40 book names

1. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms (a novel written by Luo Guanzhong)

The Romance of the Three Kingdoms is one of the four classic Chinese classics and the first full-length historical romance novel in China. It is "The Popular Romance of the Three Kingdoms" (also known as "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms"), written by Luo Guanzhong, a famous novelist in the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties. After the "Popular Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written, several versions including the Jiajing Renwu edition were handed down to the world. At the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, Mao Zonggang reorganized the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", revised the diction, and changed the poems.

"The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" describes the historical events of nearly a hundred years from the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty to the early years of the Western Jin Dynasty. It mainly describes wars and tells the story of the war between the heroes in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and the war between Wei, Shu and Wu. The story of Sima Yan finally unified the three kingdoms and established the Jin Dynasty. It reflects the transformation of various social struggles and contradictions in the Three Kingdoms era, summarizes the great historical changes of this era, and creates a group of all-powerful heroes of the Three Kingdoms.

2. Water Margin (one of the four classic Chinese classics)

"Water Margin", one of the four great Chinese classics, is a story based on the Songjiang Uprising in the late Northern Song Dynasty. It is a chapter-length novel with a heroic legend in terms of background and type. The author or editor is generally considered to be Shi Naian, and most of the existing publications are signed by either Shi Naian or Luo Guanzhong, or both.

"Water Margin" is one of the earliest chapter novels written in vernacular Chinese in Chinese history. After the publication of "Water Margin", it had a huge impact on society and became a model for Chinese novel creation in later generations. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, multiple versions of the sequel to "Water Margin" appeared. There were also many novels and dramas based on the stories in "Water Margin". For example, the Ming Dynasty's novel "Jin Ping Mei" was adapted from "Water Margin". It developed from the plot of Wu Song killing his sister-in-law.

In addition, "Water Margin" has been translated into many languages ​​and spread in many foreign countries. For example, it spread to Japan and North Korea in the 18th century. One of the earliest novels in North Korea, "The Story of Hong Gildong" and The creation of the Japanese novel "The Legend of the Eight Dogs" written by Kottei Maqin was influenced by "Water Margin". In the 19th century, "Water Margin" spread to European and American countries, and translations in German, French, and English appeared.

3. Journey to the West

"Journey to the West", also known as CCTV's 86 version of "Journey to the West", is adapted from the literary classic of the same name by Wu Cheng'en, a novelist of the Ming Dynasty. It is a 41-episode costume myth drama produced by China International Television Corporation. The play tells the story of Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Seng, who help protect the eminent monk Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty when he goes to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures. The four masters and apprentices rush to the beach and take risks along the way, subjugate monsters, go through eighty-one difficulties, retrieve the scriptures, and finally correct the results. story.

4. A Dream of Red Mansions

"A Dream of Red Mansions" is an ancient Chinese chapter novel, also known as "The Story of the Stone", etc. It is listed as the first of the four classic Chinese classics and is generally considered to be the first of the Qing Dynasty novels. Written by contemporary writer Cao Xueqin. The novel takes the rise and fall of the four major families of Jia, Shi, Wang, and Xue as the background, and takes the wealthy young master Jia Baoyu as the perspective. It depicts the various life styles of a group of boudoir beauties who behave and know things better than men, and shows the true beauty and harmony of human nature. Tragic beauty can be said to be an epic that shows female beauty from all angles.

"A Dream of Red Mansions" is a human love novel with world influence. It is universally recognized as the pinnacle of Chinese classical novels, an encyclopedia of Chinese feudal society, and a master of traditional culture. The novel insists on "the main theme talks about love and records the actual events". It only follows its own circumstances and circumstances, follows the traces, gets rid of the old stereotypes, is fresh and unique, and achieves extraordinary artistic achievements. "

The special writing style of "hiding the truth and telling lies" opened the minds of later generations of readers and led to more speculations over time. In later generations, a prominent study—Redology—was formed around the study of reading and reading of "Dream of Red Mansions".

5. Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio (Collection of Classical Chinese Short Stories by Pu Songling)

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" (referred to as "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio", commonly known as "The Legend of the Ghost Fox") is a Chinese novel from the Qing Dynasty A collection of classical Chinese short stories written by Pu Songling. There are 491 short stories in the whole book (Zhang Youhe's "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio") (Zhang Youhe's "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio") (Zhu Qikai's "The Complete New Notes from a Chinese Studio" contains 494 short stories).

They either expose the darkness of feudal rule, criticize the corruption of the imperial examination system, or resist the shackles of feudal ethics. They have rich and profound ideological content. There are the largest number of works describing the theme of love in the whole book, and they express a strong anti-feudal etiquette spirit. Some of these works express the author's ideal love through the love between flower demons and foxes.