| GUO Songtao(1818-1891), who is honored to be "the very first person who walks up to the world" in modern China, played a pioneering role in modern China. While fluctuating during his political career, he had put great effects on kinds of academic areas. His pragmatic Neo-Confucianism thoughts, well-founded textual researching faculty, as well as his widely included studies in philosophical schools have left large amounts of spiritual treasures for descendants. In literature composing area, he adovocates that prose and parallel prose should be equally emphasized and literature-writing shall breach the theoretical rules of Tongcheng writing school. His poetry writing is influenced by an orthodox theory of poetry-cultivation while showing a strong sense of personality at the same time. Guo’s academic studies as well as his literature writings show not only intrinsic developing principles of traditional academic studies, but also present vivid specifications influenced by his advanced outlook on world.This thesis is divided into four chapters:Chapter I:The introduction part shows the abundance of cultural factors integrated in this historical personality by means of outlining Guo’s lifetime experience. In order to clarify the innovations of this thesis and explicate the contents and methods of it, the emphasizing points and shortcomings in previous studies of Guo Songtao are concluded by reviewing the contemporary researching situation.Chapter II takes aim at analyzing Guo’s thoughts on Neo-confucianism. firstly, new trends and and innovations of academic ethos from Qian-Jia period revealed a trend of a pragmatic liability and the cooperation of Han and Song studies. Secondly, this chapter intends to present the academic resources and primary inclinations in terms of academic characteristics of Hunan scholors as well as the peculiarities of Guo’s family education. His academic resources come mostly from the Pre-Qin Confucianism and Neo-confucianism in Song dynasty, including thoughts on Nature and Destiny(Xing Ming性命),Li and Qi(理气),Sincerity(Cheng诚),which is considered a method of linking up heaven and human, and a Neo-Confucianism skill of keeping Respect(Jing敬).Chapter III deals with Guo’s textual researching achievements which covered all four categories of Chinese classic academic studies, namely Jing(经),Shi(史),Zi(子)and Ji(集)Those achievements are revealed with the purpose of presenting his own ideas of Han study by means of exploring his attitude towards scholars in Han study, his associations with those scholars and his daily textual reserches. Then, The relativity between Guo’s own textual researches and his preserved knowledge in areas of Confucian Classics, History and Philosophy. Lastly, Guo’s methodology for texual research is assessed via a scrutiny of his book Queries About Zhongyongzhangju(《中庸章句质疑》) and textual researches on many other kinds of books distributed in his journals.Chapter IV elaborates on Guo’s Poetry and Prose as a carrier of his ambition of succouring the world and his elegant spirit. In the study of Guo’s writings, composing assertions, criteria for writing assessments and self-comprehensions are summarized firstly. Secondly, By analyzing not only his spiritual tutors’composing assertions and criteria as his thought sources, but also the relationship between his personal writing styles and works that he appreciated, as well as the influences of Pre-Qin and Han literature classics, Those intrinsic factors that influence Guo’s composing activities are presented and explicated. On the other hand, studies on Guo’s poetry are conducted primarily according to his traditional ideas of Shijing-cultivation(Shijiao,诗教),which result in a composing style of elegant poetry. His composing activities abundant in personality are analyzed in the meantime. |
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