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Biji (Chinese Literature)
Biji () is a genre in classical Chinese literature. It roughly translates "notebook". A book of biji can contain anecdotes, quotations, random musings, philological speculations, literary criticism and indeed everything that the author deems worth recording. The genre first appeared during the Wei and Jin dynasties, and matured during the Tang Dynasty. The biji of that period of time mostly contains the believe-it-or-not kind of anecdotes, and many of them can be treated as collections of short fictions. To differentiate this kind of "biji fiction" from the general biji, the former is later called "biji xiaoshuo" (筆記小說 "notebook fictions"). Biji flourished during the Song Dynasty, and continued to flourish during the later dynasties. Famous works of biji include: *''Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang'' (酉陽雜俎 ''Yǒuyáng Zázǔ''), by Duan Chengshi, Tang Dynasty *''Dream Pool Essays'' (夢溪筆談 ''Mèngxī Bǐtán'') by Shen Kua, Song Dynasty *''Notebooks from t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Notebook (style)
{{Short description, Unorganized Writings in a Book Notebook is a style of writing where people jot down what they have thought or heard at the spur of moment. The contents of a notebook are unorganized, and the number of subjects covered in a notebook are unlimited: a paragraph of autobiography can be followed immediately by one on astronomy or one on history. Some famous authors are also famous for the notebooks they left. Iris Origo, ''Leopardi: A Study in Solitude''. Helen Marx Books. 1999. pp. 142-3. There are writers who earned their posthumous fame solely by their notebooks, such as the German scientist and humorous writer Georg Lichtenberg. He called his notebooks " waste books," using the English book-keeping term. The notebooks of scientists, such as those of Michael Faraday and Charles Darwin, can reveal the development of their scientific theories. On the other hand, the notebooks used by scientists for recording their experiments are called lab notebooks. The noteb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cao Wei
Wei ( Hanzi: 魏; pinyin: ''Wèi'' < Middle Chinese: *''ŋjweiC'' < : *''ŋuiC'') (220–266), known as Cao Wei or Former Wei in historiography, was one of the three major states that competed for supremacy over China in the Three Kingdoms period (220–280). With its capital initially located at Xuchang, and thereafter Luoyang, the state was established by [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jin Dynasty (265-420)
Jin is a toneless pinyin romanization of various Chinese names and words. These have also been romanized as Kin and Chin ( Wade–Giles). "Jin" also occurs in Japanese and Korean. It may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) (晉國; 907–923), Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period * Later Jin (Five Dynasties) (後晉; 936–947), Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period Jīn 金 * Jin dynasty (1115–1234) (金朝), also known as the Jurchen Jin * Later Jin (1616–1636) (後金; 1616–1636), precursor of the Qing dynasty Others * Jin (Korean state) (辰國), precursor of the Jinhan Confederation * Balhae (698–713), originally known as Jin (震) Places * Jin Prefecture (Shanxi) (晉州), a former Chinese prefecture centered on present-day Linfen, Shanxi * Jin Prefect ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. Historians periodize the histories of many states and civilizations, such as Ancient Iran (3200 - 539 BC), Ancient Egypt (3100 – 30 BC) and Ancient and Imperial China (2070 BC – AD 1912), using a framework of successive dynasties. As such, the term "dynasty" may be used to delimit the era during which a family reigned. Before the 18th century, most dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckoned patrilineally, such as those that follow the Frankish Salic law. In polities where it was permitted, succession through a daughter usually established a new dynasty in her husband's family name. This has changed in all of Europe's remaining m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Historians generally regard the Tang as a high point in Chinese civilization, and a golden age of cosmopolitan culture. Tang territory, acquired through the military campaigns of its early rulers, rivaled that of the Han dynasty. The Lǐ family () founded the dynasty, seizing power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire and inaugurating a period of progress and stability in the first half of the dynasty's rule. The dynasty was formally interrupted during 690–705 when Empress Wu Zetian seized the throne, proclaiming the Wu Zhou dynasty and becoming the only legitimate Chinese empress regnant. The devastating An Lushan Rebellion (755–763) shook the nation and led to the decline of central authority in the dynasty' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Short Fiction
A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest types of literature and has existed in the form of legends, mythic tales, folk tales, fairy tales, tall tales, fables and anecdotes in various ancient communities around the world. The modern short story developed in the early 19th century. Definition The short story is a crafted form in its own right. Short stories make use of plot, resonance, and other dynamic components as in a novel, but typically to a lesser degree. While the short story is largely distinct from the novel or novella/short novel, authors generally draw from a common pool of literary techniques. The short story is sometimes referred to as a genre. Determining what exactly defines a short story has been recurrently problematic. A classic definition of a short sto ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Song Dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest of the Ten Kingdoms, ending the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The Song often came into conflict with the contemporaneous Liao, Western Xia and Jin dynasties in northern China. After retreating to southern China, the Song was eventually conquered by the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The dynasty is divided into two periods: Northern Song and Southern Song. During the Northern Song (; 960–1127), the capital was in the northern city of Bianjing (now Kaifeng) and the dynasty controlled most of what is now Eastern China. The Southern Song (; 1127–1279) refers to the period after the Song lost control of its northern half to the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty in the Jin–Song Wars. At that time, the Song court retreated south of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Miscellaneous Morsels From Youyang
The ''Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang'' () is a book written by Duan Chengshi in the 9th century. It focuses on miscellany of Chinese and foreign legends and hearsay, reports on natural phenomena, short anecdotes, and tales of the wondrous and mundane, as well as notes on such topics as medicinal herbs and tattoos. ''Youyang'' refers to the south slope of ''Mount You'', a small hill located in what is now Huaihua, Hunan. The book is divided into 30 volumes, containing unusually varied content in over thirteen hundred entries that describe the world that Duan Chengshi heard about, read of, or personally observed. Several tales from the volume are quoted in the Taiping Guangji. The ''Ye Xian'', a story similar to the fairy tale '' Cinderella'', appears in Chapter 21. The story was allegedly told by Duan's servant Li Shiyuan, a native from what is now Nanning. It is set during the late 3rd century BC. The exact location is unknown, but the most likely candidate is Guangxi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Duan Chengshi
Duan Chengshi () (died 863) was a Chinese poet and writer of the Tang Dynasty. He was born to a wealthy family in present-day Zibo, Shandong. A descendant of the early Tang official Duan Zhixuan (, ''Duàn Zhìxuán'') (-642), and the son of Duan Wenchang (, ''Duàn Wénchāng''), a high official under Tang Xuanzong, his family background enabled him to obtain office without taking the Imperial exams. As a poet, he was associated with Li Shangyin and Wen Tingyun. Duan is best known outside of China for being the author of an early version of Cinderella, called ''Ye Xian''. In 853, the story first appeared in '' Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang'', which was published shortly after he returned to Chang'an after his term of acting Governor of Jizhou (now known as Ji'an in Jiangsu). It is believed that it was a folktale told by peasants before it was recorded on paper. Some people even believe that the French author Charles Perrault copied Duan's version, only he renamed it and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dream Pool Essays
''The Dream Pool Essays'' (or ''Dream Torrent Essays'') was an extensive book written by the Chinese polymath and statesman Shen Kuo (1031–1095), published in 1088 during the Song dynasty (960–1279) of China. Shen compiled this encyclopedic work while living in forced retirement from government office, naming the book after his private estate near modern Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province. The ''Dream Pool Essays'' was heavily reorganized in reprint editions by later Chinese authors from the late 11th to 17th centuries. In modern times it has been translated from Chinese into several languages. These include English, German, French, and Japanese translations. The ''Dream Pool Essays'' covers a range of topics including discoveries and advancements in Traditional Chinese medicine, mathematics, astronomy, science and technology, optics, architecture and civil engineering, metallurgy, and early archaeology. Observations of the natural world included those of wildlife, meteorol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shen Kua
Shen Kuo (; 1031–1095) or Shen Gua, courtesy name Cunzhong (存中) and pseudonym Mengqi (now usually given as Mengxi) Weng (夢溪翁),Yao (2003), 544. was a Chinese polymathic scientist and statesman of the Song dynasty (960–1279). Shen was a master in many fields of study including mathematics, optics, and horology. In his career as a civil servant, he became a finance minister, governmental state inspector, head official for the Bureau of Astronomy in the Song court, Assistant Minister of Imperial Hospitality, and also served as an academic chancellor.Needham (1986), Volume 4, Part 2, 33. At court his political allegiance was to the Reformist faction known as the New Policies Group, headed by Chancellor Wang Anshi (1021–1085). In his '' Dream Pool Essays'' or ''Dream Torrent Essays'' (; ''Mengxi Bitan'') of 1088, Shen was the first to describe the magnetic needle compass, which would be used for navigation (first described in Europe by Alexander Neckam in 1187).Bo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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