Two wonderful books appeared in the air.
Let's talk about strange stories from a strange studio. Even if it is deleted from the four classic novels, we still know its story like the back of our hand. This book was written by Pu Songling, a writer in the Qing Dynasty, and describes all kinds of strange ghost stories, among which there are many love stories between people and ghosts. Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio breaks the traditional novel theme and content, and constructs an illusory world for readers with wonderful imagination.
When ghost stories are all the rage, you must know that the script of the story comes from Nie in Pu Songling's Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio. This sad and euphemistic love story has not only been adapted into a film and television work, but also become a famous drama of Yue Opera. It's about a scholar who falls in love with a female ghost, but he can't break the barrier between Yin and Yang. In order to be with the person I love forever, the female ghost is willing to be a ghost forever.
The content of Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio has entered the examination paper of middle school as a classical Chinese topic for many times, and it stands out among many classical Chinese with this bizarre language.
Besides, The Scholars was written by Wu in Qing Dynasty. As a kind of folk popular reading, it has been enduring in the long history and spread to this day. The story object of this book is mostly folk figures and students taking the imperial examination, and many stories about the imperial examination have been written. The language is humorous and ironic.
If you don't know The Scholars, then you must know the story of Fan Jinzhong. This story has been selected into middle school textbooks. It tells the story of Jin Fan who was obsessed with the imperial examination, but failed in the examination year after year and had to endure a very low family status. In order to take the exam again and get a scholarship, he lived in a white eye. Finally, Jin Fan, a middle-aged man, unexpectedly won the prize. At this time, the attitude of the people around him suddenly changed. This affable and respectful atmosphere surprised Jin Fan. In a life of intense contrast, Jin Fan is crazy.
Strange books and strange wind books, as the name suggests.
In the Qing Dynasty, when the civic culture was developed, the reading volume of Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio and The Scholars exceeded that of Four Great Classical Novels. Because the story is interesting and the language is popular, especially for readers, even modern people do not have any language gap, and the language is straightforward and not obscure.
Moreover, compared with Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The Water Margin, The Journey to the West's exorcism, the love between Bao and Dai in A Dream of Red Mansions, and the strange stories from a strange studio in The Scholars, it is more ironic and characteristic. Because Water Margin and Romance of the Three Kingdoms are similar in style, they came out almost at the same time. Some people even suspect that these two books were actually written by one person. However, although Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio and Scholars both came from the Qing Dynasty, there has never been such an argument.
Being strong means thinking perversely and being difficult to control. There are so many imitators in later generations that it is difficult to surpass the important position of the two books in the history of China literature. Both Pu Songling and Wu were born in noble families, but their families fell. They were poor all their lives and lived a life of subsistence. They are all poor, but they don't have the fame and fortune to take the imperial examination. With a pen as a weapon, they wrote an elegy about this dynasty with indignation.
The publication of Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio and The Scholars coincided with the decline of Qing Dynasty and feudal rule. These two writers are far-sighted to see that the times they live in are not eternal, and they will die soon after them. The relationship between monarch and minister and the relationship between superiors and subordinates is not the eternal law of this world, and literary works are political bell ringers.
Was deleted from the list of four classic novels.
Having said that, you can probably understand the biggest reason why the titles of the "six masterpieces" have become "four classic novels". The "six masterpieces" are handed down from generation to generation, while the "four classic novels" are redefined in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, and are also recognized by experts and scholars from all walks of life.
Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio and The Scholars have grotesque stories and full of fighting spirit, which deeply exposed the darkness and ills of the society at that time and became two sharp weapons to break the feudal tradition.
Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio advocates free and equal love, trying to break the class solidification that has imprisoned the young and the old for thousands of years. Through the funny description, The Scholars seriously put forward the viewpoint that the imperial examination is an official and destroys the cultural reality. Obviously, the author hates the imperial examination system, which is harmful to people.
In the early days of the People's Republic of China, after discussion by experts and scholars, it was decided to delete Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio and The Scholars and change them into Four Great Classical Novels, because the strong refraction and distinctive themes of these two books are not suitable for everyone, especially the literary works struggling with feudal society, which are really out of place in the new society.
At that time, the cultural popularization was not high. Except for a few intellectuals, most people are still semi-illiterate or semi-illiterate. After years of living without a fixed address, families are even more unable to afford education. In this case, our country is far-sighted and thoughtful. If children who haven't formed three views or people with low educational level read these two books, they will have the opposite result.
On the other hand, the books in the "Four Classic Novels" are story books suitable for all ages. As the saying goes, a thousand people have a thousand Hamlets in their eyes. Children are attracted by its story, while middle-aged people see the fighting spirit of life and the struggle against fate. When people get old, they will read the feeling of leisure by watching the autumn moon and spring breeze. The four classic novels are indispensable reading materials at every stage of life.
The Special Value of Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio and Scholars
Nevertheless, the two books, Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio and Scholars, are worth reading and tasting. Although they are all books reflecting the dark old society, some of them are superb in language description and embody the spirit of equality and justice, which is worth learning.
China's splendid culture of 5,000 years has left many precious literary heritages. We have to admire the wisdom of our ancestors, let them use their own life experience to write books and tell their own life lessons and perfect rules to future generations. As the saying goes, the book has its own Yan Ruyu, and the book has its own golden house. Opening books is beneficial, and reading more historical books and classics is quite beneficial to improving personal cultivation.
Whether it is the "four classic novels" or the "six masterpieces", reading good books is the most important. We should get rid of its dross, take its essence and critically inherit the ideological crystallization that conforms to the development of the times. In this way, it is the greatest respect and the best tribute to the books written by the ancients.