Zhanguo Ce

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The Zhanguo Ce ( Chinese 戰 國策 / 战 国策 ; Pinyin : Zhànguó Cè; Wade-Giles : Chan-kuo Ts'e; “Strategies of the Warring States”) is a well-known classic work of Chinese literature about the Warring States period , which Compiled by Liu Xiang during the Western Han Dynasty . It is of great importance for exploring the Warring States Period, among other things. It reports on the strategies and political views of the “School of Negotiations” and conveys a picture of the historical and social conditions at that time.

Author, title and versions

The author of the Zhanguo Ce cannot be determined with certainty. During the time of the Western Han Dynasty, while Liu Xiang was editing the Imperial Literary Collection, six versions of the "School of Negotiation" texts were discovered that were in very poor condition and with gaps. Liu Xiang revised these texts and summarized them in a new work, the Zhanguo Ce . So it is not the work of a single author.

In the centuries that followed, parts of the Zhanguo Ce were lost. At the time of the Northern Song Dynasty , Zeng Gong stated that he had found some of the lost chapters and edited the "modern" version. In 1973, during an excavation at a burial site from the time of the Han dynasty near Mawangdui near Changsha, some texts were found on textiles, which were published in 1976 in Beijing under the title Zhanguo Zonghengjia Shu (Wade-Giles: Chan-kuo Tsung-heng- chia Shu ; "Texts of the School of Negotiations from the Warring States"). The book contains 27 chapters, eleven of which have a strong resemblance to corresponding chapters in Zhanguo Ce and Shiji . The publication was published in Taiwan in 1977 under the title Boshu Zhanguo Ce (Wade-Giles: Po-shu Chan-kuo Ts'e ).

structure

The Zhan Guo Ce is a chronicle of the history of the Warring States Period v from the conquest of the Zhi family in 490th Until the failed assassination attempt on Qin Shi Huangdi by Gao Jianli in 221 BC. Chr.

The book contains approximately 120,000 words and is divided into 33 chapters ( Chinese 卷 ; juàn) or 497 sections. It includes events from twelve states:

  • Dong Zhou Ce (Strategies of the Eastern Zhou ) - 1 chapter
  • Xi Zhou Ce (Strategies of Western Zhou ) - 1 chapter
  • Qin Ce (Strategies of Qin ) - 5 chapters
  • Qi Ce (Strategies of Qi ) - 6 chapters
  • Chu Ce (Strategies of Chu ) - 4 chapters
  • Zhao Ce (strategies of Zhao ) - 4 chapters
  • Wei Ce (Strategies of Wei ) - 4 chapters
  • Han Ce (strategies of Han ) - 3 chapters
  • Yan Ce (strategies of Yan ) - 3 chapters
  • Song Wei Ce (strategies of Song and Wey ) - 1 chapter
  • Zhongshan Ce (Strategies of Zhongshan ) - 1 Chapter

Literary criticism

The Zhanguo Ce describes social conditions and gives an impression of scholarship at the time of the Warring States. It is not only of historical importance, but also an excellent literary work. Important events and historical information are presented in very objective and lively descriptions for the time. Detailed accounts of the speeches and actions of the followers of the School of Negotiation clearly convey their mentality and intellectual achievements. The righteousness, courage, and determination of numerous characters are also reported. The intellectual inclinations of the school of negotiation are presented and the multicultural aspects and the flowering of the intellectual life of the time are described.

In literary terms, the Zhanguo Ce marks the beginning of a new era in classical Chinese literature . Under various aspects, the representation of the characters, the use of language and the metaphorical reports in particular testify to a high and clear literary quality. The Zhanguo Ce strongly influenced the Shiji .

Regardless, the intellectual aspects of the work have been controversial. The main reason was its strong emphasis on fame and profit and its conflict with Confucian ideology . The work tends to overestimate the historical significance of the school of negotiation, which diminishes its historical value.

The Chinese proverb “If three people want to see a tiger, they all soon believe it” ( Chinese 三人 成 虎 ) comes from the Zhanguo Ce .

Translations

Excerpts from it were translated into German by Franz Huebotter as early as 1912 and published under the title From the Plans of the Warring States along with the corresponding biographies of the Se-ma Ts'ien . (Berlin, 1912)

  • Chan-kuo Ts'e (1996). Translated and annotated with an introduction by JI Crump. Revised ed. Center for Chinese Studies, The University of Michigan. ISBN 0-89264-122-3
  • Crump, JI (James Irving) (1998). Legends of the Warring States: Persuasions, Romances, and Stories from Chan-Kuo Tse (Michigan Monographs in Chinese Studies, 83 ). Center for Chinese Studies, The University of Michigan. ISBN 0-89264-129-0 (paperback). ISBN 0-89264-127-4 (hardcover).
  • He Jianzhang 何 建 章 (1990). Zhanguo ce zhushi战国策注释. Zhonghua shuju . ISBN 7-101-00622-1 .

literature

  • Tsuen-hsuin Tsien 錢 存 訓: Chan kuo ts'e 戰 國策. In: Michael Loewe (ed.): Early Chinese Texts. A Bibliographical Guide . Society for the Study of Early China / Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, 1993 pp. 1-11.
  • Crump, JI (1964). Intrigues of the Warring States: Studies of the Chan-kuo Ts'e . University of Michigan Press. Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 64-17440.
  • Hawkins, David. Review of Intrigues of the Warring States . JAOS . 86 (1966): 1.

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