What is the major impact of the Shiji on Chinese historiography and culture?

I. Creation of the "Chronicle" style

Ji refers to the main chronicle, i.e., the biography of the emperor, and Chuan refers to the biographies of general ministers and various characters. Sima Qian, on the basis of his predecessors, creatively explored the method of compiling history with the characters as the main body by the structure of five bodies in the Shiji, namely, Benci, Tables, Books, Shijia, and Lianzhuan.

Ben Ji chronologically recounts the words, deeds and achievements of the emperors and kings; Table chronologically lists the major events of each period; Book records the evolution of various rules and regulations; and Family Records records the history of the emperors and kings; and Book records the history of the emperors and kings; and Family Records records the history of the emperors and kings. The "book" records the evolution of various rules and regulations; "family" describes the rise and fall of the vassal states and the performance of outstanding people; "biography" records the activities of various representative figures. Sima Qian creatively synthesized these five genres to form a complete unified system.

Two, created a political, economic, ethnic, cultural and other knowledge of the comprehensive method of compiling the history of the Shiji correction Wang Shumin

The Shiji is China's first large-scale, through the past and present, the content of the encyclopedic encyclopedic general history. In the Historical Records, Sima Qian was the first to write biographies of economic history: Ping Zhun Shu and Cargo Shik Lian Zhuan; he was also the first to write biographies of ethnic minorities: Xiongnu Lian Zhuan and Southwestern Barbarians Lian Zhuan; and he was the first to write biographies of humble people: Assassins Lian Zhuan, and Travelers Lian Zhuan.

The Records of the Grand Historian, for the first time, political, economic and cultural aspects of the study of history, thus opening up a new field of historical research, and promote the development of Chinese historiography. Because the biography can accommodate a wide range of content, a certain degree of flexibility, and can reflect the feudal hierarchical relations, and therefore this method of writing history, for successive generations of historians used, the impact is very far-reaching.

Third, the pen is straight, is China's valuable tradition of historiography, Sima Qian's "Records of the Grand Historian" has a very good play

The so-called pen is straight, that is, the historian must be faithful to the historical facts, neither over-emphasis, nor demanding, in accordance with the original appearance of the history of history written history. The Historical Records clearly expresses its opposition to the practice of "praising or overdoing the faults, destroying or undermining the truth".

For the pre-Qin legalists and the tyranny of the Qin Dynasty, Sima Qian was emotionally resentful, but he managed not to increase his hatred. On the contrary, he fully recognized the reforms of the Legalists and the historical role of the Qin Dynasty in the unification of China. It is precisely because of Sima Qian's spirit of factual record that the Shiji is famous for its credibility.

There is also an important thread running through the Shiji that emphasizes the historical role of man. Sima Qian was against the Mandate of Heaven. He emphasized that man is the center of history. Therefore, he wrote about the emperor and generals at the same time, pay attention to all kinds of people in the society, especially the peasant revolt leader Chen Sheng, Wu Guang, put on an equal footing with the king and vassal as well as the saint of the feudal society, Confucius, to write. Therefore, in the Records of the Grand Historian, there are the families of the seven warring states, the family of Prime Minister Xiao He, the family of Marquis Liou (Zhang Liang), the family of the seven warring states, and the family of the seven warring states. The family of the Marquis of Liou (Zhang Liang), the family of Confucius, and also the Chen Shibu Family.

Sima Qian also emphasized the role of material production activities in history, and closely linked the economic situation with the rise and fall of political power. He also emphasized summarizing historical experience. He also emphasized the idea of summarizing historical experience and put forward the idea of using history as a mirror to learn from the past. Because of Sima Qian in the history of codification of the great creative spirit, his progressive historiography and rigorous method of history, so that the "Historical Records" has become China's history of a towering monument, Sima Qian also won the "father of Chinese historiography," the name of the beautiful.

Four, "the Records of the Grand Historian" is also a vivid image of historical biography

"Records of the Grand Historian" of literary excellence has always been praised by China's literary circles, it has created China's biographical literature precedent. Sima Qian is like an excellent painter, with his very vivid brush, for us to draw a vivid portrait of the characters; and like a good at capturing the moment of the sculptor, with his sharp knife, for us to shape a different style of the statue.

In the gallery of characters in the "Records of the Grand Historian", we can not only see the heroism of the kings and lords of history, but also see the brilliant plan to hide themselves, the scholars and diners, a hundred schools of thought of the pre-Qin scholars, the assassin of the "death of a confidant," the ranger who has promised to be sincere, the merchants of the king and lords of the rich and powerful, as well as the doctors and diviners, haiku and other characters, and so on. It is also a great opportunity for people to enjoy the beauty and enlightenment of the mind.

Sima Qian creatively melted literature and history into one furnace, and wrote an image of history for us. Therefore, Mr. Lu Xun praised the "Records of the Grand Historian" as "the last song of the Historian, the unrhymed "Li Sao"". Because of this, among the vast historical works in ancient China, the Shiji has the largest readership.

[Edit Paragraph]Later Evaluation

The birth of the Shiji, in terms of the specific development of Chinese historiography, the contribution of the Shiji is enormous.

I. Establishment of an outstanding genre of general history

The Historical Records is the first masterpiece of general history in the history of Chinese historiography that covers the ancient and modern worlds and a hundred generations. It is no exaggeration to say that it is the most brilliant achievement in the history of ancient Chinese historiography or that it is the most brilliant achievement in the history of ancient world historiography. This will be clear if we compare it with Herodotus' History. It is precisely because the Shiji was able to synthesize the ancient and the modern into a single book, which set a precedent and an example, that the revision of history in this style has been followed in succession. The style of general history has been influencing the research and writing of history in modern times.

Two, the establishment of the independent status of historiography

China's ancient times, history is included in the scope of economics without its own independent status. So the history of the book in Liu Xin's "seven liao" and Ban Gu's "art and literature", are attached to the "spring and autumn" of the back. After Sima Qian finished the "Historical Records", more and more authors followed, and more and more specialized works of history were written. Therefore, Castor Xun of the Jin Dynasty adapted to the new requirements, and divided the canonical books into four parts: Part A of the six arts of elementary school, Part B of the military arts of the sons, Part C of the historical records of the Emperor's view, and Part D of the poetry, fugu, and picture praise. Thus, the history of a door, in the Chinese academic field to obtain an independent status. This achievement should be attributed to Sima Qian and his "Historical Records".

Three, the establishment of the literary tradition of historical biography

Shi Ma Qian's literary training is profound, and his artistic methods are particularly skillful. Often some kind of extremely complex facts, he is placed very appropriate, orderly, and then far sight, high insight, vivid words, pen power refined, full of feelings, handwritten, not words and gas, image bright and fast, so that people "exclaimed knuckles, do not know the reason why". ("Rongzhai Suibi - Shi Ji Jane wonderful")

But it must be especially pointed out that, due to Sima Qian by the limitations of the times, the "Historical Records" there are certain shortcomings and shortcomings. For example, there is the influence of the mystical ideas of the "Mandate of Heaven", calamities and the cyclical theory of history. In the Preface to the Chronology of the Six Kingdoms, when discussing the reasons for Qin's annexation of the world, it is stated that it was the result of "heaven's help". In the Chronicle of Emperor Gaozu, there is a color of "the cyclic theory of the three unities", thinking that "the way of the three or five kingdoms is like a cycle, which ends and begins again". In the Book of Heavenly Officials, the description of all kinds of special natural phenomena in the sky is often associated with personnel, which expresses the mysterious idea of calamities. These show that the Historical Records, in "investigating the interstices of the heavens and the people", still did not get rid of the influence of the theological thought of "induction of the heavens and the people".

[Edit Paragraph]Cultural Influence

The Historical Records had a wide and far-reaching influence on ancient novels, dramas, biographies and essays.

First of all, in general, as the first large-scale work centered on characterization in China, the Shiji provided an important foundation and many possibilities for the development of literature in later generations. The Peking Opera "The Orphan of Zhao"

The Historical Records, although written about actual historical characters, actually typifies them through "interplay", i.e., by highlighting some of the main characteristics of the characters, by contrasting different characters, and by fictionalizing the details. This phenomenon is found in the early literature of all nations, and it is one of the ways in which human beings recognize themselves through artistic means. It is only in Chinese literature that the first typed characters appeared in historical writings, which is a special case.

The Shiji thus established a number of important archetypes for Chinese literature. In the novels and dramas of later generations, many of the characters of emperors, heroes, chivalrous men, and officials evolved from the characters of the Shiji.