A Study On Vernacular Architecture Of Zhejiang Province

This dissertation aims to reveal the relationship between vernacular architecture ofWestern Zhejiang Province (in particular the cities of Lanxi, Jiande and Longyou) andConfucian scholastical philosophy.The first part of this dissertation discusses the relationship between vernaculararchitecture and the elite culture by means of tribal structure. The difference in thehousing scheme and village layout of Western Zhejiang, Jianhua, and Huizhou is usedto explore the various familial and tribal institutions. This in turns casts light on thedifferent Confucian philosophies in Jianhua and Huizhou, the influence of which isextrapolated upon the ancestral worship architecture among the three places.In the second part, the relationship between architecture and the elite culture isanalyzed from its style. Based on the development of vernacular architectural fa ade,structure and decoration in Western Zhejiang during mid-Qing dynasty, the authorpoints out that, by revival of ancestral culture and rituals礼学, the transformation ofConfucian philosophies from the School of Mind心学to philology朴学plays acritical role in the generation of vernacular architecture.From the academic history of the Confucianism, the dissertation, combining avariety of phenomena among the vernacular architecture in Jinhua, Western Zhejiangand Huizhou, attempts to explain many questions unsolved in previous researches.Confucianism is the key for the integration of prototyped, fragmented, and singularinformation from earlier studies, which lays a foundation for a general narrative of thelocal buildings.