The influential Shen Z was the leader of Wujiang School, and had a great influence on the opera circle at that time. In view of the phenomena of showing off learning, using allusions and unfamiliar rules in legendary creation, Shen Z put forward the ideas of "legal harmony" and "inhumanity", and took "Thirteen Tunes of Nanjiugong" as the norm. Wujiang Opera Troupe, headed by Shen Z, and Linchuan Opera Troupe, Tang Xianzu, who advocated talent, had a difficult debate on various issues of opera creation for a period of time.
Nanjiugong Qupu (hereinafter referred to as Nanqupu) is a collection of traditional tunes of Nanjiu Gong based on Jiang Xiao's Thirteen Tunes, with detailed format, laws and intonation. There are many other works by Shen Z, such as On Six Words, Dang Ge, and Wu Bian of Zheng, which no longer exist today. The legendary Xiao Bo Ji is accompanied by the famous essay Erlang Shen. In this paper, the importance of "acting according to the tune" and "the poet should act and the singer should keep the tune" is briefly explained in popular language. According to Wang Jide's Qulv, Shen Zusan even advocated "obeying laws without pains". Shen Z's theory of temperament is of positive significance to correct the shortcomings of off-key and off-stage in legendary creation, which has a considerable impact. However, Shen Z's temperament theory is inevitably too trivial, which is easy to bind the author's talent.
Shen Z's thought of "telling the truth and being true" is helpful to correct the decadent wind. However, his understanding of "true colors" is limited to "Mo Le household words", which is one-sided; He praised the "sense of the times" of the language of Yuan Zaju, but he only pondered a few words, which was quite superficial.
There are 17 kinds of legends written by Shen Z, which are collectively called "The Legend of Yutang". There are 7 kinds of legends: Redmi's story, the story of two fish, Fu Tao's story, a kind of love (that is, the story of falling hairpin), the story of burying sword, the story of chivalrous man and the story of Xiao Bo.
The Story of Red Spice is Shen Z's first work. In the book, literati Zheng and Cui Xizhou met Wei Chuyun, the daughter of a salt merchant, on a boat trip near Dongting Lake, and presented red swallows, red silk and red notes respectively. After many twists and turns, they became husband and wife. There are no old-fashioned talents and beauties in the content, and the artistic techniques are also related to the coincidental illness. This play has two characteristics: strictly observing rules and carving words. The former is the embodiment of Shen Z's thought of "legal harmony", while the latter does not conform to Shen Z's later thought about the authenticity of language, so Shen Z is not satisfied. At that time, people had different views on Peng Hong's story. Wang Jide attached great importance to the strict observance of melody. He said, "Words are legendary, and it should be called" red "as the first word." However, Xu Fuzhuo believes that "he is always detained by law, so he is no longer tactful." Poetry and four or six sentences are used freely in the play, and the names of medicines, songs, five elements, five colors, eight tones and eight songs are refreshing. It shows that Shen Z's early creation was also influenced by the beautiful atmosphere.
From The Story of Pisces and A Kind of Love, we can see the change of Shen's works from parallel to natural language style. The Water Margin drama Chivalrous The Last Month Of Summer is the representative work of Shen Z after he changed Qing Li's style. From Song Wu's farewell to Chai Jin, the story includes fighting tigers, killing sisters-in-law, crossing slopes, happy forests, Feiyunpu, Yuanyang Building and casting Liangshan until Song Wu and Song Jiang embraced each other on an equal footing. The basic plot is consistent with the story of Song Wu in the novel Water Margin. The fourth drama "Kill the Fierce" to the eighteenth drama "Snow Hate" describes the process of Song Wu from killing tigers to killing Ximen Qing, which is a wonderful part of the whole drama. The author sympathizes with Song Wu's many victims and helplessness, praises him for revenging his brother, and tries to portray Song Wu's face from this aspect. In the play, Shen Z emphasizes that the purpose of the party is "loyalty" and waiting for "peace". It is put forward that subjects should abide by the creed of "loyalty and filial piety" and "faithfulness", and the master should be able to "not abandon people". This is the embodiment of Shen Z's ideal of "peaceful politics" in the play, and it is also the main theme of the heroes.
In Shen Z's works, there are quite a lot of propaganda on feudal ethics and morality, and there are also many fatalistic thoughts. "Burying Sword" is based on Niu Su's Biography of Wu Baoan in Tang Dynasty, which describes the close friendship between Guo Feiqing, a scholar, and Wu Youren, aiming at promoting the feudal ethical principle of "reaching the truth and ethics, and always being new". Redmi's story, Fu Tao's story, a kind of love and Pisces' story are all permeated with fatalism of life and death and marriage.
Xiao Boji is special in system. It consists of ten stories, and each story has a discount of 30% to 40%. Although the author draws materials from the perspective of "absurdity", there are also some short plays that reflect certain social reality, such as Sleeping with Zuoxian, which satirizes the fatuity of officials who are sleepy all day, and Sleeping with Zuoxian, which exposes the hypocrisy of Buddhism.
On the whole, Shen Z's achievements in Qu Xue are greater than his creative achievements, and there is also a gap between his theory of Qu Xue and his creative practice. Ling criticized his works from the beginning, "being cautious about the law and lacking talents, but knowing that it is not appropriate to use actual expression." He wants to be the head of the family, but he can't, but he can't ... "("Tan Qu Zaza ") is harsh, but it is to the point.
Shen Zusan, the "Leader of Qutan" in Ming Dynasty
Today, anyone who knows a little about the history of literature knows Tang Xianzu's name. But in the drama circle in the middle of Ming Dynasty, Tang Xianzu's name may not have another name-Shen Z-ring. Shen Z's name can be seen everywhere in the existing opera works after the middle of Ming Dynasty, and his works are praised. His theoretical views are often quoted. Some people praised him for his legendary "indispensable contribution to rejuvenating the country" in the Ming Dynasty, while others called him "the leader of the theater". He and his works are always arranged on the right side of Tang Xianzu. All these show that he had a great influence at that time.
From juvenile Jinshi to abandoning officials and returning to Li
In the thirty-second year of Jiajing (1553), Shen Z was born in Wujiang County, not far from Suzhou City. Wujiang county, also called Songling town, is close to the beautiful Taihu Lake. The canals flow outside the city, and the rivers crisscross, showing the beauty of the water town everywhere. Shen Z's father, Shen Kan, has been down-to-earth in the examination room for many years, but he has no chance to become famous. His son is naturally his hope. Maybe just to give him a chance, Shen Z is very motivated to learn. 2 1 year-old took the rural examination in Yingtian and won the17th session. At the age of 22, he took part in the senior high school entrance examination, ranked third, took the second place in the imperial court, and successfully became a juvenile scholar.
Shen Z has successively served in the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Official Affairs, and his official position has also been promoted from the principal to Yuan Wailang. However, at the age of 34, his career suffered a setback: Emperor Wanli loved Zheng Guifei, delayed the establishment of a crown prince, and did not give the title to Wang Gongfei, who gave birth to the prince. Some courtiers were afraid that the emperor would do something against etiquette. They remonstrated and demanded the title of Prince. Shen Z also gave the emperor a piece of cake, which angered the emperor, was demoted to the second level, and was ordered to leave the capital and go back to his hometown to do business.
1582, in the tenth year of Wanli in Ming Dynasty, Shen Z was transferred to the seal inspection department of the official department as Yuan Wailang. Shen Z began to learn from 1574 and worked as an official in Beijing for 8 years. He has changed several departments and held several positions.
After winning a scholar, he first became an apprentice in the Ministry of War. Soon after, he was officially appointed as the head of the staff department. The Ministry of War is mainly responsible for military and political affairs, maps, expeditions, town defense and other affairs, so it is necessary to have a good understanding of the military situation throughout the country. Although Shen Z was successful as a teenager, he did not show arrogance, but worked very hard for the Ming Dynasty. In order to get familiar with the affairs as soon as possible, Shen Z copied the names of some important frontier fortresses and guarding generals one by one and put them in his coat pocket for future reference and memory. Sometimes, when the subordinates are looking for the resume of the general officer, when they are very busy, they go forward and ask the name, think for a while, and then blurt it out. Its familiarity amazed subordinates.
Because of his efforts, at the age of 27 in 1579, he was transferred to the Ministry of Ritual and promoted to Yuan Wailang. As the busiest department in the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Rites is responsible for issuing sacrificial ceremonies, distinguishing clan seals and fixing crowns, and its affairs are very complicated. Shen Z didn't slack off, but did it himself. He even does small things such as filing and recording of Zongfan, and never rashly lets ordinary people handle it. Once, an elderly small official tried to pick up a document and proofread it. As a result, he was speechless and backed out.
158 1 year, 29-year-old Shen z was transferred to the official department as Ji Xun's foreign minister. The following year, he was transferred to the examination section of the official department as foreign minister. No matter which department he goes to, he is loyal to his duties as always. Mr. yuan wailang of the printing inspection department is the official position in charge of the inspection officer. Always pay attention to the visit and look for recommended talents everywhere.
During Shen Z's tenure, a great event happened in the imperial court. Emperor Wanli's queen had no prince, but was born in the tenth year of Wanli, and Zhu was born in the fourteenth year of Wanli. However, the emperor doted on Zheng Guifei, delayed the establishment of the Crown Prince, and did not give him the title of the eldest son Wang Gongfei. Some courtiers, led by assistant minister Shen Shixing, were worried that the emperor would do something against etiquette, so they protested one after another, demanding that Zhu Changluo become a prince and Wang Gongfei become an imperial concubine.
As an official of the imperial court, Shen Z thought about the future of the country and did not stay out of it. 1586 February, he also gave the emperor a favor and agreed to Shen Shixing's request. He called on the emperor to "write a big book, elaborate rituals, consolidate the national pulse" and "clear Wang Gongfei's name". So, he angered the emperor and was demoted by three levels, from Yuan Wailang to Zheng, the secretary of the People's Bank of China, and sent him back to his hometown of Wujiang, actually kicking him out of the capital with dignity. This is the first setback in Shen Z's career.
Fortunately, this setback did not last long. A year later, Emperor Wanli read Shen Z as a loyal minister, and he was reused. He obtained the provincial examination in Shuntian and was appointed as the invigilator, who was in charge of invigilation. In August of the following year, he was promoted to Zhengqing of Guanglu Temple, in charge of court sacrifices, banquets, meals, reserve fund maintenance and the position of cashier. Not only was he a fierce doctor, but he was also a trusted minister of the emperor.
At this time, Shen Zan, the eldest brother of Shen Z, was the top student in high school this year and served as the director of Jiangxi Department of Nanjing Criminal Department. Shen Can, his younger brother, was admitted to Wujieyuan, Zhejiang, and was appointed as the head of China Army under Taitouying.
The three rising stars "Z", "Jun" and "Neng" of Shen Shi aristocratic family shine brilliantly and complement each other, and their father's wish has come true.
From hand-holding to drama addiction
After experiencing various risks in his career, Shen Z has become indifferent to politics. After returning to his hometown, he decided to live in isolation and cover up the sun. He wrote the word "Jason Wu, the head of the water tune": "Everything is enough, and the sun and the moon are from west to east. In the infinite universe, people are like rice grains in a warehouse. A ge is getting old in autumn, and a bowl and a bottle all day long is the hometown style. Another glass of wine, I dreamed of the big Huai Palace. ..... "He will be a free and reclusive man.
Living in the countryside, he became interested in the opera activities in his hometown. Suzhou is known as the hometown of song and dance, so is Wujiang County. There are many opera performances here, including family performances and folk performances. The former is like Gu Dadian, "the family has business", "or making a new sound, for orchestral" (Pan's Songling Literature, Volume 9); There are many folk performances, either commercial performances by professional class clubs or drama activities during festivals. Suzhou is singing opera every day and singing every night. Under the artistic influence of this "hometown of singing and dancing", Shen Z embarked on the road of opera creation and research.
Shen Z began to engage in opera activities only with Gu Dadian, who was also a retired official. Their situation is the same. They "sing in harmony, people in the city admire their romantic feelings, and prostitutes are mostly built from the voice of two men" (ibid.). Li Hong said in the preface to Shen Z's Thirteen Tunes of South Jiugong: Shen Z "has always been Levin's companion, going in and out of wine clubs, smelling good things, and everyone is reconciled." Not only that, he also made his debut. According to his student and friend Lu Tiancheng, in Qupin, "His understanding of melody is wonderful, and he debuted with his brother and sister;" Elegant words, when recruiting monks and prostitutes to drink "; Wang Jide, his friend, said in the Qulv that he was "addicted to words, talking about songs and analyzing songs all his life, and kept silent all day". From these records, we can see Shen Z's obsession with traditional Chinese opera. It can be seen that it is no accident that Shen Z has made great achievements in the creation and research of traditional Chinese opera.
In the study of the history of classical literature and drama in recent 40 years, the dispute between Tang and Shen is a hot spot. Indeed, there are obvious differences between Tang Xianzu and Shen Z in their artistic views, but how do we evaluate their respective artistic views? I'm afraid we should also put them in a specific historical environment for dialectical analysis. Judging from the role of literature in society, Tang Xianzu put forward the distinction between "emotion" and "reason", and put forward the proposition that "emotion will win", while Shen Z devoted himself to the discussion of the inherent laws of traditional Chinese opera art. In fact, the emphasis of their creation was really different. Tang Xianzu not only wrote operas, but also wrote poems and songs, and wrote many letters to discuss society, life and thoughts with friends. Shen Z's achievements are mainly opera. As far as drama is concerned, Shen Z is far ahead of Tang Xianzu in number. He created 16 kinds of legends belonging to Yutang, and was the most prolific writer in Ming Dynasty. He has written many works, such as Thirteen Tunes of Nanjiugong, Edited by Zunzhi Wu Zhi, Singing Like a Companion, On Six Poems, Selected Rhymes of Nanci, Selected Rhymes of Bates, etc. To put it simply, Shen Z's contribution to the art of traditional Chinese opera lies in his vigorous advocacy of "songs on the field" and his own creative practice.
At the beginning of Yuan Dynasty, there were a large number of dramatists living in the market, who were familiar with the stage rules of Washe Goulan opera performance. Therefore, the zaju they created is both literary and in line with the rules of the stage, and it is a "song on the field". However, in the early Ming Dynasty, intellectuals were able to obtain high-ranking officials and generous salaries through the imperial examination system, and the number of opera writers dropped sharply. Some bureaucratic literati who get their hands on traditional Chinese opera are far away from the practice of traditional Chinese opera stage, and their works become "desk works". Their words are elegant and elegant, lacking drama, and it is difficult to perform on the stage. Under this specific historical condition, Shen Z took the lead in advocating "Song on the Field". After careful study, he put forward a theory that is conducive to the traditional Chinese opera to get out of the "desk" performance.
Shen Z's drama theory includes two aspects: metrical theory and natural theory. In fact, these two aspects are closely linked and inseparable. First of all, the metrical theory starts with the inherent law of traditional Chinese opera art, which requires that traditional Chinese opera can be performed in various fields. China's traditional opera has its own unique laws, and the creation of music is one of its important laws. China's traditional drama is different from western drama. The latter is a playwright who writes lyrics, and a musician composes music, while the traditional opera in China has no link of musicians composing music. It connects writers and actors through a certain tune. A playwright writes lyrics according to the rules of a certain tune, and an actor sings according to the rules of a certain tune. Melody is a bridge between the writer's creation and the actor's singing. Therefore, the playwright must be familiar with Qupai and create in strict accordance with the specific rules of Qupai, so that the actors can sing smoothly and achieve the expected artistic effect. The music of Yuan Zaju was developed on the basis of Zhu Gong tune, and a whole set of Gongdiao Qupai system was formed in the long-term artistic practice, so writers and actors can cooperate well. However, the legend of Ming Dynasty was developed from Nanxi Opera, and the music of Nanxi Opera came from folk village tunes, which has not yet formed a complete system of Gongdiao Qupai. Legendary writers in the early Ming Dynasty were far away from the stage practice and did not understand the rhythm of Qupai writing, which led to the disconnection between their works and the stage singing. In addition, although Kunshan dialect is popular, it is also an urgent problem to sum up the qupai meter for this new dialect and let more playwrights create it. Therefore, Shen Z carefully studied the melody of Qupai, compiled "Thirteen Melody of Nanjiugong", summarized the legend of Nanxi and the melody of Kunqu Opera, and provided an example for the playwright's creation. He has also compiled some works on music, such as Understanding in Singing, On Six Words, Following the Rules, Correctly Editing Wu, etc., and discussed and discriminated the specific problems of writers' creation and actors' singing. In a word, it is the essence of Shen Z's metrical theory to demand that "poets should obey the rules and singers should keep their mouths shut" (for Shen Z's divertimento, see Xiao Bo Ji, an apocalyptic engraving). Secondly, the theory of true colors not only requires the drama to be performed on the stage, but also makes the audience understand it. Shen Z did not unilaterally emphasize all aspects of opera singing, but emphasized the language of opera, which is easy to understand. He even criticized his "The Story of Redmi" for being too beautiful. He highly praised the language of Southern Opera in Song and Yuan Dynasties, precisely because it originated from the people, has a strong flavor of folk life, is popular and simple, and is simple in Gu Zhuo. Therefore, the theory of natural color proves from the opposite side that the metrical theory requires drama to be performed on the field, and the theory of natural color itself has positive significance in opposing the elegant language of "desk work", and its direction is still to require drama to be a "song on the field".
Shen Z not only advocates "music on the field", but also strives to practice this concept in his creative practice. His existing works really conform to the rhythm of Qupai and popular language, which makes his works performable. In addition, he also tried to make his works "songs on the field" from more aspects. For example, he began to pursue the twists and turns of the plot and strive to make his works more dramatic; He began to pay attention to shortening the structure of the legend. Ji is a model in this respect. It has only 28 scripts, and its structure is extremely short in The Legend of Ming History. Moreover, Shen Z also tried to express eleven short stories in these 28 plays. Together, they are a legend, but they can perform alone. This attempt was the first in the late Ming Dynasty.
Not just the leader of Wujiang School.
Many works after 1949 believe that there were two or three schools of opera creation in the middle of Ming Dynasty, among which "Wujiang School" was all, and Shen Z was the representative or leader of "Wujiang School". We can combine the specific reality of the development of traditional Chinese opera in the middle of Ming Dynasty to see Shen Z's contribution and position in it.
As an advocate and practitioner of "Song on the Field", the problems that Shen Z actually touched were the key problems to be solved urgently in the development of Ming legends. If the legend of Ming Dynasty does not move from "desk" to "field", it will inevitably die out. Therefore, this is also the concern of most legendary writers. Shen Z advocated "Song on the Field", which was not only discussed in theory, but also actively practiced in his creation and won a large number of respondents. With their joint efforts, they reversed the tendency of "desk song" in legendary creation in Ming Dynasty, and formed a new situation in which legendary creation and performance flourished after the middle of Ming Dynasty. Therefore, Wang Jide praised Shen Zusan very much, saying that he was "an indispensable figure in the success of ZTE" in Qu Law of Ming History. Because of this, it is the vast majority of writers in the mid-Ming Dynasty who admire and follow him, not a few people who are classified as "Wujiang School" today. Lu Tiancheng, Bu Chen Shi, Feng Menglong and others, such as Mao Yisui and Shen Chongsui, also praised Shen Z; Although Ling Mengchu criticized Shen Z's creation, he did not deny his theoretical contribution. Xu Fuzhuo, who has never been classified as "Wujiang School", also praised Shen Z's metrical theory, saying that it is "Jiao Ran's guide car, and we will follow it, but we will not lose our ears!" (Qu Lun) At the same time, he inherited Shen Z's theory of true colors, and advocated that "the legendary body should be heard by the palace ladies?" However, I am happy and afraid. If I just show off my knowledge, I don't know why I'm talking. Why not play the piano for the donkey? " (ditto) Even Tang Xianzu, who is contrary to Shen Z's artistic view, is in agreement with Shen Z in reality. He was dissatisfied with Shen Z because he adapted his Peony Pavilion into love love love, but he didn't completely deny Shen Z's theory. In his creative practice, he also felt that his unfamiliarity with the melody of Qupai was a defect. It is worth pointing out that although Shen Z had an influence on most dramatists in the middle of Ming Dynasty, his own theory was not complete and there were still some shortcomings, which were criticized and supplemented by his followers. Together with Shen Z, they completed the theoretical preparation and advocacy of Ming legends from "desk" to "field", thus promoting the prosperity of Ming legends. Shen Z is not only the leader of Wujiang School, but also the first scholar of Ming Dynasty.