Liu Xiang, "biography Of Women" And Its Text Dynasty

In the third year of period He Ping reigned by Cheng emperor of Han dynasty (BC26), Liu Xiang was nominated to collated systematically the ancient books which lasted more than 20 years. His work not only contributs to the study of documentology, but also has un value of "making the thoughts classic and making the classic systematic" in the history of thought. For a long time, the book hanshuyiwenzhi(汉书·艺文志),in account of recording the achievements of Liu Xiang, is regarded as the entrance to study the academic research from Pre-Qin to Han dynasties. However, the evaluation of Liu Xiang's work always focus on the systematic entry of ancient records from Pre-Qin to Han dynasties, the value of "making the thoughts classic and making the classic systematic" thus being neglected.The book lienvzhuan(列女传)is a paragon which becomes a series owing to the arrangement of Liu Xiang. It is not in the normal sense of Classic for the intelligentsia but a canonic text for civilizing people. Relative to the classic academics, it is more simple and more polular. Its apprearance shows the effort of Confucian scholars to participate in the reform of imperial and social order by means of changing the form of classic academic research. By this way, they publicise the confucian values and standard of conduct.lienvzhuan is also an achievement of Liu Xiang in search of the apply of the classic knowledge to the society. Liu Xiang, origin of loyal family and a confucian scholar, demonstrate his double effort in the book:one is to urge and remedy the loyal power, the other to conceive the way of enlightenment. For the above reasons, we can consider lienvzhuan as an example which embodies the delicate relationship among the literature, the Confucian research and the politics in the mid and late stage of Western Han dynasty.This dissertation is divided into five parts. The first chapter includes a history of survey of lienvzhuan. Focus on its evolvement of identity from the book in loyal collection to popular text for enlightenment, this chapter intends to find out the special values of lienvzhaun in the field of academy and civil life.The second chapter puts lienvzhuan in the context of association documents which are listed by Liu Xiang and explore the different level of Liu Xiang's work for the purpose to prove that Liu Xiang has created a particular style of text. In the process of conformation of xinxu(新序),shuoyuan(说苑)and lienvzhuan, Liu Xiang has showed his foresight of compiling the books by the association of genre which also reflectes the individual tendency of compiling a book. In lienvzhuan, Liu Xiang invents a style which is logic and well-knit.Based on the observation of the style of lienvzhuan, The third chapter dwells upon the historical origin of its contents by studying the documents from Pre-Qin to Han dynasties. Here are the three origins:the Confucian classics and commentaries, the different record of history and the anecdotes. To compile lienvzhuan, Liu Xiang has followed the principle of "narrative first", that is to say, in selecting the historical resource, he respects the confucian classic but transcend its traditon. Then, in the dimention of compiling historical documents, lienvzhuan has the characteristic of history biography which makes it different from Books of Master(子书)；in the dimension of surpassing the pursuit of actual recording in history, lienvzhuanowns the qualities of Books of Master which draws a line beween it and the historical books. To conclude, lienvzhuan illustrates Liu Xiang's views of history which insists the concern of the present situation.The 4th chapter studies the official Confucianism of Han dynasty characteristic of lienvzhuan and analysed the official Confucianism concept of Liu Xiang impenetrated the course of his collating books. lienvzhuan played an important transition role with the practice character for the construction of women's rules of ethic and action during the development of Ritualism. In fact, the citating model of Poems was an diction method of put the official Confucianism into practice. During the course of the official Confucianism affecting roundly civil living, Liu xiang applied himself to create a more simple and more popular text relative to the classic academics which foreshow the trend of classic academics going to civilizing people.The 5th chapter pays attention to the literature value of lienvzhuan. Liu Xiang's narrative of conformity promoted the early narrative art and indicated artistic achieving of Liu Xiang's collating books. lienvzhuansong(列女传颂)show an popularized characteristic which correspond with his effort of creating a more simple and more popular text relative to the classic academics. lienvzhuan adopt some folklore fodder which reflect the undercurrents of common literature at the bottom of society and forerun a breaking through of literature development before long.