Chinese Cultural Symbols: Interpreting the Charm of Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio

The background of the creation of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio"

Pu Songling (1640-1715), with the courtesy name Liuxian and the pseudonym Liuquan Jushi, was born in Zibo, Shandong (now Zibo District, Zibo City, Shandong Province). He lived in the early Qing Dynasty when society was turbulent and thoughts were active, and he personally experienced many drawbacks of feudal society and the sufferings of the people. This background of the times profoundly influenced his creative thinking and literary orientation.

Pu Songling was obsessed with imperial examinations throughout his life, but he failed in the provincial examinations many times and ultimately failed to enter the official career. He was deeply indignant about the corruption and injustice of the imperial examination system. This disappointment with reality and pursuit of ideals prompted him to use literature as a weapon to pour the accumulated "lonely anger" in his heart into the creation of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio", expressing his criticism of social injustice and his yearning for beautiful humanity and ideal life.

Most of the time spent on the creation of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" was concentrated in Pu Songling's middle and late years. While teaching in his hometown to make a living, he devoted himself to collecting materials and processing his creations. This masterpiece was not created in a short time, but was the result of decades of hard work. He called himself "a person who likes to talk about ghosts" and "a person who loves to search for gods". This interest and sentiment made him the most outstanding writer of supernatural literature in ancient Chinese classical novels.

Pu Songling's sources of materials are rich and extensive. He draws inspiration from historical books, notes, and unofficial histories, and integrates local legends, folk tales and real life, and transforms these materials through unique artistic conception. His friend Zhang Duqing once advised him not to waste time on "talking about empty things and ghosts", but Pu Songling was persistent in his literary ideals, not moved by worldly fame and fortune, and insisted on using literature to record reality and explore human nature.

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is not only a sustenance of personal feelings, but also a reflection and criticism of society. It is full of strange fantasies and reflects profound social content, showing the various contradictions in feudal society and the pursuit of freedom, love and justice by ordinary people. This work has become a rare treasure in the history of Chinese literature, carrying Pu Songling's indomitable spirit and his unique literary talent.

The writing process of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio"

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" has eight volumes, including 491 stories, totaling about 400,000 words. This classic collection of short stories in classical Chinese was not completed in one go, but was finally completed after many additions, deletions, and revisions as Pu Songling's life experiences and thoughts accumulated. However, the specific time of completion is still unknown. Through historical records and content analysis, we can roughly infer the creation period of this work.

Early creation (around the 17th year of Shunzhi, around 1660)

Pu Songling began to write "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" when he was about 20 years old. Around the 17th year of Shunzhi (1660), he took the imperial examinations many times but failed, and felt that his career was bleak. His good friend Zhang Yuan recorded in the Epitaph of Mr. Pu from Liuquan: "His literary reputation was well-known among the students, but he was rejected every time he entered the imperial examinations; he sighed and said: 'This is his fate!'" After repeated failures, Pu Songling resolutely decided to turn to literary creation, collecting strange stories based on ancient prose and began writing "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio".

In the first year of the Kangxi reign (1662), Pu Songling was 23 years old. In this year, the famous "Yu Qi Uprising" took place in history. The rebels fought with the Qing army, causing great suffering to the people. In the article "Wild Dog" in "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio", the disaster brought to the people by this turmoil was recorded: "Yu Qi's rebellion killed people like hemp. Villager Li Hualong fled back from the mountains, and when the army came in at night, he was afraid of the disaster of Yan Kun..." It can be seen that at this time Pu Songling had begun to write this work based on reality.

The middle period of the book (the 18th year of Kangxi, 1679)

After nearly 20 years of writing and accumulation, Pu Songling completed the preliminary version of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" at the age of 40 (the 18th year of Kangxi), and officially named it "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio". He also wrote a famous preface for the book - "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio", which directly expressed the hardships and loneliness of the creation. In the preface, he mentioned that he collected strange stories and "wrote them in writing" to record the injustice of reality and the "lonely anger" in his heart, hoping to gain understanding and resonance. It can be said that this year was an important time point when the prototype of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" first appeared.

The final draft in the late period (the 34th year of Kangxi, 1695)

The final draft of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" was completed when Pu Songling was about 56 years old (the 34th year of Kangxi, 1695). Judging from the words "still remembering the period between Jiaxu and Yihai" in the "Han Fang Pian" of the book, "Jiaxu and Yihai" are the 33rd and 34th years of the reign of Emperor Kangxi (1694-1695), which indicates that Pu Songling was still polishing and revising the manuscript during this period.

Persistent pursuit of literature

Pu Songling spent most of his life on the creation of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio". Even though he lived in poverty, he still made a living by teaching, and used his spare time to collect materials and record stories. He placed the hardships and dissatisfaction of reality in his works, and through the shell of supernatural stories, he wrote about the good and evil of human nature, the sincerity of love, the ups and downs of official career, and the darkness of society. He continued to write until he was over 60 years old, when he gradually stopped writing.

The writing process of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is a microcosm of Pu Songling's lifelong literary pursuit and artistic practice. This collection of novels is not only a sustenance of personal emotions, but also a profound reflection on the real society, showing his indomitable spirit and outstanding literary talent.

The spread and influence of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio"

In the 54th year of Emperor Kangxi's reign (1715), Pu Songling, 76, "died sitting by the window". Although "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" was completed during his lifetime, he was unable to print and publish the work due to his poor family background. However, as early as during the creation period, the work had been widely circulated among the people through manuscripts. After his death, the manuscripts spread more widely and gradually accumulated a far-reaching influence.

The spread process

Half a century after Pu Songling's death, in the 31st year of Emperor Qianlong's reign (1766), Zhao Qigao and Bao Tingbo sorted out various manuscripts and published the 16-volume "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" for the first time, which was known as the "Qingketing Edition". Although this version was not a complete version, it laid the foundation for later versions. During the sorting process, dozens of stories were deleted and some content was deleted and revised to avoid the current situation. This version became the basis for various publications in the past two hundred years.

In the early 1960s, Chinese scholar Zhang Youhe compiled a "three-collation version" with detailed annotations, namely the "collation, annotation and commentary" version, by sorting out multiple versions including half of Pu Songling's original manuscript. This version presents all the chapters of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" in full, and has become an important basis for studying and reading "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio".

Literary Status

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is unique in the history of Chinese literature, creating a peak in the recording of supernatural stories in classical Chinese. Through mysterious and strange stories, Pu Songling shows the injustice of society, the complexity of human nature and the pursuit of an ideal life with delicate brushstrokes. It is not only a literary classic, but also a philosophical masterpiece that reveals social problems and explores the essence of human nature.

World Influence

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" was introduced to the West as early as the end of the 19th century and attracted widespread attention. French Oriental scholar Huville first translated the famous article "Planting Pears" into French and published it in "Asia", which opened the prelude to the spread of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" in Europe. Since then, the book has been translated into English, German, Russian, Japanese, Korean and other languages, becoming a brilliant work on the international literary stage.

In 2020, French Image Publishing House and Beijing Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press launched the French version of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" in Paris, which selected more than 50 classic stories such as "Red Jade" and was accompanied by exquisite illustrations by Qing Dynasty painters. The publication of this version provides Western readers with a brand new cultural experience and promotes the exchange of Chinese and Western cultures.

Artistic Re-creation

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is not only an immortal work in literary history, but its content has also inspired many literary and artistic creations. The classic stories in the novel have been adapted into dramas, movies, TV series, animations, comics and other forms to make them more vivid and closer to contemporary audiences. The fantasy, love story and social metaphor in the work transcend the boundaries of time and space and become a source of inspiration for Chinese and foreign creators.

The original toy blind box based on "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is such a product. Combining traditional and modern aesthetics, it presents the gracefulness of Nie Xiaoqian, the majesty of the judge, the solemnity of Yan Luo and other characters in the form of exquisite figures. These blind boxes not only reproduce the charm of the characters in the novel with delicate designs, but also give them more youthful and interesting interpretations. In this way, classic literature can transcend the limitations of time, culture and media, continue to spread in contemporary life, and attract more people to approach and understand the magical charm of "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio".

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is a treasure that Pu Songling gave to the literary world. Whether in China or around the world, this work has demonstrated unique artistic value and cultural charm. It not only reflects the author's profound observation of society and human nature through the story, but also continues to influence readers from different cultural backgrounds through various forms of dissemination and re-creation.

Ending

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is not only a literary masterpiece that carries stories of gods and monsters, but also a cultural window to the social life and ideological world of the Qing Dynasty. It reveals the complexity of human nature and the multifaceted society through profound words and bizarre imagination. The spread and influence of the work transcend the boundaries of time and space, from the study of the Qing Dynasty to the world stage, becoming an important bridge connecting different cultures. Both literary researchers and ordinary readers can feel the charm of the interweaving of fantasy and reality. As the times progress, "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" continues to shine with its unique artistic value, inspiring people to think deeply about human nature, love and society, and becoming a shining pearl of Chinese culture.