The Story of Stone
 | This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: to show how this should be separate from Dream of the Red Chamber. (November 2018) |
 | This article possibly contains original research. (November 2018) |
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (November 2018) |
The Story of Stone, written in the mid-18th century by Cao Xueqin (1715-1763), is considered[by whom?] to be one of the masterpieces of Chinese ancient literature, with the last 40 chapters written by Gao E after Cao’s death. As one of the four famous classical novels in China（the rest are Journey to The West, The Story by The Water Margin, and The Romance of Three Kingdoms), The Story of Stone depicts the lives of a large noble and aristocratic household (including the masters and servants) in mid-18 Century Qing dynasty(1644-1911) of China and its later road toward the slow collapse and decay. Although there are a large amount of descriptions of the main characters’ daily trifling life of visiting and chatting, nevertheless being full of symbolisms and blend of realism and romance, this fiction implies veiled attack toward the Manchu rule and feudalism[1] through narrating the triangle love between three teenagers Jia Baoyu, and his two female cousins Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai.
Although this fiction has another translated name, The Dream of Red Chamber, this name The Story of Stone, for most researchers and scholars specifically studying this novel, fits into what the author Cao Xueqin intends originally, since the Stone, which is mentioned multiple times throughout this fiction, plays a key role in leading to the development of plots, even this object acts as the factor of deciding on most characters' ultimate fates.
General Narrative
The fiction begins with the arrival of Lin Daiyu to Jia mansion because she was committed to Jia family’s care after death of her parents. It is the first time she meets Jia Baoyu, the son of the family doted by almost everyone, and other sisters. Later another main character Xue Baochai who is also Jia Baoyu’s cousin comes into this mansion as well. Even if Lin shows friendly attitudes and respect to Xue, she is actually jealous of the close and familiar relationship between Jia and Xue, especially when she finds out Jia and Xue have a pair of matched golden necklaces. However, Jia sees Lin as his bosom friend all the time. Both of them are not understood by others, but they know each other very well.
Baoyu becomes deranged after the disappearance of a stone he had in his mouth when he was born. Not knowing, his love Daiyu died, he is tricked to marrying Baochai. Becoming aware of being tricked, Baoyu leaves the world of the "red dust" and becomes a monk.
By having a close reading of the scene transition, it will be discovered that the characteristic of the narration of this book is character-centered, instead of plot-centered, through research and analysis of the relationship between different scenes. That means scenes affect the development of plot.[2]
Characters
There are 768 characters mentioned in this book, with almost 40 main characters given the name. Twelve beauties of Jinling (including Lin and Xue) and servant girls are the people that are narrated the most.
Detailed and deeper Analysis of these main characters, especially their personalities, is also a crucial part perceived by most scholars interested in redology, defined as the systematic analysis, research and exploitation of this fiction.
Different characters face the distinguished fates, with most of them facing the tragic and miserable life ultimately, after Jia family is searched by officials of royal and imperial ruler.
For example, Xue Baochai, is a charming and popular girl but at the same time she gladly accepts and conforms to the strict traditional rules and routines oppressed by that old era. Compared to Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu, Xue who represents and features most of the traditional Chinese female figures rarely expresses her own real thoughts and always does what the other people ask her to do. In short, she is an obedient and “good” girl that the feudal society of ancient China wished and even forced every female to become. The result that she is willing to marry to a man who does not love her (Jia Baoyu) is she loses Jia’s trust and their marriage exists merely on the surface and in name, rather than in reality. She has to suffer from the pain that Jia Baoyu eventually leaves her . Xiren, Jia Baoyu’s the most trustful and closest servant girl, who represents people behaving in a servile and demeaning manner, has the personality of being facially loyal and faithful but actually subtlety and shrewdness.[3] Her final fate is she is forced to leave Jia mansion after the depression of this big household. By contrast, Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu typify the personality of pursuing real love and freedom.[3] Representing the marginal and minority culture, they don’t accept as well as don’t being accepted by the mainstream thoughts. They dare to attack toward the pedantic thoughts and extremely strict traditional rules. However, in the end Daiyu walks toward death because of her heavy sickness after she hears of her loved Baoyu has married to Baochai, and Jia is totally disappointed to this dark and cruel world and feels like he has no reason to continue staying in this chamber and hopeless reality, thus he is willing to become a monk after he knows his loved Daiyu’s death and has seen through the vanity of the human world—“the red dust” in Chinese.
Theme
Cao describes two completely different worlds with obvious and fresh contrast. One is the splendor life of the ideal world within this mansion, which is as illusory as a dream, and another is the cruel and dark reality (the fallen down and collapsed fate, the bleak, struggling and desolate life in the 18 century Qing Dynasty of China, dominated under the Manchu rule of feudalism) outside of this mansion which isolates these two utterly opposite and contrasted worlds. The life within the mansion is a dream, and the girls living in it represents the purity and beauty, without experiencing the suffer of intervention from the outside world.
As the author Cao mentions, “All is insubstantial doomed to pass, as moonlight mirrored in the water, or flowers reflected in a glass.” [4] The central question Cao want to conveys throughout this book can be traced to---- If everything will walk toward vanity and collapse, "how real is this life and what is it for ?" [1]
Influence
Chairman Mao Zedong praised the novel's significance, stating that he read the book five times. The compliment that says “if you want to know the modern day of China you must read this 18-century fiction” better affirms its vital position in the society and its far-reaching influence to construct Chinese culture. Most well-known Chinese writers and poets, such as Zhang Ailing, Lu Xun, Xu Zhimo, and Hu Shi, are deeply affected by this novel, not only on its aesthetic expression but also on its modern and advanced thought and worldvalue.[1]
References
- ^ a b c Stenberg, Josh (April 19, 2018). conversation.com/why-you-should read-chinas-vast-18-century-novel-dream-of-the-red-chamber-94824) "Why You should read China's vast, 18 Century Novel, Dream of the Red Chamber". conversation.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ Chen, Zhonghong (2014). "Raiding the Garden and Rejecting the Family--A Narratology of Scene in The Dream of Red Chamber".
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ a b Li, Lifeng (2011). "Opinion on Slave Personality and Tragic Life in "Dream of the Red Chamber"". Energy Procedia. 13: 2574–2577.
- ^ Stone, Alan A (1 December 2005). "The Story of the Stone (The Dream of the Red Chamber, vol. 1: The Golden Days)". American Journal of Psychiatry,. 162(12): 2412–2413.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)