2025, Vol., No.99

Journal of Chinese Language and Literature 2024 KCI Impact Factor : 0.36

pISSN : 1225-083X
https://journal.kci.go.kr/clsyn

This study analyzes the muzhiming (funerary inscriptions) of Wang Anshi, a prominent Song-dynasty writer, in order to clarify the narrative principles and stylistic features that define their literary and ideological significance. Wang Anshi regarded muzhiming as public records, emphasizing factual accuracy, formal structure, and moral instruction, while rejecting emotional embellishment and private requests. He departed from the conventional chronological arrangement to focus on the subject’s spirit and ideas, employing xujing (虛景) to convey emotion with restraint and depth. Moreover, his muzhiming exhibit a critical and discursive character that reflects on the social systems and moral values of his time. This analysis demonstrates that Wang Anshi’s muzhiming transcend simple commemorative writing, emerging as complex texts that combine factual record with philosophical reflection and offering an important example of the transformation of Song-dynasty prose.

Zeng Rui’s Liuxieji(留鞋記) diverges notably from typical Yuan dynasty ghost plays, which often feature protagonists returning as ghosts to seek justice after being murdered. In contrast, Guo Hua(郭華), the scholar in Liuxieji, dies by suicide and does not return as a ghost or engage in supernatural actions. Instead, he remains dead for seven days until Wang Yueying(王月英) retrieves the handkerchief he swallowed, leading to his resurrection and their reunion. Both his death and rebirth occur at Xiangguo Temple(相國寺), a site rich in historical and symbolic meaning. Once a royal Buddhist temple during the Northern Song dynasty, Xiangguo Temple represented religious sanctity as well as political and cultural vitality. Its decline following invasions by the Jurchens and Mongols mirrors the fall of the Song dynasty. In this light, Guo Hua’s resurrection at this temple becomes a symbolic act—a palimpsestic rewriting of history expressing a desire for dynastic restoration.

Ji Kang, an Anhui-born scholar, has a wide influence in the world, especially in Japan, which is separated from China by a strip of water. However, although Ji Kang has a far-reaching influence in Japan, there is a lack of research on his tolerance. As a part of the study on Ji Kang's reception in Japan, this paper sorts out and analyzes the research on Ji Kang in Japan, and draws the following conclusions: Japan's academic research on Ji Kang can be traced back to the 1950s, starting with two scholars, Shimizu Kiyosi and Hayasida Sinnosuke; In 1960s and 1970s, represented by Kouzen Hirosi, new research methods began to sprout, and ideological and cultural research was further developed; In the 1980s and 1990s, there was a great breakthrough in the number and scope of researchers, which not only realized the innovation of poetry research methods, but also opened up the research field of Ji Kang's music theory and health preservation. In the 21st century, while the number of researchers is further increasing, Ji Kang's research in various fields is constantly developing and prospering, especially in the field of theoretical research, which not only criticizes the old theory, but also establishes a link between Ji Kang's thought and hermit research.