Research On The Prophecy Of Hanshu

Differing from Zuozhuan and Shiji,which were criticized for "the loss is superstition" and "pursuing suspense and novelty deliberately",Hanshu has always been praised for its prudence.Since it has these advantages,so its planning and layout,though often complicated,there is a very ingenious rhythm and a precise structure." However,even though historical materials were carefully cut and arranged in Hanshu,why did it still choose to retain a large number of seemingly absurd predictions that could not be verified? And there were more irrational descriptions? How is it different from the previous historical books? Among all the prophecies in Hanshu,some are quotations from previous works,and some are also its original statements;Some prophecies are derived from the traditions of previous generations,while others are epitomes of the times.Therefore,it has its own value to clarify the writing patterns and cultural motivations of the prophecy narrative in Hanshu.Taking the cultural context in which the prophecy of Hanshu was generated into consideration,although the prophecy of Hanshu has been influenced by previous historical books and has basically continued the tradition in terms of the selection of prophecy media,stylistic features and the " sign-words-response " model,the focus of the first chapter is on " change ",in other words,is to explore the social and cultural thoughts of the Eastern Han Dynasty during the formation of the prophecy text of Hanshu.The prophecies of various people in the Western Han Dynasty recorded in Hanshu exhibit different characteristics from those of the previous dynasties in the writings of Confucian scholars in the Eastern Han Dynasty.When examining the great social and historical changes from the pre Qin to the Qin and Han dynasties,it can be found that this characteristic is related to the canonization and theology of the Eastern Han classics,the preference of Han people for techniques,the popularity of the theory of "Yin Yang Five Elements" and "Heaven Man Interaction",and the prevailing trend of divination and latitude.The media are the distinguishing factors.The prophecies of Hanshu can be divided into dream prophecy,physiognomy prophecy,divination prophecy,qi prophecy,speculation prophecy,astrological prophecy and yao prophecy.Because both xiangshu and wangqi require to observe with eyes,while astrology and yao prophecy are based on unusual situations,they are discussed together.The fact that these prophecies can be recorded in history not only demonstrates Ban Gu’s attitude towards these techniques,but also means that as a historian,he inherited and developed the spirit of Sima Qian’s factual records.As a cultural phenomenon that has existed for a long time,the inheritance of prophecy in historical and biographical literature has never been interrupted,but there were some changes.With the development of cognition,however,people in Han dynasty preferred the theoretical and systematic techniques when they prophesied specifically;Prophecy stands with the aristocratic group of this dynasty,and the auspicious and inauspicious predictions imply the attitude of historians towards these people;the prophecy ballads in Hanshu have obvious poetic characteristics,which resonates with the development of ancient Chinese poetry in the Han Dynasty.Finally,The development of prophecy is accompanied by the decline of the status of the prophet and the popularization of the predicted;Besides,the overall time of the prophecy in Hanshu has been greatly shortened,showing the centralization of "prophecy-fulfillment".The addition of prophecy brings a new perspective to the historical prose,which enables the writing of Hanshu to combine the actual and the false,and further improves the narrative plot;At the same time,prophecy plays up the character’s character,deepening the logic between character and its behavior.At the same time,prophecy and the plot in the character’s original biography complement each other,making the character more diversified;In addition,the prophecy of Hanshu can make it more romantic,and its combination of virtuality and reality has also been learned in later novel creation.As the first dynastic history,the prophecy of Hanshu influenced later historical books.And it implied praise and disparagement,arranging different types of prophecy for the good and the others.Finally,as a supplement to the ideological materials of the Han Dynasty,prophecy has significance in folklore,literature and historical issue.In a word,by analyzing the specific writing performance of the prophecy in Hanshu,we can explore the characteristics which are different from the former historical works,understand the sociocultural background of these new changes,the effect and influence.In this way,we also can have an idea that the prophecy in Hanshu plays an indispensable role in the writing,and at the same time,we can have a more comprehensive and complete understanding of the prophecy in Hanshu,providing a new interpretation space for the study of Hanshu.