Newly Published Old Works: A Study On Tai Jingnong’s The Demise Of The Ming

The Demise of the Ming is a historical novel written by Tai Jingnong during the war period and was only officially published in 2020.The novel,which had long been sealed in the author’s private collection,is a work written during the war and a new book,presenting an interactive relationship between the new and the old.The "old work" contains multiple values,such as the motive,the mentality of creation,the historical background of invention,and the meaning of the text;the "new publication" gives new research materials to the existing research on Tai Jingnong,and acquires new research directions,placing the novel in the context of the writer’s overall creation.It will provide new and important information for the study of the writer.For a long time,academic research on Tai Jingnong has focused on vernacular fiction and literary studies,but the publication of The Demise of the Ming brings Tai Jingnong’s eight years of experience and creation in Jiangjin back to the forefront of research.Although Tai Jingnong wrote a great deal of prose and poetry during his time in Jiangjin,using The Demise of the Ming as a support point,it is possible to sort out Tai Jingnong’s more complete life history during the war period,discover Tai Jingnong’s multiple identities,and explore the writer’s creative psychology in order to understand Tai Jingnong’s transition from novelist to scholar.Using the theoretical framework in Paul A.Cohen’s book History in Three Keys:The Boxers as Event,Experience,and Myth,and starting from the sparse examination of the creation of The Demise of the Ming,the analysis of The Demise of the Ming revolves around three dimensions to understand the value and significance of The Demise of the Mingfrom different aspects and to the greatest extent,and to use The Demise of the Ming as a base to understand Tai Jingnong’s transformation in the areas of examination and scholarship,book arts research,and literary creation.The first chapter examines the history of the creation of The Demise of the Ming.The Demise of the Ming is the only historical novel,a long novel,written by Tai Jingnong,and it is unique to Tai Jingnong’s work.The book was written as a result of Tai Jingnong’s duties as a temporary editor of a popular book,and Taijingnong sought this position from the Ministry of Education because of the need to survive.Based on the letters between Tai Jingnong,the Ministry of Education,and friends,we restore the historical scene of the time,understand the reasons for Tai Jingnong’s creation,sort out the writer’s creative process,infer the reasons why the novel was not published at that time,and analyze the significance of the book’s publication.Chapter 2 analyzes The Demise of the Ming from three dimensions: popular reading,satire,and historical drama,in order to understand the meaning and value of the work.First,it examines The Demise of the Ming as a popular book,placing it among the popular books promoted by the Ministry of Education,to understand the characteristics of the popularization of The Demise of the Ming and the heterogeneity of popular books created by new literary writers.Secondly,we discuss The Demise of the Ming as a work of satire,sort out the KMT’s literary policy at this time,and compare The Demise of the Ming with historical novels of the same period to fully understand the referential connotations of The Demise of the Ming.Finally,we discuss The Demise of the Ming as a historical drama,starting from the perspective of Tai Jingnong’s view of history and understanding Tai Jingnong’s view of late Ming history and the writing strategy adopted in The Demise of the Ming.Chapter 3 analyzes The Demise of the Ming in the context of Tai Jingnong’s overall creation and scholarship,and examines the role of The Demise of the Ming in the transition of Tai Jingnong’s entire literary career.From Tai Jingnong’s early novel writing to his literary research during the period of his residence in Taiwan,the writing of The Demise of the Ming plays an important role in bridging the gap.Not only does it continue his earlier style of writing and approach to scholarship,but at this point in his career,Tai Jingnong underwent a dramatic change of heart and began to shift from novel writing to classical literary research.The resonance with the survivors of the late Ming Dynasty brought Tai Jingnong closer to the history and calligraphy of the late Ming Dynasty,and not only brought Tai Jingnong’s calligraphy and poetry closer to the style of the late Ming Dynasty,but also brought about a shift in his underlying concepts and the direction of his literary research.The conclusion section summarizes the whole text and points out the importance and uniqueness of The Demise of the Ming Lectures for Tai Jingnong’s research.