Ancient Chinese literature could be roughly divided into four parts: The Book of Songs is the earliest collection of poems in our country. It collects 395 folk songs and aristocratic songs from the Zhou Dynasty to the Spring and Autumn Period, including many poems about love, family, nature and so on. 2 "Chu Ci": It is a collection of poems written by Qu Yuan, a poet of Chu State during the Warring States Period. It has collected a large number of folk songs and aristocratic songs of Chu State. It has a strong local characteristic and style, including many poems about love, war, nature and so on. 3. Dream of the Red Chamber: It was a classic in the history of Chinese literature in the Qing Dynasty. It mainly narrated the love story of Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu and others, as well as the various ills of feudal society and the distortion of human nature. 4. Journey to the West: It is a classic work in the history of Chinese literature. It mainly narrates the story of Sun Wukong and others protecting Tang Sanzang to go to the Western Heaven. It portrays a magical journey of going to the Western Heaven. It has a strong folk legend color.
A Dream in Red Mansions
The four stages of ancient Chinese literature usually referred to a classification system for the development of ancient Chinese literature in the history of literature. This system usually divided ancient Chinese literature into four stages: 1. Pre-Qin period (770 - 221 B.C.): This was the initial stage of ancient Chinese literature. The art of poetry represented by the Book of Songs reached a new peak here. 2. Qin and Han Dynasties (221 B.C. to 220 A.D.): This was the development stage of ancient Chinese literature. The literary style gradually matured, and representative literary works such as "Chu Ci" and "Han Fu" appeared. 3. Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties (220 - 589 AD): This was the stage of the division of ancient Chinese literature. Various literary styles appeared. Poetry, prose, novels and other different types of literary works began to appear. 4. Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties (589 - 1911 AD): This was the peak period of ancient Chinese literature. The number of literary works was the highest and the quality was the highest. It formed the four famous works of Chinese literature represented by Tang poetry, Song poetry, Yuan opera and Ming and Qing novels. It should be noted that this classification system was not immutable. Different literary historians had different understandings and classifications of the development of ancient Chinese literature.
The Four Great Chinese Classics referred to Dream of the Red Chamber, Journey to the West, Water Margins, and Romance of the Three Kingdoms. They were all classics in the history of Chinese literature and belonged to ancient literature. Ancient Chinese literature had a long history and had experienced a long process of development. Ancient literary works included poems, essays, novels and many other types of literature. Among them,"Dream of the Red Chamber","Journey to the West","Water Margins" and "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" were outstanding representatives in the history of Chinese literature. These works were created in the social context of the time, reflecting the culture and values of the time, with profound historical and social significance. Modern literature was gradually formed after the Opium War in the late Qing Dynasty, with Lu Xun, Mao Dun, Lao She and others.
The four ancient Chinese fables are as follows: 1. The Turtle and the Hare: It was about a rabbit who missed the opportunity to compete because of his pride and eventually lost to a slow and stable turtle. This story teaches people to be modest and not to be impatient. The Bee and the Butterfly: It was about a bee who was trapped in a narrow place because of the pursuit of flowers and fragrance, and finally disappeared because he could not break through himself. This story tells us to pursue true meaning and value, not just superficial happiness and comfort. 3 " Oriole and Finches ": It was about an oriole who gave up her dream of music because she envied the singing skills of other birds. This story tells us to be confident and not give up on our dreams even if others may not understand or support them. 4. The Fox and the Hound: It tells the story of a fox who gains the trust of the hounds through deception and ingenious means and finally succeeds in stealing the prey. This story tells us to be smart and not trust others easily, especially those who seem reliable.
The four major Chinese literature schools are the four most important literary schools in the history of Chinese literature and are also an important part of Chinese traditional culture. 1. Confucian literature: The Confucian ideology represented by Confucius and his school of thought is mainly in the form of poetry and prose. 2. Taoist literature: The Taoist ideology represented by Laozi and Zhuangzi mainly takes the form of poetry and prose. 3. Buddhist literature: The Buddhist ideology represented by Sakyamuni and his school of thought mainly takes the form of novels and classics. 4. Folk literature, including opera, novels, rap, etc., reflects the long-term life experience and cultural traditions of the Chinese people.
The origin of ancient Chinese literature could be traced back to the Book of Songs in the Pre-Qin period and the Songs of Chu in the Qin and Han Dynasties. The Book of Songs was the earliest collection of poems in ancient China. It collected folk songs, Fu, poems, and other literary forms from the Western Zhou Dynasty to the Spring and Autumn Period. Chu Ci was an important genre in ancient Chinese literature. Most of the authors were nobles and scholars of Chu State. Their style was magnificent and gorgeous, and they were good at expressing their personal feelings and thoughts. These two works had a profound influence on the development of ancient Chinese literature and were also important treasures in the treasure house of Chinese literature.
The four main motifs in Chinese literature were: Heroism: A story that uses heroism as the theme to describe the struggle, sacrifice, and honor of a character. 2. Love: The love story between characters with love as the theme often involves complicated factors such as life and death, fate, and social status. 3. Family: The story of the character and the family will be described with the theme of family. The topics of family inheritance, family honor, and family responsibility will be discussed. 4. Social change: Using social change as the theme to describe the role and experience of the characters in social progress and explore the influence and significance of social change on the characters. These motifs had a wide and deep influence in Chinese literature, shaping a series of rich and colorful literary images and stories.
The four misers in Chinese literature referred to the four greedy and stingy characters in ancient Chinese novels. 1. Wang Hai of the Xia and Shang Dynasties (c. 1400 - 1046 B.C.): He was the "Jia Baoyu" in "Dream of the Red Chamber". The prototype was an extremely greedy businessman who did not hesitate to lie, cheat, steal and other means to obtain more wealth. 2. Yan Jiansheng of the Western Han Dynasty (c. 139 - 87 B.C.): He was a character in The Scholars. He was a greedy businessman and landlord who did not hesitate to kidnap and extort in order to obtain more wealth. 3. Xue Tao of the Tang Dynasty (about 713-about 770 AD): She was the heroine of the Song of Everlasting Sorrow. She was a greedy aristocratic woman who did not hesitate to cheat, steal, blackmail and other means to obtain wealth in order to obtain more property. 4. Wang Anshi of the Song Dynasty (1021 - 1086): He was the villain in the Water Margins. He was an extremely greedy politician and businessman who did not hesitate to deceive the people and plunder the country's wealth through reforms in order to obtain more wealth. These four misers were widely praised in ancient Chinese novels as symbols of greed, selfishness, and stinginess, reflecting the dark side of society at that time.
Ancient Chinese literature and ancient Chinese literary history were two different concepts. Ancient Chinese literature referred to the literary works created by individual authors in ancient Chinese history, including poetry, prose, novels, operas, and other artistic forms. The history of ancient Chinese literature was a study of the development and evolution of ancient Chinese literature, including the origin, development, climax, valley, and extinction of literature. Therefore, although ancient Chinese literature and ancient Chinese literary history both involved ancient Chinese literary works, their research methods, content and scope were different.
The four bright pearls in the treasure house of ancient Chinese literature and art referred to: " Dream of the Red Chamber ": This was a Qing Dynasty novel that was hailed as a classic in the history of Chinese novels. It used the love stories of Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu and others as the main line to show the style of the Qing Dynasty society and people's emotional life, depicting a world full of poetry and sadness. " Water Margins ": This is a Ming Dynasty novel that uses the uprising stories of Lin Chong, Song Jiang, and others as the main line to show the image and values of the Chinese people's resistance to oppression. It is known as a classic work in ancient Chinese novels. 3. Journey to the West: This is a Yuan Dynasty novel, with the stories of Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Monk Sand as the main line, telling a journey full of fantasy and adventure. It is known as a fantastic masterpiece in ancient Chinese novels. 4 Romance of the Three Kingdoms: This is a Ming Dynasty novel that uses the wars and political struggles of Cao Cao, Liu Bei, Sun Quan and others as the main line to show the characteristics of ancient Chinese political culture and the characters. It is known as an epic masterpiece in ancient Chinese novels.