Among them, the most striking is the two important heroines Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai in the book. What is their image and status in Cao Xueqin's works?
Therefore, redologists or readers who usually like A Dream of Red Mansions probably have three attitudes, that is, praising Lin and belittling Xue, praising Xue and belittling Lin, and saying that Lin and Xue coexist.
In the first eighty novels, did Cao Xueqin describe Lin Daiyu positively, or belittled Xue Baochai, or just the opposite? I think the third view seems more objective and fair.
To prove this point, let's discuss Lin Daiyu first. In the whole book, the importance of Lin Daiyu should be beyond doubt. Without the love story of Lin Daiyu and Baoyu, there would be no Dream of Red Mansions. Therefore, Cao Xueqin, the figure of Lin Daiyu, is full of sympathy and depicts it very carefully. In any case, this image of Lin Daiyu was written by Cao Xueqin without any contempt.
Where is Xue Baochai? Is her appearance in A Dream of Red Mansions a villain?
I think Cao Xueqin's purpose in shaping Xue Baochai is not to write her as a disgusting character. On the contrary, Xue Baochai is just another typical woman who is different from Lin Daiyu. The author described her objectively, without deliberately praising or belittling her.
There are two important evidences that Lin School belittles Xue. One of them is the 27th episode in A Dream of Red Mansions. Xue Baochai didn't want to eavesdrop on Xiaohong's whispers that she and Jia Yun were entangled. In order to cover up her unnecessary arrival, Xue Baochai said that Cao Xueqin, the author, was demoted when Xiao Hong and others found herself, indicating that Miss Lin was there before, not herself.
This passage was finally accepted by people, so people thought that Xue Baochai was so hypocritical. She put the pot on Miss Lin's back, making Xiaohong and others' paranoia turn to others, but she was smart enough to get rid of the relationship.
Actually, I don't think it really makes any sense. Psychologically, an orthodox woman like Xue Baochai will inevitably be surprised and anxious when she hears Xiaohong's heart, and she doesn't want others to find out that she knows about it. Baochai is a clever and capable girl in the Grand View Garden. Just think about the words she used to deal with when she was in a hurry, which can only show that she was resourceful and cleverly avoided an embarrassing face. As for pointing out that miss Lin is here, it's just looking for someone to tell a lie. I think the description of this plot really perfects Xue Baochai's character of being good at dealing with complicated situations. Cao Xueqin doesn't really belittle Xue here.
Another important evidence that the "forest protection faction" belittled Xue was what Baochai said to Mrs. Wang after her maid jumped into a well and killed herself.
People think that this shows that Xue Baochai despises the low-ranking servant girl and wants to please Mrs. Wang, hoping to eventually become Baoyu's blessing.
When analyzing this passage, we should first pay attention to what kind of situation and psychology the speaker is in. After Chai Jin's death, Mrs. Wang did have some regrets and regrets, which were reflected in her writing. Therefore, as a junior and a guest of the Jia family (try not to talk about whether she really knows what happened), Xue Baochai's natural reaction at this time is to try her best to persuade Mrs. Wang not to hurt herself for this matter and do some comfort. To understand this layer, Xue Baochai's words are normal. In order to comfort people, what can you say to a girl who was slapped by her master and threw herself into the well? I'm afraid I can only think that her death is too worthless and a bit silly.
And in order to comfort people, what can you say to Mrs. Wang who blames herself? I'm afraid I can only persuade Mrs. Wang to give more money to the family of the deceased Chai Jin to eliminate some guilt.
Therefore, Cao Xueqin's description of Xue Baochai is not to belittle her at all, but to show Xue Baochai's good interpersonal character. And this is what Lin Daiyu lacks. Why is Xue Baochai in front of Mrs. Wang and not Lin Daiyu in the same thing? Even if Lin Daiyu comes, she will probably only cry with Mrs. Wang and never say what Baochai said. Everyone's personality is different, and there are differences between what they say and what they do, but you can't judge who is superior or inferior by this, so it can be used as evidence of praise or criticism.
Of course, some people will ask, in the love game between Baoyu, Daiyu and Baochai in A Dream of Red Mansions, doesn't the author Cao Xueqin have any attitude deviation?
No, on the contrary, Cao Xueqin's works have a clear attitude. Baoyu really only loves Daiyu, and her temperament is the same. The author's description of this is also the most wonderful part of this book.
But for Xue Baochai, the author does not use derogatory writing, but objectively describes her beauty, generosity and moral standards. What readers should seriously understand is that her behavior often appears in front of the ruling class of Jia family, such as Mrs. Jia, Mrs. Wang and Wang Xifeng, which virtually shows that she will win their favor in the end. Lin Daiyu is just in Xiaoxiang Pavilion, immersed in the deep pool of love with Baoyu, but she doesn't know how tragic the final outcome will be.
But how much of the final tragedy was caused by Xue Baochai? This tragedy is actually caused by the destruction of free love by feudal family ethics. Baoyu and Daiyu are victims, but Baochai is not. Therefore, whether it is praising Lin and belittling Xue, or praising Xue and belittling Lin, it has its extreme side.
If we can start with the psychological activities of the characters, we can see the problem more comprehensively and study the characters in Cao Xueqin's works more thoroughly.
On Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai
In A Dream of Red Mansions, the most pitiful are Xue Baochai and Lin Daiyu. Xue Baochai, a famous daughter-in-law, failed to capture Baoyu's heart in the end, so she had to stay alone in an empty boudoir after Baoyu became a monk. Lin Daiyu flew to the sky with a longing for love and deep nostalgia and resentment for Baoyu, and she didn't understand why Baoyu didn't marry her until she died.
Since their fates are so similar, let's put aside secular prejudice and compare their personalities.
Xue Baochai moved into Jiafu later than Lin Daiyu, and Lin Daiyu's granddaughter is also related. There is no need to say much about intimacy. However, after Xue Baochai moved into Jiafu, Jiafu gradually found (even more obviously) that Baochai was approachable, gentle and modest, while Daiyu had a bad temper and was difficult to wait on. Grandmother Jia even regarded her and Baoyu as "little friends". Daiyu was jealous of Baochai, mainly because Baochai had an immortal gold collar and a psychic Baoyu named "immortal Heng Chang", and Baochai was highly praised by the Jia family.
Although Daiyu gradually realized that Baoyu was infatuated with her, she was not used to vanity fair like Baoyu, nor did she understand Baoyu's oath of "I will become a monk when you die", but she was very annoyed. Daiyu's love for Baoyu is persistent, revealing and faithful. Wang Xifeng even teased her that she was a "future Jia daughter-in-law", so it seems that her love with Baoyu is well known. But she is still not at ease, and she will never be at ease until she is affirmed by the supreme ruler Shi Taijun. She doesn't allow Jia Baoyu to have any affection for other women, and she is skeptical about all kinds of legends. First, Baochai and Baoyu's theory of gold and jade, and then Xiangyun and Baoyu's jade match, these legends are always bothering her, and she can't take it out on Baoyu. Although she hopes Baoyu won't mind these legends, it seems that she cares most about herself. When Dai Yu first entered Jiafu, she vowed to be careful not to be teased by others. However, the way she takes is either to tease others first or to be too defensive. When Shi Xiangyun was inarticulate, he laughed and said that he would marry a "love brother" in the future. But when Shi Xiangyun laughed that she was similar to the player, she couldn't stand it. In her deepest self-pity, nobody is allowed to make fun of her. In this way, she took pity on herself.
Daiyu has only two thoughts in her life, one is Baoyu and the other is poetry. Daiyu and Baochai are equally gifted in writing because of their good feudal education. However, their attitudes towards women's study of literature are quite different. Daiyu's only wish is fame and fortune, and she should go all out to write a poem. It can be seen that the reason why Daiyu didn't want to enjoy herself was that Jia Fei had too few topics when she visited her mother, and how comfortable it was to monopolize the first prize of Chrysanthemum with "Singing Chrysanthemum", "Asking Chrysanthemum" and "Chrysanthemum Dream". Baochai, on the other hand, thinks that women are virtuous and have no talent. With this idea, how she sings poetry is just talk. Therefore, Daiyu's attitude and style towards women's literature is much more positive than Baochai's. This is reflected in her tireless teaching of Xiangling, which led Xiangling to build a generation of famous artists such as Wang Moshu and Li Qinglian, and her subsequent reconstruction of Taohuawu. It can be said that Lin Daiyu has been studying all her life, which is not allowed by feudal forces. They don't need a wife who can write and write well. From this point of view, Baoyu and Daiyu seem to be complete rebels, but it is a pity that their lifelong events still depend on the decision of Jia Mu, that is to say, they are dependent on feudal forces, so they become too ignorant of practice. They are both eager for feudal power and unwilling to be honest and obedient.
So, how did Xue Baochai win the praise of the Jia family and finally become the daughter-in-law of the Jia family? When Baochai met Baoyu, she knew where her lifelong destination was, but she didn't show it on her face, but she was doing the right forbearance. To be fair, Xue Baochai is indeed more in line with the requirements of Jia Mu and others. She is gentle, virtuous and knowledgeable. From her, we can see not only her boudoir image as a feudal woman, but also her immortal face as a talented woman. From persuading Daiyu to read serious books and not to change her temperament, to advising her brother Xue Pan not to run amok, and then to assisting Guo Rongfu, we can realize that Xue Baochai is indeed a insightful girl.
Generally speaking, Bao Dai and Bao Dai are usually understood as typical rebels. In fact, Baochai once wrote such a poem to satirize the current dynasty:
You love children's voices and raise your hand, and Chang' an looks forward to Chongyang.
There is no latitude and longitude in the road ahead, and the skin is black and yellow in spring and autumn.
Laugh at the darkness and greed of officials. Nevertheless, we don't seem to have seen her say anything extreme. She knew that her strength was not enough to give the world a fatal blow, so she found a suitable intermediary between resistance and tolerance. Is she smarter than Baodi?
Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai all broke up in the end. Baoyu became a monk, Daiyu died of grief, and Baochai was widowed. Have become victims of feudal ethics. Although Baoyu loves Daiyu to death, Daiyu will not die after all. Even if Baoyu does not merge with Baochai, it will inevitably lead to the end of marrying her. After all, their strength is too small, and they always want to be recognized by feudal forces, so they can only survive. The feudal forces finally won, and there were predictions among the twelve women in Jinling. In the end, the feudal literati couldn't let go of the fantasy of the rulers and the maintenance of feudal forces, and cruelly ended the struggle of the three of them with their own pens, thus making the whole dream empty.