Reseach On Creation And Acceptance Of Generals Of Yang Family

Yu yue, a famous man of letters in Qing Danasty, once said,novelists refer to famous generals as family of Xue Rengui in Tang Danasty, or family of Yang Ye in Song Danasty. The anti-Liao story by Yang family is true with only a few words about it in official or unofficial history. However General Yang Family stories are so popular in folk tales that thousands of tradditional Chinese operas, novels, tv episodes or even Internet games are based on it.Generals of Yang Family has been a household story due to the collective writing of the folk then. Different from writer’s literature, it’s a literary and artistic work by the cooperation of the laboring people, folk artisan and scholars. Receivers including creators at different times read the true story with their own horizon of expectation, and recreate it in their own way. This thesis analyses Generals of Yang Family at different times and the differences, trying to illustrate how receivers at different times affect the recreation of Generals of Yang Family.This thesis consists of three chapters.Chapter One is a narration of the Yang Family story in official and unofficial history and an analysis of the reason why it has auch a wide audience. By comparing the fact in official history and stories, we may find the differences and the reason. The life of Yang Ye is documented in most of the official history, but few words about his sons as Yang Yanzhao or Yang Wenguang. Then a story about the “Wu Lang Wei Seng” had been published in Song dynasty, leaving us only the contents. Two poetic dramas “Hao Tian Ta Meng Liang Dao Gu Shi”“Xie Jin Wu Zha Chai Qing Feng Fu” of Yuan dynasty about it remained till today, and some fresh elemnts emerged, such as the native officers of diction, plot of monks and ghost’s appearance in one’s Dream. All these differences, on one hand, are the outcome of the then society, on the other hand, are due to the fact that Pinghua and Zaju need to cater to the audiences.Chapter Two talks about the enrichment of Generals of Yang Family in Ming and Qing dynasty and the differences compared to it in Song and Yuan dynasty and still the causes. Generals of Yang Family flourished in Ming and Qing dynasty and it has much to do with the social condition and readers’ horizon of expectation. Four zajus sbout it were scripts performed in palace, so the contents may change in some certain aspects. For example, more plots about the struggles of the good and the evil, preaching of feudal monarchy and predestination. Besides due to the different writer, “Bei Song Zhi Zhuan” and “Yang Jia Fu Yan Yi” may differ in content and thinking. The former can be easily accepted among the people, and the latter shows strong literary color. In Ming and Qing dynasty, most of theYang family stories are presented in tradditional Chinese opera. Therefore, this thesis conduct a comparative study of “Zhao Dai Xiao Shao” and other folk dramas.Chapter Three demonstrates the enrichment of the image, the characteristics of the recreation and esthetic psychology since the Republic of China(1912-1949). This chapter talks little about Generals of Yang Family from 1912 to 1980, because nothing new has come out. Since 1980 s, with the rapid development of the society and the emerging power of new media like Tv and Internet, people come to deconstruct the essence of Generals of Yang Family. The deconstruction can be shown in three aspects, Tv serials deviated from the original theme, a serials of Internet novels scoffing and bantering generals of Yang family came up and violent Internet games about it became popular. In contrast,Kenzo Kitakata,a Japan writer, earned literary award of Yosikawaeiji,because of his sucessful adapt of Generals of Yang Family. The different development situation of Generals of Yang Family in China and Japan requires our thinking.In conlusion, by the way of Reception Theory,this theis aims to illustrate the evolution of Generals of Yang Family, and the role of receivers play in the variation.