Study Of "Dream" And "Strangeness" In The Novels Of Ming And Qing Dynasties

In the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties there are lots of descriptions about the strange omens, ghosts, dreams and configurations of the stars. They play a very important role in indicating the development of the plots, delineating the destiny of characters, portraying the characters, presenting the psychology of characters and constructing the structure and theme of novels. However, people pay little attention to the description of the phenomenon in the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties so no systematic studies have been made on it. As a general phenomenon in the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties, it is a pity for people to neglect its study. Therefore, this paper aims at making a systematic study of it by analyzing some representative novels in Ming and Qing Dynasties.My paper consists of three chapters. In the first chapter of the paper, first of all, I made a retrospective interpretation of the connotation of "dream" and "strangeness". "Dream" and "strangeness" are expressed in two dimensions. For one thing, they express the subconscious life of an individual, such as dream, illusion, dementia, hysteria, a slip of the tongue and intuition. For another, they express the social and cultural dimensions of life as a whole, such as religion, myth, fortune telling and children's fold rhymes etc.Secondly, the paper inquires into the relationship between "dream" and "strangeness" and ancient Chinese novels. Because "dream" and "strangeness" have the dual characteristics of expressing image and situation, there is no doubt that they are a very important part of ancient Chinese novels. They are manifested in ancient Chinese novels in two ways: First, the "god" in ancient Chinese novels is represented as the heritage carrier. Second, "dream" is a part of contents in ancient Chinese novels. Besides, "dream" and "strangeness" are two important forms of expression in ancient Chinese novels, which are demonstrated as follows. First, there is a situation in which "supernatural being" and "dream" are mingled with reality. Second, "supernatural being" and people in life live together. Third, there is a plot pattern in which "dream" and reality coexist. Finally, there is a multi-dimensional morphology structure under the influence of "dreams". Meanwhile, they reflect the cognitive process of people to "dream" and "strangeness" from descriptive stage, single constructive stage to rational multi-level constructive stage.Thirdly, the existence and forms of the description of "dream" and "strangeness" in the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties are discussed. They exist not only in the novels of the same dynasty but also in the novels of different dynasties. In addition, they exist in the novels with different genres. The description of "dream" and "strangeness" in the novels of Ming Dynasty in classical Chinese focuses on the description of "dream" and "strangeness" at an overall cultural level but the description of "dream" and "strangeness" in the colloquial stories of Ming Dynasty puts emphasis on the description of the natural spirits of individuals, such as dream. Furthermore, it is quite common to find the description of "dream" and "strangeness" in the four classical novels of Ming Dynasty and in the novels in classical Chinese and the novels about worldly affairs in Qing Dynasty. They have the characteristics of broad span and rich forms. The phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness" in the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties can be divided into three types: the phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness" of man himself, the fictitious phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness", and the phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness" in the form of matter. The three types have the features of deification and sorcery.In the second chapter of the paper, I made a systematic case study of some representative novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties to reveal the character features of the description of "dream" and "strangeness" in them and the writing style at that time. Through the study of character features and the various forms of the description of "dream" and "strangeness", I explored their functions in the structure of a novel, the development of plot, the portray of characters and the stress of theme, etc.Deification is the overall feature of the description of "dream" and "strangeness" in The Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Heroes of the Marshes. Various dreams and strange things are described in the novels to reflect man's foreknowledge, prediction and superpower, which are used to organize the structure and plot of the novels and depict the characters. However, both of them have their own specific characteristics. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms has the overall arrangement of deification, classification and scattered distribution. There are different forms of "dream" and "strangeness" in the novel like scattered stars but all of them are under the control of God's will, indicating the suspense of whole plot and the symbol of partial plot. The ideological content of the novel is reflected by deified metaphor and in diverse forms. The destiny of the characters is portrayed under God's will, which rises to the artistic level of interaction between God and man. Heroes of the Marshes is a novel under the systematic construction of deification with a triple structure of horoscope, goddess and Buddhist monk. Goddess is in heaven, horoscope is moving downward, and Buddhist monk is traveling in this world. Horoscope is a component part of the characters, Goddess runs through the plot of the novel, and Buddhist monk foretells the destiny of characters in the novel.Journey to the West is noted for a generalized pattern such as retribution and predestined relationship, which are employed to describe "dream" and "strangeness". The three dimensional construction of heaven, earth and man as well as Buddha, man and devil has a generalized metaphor corresponding to the descriptive forms of "dream" and "strangeness", which is the typical feature of the description of "dream" and "strangeness" in the novel. It is mainly manifested in the following aspects: the corresponding metaphor of overall structure to human spirit, the generalized pattern of describing "dream" and "strangeness" throughout the novel, the classified construction of characters based on the description of "dream" and "strangeness", and the spiritual realization of ideological content.In The Golden Lotus, the description of "dream" and "strangeness" has close connection with the mood of characters in a specific environment. The overall framework of the law of causation stresses the close connection of the description of "dream" and "strangeness" with the psychology of characters and the setting of the novel, reflecting the personality characteristics of the mind of characters. In this way the phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness" has changed from the passage of mutual inductance between man and God to the unique spiritual space of characters. In the description of the delicate feelings of characters, the features of that time such as humanity, human touch and pan-lust are presented. Generally speaking, it has the following characteristics: special emphasis on the description of "dream" and "strangeness" based on the mood of characters, the multidimensional performance with the influence of mood, and the change of the artistic expression of "dream" and "strangeness" from deification to humanity. The most conspicuous feature of Strange Tales of a Lonely Studio is the deformation of "dream" and "strangeness". Ghosts and dreams are turned into a special aesthetic tool for the writer to convey his thought. The artistic expression of God, ghosts, demons and dreams is rich and colorful, which is the unique aesthetic perspective of the novel. The deformation reflects the existence of spirit in characters, the state of life and the social and cultural characteristics.In A Dream in Red Mansions, the description of "dream" and "strangeness" has a more appropriate, systematic and complete arrangement in volume, length and scene than other novels. It is not only an integrated part of the content and form but also an important way of expression. The subconscious image of an individual with artistic expression is similar to real life full of the revelation of the character's true feelings. The description of "dream" and "strangeness" focuses on dream, illusion, stupidity and intuition, which not only reflects the unique perspective of the novelist to describe his characters but also is a kernel carrier of the content. Furthermore, the phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness" such as dream, illusion, stupidity and intuition are reexamined in the novel. It presents the unprecedented perfect combination of spiritual image with artistic expression, adding some new contents to the novel.In the third chapter of the paper, I investigated the causes of the description of "dream" and "strangeness" in the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties as well as its effect. I made an analysis of the causes from five aspects: cultural origins, historical background, artistic appreciation, the individual features of the phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness", and the novelist himself. Witch culture, the interaction between God and man, Buddhist philosophy, Taoist philosophy and fatalism constitute the cultural origins. The numerous and jumbled gods in Ming Dynasty and the ideological shackles in Qing Dynasty are the historical background with some influences on the novels. The novelists in Ming and Qing Dynasties had the common aesthetic understanding of the phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness" because of the fantastic aesthetic tradition, the love of novel theorists and novelists for the fantastic beauty of the phenomenon of "dream" and "strangeness", and the experience of the novelists to self-spirit phenomenon.The description of "dream" and "strangeness" in the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties constitutes a mysterious and fantastic world of art with gods, ghosts, demons, dreams, illusion and stupidity. It has produced a great impact on the multi-dimensional descriptive space and the multi-level images of characters in the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties. It has enriched the intension of appreciation to artistic fabrication. Furthermore, it has promoted the fusion of fictitious space and real space such as man in the world and ghosts and demons in fairyland. The mysterious and fantastic aesthetic conceptions and the unique narrative pattern created through the description of "dream" and "strangeness" have exerted a tremendous influence upon the novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties and the literature of later ages.