Caoxueqin Legend
01 · Historical Records
The Cao Xueqin legend is a folk legend current mainly in the area of Xiangshan, Shou'an mountain and Jin mountain in Beijing, taking Cao Xueqin himself and The Dream of the Red Chamber as its subject, and belongs to the figure legends. After Cao Xueqin's death the legends about him were further strengthened, gradually attaching the local customs, hills, waters and scenery, historical stories and figure allusions to them, so that Cao Xueqin, apart from a great writer, took on something of the colour of a chivalrous and resourceful figure.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The Cao Xueqin (Western Hills) legend is a collective oral creation of the people of the Xiangshan area, transmitted for more than two hundred years. Its content touches Cao Xueqin's life experience, character and appearance and outstanding talent and the prototypes of the characters and the creative environment of The Dream of the Red Chamber, expressing people's love for Cao Xueqin and the novel and reflecting from one side the influence of the writer and the work on society. In the course of oral transmission it was continually worked over, its legendary colour deepening day by day, displaying the ideas, moral concepts, attitude to life and aesthetic taste of the people of the Western Hills area of Beijing and their judgement of all kinds of objective things, with the feature of reflecting social life widely and profoundly. It was continually worked over in oral transmission, its legendary colour deepening, displaying the ideas, moral concepts and aesthetic taste of the people of the Western Hills area of Beijing.
Legends of Cao Xueqin's Life
Western Hills legends on Cao Xueqin's life experience.
Legends of the Character Prototypes of The Dream of the Red Chamber
Folk legends about the prototypes of the characters of The Dream of the Red Chamber.
Legends of the Chivalrous and Resourceful Figure
Legends in which Cao Xueqin is portrayed as a chivalrous and resourceful figure.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The Cao Xueqin (Western Hills) legend is a folk legend current mainly in the area called the small Western Hills of Xiangshan, Shou'an mountain and Jin mountain in Beijing, taking Cao Xueqin himself and The Dream of the Red Chamber as its subject and belonging to the figure legends. After Cao Xueqin's death, as time passed, the legends about him were further strengthened, gradually attaching the local customs, hills, waters and scenery, historical stories and figure allusions to them and adding them to Cao Xueqin, so that apart from a great writer he took on something of the colour of a chivalrous and resourceful figure.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
The Cao Xueqin (Western Hills) legend is a precious cultural heritage handed down through the collective transmission of the people, but because of the movement of population, the death of the old one after another and the diversification of forms of entertainment, it is at present in an endangered state. It is rich in content, touching Cao Xueqin's life experience, character and appearance and outstanding talent and the prototypes of the characters and the creative environment of The Dream of the Red Chamber.
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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