The Comparative Study On Narrative And Characterization Of Zuozhuan And Shiji

As the representative work of historical records with annalistic and biographical style, Zuozhuan and Shiji pioneered in narration and portrait of characters and laid a solid foundation for the later development of literature and historiography. For centuries, Critics have shed inspirational lights on Zuozhuan and Shiji. This paper intended to explore the development of the historical biography from the pre-Qin period to Western Han Dynasty by studying the narrative structure and character portrait of characters.In introduction I would introduce contemporary studies of Zuozhuan and Shiji with a general literature review. Then I would introduce important points involved and methodology of my research.The first chapter mainly focused on the relationship between the historian culture and historical and biographic literature. On the one hand, the exploration of official historian in heaven-man relationship and specific features of the studies in different ages were included. On the other hand, historical rationalism which is specifically owned by the historian culture had great influence on the historical and biographic literature, and is an important part of Chinese civilization as well.In the second chapter, the writing motive of Zuozhuan and Shiji was introduced. Undergone great reformation and innovation, the official began to reinterpret the connotation of the ritual, it was reflected in Zuozhuan. Si Maqian summed up the historiographer culture of predecessors, and endowed personal experience and understanding in his writing. These two books showed the character of such unique era and conveyed personal traits of their author respectively.The third chapter compared the narrative skills of Zuozhuan and Shiji. Narration was studied by studying the function of time in the annalistic and biographical structure. In the writings of the historical officials, facts and fictions coexists, and while keeping good records of facts, there’re still distinctions between following rituals and obeying facts. What’s more, in historical literature, judging while narrating did not originate from Shiji, but underwent a gradual development in which Zuozhuan and Shiji both played an important role.The fourth chapter focused on the portrait of characters which is a common feature for both Zuozhuan and Shiji. But in Zuozhuan the historical figures who served in the narration of a certain event became protagonists, whilst Si Maqian in Shiji reshaped historical figures in the past, and developed an experienced way of portraying characters which laid a solid foundation for the following development of literature.Finally this paper summed up the impacts of historian literature from the pre-qin to the western han dynasty on later generations. On one hand, the style of historical and biographic literature transformed from annalistic style like Zuozhuan to biographical one represented by Shiji. In terms of content, the focus turned from records of facts and events to the portrayal of characters. Such changes set a general structural style and standard for later historical literature. But it’s a pity that historical literature lost its energy in official discourse system. On the other hand, the techniques on narration and portrait of characters of historiography in pre-Qin and Han dynasties set a good example on form and contents for the development of later literature.