第八十九章《胡适英文论著：中国文学》（1）

第八十九章《胡适英文论著：中国文学》（1）  aliteraryrevolutioninchina

thepekingleader

feb.12,1919.pp.116-118.

theliteraryrevolutioninchina

thechinesesocialandpoliticalsciencereview

feb.,1922.vol.6.no.2.pp.91-100.

thechinesenovel

unpublishedmanuscript

anaddressattheliterarysociety,washingtond.c.,february15,1941.

1

thenovelasafictitiousbutconsciouslyplannednarrativewasalmostunknowninancientchina.theearliestliteratureofancientchinaisfactual,lyricalanddidacticbutrarelyindulgentinthefreeuseofimagination.therewasnoepic,nodrama,nonovel,nomythologyofanyelaboratetype.confuciusoncesaid:thesoleendofspeechistobeunderstood.suchapragmaticconceptoflanguagetendedtoruleoutallimaginativeliteratureasuselessandunnecessary.

indeed,ofallthehundredsofthousandsofbookswrittenintheclassicallanguage,thereisnotoneworkwhichcanbecalledabookwrittenwithapreconceivedplan.mostancientworkswerecollectedsayings,analects,episodesandatbestessaysonmostlyunrelatedsubjects.well-plannedworksofliterature,suchasagreektragedyoraplatonicdialoguewerenotfoundinancientchina.thetwoliteraryformsdevelopedinancientchinawerethelyricpoemandtheproseessay.theessaywhichbegantotakeshapeinthe4thcenturyb.c.wasessentiallyexpositoryandargumentative.chinesewritersseemedtohavefeltnoneedfordevelopinglargerarchitectonicstructurebeyondtheessayform.thenovelandthedramawhichrequiredsustainedimaginationintheplotandinitsunfoldingcouldnotbedevelopedinthehandsoftheseancientwriters.

story-tellingisanirrepressibleinstinctofmankind.evenasearlyasthetimeofconfuciustherewasarisingamongthepeopleaclassofhistoricalromancewhichwascalledhistorybutwhichwasapparentlynotedforitsfreeandimaginativeembellishmentratherthanforitsfactualsubstanceorauthenticity.confuciussaid:wheneverart(wen)outweighsmatter(chih),therewehavehistory.hewasprobablyreferringtothoseromanticizedhistoricaltalesofthelegendaryemperors,foundersofdynasties,greatgenerals,andwisemen,—talestoldwithawealthofsuchinterestingbutnotalwaystrustworthydetailsasdreams,oracles,prophecies,andimaginedconversationsandorations.

menciusinthe4thcenturyb.c.oftenhadtorebukehisstudentsforcitingthesepopulartalesasiftheywerepartsofauthentichistory;andheoftenridiculedthemastalestoldbythecrudefolksontheeasterncoastoftsiorasfabricatedbythosewholovetotelltalesaboutothers.

wearenowalmostcertainthatanumberofancienthistoricalepisodeswhichhavepassedashistory,originallybelongtothatclassofromanticizedhistoricaltalessocharacterizedbyconfuciusandmencius.suchwasthestoryoftheodysseyofdukewenofchin(d.628b.c.).andsuchwastheromanceofthehouseofchaowhichhasoftenbeendramatizedinlateragesandwhichbecamethethemeofafamousplaybyvoltaire.

thusthechinesestory-tellerreceivedhisfirsttraininginthesehistoricalromanceswhichrequirednoinventionofplot,butonlycollecting,fabricatingandembroideringincidentsanddetailstobewovenaroundaskeletonstructureofwhatpretendedtobebiographyandchronology.

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thencametheintroductionofagreatreligionfromindiawithallitsrichimagery,beautifulandcaptivatingritualismandwonderfullyimaginativeliteratureandphilosophy.theverysimplereligionofancientchinawasoverwhelmedandspeedilyconqueredbymahayanabuddhism.throughoutaperiodof2000years,thisnewreligionhasfundamentallyaffectedandtransformedthereligious,philosophicalandartisticlifeofthechinesepeople.

ancientchinaknewnoheavenorparadise,butindiagaveusthousandsofparadises.ancientchinaknewnohell,butindiagaveus18hellsofever-increasingseverityandhorror.therichandunbridledimaginationoftheindianpeopleseemedinexhaustibleinitsinventionofphilosophicalschematizationsandliteraryanddramatictalesofgrandiosestructure.everybuddhistsutraisadramawiththebuddhaandsomegreatdisciplesasthedramatispersonae.someofthesutras,notablythevimalakirtisutra,weresucheffectiveandfascinatingtalesthattheybecamethemostpopularthemesforpictorialpresentationandliteraryparaphrasethroughoutthecenturies.

indiathustaughtchinatheunbridleduseoftheimagination.manytaoistscripturesweredeliberatelyforgedonthemodelofthebuddhistsutras.popularizedversionsofbuddhisttalesbecamepartoftheworkofmonasteriesandtemplesintheirefforttoinstructandedifythemasses.therearoseinmediaevalchinaoneclassofliteratureknownasthepienorpien-wen,meaningtransformedversionsorparaphrases,whichwereprimarilybuddhistictalesretoldinchineseverseorprose,orpartlyinverseandpartlyinprose.veryoftenapassageof150wordsfromthevimalakirtisutrawasparaphrasedintoanewrecitalof5000words.thenthetermpien-wenwasextendedtoincludepopularrecitalsofnon-buddhisticstories.inthemediaevalmanuscriptsoftun-huangwefindsuchnon-buddhisticpien-wenasthoseofthelegendaryemperorshunoroffilialpietyoftungyungorofgeneralchipuorofthefamousbeautywangchao-chun.mediaevalchinawasapparentlybeingschooledbybuddhismintheartoftellingimaginativetales.

itwasapparentthatthegreatpopularityofthemediaevalstory-tellerwasassertingsomepowerfulinfluenceonthepoetsandprosewritersoftheeducatedclass.acontemporarycriticpointedoutthatthestyleofpochu-i'sfamoussongoftheeverlastingsorrowshowedsomeresemblancetoapopularbuddhisticpien-wen.butthemostinterestingevidenceofthisinfluenceisthefactthattheclassicalwritersofthe7thand8thand9thcenturiesweretakinggreatdelightinwritingshortstoriesofafairlywelldevelopedform.theseshortstorieshavenogenericnamebutaresometimescalledchuan-chi,meaningstrangeornoveltales.theydealwithromanticlove,heroicepisodes,virtuerequited,orstrangecrimesdetached.

aboutahundredofthesestorieshavebeenpreserved.oneoftheearliestofthese,thecaveoftheamorousfairies(yuhsienk'u)writtenbychangts'uabouttheyear700waslostinchinabuthasbeenpreservedinjapan.thisstorydescribeshowtheauthor,whenonanofficialjourneytothenorthwest,mettwocharmingladiesattheirhomewherehespentthenightandexchangedwiththemmanylittlepoemsofflirtationandcourtship.itissaidthatthisstoryofthe7thcenturybecameexceedinglypopularinjapanandinfluencedcourtlifeandliteraryfashioninthatcountry,andthatthefamousfirstnovelofjapan,—andpossiblythefirstnovelinthewholeworld,—thetaleofgenji,wastheresultofconsciousimitationofthecaveoftheamorousfairies.

anexaminationoftheseshortstoriesofthet'angdynastyshowsthattheartoffictionwritinghadalreadymadegreatprogress.thesenseofplot,theportrayalofcharacter,theelaborationofminutedetailswereallhighlydeveloped.(oneofthebestspecimens,thestoryofmisslibypohsing-chien,wastranslatedbymr.arthurwaley.)centuriesoftalesofreligiousedificationhadcreatedthedemandforthefictitioustaleasabranchofliterature;andthemenofletterscouldnolongerresistthetemptationtotrytheirhandsinthisnewformofliterature.thewriterstrainedintheclassicaltraditionsweretryingtoproduceshortstoriesasaformofprosenarrativeessayorshortbibliography.andtheyintroducedintothisliteraturetheveryimportantelementofartisticformwhichtheyhadcultivatedthroughtheirclassicaltraining.theirartisticcreationsweremuchhamperedbythelimitationsofadeadlanguagebutthesedelightfulshortstoriesoft'angandtheiressorsinlaterageshaveenrichedandelevatedtheartofchinesefictionbygivingitasenseofform,arefinementintaste,andarichnessanddepthincontent.

3

furtherdevelopmentofthechinesenovel,however,wascarriedonbytheprofessionalstory-tellerofthestreetandofthemarket-place.hehadtwoteachers:theancienthistoricalromancerandthemediaevalparaphraserofbuddhistictales.apoetofthe9thcenturytellsusthathischildrenweredelightedbytherecitalsofstoriesofthethreekingdoms.recordsofthelifeandcustomsofthepeopleinthecapitalsofthenorthernandsouthernsungdynastiestellusthatthroughoutthe11th,12thand13thcenturiesthereflourishedseveralrivalschoolsofstory-tellers(shuo-hua-jen).oneoftheseschoolswasthescripturalorreligiousstory-tellersandanotherthehistoricalromancers.buttheserecordsalsotellusthattheseschoolsofstory-tellerswereafraidofanewandmostpowerfulschoolofstory-tellers,knownastheschoolofhsiao-shuo,thenovelists,whohadtheirseparatetexts(huapeng)whichincludefourmainclassesofstories:

1.theghoststories.

2.storiesofheroicadventure.

3.talesofrougeandpowder,thatis,lovestories.

4.publiccases,thatis,famouscasesofcrimeanddetection.

thesecoveralmostthewholefieldofmodernfiction.

thetermnovel(hsiao-shuo)meantsmalltaleorshortnarrative.itseemsthatthisnewschoolexcelledintellingshorterstorieseachofwhichformsacompletedunitinitselfandcouldbetoldinacomparativelyshortsessionorsessions.inthatsensethenoveldifferedfromtheformlessandinterminablehistoricaltales.thisnewformoffictionwastoldbymenandwomenwhowerefamousfortheirvividdescriptionsandbeautifulenunciationandwhowerecalledthesilver-tongued(yin-tzu-erh).itwasbecauseoftheirmoreperfectedartisticformthattheotherschoolsweresaidtobeafraidofthem.

thesenovelsornoveletteshaveapeculiarityoftheirownwhichmaybecalleditsdouble-featureform.thestory-tellerbeginsbytellingaveryshortstoryasanintroduction,themoralofwhichiseasilyunderstoodbytheaudience.thenhetellshisaudiencethatheisgoingtotellanotherstorywhicheitherfurtherillustratesthesamemorallessonsorisjusttheoppositeofwhathasbeentoldintheprologue.thisdouble-featureformhasbeenfollowedinagreatmanyofthestoriesnowpreserved.

inthemeantime,thehistoricalromancers,too,weredevelopingaformwhichmarkedthebeginningoftheserialnovel.intellingtheinterminablylengthystoriesofthevicissitudesofadynastyorahistoricalhero,theseriousproblemofthestory-tellerishowtogettheaudiencetocomebacktothenextperiodrecital.longprofessionalexperiencehastaughtthesestory-tellersthattheymustendtheday'ssessionatamomentofgreatexcitementandpsychologicalsuspense.thuswhenourbelovedheroisbeingtakenawaybythelictorstobeputtodeath,orapoisonousarrowisbeingshotatourbeautifulheroine,—thentherecitersuddenlybeatshisdrum,recitesarhymedcoupletanddisperseshisaudiencewiththisfamousformula:ifyouwishtoknowwhathappenstoourhero(orheroine),prayhearittoldinthenextperiod.

thisprofessionaltrickofthestory-tellercametobeacceptedastheformulaforchapterdivisioninalllengthystories.eachchapter,therefore,mustnotonlytellitsownpartbutmustalsolinkitselfwiththefollowingchaptersbythisdevice.whilethismethodisartificialandmechanical,itneverthelesshasgiventhestory-telleratechniquetoorganizeamassofincoherentincidentsintoamoreorlesscontinuoustale.atanyrate,thisdevicehasmadepossibletheriseofwhatmaybecalledtheserialnovelinchina.

4

theseprofessionalstory-tellersnaturallytoldtheirtalesinthelivinglanguageofthepeople.theirtextsweretransmittedfromteachertopupilprobablyonlypartiallyinwriting,givingtheskeletonofthestory,itsmaindivisions,itsessentialdetails,etc.butitishighlyimprobablethatthetextswerefullywrittenoutasthestorieswereactuallytoldbythosesilver-tonguedmasters.muchwasprobablylefttoverbaltransmissionandtherewasprobablymuchfreedomfortheeedinggenerations.

thegreatestdifficultyinwritingdownthesepopularstorieslayinthefactthatthelivinglanguagehadnotyetachievedastandardizedwrittenform.printinghadbeeninventedbefore800a.d.andthemovabletypecameintouseinthemiddleofthe11thcentury.thegreatestpopularityofthesestoriesnaturallycreatedademandfortheirprintedcopies.thefewsurvivingoldesttextsofthe13thand14thcenturiesshowbeyonddoubtthatthesemastertellersofstorieswerenotcapableofwritingthemdownastheywereactuallyheardandenjoyedbytheiraudiences.theywereverycrudeskeletonswithverylittleartisticembellishmentandwiththedialoguemostlyinacorruptformofsimpleclassicalchinese.

then,somewriterswhohadbeentrainedintheclassicaltraditionweresufficientlyattractedbythoseexceedinglypopularandentertainingstoriesofthemarket-placetocometotheirrescue.theyweredissatisfiedwiththewrittentextswhichweresomuchinferiortotheverbalversionswhichhaddelightedthousandsofhearers.sothesewritersoftheeducatedclasstookthesetalesandwrotethemasexactlyastheycouldinthelivinglanguage.mostofthevocabularywasnaturallytakenoverfromtheclassicalwords.andwhereversuchborrowingwasimpossibletheyinventednewwords.inthatwayanumberofshortnovelsapparentlyofthe12thand13thcenturieshavecomedowntousinbeautifulproseinthelivingtongue.theformwasthatoftheprofessionalstory-teller;butthelanguageandthestyleboretracesofretouchingbysomemasterhand.

theuseofthelivinglanguageasameansofexactlyrecordingphilosophicalconversationanddialoguehadlongbegunwiththebuddhisticmastersofthech'anorzenschool.theprocedureprovedtobesoeffectivethatitwasfollowedbytheneo-confucianistphilosophersofthe11thand12thcenturies.itwasthoserecordsofphilosophicaldiscussionsofbothbuddhistandconfucianistschoolsthathadfamiliarizedthemenoflettersintheuseofthelivingtongueinwriting.itwasthisstylewhichwasadoptedbythosewriterswhowrotedownorrewrotethestoriesornovelsoftheprofessionalreciters.

astimewentontheprintedpopularstoriesandotherformsofpopularliteratureinthevulgartonguegraduallystandardizedthewrittenformofthelivinglanguage.morestoriesandevenlengthyhistoricalromanceswerewrittendownforprintingandsale.anumberoffirst-classwritersofthe15th,16thand17thcenturiestookupthesetales,polishedthem,rewrotethem,andinsomecasesfundamentallyreconstructedthem.someoftheserewrittennovels,notablytheshuihuchuan(translatedbypearlbuckasallmenarebrothers),thesankuo(translatedbyc.h.brewitt-taylorastheromanceofthethreekingdoms)havebecomebest-sellersformanycenturies.thepopularityofthesegreatnovelsamongthepeoplefurtherenrichedthelivingtongueandfurtherstandardizeditswrittenform.

earlyinthe17thcenturytwopatronsoftheshortnovels,fengmeng-lungandlingmeng-ts'u,separatelypublishedfivecollectionsofshortstories,eachcollectioncontainingfortystories,makingatotaloftwohundredofthenovelettes.manyofthesestorieswereoldstoriessomeofwhichdatebackpossiblytothe12thor13thcenturies,butalargenumberofthembelongtomuchlatertimesincludingnotafewwrittenpossiblybytheeditorsthemselves,whowerewritersofnomeanstanding.thesetwohundredshortnovels,printedwithintheshortspaceoftwelveyears(1620-1632),representthegreateststore-houseofmasterpiecesofchinesefiction.theyalsorepresentthehighestdevelopmentoftheindigenousshortstoryinchineseliterature.

the17thcenturywasanageinwhichthenovel,bothinitsshorterandserialform,firstreceivedunreservedrecognitionbysomeoftheadvancedliterarycriticsofthetime.chinsheng-t'anwhowasresponsibleforrevisingandabridgingtheshuihuchuanfromits100-chapterand120-chaptereditionstoitspresentformof71chapters,openlydeclaredthattherewasnoliteratureintheworldthatsurpassedthenovelshuihuchuan.

butinspiteofsuchenthusiasticeulogyofthenovel,theprejudiceamongtheclassicalwritersagainstthevulgarliteraturewasstillverystrong.mostwritersorrewritersofthenovelsweresoashamedoftheirartisticimpulsetowriteinthevulgarlanguagethattheydarednotsigntheirrealnamestotheirmasterpieces.andmostofthepeoplewhoreadthemandenjoyedthemoftenrefusetoacknowledgethattheyhadanythingtodowiththem.thosemastersofchinesefiction,therefore,deserveallthemorecreditandhomagebecausetheyhadthecourageandartisticsensetobravesuchdeep-rootedprejudicetogivetheworldtheirgreatnovels.

v

chinesenovels,broadlyspeaking,canbegroupedintotwoclasses:thenovelsofhistoricalevolutionandthoseoforiginalcreation.

manyofthehistoricalromancestookcenturiesofpopularinvention,elaborationandrevisionbynumberless,anonymousstory-tellersbeforetheywerefinallyrewrittenorreconstructedbythemasterwriterswhomadethemthemasterpiecestheyaretoday.theshuihuchuanhaditsorigininthe12thcentury,wasrewrittenbylokuan-chungofthe14thcenturyandwasrevisedbynumeroushandsthroughoutthemingdynasty,untilitwasgiveninitsfinalformbychinsheng-t'anwhoclaimedthathiseditionwasbaseduponanoldmanuscriptin71chapters.wenowknowthattherewasneversuchanoldmanuscriptandthathiseditionwasonlyoneofthemanyrevisions.thepresentformofthethreekingdomswasrevisedatevenalaterdate.thehsiyukiwhichtoldthepurelyimaginedtravelsofthegreatmonkhsuantsangtoindiainsearchoforiginaltextsofthebuddhisticscripture,hadninecenturiesoffreeevolutionuntilitwascompletelyrewrittenbyananonymousmasterwhomwenowidentifyaswuch'eng-enofthe16thcentury.theseandafewotherhistoricalnovelsofliterarymeritbelongtothefirstclassofnovelsofevolution.

thesegreathomerictalesalwaysoriginatedinthepopularlegendsofvariouslocalitiesandvariousages.thetaskofthestory-tellerandtheliteraryrevisionistconsistedlargelyinorganizingtheseunconnectedandveryoftenconflictingversionsandepisodesintoonecontinuouswhole.theoriginalstoryoftheshuihuchuan,forexample,hadthirty-sixheroes,butinsomeversionsofthemingdynastythenumberhadincreasedtoalmosttwohundred.inthestandardizedversionofseventy-onechapters,westillhaveonehundredandeightheroes.theworkofrevisionwastoeliminatetheuninterestingandthenon-essentialaswellastobringtheessentialcharactersintospecialeminence.ingeneral,thesehistoricalromanceshavelooseplotssomewhatinthefashionofthebuddhisticsutraswhereanumberofeventswithlittleinherentrelationshipwerestrungtogetherbysomeartificialgrandiosestructure.theindividualcharactersandseparateepisodesweretheimportantthings.andthesehistoricromancesweremostessfulingivingtothechinesepeoplesomewonderfullyentertainingstoriesandanumberofunforgettablecharacterswhohavedelightedeveryman,womanandchildandarestillbeingdramatizedandenactedonthepopularstagethroughoutthecountry.theseromanceshavenophilosophicalthesistopresent,nosocialreformtoadvocate.theirobjectwastheobjectoftheprofessionalstory-teller,—tofascinateandtodelightthehearerandthereader.insodoing,theyhavegivenussomegreatclassicswhichhaveinthelastseveralhundredyearsnotonlystandardizedthelivinglanguage,butalsomodeledthenationalcharacter.

afterthe16thcentury,chinesewritersbegantoproduceoriginalnovelsoftheirown.thepopularromancehadtaughtthemtheartofstory-tellingandtheuseofthelivinglanguage.manyofthestoriesofthisclasswerewrittentoentertain.theyusuallyfollowthefashionofthetimes,glorifyingthelifeoftheflesh,eulogizingthetalentedbeautifulwomen,idolizingtheessfulcandidatesinthecivilservicesandusuallyendinginhappymarriagesoftheessfulliteraryherowithmorethanonebeautifulandfaithfulwife.oneofthesestories,haoch'iuchuan(thestoryofaperfectcouple)hasbeentranslatedintoalmosteveryeuropeanlanguageandwasstillbeingplayedonthestagewheniwasastudentinshanghaithirty-fiveyearsago.thisstorytellsofaverycleverandself-reliantgirlofgreatbeautyandvirtuewhoessfullyprotectedherselfagainstthemanyintriguesofapowerfulbuteptablesuitor.inoneoftheintriguesshewasrescuedbyayoungmanofexaltedcharacterandgreatcourage.thisyoungmanthenbecametheobjectofattackbyherenemies.themostdelightfulfeatureofthisstoryliesinthefactthattheheroinewascourageousenoughtodefyallsocialconventionandcensuretogooutofthewaytorescuethisyoungmanfromaperilousplotoftheircommonenemies,andinvitedhimtobeherhouseguestsothatshemightgivehimthenecessarymedicationandnursingduringhisillnessresultingfrompoisoningbytheplotters.

butthefewgreatnovelsofthisclasshavebeenmorethanentertainers.theywerewrittenbymenwhohadcometorecognizethenovelasthemostsatisfactoryformofliteraryexpression,orwhohadamessagetocommunicatetothereadersthroughwhattheyconsideredasthemosteffectivechanneltoreachthepublic.ofthese,fourinparticulardeservespecialmention:

1.amarriagethatshouldawakentheworld(hsingshihyinyuan)byp'usung-lingofthe17thcentury.