The Research Of The Canvass In "Tactics Of The Warring States"

The Warring States Period is usually interpreted as a time of disorder and confusion in politics, military status, and diplomacy. Orators, who toured the princedoms and duchies as well as the lower ranking states offering policy advice and soliciting patronage, were playing the vital, in most circumstances, indispensable role in this period. They are persons of intellect and erudite tastes, covering a distinctively wide range—from astronomy to geography, from the general trend of the current world to the social customs and cultures of princedoms and duchies. As articulate and persuasive politicians, they sometimes made such successful speeches that even allured emperors by moving, encouraging words. Tactics of the Warring States was one of the important ancient codes and records which demonstrated the strategies and activities of counselors and strategies going canvassing dukes or princes under emperors in Warring States Period. This thesis tends to research the developing process and literary origin of canvassing style in ancient China, the requirements canvass places on counselors, and the artistic charm of canvass.This paper mainly consists of three parts.In the first part, introduction part, it has been exploed that the formation and develepment of canvassing style in ancient China. The fundamental connotation conveyed in "canvassing" is speech act, which is characterized by its oral form. Speech act has gradually developed to follow a comparatively stable procedure, and finally formed a style and been specifically named canvass.The second part has expounded by three chapters the most typical representative work recording and researching canvass in Warring States Period: Tactics of the Warring States.Based on the original meaning of "canvassing", the author firstly makes exploration on the origin and development of "canvass", and analyzes the social background and literary origins of canvass in Tactics of the Warring States.Secondly, the author, taking the relationship between literary subject and literary works as theoretical basis, sets forth that canvass requires orators of erudition, eloquence, resourcefulness, bravery, and outstanding mental qualities.Subsequently, the paper discussed about the unique artistic charm of canvass in Tactics of the Warring States from two aspects—imagery and language tactics.In the last part, this thesis briefly demonstrates the impact of canvass in Tactics of the Warring States on Chinese literature and literary style. Canvass, debating as its outstanding element, has exerted a profound influence on the style of argumentation, writing of poems, novels, and even narrating literature in the following generations.To sum up, canvass recorded in Tactics of the Warring States, which is cherished as a masterpiece of prose style, has portrayed the highly violatile stituation of that time, as well as exhibited the mental outlook of consulors. The comprehensive exploration on cavass in Tactics of the Warring States is the main purpose of the present study.