Various Classics, Anecdotes and Novels

First published in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in April 1755. It discusses the causes of social inequality and methods to overcome it, and criticizes feudal hierarchical relations. Rousseau believed that the development of production and the emergence of private ownership caused mankind to break away from the "state of nature" and gave rise to the social phenomenon of inequality between rich and poor. He speculated that contradictions and struggles would transform into opposites, and that development is a spiral process. He recognized that private ownership is the source of social inequality, and believed that each person's small amount of private property is the basis of social equality. This book provides a theoretical basis for bourgeois political revolution and can be regarded as the foundation of all Rousseau's thoughts and the introduction to "The Social Contract". (I thought there was no such book! What a sudden surprise! Although I don't know why a book like mine is missing.)

The Book of Tea is the earliest, most complete and comprehensive introduction to tea in China and even the world. It is known as the Encyclopedia of Tea and was written by Lu Yu in the Tang Dynasty.

A novel written by Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, first published in 1899. The book is based on a true incident.

"A Study into the Nature and Causes of National Wealth" Abbreviation: "The Wealth of Nations" It is a popular economics book published by the Commercial Press on December 1, 1972. The author is Adam Smith (UK), and the translators are Guo Dali and Wang Yanan. In November 2015, it was named one of the 20 most influential academic books.

"Three Heroes and Five Righteousness", written by Shi Yukun, is a classic of the classic chivalrous case novels and can be called the originator of Chinese martial arts novels. At the same time, as China's first martial arts novel with real significance, "Three Heroes and Five Righteousness" has many versions and is widely circulated. The popular stories in the book have had a profound impact on the content of modern Chinese storytelling, folk arts, martial arts novels and even literature and art.

The first family motto with rich content and grand system in the history of the Chinese nation is also an academic work. The author Yan Zhitui was a famous writer and educator in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. The book was written after Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty destroyed the Chen Kingdom and before Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty came to the throne (about the end of the 6th century AD). This is Yan Zhitui's work describing his personal experiences, thoughts, and knowledge to warn his descendants. There are seven volumes and twenty articles in total. They are the first in preface, the second in raising children, the third in brothers, the fourth in later marriage, the fifth in managing the family, the sixth in conduct, the seventh in cultivating the virtuous, the eighth in encouraging learning, the ninth in writing, the tenth in name and reality, the eleventh in dealing with affairs, the twelfth in saving troubles, the thirteenth in stopping one's feet, the fourteenth in commanding soldiers, the fifteenth in cultivating the heart, the sixteenth in returning to one's heart, the seventeenth in documentary evidence, the eighteenth in music and speech, the nineteenth in miscellaneous arts, and the twentieth in final system.

An autobiographical prose written in the 13th year of Jiaqing (1808) by Shen Fu (also known as Sanbai and Meiyi) from Changzhou in the Qing Dynasty. Yang Yinchuan, the brother-in-law of Wang Tao in the Qing Dynasty, found the remaining manuscript of "Six Chapters of a Floating Life" at a cold stall in Suzhou. There were only four volumes. He gave it to Wang Tao, who was in charge of the Wenzun Pavilion in Shanghai at the time, and published it on a movable type board in 1877. The second dictionary of "Floating Life" comes from Li Bai's poem "Preface to the Spring Night Banquet from My Brother's Peach and Li Garden": "Heaven and earth are the reverse journey of all things; time is the passerby of hundreds of generations. And floating life is like a dream, how much joy is there?".

The novel written by Wu Jingzi in the Qing Dynasty was written in the 14th year of Qianlong's reign (1749) or a little before. It was first handed down as a manuscript and was first engraved in the eighth year of Jiaqing's reign (1803). The book's fifty-six chapters use realism to describe the different performances of various people regarding "fame and wealth". On the one hand, it truly reveals the process and reasons for the corruption of human nature, thereby deeply criticizing and ridiculing the corruption of officials at that time, the shortcomings of imperial examinations, and the hypocrisy of ethics; on the other hand, it passionately praises the protection of human nature by a few characters by insisting on themselves, thus embodying the author's ideals. The use of vernacular in the novel has become more proficient, and the characterization of the characters is also quite in-depth and delicate, especially the use of superb satirical techniques, making the book a masterpiece of Chinese classical satirical literature.

A famous book of advice in ancient times, written by Yuan Huang, a famous official and thinker of the Ming Dynasty. "The Four Precepts of Liaofan", also known as "Self-establishment of Destiny", is an educational book on cultivating morality, establishing destiny, cultivating oneself and governing the world. The book was written in 1602 AD. The full text is divided into four parts to explain how to change destiny through the study of destiny, the method of correction, the method of accumulating good deeds, and the effect of modesty. The author was Yuan Huang from the Ming Dynasty, whose courtesy name was Kunyi and later changed his name to Fan. He told the process of changing his destiny through his personal experience. It was originally to teach his son, so he named it "Xun Ziwen"; later, to enlighten the world, he changed his name to this.

"Classics" was written in 1942 and has been widely circulated for more than 60 years, becoming an enlightenment classic that popularizes Chinese traditional culture. Mr. Zhu Ziqing used clear and practical words to introduce the classic works of our country's cultural heritage in thirteen articles without any hassle. Zhu Ziqing's "Classic Chang Tan" includes thirteen chapters including Shuowen Jiezi, Zhouyi, Shangshu, Book of Songs, Three Rites, Spring and Autumn Annals, Four Books, Warring States Policy, Historical Records and Hanshu, Zhuzi, Ci Fu, Poems, and Wen, which systematically introduces the development and historical context of ancient Chinese literature. The combing and explanation of classics throughout the book are not only concise and insightful in terms of knowledge, but also a model of popular and fluent vernacular writing. It makes ancient texts more approachable and familiar to readers, thus inspiring readers' interest. It is the best choice for readers to get an overview of Chinese classical literature.

A novel written by People's Artist - Lao She (Shu Qingchun). It describes the tragic fate of rickshaw pullers during the warlord war in the 1920s. Xiangzi is a representative figure of the working people in the old society. "Camel Xiangzi" tells the story of the ups and downs of Xiangzi, a young, strong and energetic rickshaw puller in the city of Beiping, China. Xiangzi came from the countryside. He was a bankrupt young farmer who was diligent, simple and kind. He retained everything that the countryside had nurtured and taught him, but he never wanted to go back to the countryside. Xiangzi, who came to the city from the countryside, was eager to buy a car of his own with his honest labor. It was Xiangzi's wish, hope, and even religion to be an independent worker. With diligence and perseverance, he spent three years frugally, and finally realized his ideal and became a self-reliant first-class coachman. But just half a year after pulling the cart, the cart was kidnapped by deserters in the chaos of war. Xiangzi lost the cart and only brought back three camels. Xiangzi was not discouraged. He still stubbornly started from scratch and drove the cart more self-consciously to save money. However, before he could buy another car, all his savings were extorted and robbed by detectives, and his dream of buying a car came to nothing again. When Xiangzi pulled into his car again, it was at the expense of a deformed marriage with Huniu. The good times did not last long, because Huniu died in childbirth, and he had to sell the rickshaw to attend to the funeral. At this point, his life ideal was completely shattered. Coupled with the suicide of his beloved woman Xiao Fuzi, the last spark of hope in his heart was blown out. Suffering repeated blows from life, Xiangzi began to lose any aspirations and confidence in life. He could no longer muster the courage to live. He was no longer proud of pulling carts as before. He hated pulling carts and hated working. Xiangzi, who was teased by life, started playing games, eating, drinking, whoring and gambling. In order to drink, Xiangzi swindled money everywhere and became a "urban garbage". In the end, he made a living by working as a handyman for weddings and funerals. Xiangzi was reduced from a "decent, strong, dreamy, self-interested, personal, strong, and great" lower-class worker to a "degenerate, selfish, unfortunate, born in the womb of social disease, and the end of individualism."

A book on cultural anthropology written by American cultural anthropologist Ruth Benedict, first published in 1946. The book is not long, with a total of thirteen chapters, with some notes on Japanese words and an index to the whole book. In addition to the first and last two chapters mentioned above, it starts with the views on war, moves on to the Meiji Restoration, and then discusses Japanese customs, moral concepts, how to "self-train" (cultivation) and how children learn traditions. In the book, the author uses the research method of cultural anthropology, using the "chrysanthemum", the Japanese royal family crest, and the "sword", which symbolizes the identity of the samurai, as a set of contrasting and contradictory images. He explains and explains the seemingly contradictory aspects of Japanese culture from the perspective of others, and points out that Japanese culture is a culture of shame.

A short story written by Japanese writer Akutagawa Ryunosuke in 1915. The plot is based on the Japanese classic story collection "The Story of the Past". The work tells the story of a slave under the Rashomon Gate who was waiting for the rain to stop during the twilight period. When he was at a loss as to whether his life or death would be decided, he came across an old woman who made a living by pulling out the hair of dead people. The desperate slave became evil and determined to abandon suffering and follow evil. He took off the old woman's clothes and escaped from Rashomon. The plot of this work is simple, the characters are few, the length is short, and the scenes are small. The time, place, characters, and ending are all displayed in front of the reader. Although the work is a historical novel based on old themes, it is endowed with a certain meaning and describes the people at the bottom of society who are tenaciously struggling to survive. It is not a historical novel in a simple sense.

The novel written by Japanese writer Natsume Soseki is also his representative work. This work was written from 1904 to September 1906. It was serialized in the magazine "Dujuan" from January 1905, and was later published in three volumes: the first, middle and second volumes. The novel "I Am a Cat" written by Natsume Soseki to vent his years of anger vividly reflects the thoughts and life of Japan's petty and middle-class bourgeoisie at the beginning of the twentieth century, and sharply exposes and criticizes the "civilized and enlightened" capitalist society of the Meiji period. This work takes a poor teacher's cat as the protagonist and observes human psychology from the perspective of this anthropomorphized cat. This is a cat who is good at thinking, knowledgeable, full of justice and literary temperament, but he has never learned to catch mice until his death.

A novel written by the British novelist William Somerset Maugham, written in 1919. The work is based on the life of French Impressionist painter Paul Gauguin. It describes the story of Strickland, an originally ordinary London stockbroker, who suddenly became obsessed with art, abandoned his wife and children, gave up what others thought was a prosperous and happy life, and went to Tahiti in the South Pacific to write his own glorious life with a round pen and inject all the value of life into the gorgeous canvas. He didn't care about the entanglement of poverty and the torment of illness, but regret never visited his consciousness. The work expresses the contradiction between genius, personality and material civilization, as well as modern marriage and family life. It has a broad perspective on life. It uses a scalpel that smells of disinfectant to sharply dissect the human nature wrapped in skin, mixed with the mocking humor and cruel eyes of the spectators.

A novel written by the French critical realist novelist Balzac, which is included in "The Human Comedy". The novel narrates a story of money destroying human nature and causing family tragedy. It revolves around the central event of Eugenie's love tragedy, and uses three intertwined plot threads to connect the novel: the waves caused by the autocracy within the Grandet family, the open and secret fights between the bankers and notaries outside the family, and the painful life experience of Eugenie's love for Charles Grandet and Charlie's betrayal. "Eugénie Grandet" is a colorful social custom painting from the French provinces in the first half of the 19th century. It exposes the evils of capitalist society and how money corrodes and destroys people's minds and souls.

A novel written by French writer Balzac and published in 1834. The story tells the story of the protagonist Goriot, a flour merchant who started his career during the French Revolution. He lost his wife in middle age. He devoted all his love to his two daughters. In order to let them squeeze into the upper class, he gave them a good education since childhood and gave them a dowry of 800,000 francs each when they got married. However, his two daughters lived a dissolute life and spent money like water. His love was easily defeated by the principle of money supremacy. This work is representative in showing the breadth and depth of social life, in reflecting the progress and limitations of the writer's worldview, and in expressing the artistic achievements and shortcomings of "The Human Comedy". Its artistic style is one of the works that best represents Balzac's characteristics.

The whole book begins with waking up and ends with relaxation. Although he lives in the dust, he still has a high view of the outside world; in his criticism of the world's most vivid trends, he reveals the coldness of a philosopher. His aphorisms are exquisite, short and exquisite, prompting people to be alert and beneficial to the mind. Since its publication, it has spread like wildfire and attracted the attention of readers again and again. Its cultural charm is becoming more and more recognized by readers.

A popular Confucian book written by Wang Yongbin, a famous literary critic in the Qing Dynasty. Evaluate and discuss the anecdotes, people, events, articles, etc. In the literary world at that time and in the past. The meaning is profound.

"The Hobbit" is a novel written by the British writer John Ronald Reel Tolkien, first published in 1937. "The Hobbit" tells the story of a dwarf named Bilbo. During his adventures, Bilbo discovered a magical ring that made him invisible, which allowed him to successfully steal a rare treasure that was plundered by a dragon in the subsequent expedition. The book is not only thrilling and full of childlike innocence, but also projects the spirit of the new era and the author's unique thinking. In 2012, the book was adapted into a film series of the same name.