The Myth Of Witches And Ghosts And The Literature Of Chu In The Pre Qin Period

This paper intends to study the relationship between the myth of witches and ghosts and Chu literature in the pre-Qin period.The Chu area referred to in this paper includes not only the political boundary of Chu during the Warring States period,but also some areas near the political boundary of Chu and deeply influenced by the myth of witches and ghosts in Chu area.This paper is divided into three chapters.The first chapter explains the general picture of the myth of witches and ghosts in the Warring States period.Starting from the original meaning of the myth of witches and ghosts,the original connotation and spreading evolution of these four concepts are explained.According to the unearthed materials,the belief of ghosts and gods and the appearance of the wizard class in the Warring States period were sorted out.This paper discusses the reasons of the prevalence of witchcraft in Chu area,which paves the way for the next formal study of the influence of witchcraft myth on Chu literature in pre Qin period.The second chapter studies the influence of witch and ghost myth on Qu Fu.The myth of witchcraft and ghost is not only the direct reason for the creation of a considerable number of Qu Fu,but also the important factor for the formation of the styles of Qu Fu.The myth of witch and ghost has a deep influence on the use and connotation of images in Qu Fu.Therefore,the images related to the myth of witches and ghosts in Qu Fu are divided into three categories: God,man and object,and the influence of the myth of witches and ghosts on these three types of images is discussed respectively.The last chapter studies the influence of witch and ghost myth on Zhuangzi.First of all,this paper analyzes the origin of the philosophy of Zhuangzi and the myth of witches and ghosts in Chu area,from the relationship between the concept of “Taiyi” in Zhuangzi and the God of “Taiyi” in Chu area of Warring States.Then,it analyzes Zhuangzi's ideas and artistic techniques,and explores the origin of Zhuangzi's myths and the creation intention of his fables.Through the discussion of the relationship between the myth of witches and ghosts and the literature of Chu region in pre Qin Dynasty,this paper tries to find a new way to explore the characteristics and sources of the literary thoughts,feelings and artistic styles of Chu region in pre Qin Dynasty from a new angle.