Chapter 106 How to Appreciate Chinese Literature in 1949

Background of Chinese Literature It is a great honor for me to be able to speak to you at your school today.The University of Tokyo is the number one university in Japan. In this university, there are probably very few opportunities for women to give speeches.So I have the opportunity to speak here this time, and I feel very happy.In particular, Mr. Arikuraishi Takeshiro translated for me.Mr. Cangshi, as you all know, is a well-known professor who has done in-depth research on Chinese literature.I can't thank him enough for having him as an interpreter. Originally, the literature of each country has its inherent features, just as the physique and appearance of people in different countries are different.For example, Westerners have yellow hair and blue eyes.Orientals have black hair and black eyes, which are different.The same Oriental, Chinese and Japanese are still different, but the difference between Chinese and Japanese is not easy to see on the outside.The citizens of each country have their own special genetics and environment.So it naturally has its national character. From this point of view, if you can't understand a country's national character, it will be difficult to appreciate a country's literature.

Now I don't have any books in my hand, and I can't refer to books written by Chinese scholars on Chinese national character.Therefore, I have no choice but to say a few things about China's national character according to my own subjective point of view. When I was young, I went to the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. At that time, I just visited it casually, and I didn't listen to the explanation of my husband.In my vague impression, I only know the greatness and solemnity of the Temple of Heaven.After I came back, my friends asked me, "Did you see the 360 ​​frames on the roof of the Temple of Heaven?" It turned out that the 360 ​​frames symbolized the 360 ​​days of the year, and each frame had different clouds painted on it. From these clouds, we can see the changes of the time of day in a year.But I didn't know beforehand, so I didn't bother at all.I regret it, but I won't have a chance to take a closer look in the future.If I could have listened quietly to Mr.'s explanation at that time, I would have had a very clear impression, which is a pity when I think about it.The same is true for the appreciation of a country's literature.If we can know a little about the background of a certain country before appreciating its literature, the degree of appreciation will be deeper.What I want to say today is just that.

Now I will talk about the national character of China.The first characteristic of Chinese national character is peace-loving.Originally, it cannot be said that there is a country in the world that loves war.But one day a foreign friend asked me, why are there so few poems praising war in Chinese poetry?Sure enough, there are very few poems praising war in Chinese poetry.Not only are there few poems that praise martial arts, but there are many poems that hate war and resent war, which can be regarded as a characteristic.Of course, there is not a single poem praising martial arts.Most of these poems were written under the order of the emperor, "in response to the edict" and "in response to the system".For example, on the triumphant return of a general, the emperor ordered civil servants to compose poems praising his martial arts.

Most of these poems are not handed down to the world.It turns out that the consistent philosophy of the Chinese people is to emphasize civility over martial arts.It means that Wende is more important than Wude. And it has always opposed China and occupied the war of aggression.Originally, the Chinese had this explanation for "Wu", "Stop Ge is Wu", and the word "Wu" came from the characters "Zhi" and "Ge".Stop fighting is Wude.Now I will only give a few examples from the book at hand.For example, there is a poem: "One general succeeds and ten thousand bones dry up".

For the success of a general, the bones of more than 10,000 soldiers were dried. War is to achieve the desire of a warlord, regardless of the happiness of the majority of the people. There are a few lines in "Zuo Zhuan": "The people are also tired, but they can be well-off, benefit this China, and benefit the world." This means that the people have suffered a lot from the war, and we should find ways to give them a stable life. Not only will China benefit from it, but the surrounding four countries will also be able to be stable.Also in "Guoyu", the king wants to conquer the dog army, and the priest persuades the king, saying: "The former king Yaode did not watch soldiers."

That is to say, the great kings in ancient times all showed off their literature and virtue, and did not exaggerate their military strength. In the Six Dynasties and Liang Dynasties, there was a "drum horn horizontal blowing song" also called "Ma Ma Le".It was music sung in the army, and it seemed like it was supposed to be a war song, but it wasn't. For example, in "Purple Liuma" there is: "Enlist in the army at fifteen, return at eighty..." This song is quite long, so I specifically cite this passage, which means that I participated in the war at the age of fifteen and could not return until I was eighty years old.When I went home, I found that there was no one in my family, and the house was burned. There was only a little vegetable left in the yard. I picked the vegetable and ate it while weeping.There is also a song "Happy Immediately" and "Song of Enlightenment".The first few sentences of this poem describe the heroic battle situation, but the last few sentences are very tragic.For example:

"Poor man, he went out with fear of death, and the dead body died in the narrow valley, and no one collected the bones." Poor man, he is in danger of dying as soon as he becomes a monk and joins the army. His body is lying in the narrow valley, and no one comes to collect and bury his bones.During the Six Dynasties, Bao Zhao wrote a song called "The Difficulty of Traveling". There are 18 songs in total, and 16 of them have a section: "Don't you see that the young and strong go to the army, and the white head wanders without returning." I went to join the army when I was young, but it meant that I would never return home for the rest of my life.There is also a poem written by Chen Lin called "Drinking Horses and Walking in the Great Wall Caves".This Chen Lin is a well-known literati, Cao Cao, Emperor Wu of Wei, cured his headache after reading his articles!In that song there is:

"Be careful when giving birth to a boy, and feed the breasts when giving birth to a daughter. Don't you see that under the Great Wall, the bones of the dead support each other." That is to say, it is best not to feed a boy, but give meat to a girl.Because men must serve as soldiers and die under the Great Wall.I think you all know the Great Wall of China.It is a very difficult project. A Western astronomer said: "If you see the earth from the moon, you may see only the Great Wall." But when Chinese poets talk about the Great Wall, they are not all praises! For example, "Meng Jiangnu Crying at the Great Wall" is the most famous story in China.

Next, I will talk about poems written by a few literati in the army.For example, Li Yi made a statement in "Joining the Army and Expedition to the North": "After the snow in the Tianshan Mountains, the north wind is cold, the flute blows and the road is difficult, and 300,000 people are recruited in the moraine. Looking back at the middle of the month." It was snowing in the Tianshan Mountains, and the cold north wind was blowing. At that time, I heard someone playing the song "It's Difficult to Travel" on a flute.The 300,000 soldiers looked back at their hometown in the desert.The flute is played horizontally, unlike Xiao who plays vertically—in this song, there is no mention of the merits of his own army, but instead it describes the soldiers' homesickness.The most interesting one is "Wearing the Flute in the Surrendered City at Night".it says:

"The sand in front of Huile Peak is like snow, and the moon outside the surrendered city is like frost. I don't know where to blow the reed pipe, and all the recruits can look forward to the hometown overnight." The surrendered city is the place where the enemy country surrenders when it wins.It really should be a place of joy and pride.But the poet's feelings are not like this!The sand in front of Huile Peak was as white as snow, and outside the city of surrender, the moon was as bright as frost. At that time, the sound of the flute came from nowhere, and the soldiers all wanted to look at their hometown.Soldiers on the battlefield are homesick, and this is the same in any country.The difference is that some are willing to speak out, while others are not.Most other countries in the world are unwilling to speak out because of shame, but the Chinese are very frank and sincere.Another example is Li Hua's "Ancient Battlefield Essay", he said:

"The return of the Qin and Han Dynasties caused a lot of things to happen to the barbarians. The consumption of Zhongzhou" has nothing to do with it.Known as Rong Xia in ancient times, he did not resist the king's division.Culture and education lost publicity, Wu* added boredom. Tragic sight and mood.The middle section is the most important.After the Qin and Han Dynasties, the countries in the four directions were invaded, and as a result, domestic finances were in disorder, and the population was also reduced. This situation happened in any period... Culture and education were lost, military officials used surprises, and surprises were "surprise attacks". This strangeness is different from benevolence and righteousness. . Last paragraph: "The Han attacked the Xiongnu, although they won the Yin Mountains, and their pillows and bones were everywhere, the merits did not make up for the troubles. The people without parents, who have no parents? Support and support, fearing their death. Who has no brothers? Like feet like hands. Who has no husband and wife? Like guests Like a friend. How kind is life? What is the blame for killing?...The time is evil and fate is evil? From ancient times!Why?Stay in Siyi. " Han attacked the Xiongnu, and although they occupied Yinshan, the corpses were piled up on the battlefield, and the harm was far greater than the merit. ——Cangcang means black hair——No one of the people has no parents. Parents hug their children after they give birth, fearing that they will not grow up. Who doesn't have brothers who are like brothers, who doesn't have couples who are like friends? What kind of favor does the country have for a living person?For the dead, how could it be their own fault?The last sentence says: "Time is evil, life is evil, and it has been like this since ancient times."So how to remedy it?There is no other way than sticking to the border and not aggressing each other.Bai Juyi of the Tang Dynasty had a long song called "Xinfeng Folded Arm Man". This song also has the subtitle of "Jie Bian Gong". This broken-armed old man broke his own wrist in order to avoid conscription in his youth. There are many examples of this, and we cannot mention them all.The following is an example of someone who was a general himself. In the Han Dynasty, there was a famous general named Ban Chao. Ban Chao joined the army, developed the Western Regions, and was named Dingyuanhou. For thirty years, he lived in what is now Xinjiang Province. In his essay on playing the emperor (written by his sister Ban Zhao for him), there is a sentence: "I don't want to be named Marquis of Ten Thousand Households, but I hope to be born into Yumen Pass." This Yumen Pass is the gate from Xinjiang to Gansu. He said that he does not want to be a Marquis, but only wishes to return to Yumen Pass while he is alive. Fan Zhongyan was a well-known figure in the Northern Song Dynasty. He has a poem called "Yujiaao", the second half of which is: "A glass of turbid wine is thousands of miles away, Yan Ran is not reined in, there is nothing to do, the Qiang pipe is long and frosty, people can't sleep, the general's white hair is crying for his husband's tears." It means: so far away from home, although I can drink a glass of turbid wine, but I haven't engraved my name on Yanran Mountain yet. ——Yanran is the name of the mountain. The general who fought in ancient times, in order to commemorate his martial arts, engraved his name on the stone tablet on the mountain—whether he wanted to go home but could not go back. At that time, he heard the sound of the flute, and Yan Shuang was full People can't sleep, the general's hair has turned gray, and the soldiers are crying, describing the situation where they are tired of war. Love of peace is not outright against war.From the Song Dynasty to the present, there are many poems against war, but that war is a war of aggression.In other words, all Chinese literati are against aggressive wars.But wait until the enemy country invades China. When the danger came to the Chinese people, the literati's tone of war completely changed. For example, Lu You in the Southern Song Dynasty was also called Lu Fangweng.Liang Qichao called him a very famous poet who said: "A man through the ages once released his old man".The joy of war can be found in his poems. He has a long song: "If the country's revenge has not been reported to the strong man, the sword in the box is heard at night." This poem is very long, just a few sentences.I haven't avenged my country yet, but I'm already old, and the sword in the box makes a sound at night because of anger. And in the poem "Yebo Water Village": "I can't stand the desert, why do you lords weep at the new pavilion, serve the country and die ten thousand times, and the temples are never greener..." These are the few sentences in the middle, which means that I am already so old, but I still have the spirit to cross the desert.Why are young gentlemen crying so bitterly in Xinting?I donate my body to the country, and I am not afraid of dying ten thousand times, but unfortunately, my temples can no longer be black. The last poem Lu Fangweng wrote was "Shower" written before his death.Here is a famous poem: "When you die, you know that everything is empty, but you don't see the Kyushu in sorrow. Wang Shibei set the Central Plains Day, and the family sacrifices will never forget to tell Nai Weng." He said that after death everything is empty.Only one regret is not being able to see the recovery of the country with my own eyes.Suppose our army counterattacks to the north and pacifies the Central Plains, don't forget to report to me during the family sacrifice. Let's talk about the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. There are various examples in the Yuan Dynasty, but I don't have any books in my hand now, so I can't give examples today. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, Kang Youwei wrote "Song of China", and Liang Qichao wrote "Song of the Pacific Ocean in the Twentieth Century".These are too long to write out.In addition, the Tongmenghui and others wrote many patriotic poems.Since the end of the Qing Dynasty, China has been suffering from national calamity day by day, and has been oppressed from east to west. As a result, the consciousness of the Chinese nation has been greatly aroused.Today, I will only cite the latest song as the end.It is Nie Er's "March of the Volunteers", written in vernacular.Nie Er was from Yunnan, a student studying in Japan, and died in Japan, so some of you may know him.He said: "Get up, people who don't want to be slaves, build our new Great Wall with our flesh and blood. When the Chinese nation is in the most dangerous time, everyone is forced to make a final roar..." The former Great Wall was built with bricks, but the new Great Wall is built with our blood and flesh.The Chinese nation has now reached the most dangerous time, all the people are being oppressed, and now is really the time to let out a roar. "Forcing" is a last resort, which is very interesting.There is a line in Li Bai's poem in the Tang Dynasty: "He knows that soldiers are murder weapons, and saints use them as a last resort." "War" is a bad tool, but it must be used when it is necessary to defend and resist foreign aggression. In other words, when the Chinese people encounter national danger and are forced to do so, it is by no means non-resistance of! At the bottom is the idea that China's national character emphasizes ethics.An Indian friend asked me: "Why is there so little love between men and women in Chinese poems?" It would not be unusual for a Westerner to say this.However, I was a little surprised when asked by an Oriental.So I started to reflect.There are very few love poems for men and women in Chinese poetry.At least it is much less than foreign poems, but in the era when ethical thinking had not yet penetrated into the folk, there were quite a lot of love poems between men and women, the best example is the first one: "Guan Guan Jujiu, in the continent of the river, a fair lady, a gentleman likes a good girl." Like Jujiu in the continent of rivers, a beautiful lady is a gentleman's best companion.When you can't ask her, you are so troubled that you can't sleep at night. It's such a good love poem.There will be fewer love poems in the future.In particular, China says: "Seven-year-old men and women do not sit at the same table", and the communication between men and women is not open.Therefore, Chinese men and women will not make friends of the opposite sex.Therefore, the characters in Chinese love poems are limited to those between Chinese and foreign relatives.Because there will be times when they will meet.Otherwise, it is between singing girls. It is not easy to make titles for this type of poems, so they are generally called "Untitled" or "Chronicle".But there are many, many Chinese poems about parent-child love.You all know the famous "Mulan Song" and "Wandering Ziyin" from ancient times. "Wandering Zi Yin" Have: "Mother hands line, wandering clothing." The clothes tightly sewed by the mother herself are cherished and worn on the body of the wanderer far away, expressing very meticulous emotions.In addition, there are many poems and essays written about brotherly love. Du Fu's poem: "The brothers in the world are separated, and the world is far away with tears." The country is in chaos, the brothers are separated, the world is lonely, and tears are often shed.I often think of this poem during the War of Resistance.Because I have had such experience.My Indian friend also said that there are few love poems written by Chinese men and women, but there are many poems written about the love of friends.In fact, in Chinese poems, there are too many poems about "recalling friends" and "sending friends off".Li Bai and Du Fu are both famous poets, and they are also very good friends.Du Fu has a poem "Dream of Li Bai": "Farewell to death is swallowed, and life is always sympathetic... The name of Qianqiu is long live, and the affairs of the lonely death." He said that he shed tears for "farewell to death", but he was more sad about "farewell to life".Although Li Bai's fame has been passed down through the ages, he was very lonely after his death.Another example is that Bai Letian has 2,800 poems, of which 1,500 are about friends.In addition, there are love poems about the love of husband and wife, and there are quite a lot of poems of this type.In ancient China, men and women were not allowed to meet before they were married, so after they got married, love gradually developed.Is this the same as Japan used to be?About this kind of famous "Moshang Sang" by Gu Yuefu, the author is unknown: "Luo Fu made a speech before, so that the king is so stupid, so that the king has his own wife, and Luo Fu has his own husband." There was a beautiful woman named Luo Fu who was picking mulberries by the side of the road. At this time, a very rich official came to see her and sent someone to ask her name and age, and advised her to go with him. Luo Fu replied, Officer, what a fool you are!You have a wife, and I also have a husband.I also said that my husband is so good, and people praise him, and other such things.There is also "Habayashi Lang" in the ancient Yuefu, which tells the story of Feng Zidu who works in a noble family, and one day has a heart-to-heart talk with a fifteen-year-old Hu Ji.The woman said: "A man loves his step-wife, and a woman loves his ex-husband... Send a message to King Wuzi, and love his disciples privately." It means that men love future young women, but women all value their ex-husbands.There is also a particularly interesting song "Jie Fu Yin" by Zhang Jizhi of the Tang Dynasty: "Knowing that my concubine has a husband, I will give my concubine a pair of pearls to express my lingering love. I will tie them in the red Luoru, and the concubine's house will rise from a high-rise garden. In the bright light of my lover's halberd, I will know that your heart is like the sun and the moon. I will swear that my husband will live and die together." , Huan Jun's pearls are weeping, wishing not to meet when she was not married." She said yes: You know that I have a husband, but you gave me two pearls.I thank you for your kindness, and I tied it on my red skirt, but my high-rise building is connected to the inner garden, and my husband works as a guard in Mingguang Palace. I know your intentions are aboveboard, but my husband and I swear to live and die together.I decided to return you two pearls, but my tears flowed down. Why didn't I meet you before I got married?Another example is a five-character poem in the Yuefu of the Han Dynasty called "From the Lord".This poem begins with "since the gentleman went out", and uses the following to describe the divorce between husband and wife.This poem has since become a genre, like "Boudoir's Resentment" and the like, which are all lyric poems about parting couples.Take Su Wu's farewell poem for example: "Tie hair as husband and wife, there is no doubt about love and affection, life should be returned later, death should be long-term lovesickness." Hair knots are braids I made when I was a child.They have been husband and wife since they were young, and the relationship between the two is very sweet...so they must come back when they are alive, and lovesickness forever after death.There is also a long narrative poem "The Peacock Flies Southeast", which is also about the love of husband and wife.Yuan Zhen of the Tang Dynasty had poems mourning the death of his wife.There are many mourning poems in China (omitted). Third, the impact of agricultural society.In China, most people regard farm life as their highest ideal.For example, literati become officials, military men go out to fight, and old people always end with "returning to the field", the so-called "hanging the crown and returning to the field", "disarming and returning to the field".The crown is the official hat worn by officials.The literati took off their official hats and returned to the fields to live in seclusion, and the warriors took off their armor and returned to the farmland.Therefore, in the literature of every era, there are emotions of being tired of politics and thinking of returning to the fields.The most famous is Tao Qian's "Return to the Home": "Going back, coming, the countryside will be overgrown, and the tiger will not return..." He said, go back!The countryside is going to be barren, why not go back?There are also Wang Wei, Fan Chengda and many other pastoral works. There is a deep relationship between literati and peasant life.I can't live without it.Because of the living habits of peasants living together as a group, Chinese people don't like to travel far away, especially when they serve as soldiers.Poems about boudoir grievances arising from this point, or the troubles of joining the army.Besides, most of the literati are from the countryside, so they fully understand the distress of the peasants.They raised their voices against bad politics, against heavy taxes, against the hardships of military service. Fourth, the Chinese are a non-religious nation.Being irreligious is not against religion. There is no state religion in China, and there is no religion based on Shinto. Since ancient times, what the emperor worshiped was "heaven".Sages and adults are afraid of the sky.The so-called sky in the classics has no idols, but is completely empty and abstract.Confucius also said, "If you offend heaven, you have nothing to pray for." That is to say, if you offend heaven, you have nothing to pray for.The heaven mentioned by Confucius is not what other religions call heaven.Confucius also said, "If you don't know life, how can you know death", so Confucianism is not a religion.Religion originally has two conditions, one is to worship idols, and the other is to believe in an afterlife.Neither of these conditions exists in Confucianism.Chinese religion is a foreign religion imported later.But these are popular in the middle and lower classes of society. The scholar-bureaucrat class often opposed foreign religions.The emperor's suggestion did not have much impact.The "Admonishing the Buddha Bone Table" written by Han Yu in the Tang Dynasty is an article admonishing the emperor to welcome the Buddha bone.There is a line in his "Original Dao": "A person is a man, a fire is his book, and a hut is his residence." He said that both monks and nuns should return to secular life, Buddhist scriptures should be burned, and Buddhist temples should be converted into private homes.Later, when Catholicism and Christianity entered China, people would say "eat religion" instead of "believe in religion". "Eating religion" means that some people rely on religion to make a living.Therefore, in the families of scholar-bureaucrats, there are still relatively few religious believers.In short, all foreign religions had little influence on the scholar-officials.However, there are not many strict views like Han Yu's. Ordinary scholars have a very lenient attitude. People in one family believe in several religions.There will be no conflict with each other, and no serious problems will occur. This phenomenon will never occur in the West.Many literati in the Han, Wei and Six Dynasties actively communicated with monks.Literati like the monk's "hands-on" and "Zen language", which is detached.There are two poems: "A strong man should learn Taoism when he comes late, and a literati should escape Zen when he is old." Soldiers also learn Taoism in their old age, and literati also escape Zen in their old age. They are all frustrated and desperate, and use religion to explain themselves instead of actively believing in it.Chinese literati also like to travel and visit temples.There is a poem: "there are many monks in famous mountains in the world".There are good temples in famous mountains, where monks practice.Therefore, most of the famous mountains in China are occupied by monks.Literati also often go there to play, for the appreciation of the landscape rather than the enthusiasm for religion.According to my own observation, there are not many ordinary people in China who visit gods and Buddhas now, except for the old and the foolish.The Chinese are "non-religious", and anyone who has been to China can feel this. Fifth, China is an individualistic nation.For anything, the Chinese don't think it is sacrosanct.This is what Westerners also think is very strange.China has no religion of its own.Thirty years ago, China was a country ruled by an imperial system, but the status of Chinese emperors was quite different from that of Japanese emperors, and the Chinese revolution also existed three thousand years ago.In China, the status of emperor is not guaranteed.For example, there is a sentence: "The revolution of the heaven and the earth and the formation of four seasons, the revolution of Tang and Wu, follow the sky and respond to people, change the king's order, and change the bad customs." That is to say, there are springs, summers, autumns and winters when the world changes, and King Tang of Yin and King Wu of Zhou revolutionized and destroyed Jie of Xia and Zhou of Yin. This is according to the destiny and the hope of the people.In ancient China, the emperors Yao and Shun were not hereditary, and they gave way to the virtuous.Although it was later changed to hereditary, if the emperor is not competent, the people can revolutionize at any time. , at least 2,500 years ago, it can be seen that such political thinking has existed since then.From then on, every few hundred years, or every few decades, or even a few years, whenever there is bad politics, there will be revolutions.Mencius said: "The people are the most important, the country is second, and the king is the least." The people are the most important.Mencius said again: "The emperor treats his ministers like dirt, and the ministers treat the emperor like a bandit." If the emperor treats the people like grass and tramples on them, the people can treat the emperor as a gangster.It is the king's responsibility to love the people. Those who can be loved can be continued, and those who can't be removed.This is not just the thinking of literati, but the thinking of ordinary people.That is to say, the throne does not belong to a certain kind of people, but everyone has hope.For example, when Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty was young, he saw the hood of Qin Shihuang's touring car, and he was very envious. He said: "He can be replaced." Also, when Liu Bei of Shu was a child, there was a mulberry tree in his home, which looked like a car hood. He said: "I am the Son of Heaven, I should ride in this car." Why can such a young child say such things?That is, the Chinese people's thinking is that no matter who has the possibility of becoming the emperor, the so-called: "The top chair takes turns, and next year will be my honor." There is another saying in China: "Princes and generals, it's better to be kind." When a certain court dies, the fiefs granted by the emperor to the princes will be lost, and a new class will rise in its place.From this point of view, it can be said that China is the only country in East Asia that has no classes, so China does not have the system of eldest son inheritance.The property of a family is mostly distributed equally, so there are very few wealthy and powerful people.In this way, even though one is an emperor and prince in China, there is nothing sacred and inviolable.There is only one person who has been worshiped in the past dynasties, and that is Confucius.Even Confucius, at the beginning of the New Culture Movement, was reduced in dignity by Mr. Hu Shi's "Down with the Confucian Family Store".Therefore, it can be said that there is nothing sacred and inviolable in China.If there is, it is "individual".There is a saying in China: "Scholars can be killed, but not humiliated." "Scholar" represents a self-aware and self-respecting individual, who cannot be promiscuous if rich or honored, cannot be moved by poverty or lowliness, and cannot be subdued by might or power.Thinking like this is very important.For example: "The three armies can win the commander, but the common man cannot win the ambition." Among the three armies, the commander can be taken away by force, but the personal "will" cannot be taken away.In the Warring States Period, there was another Tang Ju who advised the King of Qin, who was very angry and threatened him: "Wrath of the Son of Heaven, lay down millions of corpses, and bleed for thousands of miles." Tang Ju said without fear: "The wrath of the scholar, two dead bodies, five steps of bloodshed, the world is nothing." King Qin immediately surrendered, knelt down in front of Tang Ju and said: "Sir, please sit down, I've woken up." Also during the Warring States Period, Yan "Bai" met King Qi, who said: "Yan" you come to the front! "Yan" said: "King Qi, come to the front!" In the end, King Qi was persuaded.In China, "shi" and the emperor are equal and can be friends.For example, Emperor Guangwu of the Later Han Dynasty and Yan Guang were good friends.After Guangwu became the emperor, he persuaded Yan Guang to come to the court to do something, but Yan Guang refused, so one day the two of them slept in the same bed.Yan Guang still put his feet on the emperor's belly indifferently.The next day, Qin Tianjian reported: "It's very urgent for the guest star to violate the emperor's seat." Emperor Guangwu said with a smile: "That's nothing, it's just that my friend Yan Guang put his feet on my stomach when he was sleeping last night." And Li Mi of the Tang Dynasty also made friends with the emperor, and the two of them rode horses to play.The people looked at the pointer from afar and said: "The one in yellow is a sage, and the one in white is also a mountain person." That is to say, the one in yellow is the emperor, and the one in white is the mountain man, and the mountain man is equal to the sage.There is also Guo Ziyi, a famous Tang Dynasty general, whose son married the emperor's princess.One day the young couple quarreled.princess said: "My father is the Son of Heaven." The son-in-law said: "My father disdain to be the emperor." The original text is: "My daughter calls Er Weng the Son of Heaven, but I am not the Son of Heaven." Guo Ziyi was terrified when he heard this, and immediately took his son to the emperor to apologize.The emperor laughed and said: "If you don't be stupid or deaf, don't be a family member. The words of your children's boudoir are nothing." That is to say: If you are not a fool and deaf, you can't be the head of the family. If the young couple is noisy, why bother?These are trivial matters, but it can be seen from these trivial matters that the "royal family", like other families, has its ups and downs, is not sacred, only individuals are supreme, and individuals can express their opinions freely. In the "National Policies", Zou Ji persuaded King Qi to say: "A group of officials admonishes, and the gate is like a market." It means to listen to the admonitions of the group of officials at will, and the front of the emperor's gate can be like a busy market. In the "National Policies", Zhao Gong persuaded King Li (because King Li prohibited the people from interfering in politics), saying: "Defending the mouth of the people is better than defending the river." It is more difficult to defend the mouth of the people than to prevent the water of the river.Anyone who has a relationship with the emperor has the right and obligation to advise the emperor, that is, everyone can speak out about political facilities. This trend has never stopped even though it is oppressed until now. Sixth, China's national character is balanced, harmonious, and moderate.This can be seen from Chinese art.In the national character of China, there are few extreme left and extreme right, such as architecture, from the eyes of the Japanese, it must be considered very monotonous.Like palaces, temples, etc., in a grand-sounding house, the main house faces south, the left and right hatchbacks, doors, windows, pillars, Chinese watches, and stone lions are all in pairs.The decorations in the house, such as vases, bells, couplets, tables and chairs, are also in pairs.In literature, in poetry, there is "arrangement", and in text there is "parallel prose".There were also "eight-part essays" in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and they were all parallel.Of course, there are many unbalanced buildings like Japan, but they are limited to pavilions and pavilions in the garden. Planting trees and laying stones in the garden are free.When it comes to formal buildings, they are all balanced and dual, and there is no skewed and narrow arrangement. Now let’s talk about the Menlian, which does not exist in Japan, which can represent the wishes of ordinary citizens, and the personality and ideals of the house owners, such as: "Loyalty is handed down to the family for a long time, and poetry and books will last forever." "National grace and family celebration, life and prosperity." Also: "Three crooked houses, and a man with a southern accent." It can be seen that the owner is very careless, free and easy, and has traveled to many places.and also: "How can there be any articles that shock the sea, and no letters to the public." It can be seen that the owner is an arrogant person.I have visited several gardens in Japan. On the stone pavilions, there is no couplet or inscription, which makes me very strange.But this is also beneficial. If the title is not good, it will spoil the scenery.It's not as good as "do not say a word, do your best". The last one, seventh, the Chinese national character is full of humor. This humor is not just funny, not laughing wildly, but smiling uncontrollably.What exactly is humor?This is a question often discussed by Chinese and foreign celebrities.Conclusions are rare.Some people say that the British are full of humor.That is to say, a humorous person often laughs at himself, and a person who can laugh at himself is a person who is open-minded and does not worry about everything.For example, if I have a little physical problem, it can also be used as a humorous material.He is so poor that others feel pity, but he doesn't care about it. Instead, he uses it to laugh at himself and make it a humorous material. In China, there are many poems that laugh at oneself and one's children, such as oneself getting old, teeth falling out, legs crippled, poor, cheap, and one's children being stupid, etc.They are all very open-minded and laugh at themselves. This characteristic can make people relax their minds. In adversity and poverty, they are not too nervous and not easy to collapse. When it comes to "balance" and "harmony" in art, the same is true for Chinese music. Chinese music is very monotonous, and there is no good music.We can also say that Toyo doesn't have good music.Chinese people think: "Qin players are forbidden", and playing the piano is to prohibit unrestrained emotions. You must sweep the floor and burn incense in a quiet room, and play slowly, so there will never be bold and intense music.The great Western musicians are disheveled, their hair is disheveled, and they even vomit blood while playing.This kind of music seems to the Chinese people to be considered inappropriate.The Chinese place too much emphasis on balance and suppressing emotions, so good music will not be created.Characteristics of Old Chinese Literature This time I want to talk about the characteristics of old Chinese literature.What are the characteristics of the old literature and what is different from the new literature.This is also the same as the national character of the literary background mentioned last time, and it has both advantages and disadvantages.The first characteristic of old literature is that it is written in classical Chinese.Anyone who has been to China knows that Chinese dialects can be roughly divided into four types. The first is the dialect of the Yellow River Valley, the second is the dialect of the Yangtze River Valley, the third is the dialect of Guangdong, and the fourth is the dialect of Fujian.There are so many dialects in China, how can the country be unified?The only unifying force is the Chinese national language.Government decrees, military orders, edicts of the emperor, and proclamations of civil and military officials in the past dynasties of China are all written in classical Chinese.The same is true for letters between friends, so even though they don't understand the language, they can understand each other in writing.So the Chinese classical language has maintained the unity of China. The second characteristic is that the old Chinese literature, since ancient times, has aimed to "convey morality through writing"—to maintain morality through articles.Articles should be written to promote ethical ideas.Articles that do not contain morality cannot be said to be decent.In other words, the ancient Chinese wrote articles for the purpose of maintaining the morals of the world.Of course, what the author wants to write is not necessarily all things that "carry the Tao".But because of this tradition, I dare not write what I want to write, and use anonymous writing as a last resort. Here is a good example. Tao Yuanming's "Ode to Leisure Love" is very well written, but Prince Liang Zhaoming criticized him: "The white jade is slightly flawed, and there is only a poem of leisure." That is to say, Tao Yuanming's poems are as white as white jade, and the slight flaw in the middle is "Fu of Leisure".But I think this Fu is the best among Tao Yuanming's works.Mencius said: "Food and sex are sexual." Food and love between men and women are human nature. In Mencius, there are: "If there are few people, they will admire their parents, and if they are lustful, they will admire Shaoai!" However, "rotten Confucians" must prohibit this kind of natural affection. The content of "Idle Love Fu" is this kind of natural feeling. The whole article is very smooth and the metaphor is also excellent.for example: "May I be a collar in clothes... May I be a belt in clothes... May I be a luster in my hair... May I be a dais in my eyebrows... May I be a mat in Guan... May I be shoes in silk...在昼而为影……愿在夜而为烛……愿在竹而为扇……愿在木而为桐……”是有十种的比喻。可知陶渊明的想象力之丰富。陶渊明是一个豪放旷达的人，文章是非常高超淡泊。但是在这《闲情赋》里就充满了缠绵细缜的情绪。文学本来是应该用来发抒各种感情，假使压迫了某一方面，不使它发泄，那是很不好的。这“文以载道“就埋没了多少好的文章。 在中国民间有许多好的小说。比如，这些杰作。可是当时的腐儒，都说这些书“诲盗”、“诲淫”，加以禁止。提到小说稗官，根本就看不起这类文字，因此压迫了多少作家，埋没了多少好的文章。 第三，就是旧文学过重修辞。中国旧文学的修辞方法，是非常细密，而且深刻的。比方： “吟成一个字，捻断数根髭。”文人作诗在斟酌一个字的时候，苦心孤诣，把胡须都捻断了。在文章里的斟酌，叫作“推敲”。有一个有名的故事，就是唐朝的诗人贾岛吟成了一首诗中的两句： “鸟宿池边树，僧推月下门。”后来他想还是“推”字好呢？还是“敲”字好呢？在道路上构思。用手一边推一边敲的时候，撞到韩愈的车边。韩愈问他，贾岛说明缘由。韩愈说“敲”字好。以后他们就成了朋友。“一字推敲”这一句话也流传下来了。为什么“敲”字好呢？若用“推”字表明门还没有上锁，是预先约定的，可是“敲”字是表明看见月亮，趁着高兴走来拜访。都着重意境。若是一个字，把意境表现得更好，就成了“一字之师”。而且音韵方面，也得下功夫。 就是四声五音的问题。四声就是平上去入。五音是齿唇牙喉舌，这在诗里是极重要的问题，尤其像乐府和词要吟唱的诗里，更为要紧。比方说： “五月榴花照眼红”，这“红”字后来改为“明”字。为什么“明”字较好呢？因为石榴花，大体都是红的，无须乎再说明其颜色，改为“明”字，表明在阳光之下所发出的光艳。我从前在大学里讲过，凡是形容字都要五官来感觉的。同一颜色，也有好几种色调，所以每一个颜色色调，要区别得非常精巧。比方同一个红，也有红布的红，红绸的红，红绒的红，都不是一样的，棉布的红是不发亮的。红绸的红相当的亮，红绒的红最亮。这是如同孟子所说的，白人之白和白马之白不一样的道理。所以在这儿用“明”字，最能表现亮的意思。若在这儿用“红”字，那就等于棉布的红了，而且在发音上也有关系。还有中国诗里有些用“叠”字的。用得好，就发生很大的力量。比方里有： “青青河畔草，郁郁园中柳，盈盈楼上女，皎皎当窗牖，娥娥红粉妆，纤纤出素手。” 青青是河畔的草色，郁郁是园中的柳色，“青青”“郁郁”两个都是形容青色的。青青是淡的，郁郁是浓的。“盈盈”是“轻盈”，换句话说就是“窈窕”。 “皎皎”是明艳的意思。“娥娥”是严妆，化妆端正的意思。 “纤纤”是说指头的细。这样多用叠字，有活动的趣味。又如： “采采流水，蓬蓬远春。”“采采”是水流的声音，“蓬蓬”是“蓬蓬勃勃”，就是春草刚刚发芽的气象。 宋朝最有名的女词人李清照，她的词，男人也都佩服。她的那首《声声慢》： “寻寻觅觅，冷冷清清，凄凄惨惨戚戚，乍暖还寒时候，最难将息”……用十四个叠字，“寻寻觅觅”是非常闲得没什么可作的时候。好像掉了东西以后的那感觉。用别的话说“忽忽如有所失”。后来“冷冷清清凄凄惨惨戚戚”直接着“乍暖还寒时候”，一气呵成，十分出色。 底下就是旧文学喜欢骈偶。用的也非常巧妙而整齐。例子太多，不能列举。比方，白居易的： “明月好同三径夜，绿杨宜作两家春。”白居易跟元稹是最好的朋友，住在隔邻，月亮好的时候一块儿在园子里散步，柳树青了，两家同在春光之中，这句里“三”，“两”都是用数目的，“径”，“家”，“夜”，“春”都是同样的名词。“月”和“杨”是名词，那么“明”和“绿”是形容词，而且都对称写法，又如： “惜花春起早，爱月夜眠迟。”惜花而早起，爱月而晚睡，这样一字一字都是对称的。 中国的孩子在学作诗之前，先练习作对。记得我小的时候，在家塾里跟老师学作诗。先开始作对，字数少的对子。有一天先生出了“鸡唱晓”三字。我对了“鸟鸣春”。因为韩愈《送孟东野序》里有： “以鸟鸣春，以雷鸣夏，以虫鸣秋，以风鸣冬。”所以我利用了这三个字。先生十分喜欢，说我将来一定会作诗。后来对子的字数越来越多，有一天先生出题“王凝封发妇”。从前有个王凝，他出去远行，他的妻子为着表示自己的忠爱，把头发封了起来，等到他回来时，才打开，这是一段夫妻之爱的故事。我想了半天，对了“张敞画眉夫”。就是用张敞替太太画眉，也是一段记夫妻之爱的故事。作这样对子，必须记住好多类似的典故。又要工整，又要恰当。所以通晓中国文学，就有很大的负担，中国有很多丰富的文言的句子。用白话写的人，也不能完全舍弃文言的。比方白话说好的人，就是“好人”，以外没有别的。文言说的时候就可以说“仁人”，“善人”等等，白话“想一想”，文言就可以有“考虑”，“思想”，“研究”等等的话。 旧文学的时代很长，所以就发生了所谓“滥调”。滥调就是在一篇文章里随便用许多没有内容没有意义的套语，满篇典故，只是堆砌。比方说“萤”： “昔年河畔，曾叨君子之风，今日囊中，复照圣人之典。” 有这样的四六文。“昔年河畔”是中国说萤是草变的虫子。河畔是“青青河畔草”。 “君子之风”是中之“君子之德风，小人之德草”。所以萤在做草的时代，受了君子之风，底下是用囊萤读书的故事。关于萤没有一点阐发，只用了许多典故而已。这样在中国叫做“掉书袋”。这样写文章永远写不出好的东西。中国从前常常夸说某人的文章是“无一字无来历”，就是没有一个字没有典故的意思。比如唐朝王勃的《滕王阁序》，其中确有些好句。但大体说来，并不是一篇好文。他写这篇文章的时候，有人说他是九岁，又有人说他是十三岁，或十七岁，因为在序中有： “家君作宰，路出名区，童子何知，躬逢胜饯。”他说父亲作官，走过这好风景的地方，我这个无知的孩子，也居然能出席这么大的宴会。底下他却说： “嗟乎，时运不齐，命途多舛，冯唐易老，李广难封。”时运也不济，命运也不好，像冯唐那么早老，像李广那样难得封侯，他忽然感叹起来！同时冯唐李广是老人的例子，九岁或十三岁十七岁的孩子根本就不应该用的。文气跟开笔的时候，完全矛盾。底下还说： “关山难越，谁悲失路之人，萍水相逢，尽是他乡之客。” 和以前的“家君作宰”，“童子何知”以及“四美具，二难并”，四美是“良辰”，“美景”，“赏心”，“乐事”。二难是“宾”，“主”，更是互相矛盾。总说起来，文中只有： “虹销雨霁，彩彻云衢，落霞与孤鹜齐飞，秋水共长天一色”一段是很好的。因为这一段完全没有典故，是他自己创作的。这就是所谓“性灵”。从灵魂里涌出来的东西，跟用典故的完全不同。学写旧文学的，就是小孩子也往往写很悲哀的滥调。因为他们总看大人写的悲感的文章。他们以为不写悲调，就不是好文章。 “绿阴深处静焚檀，潇飒松风绕指寒，太息知音今有几，高山流水莫轻弹。”这是我九岁时作的。题目是《鼓琴》。我想弹琴是应该在松荫底下安静的地方焚上香。 是很古的调，设想是没有多少知音的。其实那时我不但没有学琴，不知的调子，连“知音”两字也不大明白，重要的是把“平仄”和“韵”作对了。此外关于琴的典故摆了一堆。整个儿是一个滥调的好例子。 今人写旧文章，和现代的生活不合的例子，还有很多。比方“挑灯”，从前是用油灯，写信时才有挑灯的话。现在是用电灯，没有“灯芯”可挑。坐船叫“挂帆”。这是从前没有汽船时代的事。生气而走的时候叫“拂袖”。可是现在衣服的袖子很窄，根本不能“拂”。 父母死的时候说“苫块昏迷”。现在丧中没有在地下睡的风俗。结婚的时候说“洞房华烛”，“华烛”现在根本就少有，洞房也多半就在旅馆里。这些典故用起来等于笑话，近年来已没有多少人用了！旧文学落到滥调的地步。甚至是有名的作者。如杜甫，陆放翁他们的作品中也不能免。现在我手里有陆放翁的诗，取个例子看一看： “暮雪乌奴停醉帽，秋风白帝放归船。” “丁年汉使殊方老，子夜吴歌昨梦难。”“乌奴”是山名，“白帝”是城名，“乌”和“白”是对起来的。”“奴”和“帝”也是对起来的。“丁年”是老年。“子夜”是夜半。 “丁”和“子”都是“干支”的名字。“汉”和“吴”都是地名。只看这些好像对的很巧妙，其实意思一点也不深。 又如中国诗人里写情有名的是李义山。他有一首《锦瑟》的诗： “锦瑟无端五十弦，一弦一柱思华年，庄生晓梦迷蝴蝶，望帝春心托杜鹃……”律句很好，不过内容是什么，一点也不明白。到了清末，旧诗的末流，流行到“诗钟”，“诗钟” 只是两句对子。完全是为练习排对的技巧的。比方题目是两个字“河”和“八”要隐藏起来： “留守三呼兵急渡，武侯六出阵遗图”，头一句是兵队匆忙的渡过了河，底下藏的是“河”字。第二句是诸葛亮六出祁山之后，留下八阵图。所以“八”字被藏起来的。这样中国的文学落到极滥极坏的时候，就起了革命。这和政治到了极坏的时候发生革命是一样的。 新文学的产生我到日本，感到日本朝野的人士，对于中国文学的关心，到现在还大半在旧文学上，而不是关于新文学。中国最近五十年乃至二十年间，发生的各种运动，其中最重要的是新文学运动。在新文学运动开始的时候有两个标语。一个是提倡“活的文学”，一个是提倡“人的文学”。中国的旧文学是以死的文字来写的。所以不能表现活的思想。从前的文学，是非人的文学，所以不能发挥人性。关于这个，陈独秀先生提出三大主义。一个是“打倒贵族文学，建设国民文学”，第二是“打倒古典文学，建设写实文学”，第三是“打倒山林文学，建设社会文学”。贵族文学就是傅斯年先生所说的，诗人谄媚“独天”——天子——的文学。古典文学就是“文妖”，所写的像妖怪似的文学。山林文学是跟社会隔绝的文学。所以都要打倒，而建设新的国民，写实，社会的文学。 胡适先生又提倡“八事”： 第一是“须言之有物”。说话的时候，背后一定要有东西。 “思想”与“感情”是文学中最重要的因素，没有这个，如同“行尸走肉”没有灵魂。 所以无论写什么，必得有背后的思想。 第二是“不摹仿古人”。古人的思想感情，跟现代人的不同，所以摹仿古人的，就是没有个人的思想。比方今人作篇“登楼”赋，用了魏朝王粲的情感就是不对的。你自己登了近代的楼，就应该写你高楼上所看见的所感到的近代的一切。 第三是“须讲文法”。中国的文学里，不合近代文法的很多。所以最先要研究文法。比方杜甫的诗： “香稻啄余鹦鹉粒，碧梧栖老凤凰枝。”按着文法改一改，就应该是： “鹦鹉啄余香稻粒，凤凰栖老碧梧枝”。那么为什么作了这种诗呢？那是完全只顾平仄，而注重形式，所以忽略了文法。 第四是“不作无病之呻吟”。中国文人在没有病的时候，发出痛苦的呻吟的人很多。表示不必要的悲哀，是没有意义的。比方“伤老”、“悲秋”这种诗题的内容读起来，好像是五六十岁的老人作的。其实乃是二十岁左右的人的作品。自己没有思想感情，而借用古人的思想感情，作出来的，就非常无聊浅薄。比方： “红粉飘零，卿须怜我，青衫泪湿，我更怜卿”，这种诗是中国公子少爷的大学生们给歌女作的。说“青衫”也没有穿青色之上衣。说“泪湿”也没有流泪，他们以为这样才是风流。是最可鄙可笑的。 第五是“务去滥调套语”。滥调套语，是抄袭别人的思想感情，自己的思想感情就不会活泼。比方描写美丽的妇人，一律的用“杏眼桃腮”，“柳腰樱口”，仿佛古来的美人，长的都一模一样，没有一点个性！描写风景，也是如此，非常容易作，而一点意思都没有。 第六是“不用典”。这就是说不用典故。上次我提过王勃的《滕王阁序》用了好些典故，去了典故，所剩的，好的不过有几句（在这里“典”并不是说譬喻）。而且写旧文章的时候，用古的文字，容易有误会事实的危险。从前有一位我父亲的朋友，长期没有事做，托我父亲找事，其中有一句：“秋月春风，等闲度过”，父亲看了就笑起来，因为他典故用的不对。白乐天的《琵琶行》有： “今年欢笑复明年，秋月春风等闲度”。是描写一个妓女生活的一首诗。这位先生拿来比拟自己，所以令人发笑。外国人用中国的文字，也要相当注意。比方我到日本以后，人称我为“女流作家”。“女流”两个字，在中国，并不是尊重的说法。只用“女作家”三字就可以了。还有到日本来的人，日本人常说“来朝”，中国人所说的“来朝”，是来“朝见”，“朝贡”的意思。跟政治有“关系”的。游历，或不是来“朝见”或“朝贡”的，不应该说“来朝”。 第七是“不讲对仗”。这是不作对句的意思。为了对句的工整，所以感情有太勉强的地方。到了极点，会发生极可笑的笑话。比方有人作诗： “舍弟江南殁，家兄寒北亡”。引起许多人对他同情。其实也只有弟弟死在江南。不过为了对仗，就叫他哥哥也死在塞北。 第八是“不避俗语俗字”。这是说不必避通俗的文字和语言。文言的文学里，没有白话的好。因为文言体，都避去俗语俗字，可是白话都不避这些。 “夜梦不祥，开门大吉”。用普通的话写了出来，意思很明白，有人看着觉得太通俗，都改了文言： “宵寐匪祯，辟扎洪麻”。人们看了都不明白。这是实在的故事。 胡适先生又把这八事缩小为四个。第一是“要有话说，方才说话”。想要说什么，然后说什么。第二是“有什么话说什么话，话怎么说就怎么说”。比方很长的时间没有见面，写信时用“久违兰范，时切驰思”。反觉得落套，不如写“好久不见了，想念得很”。第三是“要说我自己的话，不要说别人的话”。用自己的心思用自己的话来表示，不要套用别人的成语。 第四是“是什么时代的人说什么时代的话”。某一时代的人，应该用本时代的话。比方我们是民国三十六七年人，所以不应该用春秋战国时代的话，坐飞机到日本来，不应该说“挂帆东下”。在电灯下打毛衣，也不要说“挑灯夜绣”。从历史的眼光来看，新文学并不是突然发生的。《礼记》有一句： “生乎今之世，反古之道，如此者灾必及乎其身。”就是说生在现今的时代，而要回到古代之道，灾害一定会临到你的身上。中国的古典有“五经”，“四书”。到司马迁之《史记》，班固之《汉书》，经过了一次革命。一直到唐宋韩愈等又革了一次命。这么就有了唐诗宋词。从唐诗到宋词变化之间，出现了介乎诗词之间的，如李白之三五七言： “秋风清，秋月明，落叶聚复散，寒鸦栖复惊，相思相见知何日，此时此夜难为情。” 三字两句，五字两句，七字两句，合起来的。李白完全用新的法子，作了一首诗，整个是很自然的写法。学词的人都知道李白的《忆秦娥》。就是诗之最后，词之最先。从诗到词之间，还有“小令”等，是个短的体裁，如《十六字令》。——日本的俳句也是十六个字的——如： “寻，帘外分明，坠玉簪，笼灯觅，休待落花深。”从诗到词，白话加进了不少。上回说的李清照的《声声慢》，就多半是白话。到了元曲，几乎完全是白话。白话用的越来越多。 明清间有好多杰作小说，都是用白话写的。比方，，，都是白话的。因为白话不但描写方便，而且述说道理也方便。宋朝学者的语录，是用白话写的。僧侣的语录也是用白话写的，都是写哲学学理上的意见的。这些语录，小说的普及，一般的影响了新文学运动，替新文学预备了道路。在文学革命以前，也有若干的例外，但是普通一般学校私塾，都实行文