A Study Of Spatial Narrative In Thirty Kinds Of Zaju Printed In The Yuan Dynasty

This thesis is mainly based on the text of Ning Xiyuan’s Newly Revised Edition of Thirty Kinds of Zaju Printed in the Yuan Dynasty,supplemented by Xu Qinjun and Zheng Qian’s version,this study analyzes the scripts from the perspective of spatial narrative,including spatial classification,spatial narrative features,and spatial narrative functions.Chapter One mainly reviews the spatial types in Thirty Kinds of Zaju Printed in the Yuan Dynasty,which are divided into three categories: domestic,social,and wilderness spaces.Domestic spaces are mostly related to stories with family themes.In this type of family ethical drama,the domestic space presents the living conditions of ordinary people,indirectly reflecting the ideological status and values of people in a specific historical era.Historical plays set in social spaces reflect literati’s intentions to draw on the past to comment on the present,while legal case plays portray the characteristics of governance in the Yuan dynasty.Depictions of the city space in these plays provide a glimpse into the lives of the common people during the Yuan period.The wilderness space not only enhances the narrative and artistic qualities of Zaju,but also links the protagonist’s will with the natural scenery,cleverly using the natural landscape to set off the characters and play other roles.Chapter Two analyzes the spatial narrative features in Thirty Kinds of Zaju Printed in the Yuan Dynasty.The first section introduces the characteristics of spatial narrative through spatial combinations in the plays,including the combination of the palace and the world of unconventional people,and the combination of dreams and reality,while also analyzing the ideological implications conveyed by the spatial combinations.The second section discusses the feature of skillfully combining space and time for narrative,including the cemetery space during the Qingming Festival and the historical battlefield river space integrated with historical contemplation.The third section analyzes the feature of narrative through spatial imagery.That is,the forms of narrative that utilize emotional rendering and cultural symbolism through spatial imagery,including the love space shrouded in star and moon imagery and the traditional Chinese reclusive thought embodied in the boat and ship imagery.Chapter Three analyzes the spatial narrative functions in Thirty Kinds of Zaju Printed in the Yuan Dynasty from three progressively advanced levels.Firstly,space has the function of setting the scene,displaying the movements of characters and the development of the plot.Secondly,space has the function of creating atmosphere,presenting the relationship between characters and the environment,and shaping the character’s image.Finally,space has the metaphorical and symbolic function to construct and present the thematic significance of the drama.