The Study Of Tang Saier's Theme In Ming And Qing Novels

In Ming dynasty,there were many leaders of peasant uprising,most of them were men.As the female leader of the peasant uprising in the early Ming dynasty,Tang Sai'er left a great influence in history because of her special status as a female insurgent.History books and literary sketches of Ming and Qing dynasties recorded the uprising of Tang Sai'er.Most history books demonized the image of Tang Sai'er.Although literary sketches showed a tolerant attitude towards Tang Sai'er,people pass different judgements on her.In addition,Tang Sai'er was also used as the protagonist in the fictions of the Ming and Qing dynasties.The works involved are "Amazing Tales-First Series" volume 31,"Belong to the lotus dream" and "Nv xian wai shi".The image of Tang Sai'er in these three works is gradually changing.Compared with the image of the enchantress in history books,Tang Sai'er has shown the characteristics of fairy."Amazing Tales-First Series" uglifies the moral quality of Tang Sai'er,but this is not enough to cover up some positive characteristics of Tang Sai'er such as the strategy and astuteness in the management of the army,the sentimentality and righteousness in dealing with people and she had the temperament of a heroine.In "Belongs to the lotus dream",Bai Lian'an and Tang Sai'er 's experience are very similar,both of them were the female leader of the peasant uprising and the folk religion and therefore Bai Lian'an should be included into the discussion of Tang Sai'er subject.Bai Lian'an featured half woman and half fairy.She had the mortal mind such as the pursuit of love.She also had the characteristic of fairy and find her true self,converted to Buddhism.In "Nv xian wai shi",Tang Sai'er's uprising was sanctified and supported by many celestial beings.Tang Sai'er has many good qualities of fairy such as having both talent and virtue,kindness and loyalty.Tang Sai'er was portrayed as a nearly perfect image of fairy.The writer expresses his admiration for women directly in the fiction.Tang Sai'er's image has gone through a process of development.The "Nv xian wai shi" reversed a verdict for Tang Sai'er and sublimated her image of fairy.Why did the writer choose Tang Sai'er and shape into fairy? The reason includes the particularity of the identity of female insurgents,the female worship factors in folk religions,and the literati's praise of heroines in the Ming and Qing dynasties.Hence,after the publication of "Nv xian wai shi",the literati group recognized and praised the image of fairy of tang saier in the comments and expressed the unrealizable ideal aspiration and frustrated feelings.From the perspective of religion,"Belongs to the lotus dream" and "Nv xian wai shi" embody the cultural connotations of folk religion such as the thought of dushi and the thought of saving the world which are also closely related to the shaping of fairy.In a word,from history books to fictions,the image of Tang Sai'er has completed a magnificent change which is still preserved in the subsequent adaptation of fictions and operas to this day.