A Study Of Shen Zijin

Shen Zijin is a famous dramatist in Chinese traditional opera from the late Ming Dynasty to the early Qing Dynasty,he inherited the tradition of his familial opera culture which was started by his uncle, Shenjing. He finally became the leading dramatist of the late WuJiang School . He lived in an unstable society, therefore, the style of his sanqu had been changed completely. Though his drama works were not really rich in numbers, he was highly praised and esteemed at that time. The drama theory Nan Ci Xin Pu, which had established his status in the opera world, was handed down for generations. The writer of this paper attempts to unfold the whole life of Shen Zijin through studying Shen Zijin's drama theory and literature creations. In this paper, the writer shows the outline of Shen Zijin's drama theory and his status in history objectively.In the first chapter, the writer details Shen Zijin's life, with his circle of friends and his writings. Shen Zijin was born in the Shen family in Wujiang. He was well-read since childhood, however, he had no intention to become an official in the government. What he really cared about was drama. In his later years, he compared himself to a kind of insect living in the zither, which could make the strings perform melodies automatically. He loved the drama all his life. The persons who had associated with him were mostly dramatists in Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions. Among them were Yuan Yuling, Fan Wenruo and Feng Menglong, etc. In the second chapter, the writer analyzes Shen Zijin's creations of sanqu. The style of his early sanqu followed romantic literature which was popular in the later period of Ming Dynasty. These works normally showed his unfettered life when he enjoyed a free life style of poems and liquor in his youth and middle-aged time. In 1644, China was experiencing the transition from Ming to Qing Dynasties. There was an unavoidable war. Shen Zijin suffered the pain which the war brought. As the result, he had changed his writing style. At that time, his works reflected the characteristics of the time period and grieved for the dynasties' falling. When the governing of Qing Dynasty became gradually stable, Shen Zijin ended his homeless and miserable life. From then on, he created the works with gentle sentiments and he always expressed a kind of mood that he intended to live the life of a recluse. In the third chapter, the writer treats Shen Zijin's legends. Shen Zijin had composed three kinds of legends. Wang Hu Ting and Cui Ping Shan came down to the modern, while Qi Ying Hui was only saved with five melodies. Wang Hu Ting and Cui Ping Shan were recomposed from other works. Comparing with the original works, Shen Zijin had paid ultimate attention to whether the plots of the plays could be performed on the stage and the designs of the action. Besides, he had succeeded in stating of the plots, describing of the characters and arranging of the structure. In the fourth chapter, the writer discusses Shen Zijin's drama theory. Shen Zijin inherited opera culture from his family. He had revised his uncle Shenjing's work Nan Jiu Gong Shi San Diao Qu Pu, had created Guang Ji Ci Yin Xian Sheng Zeng Ding Nan Jiu Gong Shi San Diao Ci Pu (i.e. Nan Ci Xin Pu), which has already become an invaluable material in the field of opern research. The part of the epilogue evaluates Shen Zijin's creations and the value of his drama theory. Shen Zijin was the rearguard of the WuJiang School. Not only did he inherit the drama theories of the school, but developed them as well. He was a person who inherited and developed the familial opera culture of Shen family. His mid-career sanqu had strengths that made people be awed.