Research On The Silk Book "Spring And Autumn Annals"

The silk manuscript Spring and Autumn Affairs Annals unearthed from Tomb No.3in Mawangdui consists of 16 chapters.With an emphasis on memorizing words,it records history during the Spring and Autumn period and belongs to languages class historical books.The history of the Spring and Autumn Period contained in silk manuscript is more frequently recorded in historical documents such as Zuo Zhuan and Guo Yu.Although most of the comments made by people of that time or later generations are not found in historical documents,they account for a large proportion of the text and have prominent characteristics.Through a detailed analysis on content of the silk manuscript,this thesis explores the characteristics and value of the silk manuscript and especially compares the comments on future generations of sages in the silk script with the comment style of “Junzi said” in the pre-Qin literature represented by Zuo Zhuan,which not only has a further understanding of the circulation of historical materials in the Spring and Autumn Period,but also has great significance for understanding the historical phenomenon at that time.This thesis is divided into three parts: introduction,body part and conclusion.The introduction mainly discusses the basis and significance of the topic selection,research status,research methods and procedures,which is the premise of this study.The body part mainly consists of four chapters,namely,the contents of Chapters One to Four.The first chapter discusses the age and nature of the silk manuscript.After sorting out the unearthed silk manuscripts,scholars’ arguments about the viewpoint and nature of their copying and completion dates mainly focused on the fact that the silk manuscripts were written during the period of the Chu-Han Competition,and their completion was no later than the Warring States period.As a kind of languages class historical books,it exists independently and has its own value.Chapter Two mainly analyzes the recorded content of the silk manuscript,which records the contradictions between the monarchs and their subjects as well as the wars and diplomatic battles within the states during the Spring and Autumn Period.And comparing the records of the Chapter Fourteen of the silk manuscript recorded in Zuo Zhuan,this prat clarifies the differences between them.The main reasons are the different compilation purposes and extensive historical sources of the two books,which indicates that there are many silk manuscripts recording historical materials in the Spring and Autumn Period,rather than just Zuo Zhuan.The third chapter mainly analyzes the “languages-part” of each chapter of Spring and Autumn Affairs Annals,that is,the analysis on character review.The review focuses on the matter,including three types of indicative attitude,causal analysis,and reasonable prediction.When making comments,the sentence pattern of “I hear it” is used to cite ancient language arguments,enhance the authority of the language,and use etiquette and morality as evaluation criteria to rationally analyze and predict the fate of the characters and the outcome of the development of events,which highlights the educational significance,reflects the values of honesty and loyalty,respect for morality and propriety and proper punishment in Confucianism.The Chapter Four mainly compares the comments in Spring and Autumn Affairs Annals which are similar to comments of “Junzi said” in Zuo Zhuan,namely,to compare contents of “words outside the matter” represented by “Minzi Xin said after hearing”.In addition to their similarities,it clarifies the differences in the content,style,and thought of the commentary,and concludes that the commentary in Spring and Autumn Affairs Annals does not have unity compared with the typical historical comments of “Junzi said” in Zuo Zhuan.On the contrary.With a longer length and rough speech,its arguments are not authoritative enough and the ideological values embodied are relatively weak.The overall embodiment is inferior to the state of “Junzi said” in Zuo Zhuan.On the basis of summarizing the full text,text formation of the silk book Spring and Autumn Affairs Annals is comprehensively discussed in the conclusion,and its value is further explored.The history of the Spring and Autumn period collected in silk manuscripts were widely circulated during the Warring States period.They were found in many historical documents,with a rich source of historical data.Structurally,the descriptions of historical events and results in silk manuscripts serve for intermediate comments and highlight the correctness of the comments.As for content,their descriptions are all experiences and lessons from failures caused by immorality,disrespect,or lack of planning in historical events,which aims to educate future generations.Therefore,the text of the silk book,Spring and Autumn Affairs Annals,was formed in the objective cultural environment and subjective demands,which is of important value for understanding the dissemination of historical materials of the Spring and Autumn Annals and the development of the Warring States historical review phenomenon.