The Story of the Pipa

Gao MingJinzhang Book Company (Jinzhang Shuju) · ChinaJul 2024

4.8

Word count: 30K words
Chapters: 18

Summary

A Southern Opera of the late Yuan, by Gao Ming. It tells the story of the scholar Cai Bojie and Zhao Wuniang, their joys and sorrows, separations and reunions. Forty-two scenes in all. Hailed as "the ancestor of chuanqi," The Lute is a classic masterpiece of ancient Chinese drama. Together with the four most influential Southern Operas of the time—The Thorn Hairpin, The White Rabbit, The Killing of a Dog, and The Pavilion of Moon Worship—it is known as one of the "Five Great Chuanqi."

Editor's review

As a representative work of late-Yuan Southern Opera, The Lute unfolds the story of Cai Bojie and Zhao Wuniang's joys and sorrows across forty-two scenes, and its status as "ancestor of chuanqi" gives it a bridging significance in the history of Chinese drama. Gao Ming's touch is delicate and restrained: he portrays the hardships Zhao Wuniang endures caring for her parents-in-law during famine, and also depicts Cai Bojie's dilemma between official advancement and filial duty; the characters are not simple divisions of good and evil but carry the complex folds of the ethics of their time. Readers should note the edition information behind this reprint or collated edition; if, beyond the main text, they read it alongside the vocal modes, role system, and staging conventions of Southern Opera, they will better appreciate the tension between arias and spoken passages. It is suitable as a core text for thematic reading in ancient drama, and for close reading by those interested in traditional ethical narratives and family themes. Begin with the plot summary and the basic conventions of Southern Opera, then proceed scene by scene, noting how the use of qupai corresponds to the characters' psychology.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Researchers of ancient Chinese drama and Southern Opera examining the formation of the chuanqi system
Chinese literature students doing close reading of a core text in Yuan-Ming-Qing drama courses
General readers interested in traditional family ethics and female figures
Practitioners of local opera and adaptation of classical plays seeking source motifs

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting the fast pace of modern vernacular fiction
Those entirely unfamiliar with qupai and the conventions of arias and spoken passages who are unwilling to consult background materials
Readers who want only the outline of Cai Bojie's story and do not wish to read all forty-two scenes

Reading tips

Read the plot summary and an explanation of Southern Opera conventions first, then proceed in scene order to avoid losing track of characters.
Focus on scenes involving Zhao Wuniang, cross-referencing Cai Bojie's thread in the capital, to grasp the contrastive effect of the double storyline.
Where arias alternate with spoken passages, read aloud to feel the rhythm of Southern Opera on stage.
After finishing, compare with The Thorn Hairpin, The Pavilion of Moon Worship, and other Southern Operas to compare treatments of similar marital-change themes.

About the publisher

Jinzhang Book Company (Jinzhang Shuju) China · Founded in 1901

Jinzhang Book Company (Jinzhang Shuju) was a private publishing and distribution house in Shanghai during the late Qing and early Republican periods, issuing traditional works by lithographic printing. Judging from the 1,194 titles in the collection, its publishing focused on classical poetry, Eastern philosophy, historical reading, traditional Chinese medical texts, and canonical works, along with books on literary appreciation. Representative titles include the poetry and prose collections of Du Fu and Ouyang Xiu; historical works such as the Book of Han and Zizhi Tongjian; classical texts such as the Book of Documents and Mencius; and specialized and literary classics such as Treatise on Cold Damage and Li Sao. Its author resources cover major figures across the ages, including Du Fu, Ban Gu, Sima Guang, Zhang Zhongjing, Qu Yuan, Ouyang Xiu, and Tang Shenwei, reflecting the house's characteristic reliance on traditional scholarship and medical literature while serving general readers. Public information on its early history and operational details is limited, so no conjecture is offered here.

版权信息
第一出副末開場
第二出高堂稱壽
第三出牛氏規奴
第四出蔡公逼試
第五出南浦囑別
第六出丞相教女
第七出才俊登程
第八出文場選士
第九出臨妝感歎
第十出杏園春宴
第十一出蔡母嗟兒
第十二出奉旨招婿
第十三出官媒議婚
第十四出激怒當朝
第十五出金閨愁配
第十六出丹陛陳情
第十七出義倉賑濟

FAQ

Why is The Lute called "the ancestor of chuanqi"?

It has exemplary significance in the transition from Southern Opera to Ming-Qing chuanqi: its scale of forty-two scenes, its double-line structure, and its integration of arias and prose all provided models for later chuanqi writing, and it is therefore often given the title "ancestor of chuanqi."

Can I understand this book without a background in drama?

Yes, but some preparation helps. It is advisable first to learn the basic role types of Southern Opera and the general division between arias and spoken passages, then read alongside a plot summary. The arias contain much everyday dialogue and are not obscure; the difficulty lies mainly in unfamiliar conventions rather than language.

Is Cai Bojie a heartless man or a filial son?

The work does not portray him as a one-sided heartless figure; instead it has him struggle repeatedly between official advancement and filial duty, showing both weakness and hesitation and circumstances beyond his control. Readers may carry this question through the whole text and see how the author presents the many sides of the character across different scenes.

What reference materials should I use alongside this book?

A chapter on Southern Opera from a history of Chinese drama, covering the Four Great Southern Operas and Five Great Chuanqi, is useful; if possible, also find a concise introduction to Southern Opera role types and qupai conventions. This will give a better sense of staging and musical structure when reading the main text.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Gao Ming Author · Chinese · 1926–2018

Gao Ming (1926–2018), courtesy name Chengzhi, was a native of Tianjin and a professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology, Peking University, as well as a renowned scholar of ancient Chinese script. He graduated from the Department of History at Peking University in 1956 and stayed on to teach, devoting himself over the years to the study of ancient Chinese writing and ancient texts, and producing a substantial body of work in this field. His representative works include Guwenzi Leibian (Classified Compendium of Ancient Chinese Characters), Zhongguo Guwenzi Xue Tonglun (General Introduction to the Study of Ancient Chinese Writing), Gu Tao Wen Huibian (Compendium of Ancient Pottery Inscriptions), and Boshu Laozi Jiaozhu (A Collated Commentary on the Silk Manuscript Laozi). His research spans both transmitted classics and excavated materials, reflecting a solid grounding in textual scholarship. This site carries seven of his works, which, besides those on ancient script and the collation of ancient texts, also touch on medicine, biography, history, and finance, covering a wide range of subjects. Apart from his monographs on ancient Chinese writing, public information on the other works is limited, and it is difficult to confirm that they all come from the same author; readers should distinguish among them by consulting the specific titles.