On Study Of Memorial During Han Emperor Yuan And Cheng Periods

Conceptional changes on the management of state affairs contributed the realization of the Confucianist politics during Emperor Yuan's reign in Western Han dynasty.Confucianism became influential throughout almost every hole and comer of the society with the Confucian scholars rising in social and political ranks.This in turn results in the exploration of this thesis based on the Confucian influence by way of Memorials to the Thrones during Emperor Yuan and Emperor Cheng periods(from 48 B.C.to 8 B.C.).And the body of this thesis is divided into three parts:Chapter one is concerned about the background of Emperor Yuan's reign,which is characterized by declinations in economy,bureaucracy,endangered empery and the monopolization of powers by the relatives on the side of the Empress.This political reality exacerbated the prevailing extravagant vogue.In addition,the governmental implementation of Confucianist administration improved the political status of the Confucian Scholars.The thesis tends to consider that all the above mentioned were the outside factors which had resulted in the changes in thematic concern of the memorials of the time.Chapter two discusses the origin and characteristics of the themes of the memorials of the period.The first section centers on the connection between the subject-oriented emphasis both on rituality and moralization as a literary trend and the Confucian ideal,political and cultural.And the analysis of this ideal will throw light on the features of the Confucianist politics,that is,moralization and rituality are only administrative measures to realize the ultimate goals of the perfection of social ethics and culture.Therefore,the themes are only the deduction of the Confucianism embodied in politics and culture.The second section analyzes the headstream of the memorials focused on contemporary natural catastrophes and anomalies. The pectination of Dong Zhongshu's doctrine of the interaction between Heaven and man draws forth the conclusion that Dong's thought is the combination of the Pre-Qin period Heaven and man concepts,Yin and Yang theory,auspices and evil prefigurement;and Yin-Yang,auspices and catastrophes are only employed to blazon forth the Confucianism—or his doctrine of Heaven and man had already blended with the Confucian idealistic system of politics and culture.Hereon the thesis goes further into the investigation of why these are so much argued in memorials—it's just a strategic deterrent to the absolute monarch under the given historical situations.In this way the catastrophes and anomalies prevailing the memorials are closely paralleled with the blending of theory of Yin-Yang with Dong's doctrine.Chapter three comes to the stylistic characteristics of Yuan-Cheng memorials in comparison with those of former time of Western Han Dynasty.The findings are that memorials before Emperor Yuan are evidently characterized by the authors' aspiration in contrast to argument by authors of and after the reign of Emperor Yuan;the memorials to Emperors Yuan and Cheng are generally pure and mellow with the elucidation of Confucianism.The thesis concludes in a discussion of the stylistic changeover of memorials on the whole.