University of Virginia Library

§ 1. Stylistic Features

"Pre-Confucian" literature was in style terse, simple and direct.
As authentic examples there remain the Shih-ching and parts at
least of the Shu-ching. After the Ch'un Ch'iu[173] period (VIIIth—Vth
cents. B.C.) and especially in the era of the Warring States[174]
(Vth—IIIrd cents. B.C.) came the introduction, then the general
prevalence, of an involved, prolix, and ornate style. Due to the
so-called southern influence, the school of Ch'u,[175] and the "diplomats",
shuo-k'o,[176] the one exemplified in the Chuang-tzŭ[177] and the Li Sao[178]
of Ch'ü Yüan,[179] the other in the discourses of Su Ch'in[180] and
Chang Yi,[181] and the celebrated memorial of Li Ssŭ[182] on the employment
of "foreigners" in the state,[183] a more poetic and emotional
style developed. In the philosophical writings of the schools of Lu
and Ch'i[184] in the ante-Han period, structure is subordinated to
logical exposition.[185]

Chia I[186] is the typical writer of the early Han. His style is
held by the lettered to be one of the most beautiful of all Chinese
literature. He already manifests a tendency towards the erudite style,
with frequent references to names famous in history and tradition.
By Wu-ti's time this characteristic became emphasized. Two types
of literary allusion appear. One takes the form of brief aphorisms,
upon which the argument is developed as a preacher does with his

"text". Or again the style assumes the form of a literary mosaic
harmoniously pieced together by means of sentences and phrases
culled from a variety of sources. The latter stylistic method undoubtedly
became more favored by Huan K'uan's time with the
rising tide of literary production, as well as because of the recovered
writings of the pre-Ch'in period, furnishing a vast treasury to draw
upon. The literary renaissance of the early Han produced material
which rapidly became stereotyped in its frequency of usage.

The new erudite style depended largely upon quotations from the
writings of the Confucian school, later to become the "canonical"
books. Well known authors provided further material. The writers
of the time indicated their reverence for the old as advocated by
the Great Sage himself, by "transmitting antiquity".[187] The abundance
of classical allusions and historical references led to their later often
absurd applications. The work of Huan K'uan reflects in their
entirety these marked literary characteristics of his time.[188] His
Yen T'ieh Lun combines the style of the discourses of the Warring
States and the didactic style of the philosophers; while the influence
of the revival of the "old learning" in the early Han, with its
reverence for the writings attributed to Confucius and his followers,
is clearly discernible.

A noteworthy feature of Chinese prose style is the binome or
synonym-compound. Two simple monosyllabic words with the same,
or at least analogous, meanings are joined together to form a single
idea. While this device is already found in the Mencius, the two
words forming the binome still may usually be translated singly, i.e,
each with its original meaning. The synonym-compound as employed
by Huan K'uan furnishes a formidable difficulty to the translator.
The two words yen t'ieh in the title of the work itself, literally
"salt-iron", actually connote "state monopoly of national resources",

and illustrate the fondness of the Chinese writer for the balance of
two complementary words or phrases.[189] This linguistic phenomenon
doubtless indicates a significant trend in the development of the essentially
monosyllabic Chinese language.[190] In many cases the literal
translation of the binome is superfluous. For example, chün and
kuo, "provinces and demesnes", are almost invariably placed together,
by literary habit, as it were. The question arises whether the binome
represents a natural development of the language in an unconscious
attempt to escape the difficulties of homophony; or as might be the
case in relation to the written language, which appeals the eye only
and not the ear, simply an affection of style.

The former hypothesis has some justification, for Chinese prose
was sufficiently young to have escaped, as yet, on the whole, the
later processes of "fossilisation", by being divorced from the actual
spoken language.[191] The prose of the Han era, influenced doubtless
by the older literature, brought to light in the "revival of antiquity"
was simple in style. In discourses such as those of Chia I or as in
Huai-nan-tzŭ, the style followed the Lun-yü or the Mêng-tzŭ. In
narratives as found in the Shih-chi or the Ch'ien-han-shu, the Tso-chuan
or Kuo-yü formed the models. The prose literature of the

time, though not identical with the spoken language of the people,
retained much of the natural grammar and construction. In fact,
in many cases, the spoken language was partially employed and
incorporated in written forms. Instances of this are found in the
Shih-chi and Ch'ien-han-shu.[192] Thus, while the prose of Ssŭ-ma
Hsiang-ju (d. B.C. 117) is already indicative of the "fossilization"
of Chinese writing, Huan K'uan at least in his liberal use of the
binome retained touch with the spoken language.