|
This section includes: Notes
| Text
Notes:
- When the Mongol (Yüan) armies overran
northern China and the southern Sung dynasties, they established
themselves as a dynasty, abolishing governmental principles
derived from Confucian teachings.
- Often building on works of classical literature,
vernacular literature (dealing with sex, violence, satire,
and humor) became known for its ability to elaborate creatively
on plots of earlier works by filling in details or perhaps
even by articulating what had been omitted.
- Under the Ch'ing Dynasty, and especially
during the period known as the "literary inquisition,"
classical Chinese writing suffered a devastating blow.
- China's autonomy and cultural self-confidence
were decimated in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries,
when European colonial powers began to exert control over
China's economy.
Text:
* blue words within the text indicate important notes to remember
- When
the Mongol (Yüan) armies overran northern China and
the southern Sung dynasties, they established themselves
as a dynasty, abolishing governmental principles derived
from Confucian teachings. In effect, this meant that
although classical literature retained importance in intellectual
circles, it gradually became marginalized in spheres of
public and private life.
- In its place, vernacular
literature (plays, verse, romance, and prose fiction) began
to play an important role in urban areas. Often
building on works of classical literature, vernacular literature
(dealing with sex, violence, satire, and humor) became known
for its ability to elaborate creatively on plots of earlier
works by filling in details or perhaps even by articulating
what had been omitted. For instance, Wu Ch'eng-en's
extensive novel Monkey, or "Journey to the
West," is historically based on the Buddhist monk Tripitaka's
pilgrimage from China to India. Whereas neo-Confucianism
emphasized rediscovering the Confucian classics as a way
to build a system of private and social ethics that could
determine all aspects of life, vernacular literature focused
on liberty, violent energy, and passion. In effect, it gave
a voice to aspects of life that neo-Confucianism tried to
repress. K'ung Shang-jen's Peach Blossom Fan
is a play derived from the ch'uan-ch'i tradition,
which consists of long plays that are performed over a period
of several days. Cao Xueqin's novel the Story of
the Stone, better known as the Dream of the Red
Chamber, is a long, unfinished female-centered novel
and has been viewed as an embodiment of Chinese national
identity.
- When the Manchu armies
established the Ch'ing Dynasty that remained in place
from 1644 to 1911, the Chinese people experienced changes
in their private and public cultural lives. Under
the Ch'ing Dynasty, and especially during the period
known as the "literary inquisition," classical
Chinese writing suffered a devastating blow. Because
early Ch'ing intellectuals viewed the emphasis on personal
freedom over social responsibility as a reason contributing
to the fall of the Ming Dynasty, there was a strong movement
away from Ming subjectivism. In its place, the Ch'ing
emphasized historically and philosophically rigorous textual
interpretations. Texts were studied by exploring how words
might have been used in their original contexts.
- China's
autonomy and cultural self-confidence were decimated in
the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, when European
colonial powers began to exert control over China's
economy. The opium "trade," a strategy
by which the British enabled China's dependency on
opium from India as a way to acquire tea from China, culminated
in the Opium War (1840–42), resulting in the takeover
of Hong Kong by Britain. At the same time, Christian missionaries
were able to gain footholds throughout the country because
they were protected by treaties. The T'ai-p'ing-T'ien-kuo,
a movement that attempted to combine Christianity with local
beliefs, rebelled against the Ch'ing government, resulting
in a war that left central China desolate. These constant
attacks eventually weakened the physical and moral resolve
of the ruling Ch'ing government; by 1911 it was overthrown,
and the Republic of China was established.
|
