Qiànnǚ Líhún 倩女離魂
The Soul of Qian-nü Leaves Her Body by 鄭光祖
About the work
A four-act Yuan zájù 雜劇 by 鄭光祖 Zhèng Guāngzǔ (fl. late 13th–early 14th century; CBDB id 477558), one of the “Four Great Yuan Playwrights” (Yuán qū sì dà jiā 元曲四大家) traditionally named alongside Guān Hànqīng 關漢卿, Bái Pǔ 白樸, and Mǎ Zhìyuǎn 馬致遠. The play dramatizes the legend of a young woman, Qiànnǚ 倩女, whose soul separates from her body and follows her beloved Wáng Wéngjǔ 王文舉 to the capital, while her body remains at home, apparently ill. After he returns with examination success, the two selves reunite. The story derives from the Tang chuánqí tale 離魂記 (Lí hún jì) by Chén Xuányòu 陳玄祐.
Tiyao
No tiyao found in source.
Abstract
鄭光祖 Zhèng Guāngzǔ (fl. late 13th–early 14th century; CBDB id 477558) was a native of Píngyáng 平陽 (modern Linfen, Shanxi) who served as a clerk (lǐ 吏) in Hángzhōu 杭州. He was active somewhat later than Guān Hànqīng, part of the southern branch of Yuan drama centered in the former Southern Song capital. About sixteen plays are attributed to him, of which eight survive; he also wrote sǎnqǔ 散曲 verse.
Qiànnǚ Líhún 倩女離魂 is his most famous play, based on the Tang tale Lí hún jì 離魂記 by Chén Xuányòu 陳玄祐 (8th century), a story of a young woman’s disembodied soul accompanying her lover while her physical self remains behind. Zhèng adapts this supernatural premise to the conventions of zájù: the four acts follow the female lead (zhèngdàn 正旦, here the soul-Qiànnǚ) through separation, travel, longing, and reunion. The play exemplifies the lìqíng 麗情 (romantic) sub-genre of zájù, in contrast to the gōng’àn 公案 mode of Dòu É Yuān KR4k0037.
The Zāng Jìn edition (Yuánqǔ xuǎn 元曲選, 1615–16) is the standard received text.
Translations and research
- Birch, Cyril, tr. 1980. Anthology of Chinese literature, vol. 1. Grove Press. Partial translation.
- Crump, James I. 1990. Chinese theater in the days of Kublai Khan. CCS (Michigan).
- Shih, Chung-wen. 1976. The golden age of Chinese drama: Yuan tsa-chu. PUP.
- Idema, Wilt L., and Stephen H. West. 1982. Chinese theater, 1100–1450: A source book. Steiner.
- Sieber, Patricia. 2003. Theaters of desire: Authors, readers, and the reproduction of early Chinese song-drama, 1300–2000. Palgrave.
Links
- Wikidata: Q1432817