Can we still find the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber'?
The last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' had not been discovered because the complete version of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' had not been preserved. Only the contents of the first 80 chapters had been completely preserved. This meant that the content of the last 40 chapters could only be known by the author Cao Xueqin's descendants or related research. At present, the study and interpretation of the last 40 chapters of the Dream of the Red Chamber are still in progress, but there is no complete and reliable version yet. Some versions of the last 40 chapters of the Dream of the Red Chamber were controversial and even considered plagiarized or forged. Therefore, the specific content of the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' still needed further research and understanding.
The last 40 chapters of the Dream of the Red Chamber
The last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' were continued by Cao Xueqin's good friend, Gao E. They mainly narrated the fates of Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu, and the others, as well as the decline of the Jia family. In the last 40 chapters, Cao Xueqin's writing style was restored, and the plot of the novel became richer. In the last 40 chapters, Gao E re-created the images of many characters and edited and adjusted the plot of the novel. In general, the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' were different from the first 80 chapters. They were more in line with Cao Xueqin's original intention, but there were also some cuts and adjustments. Many important plots and characters in the novel were not presented in the first 80 chapters, such as the cause of Jia Baoyu's death and Lin Daiyu's whereabouts. The last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' were a complete picture scroll that re-presented the fate of the Jia family, Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu, and others, but it also retained Cao Xueqin's original creativity and style.
In the future, will we be able to find the real last 40 chapters of the Dream of the Red Chamber?
The last 40 chapters of Dream of the Red Chamber is a continuation of the Chinese classic novel, Dream of the Red Chamber. The complete version has not been published yet, so it is uncertain whether there is a complete copy. Although there were many versions of 'Dream of the Red Chamber', the content of the last 40 chapters was different from the other parts. Therefore, in the existing versions, the last 40 chapters were usually independent and not integrated with the other parts. If there were any changes in the future version of 'Dream of the Red Chamber', or if the author decided to re-write the last 40 chapters, then there might be a new copy. However, at the moment, we are not sure if there will be a complete version of the last 40 chapters.
Who wrote the last 20 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber'?
The last 20 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' were generally believed to be written by Cao Xueqin. Cao Xueqin was the author of " Dream of the Red Chamber ". His real name was Cao Yin, and his name was Xu Dong. He was a writer, painter, and calligrapher in the Qing Dynasty. According to research, Cao Xueqin experienced many twists and turns in the process of writing "Dream of the Red Chamber" and finally completed the last 20 chapters of the novel and died around 1884. Cao Xueqin was very meticulous in her character description and excellent in her plot arrangement. His novel used the rise and fall of the four families of Jia, Shi, Wang and Xue as the main line to describe the lives and emotions of the main characters such as Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai. It also described the various ills of China's feudal society and the distortion of human nature. The last 20 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber's' exquisite style of writing and compact plot were one of Cao Xueqin's representative works and also a classic of Chinese classical novels.
How to write the last 40 chapters of Dream of the Red Chamber?
The continuation of the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber', was completed by Cao Xueqin's good friend Gao E. When Gao E continued to write 'Dream of the Red Chamber', he made some adjustments and cuts to the first 80 chapters, as well as made some changes to the plot and characters. In the last 40 chapters, Cao Xueqin described the love story between Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu. However, their relationship was no longer the love in the original novel, but contradictions and misunderstandings. At the same time, Gao E added some new characters and plots to make the story more colorful. In the last 40 chapters, Gao E described a more realistic and complex Dream of the Red Chamber. He added many details and descriptions so that the readers could better feel the atmosphere and emotions in the novel. However, Gao E's continuation was also controversial. Some people felt that his continuation was too dull and lacked the essence of Cao Xueqin's original work. The continuation of the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' was written by Gao E. He made the story more colorful by adding some details and descriptions, but there were also some disputes.
The 42 chapters of the Dream of the Red Chamber
In the 42nd chapter of the Dream of the Red Chamber, Grandmother Liu was preparing to go home. Grandmother Jia gave her something and asked her to name Sister Feng's daughter Qiao Jie. Grandmother Jia felt a little uncomfortable, but it was nothing serious. Baoyu gave Miaoyu a bell, which made her like it. Daiyu was taught by Baochai not to be addicted to miscellaneous books, and she accepted Baochai's teachings. In addition, there were some other details and plots, such as Grandmother Jia's visit to the hospital and Granny Liu's departure.
Dream of the Red Chamber (1- 120 chapters)
'Dream of the Red Chamber' was a classic work of Chinese classical literature. It described the lives and experiences of Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu, and others in feudal society. The first part of the novel," Zhen Shiyin's Dream and Psychic Knowledge ", mainly talked about Jia Baoyu's birth, growth, and family changes; the second part," Jia Yucun's Wind and Dust Embracing a Lady ", mainly talked about the emotional entanglement between Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu; the third part," Liu Xianglian's Love and Ecstasy ", mainly talked about the marriage life of Jia Baoyu and Xue Baochai; the fourth part," Design and Conspiracy," mainly talked about the decline of the Jia family and the changes of the family members. The fifth part," The Lantern Festival Banquet at Rong Mansion ", was mainly about the banquet that Lady Jia, Jia Baoyu, and the others attended during the Lantern Festival. The sixth part," Jia Yuanchun's Return to the Rong Mansion ", was mainly about the deaths of Jia Baoyu's father, Jia Zheng, and Lady Jia. The seventh part," Jia Baoyu's Golden Fur Repair for his Illness ", was mainly about Jia Baoyu's physical condition and the side effects of medicine. The eighth part," Xue Baochai's Paradise Lost After Marriage ", was mainly about the marriage life of Xue Baochai and Jia Baoyu. The ninth part," Wang Xifeng's Poisonous Lovesick Plan ", mainly talked about the emotional entanglement between Wang Xifeng and Jia Baoyu; the tenth part," Li Wangfan's Frost Wind Moon Dew Group ", mainly talked about the decline of the Jia family and the changes of the family members; the eleventh part," Qin Keqing's Obscene in Tianxiang Pavilion ", mainly talked about the relationship between Qin Keqing and Jia Baoyu; and the twelfth part," Lin Daiyu's Throwing of the Birthday Orbit ", mainly talked about Lin Daiyu's death and Jia Baoyu's grief. The whole story of the novel revolved around Jia Baoyu's fate, depicting an illusory and profound feudal society, revealing the complexity of human nature and the drawbacks of feudal society.
Was Cao Xueqin the author of the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber'?
Whether Cao Xueqin was the author of the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber', there was still a debate. Cao Xueqin was from the Qing Dynasty. His masterpiece was 'Dream of the Red Chamber'. 'Dream of the Red Chamber' was a very important classical Chinese novel, known as one of the great works in the history of Chinese novels. This novel tells the love story of Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu and others, depicting the life of an illusory and complicated feudal dynasty family. However, whether Cao Xueqin had written the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber', there was still controversy. Some scholars believe that Cao Xueqin may have only written the first half of the novel and the remaining 40 chapters were written by other authors. These last 40 chapters were very different from the first half of Cao Xueqin's text, and some of the contents in the last 40 chapters did not conform to Cao Xueqin's original intention. Other scholars believed that Cao Xueqin was the author of 'Dream of the Red Chamber'. The first half of the novel was the prototype of the novel, and the last 40 chapters were the continuation of the first half. They believed that Cao Xueqin had died while writing 'Dream of the Red Chamber', and that the first half of the text had been continued by his family, friends, and others. Whether Cao Xueqin was the author of the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber', there was still a debate. Regardless of whether he was the author or not,'Dream of the Red Chamber' was a very important classical Chinese novel that had a profound impact on Chinese literature and culture.
What was the difference between the first 80 chapters and the last 40 chapters of Dream of the Red Chamber?
The first 80 chapters and the last 40 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' were written in two different styles and contents. The first 80 chapters of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' mainly narrated the love stories of the main characters such as Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu, Xue Baochai, and the living conditions of the Rong and Ning families. The first 80 chapters were relatively simple and the characters were more plump, but the writing style was relatively dull and lacked the delicate description of the later chapters. The last 40 chapters used more detailed descriptions to delve deeper into the background, character relationships, and storyline of the Dream of the Red Chamber. In the last 40 chapters, the author Cao Xueqin used a lot of symbolism and metaphor techniques to make the meaning of "Dream of the Red Chamber" more profound and the characters more three-dimensional. At the same time, the last 40 chapters also added some historical background and social customs to make the Dream of the Red Chamber more historical and cultural. Generally speaking, the first 80 chapters and the last 40 chapters have very different writing styles and contents. The first 80 chapters pay more attention to the plot and the character image, while the last 40 chapters pay more attention to the literary skills and the exploration of the meaning.
All the chapters of Dream of the Red Chamber
Dream of the Red Chamber has a total of 120 chapters.
A summary of the chapters of the Dream of the Red Chamber
The first chapter of 'Dream of the Red Chamber' talked about Zhen Shiyin and Jia Yucun's acquaintance, as well as the disappearance of Zhen Shiyin's daughter, Yinglian. The second chapter described Madam Jia's death and Jia Yucun's marriage to Jiao Xing. According to the information provided, we can have a preliminary understanding of the plot of each chapter of 'Dream of the Red Chamber'.