Admiration
Tags
Summary
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers who love A New Account of Tales of the World and wish to read it closely by category
- History and literature enthusiasts interested in Wei-Jin style and the culture of character appraisal
- Language teachers needing short classical Chinese anecdotes as classroom material
- General readers who want to read classical anecdotes in spare moments
Not a good fit for
- Readers expecting continuous long-form narrative or complete story plots
- Beginners entirely unfamiliar with classical Chinese and without annotation support
- Readers hoping to gain a systematic overview of Wei-Jin history from this book
Reading tips
- Read the entries here first, then return to sections such as Conduct and Appreciation in the full work to compare the distinctive perspective of Admiration.
- After each entry, summarize in one or two sentences whom is admired and why, building a vocabulary for character appraisal.
- Alternate with other sections to see the many-sided image of the same figure across categories.
- Look up background whenever an unfamiliar name appears; there is no need to finish every entry in one sitting.
About the publisher
Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 企羡第十六
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About the author
Liu Yiqing, courtesy name Jibo, was a member of the Southern Song imperial clan and a man of letters from Pengcheng (present-day Xuzhou, Jiangsu). He inherited the title Prince of Linchuan and served in posts such as governor of Jingzhou. Of simple temperament and few desires, he liked to gather literary talents around him and presided over the compilation of A New Account of the Tales of the World (Shishuo Xinyu); he also wrote the Youming Lu and other works. As public information on details of his life, including his birth and death years, is limited, his image emerges mainly through his writings. Shishuo Xinyu records in note form the words and deeds of scholars from the late Han to the Eastern Jin, with concise and memorable language that captures character in a few phrases; it has had a lasting influence on later note-style fiction and literati aesthetics. Dozens of related works are held in the collection, commonly classified under classical literature, literary appreciation, and Eastern philosophy, showing the continued circulation of his writings in later reading and research.
