Records of the Grand Historian (Volume I)

Name: Records of the Grand Historian (Volume I)
ISBN: 9787520527187

Sima QianChina Culture and History Press · ChinaJun 2024

4.6

Word count: 214K words
Chapters: 8
ISBN: 9787520527187

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Summary

The Records of the Grand Historian, one of the Twenty-Four Histories, was originally titled Taishigong shu (The Book of the Grand Historian), Taishigong ji (Records of the Grand Historian), or Taishi ji (Records of the Grand Scribe). It is a biographical history written by the Western Han historian Sima Qian and the first comprehensive biographical history in Chinese history, covering more than 3,000 years from the legendary Yellow Emperor down to the fourth year of the Taichu era under Emperor Wu of Han. In the first year of Taichu (104 BCE), Sima Qian began work on the Taishigong shu, later known as the Shiji. The work took 14 years to complete.

The Shiji comprises 130 chapters in all, including twelve Basic Annals (records of the achievements of successive emperors), thirty Hereditary Houses (records of the rise and fall of vassal states and of Han nobles and meritorious officials), seventy Biographies (records of the words and deeds of important figures, chiefly officials, the last of which is the author's own preface), ten Tables (chronologies of major events), and eight Treatises (records of various institutions and regulations concerning rites, music, pitch standards, the calendar, astronomy, the Feng and Shan sacrifices, water conservancy, and finance). All-embracing yet coherent and clearly organized, it faithfully records the development of politics, economy, military affairs, culture, and other aspects of ancient times.

The Shiji is also an outstanding literary work and holds an important place in the history of Chinese literature. In historical terms, it preserves several thousand years of historical material and possesses extraordinary value, being ranked first among the Twenty-Four Histories. It pioneered the biographical method of recording events and has been admired by official historians and scholars through the ages. In literary terms, its descriptive language is vivid, its characters are sharply drawn, its reasoning is thorough, and its narrative is flexible. Liu Xiang and others considered the book "skilled at presenting events and principles, clear without ornamentation, plain without vulgarity."

Editor's review

As the edition of the Shiji published by Chinese Literature and History Press, this set builds on the classic text while balancing scholarly standards with readability for general readers. Sima Qian's Shiji needs no introduction as to its historical standing: it is not only China's first comprehensive biographical history but also a monumental work of literature and thought. This volume generally covers the Basic Annals and some of the Hereditary Houses, the programmatic core of the whole work, which establishes the grand historical framework from the Yellow Emperor to Emperor Wu of Han. In the editor's view, the strength of this edition lies in its relatively rigorous textual collation and concise annotations, which avoid the difficulty of reading caused by excessive academic apparatus while providing the necessary support for understanding the original text, making it suitable as a desk reference for non-specialist readers. Reading the first volume of the Shiji is not only an introduction to the history from ancient times to the early Han but also a starting point for appreciating Sima Qian's breadth of vision as a historian—"to investigate the relationship between Heaven and humanity and to understand the transformations of past and present"—and his superb prose. Its character portrayal is vivid and its narrative full of ups and downs; the impassioned tragedy of the Basic Annals of Xiang Yu and the rise of a commoner in the Basic Annals of Emperor Gaozu, for example, have long transcended historical record to become enduring literary images in Chinese culture.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers with a strong interest in the origins and early development of Chinese civilization
Enthusiasts of literature and history who wish to read the Chinese classics systematically and improve their cultural literacy
Middle school students and above, as supplementary extracurricular reading and material for history study
Readers of literature seeking a classical work with a grand narrative and vivid prose

Not a good fit for

Rigorous historical researchers seeking in-depth textual criticism and support from specialized research papers
Younger readers expecting a lighthearted treatment of history with large numbers of color illustrations or comics

Reading tips

Read through the Basic Annals first to grasp the main thread of historical development, then read the Hereditary Houses and Biographies that interest you in depth
Keep a simple historical chronology or map at hand while reading to help establish spatial and temporal bearings
Do not feel compelled to understand every detail at once; first savor the narrative artistry, then return to appreciate the deeper meaning of the historical judgments

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
司马迁的生平和著作
第一卷五帝本纪第一
第二卷夏本纪第二
第三卷殷本纪第三
第四卷周本纪第四
第五卷秦本纪第五
第六卷秦始皇本纪第六

FAQ

Does this edition include a modern Chinese translation?

This edition mainly presents the original text with necessary annotations. It is not a complete modern Chinese translation; its aim is to guide readers to engage directly with the classic original.

What does the first volume of the Shiji contain?

It generally contains the twelve Basic Annals of the Shiji (from the Basic Annals of the Five Emperors to the Basic Annals of Emperor Xiaowu) and some of the Hereditary Houses (such as the Hereditary House of Wu Taibo and the Hereditary House of Qi Taigong), which form the general outline and core of the whole work's narrative.

Is this edition suitable for students preparing for exams?

As a reliable edition of the original text, the book is helpful for study, but for specific examinations it is advisable to use it alongside the textbooks and syllabus requirements designated by the school.

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About the author

Sima Qian Author · Chinese (Western Han)

Sima Qian was a historian, man of letters, and thinker of the Western Han dynasty. His courtesy name was Zichang, and he was a native of Xiayang in Zuo Fengyi (present-day Hancheng, Shaanxi). Succeeding his father Sima Tan as Grand Astrologer, he traveled widely to collect historical materials. Later, having suffered punishment in connection with the Li Ling affair, he endured humiliation and devoted himself to his work, ultimately completing the Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji, originally titled Taishigong shu), China's first comprehensive history in the biographical (jizhuanti) style. The work covers events from the Yellow Emperor down to Emperor Wu of Han, organizing three thousand years of history through the five sections of annals, tables, treatises, hereditary houses, and biographies. Its narrative is concise and richly literary, its characters vividly drawn, and it has been praised as "the supreme swan song of historians." Later generations have often classified his writings under historical reading and Eastern philosophy, and his influence on Chinese historiography and literature has been profound.