What literary works satirize reality?

The Scholars is a novel written by Wu in Qing Dynasty, with 56 chapters (it is generally believed that the last one was not written by Wu), about 400,000 words and nearly 200 words. Under the guise of the Ming Dynasty, the novel actually describes the fame and life of scholars under the imperial examination system in Kanggan period.

The Scholars is an outstanding realistic satirical novel in the history of China literature. It truly describes the ups and downs of intellectuals' life, ups and downs of circumstances, gains and losses of fame, ups and downs of official career, lofty sentiments, advocacy and disillusionment of ideals, and exploration and pursuit of the way out during the Kanggan period. Although the story of the book has no backbone, there is one center that runs through it, that is, opposing the poison of the imperial examination system and feudal ethics and satirizing the extremely hypocritical and bad social habits created by the passion for fame and fortune.

The Scholars is a model of China's ancient satirical literature, which not only directly influenced modern condemnation theory, but also profoundly inspired modern satirical literature. The late Qing Dynasty condemned novels, such as Adventures Witnessed in Twenty Years, Officialdom Appearing, Wandering Old Handicapped, Flowers of Evil, etc. , are the remnants of scholars.