Hidden in Stone

Name: Hidden in Stone
Author: Cai Yuanpei

石头记索隐

by Cai Yuanpei (蔡元培)

Status: Completed
Source: Fanqie

Request a translation

Stats

8.0Score

7Chapters

Synopsis

A research monograph on the classic novel "A Dream of Red Mansions". Written by Cai Yuanpei. Originally published in "Novel Monthly", Volume 7, Issues 1-6, January to June 1916. The Commercial Press published the printed version in September 1917. In the sixth edition in 1922, a preface was added to the article "Discussions on the Textual Research on Hu Shi's Dream of Red Mansions". By 1930, the 10th edition had been published. It is a representative work of the Suoyin School of Old Red Studies, which was popular at the time and had great influence. The author clearly calls "Dream of Red Mansions" a "political novel". The reason why he wanted to "explore" the "Dream of Red Mansions" was to promote nationalist political thought, with a clear political purpose.

Reader comments

The point of view of this book is very interesting. The author regards "Dream of Red Mansions" as a political novel and expresses his nationalist thoughts through exploration. The analysis of the characters in the book is also very unique. For example, Baochai is regarded as a perfect person, while Daiyu and Miaoyu are portrayed as obedient and inhumane. However, some interpretations may be too far-fetched, such as using "University" and "The Doctrine of the Mean" to understand the meaning of the book. Overall, this is an enlightening book that allows people to think about "A Dream of Red Mansions" from a different perspective.
21 likes2y ago