Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch
RASHKB and author
10
Vol. 1 (1961)
ISSN 1991-7295
39
and defeated government troops again and again. They were eventually persuaded to capitulate to the government, and took part in the victorious campaign against another rebel Fang La.1 However, some modern historians believe that after they had helped the government forces, Sung Chiang and his followers were themselves liquidated in their turn. Be that as it may, the exploits of Sung Chiang and his followers soon became the subject of popular legends told orally. These grew in number and came to be written down. At first only short accounts were written, but later, towards the end of the Yuan period, about 1300, the different stories were joined together to form one long romance, possibly by Shih Nai-an, who has been identified with the dramatist Shih Hui, styled Chun-mei.2 By then, the number of heroes involved had grown from the original thirty-six to a hundred and eight. The romance continued to be enlarged and revised by various hands during the Ming period, until it became a work of 120 chapters, published about 1620. Then, at the beginning of the Ch'ing period, in 1644, the critic Chin Sheng-t'an took the first seventy chapters, added a new chapter at the end as well as commentaries, and published it as the "Fifth Work of Genius" in Chinese literature. This edition achieved immense popularity, and it is this truncated version which most Chinese readers have read and which has been rendered into English.
21
Meanwhile, some stories about knights errant found their way into the drama of the Yuan period. The plays of this period were classified by subject under twelve categories, one of which was "long swords and clubs". This obviously corresponded to the two categories of stories "long swords" and "clubs" mentioned earlier. In particular, some stories about Sung Chiang and his followers not included in the Shui-hu chuan were given dramatic treatment in Yuan times. For instance, there were at least a dozen Yuan plays about Li K'uei, one of the followers of Sung Chiang and one of the most colourful characters in popular literature.22 Two of these plays are still extant.23 They present with great gusto this rough-mannered, quick-tempered outlaw with a heart of gold. In plays of later periods, Li K'uei and other
4a.
18 Sung-shih* (SPPY), chüan 22, 3a; chüan 351, 11b; chüan 353,
1 Mou Jun-sun, "On the tombstone inscription of Chê K'ê-ts'un and Sung Chiang's end" 牟潤孫,折可存墓誌銘考証兼論宋江之結局, Bulletin of the College of Arts, National Taiwan University, No. 2.
20 Sun K'ai-ti, Chung-kuo t'ung-su hsiao-shuo shu-mu 孫楷第,中國通俗小說書目 (Peking, 1957), p. 181.
+
21 Chu Ch'üan, T'ai-ho cheng-yin p'u 朱權,太和正音譜 (reprinted together with the Lu kuei pu 錄鬼簿, Shanghai, 1957), p. 135.
22 For the titles of these plays, see Fu Hsi-hua, Yuan-tai tsa-chü ch'üan-mu 傅惜華,元代雜劇全目 (Peking, 1957), pp. 406-7.
23 There is another Yuan play in which Li K'uei appears, but only as a subsidiary character.
Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch
RASHKB and author
10
Vol. 1 (1961)
ISSN 1991-7295
39
and defeated government troops again and again. They were eventually persuaded to capitulate to the government, and took part in the victorious campaign against another rebel Fang La.'* However, some modern historians believe that after they had helped the government forces, Sung Chiang and his followers were themselves liquidated in their turn. Be that as it may, the exploits of Sung Chiang and his followers soon became the subject of popular legends told orally. These grew in number and came to be written down. At first only short accounts were written, but later, towards the end of the Yuan period, about 1300, the different stories were joined together to form one long romance, possibly by Shih Nai-an, who has been identified with the dramatist Shih Hui, styled Chun-mei." By then, the number of heroes involved had grown from the original thirty-six to a hundred and eight. The romance continued to be enlarged and revised by various hands during the Ming period, until it became a work of 120 chapters, published about 1620. Then, at the beginning of the Ch'ing period, in 1644, the critic Chin Sheng-t'an took the first seventy chapters, added a new chapter at the end as well as commentaries, and published it as the "Fifth Work of Genius" in Chinese literature. This edition achieved immense popularity, and it is this truncated version which most Chinese readers have read and which has been rendered into English.
21
Meanwhile, some stories about knights errant found their way into the drama of the Yuan period. The plays of this period were classified by subject under twelve categories, one of which was "long swords and clubs". This obviously corresponded to the two categories of stories "long swords" and "clubs” mentioned earlier. In particular, some stories about Sung Chiang and his followers not included in the Shui-hu chuan were given dramatic treatment in Yuan times. For instance, there were at least a dozen Yuan plays about Li K'uei, one of the followers of Sung Chiang and one of the most colourful characters in popular literature.22 Two of these plays are still extant.23 They present with great gusto this rough-mannered, quick-tempered outlaw with a heart of gold. In plays of later periods, Lí K'uei and other
4a.
18 Sung-shih * (SPPY), chüan 22, 3a; chúan 351, 11b; chüan 353,
1 Mou Jun-sun, "On the tombstone inscription of Chê K'ê-ts'un and Sung Chiang's end" 牟潤孫,折可存墓誌銘考証兼論宋江之結局, Bulletin of the College of Arts, National Taiwan University, No. 2.
20 Sun K'ai-ti, Chung-kuo l'ung-su hsiao-shuo shu-mu 孫楷第,中國 HARTE (Peking, 1957), p. 181.
+
21 Chu Ch'üan, T'ai-ho cheng-yin p'u AE (reprinted together with the Lu kuei pu W, Shanghai, 1957), p. 135.
22 For the titles of these plays, see Fu Hsi-hua, Yuan-tai tsa-chü
ch'üan-mu * · ZROVIB (Peking, 1957), pp. 406-7.
23 There is another Yuan play in which Li K'uei appears, but only as a subsidiary character.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.