Dissertate The Spirit Of Pessimism Of The Peach Blossom Fan

The Peach Blossom Fan is one of the few tragegy works in China classical dramas, because it displays a strong spirit of pessimism. This paper intends to analyse and demonstrate how The Peach Blossom Fan shows the spirit of pessimism, where the spirit originates from and how The Peach Blossom Fan is spread, by combining literature with history together as well as closely following Kong Shangren's poems, articles and dramas. This paper further means to demostrate that literature is actually human science and the tragic value of human.Firstly, to inspect how The Peach Blossom Fan represents the spirit of pessimism. The Peach Blossom Fan is a historical play by which Kong Shangren expressed his sensibility of the rise and fall of the nation using the meeting and parting of lovers. The love affair between Hou Fangyu and Li Xiangjun in this drama is a devious and dreary tragedy. The Peach Blossom Fan is a historic tragedy which exhibits the contabescence of Nanming Dynasty. The Peach Blossom Fan is actually an elegy about the Ming Dynasty. The characters in the drama include the monarch as well as the hamble actors. The destiny of all the characters is full of frustrations. So The Peach Blossom Fan is also a tragedy play of the characters'destiny.Secondly, to trace the spirit of pessimism in The Peach Blossom Fan to its resource. The creation of The Peach Blossom Fan has relation with the age. After the Qing Dynasty was established with Beijing as the capital, the fierce conflicts still existed between the Ming Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty, between Manchu Nationality and Han Nationality. Kong Shangren, a playwright, was born in such an age which is brimming with blood and fire. He benefitted from his family background to listen himself to the painful experience of the survivors of the Ming Dynasty. At the same time, the spirit of pessimism in The Peach Blossom Fan is relevant with the frustrated experience of the author. He had not succeeded in the imperial civil examintions, ascetically practised in Huaiyang and acted as an official in Beijing, all of which brings about in The Peach Blossom Fan the negative spirit that articles and fames are not worth pursuiting. The spirit of pessimism in The Peach Blossom Fan also has relevance with the theme itself. When he created the characters of Hou Fangyu, Kong Shangren made reference to the lifetime of Hou Fangyu and took over the spirit of pessimism in Strong Regret Hall Collection.Thirdly, to introduce briefly the spread of The Peach Blossom Fan from the cold reception to a big name. The dissemination of The Peach Blossom Fan concerned national consciousness. The tacit consent of Emperor Kangxi promoted the spread of The Peach Blossom Fan. At that time, people were deep again and again in the tragic atmosphere showed by The Peach Blossom Fan to chew the decline of the Ming Dynasty. Because of this, Kong Shangren was stripped of his office. Though opinions are quite divided on it, the unsolved case actually has close relation with The Peach Blossom Fan. Kong Shangren spent the evening of his life in great misery, went hitcher and thither and even had no money to carve his The Peach Blossom Fan. The spirit of pessimism in The Peach Blossom Fan moved people during the period of Emperor Kangxi, Emperor Qianlong and even the whole Qing Dynasty. People showed a ready response to the historical tragedy from different perspectives.