Research On Texts' Illustrations In The Late Ming Dynasty

This thesis is centered on some texts' illustrations of the late Ming dynasty to explore and inspect on society during that time.Through studies on the general historical background of the late Ming dynasty and researches on the interaction relationship between national policies,social changes and illustrations' print,books' publishing,it further explains and enriches the connotation on the downwardness of knowledge in the late Ming dynasty.It also reveals the production and duplication of a large number of illustrations at that time.In addition,it uncovers "the copy of luxury" in the late Ming society,"the duplication of realistic life in civil literature" and "reproduction phenomenon in painting" as well as the relevance among these various "duplication states".By describing a transformation from illustrations' duplication to various states' copy,it shows a kind of society with knowledge downwardness in the late Ming.Firstly,starting with the general historical background of the late Ming dynasty,this thesis inspects the whole era's feature and some changes of communities at the time.With the appearance of new community,new interest and new appetite,the late Ming society with continual downwardness of knowledge was presented.The knowledge downwardness pushed illustrations ahead during the late Ming society.Meanwhile,the visualization tendency coming with illustrations further enriched ways of knowledge's downwardness during the late Ming dynasty.Secondly,by academic analyses and studies on illustrations in books about the late Ming dynasty,it hopes to find their social significance except for their beautifying and decorating functions.From the early pictures about God,Budda and Saint with enlightening effect to some more worldly,practical and entertaining illustrations in the late Ming dynasty,such as those of novels,dramas,scientific technologies,farming,paintings,encyclopedia and so on,there is also a share of social concern and responsibility behind their functions of beautification and decoration.Thirdly,after newly criticized and remarked by celebrities,in a large number of repeatedly recorded texts and illustrations of dramas and novels,it observes the late Ming's mature and developed commercial publish.Even more,it feels critics' and editors' eager and expectation for social discourse right.Therefore,it also uncovers that people's self-consciousness and self-cultivation have gradually appeared in the late Ming society.Finally,in the view of illustrations' "duplication",the thesis tends to some surveys on the"duplication" of luxury in the late Ming dynasty,novels' and dramas' "copy" of real life as well as continual "reproductions" of the same theme in paintings and the use of "painting draft".Furthermore,some shadow of "replication" seemingly was also left in operas' performing on the stage."Duplication" has become a kind of basic state in the late Ming society.From this extended perspective,some viewpoints are not only able to enrich the ways of knowing society at that time,but also of certain realistic significance to describing a clear and real society in the late Ming.The illustration is always an object of study in traditional fine arts.Generally,its research method pays much attention to expounding its own aesthetic meaning.However,there has been few in traditional historical research to observe the late Ming dynasty from this point of view.Therefore,in the research of historical culture,from the aspect on texts' illustrations,this thesis uses various illustrations at that time as empirical materials,and studies lots of material of literature and history and some information behind many corresponding pictures to make a further discussion on history,culturology,sociology,fine arts and iconology.What's more,it also hopes to more fully explain historical phenomenon and show the real situation of social life in the late Ming dynasty.