Prefaceby C. H.
Brewitt-Taylor and Snow N. Snow. |
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Sun Ce was so formidable. After having Zhou Yu, he laid the foundation of his great design by a cluster of successful battles. Shown here: Sun Ce
combats with Taishi Ci (who has two darts on his back). |
The San Guo
(Three Kingdoms) is distinctly eastern, a book adapted for the storytellers;
once can almost hear them. It abounds in names and genealogies, which seem
never to tire the readers or listeners.
Japanese, Thai,
Korean, Vietnamese, Malay, Indonesian, and possible other versions of the San
Guo have been made, and now to these I have attempted to add one in
English. With what measure of success I leave to curious readers qualified to
compare my rendering with the original.
In conclusion, I
wish to put on record my gratitude to Mr. Chen Ti Tsen, who typed the text, and
Mr. E. Manico Gull, who has read the proofs.
C. H. Brewitt-Taylor
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Romance of Three
Kingdoms
gives us a world of versatility in full scale---a rolling panorama of human
passions and ambitions. What makes the book fascinating is its wide appeal to
many kinds of readers. In Asia, children read the book like they do with fairy
tales, whereas politicians embrace it for strategies, scholars wisdoms, parents
guidelines, everyday people entertainment. A Korean saying goes: "You can
discuss life after reading Romance of Three Kingdoms." And the most
famous Chinese commentator, Mao Zonggang, who lived in the 17th century at the
start the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), had chosen "Seven Beautiful
Books", and he ranked Romance of Three Kingdoms the first among
them.
Several reasons can
be explained here on why the historical novel has such a large group of fans.
Romance of Three
Kingdoms is
based closely on historical events (7 parts of facts and 3 parts of fiction);
it is considered a mainstream history work, not a product of pure imagination
or fabrication. Hence, it is extraordinary by itself, because history is the
best storyteller.
But, one may ask,
China with its rich and widespread civilization has produced many historical
novels, why is Romance of Three Kingdoms the first masterpiece among
them all?
First, the strife
for mastery over the empire in the Three Kingdoms period is the most
outstanding struggle. Never before has the world seen so many talents appearing
in one same era; a large number of them are important figures who have left
permanent impressions in several fields such as military, politics, literature,
morality, and pop culture; their names are mentioned in numerous records.
Second, the author
of the book is one of the most talented novelists China has ever had. Writing a
novel with a main theme is much more difficult than writing the annals. In the
annals, each topic is dealt with separately; but in Romance of Three
Kingdoms, arranging a huge amount of details into a continuous epic, and
the epic being consistent and captivating, is the author's greatest
achievement.
According to
tradition, Luo Guanzhong is the author of the modern edition of the book. Born
at the beginning of the 14th century, he was a scholar in the Ming Dynasty
(1368-1644), but did not take office. Instead he traveled throughout with the
tittle "The Man of All Lakes and Seas". Some three hundred years
after Luo Guanzhong, Mao Zhonggang edited the original work and made popular
the new edition. This English translation is based on the Mao edition, which is
also the most widely read edition in China and Asia.
But the birth of the
book can be traced back to the Jin dynasty (265-316 AD). Chen Shou was believed
to be the first to pen Romance of Three Kingdoms. He was an official in
Shu-Han court, and later worked for Jin as historian after Shu-Han's
submission. This first edition had 61 chapters---26 stories of Wei, 15 stories
of Shu, and 20 stories of Wu. A century after Chen Shou, Emperor Wen of the
Liu-Song dynasty commissioned Pei Songzhi to edit the work. Pei Songzhi
collected a great amount of tales and historical facts and added them to the
book, and this new edition of 65 chapters became mainstream history source for
the Three Kingdoms period. The book went through various minor changes and
inventions, until Luo Guanzhong combined the many sources and rewrote the
masterpiece that gave birth to the Mao edition, which has been handed down
until today.
Not only does Romance
of Three Kingdoms has a rich history in the making, but indeed is it
picturesque in contents. Its concepts and execution exact human notions of what
are beautiful. Reading it is like contemplating clouds passing through
mountains or storms pouring down the forest, the moon glowing in autumn or
flowers blooming in spring. The evolution of all elements is infinite.
Sometimes, the writing is as serene as a shooting star; other times, it is as
rousing as tidal waves or earthquakes.
Romance of Three
Kingdoms is
cherished also due to its perfect cause-and-effect technique. Before a storm,
thunders must be heard; after it, cold air can be felt. Every detail is traced
to its origin and projected beyond its conclusion; one thing leads to another,
so the various focuses relate to each other, making the main theme whole. The
author did not merely record events, but he helped explain them in a style that
all readers love.
Tradition has
several guidelines for reading the masterpiece. To avid fans of history, being
able to identify who had a legitimate claim to the empire is essential. But
opinions vary and are subject to changing beliefs. Some agree with the ancient,
whereas others have their own conclusions. As the result, this online edition
of Romance of Three Kingdoms tries to give the readers as much
information as possible, so that they can judge for themselves.
However, we
encourage the readers to do a few things before reading the novel. First, take
a look at the small and big maps of ancient China. Being familiar to the maps
is important for appreciating the many military campaigns in the book. Second,
you can warm up by reading the outlines of Chinese history from mythology to
Three Kingdoms. This section of about 60 pages will acquaint you to the ancient
society and its customs and thoughts.
After that, readers
can choose either to read the lecture of Dr. Rafe de Crespigny about Three
Kingdoms, or begin to read the book. The lecture of Dr. Rafe de Crespigny
(about 30 pages) is the most informative writing about Romance of Three
Kingdoms on the Internet. It will give you a complete understanding of old
society in the Three Kingdoms period. This commentary can also serve as a
perfect afterword. The main book has 120 chapters (about 1,400 pages).
Having finished the
book, readers can enjoy the many other writings about Romance of Three
Kingdoms in the Discussion section. You can also enjoy the wisdom of war
strategy through a reading of The Art of War by Suntzu (or Sunzi), a
13-chapter treatise of military methods, famous for its brevity and wide
applications.
With all these
writings, we believe you will come to understand and appreciate the First
Masterpiece.
The online Romance
of Three Kingdoms is the collaboration of many people. We want to thank
them all for their contributions in writings, ideas, energy, and resources.
Special thanks to:
?Christopher
G. Parent, Ellen Xue, Kathryn Goodell, Jonathan P. Voth, Ma Teng, Oliver
Pierce, Corey Quilliam, Brian Swift, Richard Yip, and Nuttasit Boonplang for
your shaping the directions and other contributions;
?George Koo, Rafe
de Crespigny, Li Ung Bing, Yan Zhang, Peter Konieczny, Bu Ching, Timothy
Chiang, and Ryan Youngsaye for your writing contributions.
?Joseph Whiteside,
Yin Yang, Khue Nguyen, Budihardjo Budi, Gloria Wu, Kyle Ishida, CJ Sephiro,
Shou Tsurugi, Steven Prabowo, Roy Padgett, and Stanley Hendoro for your editing
and design supports;
?Sangdo Ha and the
"World of Computer" radio program (Voice of America) for sending free
the book on floppy disks to readers around the world, who do not have Internet
access.
Snow N. Snow
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