Study Of The Recreational Culture Of Chengdu In Ming Dynasty

With the development of economy and the civilization of thought, the expanding of urban culture in Ming Dynasty has taken on an unprecedented atmosphere. Chengdu, as the political, economic and cultural center in the southwest of China, has promoted its urban culture to thrive. Recreational culture, as a major feature of the city's urban culture in Ming Dynasty has gradually shifted to the public recreational culture. During Tang Dynasty and Song Dynasty, recreational culture in Chengdu presented to be the combination of enjoying custom and cultural art. While in Ming and Qing Dynasty, it has unfolded its diversity and individuation, one of which is that public recreational activity like killing time in the tea house has become the mainstream of the recreational culture. Recreational culture of Chengdu in Ming Dynasty can be divided into four major types, including sightseeing type, chat-based entertainment type, recreational entertainment type and religious consolation type. Different types of recreational culture may attract various types of participants. For example, recreational activities of the royal family, literati and officialdom in some aspects, differ from those of the civic. Therefore, such diverse participants in different recreational activities will manifest dissimilar values. Recreational culture of Chengdu in Ming Dynasty influenced the whole social culture, but the extent of impact remains to be further researched.The thesis is composed of three parts involving introduction, main body and conclusion.Introduction part of the thesis includes presenting the general ideas about the origins and significance of choosing the topic, defining the research objects and ordering the status quo of the relevant research. It also gives an account of the research methods and content, the overview of recreational culture of Chengdu in history.The main body consists of three parts as well:The first part investigates the types of the recreational culture of Chengdu in Ming Dynasty including sightseeing type, chat-based entertainment type, recreational entertainment type and religious consolation type.The second part analyzes the principal participants of recreational culture and the diverse recreational values. The luxury of the royal family, the indecency of the literati and officialdom, and the entertainment of the civic all together resulted in distinct recreational values.The third part interprets the characteristics and impact of the recreational culture of Chengdu in Ming Dynasty. It dissertates the tremendous effect of the recreational culture on the social culture in some degree.Conclusion part briefly summarizes the topic about the recreational culture of Chengdu in Ming Dynasty.