A Study Of Shen Yazhi From The Perspective Of Mid-tang Prose Movement

Shen Yazhi was an important writer in Mid-tang Dynasty,who was closely associated with various literary groups of that time and won a good reputation.His extant works include not only poetry,but also various genres such as Fu,Zouyi,Letter,Gift Preface,Biography,Tablet Inscription,Miscellany,Miscellaneous Records,and Elegiac Address,amounting to more than one hundred pieces.The number of Shen Yazhi’s surviving works is more than one hundred,reflecting not only Shen Yazhi’s achievements in genre innovation,but also reflects his spiritual journey.In view of the fact that no domestic or foreign papers have yet studied the relationship between Shen Yazhi’s prose and the ancient literary movement in the context of Mid-tang Dynasty.This paper intends to analyze the various genres of Shen Yazhi’s prose from the perspective of stylistics,and to explore the inner connection between Shen Yazhi’s prose and the new changes in Mid-tang Dynasty in the context of the new changes in poetry and literature,with a view to restoring the approach of Shen Yazhi’s prose to the changes in literary style,especially the use of poetry as literature,presenting its connection with the ancient literary movement,and examining its relationship with the arious literary groups at that time.Thus experiencing the conversion and transcendence of his prose to the interest of Mid-tang Dynasty literary world.The thesis is divided into four parts.After determining all works of Shen Yazhi’s other than his poetry as the subject of study,the introduction provides a comprehensive overview of the literature and literary research on Shen Yazhi,and points out that studying a few of Shen Yazhi’s works,such as "Qin Mengji","Xiangzhong Grievances",and "Dui Menglu",in the context of Tang legend,cannot fully observe the achievements of his prose compositions in various genres and their relationship with the trends of the literary world in Mid-tang Dynasty.The first chapter briefly describes Han Yu’s disciple Shen Yazhi’s connections and interactions with Han Meng,Yuanbai and other literati groups,and briefly describes the main types of Shen Yazhi’s prose such as Miscellany,Miscellaneous Records,Miscellaneous Records,Gift Prefaces,Letter,Elegiac Address,and mourning rituals,especially in terms of genre innovation.In the second chapter,we first describe the methods and paths of "poetic writing" in prose composition in Mid-Tang Dynasty,taking Han Yu,Liu Zongyuan,Yuan Zhen,and Bai Juyi as examples,the methods and paths of "poetic writing" such as focusing on Bi-Xing sustenance,creating poetic realm,and chanting charm in the prose creation of the Mid-Tang Dynasty are described in detail.Then focus on Shen Yazhi’s approach to "poetic writing" by interspersing poems,handling materials,and choosing styles.The third chapter examines Shen Yazhi’s prose.The third chapter examines Shen Yazhi’s aesthetic taste in prose,sspecifically discussing and tracing the origin from four aspects,namely,the focus on the strange behavior of characters,the exploration of the peculiar orientation of love themes,the use of "taking article as play" and the creative practice of writing.In conclusion,through a close reading of the text,this paper places Shen Yazhi’s prose composition in the context of the trend of stylistic change in Mid-Tang Dynasty,examines it in a comparative perspective in a multidimensional manner,and tries to accurately grasp his achievements in prose composition,as well as to glimpse the literary trend of Mid-Tang Dynasty through Shen Yazhi’s composition.