Novel 'Water Margin'

Water Margin 水浒传�（Shui Hu Zhuan）

~IN PROGRESS~

Outlaws of the Marsh or All Men Are Brothers One of the 4 classics 108 outlaws in the Song Dynasty (“Water Margin”) Mid 16th century 100 chapters long (earliest full edition) 120 chapters and 70 chapters editions Chapters were only loosely connected

Shi Nai'an: 70 chapters Luo Guanzhong: last 30 chapters and editor 2 Theories Luo: student of Shi Nai'an

                     or 

Shi Nai’an didn’t exist and was only Luo Guanzhong’s pseudonym. Source: (“Water Margin”)

Shi Nai’an 施耐庵 (1296—1371) Shi Nai'an backwards is An Nai Shi, which means "It is I again” (“Water Margin”) May have been a pseudonym to protect Luo Guanzhong from the anti-government sentiments found in Water Margin (Luo Guanzhong)

Luo Guanzhong 罗贯中 (1330?-1400?) Romance of the Three Kingdoms, one of the four classics and the first historical novel in China ("The Four Great Classical Novels”)

Folk stories (Robin Hood) Outlaw named Song Jian and his 36 companions Operated in the Huai River region Defeated and surrendered to the government in 1121 Precursor: “Old incidents in Xuanhe period of the great Song Dynasty” (Da Song Xuanhe Yishi 大宋宣和遗事) from the 13th century Yuan dramas Source: (“Water Margin”)

787 characters, more than any other novel in the world ("Outlaws of the Marsh”) heroes: Stars of 36 Heavenly Spirits and 72 Earthly Fiends Villains: Prime Minister Gao Qiu, Imperial Tutor Cai Jing, and eunuchs Tong Guan and Yang Jiang (Miyamoto 2011)

Daoist sage sealed them under a stone monument. An arrogant court official had the monument opened. Divine Mission: Justice Loyalty to the emperor. Song Jiang dies as the martyr (Miyamoto 2011)

“There is a theory that Water Margin became popular during the Yuan Dynasty as the common people (predominantly Han Chinese) resented the Mongolian rulers. The outlaws' rebellion was deemed "safe" to promote as it was supposedly a negative reflection of the fallen Song Dynasty. Concurrently, the rebellion was also a call for the common people to rise up against corruption in the government. Chongzhen Emperor banned the book to suppress rebels as per his official's advice but his rule was too short” (“Water Margin”).

水滸伝（すいこでん） Was translated into Japanese in 1757 or earlier. Woodblock prints Very popular Source: ("Water Margin 水浒传" )

"Luo Guanzhong - One of the Great Writers in Chinese History". Cultural-china.com. Cultural China. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. <http://history.cultural-china.com/en/50History6323.html>.

Miyamoto, Yoko. "Water Margin: Chinese Robin Hood and His Bandits - Demystifying Confucianism." Demystifying Confucianism. 2011. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. <http://www.demystifyingconfucianism.info/water-margin>.

"Outlaws of the Marsh - One of the Four Great Chinese Classical Novels." History.cultural-china.com. Culture History. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. <http://history.cultural-china.com/en/60History148.html>.

"Shi Nai'an - One of the Great Writers in Chinese History". Http://history.cultural-china.com. Cultural China. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. <http://history.cultural-china.com/en/50History6308.html>.

"The Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese Literature." Cultural-china.com. Cultural China. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. <http://history.cultural-china.com/en/50H6308H12126.html>.

"Water Margin（Shui Hu Zhuan)." Http://history.cultural-china.com. Cultural China. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. <http://history.cultural-china.com/en/50H6308H12124.html>.