What logical means did Han Yu mainly use in Shi Shuo?

Define and draw a conclusion: China's ancient prose, especially before the Tang Dynasty, is not good at discussing. As eloquent as Mencius and Xunzi, they always use metaphors and fables to help them reason.

In contrast, Han Yu's essays greatly surpass the predecessors in logical thinking. This is manifested in clear concepts and rigorous argumentation. For example, at the beginning of the article, it is asserted that "ancient scholars must have teachers" and defines "teachers, so they are taught by industry."

Then, starting from this definition, from "dispelling doubts" to "learning from teachers", after some inferences, the conclusion that "there is a Tao, and there is a teacher" is drawn. In the meantime, layers are connected, without redundancy, powerful and convincing.

Creative background:

Shi Shuo was written by the author Zhen Yuan 17- 18 (80 1-802) when she was a Ph.D. student in Beijing imperial academy No.4 School. In the seventeenth year of Zhenyuan (80 1), the author who was dismissed from Xuzhou and lived in Luoyang to preach and teach, was twice transferred to Beijing as a candidate, and was awarded the position of imperial academy's fourth doctor in October of that year.

The author is determined to use imperial academy as a platform to revitalize Confucianism, transform the literary world and realize the ambition of serving the country. But when I came to imperial academy to take office, I found that the imperial examination hall was dark, the official system was corrupt, and there were many disadvantages, which led many students to lose confidence in the imperial examination, so they relaxed their studies and looked down on their teachers.

In the scholar-bureaucrat class, there is a concept of "being ashamed to be a teacher", which directly affects the teaching and management in imperial academy. The author is saddened by this and clarifies people's vague understanding of "seeking a teacher" and "being a teacher" by answering Li Pan's question.