Research Of Wang Duanshu

In view of extant materials, the half life of Wang Duanshu, a graceful lady in Shanyin city in the end of the Ming Dynasty, from verified history, is accurately divided into four phases: free from anxieties in her boudoir; concern about both family and nation; wandering; retreating after achieving. Literary creation and social communication, as her lifestyle, not only win her a wide range of praise from celebrities at that time, but also lay a solid foundation for her ultimate literature achievements and status.Wang Duanshu possesses great talent, particularly on recording history, and enjoys high reputation in female literary world in Qing Dynasty, especially in boudoir Parnassus at the beginning of Qing Dynasty. She writes a large number of works in her whole life, However, due to the long time, most of her works have been lost, except the "Collection of Yingranzi Yinhong" and "Preliminary Collection of Famed Talented Women's Poetry" which are still present (in republic of China, Lu Jiye separated two volumes named "Collection of Ya" from "Preliminary Collection of Famed Talented Women's Poetry", and compiled and edited them into "Collection of Women's Non-dramatic Songs in Ming Dynasty"). The former work, as separate collection of Wang Duanshu, makes a variety of study on poetry and essay. From the perspective of its theme, the former work has made sufficient demonstrations on the social situation at the beginning of period changing from Ming to Qing, her psychological feeling as an adherent of the former dynasty, and her inherent male creation consciousness. The latter work, as the anthology of female poetries selected and edited by her, not only has greater scale, but involves her selection and editing principle of virtue first and talent second, and her assertion of poetry in the aspects of "regarding the ancient as superior to the present", "focusing on both temperament and pattern", "valuing talent and knowledge with flavor above", and "discarding frivolity and advocating strength of character"; thus it holds a significant position in the field of female criticism in ancient China.