| dc.description.abstract | The research of portraits in“Jian Deng Xin Hua”
ABSTRACT
As one of the most representative works of classical-Chinese fictions in the early Ming Dynasty, Qu You’s Jian Deng Xin Hua was not only tremendously popular with the readers of the time, but also triggered a trend of mimicry. Even though the trend was banned by the authority of the time, it still profoundly had a great effect on the creation of opera and novel during the time of Ming and Qing Dynasty. However, since the importance of academic research lies in the fact that we are allowed to learn from history, in this thesis, the genre of Qu You’s Jian Deng Xin Hua is re-examined in terms of three aspects: the categorization of the characters, the dissection of the subject matter, and the investigation of topic.
Protagonists have always been the main factors during the composition of a fiction. Without the complexity among the characters from all walks of life, the subject matter of the story can’t be developed ideally; what’s further, the author can’t freely express his idea as well as the theme of life through the individual character in the story. Thus, the dissection of each protagonist in the work is helpful for us to have a better understanding of the author’s devices used in his way of interpretation of the work along with the mechanism of narrative he applied. Therefore, this thesis is arranged from a general introduction, to an individual discussion, and then back to a general introduction, in the hope of having a deep insight into the three aspects.
With the use of male, female, spirits, and the other four typical figures in such fiction genre as chuanqi (the integration of weirdness), Qu You authentically reflected what it was in the late Yuan Dynasty and the early Ming Dynasty, and conveyed his mercy over the poor and the weak, along with his belief in “virtue will have a good reward, while vice will have an veil recompense,” both of which serve as the theme of the work.
Keywords：Qu You、Jian Deng Xin Hua、typical figures | en_US |