BIBLID 0254-4466(2000)18:1 pp. 237-253 18 1 89 6 237
238
239 1 36 1 22 250 351 4415 353 4426
240 2 36 2 1998 1040-1076
241 3 4 3 1983 4 1991 9
242 25 36 108 108
243 5 6 5 1 1979 3-14 6 1992 300
244 7 8 7 1995 8 1970 24
245 9 9 1987 18
246 10 10 6 302
247 11 11 1989 355
248 12 13 14 12 119 1794 13 1787 14 114 1706
249 15 16 15 1952 281 16 120 1811
250 17 17 1829
251 18 19 20 18 110 19 33 20 1987 228
252 108 21 22 21 1017 22 3 1981 283
253 An Investigation on Tragic Forms in the 70-chapter and 120-chapter Shuihu Zhuan Fu Zhengling Abstract The Shuihu zhuan conveys an anti-society message on a very basic level, and in different times its narrative served as a vehicle for the expression of different anti-society sentiments. The 120-chapter version of the Shuihu zhuan written in the Ming Dynasty continues the zhao an theme of the Southern Song colloquial stories, in which rulers affirm the courage and ability of rebels by offering them amnesty in return for government service. In the 70-chapter version of the Qing Dynasty, Jin Shengtan removed all of the passages dealing with the zhao an theme. In this later version, the values of loyalty and righteousness, which are expressed in more humanistic terms, are embodied solely in the words and deeds of knights-errant existing outside of mainstream society. Affected by the times in which they were written, the 120-chapter and 70- chapter versions of the Shuihu zhuan display differences in structure and tragic motif. The greatest difference in structure lies in the way the ending is handled. In the 120-chapter version, where the rebels first leave and ultimately return to mainstream society, the tragic motif is imbued with Confucian overtones. In the 70-chapter version, the dissolution of the rebels wildness as they ascend to heaven at the close of the story reveals a Taoist life view. Key Words: Shuihu Zhuan, tragic motif, Jin Shengtan, Confucianism, Taoism