Zīxī wéngǎo 滋溪文稿
The Zī-xī (Zī-stream) Prose Drafts by 蘇天爵 (撰)
About the work
The 30-juǎn prose works of Sū Tiānjué 蘇天爵 (1294–1352), zì Bóxiū 伯修. Sū’s larger output included 7 juǎn shīgǎo (anthologized in the Yuán bǎijiā shī; the separate shīgǎo now lost) and 30 juǎn wéngǎo — the present recension. Edited by Sū’s subordinate Gě Yuánzhé 葛元哲 (zì Tíngzhé 廷哲, native of Línchuān, xiānggòng dìyī jìnshì) and Gāo Míng 高明 (zì Zéchéng 則誠, native of Yǒngjiā, jìnshì, Kuòcāng dōu lùshì) — both serving under Sū when he was Zhèjiāng xíngshěng cānzhèng. Sū studied under An Xī 安熙, but as the Sìkù tíyào notes, An Xī’s own writing was “cūyě bù rù gé” — Sū’s mature style far surpasses his teacher.
Tiyao
Zīxī wéngǎo, 30 juǎn. By Sū Tiānjué of the Yuán. Tiānjué has Míngchén shìlüè KR2g0017 already in the catalog. His compositions had shīgǎo 7 juǎn — Yuán bǎijiā shī still records — now no transmitted copy. This is his wéngǎo 30 juǎn — edited by his subordinate Gě Yuánzhé during his Zhèjiāng cānzhèng tenure. Yuánzhé zì Tíngzhé, native of Línchuān, by xiānggòng dìyī awarded jìnshì — Zhào Pèng’s 趙汸 Dōngshān cúngǎo has a Bié Yuánzhé xù — recording his career in detail. Gāo Míng zì Zéchéng, native of Yǒngjiā, jìnshì, Kuòcāng dōu lùshì. Zhào Pèng also has Sòng Gāo Zéchéng guī Yǒngjiā xù — namely this man. Tiānjué in youth studied under An Xī; but An Xī’s shīwén was cūyě bù rù gé (rough and rustic, not entering proper standard); Tiānjué is cíhuá yǎnyǎ, gēndǐ shēnhòu, wèirán chēng Yuándài zuòzhě — his bōlán yìdù often chūrù yú ŌuSū (in-and-out of Ōuyáng Xiū and Sū Shì) — tū guò qí shī yuǎn shèn (greatly surpassing his teacher). His xùshì zhī zuò, xiángmíng diǎnhé, especially yǒu fǎdù. The collection contains nearly 100+ bēibǎn pieces — on Yuán-period institutions and persons whose shǐzhuàn are incomplete, often these can be used to kǎojiàn (verify). Yuánshǐ běnchuán says he shēn rèn yīdài wénxiàn zhī jì (his person bore one-dynasty’s literary trust) — also not excessive praise. Yú Jí’s Sū Bóxiū Zīxī shūtáng shī runs “jī xué bào chénmò — shí zhì yǒu yōuxíng — chōu jiǎn Lǔshǐ cún — cǎi shī Shāngsòng bìng” — clearly his wénzhāng yuánběn derives from chénqián diǎnjí (deep-immersion in books) and yánjiū zhǎnggù (researching old institutions), not all from An Xī. Respectfully collated.
Abstract
Zīxī wéngǎo is one of the principal late-Yuán biéjí — Sū Tiānjué’s prose stood as the model for a more xióngshēn yǎzhèng (weighty and decorous) manner against the jiǎngxuéjiā and círénzhīshī poles. The collection’s some-100+ stele inscriptions are a major supplementary source for Yuán biography. Sū’s role as the chosen compiler of Yuán wénlèi (the canonical Yuán-prose anthology) and Míngchén shìlüè (the canonical Yuán-statesman biographical compendium) makes him a structural figure in late-Yuán historiography and literary history alike. The intellectual genealogy (An Xī → Sū Tiānjué) confirmed by the tíyào is a useful trace of the Yuán jīngxué / cízhāng divergence: the teacher was undistinguished, the pupil dominated. Composition window: 1314 (mature prose begins) to 1352 (Sū’s death).
Translations and research
- Yuán-shǐ j. 183 (Sū Tiān-jué biography).
- Hok-lam Chan. The Historiography of the Chin Dynasty.
- Yáng Lián. 2003. Yuán-shī shǐ.
Links
- WYG SKQS V1214.1, p1.
- Wikipedia, 蘇天爵