Chinese Journal of Literary Criticism

No.3, 2021

Conceptual Emphasis on “Writing Subtlety” in Ancient Chinese Novel Commentary

(Abstract)

Li Guikui

Jin Shengtan, Zhang Zhupo, Feng Zhenluan as well as Mao Lun and his son Mao Zonggang are among the novel commentators whose arguments have developed into a conceptual emphasis on “subtlety in writing.” These commentators suggest that the reading and commentary of novel should not be confined to the appreciation of the storyline. Instead, the focal point lies in the unity and coherence in writing, such as creation and mutability. Thus, they scrutinize the subleties of textual creation, while employing the discourse of “ingenious picturesque scene” to complement the delicate textual construction. Other than seek a higher status of novel as a genre, such novel commentary is a public revelation of the aesthetic effect of text.