Classic Chinese Novel

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Chinese literature extends thousands of years,from the earliest recorded dynastic courtarchives to the mature fictional novels that arose during theMing Dynasty to entertain the masses of literate Chinese.The introduction of widespread woodblock printing duringthe Tang Dynasty (618-907)and the invention of movabletype printing by Bi Sheng (990-1051)during the SongDynasty (960-1279)rapidly spread written knowledgethroughout China.In more modern times,the author Lu Xun(1881-1936)is considered the founder of baihua literaturein China.

There is a wealth of early Chinese literature dating from the Hundred Schools of Thoughtthat occurred during the Eastern Zhou Dynasty(770-256BC).The most important of theseinclude the Classics of Confucianism,of Daoism,of Mohism,of Legalism,as well as works ofmilitary science and Chinese history.Note that except for the books of poems and songs,mostof this literature is philosophical and didactic;there is little in the way of fiction.However,thesetexts maintained their significance in both their ideas and their prose style.

The Confucian works in particular have been of key importance to Chinese culture andhistory,as a set of works known as the Four Books and Five Classics were,in the 12th centuryCE,chosen as the basis for the Imperial Examination for any government post.These ninebooks therefore became the center of the educational system.They have been grouped into twocategories:the Five Classics,allegedly compiled by Confucius,and the Four Books,which werecompiled in the 12th century CE.

The Four Great Classical Novels,or the Four Major Classical Novels(sidamingzhu)ofChinese literature,are the four novels commonly counted by scholars to be the greatest and mostinfiuential of classical Chinese fiction.Well known to most Chinese readers of the 21st century,they are not to be confused with the Four Books of Confucianism.

The works are considered to be the pinnacle of China’s achievement in classical novels,innuencing the creation of many stories,theater,movies,games,and other entertainmenlthroughout East Asia,including China,Japan,Korea,and Vietnam.