“Urging the Succession" and “Granting the Nine Bestowments" in Wen Xuan
Vol. 38 No. 3 9/2008
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Title |
"Urging the Succession" and "Granting the Nine Bestowments" in Wen Xuan |
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Author |
Sherman Chu |
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Genre |
Article |
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Pages |
383-419 |
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Download |
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Language |
Chinese |
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Key words |
abdication, urging succession, memorial of yielding position, ghostwriting |
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Abstract |
During the Six Dynasties, many pieces of bureaucratic prose were written during the usurpation of thrones, but only a few pieces of this kind were included in Wen Xuan. This paper discusses the reasons why such a limited number of these works were selected: What are the strong points of these works, and what traits give them literary worth? And, did the editor's political standing and position make any difference to the inclusion of particular pieces? These works, always written by the literary celebrities and received as showpieces by their contemporaries, serve to reveal the literary values and aesthetics of the time. |