured by the arrow, and the blood was all over his body. The sound of the drum was not stopped, and he said: "I am still sick!" Zhang Hou said: "Since the beginning, he has been together. , and the arrow penetrates the rest of the hand to the elbow, and the rest is bent to guard, the left wheel Zhu Yin, how dare I bear it!" Xu said: "Since the beginning, I will be in danger, I will get off the cart, how can I know it? "But I am ill!" Zhanghou said, "The master's eyes and ears are with me, and I can follow him in advance and retreat. How can I defeat you with my illness?" He is about to die; his illness has not yet reached death, so my son encourages him to do it! The entire army was defeated.
The heroic image of the Jin army officers and soldiers fighting to the death is vivid in our minds.
2. The narrative text in "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" is mainly the responses of pedestrians and the words of officials, including special words for envoys to other countries and words of advice to the king. These pedestrians and doctors used their very sophisticated words to convince each other and promote their own opinions, euphemistically and forcefully. Liu Zhiji's "Shi Tong·Shen Zuo": "Looking for "Zuo Shi", it contains the words of officials and the responses of practitioners. The writing is classic and beautiful, and the language is erudite and profound. When describing the ancient times, it is still a complicated one, and when it is conquering the modern times, the cycle can be repeated. "Pedestrians use euphemistic speech, neither arrogant nor humble, and are impassioned, showing their personality.
The narrative language of "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu" is full of stories and rich connotations. For example, in the 16th year of Xuangong's record, the Jin army was defeated by Chu and was completely defeated. The author wrote: "The middle army and the lower army are fighting for a boat, and there are fingers in the boat." The whole situation of the Jin army's hasty retreat can be imagined. The author also recorded that the soldiers of the Chu army suffered from the cold after winter. "The king patrolled the three armies and comforted and encouraged them. The soldiers of the three armies were like holding hands." A few caring words were as warm as wearing cotton clothes, which is an apt metaphor.
The narrative in "Zuo's Spring and Autumn Annals" can be both revealing and obscure, deficient or real. It is shaped by things, and things become more complicated and the words become more vertical and horizontal. shall prevail. Sometimes the writing style is unexpected. When writing about obscene things, the writing style becomes clean, when writing about complicated matters, the writing style becomes simple, and when writing about tense matters, the writing style becomes leisurely. Various and interesting. Liu Zhiji's "Shi Tong": "There are four differences in narrative style: some can only record directly, some can only record their deeds, some can be known by words, and some can see by themselves with false praise." < /p>
The author's rich imagination and reasonable fictions are included in "Zuo Shi Chun Qiu". The written records, historical legends, folk tales, myths and anecdotes collected by the author are just a pile of "materials". The author's imagination and Fiction not only makes up for the details that are generally lacking in the materials, but also creates some necessary plots and character language. It is like an adhesive that binds all the materials together to form a flesh-and-blood unity. Imagination and fiction are an important form of artistic thinking throughout the writing of "Zuo Zhuan". For example, in the 24th year of Duke Xi's reign, the conversation between Jie Zitui and his mother was purely based on the author's speculation, imagination and fiction. The use of imagination and fiction, the author's embellishment of old historical materials, and the extensive absorption of legends and anecdotes have made the writing of "Zuo Zhuan" more elaborate and the narrative more exaggerated. Therefore, many people have criticized it from the perspective of history. Wang Chong's "On "Heng": "The words are too strange, which is quite contrary to Confucius's silence about strange powers and chaotic spirits." Fan Ning's "Automatic Preface to the Anthology of Gu Liang's Biography": ""Zuo Shi" is gorgeous and rich, and its loss is also a false accusation." Han Yu's "Jinxue" "Explanation": ""Chun Qiu" is rigorous, "Zuo Shi" is exaggerated." From the perspective of the principle of seeking truth in history and preserving without evidence, "Zuo Zhuan" is not a strict record of historical events. However, from the perspective of historical biography literature, this It is an important manifestation of the artistic creation of "Zuo Zhuan".