Page:Eminent Chinese Of The Ch’ing Period - Hummel - 1943 - Vol. 2.pdf/44

 printed in 1752, the remainder in 1766; prose compositions in 27 chüan, of which the first 20 chüan were printed in 1759, the rest in 1767; a collection of verse in 4 chüan, entitled 矢音 Shih-yin (1753), written to match poems composed by the Emperor; notes on literary criticism, entitled 詩說晬語 Shih-shuo sui-yü (1731), in 2 chüan; a collection of tzŭ or poems in irregular meter (1767); essays designed to elucidate maps in the general gazetteer of Chekiang province, Chekiang t'ung-chih, which was ordered to be revised in 1731 and was published in 1736; and an autobiographical nien-p'u whose preface is dated 1764. His editorial activity resulted in the following anthologies of verse and prose of different periods: 古詩源 Ku-shih yüan, in 14 chüan (1725), being selected poems from dynasties prior to the T'ang; 唐詩別裁集 T'ang-shih pieh-ts'ai chi, 20 chüan, a T'ang anthology compiled in collaboration with Ch'ên Shu-tzŭ 陳樹滋, printed in 1717 but revised and enlarged in 1763; Ming (明) shih pieh-ts'ai chi, in 12 chüan (1739), a Ming anthology compiled with the help of Chou Chun 周準 ; Kuo-ch'ao (國朝) shih pieh-ts'ai chi, 36 chüan, poems of the early Ch'ing period, first edition 1759, revised edition in 32 chüan with a preface by the Emperor dated 1761; 唐宋八家文選 T'ang-Sung pa-chia wên-hsüan (1752), in 30 chüan, being selected essays from eight great masters of the T'ang and Sung periods; 吳中七子詩選 Wu-chung ch'i-tzŭ shih-hsüan (1753) in 14 chüan, selected poems by seven of his students, among them, , and ; and 杜詩偶評 Tu-shih ou-p'ing (1753), selected poems by Tu Fu (see under ) with critical annotations.

In the field of literary criticism Shên Tê-ch'ien promoted a revival of classicism, both in content and in form. He inclined to the view of Han Yü (see under ) that the function of literature is to advance morality. He asserted that poetry should perpetuate the morality of ancient periods, and maintain the form and style set by the Han, Wei, and Tang dynasties. He stressed the purpose, the form, and the so-called "spiritual atmosphere" (shên yün) which regarded as so important. But above all he stressed poetic form (格調說), as opposed to who emphasized genius and individuality (性靈說).

[1/311/3a; 3/84/21a; 7/18/23b; 20/2/00; 23/30/1a; 吳縣志 Wu-hsien chih (1933) 13/8b; Chekiang t'ung-chih (1736) 職名/4a; Goodrich, L. C., The Literary Inquisition of Ch'ien-lung, pp. 170–172; Aoki Seli 青木正兒,支那文學思想(下), 岩波講座東洋思潮 Iwanami kōza Tōyō shichō; Suzuki Torao 鈴木虎雄, Shina Shironshi (1925) pp. 208–210.]

2em

 SHÊN T'ing-fang 沈廷芳, Oct. 10, 1702–1772, Mar. 22, official and scholar, was born in Hai-ning, Chekiang, at the home of his maternal grandfather, Cha Shêng (see under ); but the ancestral abode of his family was in Jên-ho (Hangchow). He spent his boyhood in Peking in the residence which Emperor Shêng-tsu alloted to Cha Shêng. In 1736 he passed the po-hsüeh hung-tz'ŭ examination (see under ) and was appointed a bachelor in the Hanlin Academy where he later was made a compiler. As a collator in the Wu Ying Tien (see under ), he was assigned (1738) to assist in the preparation of the 1743–44 edition of the Ta-Ch'ing i-t'ung chih (see under ). In 1741 he was appointed censor and in 1743 was made inspector of grain transport in Shantung. Before long (1744) he was charged with abuse of his censorial privileges and was dismissed from office, but was soon pardoned and during the years 1744–48 was twice in Shantung as inspecting censor of grain transport. In 1748 he became intendant of the Têng-Lai-Ch'ing Circuit (登萊青道), Shantung, where he rebuilt schools and city walls. He took a sympathetic interest in the life of the people who in turn showed him much appreciation. In 1754 he was transferred to Honan as provincial judge, and early in the following year he went to the capital. There, in an audience with the Emperor, he requested leave to resign to look after his aged mother in Hangchow. In the autumn of the same year his mother died, and two years later he became principal of the Yüeh-hsiu Academy (粵秀書院) in Canton (1757–58). There he had charge of the compilation of the 廣州府志 Kuang-chou fu-chih, 60 chüan, printed in 1759. In 1758 he returned to Peking and received appointment as provincial judge of Shantung, a position in which he was greatly honored and loved. It was reported that when he left Tsinan to retire (1762) he was followed by a crowd of several thousand admirers to a distance of forty li. During the next few years he served as principal of three Academies: Ao-fêng Shu-yüan 鼇峯書院 in Foochow (1763–65), Tuan-hsi (端溪) Shu-yüan in Kao-yao, Kwang- 646