The World Of Utensils In Wang Zengqi’s Novels

As the basic component of human life and the material carrier of human spirit and culture,utensils often becomes the object in literary creation.Chinese scholar bureaucrat have a tradition of of elegant entertainment.They showed their personality and ideal by appreciating the utensils,like Kaogongji and Heavenly Creations.Wang Zengqi was praised as "the last Scholar-official in China","the last pure literati of in China".Under the influence of traditional culture,he inherited the literati’s elegant taste and refined pleasure.He was well versed in literature,calligraphy,painting,Kunqu Opera,cuisine and so on.Filled with subjects like food,insects,fish,birds and flowers,his works have such a great appeal.Many of his novels have written utensils,and described utensils and the manufacturing process with a poetic and aesthetic vision,which retains the "elegant" of elegant entertainment tradition.However,personal life experiences and the emotional connection with bottom citizen,that made him focus his attention from the study room and garden to the vast folk.This is the inheritance and change of his literary creation to the tradition of elegant entertainment.The utensils in Wang Zengqi’s novels have some unique characters.Compared with the priceless treasures,calligraphy and painting worshiped by ancient ruling class and literati,the utensils in Wang Zengqi’s novels are more common.They come from every corner of the folk life,Wang Zengqi expressed their ordinary meaning on the one hand,and dug in the poetic aesthetic on the other hand.Compared with the industrial replicas of mechanized production in today ’s social,these utensils are more hands-on,specific performances:the strong and practical quality of the utensils,the intimate relationship and the free and joyful working state.In addition,because of writer’s unique aesthetic personality,the utensils in novels present the beauty of delight.Under the effect of empathy,human and utensils interact and merge with each other.The utensils world in Wang Zengqi’s novels has some Chinese classical aesthetic value.The first One is "lively spirit and charm style".Because the writer loves folk life deeply,ordinary manufacturing process of utensils under his pen has been described lively and lovely,revealing a vividly feeling of life.The second one is"quiet mountains and long days".In the novel,whether it is the creators or owners of the utensils,they live a simple and peaceful life without desire and expectation.Because they comply with nature,they can approach to eternity.The third one is "see big things through small ones",a tin can,a pottery bowl,or a bamboo chair can become an independent world.Small refers to the external materials,big refers to the inner heart.Seeing big things through small ones is the transcendence of the mind.The utensils writing in Wang Zengqi’s novels reflects the writer’s cultural attitude.First of all,the phenomenon of "put material gains above justice" and the development of industrial replication technology constantly oppress the living space of traditional utensils and crafts.Wang Zengqi expressed his great apprehension about the inter-generational inheritance of utensils in his novels.Secondly,Wang Zengqi paid attention not only to the utensils,but also to the people behinds the utensils,including their devotion and immersion in life and their free,healthy and elegant life paradigm.This is a Confucianism benevolence and manifests as a simple humanitarianism,the exploration of the good of human nature and the harmony of the evil of human nature.Thirdly,though having the temperament of traditional literati,Wang Zengqi is still a writer equipped with modem consciousness.He scanned the traditional culture and ethics with the view of modern people,making it more suitable for modern life.Wang Zengqi expressed his idea of "making customs more pure" in his works,aiming to reshape the reality and rebuild a national morality.