A Study Of The Image Of The Successor Of The Long Family Novels In The Qing Dynasty

The family novel, as an important type of the realistic novel, is of great significance in the history of ancient novels completed in and after the Ming and Qing dynasties in China. Among them, the full-length novel typically illustrates the critical characteristics of Chinese traditional culture and novel writing. Taking description of heirs in family novels of the Qing Dynasty as the research topic, this thesis is aimed at exploring the deep meaning of plot construction and characterization in the six family novels by examining the image of heirs and aimed at further revealing the relationship between novel writing and history and culture. With careful reading as the main research method, the article displays the common features of the rise and fall of families showed in family novels of the Qing Dynasty in consideration of the traditional Chinese culture and the specific background of the novel.The structure is as follows:The introduction discusses the reason, significance, research status and writing ideas of the topic.The first chapter analyzes the types of the elder heirs in the six family novels, divides the heirs into three types: maintainer,destroyer and developer of family property based on their contribution to family development. Although they play different roles, the majority of them have a mediocre character and pursuit of life.The second chapter studies the younger heirs in the six family novels. Most of them are born with a silver spoon, tend to be arrogant and indulgent and behave less capable of maintaining and developing family property than their fathers. According to their attitudes towards the family inheritance, they are classified into three types- mediocrities, prodigals and rebels. They have a disordered marriage life, a hedonistic life attitude and implies that the feudal family has no reliable heir and is declining. The shape of image of young heirs are influenced by the social atmosphere,the status of Confucian scholars and the author’s creation intentions.The third chapter investigates the relationship between the two generations of heirs, in other words, the father-child relationship. This thesis interprets the various themes revealed by the father-child relationship in the novels, such as confrontation, vilification, deviations and so on.Especially, the article discloses the various aspects of the relationship between father and son in the novels of the Qing Dynasty with the imperial examinations as the focus.The fourth chapter illustrates the tragic implication of the heirs, offers the causes and manifestations of the tragedy, studies the attribution and choices of the heirs, discusses the set meaning of the religious attribution of the younger heirs, and further shows the decline of the inheritance and the confusion of the heirs.