Outer and Inner

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaAug 2024

3.8

Word count: 597 words
Chapters: 2

Summary

Outside and inside. Its referents vary with context. In the Zuo Zhuan, Lord Xi of Lu, twenty-third year: “The Marquis of Jin has no kin; those within and without hate him”—referring to inside and outside the state. In Han Feizi, “Lonely Indignation”: “When men in power monopolize affairs, those within and without are used by them”—referring to inside and outside the court, the outer being the hundred officials, the inner being the ruler's trusted attendants. In the Jin dynasty Yang Hu's “Memorial Declining the Opening of a Secretariat”: “Since I entered office, only some ten years have passed; appointed within and without, I have always occupied conspicuous and weighty posts”—referring to central and local, the outer being local officials, the inner being court ministers. In the Yili, “Decorum for the Dusk of the Second Month”: “At dawn, when it is opened, those within and without do not wail.” In the Liji, “Inner Regulations”: “To build palaces and chambers, to distinguish outside from inside”—referring to male and female.

Editor's review

Wainei is a selection of classical texts published by Bashu Press in 2024, by an unknown author. From the material provided, its core lies in distinguishing the specific referents of the pair of concepts “outside and inside” in different contexts: in the Zuo Zhuan, “those within and without hate him” refers to inside and outside the state; in Han Feizi, “Lonely Indignation,” “those within and without are used by them” refers to inside and outside the court, the outer being the hundred officials, the inner being the ruler's trusted attendants; in Yang Hu's memorial it refers to central and local; in the Yili and Liji it is also used to distinguish palaces and chambers, male and female, and other ritual order. It is thus clear that the same set of words changes with the textual object and cannot be generalized. The value of this book lies precisely in placing such keywords back into the context of the original classics, helping readers appreciate the polysemy and context-dependence of ancient Chinese concepts. It is suitable for readers studying pre-Qin and Han texts, concerned with ritual and political terminology, or engaged in the study of ancient Chinese lexical semantics, and may also serve as auxiliary material for reading old commentaries and distinguishing word meanings. When reading, one should check each entry against its source and not extract definitions apart from the original text.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Chinese majors studying ancient Chinese and concerned with semantic discrimination and contextual usage
Researchers in literature and history studying pre-Qin and Han texts such as the Zuo Zhuan and Han Feizi
Readers interested in the order of inside and outside, male and female, and palaces and chambers in ancient ritual
Enthusiasts of traditional culture who need to consult the multiple meanings of classical words

Not a good fit for

General readers seeking coherent narrative or complete stories and plot
Readers who want ready-made standard answers and are unwilling to discriminate meanings against the original context
Beginners lacking foundations in classical texts and ancient Chinese who wish to start from zero

Reading tips

Check the original text entry by entry according to the sources listed in the material; read the context first, then understand the specific referent of “outside and inside.”
Make a comparison table listing source, referent, and contextual features to facilitate comparison of similarities and differences.
When encountering ritual examples, read them together with annotations to the relevant chapters of the Yili and Liji.
After reading, try to summarize in your own words the several usages of “outside and inside” to test whether you have truly understood.

About the publisher

Bashu Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

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.

版权信息
外内第二十二

FAQ

What exactly does “outside and inside” refer to, and why are there multiple explanations?

“Outside and inside” is not a fixed term; its meaning changes with the textual object. The material shows that in the Zuo Zhuan it refers to inside and outside the state, in Han Feizi, “Lonely Indignation,” to inside and outside the court, in Yang Hu's memorial to central and local, and in the Yili and Liji it is used to distinguish palaces and chambers, male and female, and other ritual order. Understanding requires returning to the specific source and context; one definition cannot be applied to all texts.

Is this book suitable for learning ancient Chinese vocabulary?

It is suitable as auxiliary material for semantic discrimination. It presents the usages of “outside and inside” in different classics together, allowing readers to see how the same word changes its referent with context. But learning ancient Chinese also requires systematic reading of original texts and old commentaries; this book is better as a topical reference than as a substitute for textbooks or dictionaries. It is recommended to use it together with common ancient Chinese dictionaries and the original books cited.

Does the unknown author affect reading and use?

The author of this book is unknown, and the material provides no information about the compiler, so no inference about the author's background should be made. When reading, one should rely on the sources of the original texts cited in the book and focus on the material itself and its arrangement. If used for research citation, it is advisable to check the original texts and editions of the Zuo Zhuan, Han Feizi, Yili, Liji, and others cited, and avoid quoting only through the selection.

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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.