Immediate performance and Writing artistry： Mengchuang ci under Perspective of socializing
Journal
臺灣大學中國文學研究所博士論文
Date Issued
2015
Date
2015
Author(s)
Abstract
The establishment of literature system is an essential element of canon formation. We may conduct a multi-dimensional investigation into the performativity of a given literature system by examining the social and cultural contexts within which the system was generated. The content of Ci encompasses a riotous profusion of situations ranging from banquets livened up by song and dance to all kinds of interpersonal activities. The discussion of this dissertation revolves around the Ci anthology (i.e. Mengchuang Ciji) by Wu Wenying, a Ci writer flourishing in the Southern Song Dynasty, from which this dissertation seeks to analyze the social phenomena of itinerant Ci writers’ literary exchange and to elaborate on how Mengchuang Ciji perpetuated and transformed the traditional style of Ci. This dissertation proceeds in three parts. The first part identifies the spread pattern of itinerant Ci writers’ fame. As an itinerant Ci writer, Wu Wenying traveled around the country, enlarged his circle of friends, and gradually became famous among aristocrats with his mastery of Ci composition. His works were even noticed and reviewed by the coeval literary circles. For example, Wu not only extensively exchanged odes with bigwigs and other Ci writers, but also joined the debate on Ci with Shen Yifu, which therefore laid down the methodology of Ci composition in Yuefu Zhimi. Besides, the ties of friendship between Wu and Zhou Mi substantially influenced Zhou’s selection and compilation of Juemiao Haoci. Moreover, Zhang Yan’s encomia to Jiang Kui and Wu led to his eulogistic review in Ci Yuan at the dynastic change between Song and Yuan. Accordingly, Wu’s circle of friends, fame, and literary status are interconnected rather than isolated dimensions. The second part of this dissertation deals with the formation and variation of literature canon. The Ci that exudes a classically elegant charm features a sentimental, gentle and lovely style. Instead of analyzing its system and structure, this dissertation investigates the perpetuation and transformation that Mengchuang Ciji made on the traditional style of Ci, Qingzheng Ci and Baishi Ci in particular. Qingzheng Ci was praised highly in Yuefu Zhimi, and Baishi Ci was valued highly by coevals as well as the itinerant Ci writers and Lin’an Ci writers’ group in the mid- and late Southern Song Dynasty. Mengchuang Ciji carried the characteristic signature of Qingzheng Ci in terms of phrasing and literary conception. In addition, it adopted a unique style that not only connected literary allusions with subsequent elaborations but also employed the method of pertinence to create mutual references between images. Mengchuang Ciji not only presented affections with verses brimming with repentance, but also included a large number of works depicting interpersonal activities, which collectively reflected the national prosperity and the quotidian existence of literati in the mid-Southern Song Dynasty. On a more specific basis, Mengchuang Ciji perpetuated the tradition with its mastery of affective writing, while the works depicting interpersonal activities represented a new genre of Ci that emerged out of a new milieu in a new era. The third part of this dissertation explicates the writing and orientation of the sense of social relationship. Different occasions of interpersonal activities exhibit subtle cultural and social nuances. Transited from social realities to literary creation, the style of Ci may create a sense of social relationship on the basis of imitating real situations, be it flirting, flattery, deep feelings inspired by majestic scenery, or the blessing and sorrow in farewell. The occasions of interpersonal activities actually provided the participants with an environment for mutual observation. As a result, the depiction of interpersonal activities involved not only the things being observed but also the observers and their social backgrounds. Mengchuang Ciji was sensitive to the slightest nuances in the milieu. In view of the delicate strokes of genius it showed, Mengchuang Ciji was regarded as a pretty unique text among the works by the Ci writers in the Song Dynasty. In short, this dissertation firstly discusses the prevailing literary custom established by the Ci writers’ groups in the mid-Southern Song Dynasty. It then reconstructs the occasions of interpersonal activities according to the preface and content of Mengchuang Ciji, thereby carrying out a comparative analysis of the senses of social relationships created in different situations. This dissertation finally places Mengchuang Ciji in the context of the lyric tradition, finding that the significance of the objects it referred to is reified and highlighted, while that of the subjects is downplayed. Drawing inferences from this context, the works by the Ci writers who espoused the classically elegant style in fact deviated from the lyric tradition. Itinerant Ci writers were subject to the stipulation made by others, and therefore they must struggle for survival amidst different social relationships. The experiences of impoverished literati and their flowery style of writing conveyed a powerful sense of tension. The actual functions performed by Mengchuang Ciji, namely the depiction of the occasions of interpersonal activities and the exchange of toasts and odes, stretched far beyond the limited horizons of lyric poetry. The Ci as sophisticatedly forged as Mengchuang Ciji in the late Southern Song Dynasty was not spared the fate of lacking qualified successors due to the withering away of the supportive social conditions after the overthrow of the Southern Song Dynasty.
Subjects
Wu Wenying
the sophisticated Ci
Qingzheng Ci
Baishi Ci
the mastery of Ci composition
Itinerant Ci writers
Type
thesis
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