Give one or two works similar to Peony Pavilion and talk about their main plots and characteristics.

brief introduction

Peach Blossom Fan is a legendary script written by Confucius, a writer in the early Qing Dynasty, after more than ten years of painstaking efforts and three drafts. It was completed in the thirty-eighth year of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty and has been well received by readers. * * * Made 40 films and performed many performances on the stage, such as Visiting Cui, Sending a Fan and Sinking the River. Through the love story between the hero and heroine (Chaozong) and Li, it reflects the historical drama of the demise of Nanming in the late Ming Dynasty. The so-called "write the feeling of ups and downs through the feeling of clutch. The facts are true and there is evidence." At that time, the early Qing Dynasty was the heyday of textual research, which influenced the author's attitude of being loyal to history. Most of the characters in the script are true stories, and the major historical events written in the script have even been verified to a certain date. However, because it is not a history book, the story is added to the play, which depicts the feelings of the characters, reflects the reality in depth and breadth, and has high artistic expression. This is a historical drama that has a far-reaching impact on the future.

The dramatist Ou Yangyuqian has a special liking for Peach Blossom Fan. He has dabbled in this subject in the fields of drama, Peking Opera and movies. His adaptation of Peach Blossom Fan has even influenced many drama creations since the Republic of China. Tian Qinxin said: "Mr. Ou Yangyuqian adapted the play with strong patriotic enthusiasm at that time, which had strong innuendo and irony. Later generations mostly followed and followed this version. Peach Blossom Fan can be said to be a blend of colors for a long time, but we want to restore its original quaint appearance. I think we can sort out seven or eight plays at most, and I want to watch them all in one night. Actually, it doesn't matter how much you tidy up. The key is how to choose. If you want to be interesting, I believe it will be another look. " Tian Qinxin's idea of restoring the original appearance of Peach Blossom Fan is mainly reflected in the ending. The version of the film is widely circulated, ending with Li's suicide and surrender. In fact, in Kong's original work, the ending of the story is: after the country was destroyed, Li became a monk.

Plot outline

At the end of the Ming Dynasty, Lindong Party, once a reformist in the Ming Dynasty, fled to Nanjing, reorganized the Restoration Society, and fought against the former autocratic eunuchs Ruan Dacheng and Wei Zhongxian. Among them, the backbone of Fushe and Qinhuai geisha Li met and fell in love. Give Li a poem-lifting fan and "comb it" (folk call it a prostitute comb). Ruan Dacheng anonymously entrusted a generous dowry to make love, but Li resolutely returned it. Ruan Dacheng bears a grudge. After Hong Guang acceded to the throne, he hired Ruan Dacheng. He took the opportunity to frame him, forced him to find Shi Kefa, and forced Li to betroth him to others. Li resolutely refused, hit him on the head and tried to commit suicide. His blood spattered a poem fan. Hou Fangyu's friend Yang Longyou drew a peach blossom on the fan with blood. After the demise of Nanming, Li became a monk. After the fall of Yangzhou, he fled back to find Li and finally became a monk.

The whole drama is interspersed with historical events at that time, such as how the monarch and his subjects of Nanming were overjoyed, four towns led the troops to fight the civil war, and Shi Kefa committed suicide by sticking to Yangzhou City and throwing himself into the river.

Distinguish and appreciate

Peach Blossom Fan is the love object with Li. Kong Renshang used it to record the ups and downs of the hero and heroine, and also used it to connect various character activities. A slender fan, in the hands of Confucius, not only interweaves chaotic historical figures and events, but also eloquently demonstrates the inevitability of their disillusionment. In that era of national degeneration and social collapse, the author gave his noble personality to Li, a prostitute, and his weak soul to a famous wit. And I have the deepest sympathy for folk artists with humble social status. With the help of their mouths, Kong expressed his helplessness and irreparable sigh at the coming of the last days.

Su Kunsheng's elegy is not only a tribute to the Nanming Dynasty, but also a lament for the collapse of Daming Mountain in 300 years, and a lament for the rapid rise and fall of history. In the depths of these sorrows, sorrows and lamentations, there is a premonition of the historical trend of feudal society, which is "suddenly like the first floor and suddenly like the extinction of Yi Deng", and it sings a lamentation of the feudal era! ...... In this era of mourning, there is a sense of ruin, loss and anxiety in the minds of literati in the last days of feudalism.

Romance of the West Chamber

Introduction of works

The full name of The West Chamber is Cui Yingying's The West Chamber. Author Wang Shifu, a famous zaju writer in Yuan Dynasty, was mostly from Beijing. He wrote 14 kinds of plays in his life. The Romance of the West Chamber was written in the years of Yuan Zhen and Dade (1295 ~ 1307), which is his masterpiece. As soon as the play came to power, it stunned four seats and won the love of young men and women. It is known as "The West Chamber is the best in the world".

In history, the good wish of "All lovers shall be well, jack shall have Jill" has become the theme of many literary works, and The West Chamber is the most successful drama depicting this theme.

abstract

After Cui's death, his wife Zheng He's youngest daughter transported her husband's coffin back to Anping, Hebei Province for burial. However, for some reason, this road was blocked, and he lived in Pujiu Temple in He Zhong. This 19-year-old Cui Yingying, who instructs women workers, is omnipotent in poetry and prose. When her father was alive, she was betrothed to Zheng's nephew, the eldest son of Zheng Shangshu.

The young lady and the matchmaker went to play outside the temple and happened to meet Zhang Sheng, a scholar. Zhang was born in Xiluo, the son of Shangshu. His parents died and his family was poor. He went to Beijing alone to catch the exam, and when he passed by, he suddenly remembered that Du was really in his friend Pu Guan, and he stayed. Listen to the second brother of the champion shop, there is a Purdue Temple, which is the fragrant courtyard after the emperor. The scenery is so beautiful that people who have been there all admire it.

Seeing Yingying's handsome appearance, the student praised: "I didn't know the king's face for ten years before I believed that Chanjuan solved the mistake." In order to see more, he stayed with the abbot for one night, and he moved into the west wing.

One day, Mrs Cui made a Dojo for her late husband. Lao Cui and his wife are very strict with their families, and no men go in and out of the Dojo. Zhang Sheng crustily skin of head slipped in. At this time, the fast sacrifice Dojo is complete, and the wife and young lady will make incense to repay their father's kindness. Zhang Sheng thought: "Miss Zhang is a woman who still has the heart to repay her parents; Xiao Sheng Lake has been drifting for several years. Since his parents died, there has never been a paper money. "

Zhang Sheng learned from the monk that Miss Yingying went to the garden to burn incense every night. In the dead of night, the moon is clear and the monks are asleep. Zhang Sheng came to the back garden and watched the young lady burn incense. Then he recited a poem: "The moonlight melts into the night, and the shadows in spring are silent; How can I face the noise and not see the people in the moon? " Yingying also immediately sang a song: "Gui Lan has been lonely for a long time, which has nothing to do with her spring;" Those who are expected to sing deserve sympathy. " Zhang Sheng studies hard every night, which touched Miss Cui Yingying, who was born with admiration for Zhang Sheng.

Sun Feihu, a rebel, heard that Cui Yingying had the ability of "being really beautiful, but his handwriting was too real". He led 5,000 troops to surround Pujiu Temple, giving the old lady three days to hand over Yingying as his "Zhazhai Lady". Everyone is helpless. This Cui Yingying is a strong-willed woman. She would rather die than be taken away by thieves. In a crisis, the lady announced: "Whoever can kill the thief army and sweep away the evil spirit will be betrothed to him." Du Que, the top scholar in Dongwu, was appointed Grand Marshal of Xiliang, commanding 100,000 troops and guarding Pu Guan. Zhang Shengxian steadied Sun Feihu with delaying tactics, and then wrote a letter to Du Que, asking him to send troops to beat back Sun Feihu. Monk Huiming sent a letter down the mountain. Three days later, Du Zhen's reinforcements arrived and beat back Sun Feihu.

On the grounds of Yingying's betrothal, Mrs. Cui made him sworn as brother and sister, and took gold, silver and silks as a gift to marry another wife, which made both Yingying and him very miserable. The matchmaker in Yahuan saw this and arranged for them to meet. In the evening, Zhang Sheng played the piano and told Yingying about her lovesickness. Yingying also poured out her love for Zhang Sheng.

I haven't seen Yingying for many days after listening to the piano that day. Zhang sheng is lovesick. Take advantage of the matchmaker's visit and ask her to send a message to Yingying. Yingying wrote back and asked Zhang Sheng to meet under the moon. In the evening, Miss Yingying plays the piano in the back garden. Zhang Sheng heard the piano and climbed up the wall to see Yingying playing the piano. Anxious to see the young lady, she climbed over the wall and entered. Yingying saw him climb over the wall, blamed him for his indecent behavior, and sent the police to see him, which made Zhang Sheng's illness worse. Yingying went to see Zhang Sheng in his room on the pretext of visiting the sick.

When the old lady saw Yingying these days, she looked trance-like, mumbled and acted strangely, and suspected that he and Zhang Sheng had deviant behavior. So I called the matchmaker and forced her to ask. The matchmaker had no choice but to tell the truth. The matchmaker pleaded for Miss Zhang and the old lady, saying that it was not Miss Zhang's fault, but the old lady's fault. The old lady should not go back on her word, and let her be commensurate with Miss Zhang's brother and sister.

The old woman was helpless and told Zhang Sheng that if she wanted to marry Miss Yingying, she had to go to Beijing to take the exam and gain fame. Miss Yingying gave a banquet to see Zhang Sheng off at Shili Pavilion. She repeatedly urged Zhang Sheng not to "stop his wife from remarrying" and not to "have no news of fish and geese all spring". After bidding farewell to Changting, Zhang Sheng went to Caoqiao Store and met Yingying in his dream. When he woke up, he was very disappointed.

Zhang Sheng won the first prize in the exam and wrote to Yingying to report the good news. At this time, Zheng Heng once again came to Pujiu Temple and fabricated a lie that Zhang Sheng had been recruited by Wei Shangshu as the son-in-law of Dong Chuang. So Cui Furen promised Miss Zheng Heng again and decided to get married another day. When it happened in wedding date, Zhang Sheng returned as the Prefecture Governor of Hezhou, and Marshal Du Que of the Western Expedition also came to congratulate him. After the truth came out, Zheng Heng was ashamed and swallowed it, and Zhang Sheng and Ying Ying finally got married.

achievement

The most outstanding achievement of The West Chamber is to fundamentally change the theme and tragic ending of Yingying Biography, and to mold the hero and heroine into a pair of young people who are steadfast in love, dare to break through the shackles of feudal ethics, and finally get a happy ending through unremitting efforts. This change makes the anti-feudal tendency of the script more distinct, and highlights the theme of "May all lovers get married". In terms of art, the script has completed the shaping of artistic images such as Yingying, Zhang Xun and Matchmaker through complex dramatic conflicts, which makes the characters' personality characteristics vivid and vivid, and strengthens the drama of the works.

Correlation evaluation

The lyrics of The West Chamber are gorgeous and beautiful, full of poetic artistic conception. It can be said that every song is a wonderful lyric poem. In A Dream of Red Mansions, Cao Xueqin praised it through the mouth of Lin Daiyu, saying that "words warn people and smell fragrant all over the world".

The Romance of the West Chamber is a realistic masterpiece of China's classical drama, which has a great influence on later novels and dramas with the theme of love. The Peony Pavilion and A Dream of Red Mansions both absorbed the anti-feudal democratic spirit from it to varying degrees.

The West Chamber is a famous classical drama of China. It tells the love story of scholar Zhang Junrui and Miss Guo Xiang Cui Yingying who fell in love at first sight. With the help of the matchmaker, they combined privately, fought for the autonomy of marriage, dared to break through the shackles of feudal ethics, expressed their dissatisfaction and resistance to the feudal marriage system, and yearned for and pursued the ideal of beautiful love. For hundreds of years, it has deeply inspired the hearts of countless young men and women. Even today, the theme and artistic image in the works can still help us to deepen our understanding of the evil nature of feudal ethics.

When it comes to The West Chamber, people usually think of The West Chamber written by Wang Shifu in Yuan Dynasty. As everyone knows, before Wang Shifu, Dong Jieyuan of Jin Dynasty also wrote The West Chamber, which are generally called "Wang Xixiang" and "Dong Xixiang". If we want to talk about Wang Xixiang's achievements, we can't help but mention Dong Xixiang.

Cui Zhang's story has a long history, which was first seen in the legendary novel Yingying Biography (also known as Hui Zhenji) by Yuan Zhen, a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty. Yingying Biography is about Yuan Zhen's love life before marriage. As a result, Zhang Sheng abandoned Yingying, which was a tragic ending. This novel is only a few thousand words, but the plot is tortuous, the narrative is euphemistic and the words are gorgeous. It is one of the representative novels of the Tang Dynasty. It wrote about the yearning and pursuit of girls' love in feudal times, and also reflected the life tragedy that the ideal of love was ruthlessly destroyed by society, and publicized the feudal dross that men were superior to women. Since then, this story has been widely circulated, resulting in many poems praising it. In the Song Dynasty, some literati directly re-created the Biography of Yingying, and now we can see the banter and trampling drums of Qin Guan and Mao Gu, as well as Zhao Lingqi's Hua Lian on the Ferret. These poems sympathize with Yingying's fate and criticize Zhang Sheng's fickle behavior, but there is no new development in the story.

When the story of Yingying Biography spread for about 400 years, Dong Jieyuan's The West Chamber in Jin Dynasty came out, which was called Dong Xixiang in history. Dong Jieyuan, a writer of various palace tunes in the Jin Dynasty, is unknown. "Affinity" was a respectful title for literati in the Jin and Yuan Dynasties. He was wild and uninhibited, despised ethics, had profound cultural accomplishment, was very familiar with the folk literature forms at that time, such as Zhu Gong tune, and liked to write poems and compose music. His masterpiece The West Chamber is the only complete work in Gongdiao. Dong Xixiang is a third-person narrative rap literature based on Yingying Biography. Whether it is ideological or artistic, it far exceeds the predecessors. It fundamentally transformed the stories and characters in Yingying Biography, and the nature of contradictions and conflicts evolved into the struggle between young men and women fighting for love and free marriage and feudal parents. Zhang Sheng became an affectionate wit, but Ying Ying was rebellious. The story ends with Yingying eloping with Zhang Sheng, which gives this old story a new look. With the increase of the plot, Dong Xixiang's characters' feelings are more complicated and delicate, and their personalities are fuller. In the use of words, the author writes both landscapes and feelings, and is good at writing songs in spoken language, which makes the works more vivid and full of life, greatly improving the artistry and laying a solid foundation for the appearance of Wang Xixiang.

However, Dong Xixiang is still too rough in art, and its description of love is not pure enough to meet people's aesthetic requirements. In the Yuan Dynasty, with the prosperity of urban economy, drama was more developed. At this time, Wang Shifu, a great dramatist, changed Cui Zhang's story into a zaju on the basis of East-West Chamber, which is what we generally see today.

"Wang Xixiang" directly inherited "Dong Xixiang" and made great contributions on this basis. In shaping the image of the hero, Wang Shifu not only wrote about Zhang Sheng's infatuation and charm, but also wrote about Zhang Sheng's talent and weakness, which made him a representative of sentimental and weak talents in feudal society. The clever, clever, enthusiastic and upright maid matchmaker in the play left a deep impression on people, and appeared again and again in later plays, and achieved a far more important position than Yingying. At the same time, The Romance of the West Chamber successfully depicts the love psychology for the first time in the history of China's drama, and it is a work that directly describes the love psychology in the history of drama. Its design of contradictions and conflicts is also enough to demonstrate future generations. The whole play takes the contradiction between Yingying, Zhang Sheng, the matchmaker and the old lady as the basic contradiction, which shows the contradiction between Cui Zhang and his parents. Take the contradiction between Yingying, Zhang Sheng and the matchmaker as the secondary contradiction, and promote the plot and portray the characters with personality conflict. This kind of conflict organization is very valuable in China's ancient operas.

The plots of Wang Xixiang and Dong Xixiang are almost the same, but the theme is more concentrated, and the anti-feudal ideological tendency is more distinct. Wen Qu has been rewritten, with more objects added and some unreasonable plots eliminated, and the artistic level has also been greatly improved. As a typical work in China's classical drama, it is grand in scale, rigorous in structure, tortuous in plot, full of embellishment and interesting, with vivid and delicate characters. Not only is it unprecedented, but it also surpasses other playwrights in the Yuan Dynasty. Because of this, Jia in Yuan Dynasty said: "New zaju, old legend, The West Chamber, the best in the world."

The Ideological Content of The West Chamber

Compared with The West Chamber, The West Chamber is more profound in thought. It actively put forward the idea that "all living beings in the world should get married", which has a more distinct theme of anti-feudal ethics and feudal marriage system.

First of all, The Romance of the West Chamber praises the marriage based on love and denies the traditional marriage mode in feudal society. As a Miss Guo Xiang, Yingying falls in love with a scholar who has lost both books and swords, which, to a great extent, violates the standard of choosing a spouse based on family status, property and power. Yingying and Zhang Sheng always pursue sincere feelings. At first, they fell in love with each other's talents and looks. After a series of events, such as chorus singing, temple fair police, listening to the piano, refusing to get married and forcing them to try, their emotional content became richer. What dominates here is a sincere spiritual feeling.

Secondly, Yingying and Zhang Sheng have actually put their love above fame and fortune. Zhang Sheng "stayed in Pudong" for Yingying, instead of rushing to the exam; For love, he almost lost his life several times until he was forced to take an exam in Beijing. After winning, he is still "dreaming of leaving Pudong Road". When Yingying saw Zhang Sheng off at the pavilion, she told him that "if you are an official in this field, you will come back when you are sick". She doesn't value fame, and thinks that "a lotus flower is better than a champion". Even when the news of Zhang Sheng's high school came, she didn't feel happy, but aggravated her symptoms. Although The Romance of the West Chamber also ended in success and all's well that ends well, the whole play runs through the idea of valuing affection over fame, which shows the progress of Wang Shifu's thought.