The commentarial transformation of the Spring and Autumn

354 Pages·2016·6.537 MB·English

by  Van Auken, Newell Ann

The Commentarial Transformation
of the Spring and Autumn
SUNY series in Chinese Philosophy and Culture
—————
Roger T. Ames, editor
The Commentarial Transformation
of the Spring and Autumn
Newell Ann Van Auken
Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
© 2016 State University of New York
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever
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Production, Jenn Bennett
Marketing, Fran Keneston
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Van Auken, Newell Ann.
Title: The commentarial transformation of the Spring and Autumn /
Newell Ann Van Auken.
Description: Albany : State University of New York Press, 2016. | Series:
SUNY series in Chinese philosophy and culture | Includes bibliographical
references.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016007691 (print) | LCCN 2016009380 (ebook) | ISBN
9781438462998 (hardcover : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781438463018 (e-book)
Subjects: LCSH: Zuoqiu, Ming. Zuo zhuan. | Confucius. Chun qiu.
Classification: LCC PL2470.Z7 V36 2016 (print) | LCC PL2470.Z7 (ebook) |
DDC 895.18/107—dc23
LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016007691
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To my teachers

Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Scholarly Conventions xiii
Introduction 1
Text, Commentary, and Authority 2
The Spring and Autumn: An Overview and Brief Reception
History 5
The Zuǒ Tradition and Spring and Autumn Commentary 8
Overview of the Book 11
Chapter 1
Orthodoxy and Transformation: Two Categories of Commentary 19
Dù Yù’s “Preface”: Zhōu Gōng and Confucius 21
After Dù Yù: Reception and Rejection of the Direct
Commentary Passages 25
Perceptions of the Direct Commentary’s Place in
Zuǒ Tradition Composition History 28
General and Specific Remarks: Nomenclature 32
Formal Description of the Direct Commentary Passages 35
Chapter 2
The Ritual Filter and the Centrality of Lǔ 41
Reporting and Recording 43
The Centrality of the Lǔ Ruler 52
Tardiness 55
“Avoiding the ugly” 59
The Ritual Filter: Rules, Ritual Deficiencies, and Criticism 61
viii | Contents
Chapter 3
Hierarchy, Criticism, and Commendation: Recognizing Merit
and Assigning Fault 65
Rank, Hierarchy, and Prestige 66
Criticism and Assignment of Fault 72
Commendation and Honor 82
“Subtle words conveying praise and blame” Revisited 85
Chapter 4
Two Ways of Teaching the Spring and Autumn: The Sources
of the Direct Commentaries 89
Before Interlinear Commentaries 89
Thematic Clustering and the Source of the Specific
Remarks 93
The “Fifty Generalizations” 101
Teaching and Commentary: Texts for Teaching Texts 115
Chapter 5
Other Approaches to Commentary in the Zuǒ Tradition:
The Gentleman and Confucius 121
The Remarks of the “Gentleman” and “Confucius” versus
the Direct Commentary 122
Introducing Ambiguity: Composite Passages and
Conflations 130
A Commentarial Essay: Merging Approaches to History 136
“Only the Sage could have revised it” 141
From Ritual Prescriptions to Praise and Blame 144
Chapter 6
Incomplete Correspondences and the Likelihood of Mediated
Contact: The Relation of the Direct Commentaries to
Gōngyáng and Gǔliáng 147
The Direct Commentaries as Later Interpolations? 148
Comparison of Corresponding Gōngyáng, Gǔliáng and
Direct Commentary Remarks 150
Formulaic Expressions, Complexity, and Specificity 165
Approaches to Commentary: Teaching Texts and Teaching
about Texts 169
Contents | ix
Chapter 7
From Recording Rules to Written Text: Conceptual Antecedents
to Gōngyáng and Gǔliáng in the Direct Commentaries 175
Rules of Exclusion Pertaining to Records: Omitted Events
and Exceptional Records 177
Rules of Exclusion and Omission of Details: Names, Dates,
and Locations 181
The Special Status of Lǔ: Implicit Assumptions versus
Overt Recognition 187
Hidden Messages and the Language of Praise and Blame 192
Conclusions: The Commentarial Transformation of the
Spring and Autumn 198
Epilogue
From Zhōu Gōng to Confucius: Textual Creation Myths
Forgotten and Replaced 205
Appendix
Summaries and Topical Lists of the Direct Commentary Passages 215
Summaries: Specific Remarks 216
Summaries: General Remarks 237
Topical Lists of Direct Commentary Passages 245
Notes 251
Bibliography 305
Index 321