On Qian Qianyi Of The Ming Dynasty Literary Criticism

Qian Qian-yi is not only a great poet and prose writer in between Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty, but also an important critic who mainly aims at literature in Ming Dynasty in the Chinese literary criticism history. The study of Qian's criticism could make us not only understand his own literary thought better, but also the development of literature in Ming Dynasty more comprehensively. Ming Dynasty is generally considered an era when traditional literature declines day by day and the rising literature of urban citizen reaches its high tide gradually. Novel and drama become the main stream while traditional poetry and prose are on the wane in Ming Dynasty. It cannot be denied that, however, Ming Dynasty is also an era when literary schools come in a continuous stream; new literary thoughts appear constantly and literary debates are more radically. The reflections and debates on traditional literature are more comprehensive and thorough especially in the later stage of Ming Dynasty.In view of the complex Ming literature, Qian Qian-yi puts forward his clear-cut stance: against the Movement of Back to the Ancients held by the Former and Later Seven Scholars with Li Meng-yang and Wang Shi-zhen as their representatives and Jin Lin School, with Zhong Xin and Tan Yuan-chun as their representatives; stressing on the importance of reading and true feeling in literary activity, in the hope of checking the social tendency of being ignorant and incompetent. Therefore, he takes the literature of Song Lian, Li Dong-yang, Gui You-guang and Cheng Jia-sui as the general direction of Ming Literature and denounces the literary thoughts of Li Meng-yang as "cloud and mist from the North" and literature of Zhong and Tan as "airs of ghost and fighting", and "sounds of a conquered nation". Being no lack of original thoughts that point out the ills of the time and many correct ideas that conform to the law of literary development, Qian's criticism of Ming Literature is not impartial and rational at all. It has already been pointed out by scholars but still requires further approach. This paper not only summarizes Qian's objective analysis of Ming Literature, but also probes the deep reason of his extreme and partial ideas. The author holds that Qian's scholar family background in the south of the River, personal ideal of reaching the position of chief minister, the unconventional and unstrained spirit of the Late Ming, lessons drawn from the bitter experience of the change of dynasties and his own sentimental character all exert influences...