Tang Maids Prostitute Study

In Tang Dynasty, the development of Chinese novel entered the new stage. Its prominent symbol is the starting of"the legends". In those legends there were many themes about the maids and prostitutes. Those themes became an indispensable part in the novels in Tang Dynasty describing splendid feminine images.According to massive historical records as well as the unearthed written materials, gathering and raising maids became popular in Tang Dynasty. From nobilities to the common people, most of them had records of raising maids. Those maids in Tang were engaged in the most arduous services, although their status was in the lowest level. At the same time, under the lively and open social convention, prostitutes became a fashion. The relations of people with the maids and the prostitutes were reflected in the legends in Tang. Literature reflects social life, and social life is the only origin of literature. The living conditions and status of maids and prostitutes were reflected comprehensively in the novels in Tang. Those novels were written about maids and prostitutes'dispositions and their pitiful destinies, which vividly outlining maids and prostitutes'images. To study the group of"the lowest level"in Tang may help to examine their reality existence from the angle of human nature, unscramble the status and the social background of maids and prostitutes in Tang, so that to know the in-depth connotation of the novels about maids and prostitutes.This article studies the legends concern maids and prostitutes in Tang, induces related works, takes those as the basic material. Then classifies those materials and reorganizes them to obtain maids and prostitutes of different categories, discovers the general character and the individuality of different types of maids and prostitutes, simultaneously unifies the time background and the cultural connotation of the society in Tang Dynasty, attempting to do a contrast research about maids and prostitutes in the legends in Tang comprehensively and thoroughly. Specifically, this article concentrates in the following several aspects: Firstly, discusses the reason of the prosperity of theme about the maids and prostitutes in the legends of Tang from the influence of the politics and economic situation of Tang Dynasty, Hu race's cultures and customs, as well as Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism. Secondly, classifies the maids in the legends of Tang, analyzes the origin and the social position, and inducts the duty of maids in the legends of Tang.Thirdly, analyzes the category and origin of prostitutes'social position in Tang Dynasty, and crosswise contrasts the prostitutes of different categories from aspects as social position and treatment.Fourthly, longitudinally contrasts maids and prostitutes in the legends of Tang from status and destiny, female beauty, love, analyzes the differences and indifferences.