Cultural And Literary Study On Po-ling Tsui Family In Eastern Han Dynasty

In the East Han Dynasty, Po-Ling Tsui family is well known for its outstanding family culture and literary tradition. This thesis takes Po-Ling Tsui family in the East Han Dynasty as research object, exploring characteristics of the family culture and literature and investigating the influence of family culture on family members’literary actives. Specifically, the thesis is divided into the following sections.In the introduction, the objects and significance of the research are presented. The thesis-related concepts like family education, family tradition and family culture, as well as their relations, are elucidated on the whole. These lay foundation for the following discussion.In Chapter One, the reasons and backgrounds for the rise of family literature in the East Han Dynasty are analyzed. From the perspective of social politics, due to the state’s loose policies, local powerful families developed vigorously and saved their strength. From the perspective of the development of Confucianism learning, it was well developed under the strong advocacy from the rulers of the East Han Dynasty. In this case, these families focused on the cultural cultivation of family members in order to maintain their social status, which consolidated their positions and promoted the development of the Confucianism learning at the same time. From the perspective of the family development, only conforming to the changes of society and times can the family maintain its vitality. Learning and mastering the Confucianism is the general way to be officials and it is also the essential method to maintain the vitality of the family. Under the effect of such ethos, family literature in the East Han Dynasty was gradually rising. Then the characteristics of the family education and general inheritance form of family culture formed under such background are discussed.In Chapter Two, the formation and flourish of Po-Ling Tsui family from historical records are clarified. This thesis takes activities and social events of Po-Ling Tsui family members in the East Han Dynasty as research objects to explore the forming process and manifestation of family educations and traditions and thus to macroscopically learn about Po-Ling Tsui family in the East Han Dynasty.In Chapter Three, common characteristics of the literary works written by Po-Ling Tsui family members in the East Han Dynasty are analyzed. Their literary works are divided into three types according to the content. The influences of family culture to literary creation of family members are discussed from three aspects, namely, fixity of contents and genres, convergence of thoughts and homoplasy of writing styles. It also analyzes political thoughts embodied from specific works of family members, including official selecting and promoting, law, agricultural affairs and ethics thoughts, which fully reflect concerns of Po-Ling Tsui family members on politics and society in the East Han Dynasty, and embody the ancient Chinese Confucian scholars’ political ideal of serving people worldwide as their duty.The last section takes historical biographies as threads to briefly introduce the achievements in politics and literature fields of Po-Ling Tsui family members from the Han Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty, as well as the inheritance and development of excellent family culture generated from the East Han Dynasty. Then it further discusses the significance of outstanding family culture for the family development.