The Four Great Classical Novels, or the Four Major Classical Novels (Chinese: 四大名著; pinyin: sì dà míng zhù) of Chinese literature, are the four novels commonly counted by scholars to be the greatest and most influential of classical Chinese fiction. Well known to most Chinese readers of the 21th century, they are not to be confused with the Four Books of Confucianism.
Four Great Classics
The Four Great Classical Novels are considered to be the pinnacle of China's achievement in classical novels, influencing the creation of many stories, theater, movies, games, and other entertainment throughout East Asia including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.
In chronological order, they are:
- Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Chinese: 三國演義; pinyin: sān guó yǎn yì) (14th century) (more recently translated as, simply, Three Kingdoms)
- Water Margin (Chinese: 水滸傳; pinyin: shuǐ hǔ zhuàn) (also known as Outlaws of the Marsh) (14th century),
- Journey to the West (Chinese: 西遊記; pinyin: xī yóu jì) (16th century) also known as Monkey.
- Dream of the Red Chamber (Chinese: 紅樓夢; pinyin: hóng lóu mèng) (also known as The Story of the Stone, (Chinese: 石頭記; pinyin: shí tóu jì) (18th century)
History
The original concept of the Four Great Classical Novels (simplified Chinese: 四大奇书; traditional Chinese: 四大奇書) was already established by the Late-Ming, Early-Qing Dynasties. Li Yu, in an introduction to Romance of the Three Kingdoms, noted that Feng Menglong's description of the Four Great Classical Novels included Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Water Margin, Journey to the West, and Jin Ping Mei (The Plum in the Golden Vase or Golden Lotus).
After the publication of Dream of the Red Chamber, a new concept of the Four Great Classical Novels (Chinese: 四大名著; pinyin: sì dà míng zhù) was created, replacing Jin Ping Mei with Dream of the Red Chamber.
The "Fifth" Great Classical Novel
Because of its explicit descriptions of sex, Jin Ping Mei has been banned for most of its existence. Despite this, some scholars and writers, including Lu Xun place it among the top Chinese novels. Among literary scholars, the novel is still highly regarded. Thus it is sometimes considered to be the fifth classical novel.[citation needed]
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