The Book of Songs
Wang XiumeiZhonghua Book Company2015
Rating 4.6- Word count
- 347K words
- Chapters
- 4
- Series
- Complete Annotated and Translated Chinese Classics Series
- ISBN
- 9787101111460
Tags
Literature Historical ClassicsClassical Literature Thirteen ClassicsMarriageFull Annotated TranslationPoetry AnthologyFu Bi XingZhonghua Book CompanyPre Qin PoetryNational StudiesFolkloreBook of SongsSummary
The Book of Songs is the earliest surviving anthology of Chinese poetry, comprising 305 pieces (plus six titles with no extant text) composed over roughly five centuries, from the late Shang and early Zhou to the mid-Spring and Autumn period. It is divided by music and function into three sections: Feng (Airs), Ya (Odes), and Song (Hymns). The Feng are mostly regional folk songs; the Ya, split into Lesser and Greater Ya, are largely court banquet and political-lyric pieces; the Song are sacrificial songs of Zhou, Lu, and Shang. The collection is written mainly in four-character lines and employs the fu, bi, and xing rhetorical methods, covering farming, warfare, corvée labor, courtship and marriage, banquets, sacrifices, and satire. It is both a literary work and a vital source for studying pre-Qin society, ritual institutions, customs, and language, and has long been counted among the Five Classics. This volume is one title in Zhonghua Book Company's Complete Annotated and Translated Chinese Classics Series, translated and annotated by Wang Xiumei. Using the Book of Songs text in the Thirteen Classics with Commentary and Subcommentary as its base, it includes all 305 poems, each with an introductory note, original text, annotations, and a plain-language translation. The annotations focus on clarifying difficult words, allusions, and named objects; the translations aim at clarity and fluency; and the introductory notes and analyses interpret the poems from literary, historical, philosophical, folkloric, and linguistic perspectives. The work runs to two volumes, with the traditional characters converted to simplified horizontal typesetting for ease of reading and reference by general readers, making it one of the more widely circulated contemporary editions of the Book of Songs suitable for beginners and for keeping on one's desk.Editor's review
读《诗经》，最怕两件事：一是字不认识，二是注家说法太多、不知信谁。这套中华书局“三全本”正是为解决这两个难点而设计的。它以十三经注疏本为底本，三百零五篇一篇不落，每篇先出题解点明诗旨与背景，再列原文、逐条注释、附白话译文，读者可以“原文—注释—译文”对照推进，不必频繁翻查字典。注释不只解释词义，还交代名物、典章与典故，对理解《七月》《生民》这类涉及农事与礼制的长篇尤为重要。 全书采用简体横排、纸面精装，上下两册，版式疏朗，适合长期置于案头随手翻阅。它不追求一家之言的惊人之论，而是尽量吸收历代研究成果，做到稳妥、清楚、可读。对刚接触《诗经》的读者，这是省力而可靠的起点；对已有基础的读者，它也是方便复核原文与旧注的常备本。Who it's for
A good fit for
- 想系统通读《诗经》全本、需要注释与白话译文辅助的普通读者
- 中学语文教师、大学中文系学生，可作为教学与课程阅读的参考本
- 对先秦社会、礼制、民俗与汉语源流感兴趣的文史爱好者
- 希望在家中备一部可靠经典、供长期翻阅与查检的读者
Not a good fit for
- 只想读几首名篇、追求轻便选本的读者，可考虑选本或“指掌文库”本
- 需要深入辨析历代注家异说、做专门诗经学研究的研究者，宜另配《诗经注析》等
- 期待现代诗化改写或自由演绎式译文的读者，本书译文偏于准确平实
Reading tips
- 先读《周南·关雎》《秦风·蒹葭》《卫风·氓》等名篇建立语感，再按风、雅、颂顺序通读，不必从头硬啃。
- 每篇先读题解与译文，把握大意，再回看原文与注释，重点留意赋、比、兴手法的运用。
- 准备一本笔记本，随手记下反复出现的名物、礼制词语与句式，读完全书后回看，收获会明显不同。
- 雅、颂部分篇幅长、礼制色彩重，可放到后面读，或每次只读一两篇，配合历史背景资料理解。
About the publisher
Zhonghua Book Company China · Founded in 1912Zhonghua Book Company is a publisher known for collating ancient texts and academic publishing, with its output centered on Eastern philosophy, culture, classic works, art, and historical reading. Its library contains 532 titles, including Chen Shou's Records of the Three Kingdoms, Guo Qingfan's Collected Commentaries on Zhuangzi, the four-volume Chinese Literature: Four Great Classical Novels, and the two-volume Table of Seal and Clerical Script Forms from Qin, Han, Wei, and Jin. These titles span historical classics, commentaries on the philosophers, classical novels, and philological reference works. Representative authors include Chen Shou, Guo Qingfan, Wu Cheng'en, Shi Nai'an, Cao Xueqin, Luo Guanzhong, Xu Wenwu, and the Hanyu Dazidian character-form group, reflecting a focus on primary sources and scholarly editors. Its publishing character lies in combining authoritative editions and annotated texts with both accessible classics and specialized research. Public information on its fuller catalog is limited; this note describes only the directions evident in the library's holdings.
Contents
- Preface
- Volume One: Guofeng (Zhou Nan, Shao Nan, Bei Feng, Yong Feng, Wei Feng, Wang Feng, Zheng Feng, Qi Feng, Wei Feng, Tang Feng, Qin Feng, Chen Feng, Gui Feng, Cao Feng, Bin Feng)
- Volume Two: Ya (Xiao Ya, Da Ya)
- Volume Two: Song (Zhou Song, Lu Song, Shang Song)
FAQ
这套“三全本”《诗经》是全本吗？收了多少篇？
是全本。收录《诗经》三百零五篇，另附六篇有目无辞的存目，按风、雅、颂编排，分上下两册，原文、注释、译文齐备。和程俊英《诗经译注》相比该怎么选？
两者都是可靠读本。本书注释详尽、版式疏朗，适合案头通读与查检；程俊英译本以白话民歌体逐句对译，译文更有诗味，适合欣赏与诵读。按自己的阅读目的取舍即可。没有古文基础能读懂吗？
可以。每篇都有题解、逐条注释和白话译文，生僻字词与典故名物均有说明，读到不懂处对照译文即可推进。这个版本适合给孩子读吗？
可作为中学生及以上读者的课外读物，但部分诗篇涉及婚恋与讽刺内容，低龄儿童宜由家长挑选篇目、配合讲解。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
Wang Xiumei Author · Chinese · 1972Wang Xiumei, born in 1972 in Yantai, Shandong, is a member of the China Writers Association, vice chair of the Shandong Writers Association, and chair of the Yantai Writers Association. She has published more than nine million characters of work, including the novels Heavy Snow, The Railway of 1938, and We Meet at Sea, as well as the story collections Going to Huaihua Island and Father's Bridge. Her writing centers on fiction and also touches on children's literature, drawing largely on rural memory and historical experience with a solid, steady narrative style. Her honors include the National Excellent Novella Award from the Novella Selection Journal, the Chen Bochui International Children's Literature Award, and the Taishan Literature and Art Award. The library also holds her editions of classics such as the Book of Songs, the Family Sayings of Confucius, and The Groans of Language, along with works on law and management, reflecting an interest that spans traditional texts and contemporary practice.