Obviously, the weaver girl was forced to marry the cowherd. How did it become a story of pursuing free love?

Judging from the origin of the story and folklore, the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl is not a model of positive love stories. Only under the influence of Western Valentine's Day, many people called Tanabata the ancient Valentine's Day in China because of the story of "Cowherd and Weaver Girl Meeting". The legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl has now become a well-known love legend, which has something to do with being selected into Chinese textbooks for primary and secondary schools for a long time.

"Cowherd and Weaver Girl-Meet at the Magpie Bridge" Special Stamps

Ancient origin: Cowherd and Weaver Girl are negative images.

Limited by the underdevelopment of science and technology, in the eyes of the ancients, the sky is supreme and the stars are personalized. The stars in the vast universe have also become gods with personality consciousness, worshipped and believed. Vega has always been personified as a "white" image. Historical records? Official book: "Weaver Girl, Goddess Sun Ye." "Once"? Tian: "Weaver, the son of heaven is a real girl." The three stars separated from Vega by the Milky Way are called River Drum Stars. The three stars of the river drum line up in a straight line, and the one in the middle is extremely bright. The whole image is like a cowherd carrying a son and a daughter, so the people are also called pole stars, more like cows. So later it was equivalent to Petunia, like Er Ya? Interpretation of the sky: "The North Pole is called Beichen, and the drum is called Petunia."

Stellar map

The legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl can be traced back to the Zhou Dynasty. There is a cloud in The Book of Songs Xiaoya Dadong: "There is Han Yu, and there is light in prison. ? Weaver girl, seven times a day. Even if the weaver girl is busy, she can't knit a stripe well. ? He is holding a cow, not a suitcase. " There are records about Vega and Altair, which have always been regarded as the germination and embryo of the legend of Vega and Cowherd. The images of "Weaver Girl" and "Petunia" in the poem are quite negative: Weaver Girl doesn't weave, Petunia doesn't catch up, and emphasizes Petunia and Weaver Girl exist in name only, thus satirizing the behavior of the nobles in the Western Zhou Dynasty for nothing.

The further clarification of the relationship between the legend of Niu Nv and Qixi in Han Dynasty is bound to be related to the advocacy of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty. During the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, in order to train the water army, Kunming Pool was dug in Doumen, Chang 'an. On both sides of the pool are statues of cowherd and weaver girl, and Kunming pool is used to symbolize Tianhe. Ban Gu's "Xi Du Fu" "There are two stone men in Kunming Pool, like cows and weaver girls." During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the two stars were further personified, and the unfortunate plot of the marriage of the Weaver Girl appeared. Nineteen Ancient Poems in the Han Dynasty wrote: "The Cowherd and the Star are far away, and the Jiao Jiao River is a woman of China. ? What's the difference between a clear river and a shallow one? Ying Ying is easy to water, and his pulse is silent. " To Liang Wudi in the Southern Dynasties, Yin Yun wrote the first full version of the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl in the novel, "There is a Weaver Girl to the east of the Tianhe River, and the son of the Emperor of Heaven is also there. Every year, the loom works and weaves a brocade skirt, which looks too messy. The emperor pitied him for being lonely, promised to marry a cowherd in Hexi, and then gave up weaving after marriage? . The Emperor of Heaven was furious and died in Hedong, but once a year. " The story explains the tragedy of their marriage, and the annual meeting has become a model of faithful love.

However, according to the written materials of Yunmeng Qin Bamboo Slips unearthed in Hubei, the original prototype of the touching love story between Cowherd and Weaver, the daughter of heaven and earth, is the marriage tragedy that Cowherd abandoned Weaver many times. "Wu Shen and Ji You, pulling cattle to take the Weaver Girl, failed, and abandoned them three times." "Wu Shen and Ji You, pulling cattle to take the Weaver Girl, failed. If you are under three years old, you will abandon it. " Different from the legend of later generations, their separation was not caused by external interference, but by the man's change of heart. People look up at the starry sky, and two bright stars twinkle on both sides of Tianhe, so they imagine that these two stars may be a pair. The husband abandoned his wife, and her wife looked at the "ungrateful man" on the other side of the Tianhe River with deep affection. Why does the separation between Altair and Vega in the sky become a symbol of the tragedy of marriage between men and women on earth? Looking through the Book of Songs, we will find some social tragedies that reflect men's change of heart and abandon their wives in a patriarchal society, such as Ye Feng? Gu Feng's "Give An Jiangle, Women Abandon" and "Give An Jiangle, Abandon It as a Legacy"; Feng Wei? For self-protection, "the banquet in the general's corner, laughing and swearing, does not think about the opposite."

Folklore: It is a helpless move for Weaver Girl to marry Cowherd.

The prototype of the myth of "Cowherd and Weaver Girl" was established in the Han Dynasty. The myth of Cowherd and Weaver Girl was widely circulated among the people through the rendering of scholars in Wei and Jin Dynasties, and the story and characters have been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Since Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the family system has become stricter, and the story of Cowherd and Weaver Girl has also incorporated these elements.

In quite a few versions, the combination of cowherd and weaver girl is not the true love that most people know now. The reason why the Cowherd crossed the family line and married the "White" Weaver Girl was that he stole the fairy clothes under the guidance of the old cow. After marriage, the Weaver Maid mostly managed to get back the fairy clothes and escape from the world. The Legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl in China edited by Chen Yongchao? Folk literature volume 18.

Various versions of the legend of Cowherd and Weaver Girl before the founding of the People's Republic of China

Legend of Cowherd and Weaver Girl in China

These stories often use words such as "had to" and "forced" when describing the marriage between the Weaver Girl and the Cowherd. For example, it is expressed most clearly in "Silly Cowherd and Weaver Girl" circulated in Shijiazhuang. "Silly cowboy nasty, said Vega don't love the same flesh and blood, absolutely heartless. The weaver girl even cursed the silly cowherd:' You are not a thing! Who told you to take my clothes and force me to get married! You have harmed me and a pair of children, and this is all your sin! ""It can be seen that the combination of Weaver Girl and Cowherd is out of helplessness. It was in the case that the Weaver Girl's fairy clothes were stolen and she couldn't return to the sky. The Cowherd saw the body and had to stay on earth and marry the Cowherd. They originally lacked the emotional foundation of mutual consent, which laid a hidden danger for the weaver girl to escape to the sky and the marriage broke down.

Special Stamp "Cowherd and Weaver Girl-Stealing Clothes and Becoming Attached"

There is also a plot worthy of attention in many stories, that is, the plot of Niu Lang's "hiding clothes to prevent his wife". This just proves that the weaver girl has no love for the cowherd, and she is forced to marry the cowherd and have children-the fairy clothes are hidden. Legend of Cowherd and Weaver Girl in China? There are 20 articles in Folk Literature Volume that contain the plot of "hiding clothes to prevent wives". Cowherd's attitude towards Weaver Girl is more than theft prevention. He took the initiative to attack, but still listened to the instructions of the old cow and hid the fairy clothes of the Weaver Girl in a secret place to prevent her from escaping. Cowherd's "hiding clothes to prevent his wife" ranks first, which has become an important prerequisite for the weaver girl to abandon her husband and son and flee to heaven. For example, in "Meet at the Que Bridge" written by Jilin Panshi, "Cowherd carries Weaver Girl on his back and buries her long-sleeved shirt under the stone beside the door". This preventive measure even continues into the daily life after marriage. In The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl in Shijiazhuang, the Cowherd "guards the Weaver Girl in the dark, always afraid that she will run back to the sky".

Many versions of the story of hiding clothes and protecting wives

Judging from the existing literature, the earliest literature record about painting a river was also painted by the weaver girl. Song Gong's Notes on Wuzhong: "Kunshan County East, the place name Huanggu. According to legend, a weaver girl and an Altair came here. The weaver girl paddled the river with a golden grate, and the river overflowed, so Petunia couldn't get through. "

Special Stamp "Cowherd and Weaver Girl-Chasing a Wife Has a Burden"

Pursuing free love is the theme after the transformation.

The image change of the story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl is actually the result of the continuous transformation of myths and legends by national emotions, and it has continuously added elements of the times. This has been the case since ancient times. The version we are familiar with at present is more the result of the transformation of dramas such as Tianhe Pei after the founding of the People's Republic of China, which has established the theme of labor, love and anti-feudalism. Cowherd became the representative of working people's image, Weaver Girl became the representative of pursuing free love, and Queen Mother became the representative of feudal parents.

The legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl has now become a well-known love legend, which has something to do with its long-term selection in Chinese textbooks for primary and secondary schools. "The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl" was first selected as a middle school Chinese textbook on 1955, and was personally adapted by Mr. Ye Shengtao, then president of People's Education Publishing House, according to folklore. The adapted Legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl still retains the original story form of swan virgin, fairy ordinary man and two brothers in structure, but it has changed greatly in thought. The most important change is to eliminate the negative image of the cowherd and the weaver girl, and highlight the persecution of young men and women by the old ethics and the old system. The story implies the persecution of lovers by feudal paternalism "parents' orders and matchmakers' words", as well as the persecution of Cowherd by feudal hierarchy (different immortals) and patriarchal clan system (orderly young and old).

These reservations and adaptations are reflected in the content. The reserved plot includes the persecution of Cowherd by his brother and sister-in-law. "My brother and sister-in-law are not good to him, telling him to eat leftovers, wear rags and sleep in the cowshed at night." The story of undressing is an important part of changing the nature of the story. Cowherd not only refused to hide clothes, but also refused to return them. Cowherd heard the Weaver Girl ask where the clothes were, and offered to return the gauze clothes to him. "When the Cowherd heard this, he came out of the Woods with gauze in his hand and said,' Don't worry, girl, here are your clothes'? The Cowherd listened to the Weaver Girl and said,' Girl, since there is nothing in the sky? Okay, you don't have to go back. You can work, so can I. Let's get married and live together for life. The Weaver Girl thought for a moment and said, "You are right. Let's get married and live together. "In this case, the Weaver Girl took the initiative to stay, belonging to two people with emotional foundation. As for this version of the Queen Mother, it is completely the image of a vicious old lady. " She went to Cowherd's house in person, and happened to be working in the field, so she grabbed Weaver and walked out. Seeing the old woman angrily pulling her mother away, the Weaver Girl boy ran over and grabbed her clothes. The queen mother pushed hard and the child fell to the ground. "

The images of Cowherd, Weaver Girl and Queen Mother in comic books

Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, most people learned and passed on the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl by word of mouth, so the themes of the versions were different. Now most people know the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl through written materials, mostly based on the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl adapted by Ye Shengtao in Chinese textbooks, which is an important factor affecting people's cognition of the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl after the founding of the People's Republic of China. Ye Shengtao's adaptation could have been accepted by the public, which met the social needs of abolishing the old ethics and pursuing equality, especially the pursuit of free love after the founding of the People's Republic of China, and also met a fairy dream that people had been hiding for a long time.

Nowadays, the custom of "begging for cleverness", which is closely related to ancient needlework, has lost its original soil. The fairy tale of the meeting between the cowherd and the weaver girl is still widely circulated. These make modern people make a wrong judgment-Qixi is an ancient Valentine's Day. In today's Tanabata, merchants took the opportunity to promote sales, and the media did not hesitate to report on the layout; On the other hand, matchmaking agencies took the opportunity to engage in friendship, and even local women's federations joined the friendship matchmaking team for fear of being left behind. The reason why this happens is because I don't know the original custom of Qixi and the original story of Cowherd and Weaver Girl. The reason is probably a series of phenomena caused by contemporary business under the influence of Western Valentine's Day. Have you noticed that even Christmas Eve and Christmas in the West are packaged by China businessmen as the day when men and women meet?

References:

Zhou Yuxian: Inheritance and Evolution of Cowherd and Weaver Girl Literature in Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, Capital Normal University, March 2009.

Li Chao: Another Exploration of the Image of the Weaver Girl ―― On the Negative Image of the Weaver Girl in The Tale of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, Folk Culture Forum, 20 12.

Qi Lingyun: Gender Conflict and Discourse Right ―― On the Evolution of the Legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl before and after the Founding of the People's Republic of China, Folklore Research No.5, 20 14.