On The Cultural Spirit Of Scholars In Historical Records

Scholars in the old days of China were seemed as a complex group and peculiar to the society. They were the direct participants in the state's political power, at the same time the founder, carrier and spreader of the national culture. Large numbers of elites came into being under the influence of the doubled historic missions and left many wonderful stories in history. The great work Historical Records with a record of 3000 years general history, focused on the figures in a way presented history in a series of biographies. The figures that had been picked out were famous for "insist on justice, catch on opportunities and make oneself known." Undoubtedly, the stratum of scholars attracted Si Ma qian's close attention. In a sense, Historical Records could be regarded as the basically comprehensive cataloger during more than 400 years from the Spring and Autumn period to the Western Han Dynasty, it was also a starting point to understand the lives of Chinese scholars. My thesis began with the texts of Historical Records, mainly adopted the method of historical research, cultural research and literary research, analyzed the varied images and cultural spirits of the scholars, and then discussed their influence on the society of later ages.My thesis was mainly divided into four parts: Part one inquired into the original meaning of "shi" from the critical interpretation of ancient texts on words, history and the origin of culture. The conclusion was, "shi" was the humblest aristocrats with occupations, cause and knowledge in the patriarchal period. Based on that, it cleared the reasons for the rise of scholars at the beginning and emphatically pointed out that Confucius was a forerunner during the formation of scholars. Part two; based on Historical Records, it vertically analyzed the history and culture before the emperor Wu. From the Spring and Autumn period which characterized by scholars, it expounded the dramatic changes and causes of the Warring States, the Qin Dynasty and the Han Dynasty. Part three analyzed the images of scholars and the cultural spirits reflected in Historical Records. Form the records in Historical Records, it went into the details of four kinds of ideal scholars and two groups of common ones, explored the internal cultural and spiritual values, which is the most important part of my thesis. Part four, the cultural spirit of scholars embodied in Historical Records influenced the later generations in many ways. The active influenced was the keynote, while the passive side couldn't be ignored.The conclusion based on the above analysis was, the stratum of scholars Was peculiar to China ancient society in politics and culture, they built bridges between the supreme rulers and common people. Historical Records comprehensively recorded the history of the stratum of scholars from the formation, the development, the transformation to the final state, so it became an important carrier on the culture of scholars. It exposed the scholars' pluralism through lots of vivid and imaginable images of scholars; it's an essential part of our Chinese culture. It remained fresh and influential because it constituted and permeated into national psyche on culture.