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ISBN: 9787503484872

张贞观 / 黄清华China Culture and History Press · ChinaSep 2024

3.0

Word count: 234K words
Chapters: 15
ISBN: 9787503484872

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Summary

This volume in the Ten Cultural Figures of Ming and Qing Xuzhou series presents the collected works of Zhang Zhenguan, a Ming Wanli-era jinshi. His writings—memorials, poetry, and local recollections—offer irreplaceable documentary value for understanding Xuzhou's local culture and the inner world of late-Ming literati.

Editor's review

This book is an edited compilation of Zhang Zhenguan's works from the Ten Cultural Figures of Ming and Qing Xuzhou series, compiled by Huang Qinghua and published by China Wenshi Press in 2024. Zhang Zhenguan was a jinshi of the Ming Wanli reign; his writings preserve the memorials, poetry, and local memories of a Ming scholar-official, offering irreplaceable documentary value for understanding Xuzhou's local culture and the spiritual world of late-Ming literati. The editor has done solid work in selecting base texts and collating variants, bringing scattered or rare materials together in one place. The content ranges from the solemnity of official documents to the personal temperament of private writing, letting readers see how a local literatus steadied himself amid the changes of his age. It suits research on local documents, Ming-Qing literature and history, and general readers with a deep attachment to Xuzhou's home culture. Read it as a collection of historical sources to be savored slowly rather than a light popular work; pairing it with Ming political history and Xuzhou local gazetteers will yield even more.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars and graduate students in Ming-Qing literature and history
Readers interested in Xuzhou local documents and home culture
History enthusiasts curious about Ming literati memorials and poetry
Writers who need to consult primary sources related to Zhang Zhenguan

Not a good fit for

General readers who prefer light, story-driven reading
Readers without classical Chinese basics who are unwilling to use annotations
Readers who want quick conclusions and are unused to close reading of historical sources

Reading tips

Read the editorial notes and table of contents first to understand the base texts and structure, then decide which pieces to read closely.
Read memorials and poetry by category, looking up names and places in reference works and taking notes as you go.
Cross-check against relevant biographies in the History of Ming and Xuzhou local gazetteers to build a sense of the man and his era.
Read one or two pieces a week and write a hundred-character summary after each, avoiding the trap of skimming too much.

About the publisher

China Culture and History Press China · Founded in 1980

China Culture and History Press has long devoted itself to modern and contemporary literature and culture-and-history reading matter, with publishing directions centered on classic works, social novels, prose and miscellaneous writings, and Eastern philosophy, alongside culture-and-history periodicals such as Zongheng. Among the more than 1,500 titles in the collection, representative books include Zhang Henshui's Ti Xiao Yin Yuan, Lu Xun's Complete Classic Works (10 volumes) and Wild Grass, and Lao She's Four Generations Under One Roof series and the boxed set of Lao She's Classic Works (10 volumes), while its author resources are concentrated on figures such as Zhang Henshui, Lu Xun, Lao She and Sima Qian. Its publishing character lies in solid editorial work on culture-and-history source texts and in issuing famous authors' works in sets, balancing the readability of individual texts with the systematic presentation of complete collections for focused reading and collecting. Beyond these directions, public information on the press's contemporary original publishing is limited, so it is not elaborated here.

版权信息
作者简介
《徐州明清十人文苹》编辑委员会
江山有待文献千秋
概述
一、掖垣谏草
兵垣一
兵垣二
工垣
礼垣一
礼垣二
二、诗文
杂文
诗歌
附录

FAQ

Is this book Zhang Zhenguan's personal collected works?

This book belongs to the Ten Cultural Figures of Ming and Qing Xuzhou series, which collects the works of ten cultural figures from Xuzhou in the Ming and Qing periods; this volume is Zhang Zhenguan's. It concentrates his works and is primary material for understanding this Ming Wanli jinshi, not a biography written by later hands.

Can I read it without classical Chinese basics?

You can try, but patience is needed. The book contains original writings of Ming-Qing literati whose language is distant from today's. Start with the editor's explanatory notes, then pick short, accessible pieces, using reference works and annotations to understand sentence by sentence; don't attempt to read the whole book straight through at first.

Is it suitable for local cultural research?

Yes. Zhang Zhenguan was an important Xuzhou literatus of the Ming and Qing periods, and his writings touch on local figures and the events of his time, serving as documentary support for Xuzhou local cultural research. When using it, check the base texts and editorial notes and cross-reference with other gazetteers and collected works rather than drawing conclusions from a single source.

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About the author

张贞观 Author

Zhang Zhenguan is an author about whom little public information is currently available. Details such as nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background have not been clearly recorded, and existing sources confirm only that one work appears under this name, namely Yang Da (仰答). Judging from its usual classification, the book falls under historical reading, suggesting that the author's writing leans toward historical subjects and may focus on narrating historical events, tracing historical developments, or offering historical reflection. Because only this single work is held in the collection, it is difficult to form a full picture of the author's overall style and creative development, or to determine whether other writings exist or whether the author has long been engaged in historical writing. On the available evidence, Zhang Zhenguan's historical writing can be regarded as a case worthy of attention; readers interested in the author and the work may learn more about the selection of material and narrative features by consulting the content of Yang Da itself, while excessive inferences about the author's life and achievements should be avoided when sources are insufficient.

黄清华 Author

Huang Qinghua is an author for whom public information is currently limited; the name appears in Chinese book records, and the representative work attributed to this author is a single title, Yangda (roughly, "Looking Up in Reply"). Within the library's classification, the book is placed under historical reading, indicating that its content relates to historical subjects and is likely intended for readers interested in historical narrative and the interpretation of historical events. Because the available records contain only the author's name, one work and a general category, nothing can be confirmed about Huang Qinghua's life, place of origin, education or writing career, and it would be inappropriate to speculate further about the author's identity. On the evidence currently visible, Huang Qinghua's writing centers on historical reading, the body of work is still small, and most readers' knowledge of the author comes from this single book. A fuller understanding of the author would require additional reliable public sources.