What does Farewell My Concubine mean?

Farewell My Concubine refers to the historical story that Xiang Yu, the overlord of the western Chu Dynasty, bid farewell to his beloved concubine Yu Ji after his defeat.

According to Records of Historical Records of Xiang Yu, Xiang Yu, the overlord, failed in the war with Emperor Gaozu to seize feudal rule, and knew that the tide was over, so he had to bid farewell to Kyrgyzstan on the eve of the breakthrough.

The story of Farewell My Concubine: Chu and Han contended, and many governors rebelled against Chu and returned to Han. Hanwang listened to the counsel of Sean and others, and joined the governors to attack Chu. At that time, when An Lushan, the king of Chu, was serenaded with food and was surrounded by Hanwang troops. Xiang Yu, the overlord, couldn't sleep at night, but suddenly he heard the embattled ring at the same time. It turned out that this was Sean's trick. Knowing that Xiang Yu was from Chu, he ordered the Han army to sing Chu songs to shake the morale of the Chu army.

Xiang Yu was shocked and sighed, "Did Hanwang get the land of Chu? Why are there so many Chu people in his army? " So I got up and drank in the tent. Overlord has a favorite concubine Yu Ji and a beautiful war horse. He is a generous elegy. He sang: "When it is unfavorable, elegance will not die, elegance will not die, but what can be done?"

Yu Ji danced with the song. When the overlord saw this situation, he knew that he would lose, and wept bitterly for several lines. I dare not look up when I see my left and right farewell my concubine in tears. Xiang Yu and Liu Bang competed for the world. Xiang Yu's concubine's name is Yu Ji, which seems to be the last battle. Then Xiang Yu, the king of Chu, probably knew that he had lost, and everyone sang the song of Chu that night-besieged on all sides!

Xiang Yu and Yu Ji drank and sang together, and then Yu Ji seemed to commit suicide. He said-there is only one song that I remember "Yu Ji Yu Ji Nai"! In the end, Xiang Yu threw himself into the river! So there was Li Qingzhao's sentence "I miss Xiang Yu so far and refuse to cross Jiangdong"! Later, people wrote Farewell My Concubine on this basis.

Historical allusions in Farewell My Concubine

If you have a beauty, you will always be lucky; A good horse is famous and often rides it. Therefore, Wang Xiang is a sad and generous poet, and wrote a poem for himself: "When you pull out the mountain, you will be angry with the world, but when it is unfavorable, you will never die." What can you do if you don't die? If you are worried, what can you do? "Song several rush, in terms of beauty. Xiang Wang shed tears several times, and both sides shed tears, so he could not look up.

"There is beauty in danger", but the name of "concubine" has been passed down from generation to generation in an empty future; The name "Yuji" did not appear until the Tang Dynasty's "Expanding the Geography" and other books. Of course, "Ji" is just a synonym, not the real name of Yu Ji. During the Five Dynasties, the epigraph was simply "Yu Meiren".

Ban Gu said in the Biography of Sima Qian in the History of Han Dynasty: "Sima Qian adopted Shi Ben and Warring States Policy according to Zuo Shi and Guoyu, describing the Spring and Autumn Period of Chu and Han Dynasty, and then ended in Tian Han."

Among them, Chu Qiu was written in Lu Jia in the early Han Dynasty and died in the Southern Song Dynasty. There is no doubt that Sima Qian referred to the Spring and Autumn Annals of the Chu Dynasty when he wrote the Historical Records: "Gai Sima Qian wrote the Historical Records according to the Spring and Autumn Annals of the Chu Dynasty, so his words about Qin and Han affairs were particularly detailed." However, Sima Qian, who pays attention to details and curiosity, recorded the chorus of "Beauty and Peace" in Chu Qiu, but it did not enter the historical record. Zhang Shoujie's Justice in Historical Records in the Tang Dynasty quoted the harmony song in Chu and Han Chunqiu: As the song goes, the Han soldiers have been slightly defeated, surrounded by songs, and the king is tired. How can they make a living?

For a long time, some people suspected that this harmony song was forged by later generations on the grounds that there was no such mature five-character poem in Qin and Han Dynasties. But,

The Elegy of Lady Qi, recorded in The Biography of the consorts in Han Dynasty, is a quite mature five-character poem: "The son is king, the mother is Lu, and the curtain is thin all day in spring, and death is always with him! Three thousand miles away, who will sue that woman? " Qin Shimin's Ballad, recorded in Li Daoyuan's Notes on Water Classics and Rivers, is also a quite mature five-character poem: "Be cautious when giving birth to a man, and nurse a daughter. I can't see the Great Wall, and the body is the pillar. " Therefore, the harmony song recorded in Chu Qiu is not a fake, so there should be no problem.

Chu Qiu and Historical Records of Xiang Yu are the earliest documents to record the story of Farewell My Concubine, but neither of them involves the ending of Farewell My Concubine. Normally, concubine Yu could not survive, otherwise there would be no love affair between concubine Yu and Liu, and there would be no "Tomb of Beauty in Xiang Yu" in Tang Dynasty. The next world war, surrounded by songs, drinking swords and Chu accounts, can only be the only ending for Yuji.

Extended data:

Han Chunqiu and Historical Records of Xiang Yu in Chu are the earliest documents to record the story of Farewell My Concubine. Neither book deals with the ending of Yu Ji. In a natural way, Yu Ji could not survive, otherwise there would be no case of Yu Ji's suicide, and there would be no "Xiang Yu Beauty Tomb" in the Tang Dynasty. The next world war, surrounded by songs, drinking swords and Chu accounts, can only be the only ending for Yuji.

Generally speaking, people think that the story of "Farewell My Concubine" reflects the earth-shattering love between Yu Ji and Xiang Yu. The overlord of Chu died and Yu Ji committed suicide. This sad moment was fixed between the lines of China literature and the stage of China opera, and became the most classic and stirring brilliant legend in China's classical love.

Tracing back to the source of historical events and uncovering the truth can only rely on the interpretation of the original text. After careful consideration of Yu Ji's chorus, I found the doubt of this love story.

References:

Baidu Encyclopedia-Allusions Farewell My Concubine