Library

National Social Science Fund project results. During the Song and Song Dynasties, imperial examinations, classics, and ancient Chinese literature formed relatively independent knowledge discourse systems, showing a situation of forming their own barriers, but also interpenetrating and intertwining with each other. In this pattern, influenced by the ethos of the academic field and the widely popular anthologies of contemporary texts, the trend of classical thought changed. With the gradual unfolding of the Taoist movement, Taoist discourse began to occupy a mainstream position in the knowledge system of the two Song Dynasties. This was prominently reflected in the emphasis on the "On" style and the use of punctuation and addition of comments. At the same time, ancient prose began to take shape as a specialized study, and the ancient prose discourse had an obvious tendency to move closer to and combine with Taoist discourse. The detailed analysis in this book reveals the correlation and role of these three in the Song Dynasty.