Complete Song Ci

AnonymousQunyan Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

5.0

Word count: 202K words
Chapters: 60

Summary

Compiled over the past century, Complete Song Ci is one of the most important fruits of the collation of ancient Chinese texts. Song ci and Tang poetry both stand as artistic peaks of classical Chinese poetry.

The Complete Tang Poems, compiled in the Qing dynasty, is a household name; the newly compiled Complete Song Ci may be called the twin jewel of Chinese literature.

In five volumes, the work brings together ci compositions from three hundred years of the Song dynasty.

Editor's review

Compiled over nearly a century, Complete Song Ci is one of the major achievements in the documentary scholarship of Song dynasty ci poetry, and is often paired with Complete Tang Poems as the twin peaks of classical Chinese verse. In five volumes, it gathers the ci works of three hundred years of the Song dynasty, offering general readers and researchers a textual library through which the full range of Song ci can be surveyed systematically. Its value lies not only in completeness but in bringing together the works of Song ci poets from general anthologies, individual collections, notebooks, local gazetteers, and other sources, so that readers can see Song ci as the literature of an entire era rather than the impression left by selections of a few famous masters. For Chinese editors, such a large general collection is both a reference work and a reading book: one can look up by author, browse by theme, or read chronologically to feel the development of the ci form from its Five Dynasties aftermath through its Song zenith to the late Song codification of tonal patterns. A caveat: the collection is vast and contains many textual variants and doubtful attributions; general readers who plow through it page by page may find themselves mired in fragments. It is better used as a standing literary resource, to be consulted progressively alongside anthologies and a grounding in ci scholarship.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Lovers of classical Chinese literature who want a systematic overview of Song ci.
Students of Chinese literature and researchers of classical literature who need to consult a comprehensive Song ci collection.
Poets and lyric writers who want to draw on the full textual range of Song ci for language and prosody.
Secondary-school Chinese teachers who need to broaden their selection of Song ci teaching materials and background knowledge.
Readers building a home library who want a comprehensive Song ci collection for long-term browsing.

Not a good fit for

Beginners who only want a small number of famous pieces; the complete collection is too large.
Readers who need detailed annotations and vernacular explanations; the collection does not focus on these.
Young children, who may lose interest without a guide and selected pieces.
Travelers who want lightweight reading; five physical volumes are inconvenient to carry.

Reading tips

Begin with the preface, editorial principles, and general table of contents to understand the compilation's structure and how to search it, then move on to individual ci works.
Read alongside a Song ci anthology: start with famous pieces, then return to the complete collection to expand on works by the same author.
Read by period or author in batches, concentrating on one poet or one era at a time, rather than spreading effort evenly from beginning to end.
When encountering textual variants or doubtful works, first look at the collation notes and sources; do not rush to judgment, and cultivate a documentary awareness.

About the publisher

Qunyan Publishing House China · Founded in 1989

Founded in 1989, Qunyan Publishing House has long been committed to publishing academic and educational books for mid- and high-level readers, and has built up a certain presence in Eastern philosophy, classical literature, and classic works. Representative titles available in the database include Records of the Grand Historian, Dream of the Red Chamber, Selections of Refined Literature, Complete Song Ci, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, Record of Daily Knowledge, Taiping Huimin Hejiju Fang, and The Collected Works of Wang Yangming, covering common categories such as ancient poetry, medicine, and examinations. Its author resources include Sima Qian, Cao Xueqin, Xiao Tong, Li Shan, Pu Songling, and Gu Yanwu. The press also offers distinctive series such as the Biographical Series of the China Democratic League and the Historical Documents Series of the China Democratic League, and publishes research on historical documents, biographies, memoirs, and textbooks and academic works by League members. Public information is limited, and its overall publishing scale and complete catalogue require further verification.

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FAQ

Is Complete Song Ci suitable for reading straight through from beginning to end?

Not really recommended for general readers. The five volumes are immensely rich, including many works by minor authors and doubtful attributions; reading straight through easily leads to fatigue. A more effective approach is to read the editorial principles and general table of contents first, use anthologies to identify points of interest, then read in batches by author, period, or theme, treating it as a standing collection and reference work.

Can I understand Complete Song Ci without annotations?

Readers with some grounding in classical Chinese and poetry can understand most of the ci, but general collections usually do not provide detailed annotations; allusions, textual variants, and background may require other reference works. Beginners should first read annotated anthologies before entering the complete collection; for difficult words and allusions, consult dictionaries or relevant annotated editions.

What is the difference between Complete Song Ci and a Song ci anthology?

An anthology makes selections according to the editor's judgment; it is shorter, offers more guidance, and suits beginners. Complete Song Ci aims at the completeness of a era's documents, including far more authors and works than an anthology, and is convenient for systematic consultation and overall grasp. The two are not substitutes: an anthology helps build interest and basic judgment, while the complete collection provides a fuller textual field.

How can general readers use Complete Song Ci most effectively?

Start with poets you already know: after reading famous pieces in an anthology, look up other works by the same author in the complete collection, then read adjacent authors chronologically. You can also browse by theme, such as objects, farewells, or seasonal festivals. Set a small scope each time and take brief notes; this accumulates a overall understanding of Song ci more easily than aimless page-turning.

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About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.