The Five "Confucian" ClassicsThe Five Classics associated with Confucius formed the core curriculum in the education of Chinese literati throughout most of the imperial period. In this book Michael Nylan offers a sweeping assessment of these ancient texts and shows how their influence spread across East Asia. Nylan begins by tracing the formation of the Five Classics canon in the pre-Han and Han periods, 206 B.C.–A.D. 220, revising standard views on the topic. She assesses the impact on this canon of the invention of a rival corpus, the Four Books, in the twelfth century. She then analyzes each of the Five Classics, discussing when they were written, how they were transmitted and edited in later periods, and what political, historical, and ethical themes were associated with them through the ages. Finally she deliberates on the intertwined fates of Confucius and the Five Classics over the course of the twentieth century and shows how the contents of the Five Classics are relevant to much newer concerns. |
Contents
| 1 | |
2 The Odes | 72 |
3 The Documents | 120 |
4 The Three Rites Canons | 168 |
5 The Changes | 202 |
6 The Spring and Autumn Annals | 253 |
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Analects ancestors ancient antiquity Archaic Script authority Central century BC ceremonial chapters Chinese Chunqiu civilization claims classical learning classicists commentaries compilation Confucian Confucius Confucius's core Changes cosmic Court Songs culture disciples divination Documents Dong Zhongshu Duke of Zhou dynasty elite Emperor empire ethical example Five Classics Gongyang Guliang Han dynasty Han Yu Heaven Hexagram human Hymns ideal institutions interpretive Kang king later Liji Line Texts masters meaning Mencius milfoil Modern Script moral Odes official one's Pan Geng patterns period person political pre-Qin Qing readers record reformers relations rhetorical Rites canons ritual roles rule ruler sage-kings sages scholars Shang single social society teachings theory thinkers throne tion traditions Trigrams virtue Wang Warring States period Western Wings Xunzi Zheng Zhong Ziqi Zhouli Zhu Xi Zichan Zuozhuan