| The Fa yan or Words to Live By represents not only the final major work of the court poet Yan Xiong (53 B.C.E.–18 C.E.), but the final major philosophical work of the Former Han dynasty (202 B.C.E.–9 C.E.). Like its model the Analects of Confucius, the Fa yan consists of a collection of sayings and dialogues covering a wide variety of historical and philosophical issues. Like the Analects, the sayings and dialogues of the Fa yan appear to be haphazardly organized. The apparent lack of organization and coherence in both the Analects and the Fa yan has lead commentators to seek coherence by way of topical reconstructions. While the present study is also concerned with problem of coherence in the Fa yan, and more broadly in ancient Chinese philosophical texts, it eschews topical reconstruction in favor of a more analogical and contextual reading which will attempt to uncover various paths of associations underlying: (1) the seemingly random juxtaposition of sayings and dialogues in the Fa yan; (2) the Fa yan and the textual tradition from which it emerged; (3) the Fa yan and the Confucian way of life it tried to transmit; and finally, (4) the Fa yan and the historical and political context of the late Former Han. |
