The phrase "literati are light" comes from Cao Pi's "Treatise on Classics". He began by saying: "Literati are light and have been since ancient times. However, regarding "since ancient times", Cao Pi only started from the Eastern Han Dynasty.
He said that Fu Yi and Ban Gu were equally talented, like Bo Zhong. But Ban Gu despised Fu Yi. Ban Gu wrote to his younger brother Ban Chao: "Wu Zhong, with the no-one text as the history of Lantai Lingshi, cannot stop writing. ”
Cao Pi's words turned and said, "Madame is good at seeing herself, while the literature is not one, and it is rare to be good, it is based on each of its own strengths, and the light is short." The saying goes: 'The family has a broom, and it is worth a thousand dollars.' 'Si does not see the affliction also. Today's literati: Lu Guo Kong Rong Wenju, Guangling Chen Lin Kong Zhang, Shanyang Wang Yue Zhongxuan, Beihai Xu GanweiChang, Chen Liu Ruan Yu Yuanyu, Runan Ying Yue Delian, Dongping Liu Zhen Gonggan, Si Qizi, Yu Xue left nothing to lose, Yu Zhi did not fake anything, Xian Thought of Himself as a HorseMan in a Thousand Miles, Leaning On Foot and Running Together. In this way, it is also difficult! Gai Junzi judges himself to be a man, so he can avoid being tired and write a thesis. Then, Cao Pi broke open and kneaded it, and explained a lot of truth.
From Cao Pi's article, three things can be determined -- first, Cao Pi's "literati are light" is aimed at a specific phenomenon similar to what is now called "literary criticism". Second, he said, "Literature is not one, it is rare to be good, it is based on each of its strengths, and it is the short of each other," which determined the specific meaning of "literati being light on each other," that is, in "literary and art criticism," taking one's own strengths and "lightening" others' "not long." Third, Cao Wen's focus is on what the most critical criterion for judging should be, no matter what style it is.
Cao Pi
Everyone knows that Cao Pi's younger brother Cao Zhi has seven steps of talent, in fact, Cao Pi's talent is also very good. The book "Treatise on Classics" has died, but this "Treatise" has been preserved because it was included in the "Anthology" by Xiao Tong, the eldest son of Emperor Xiao Yan of Liangwu in the Southern Dynasty.
This "Treatise on Classics" is considered to be the first "treatise" on "literary and art criticism" in China, and the height of the stand and the essence of the discussion are breathtaking.
In the early 1930s, the famous scholar, journalist and writer Mr. Cao Juren specially studied Cao Pi's article. He concluded that Cao Pi's words were light on the literati, "all accusations are limited to the scope of production", and all other "attacks" are "not included".
Qian Yong, a scholar and calligrapher in the middle of the Qing Dynasty, wrote in his "Shuyuan Cong dialect, Calligraphy and General Theory" Yun: "Too shou laughs at the two dukes, and the two dukes laugh too much, although the literati are light, since ancient times, and it is said that the three dukes must be passed on, and those who can compete with Song Xue and Si Weng for the seat, then I do not dare to believe it." ”
Qian Yong
The matter that Qian Yong talked about started from Liu Yong's calligraphy. The Kangxi Emperor loved Dong Qichang's calligraphy, and the Qianlong Emperor admired Zhao Mengfu, so Dong Zhao's calligraphy became popular all over the world. Liu Yong did not follow the usual path and became a family of his own. Qian Yong said that Taishou Wang Wenzhi laughed at the calligraphy of the two dukes (Liu Yong and Liang Tongshu), who in turn laughed at the calligraphy of Taishou Wang Wenzhi. He said that these three people could compete with Zhao Mengfu of the "SongXue Daoist" and Dong Qichang of the "Trumpet Si Weng", but he did not believe it.
Qian Yong quoted Cao Pi's original words; moreover, he still used them in the original meaning of "literary criticism" that Cao Pi spoke; furthermore, what he said was by no means sarcastic and sarcastic. In the text, he evaluated Liu Yong's calligraphy, although it is only a family statement, it belongs to the normal artistic discussion.
It can be seen that until then, "literati are light on each other" and are still understood and used within the scope of "literary and artistic criticism".
When was the meaning of "literati light" expanded, or translated?
It should be in the Republic of China.
Take a look at Lu Xun's "Two Collections of Miscellaneous Essays on The Pavilion of Jieting". It contains seven articles written by Lu Xunlian on "literati are light on each other".
The title of the first article is "Literati Are Light". Lu Xun said: "In the so-called literary circles, the previous year there was a clamor of 'literati having no deeds'; last year, there was a 'Beijing faction and a Maritime faction'; this year, a new slogan was issued, called 'literati are light on each other'. This article was written in the twenty-fourth year of the Republic of China (1935).
Lin Yutang
This incident arose from Lin Yutang's article "Doing And Being a Man" published in the Analects in January of the 24th year of the Republic of China (1935). Lin Yutang's general point of view is that the literati are good and light, which is the same as the woman's evaluation of the head. Women do not dare to scold the warriors, so they scold each other, which is the same reason why prostitutes have always scolded prostitutes to please their clients. The problem is that he summed up the principled debates between the different literary camps of the time, and the "art criticism" of the same literary camp, to "prostitutes cursing prostitutes in order to please their clients", which is very inappropriate.
Therefore, Lu Xun soon wrote a second article, "On the Lightness of the Literati". Lu Xun said in the article: "This year's so-called 'literati are light on each other' not only confuses black and white slogans, but also covers the darkness of the literary world, but also gives some people 'hanging sheep's heads and selling dog meat'. ”
The next five articles are because someone named Wei Jinzhi and others wrote articles, which on the surface are "peace and thin mud", but in essence they are also against literary and art criticism, and Lu Xun has written them one after another.
Lu Xun's view is that the true intellectual should be able to maintain the independence of thought and the dignity of the personality, dare to argue about social issues, and at the same time respect the personality and personality of other intellectuals. That is to say, intellectuals must dare to compete with each other on issues and dare to compete with each other. It can also maintain the blind date between the intellectuals, and the weight is not light. In any case, literary criticism cannot be without.
I don't know if it began with this "controversy" that lasted for a long time, the term "literati are light" has entered the folk and has been "stigmatized", as if since ancient times, there has always been a bad habit of "lightness" among literati.
Indeed, some influential dictionaries have also explained it this way, saying that "the inferiority of the literati was a bad habit among the literati of the old times." In this way, it is inevitable to understand that "literati are light on each other".
Reese
The controversy among the literati began at least from the Controversy of the Hundred Schools of Thought in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States. It is this kind of debate that has greatly advanced ideological progress and academic prosperity. Are there any discord or grudges between the literati? Definitely. For example, Li Si's jealousy of Han Fei. After Han Fei's death, Qin Shi Huang also regretted it.
However, among the ancient literati, there were undoubtedly more mutual learning and deep friendships. Looking at Tang poems, you can know that whether it is Li Bai's sending Wang Lun, or Du Fu's dream Li Bai, as well as Liu Yuxi and Bai Juyi's friendship, that is, exchanging poems, and so on, there are countless examples.
There is an idiom called "every person says Xiang", which means that Yang Jingzhi of the Tang Dynasty respected Xiang Si and wrote a poem: "I don't understand the goodness of Tibetans in my life, and everyone says Xiang Si everywhere", which is a good story. Therefore, it is best to return to the original meaning of Cao Pi's "literati are light" to understand this sentence.
Moreover, the biased perception that the literati of the old days generally had bad habits of mutual contempt should be reversed. It should be said that even in ancient times, another kind of "literati being light" other than "literary criticism" was by no means a common phenomenon. In this way, there is no need to dig into the root cause of this other kind of "literati being light".
Similarly, most of the foreign literati also respect each other and interact with each other, and there has always been the same "literati light on each other" as China's "literary and art criticism". Of course, there are also special cases like Rousseau who "turned their faces and did not recognize people" to Voltaire and Hume, who had helped him a lot.
Don't think that the moon in a foreign country is rounder than in China, and don't think that foreign literati must be much nobler than Chinese literati.