LITERARY REACTIONS TO THE KENG-TZU INCIDENT (1900) (CHINA)

This dissertation is a summation and analysis of the large body of literary works relating to the Keng-tzu or "Boxer" Incident of 1900 which marked the climax of a Chinese mass movement against foreigners and foreign religion and tragically resulted in the invasion of China by the Allied armies of eight foreign powers. The aim of the study is (1) to define the nature of Keng-tzu literature and (2) to place it within the history of Chinese literature.; Keng-tzu literature involves many literary genres, such as poetry, drama, fiction, and t'an-tz'u; these genres are discussed in six chapters. The many Keng-tzu poems are grouped under three broad categories: (1) narrative, (2) satire/didactic poems, and (3) lyric; each is covered in a separate chapter. These poems are discussed in the light of traditional criteria and poetic ideals in order to ascertain their place in Chinese poetry and their departures from traditional poetry. An effort is also made to discover the coherent forces of these poems; this is helpful in defining the nature of Keng-tzu poems. Chapter IV introduces the epoch-making Keng-tzu kuo-pien t'an-tz'u (The T'an-tz'u of the National Crisis of 1900) by Li Po-yuan (1867-1907); the emphasis is on the "epic" dimensions in this work. Chapter V discusses three Keng-tzu plays in the light of traditional "historical drama" and conventions of the "ch'uan-ch'i" form. Chapter VI examines four Keng-tzu narratives from the angle of the reformists' theories of "new fiction" of that time. A conspicuous feature that prevails in this large body of literature is the unprecedented and deep concern on the part of the writers about their contemporary socio-political situations.; Since the discussions have revealed prominent changes in each of the genres of Keng-tzu literature, one has enough ground to arrive at the conclusion that the period which Keng-tzu literature covers is a drastic transitional one in Chinese literature. The findings in this regard are meaningful in establishing the link between traditional Chinese literature and modern Chinese literature that has arisen since the May Fourth Movement of 1919.